Kellyn Roth's Blog: Kellyn Roth, Author, page 59

More on The Lady of the Vineyard

In a post last Monday, I told you that I’m going to publish The Lady of the Vineyard on September 10th of this year. Well, that’s still holds true, and today I’ll be sharing a brief excerpt plus me rambling about my novella a little … which will happen, knowing me.

First, the excerpt!

An Excerpt from Chapter Four

    “I like France,” Judy commented from behind a large box of chocolates.

“I’m glad,” Troy replied. The cab stopped in front of a small boarding house that looked tiny next to the huge, grand hotels they had passed on the way. Troy jumped out and reached back for Judy and the chocolates and Marilou.

“Where are we?” Judy inquired, examining the weathered-gray building with interest.

“This is the home of my dear friends, Monsieur and Madame Lecroix.”

“Why are we here?”

“I always stay with them when I’m in Paris.” He fetched his and Judy’s suitcases, giving Judy the candy and Marilou to hold (which nearly toppled her over). Troy paid the cab driver, and they hurried up the steps and knocked on the front door.

A chubby little girl about Judy’s age answered the door. She beamed up at Troy when she saw him.

“Monsieur Kee! It has been too long!” the girl said, dipping a graceful curtsey.

“It has been far too long, Mademoiselle Colette,” Troy said with a broad grin. “Etta, this is my daughter, Mademoiselle Kee. Judy.”

“Ah, oui! I have heard so much about you, Judy!” Collette repeated her curtsey.

“I’m glad to meet you, too,” said Judy, unsure if she should imitate Colette’s quaint gesture or not.

“Come in, now, both of you!” Colette led them into a largish foyer with red carpets, a large oak desk, and a grand staircase rising from it. “Your room is ready as it is anytime, Monsieur Kee. May the young mademoiselle stay in our room, perhaps?”

“If Judy wants to, and your mother doesn’t object, I don’t see why not.”

Turning away from the door, Colette ran to the bottom of the stairway and shouted up. “Mama! Monsieur Kee is here!”

Out of a door at the top came a round, middle-aged woman with messy, graying black hair and twinkling dark eyes. She had a baby under one arm, and led a child of three or four. “Troy, chere! We are honored, once again, by your presence!”

“And I’m glad to be here, Madame Lecroix. Is my room still available?”

“Naturally!”

“And will you be able to lend a room to Judy? Or could she stay with your girls?”

“Whichever you prefer!”

“Judy?”

“I’d like to stay with Colette,” Judy said.

“That’s settled, then,” Troy announced.

“I have the key to your room somewhere,” Madame Lecroix muttered, feeling through the numerous pockets of her dress. She found a baby bottle, several coins, three handkerchiefs, and a small notebook, each of which she exclaimed over, having lost and now found them. She then bustled over to the desk and dug through papers until she found a ring of keys. “There, these are mine to give to the boarders! My husband keeps the master keys … he knows I would lose them!” Madame Lecroix explained to Judy. She handed Troy a small silver key. “Now, don’t you lose it!” she said with a light laugh, waggling her finger at him. “Henri! Louis!”

Two small but stout boys ran into the room. They both grinned broadly when they saw Troy.

“Take the Kees’ suitcases upstairs. Put Mademoiselle Kee’s in our girls’ room, and Monsieur Kee’s in his regular room. Hurry, hurry!”

The boys, still grinning, hurried to do as bid. Troy laughingly removed their caps and put chocolates (along with the key) in them as they passed.

“Merci, Monsieur Kee!” they cried as they hurried up the stairs, toting suitcases.

“I suppose your husband is still at his breakfast, Madame Lecroix,” Troy asked as he followed the lady and her children up to the second floor.

“Yes, Troy. He still takes longer to chew than any other man in the world.”

“Good, good! I was afraid some of you would change, but none of you have.”

“Well, the boys are growing.”

“So I saw! So tall! But I meant on the inside. I don’t care how you look.”

“You’d change your tune if we remodeled your room, as we have threatened to,” Madame Lecroix laughed.

