What Do You Look For In A Book?

Happy Friday readers!

Today's post is about what you look for when you read a book.

You hear it all the time, fiction is subjective. Some people might like a good suspense novel, where the protag is trying to track down a killer and at the same time is being hunted by them. Others like a little bit of romance, hello all of you twihards, that drool everytime you think of Edward or Jacob. Some may even prefer a quirky comedic novel that gives you a bout of the uncontrollable giggles.

Or you can be like me and love a little bit of everything.

But honestly, I find that the most important thing I look for when reading a good book is an underlying message. A little piece of the book that stays with me weeks or months after I have put it down. That little piece of the book that haunts you, in my opinion, separates the good books from the bad ones.

But what makes a book bad?

Here's where I baffle you again. Nothing. I'm sure you've heard the saying: One person's trash is another person's treasure. I may read a book and love it where another person may read that same book and hate it or vice versa.

That's the beauty of having an opinion. And that's makes each one of us unique. Personally, I think every single one of us liked all of the same things, the world would be a pretty boring place.

What are your thoughts?

Have a good weekend and Happy Memorial Day!

Cheers!

A Modern Take On An Epic Romance!

Hey Readers!

How many of you have heard about the epic, tragic romance of Tristan & Isolde? Personally it's one of my favorites, aside from Romeo and Juliet. But..... The story of Tristan & Isolde was actually born centuries before Juliet ever took that first step on her balcony in Verona.

Isolde was an Irish Princess who nursed the wounded British Soldier Tristan back to health when he wound up washed up on a beach in Ireland. The two fell in love and ended having to keep their romance a secret because Isolde was won by Tristan in a battle for her.... but not for him. Tristan won Isolde for Lord Mark.

They begin a forbidden whirlwind romance and usually forbidden whirlwind romances end badly. And in Tristan & Isolde's case that is definitely true.

But I was extremely excited to learn of a new book that have given this medieval legend a modern day approach. This week's book of the week is... Tris & Izzie...

A modern day retelling of the German Fairytale, Tristan and Isolde, Tris & Izzie is about a young witch named Izzie, who is dating Mark King, the captain of the basketball team and thinks her life is going swimmingly well. Until--she makes a love potion for her best friend Brangane and ends up taking it herself accidentally, and then ends up falling in love with Tristan, the new guy at school.(summary from goodreads)

I don't know about you guys, but I'm hoping that this version has a happy ending. And I can't wait to read it!

Cheers!

Freedom Friday....

Hello! Readers!

On every other Friday, from now on, I'm going to be having a recurring post called Freedom Friday. What's Freedom Friday? Well, Ill tell you.

Let's face it, we all get frusterated every now and then. Especially those of use that live in literary land. The world of writing can be brutal and I don't know about you, but sometimes I just need to let out all of that built up frustration.

That's what Freedom Friday's are going to be about. One day. Vent as much as you want.

Is there a specific page you have been editing to death that you just can't get out of your mind?

A glitch in your storyline that you are trying to re work?

Is there a specific scene that's bothering you?

Let it out!

Have a good weekend!

Cheers!

The Darkest Time Of Night....Midnight

To begin this post, I just need to say that I adore L.J. Smith. Her Vampire Diaries series had me tearing through page after page, eventually going through the whole series in a matter of days. And also, I love the fact that she writes strong female characters. (in my opinion, most books need alot more of them).


Midnight is the third and final book written by L.J. in the Vampire Diaires series which makes my heart break. The series will be continued on starting with Phantom but apparently will be written by a ghostwriter.


The devil you know...



With the help of charming and devious Damon, Elena rescued her vampire love, Stefan from the depths of the Dark Dimension. But neither brother returned unscathed. Stefan is weak from his long imprisonment and needs more blood than Elena alone can give him, while a strange magic has turned Damon into a human. Savage and desperate, Damon will do anything to become a vampire again, even travel back to hell.



But what will happen when he accidentally takes Bonnie with him?



Stefan and Elena hurry to rescue their innocent friend from the Dark Dimension, leaving Matt and Meredith to save their hometown from the dangerous spirits that have taken hold of Fell's Church.


One by one, children are succumbing to demonic designs. But Matt and Meredith soon discover that the source of evil is darker and closer than they ever could have imagined. (summary from goodreads)


For me, this book started out kinda slow. But, I kept on reading. And the more I read, the more I dove into the story. There was so much going on! Between Bonnie and Damon in the Dark Dimension to Matt and Meredith and the chaos going on in Fell's Church. And it wasn't until about 100 pages to the end that my breath caught my lungs and I honestly thought about chucking the book at the wall.


