Is it more maddening to have no book at all to escape into or a book that’s as enjoyable to read as a trip to the dentist?
My available reading time is short. So short that I don’t want to waste a minute of it being disappointed in my choice of a read.
The times I’ve picked a book by its cover and description only to be foiled by enticing pictures and beguiling descriptions are over. I finally have an infallible system that gets it right every time.
It’s fast (but not faster than a speeding bullet). It’s easy (Easier than pie for sure).
Here’s how:
Obviously, the cover and title have to grab your attention and pique your curiosity
Read the description. Is it the right length for you? Not too wordy; not too scant; Intriguing…
Read some reviews, but don’t let the reviewers decide your next read. Reviewers are human, too. You don’t know what kind of a moment they were having when they wrote the review.
Does the author speak to you? Read a sample. There are several ways to get a peek inside the book (like Amazon’s Look Inside feature) or get a feel for the writer’s style to be sure of a comfy fit.
Take another moment, or two, to check out the author’s website. Do the covers and titles appeal to you? What’s their mission? Is there more information on the story? Like… why they wrote it?
If you like to nestle in with characters and visit them through a series… Is there a quick-read freebie or low-cost prequel available?
Consider the Sally the Loner Mysterious Misadventure Series. Through this blog, I feature a book in the series. And I offer a deal on an eBook. Like this:
What could be worse than getting shipped off to an Alzheimer’s Care Center where nobody will listen instead of to the broken hip rehab center?
How about:
Becoming marooned in a city park when a monsoon storm struck?
Get mugged of your taxi fare when you escape?
Be kidnapped by your rescuer?
All while in hip replacement pain and getting around with a walker.
Meet Joan Freed’s 87-year-old spunky Aunt Sally and her sidekick they call the Sourdough Kid.
The mystery is not who dunnit, but how did Sally get into this mire of errors? And how will she slog out of them? Or does she?
But if you were to check out Sally the Loner’s webpage, you’d see that there is a prequel novelette to the series available. And you can grab it as a free eBook download if you do one of these two things:
Click the picture caption on the website for a free download
If you like to give your opinion – sign up with storyorigin.com as a reviewer.
The prequel looks like this:
Under the dingy, tattered overalls and threadbare red flannel shirt. Within the gray head that sports a wash-n-wear perky haircut. And inside the barn boots covering two pair of fluffy socks lives a little old lady who is a magnet of mysterious misadventures.
Her name is Sally Newton-Forester. She is better known as Sally the Loner.
These are her stories.
And while we’re on the subject…
If you’re an author in search of reviewers, give storyorigin.com a spin. You’ll be glad you did.
Just released and raring to slide right into your eReader!
Bones of Contention: Sally the Loner Mysterious Misadventure — Book 15
Click the pic for more purchase options
When mysterious Brother Gabriel arrives on a Harley with an unusual interest in Sally’s property and its abundant rabbits, Sally feels a creeping sense of unease.
His offers to buy her place multiply daily. With each day’s reason making the puzzle even more convoluted.
Sally’s village of mystery solvers reassemble to unravel the secrets and save Sally and Rodney from the threats lurking behind the monk’s robes while she takes on a hopscotching body…
Will Sally and Rodney stand their ground and protect their home or will they succumb to the allure of Brother Gabriel’s persuasion and leave everything behind? Or is this the time Sally winds up in the hoosegow?
What better way to wrap up your day than with a light, quirky tale from a scrappy little old lady?
The icing on the cake?
You can grab the eBook immediately direct from the author for only 99 cents through the button below.
Without cliff hangers and red herrings, a story is hard to read. It’s like a 25-word sentence with no punctuation. Dry as a bone and B-o-r-i-n-g.
Cliff hangers and red herrings are also called writing prompts and plot twists. They move you, the writer, to fill in the blanks. Authors (or characters in my case) use them at the end of chapters to keep the reader turning the page to the next chapter. Sally the Loner’s Rodney is especially good at red herrings.
So, what, really is a cliffhanger? It’s a gripping unanswered question. And a red herring? A diversion to draw the reader’s attention away from the matter at hand.
Here’s some examples of cliff hangers and red herrings:
She stepped in a rabbit hole and kept going… down, down, down… (Oh no. Is her name Alice?)