“Well, that’s different. Atmosphere in a room has a great deal to do with the way it looks. And if you were to remodel it, the smell would leave, too, and the feel, perhaps. All my senses would be offended.”

“What strange ideas you have, Monsieur Kee!” Madame Lecroix exclaimed, shaking her head.

“It’s true, though.” He entered his room where the boys were neatly removing his clothes from the suitcase and placing them in the closet and dresser drawer. Louis removed a small package wrapped in brown paper, undid it, and put the object on the little bedside table. It was a picture frame. Even from a distance, Judy knew who the person in the photograph was.

“Mother?” she questioned as if the woman in question were standing right next to her.

“Yes, Judy. Now, I think that’s all we’ll be needing for now. We’re going to go out for lunch, if you don’t mind, but we’ll be back for dinner … especially if you’re having soup de jour!”

Madame Lecroix waggled her finger at him. “Now, Monsieur Kee! You know very well that soup de jour mens ‘soup of the day.’ It changes every time!”

“And every time it’s delicious! I suppose dinner’s still at six?”

“Yes, Monsieur Kee.”

“Then we’ll see you then.” He tipped his hat, took Judy’s hand, and left the room.

Well? What do you think? It’s a work-in-progress, obviously, so constructive criticism would be more than welcome! As would be crazy, fangirl screaming … whatever floats your boat.

Interview with Jennie Goutet



Hello All! Today I'll be interviewing the author of The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte , Jennie Goutet. She's also the author of Stars Upside Down , her memoir. It will be on sale through this week for only $0.99 ... you can pick up a copy here! She's going to mention this later on in the interview, but I want to let you know RIGHT NOW in case you're reading this five seconds before it goes off sale. ;)

Hello, Jennie! Welcome to Reveries Reviews! Let's get on with the Q&A.

Why did you originally want to become a writer? Did you start writing when you were little, or did you start when you were older?

I wrote a short novelette in 7th grade, called “Pigtails to Lipstick”, but as it contained some veiled allusions of my friends’ poor treatment of me, it was not met with rave reviews. I think my career as a writer started when I began my blog, A Lady in France, seven years ago (originally under the title, Perfect Welcome). That’s when I gained confidence in my ability as I saw that people liked what I wrote, I received a few awards, and I was published on larger sites. It’s also when I started writing with some regularity.
What was the first (not necessarily published) thing you wrote?
If we don’t count the half-finished manuscripts – (ten chapters in, and my husband says, “But it’s boring! Nothing happens!”) – I suppose the first thing would be my illustrated children’s book, Happy People Everywhere, which I wrote for my ESL students when I was teaching in Taiwan. I did eventually publish it, and it’s available on Amazon.
But what I consider to be my first real manuscript (MS) is the one I actually finished: my memoir, called Stars Upside Down: a memoir of travel, grief, and an incandescent God. I learned how to write a full-length book in this memoir, and as the plot was already in place (my life), I only needed to work on the phrasing and flow from one scene to the next. This gave me a much-needed boost in my ability to finish something. I stored the draft in a file on my computer called, “Final Attempt” as I told myself that if I didn’t finish this book, I would abandon all dreams of being a writer.
The memoir’s first title was Life in the Trenches, with the suggested change to my blog name, A Lady in France, under which it was published in 2013. I finally edited the entire thing and republished it in January, cutting about 50,000 words, and abridging it to what it is today – a change I felt necessary as I grew as a writer. I also changed the title to more accurately represent the faith element and am happy to have taken this step, even if it meant starting over with reviews, etc.
What's your current writing project?
I am about 16,000 words into my Regency novel (out of an expected 90,000). I wanted to write Regency straight away, and The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte is inspired by this era (classical language, a peer, a chateau, a pure love story, and (sometimes) a mystery standing in the way of happily ever after).
I was too afraid to write Regency for my first novel, that I couldn’t pull it off with historical accuracy and authentic dialogue. Now – after much research – I’m taking the plunge. I’ve studied Georgian and Regency architecture, the habits of Almack’s (an exclusive club at the time), the Peninsular Wars, central London at the time, the expressions, dress code, and proper forms of address. The list goes on. Of course, in the end, it’s all about likeable characters and interesting plot. But if it can be authentic at the same time, I’ll have no cause to blush.
How much planning/outlining do you do before you start writing a novel?
I usually write a couple of chapters with the barest whisper of a story so I can get a feel for the characters, language and setting. After that, I need to bring all writing to a halt and spend a few hours mapping out the plot, chapter by chapter. I then write the first draft, and end up shifting, cutting, and adding content before having something I’m ready to show other writers to get their feedback. I love thorough critique, and the resulting changes in my MS show how seriously I take them into account.
 Where do you write when you're at home?
 I work from a cheap desk in the living room for the moment, but when our house renovations are done, I’ll have my own office in my daughter’s bedroom downstairs (the basement part of our split-level house). My husband did create an office for me in the studio on our property, but I found I didn’t like to be away from the house. I like to be available for kids, and stirring food from time to time as it cooks. Of course, that usually means I’m writing while my two sons are fighting with toy swords and my daughter is showing me her new hairstyle. We mothers are nothing, if not multi-taskers.
What inspires you when you're stuck?
 Reading Georgette Heyer, hands down. Her stories are so witty, her characters so brilliant, and it’s just the period to inspire me as most of her books are set in the Regency or Georgian period. Of course, I’ve devoured many of the classics (Dickens, Austen, Hardy, Twain, Dostoevsky, etc.) but Heyer has more of a modern-day pacing, which is just what I need. That’s why I read her books again and again. They usually make me want to rush  off and work on my own.
 Do you have a favorite character from The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte? Was he/she inspired by someone in real life?
 I have two, and both are inspired by real life. One is Maude – Chastity’s best friend. She looks and acts like a very dear friend of mine from church – Alberte. I told her about it, but she can’t read English well enough to appreciate the story. The other is Jean-François (Jef) who is based on my brother-in-law. He’s a professional actor, and I always thought that if my story could be made into a movie, he could claim his part. He also has that rebel-to-society / loyal-to-friends thing going on. Unfortunately, he also can’t read my book because of the English. 