You see, I'm one of those people who gets extremely involved in the books I read. I feel for the characters and really try to put myself in their shoes. Unfortunately, that leaves me feeling wayyy too attached. So when something catastrophic happens,(and something catastophic usually happens in good books) it leaves me devastated and I have to persuade myself to finish the book.


And in this case, I'm so glad I did. Not everything is always lost. At the end of Midnight, there was glimmer of hope, that left me with a cheeky grin spread wide across my face. So in the end, I have to say that this book was a great one.


On another note, I personally am not a Stelena fan. I know alot of people out there are but for me it's always been Delena. I guess I'm a sucker for the bad boys. And I'm not going to tell you which one Elena chooses but just be prepared. In this book, anything is possible.



If you get a chance, read this book! It's a fang bangin' good time!


Cheers!

Don't Pick Your Manuscript To Death....

Don't pick your manuscript to death... What do I mean by that?

I think a lot of writers are guilty of over editing... I am more than anybody. I pick and pick and pick at my manuscripts. Then, I freak out when I send it off because I find ten mistakes after it has already been sent.

Here's what I have to say about that. Yes, the writing world is extremely competitive. And yes, there are dozens of people out there that have manuscripts that gleam perfection. But are there still mistakes in them? Yes. You know why? Because we're human. We are not robots. We do make mistakes. Every single one of us.

Mostly, I just encourage you to get your manuscript in the best possible shape it can be in. Don't sit there and pick and pick and pick, because 9 times out of 10, even if you sit there and pick it apart, there are still going to be mistakes in it. Does that make you a bad writer? Not at all. It makes you a human being.

Think about how many books you purchase a year. I'm not going even dive into my number but... I will say that I have a very large bookshelf that is overflowing. And I don't know about you, but I always look for mistakes in books I purchase. And believe me, every book has some.Why do I do this? Because it reminds me that person that edited the book is human too and they make mistakes just like I do.

Cheers!

When The Going Gets Tough.....

The statement that not every book sells is no myth.

Some writers think that once you secure your agent, its all gravy baby and you are going to sell your book right away. WRONG!

While some do, there are still others that don't. Today, I'm going to provide you with a ful helpful tips that will prepare you for the next step in your journey down writing road.

1. After you've obtained your agent, work on other projects besides the one that's going out on subs. Who knows where the market is going to go? You have to be prepared and remember that your current project might not sell.

2.Don't take it out on your agent. You hear it often, the horror stories where the agent/author relationship ends badly. I'm not just saying this because I'm an agent myself. I'm looking at it from my writer's POV. Fiction is subjective, whether you are pitching to agents, editors, pub company's etc. In all honesty, if your book doesn't sell it's neither your fault or the agents.

3.Chalk it up as experience. Thats one of my mother's famous one liners. So you had a book that didn't sell, big deal. Write another one.

Hope this helps!

Have a good weekend!

Cheers!

A Holy....Dead...Reckoning

Happy Wednesday, writers and readers!

Now, I'm sure alot of you are familiar with hit HBO series True Blood. Personally, it's one of my favorite shows and I cannot wait until June 26 when the fourth season returns. But.... let's not forget that without the fabulous Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, this show would cease to exsist.

I love the Sookie Stackhouse series! I've read every single book in it! (sometimes more than once) And this week's book of the week is none other than the next book in the series, Dead Reckoning.

With her knack for being in trouble's way, Sookie witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte's, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is now known to be two-natured, suspicion falls immediatlyon the anti-shifters in the area. But Sookie suspects otherwise and she and Sam work together to uncover the culprit - and the twisted motive for the attack. But her attention is divided. Though she can't read vampires, Sookie knows her lover Eric Northman and his child Pam well - and realizes they are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, she is drawn into the plot - which is much more complicated than she knows. Caught up in the politics of vampire world, Sookie will learn that she is as much of a pawn as any ordinary human - and that there is a new Queen on the board. (summary from goodreads)

I dunno, it sounds like things are getting crazy in Bon Temps. And what about Bill? Personally, I like Bill, but that tall, blonde viking is higher up on my list.

Who do you prefer?

Eric or Bill?

Cheers!