The box was open. She pulled back the peanuts to peer inside – and promptly fainted.
Your protagonist is an old school preacher’s wife. A package arrives welcoming her to the erotica of the month club with three back issues enclosed.
Building a recipe box of cliff hangers and red herrings to have when you need it is only a good habit to get into.
Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction; memoirs or family history; work in cliff hangers and red herrings. They build suspense, pique curiosity, and hold the reader’s attention. Although I don’t know that cliff hangers and red herrings have a rightful place in a technical publication.
So, speaking of red herrings… what the heck does Sourdough have to do with cliff hangers and red herrings?
Absolutely nothing – except for the gripping unanswered question when you’re baking with sourdough.
I mentioned Sourdough because this blog’s super deal is Sally the Loner’s Book 6, The Sourdough Bakeoff. You can get the eBook today for 99 cents – that’s less than $1 according to my calculations. And it’s only available direct from the author through the link below.
The rules state contestants must be 18-years-old. Bobby is 12 years old, going on 32.
His father has vanished. His mother is rehabbing after being run over by a boulder.
Winning this contest will provide cash for her surgeries, him at home instead of in foster care, and them off the welfare rolls.
What’s a boy to do?
Can Sally and Bobby bend the rules and win the contest without getting caught?
What could go wrong?
Rating: 5 out of 5
Review:
Entertaining clean, cozy mystery. I can’t wait to read the rest of the books in the series. Glad the recipes were included from the cook-off! I may try them someday…. from Jean D.
“How do you know what to write about?” Is the prevailing question.
And the prevailing answer to that question is, “I don’t.”
I don’t know what will pique the curiosity of the multitudes. Myself is the only person I know that well. Therefore, I write about what rouses my own desire to snoop or participate.
Here’s how it goes… generally:
When I’m nearing the end of a story – say 2/3 or ¾ of the way through – the little voice in my head starts to niggle with this question. “What’s the next book about?”
As I get closer to the wrap-up, the niggle becomes a nag and then a panic if the seed of an idea hasn’t sprouted before I’m into the current work-in-progress epilogue.
I can’t speak for other authors. I can only share with you how the next book becomes a reality for me.
Here’s what happens:
I start with a question. A ‘What if’ question. In the case of ‘The Tangled Tails of Spaghettio’, the ‘What if’ question was, “What if Sally gets attacked by something every time she steps away from the house?”
Where does the ‘What if’ question come from?” I never know. It’s literally a surprise when I hear or read something and the lightbulb explodes.
Again, using ‘The Tangled Tails of Spaghettio’, it was a statement from my frustrated friend. She simply said to me, ‘I get pelted with ice crystals every time I step away from the house!’
TaDa! A cozy mysterious misadventure novella is a work in progress.
The antagonistic ice turned into a crazy cat because the multitudes like to read about cats. And how does a cat get crazy except by catching a smidge of a spell cast by a 194-year-old practicing witch?
Are you catching my drift?
In summary, to decide what to write about:
Put your ears on to the statements, chirps, and squawks around you.
Turn an emotion-filled statement into a ‘What if’ question.
Invite a passel of lively characters to the plotting party.
Write the story that you can’t wait to read or listen to.
Is your curiosity piqued about ‘The Tangled Tails of Spaghettio’?
Here it is – along with a link and a code to buy the eBook now for 99 cents.
Prepare for a thrilling ride as Sally finds herself in a tangled web of feline intrigue!
Outside the door of her quaint little igloo in the desert, she encounters the most unexpected visitor – an orange tabby cat like no other.
Meet Spaghettio, the mischievous cat with an agenda that keeps Sally on her toes. As the cat’s relentless pursuit chases her back into the safety of her home, Sally’s world transforms into a captivating mystery.
With a name as delightful as his appearance, Spaghettio becomes Sally’s reluctant captor, asserting dominance over her every move. But why? Where did this enigmatic feline come from, and why is it determined to keep Sally confined?
Amidst the chaos of Rodney’s hilarious mishaps with his bionic arm and wheelchair, Sally finds herself entangled in a web of bizarre circumstances. With both mankin and cat unleashing havoc, our courageous 87-year-old protagonist must rise to the challenge.