 When you started writing The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte, did you intend to publish it? Was publishing exciting for you or just plain scary?
 Even though I had published a memoir, I was still unsure about my ability to finish and publish a novel because that meant coming up with a workable plot. (Not my strongest point). When I began writing it, I put a chapter a week up on my blog to force myself not to give up when the plot got difficult. In a sense, I was fully intending to publish as I wrote it. But I was still scared I wouldn’t be able to, and only gained confidence when I finished the first draft. Even for my current WIP (work-in-progress) I won’t be fully confident until I get to the end, and I sometimes put snippets on my blog just to stay … published, so to speak. It’s hard to be silent for a year while you work on something, with no encouragement from your readers. This is my way of keeping at it.
 Do you have anything to say in closing?
 Mainly, thank you, Kellyn! I so appreciate your review and interview, and just having you interested in my work enough to feature it. And I can’t resist putting a plug in for my memoir in case some of your readers are interested in reading stories about faith. Stars Upside Down is on sale this week through Sunday. Kindle copies on Amazon US and UK for just .99. 


Here is the summary:
At seventeen, Jennie Goutet has a dream that she will one day marry a French man and sets off to Avignon in search of him. Though her dream eludes her, she lives boldly--teaching in Asia, studying in Paris, working and traveling for an advertising firm in New York. When God calls her, she answers reluctantly, and must first come to grips with depression, crippling loss, and addiction before being restored. Providence takes her by the hand as she marries her French husband, works with him in a humanitarian effort in East Africa, before settling down in France and building a family. Told with honesty and strength, Stars Upside Down is a brave, heart-stopping story of love, grief, faith, depression, sunshine piercing the gray clouds--and hope that stays in your heart long after it's finished. Buy on Amazon NOW for only $0.99!!!
About Jennie Goutet   Jennie Goutet is the author of romance novel, The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte, as well as the award-winning memoir, Stars Upside Down, and the children's book Happy People Everywhere. She is a contributing author to Sunshine After the Storm, and That's Paris - an Anthology of Love, Life and Sarcasm in Paris. She was a BlogHer Voice of the Year pick three times, and her writing has appeared on Huffington Post, Queen Latifah's website, Mamalode, BonBonBreak, and BlogHer. You can find her on her author website, jenniegoutet.com, or her blog, aladyinfrance.com, where she writes occasionally about faith, food, and life in Paris with her husband and three children. 

