Thursday, July 5, 2012

One Story-Three endings

I have been working on this one young adult book for over a year now. One thing slowing me down is that I have three ideas of how to end it, but I don't know which one I like best. The first is kind of spiritual in nature and leaves readers with a warm fuzzy feeling. The second leaves the reader hanging, mysterious, and one the reader can decide who they think a certain character is. The third is a creepy, kinda of a twist ending. None of which where in my head when I began writing the book. So, what do I do?

My daughter suggested writing all three endings and before the last chapter write if like a spiritual ending go to page # and so on for each ending, but I'm not sure if this would work. Would young adult readers like to read a book that contains alternate endings? I'm kind of intrigued by the idea, but not sure if any publisher would be interested, but there is always self-publishing it as a Kindle book.

Until I decide how to end the book, I cannot finish it. But, I must figure something out soon, because I'd really love to finish this book.

In this book, Hobo, Caleb is the main character and a kind of soft-hearted good kid, and his best friend, Mark, is a troublemaker, and gets Caleb in trouble at times.  The story takes place in the mid-70s and begins when a derelict makes a home under a bridge and Mark talks Caleb into going down to the bridge and spy on the Hobo. While there, the boys have an encounter with him, which ends up with Mark throwing a branch at the homeless man and hitting him in the head. Later that night, Caleb returns with bandages, aspirin and food  and finds the Hobo is not scary at all, but  a man with amnesia. He vows to find out who Hobo is and reunite him with his family. The ending changes depending on what Caleb discovers about this mysterious hobo.

I guess the best way to do this is write all three endings and ask my review group which they like best. You never now, once I get them all written, I may decide that one is better than the other two. :)

Happy Reading!

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

The Success of a Book Is Written in the Stars!

The stars that go along with book reviews, that is, or so most authors believe.  I'm not doubting that a book needs reviews to get noticed and be successful. What I am debating is how much that stars actually play a role in a book's success.

Personally, if I want to watch a movie or read a book, I do it, even if it doesn't have a high rating, and many times I actually like the book or movie. So, I wonder do others go by ratings and decide what to read or not to read-- just by other peoples' opinions-- or do they rebel and read it anyway?  Like me.

I personally do not like books about vampires, and I do not like the Twilight movies or books. A lot of other people do, I know, but I'm sure some people would agree and some would think I'm nuts. ( My kids love it, by the way.) So, there is no way I can be persuaded by good reviews to read the books or watch the movies for this series.

There has been a lot of drama lately over reviews, because it seems anything under 4 stars is unacceptable to most authors. But, I find a book with all 5 star reviews suspect, and I'll tell you why. Rarely, if ever, is there something that the masses agree on and can rally around, including books and movies. There will always be a difference of opinion on books, movies, art or just about anything.

When I see a book that doesn't have at least a few not-so-good reviews, I secretly think all the reviews are from friends, family or someone else who has a vested interest in this author. I'm not saying a book can't have a majority of good reviews; I am saying there will always be someone who does not like a certain plot, characters, the writing or whatever else they may find fault with, and these people let everyone know.

Now, I did the same thing as most authors do when they get their first 1 star review. I let it get to me, but that is not the way to handle it. I think authors have to remember that not everyone will like their work and when they send it out to the masses, there will be some people who just do not like it for whatever reason.

Switching gears a bit. Sometimes a lot of bad reviews can also make a book popular. I think it is because people are curious by nature and want to see for themselves if the book is really that bad. So, can the stars work both ways?

I do have one rating pet peeve. When someone rates a book with 1 star and leaves no comments or review. This makes me wonder if the person really read the book or are they just having a bad day and want to take it out on someone else. It doesn't make sense to me to do so.

I think I'll stick with my own method of choosing books. I will read what interests me, not because someone else liked it or didn't like it.  I will judge for myself.

Happy Reading!

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Hello...Yes, it's me. Mrs-always-behind

I swear I always end up behind, so I guess that means I try to do too many things at once, huh? I just get high on excitement and think I'm superwriter/book reviewer. :) No, really. I do need  make use of that do list idea I had way back in January.

 I wanted to get the third book in the Hairington series, I'm Not a Tangle, out this summer, but guess what, it is not gonna happen. I haven't even started on the illustrations.

I wanted to get "Metamorphosis" on Kindle by July 1st. Umm...That was days ago.

I have read several books that I need to write reviews for, but it's not happening either. 

I have several works in progress, and I want to finish them all asap. :o

But...I have to work, so this cuts down on my time for writing. I do a great deal of ghost writing during the week to pay the bills and this leaves little time for my fiction writing, reading and review writing-- not to mention blog writing.

So, how do I get caught up? I think I need a little notebook to make a list of things I need to do in order of importance. I did this while I was in college and it worked for keeping me on track then, so I'm going to try it.

Okay now for some news.

I am participating in Mysti Parker's 20,000 hit giveaway on her blog Unwritten next month, so stop by and check out all the books you can win. I will be giving away 3 PDF copies of Tales from Imagination's Closet, 3 PDF or Kindle copies of "Ally Ally Oxen Free, " and 3 copies of Flashes of Fiction: Volume 1.  I will post more information as August 1st draws near.

I am continuing my work on the new and improved Fictitious Magazine. I wanted to have it ready by August 1st, but as I said earlier, I am always running behind, so I am now aiming for September 15th.  Wish me luck!

Happy Reading!