Can she uncover the truth behind this demented cat and unravel the insanity gripping her world? Will she be able to save Rodney from the clutches of his malfunctioning arm?
Hold on tight as you dive into this uproarious adventure filled with unexpected twists and turns. Join Sally as she untangles the mysterious cat’s origins and confronts the mysteries that lurk beyond her very own doorstep.
Prepare yourself for a rollercoaster of laughter, mystery, and heartwarming moments in this charming tale that will keep you eagerly turning the pages.
It’s not the infamous writer’s block. Neither is it brain-burnout or a blank page staring back at me. It’s simply a control issue.
When the conversation doesn’t come bubbling out or the scene is flat and boring, I blame the characters. But the real problem is me. I’m trying to control the characters instead of letting them play it out while I tend to the mechanics of it all.
The mechanics that make the book a readable page-turner. Mechanics like:
Are their actions logical?
Is their information sharing accurate?
How’s their grammar? Is it concise and acceptable?
Is it clear who’s talking?
Are they rambling on and need to put a sock in it?
Here’s an example of me trying to control the characters. It happened to me just last week.
My current work-in-progress – ‘The Goat that Wasn’t – A Baa-d Mystery’ – was becoming dry-as-dust. Oh, there was lots of mystery. There has to be anytime a strange goat comes bombing into your house and takes over… But halfway through the story there still were no bad guys!
No antagonists jumped in to stir the pot and raise more havoc than a presumptuous goat. No bodies appeared. Sally hadn’t whomped anyone with her walking stick. Nobody was holding anybody hostage. It was a story of all good guys!
Huh?
I’d plucked the characters from my own well-cultivated garden and added a few weeds with beautiful flowers. Why aren’t they performing well and thriving? They seemed to be all greens and no fruit.
I feared book 12 in the Sally the Loner series with an attention-grabbing title and 2 covers to choose from were going to fizzle and die before ever leaping out of the computer and into the world of readers.
After three days of worrying it, I practiced my own preachings.
‘Get out of the way and let the characters write the story. It’s their tale to tell.’
I did. They did. And coming soon is ‘The Goat that Wasn’t – A Baa-d Mystery’. Watch for it. But first…
I need your help… Sally and the gang are keeping mum.
With two covers vying for first place, I’m boggled. Which one grabs your curiosity first? Please cast your vote for Cover 1 or Cover 2. Thank you, thank you.
Click the pic to vote for COVER 1
Click the pic to vote for COVER 2
On that note; Take this lesson to heart in your own writing endeavors to let the characters do the storytelling. You’re just there for the mechanics. And the covers. And the description. And the…
But while you’re waiting for the debut of ‘The Goat that Wasn’t – a Baa-d Mystery’, you might also like to get acquainted with these characters…
Family friendly… For young and old… Something for everybody… Including a single question poll. I need your input.
What would you do if you were visiting a cemetery and found a grave marker with your missing father’s name on it… from about a hundred years ago?
Mary Linn and Valinda are off and running again in their pursuit of helping others gain closure for their loved ones. But this time, the closure is for both Mary Linn and Valinda when the marker is discovered but the remains have been stolen. And the two girls witness it from their tent!
Because Valinda goes missing, the questions multiply and the tension heats up.
How will Mary Linn, Lonnie, and Valinda make it through the fire alive this time? Will Mary Linn find her father and get the answers she’s been seeking forever? Will Mary Linn and Lonnie finally succumb to…?
Family friendly… For young and old… Something for everybody… Including a single question poll. I need your input.
What would you do if you were visiting a cemetery and found a grave marker with your missing father’s name on it… from about a hundred years ago?
Mary Linn and Valinda are off and running again in their pursuit of helping others gain closure for their loved ones. But this time, the closure is for both Mary Linn and Valinda when the marker is discovered but the remains have been stolen. And the two girls witness it from their tent!
Because Valinda goes missing, the questions multiply and the tension heats up.
How will Mary Linn, Lonnie, and Valinda make it through the fire alive this time? Will Mary Linn find her father and get the answers she’s been seeking forever? Will Mary Linn and Lonnie finally succumb to…?
Attention Readers! Try Reviewing and Get Complimentary Books from Authors!
What if the author of the book you just read and yourself met at a crossroads. You have 1-minute to say what you think of the story you just read.