The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte by Jennie Goutet

The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte by Jennie Goutet
 Is there such a thing as Prince Charming?
 Chastity didn’t take a teaching job in France to find hers, but a woman can dream, n’est ce pas? If the father of one of her students—the Viscount Charles Jean Anne Monorie de Brase—is the best local example of princes, Charming or Otherwise, Chastity is ready to put aside any thought of falling in love again. As much as she would prefer him to keep his distance, it seems there is no avoiding each other. With the ongoing pressure of a repentant ex-boyfriend, a nefarious drug dealer, and an art heist that spans the decades, Chastity and the viscount are thrown together by circumstances she would soon rather forget. As the intimacy between Charles and Chastity deepens, they must decide if their love is enough to bridge the gap between their disparate worlds, and if happily ever after can exist outside of fairy tales. Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads  Absolutely charming! Couldn't put it down. A beautifully written romance with nice subplots of an art thief, a drug dealer, and a father reuniting with his son. It flowed naturally and gave me a nice weekend read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Chastity is a single, American mom working in France as a high school teacher. Charles is a rich viscount with a teenage son who he barely knows. When Chastity and Charles first meet, there's a Pride-and-Prejudice-reminiscent thing going on between them. She's the pert, overbearing schoolteacher; he's the snobbish, gets-everything-he-wants-whenever-he-wants-it viscount. How could these two ever get together? Yet none-to-ideal circumstances throw them in each other's paths again and again. I liked Chastity a lot. Her motivations all made sense to me - I even emphasized with her at several points - and it was nice how her decisions usually didn't drive me crazy (as in "NOOOOOO DON'T DO THAT!!!" ... all us readers know the feeling!). I liked Charles a lot, too ... maybe even more than I liked Chastity! I also liked Chastity's son, Thomas, although I found him a bit too mature ... maybe a wee bit unbelievable?
Although I admit Alice is pretty mature for eight ...The minor characters were great, too ... I liked how some of the other teachers were so supporting of Chastity! Especially Maude. As I've said before, the plot was wonderful! I sooooo did not see that twist at the end! I don't know if that makes me an idiot (once it was revealed, I was like "*facepalm* Yesss, I knew that!!!"), but I didn't see it coming! The subplots were also great, adding nicely to the main story. The writing was mature in style (not as-in a 'an adult wrote this so it must be mature' ... even adults can write immaturely ... writing oftentimes doesn't reflect on the person's age at all!). Nice balance of description vs. action vs. dialogue. Maybe a little more description would have been nice (MORE FRANCE PLEASE!!!), but perhaps it would have drowned the story. Hmm. I don't know. The setting ... well, it was France. I would have liked a little more on the setting. I got the idea that I was somewhere other than America, but other than that I didn't get a good idea of where we were. Of course, I knew that the novel was set in France, but ... a little bit of 'world-building' would have been nice. Overall, a wonderful novel that I enjoyed for start to finish! Worth the read for lovers of romance, contemporary fiction, France, and ... books in general. :D Content 2.5/5, parental guidance suggested for preteens. Some drug use (next-to-no details, not glorified at all), a child (Thomas) was born out of wedlock (no details), some violence (no blood and gore, might creep out extremely, extremely sensitive people a little ... though if it does, I reserve the right to call you a wuss). Overall, clean for high school teens. Rating 4/5 stars. Adorable romance! ~Kellyn Roth About the Author   Jennie Goutet is the author of romance novel, The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte, as well as the award-winning memoir, Stars Upside Down, and the children's book Happy People Everywhere. She is a contributing author to Sunshine After the Storm, and That's Paris - an Anthology of Love, Life and Sarcasm in Paris. She was a BlogHer Voice of the Year pick three times, and her writing has appeared on Huffington Post, Queen Latifah's website, Mamalode, BonBonBreak, and BlogHer.
You can find her on her author website, jenniegoutet.com, or her blog, aladyinfrance.com, where she writes occasionally about faith, food, and life in Paris with her husband and three children.

The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte by Jennie Goutet

Hi guys! I won’t be online for most of this week (we’re  going camping!), so there will be no posts Tuesday or Wednesday, and probably not Thursday either. We’ll see about Friday. Maybe an excerpt of The Lady of the Vineyard (which, by the way, I’ll be publishing September 10th of this year!), but we’ll see.

The Viscount of Maisons-Laffitte by Jennie Goutet

Is there such a thing as Prince Charming?

Chastity didn’t take a teaching job in France to find hers, but a woman can dream, n’est ce pas?

If the father of one of her students—the Viscount Charles Jean Anne Monorie de Brase—is the best local example of princes, Charming or Otherwise, Chastity is ready to put aside any thought of falling in love again.

As much as she would prefer him to keep his distance, it seems there is no avoiding each other. With the ongoing pressure of a repentant ex-boyfriend, a nefarious drug dealer, and an art heist that spans the decades, Chastity and the viscount are thrown together by circumstances she would soon rather forget.

As the intimacy between Charles and Chastity deepens, they must decide if their love is enough to bridge the gap between their disparate worlds, and if happily ever after can exist outside of fairy tales.

Buy on Amazon // Add on Goodreads

Absolutely charming! Couldn’t put it down. A beautifully written romance with nice subplots of an art thief, a drug dealer, and a father reuniting with his son. It flowed naturally and gave me a nice weekend read. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Chastity is a single, American mom working in France as a high school teacher. Charles is a rich viscount with a teenage son who he barely knows.

When Chastity and Charles first meet, there’s a Pride-and-Prejudice-reminiscent thing going on between them. She’s the pert, overbearing schoolteacher; he’s the snobbish, gets-everything-he-wants-whenever-he-wants-it viscount. How could these two ever get together? Yet none-to-ideal circumstances throw them in each other’s paths again and again.

I liked Chastity a lot. Her motivations all made sense to me – I even emphasized with her at several points – and it was nice how her decisions usually didn’t drive me crazy (as in “NOOOOOO DON’T DO THAT!!!” … all us readers know the feeling!).

I liked Charles a lot, too … maybe even more than I liked Chastity! I also liked Chastity’s son, Thomas, although I found him a bit too mature … maybe a wee bit unbelievable? Although I admit Alice is pretty mature for eight … The minor characters were great, too … I liked how some of the other teachers were so supporting of Chastity! Especially Maude.

As I’ve said before, the plot was wonderful! I sooooo did not see that twist at the end! I don’t know if that makes me an idiot (once it was revealed, I was like “*facepalm* Yesss, I knew that!!!”), but I didn’t see it coming! The subplots were also great, adding nicely to the main story.

The writing was mature in style (not as-in a ‘an adult wrote this so it must be mature’ … even adults can write immaturely … writing oftentimes doesn’t reflect on the person’s age at all!). Nice balance of description vs. action vs. dialogue. Maybe a little more description would have been nice (MORE FRANCE PLEASE!!!), but perhaps it would have drowned the story. Hmm. I don’t know.

The setting … well, it was France. I would have liked a little more on the setting. I got the idea that I was somewhere other than America, but other than that I didn’t get a good idea of where we were. Of course, I knew that the novel was set in France, but … a little bit of ‘world-building’ would have been nice.

Overall, a wonderful novel that I enjoyed for start to finish! Worth the read for lovers of romance, contemporary fiction, France, and … books in general.

Journey to Love by Amanda Tero

I thought I'd like to kick of Reveries Reviews by telling you about a new novel from an up-and-coming Christian author, Amanda Tero. :)

Journey to Love by Amanda Tero Orphan Journey, #1   Now orphaned, Marie is swept miles away from the only life she knew to be sheltered by unknown guardians. Caught in the challenges of a new life, she cannot prevent changes from happening, but she can keep the Bowles and their friends at arm's length. Or can she?