What would you say to the author about the story?
Would you say:
5-Stars! A great story that flowed like a babbling brook dotted with rapids! Rich, lively characters. You pulled me right into the middle of every turn and twist in the stream. I recommend it for a fun and interesting journey to escape into.
Or (heaven forbid) would you say:
1-Star. The misspells threw barricades at every turn. The plot was muddled. The characters snoozed more than they moved. I recommend it for a writing class editing and proofreading project.
So, what reader doesn’t have an important opinion of the story they just read? And isn’t the review the crossroads where the reader and the writer come together?
This post is two-fold. Two-fold because what author isn’t also a reader?
But for clarification, I’ll separate the reader and writer specific sections.
As a reader you will learn:
How important your opinion is
What a book review is and how to write it quick and easy
A place to download gratis copies of books to read and review
As an author you will learn:
How important reviews are
How to get your books reviewed
A place to sign-up to get your book reviews posted on major sites like Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookbub and Goodreads.
Let’s get started.
But first, You as a Reader
Your opinion
Your opinion of a book is a powerful tool for both readers and authors. Prospective readers want to know your thoughts before they buy it for themselves or as a gift for another.
They want to know if the characters are lively and memorable; if the story flows; and if you enjoyed the journey.
How many stars do you give it? Would you recommend the book?
Future readers and the writers both learn from your evaluation.
And here’s the great news! Your evaluation does not have to be as monstrous as a book manuscript. Simply say with a few well-chosen words what you liked (or didn’t like) about the book.
Think succinct empathy.
What a book review is and how to write it fast and easy
If the characters are lively and memorable; if the story flows; and if you enjoyed the journey.
How many stars do you give it? Would you recommend the book?
You could add if you recommend it to a specific group of readers.
Search engines scrape up about 168 million ways to write a book review. All the same, but completely different. It’s all relative.
I, as a prospective reader and an author, want to know if the characters are lively and memorable; if the story flows; and if you enjoyed the journey.
And even more important, how many stars do you give it? Would you recommend the book?
If you approach writing a review by simply addressing the above concerns, I believe you’ve earned the giveaway aspect of the agreement. At least for me and my offerings. And I thank you for your input.
Where to sign-up to snag gratis Review Copies of books
Of the 21 million listings on Bing, I chose one to get you started. It’s the one I use for my own works after sifting through about 20 million of the listings.
My goto affiliate is Story Origin. The platform is easy to navigate. You can choose categories and tags to narrow down, peruse and select from. The instant download to your e-reader device is fast and easy. I like it.
As a matter of fact, I recently uploaded a free novelette that is a prequel to the Sally the Loner Series. Here’s where you can instantly download ‘Come for Coffee with Sally’ and get the skinny on how the series came to be.
If you like old people who speak their mind and cozy mysterious misadventures, you’ll get a kick out of Sally’s (87-years-old) antics.
Reviews make all the difference in a book’s success. No reviews screams failure to get noticed. Talk about feeling invisible…
But how to make it quick and easy to, at least, get stars clicked is an overwhelming ongoing challenge.
This writer gets lots of 5-star feedback. People relate to and enjoy my writings. Especially the characters that insist on writing the stories without me to referee. But the reviews are verbal or by email. Verbal reviews provide the oomph to keep me turning out fun, interesting, and provocative reading materials. Thank you. Thank you. Read these reviews on my alexielinnauthor.com website.
But verbal reviews do not guide worldwide prospective readers at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookbub, Goodreads, etc.
It’s the reviews that direct this writer to keep going or to sharpen weak prose and characters… to make the read more fun, flowing and attention grabbing. And I’m willing to give away my book to get a reviewer’s honest, well addressed opinion. And to have it posted where interested readers can see it. It’s that simple.
How to find reviewers
As a reader, I’m as bad at going back to the distributor to leave a review as the next guy. After I’ve paid for a book, I read it, form my opinion, and move on. I don’t ignore the request for a review… I just don’t seem to get it done. How to get over this hump of procrastination?
Go to where the people who review books in exchange for a gratis copy are. That’s what they’ve signed up for. Downloading an eBook, reading it, and posting a review to specific sites.
A place to find reviewers
One place to post your books for reviewers to find and review is Story Origin. It works. Not always overnight, but it works. You’ll see action on your book faster than molasses running uphill in January and you’ll get reviews. Here’s the guide to how it works.
The site is easy to navigate and relatively easy to follow-thru with posting and getting your works out into the world. Evan, the site operator, has both written and videoed tutorials to help you get the job done. And he responds fast to help emails. Thank you, Evan. Click here for a no-nonsense guide to email marketing.
Crowd promotion is what I see, affiliate with, and now participate in. I’m forced out of my recluse writing frame of mind to spend time and energy spreading the word on my own works as well as other’s.
In summary, reviewing books is an honorable side hustle that benefits both readers and authors. Be entertained while you crack your whip with love and empathy.
How to Write and Publish Your Book in a Month – or Less
Did I fall and bump my head? Doesn’t it take months and years to finally sniff the ink and feel the pages of your baby?
It can. But it doesn’t have to. You hold the keys to that brand new car. That means you’re the boss. Do you want to park it in the garage and sit in it occasionally? Or take it out for a spin and let the world ooh and ahh at it?
It’s your choice.
I choose to share my fiction and nonfiction babies with the world. And I choose to share with you how I do it. If you need proof… give my method a shot and see for yourself. Ready? Set? GO!
Much of the project to publish a book a month is done…
Granted, much of the general work has been done in my head before I sit down to write. But like the fuel used to buzz around town in the car, that time doesn’t count. The general work that doesn’t use fuel or punch the timeclock is:
The what if that the story is about
The setting – the where this story takes place
The very rough outline of how it will unfold and play out
The characters that raise their hand and have a story to tell
What if the paperwork got mixed up at the hospital-to-rehab center loading dock? And you landed at the Alzheimer’s Care Center instead of rehab…with no cellphone?
In metro Phoenix, Arizona and the middle of nowhere desert
What will Sally do? Who will listen? Who are her antagonists? Who will help? How will Sally escape both the center and the city?
Characters will include caregivers, antagonists, and sidekicks.
It’s a cozy mystery and adventure – or misadventure
And need 30,000 or more words for a fast read, feel good novella
Set up the files to publish a book a month
Given the above parameters, I sit down at the computer. I begin with setting up a ‘Sally the Loner Meets the Sourdough Kid’ folder. Within the folder I ready these files:
Manuscript
Cast of Characters
Description
I’ll set-up additional publication files when the manuscript is finalized.
Any characters who made appearances previously are copied and dropped into the Cast of Characters file for continuity. This is where a Master File of Characters comes in handy. And here is the program I use to create and maintain my Master File of Characters. I’m so pleased with the Plottr app that I have affiliated with the company to make it easier for you to ferret out. Click on this Plottr link to see for yourself and to buy me a cup of coffee if you decide it will work great for you, too.
Select the Characters
But back to the Cast of Characters for this book.
One is Joan Freed, the rebel life coach niece of Sally. Another is Jenny Crawford, Joan’s sidekick friend with her trusty six-gun. And Jenny’s polka dot rescue Chihuahua, Patches, and so on…
Write the Description
I begin with writing the description. It will change, I guarantee, but the description steers through the conglomeration of events to stay roughly on track.
It’s time to dive into the manuscript.
Next comes the story…
First the front matter, leaving the dedication blank until the book is complete. Also inserting pagination and headers because I’ve been known to forget that detail. It’s embarrassing.
If I write 2,000 words a day – 1-2 chapters – the draft will be ready to cool for the first edit in two weeks. I use the minimum 3-day cool down time to create a cover and prepare promotional materials.
Now the Edits…
After the first edit, I get right to the grammar and readability edit with Hemingway. There are several other options for grammar and readability like Grammarly and ProWriter. But I find Hemingway to be the simplest and most streamlined for me.
I copy and paste the manuscript one chapter at a time into Hemingway; make any changes to the manuscript itself, not the chapter being scrutinized in Hemingway; and proceed with the next chapter. I’m not reading the story. I’m looking for hard-to-read sentences and overuse of adverbs or passive words.
An important note about editor apps!
Your editor app may not alert you to missing quotes. And definitely will not flag muddied speakers names. Be sure to clarify who is speaking! Dialogue without identifying who is speaking is confusing.
I once pulled down a book to rewrite and republish as a new and different book because of a 3-star review that was caused by missing quotes and unclear speakers. The reviewer liked the story but found it difficult to read.
The third and final edit – the one that I approach from a fresh reader’s eyes – comes after another cooling off period.
When all the Edits are complete…
Rewrite the description
Fill in the dedication
Add the backmatter
Format the print file
Upload the eBook and print files to Amazon and D2D
Finished! You’ve proven you can publish a book a month.
Voila! Finished within a month! Rinse and repeat for the magical experience of achievement.
But just one more thing…
Yes, there is still work to be done. Work like creating the narrator version and so on. But that’s fodder for another post. I declare this one done!
As always, email me here with your questions and pleasant thoughts.
In the meantime, get going on your baby! Daylight’s burnin’!
If you’re Running out of inspiration, here’s how to get a quick and easy refill.
The Symptoms of Inspiration Leaking
You feel it. You hear the tire slowly deflating but you don’t have a spare to yank out, crank on and get on down the road. That’s the miserable sound of inspiration oozing. It is warning you to stop overworking it and take action to keep your prose running smoothly.
Then there’s the inspiration leaking characters
Does it feel like your characters act like they’re all taking a long winter’s nap at the same moment. But it’s not winter! How will you wake them up? More inspiration oozing.
Here’s how to stop the outflow.
First, identify what’s causing the inspiration to drain.
Where’s the leak? Is it:
Lazy writing – it just lays there, refusing to dance
No interaction – Needs outside input
Mind-boggle – Too many distractions or demands to focus on your character’s needs
It is NOT Writer’s Block!
There are those that label the malady Writer’s Block. But blockage requires enemas. And, sometimes, trips to the hospital. On top of that, blockage requires lots of manual labor to get through, around, or over.
These are all negative factors in a productive life. In my opinion, that is.
But stop! Don’t make it harder than it is. I’m all about DIY positive fixes if it’s at all possible.
And here’s 6 ways of how to tell the inspiration attendant to fill-er-up.
Self-talk
Jot down, read, and repeat a mini mantra that goes something like this:
‘I am driven to write lively, entertaining prose from quirky, memorable characters. I listen to the characters. I hear the characters. I encourage their individuality to take over the story’.
Make it as long or short as you like. And in your words.
Just say what you want to do. And blame it all on the characters.
What-if game changer
Play the ‘What-if’ game with your characters.
What-if Superman came flying overhead and crash-landed in your pool? Would that be a topic of conversation? Do ya’ think?
Sally the Loner plays this game all the time. And what characters she meets up with! Even a kidnapping Big-foot and a man-size doll that worries about his designer shoes.
It’s fiction. Anything can happen. Encourage it. There’s always editing if its superfluous.
Throw a wrench into the works with a new character
If Superman crash-landing in your pool isn’t a wrench with a memorable personality, I don’t know what is. Do you?
Read the headlines
A few minutes ago, when inspiration to write this piece was deflating, a headline caught my eye.
It was about a solar powered water desalination plant that might fit right into the Second Chance Ranch scenario. The ranch that might become a spin-off of the Sally the Loner series.
What headline can wake up at least one of your characters?
Grab an inspirational quote
Is one of your characters a wise old guru? Will an inspirational quote fit right in to your dedication for the story? And fill up your inspiration tank at the same time?
Here’s one I like…
“Life is about accepting the challenges along the way, choosing to keep moving forward, and savoring the journey.” ―Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
If all else fails
Give the problem to an AI (artificial intelligence) app. That action and result is sure to get you throwing down the gauntlet to beat it at its own game. Isn’t it?
Refill Your Inspiration Summary
When you find yourself leaking inspiration, take action to plug the leak, refill the tank and get typing again.
Running out of inspiration is just that. Your tank (or tire) is frightfully low. You can make it to the air pump if you act fast. Before it fizzles to flat or that last fume is gone.
Are you re-inspired yet? Keep filling until you are. You can do it.
Cheers!
P.S. Grab a look-see at Sally the Loner. She’s an inspiration in her own right… or is it write?
You may also like…
And here’s TWO… Count them TWO Giveaways you should know about…
Alexie Linn, the Author, and Homespun Rebel 