While things appear to transition smoothly on the outside, Marie struggles against the turmoil she faces on the inside. She sees something in the Bowles and her new friends that she had never experienced before...but should she trust what the preacher is teaching when it goes against everything she had accepted as truth? Is God really a God of love? If He is, then is Marie willing to accept it?

Follow Marie as she begins the journey to love. Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads This book made me so happy! It also inspired me. Now, that's quite rare. Because I'm not an easily inspired person. So that says something about this book, right?! After reading Journey to Love, I can quite honestly say I wanted to be a better Christian.
The plot was very sweet. It came together nicely at the end. The epilogue ... I don't have words. <3 However, it did feel a little rushed at times. Novellas do, most of the time, in my limited experience. I would have liked to hear more about Marie's journey on the train, etc. But that's just me.

The character were pretty real. I think their motivations all made sense. Marie's 'journey to love' was believable. I will say I'd have liked to hear more about how some of them ended up - Mary in particular - but, as I've said before, some things can't be accomplished in the little space a novella furnishes. So character development had room for improvement, but not much.

One of my favorite characters was, of course, Mary. She was so wise, and yet believable for a girl of about fourteen. I admit I was at-first prejudiced against her because her name was Mary, she was blind, and she was perfect. Ring any bells? Yep. That's right. Mary Ingalls. You know what? I always HATED Mary Ingalls. Even when she was grown up. She's too perfect. I can't stand her. But this Mary, Mary Thorton, was awesome.

Of course I liked Marie, the main character. She and I both know what it's like to be absolutely determined not to cry (because COWGIRLS DON'T CRY ... although that was not her reason ...) and then cry anyway. Because neither of us are cowgirls. *sigh*

The writing was neat and tidy. It was a little reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilder ... a little. It was aimed more at middle grade or young adult readers ... and reading a book aimed at a young age range was refreshing. Relaxing, even. I really enjoyed it.

It was easy for me to get into the setting, although the book wasn't really focused on Marie's journey on the orphan train as I was expecting (I've really got into a habit of not reading the summaries of novels of late. I don't really know why ... I guess I'm just too lazy!). I enjoyed the glimpse at small-town life in 1901 (one of my favorite eras, by the way!).

The theme was wonderful, a tale that shows forgiveness, faith, courage, hope, and, of course, love. Very inspiring and sweet without sounding "preachy." Truth is dealt with unashamedly yet tactfully. I love it! :D

I did feel at times as if the Catholic church was being beaten up on a little. Perhaps that wasn't the author's intention, but that's what it felt like. Not that I mind, but that might be offensive to Catholic readers should they interpret it the way I did.

Ok, that was cryptic. :P Let me explain. Marie came from a religious family ... but they were very legalistic, and this turned Marie away from God. I don't know if this was the author's intention, but Marie's descriptions of the church she attended with her parents sounded like a Catholic church. There you go. Now you understand!

Excited to read the short story about Marie's brother, Letter of Love. I haven't started it yet (I REALLY need to finish The Silent Blade!), but I can hardly wait!

Content 1/5, perfectly ok for all ages. I can't think of a single thing that made me uncomfortable. Rating
4.5/5 stars. One of the best stories I've read in a while! Incredibly inspirational! The author has a gift for spreading God's light!

~Kellyn Roth

About the Author  Amanda Tero is a homeschool graduate who desires to provide God-honoring, family-friendly reading material. She has enjoyed writing since before ten years old, but it has only been since 2013 that she began seriously pursuing writing again – starting with some short stories that she wrote for her sisters as a gift. Her mom encouraged her to try selling the stories she published, and since then, she has begun actively writing short stories, novellas, and novels.

If something she has written draws an individual into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ, it is worth it!

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5)
Find out more at https://amandatero.com/


Introducing Reveries Reviews

As you may have noticed, there have been a lot of reviews on Reveries recently. As you may or may not know, this was not meant to be a reviewing blog!

Sure, a review a week doesn’t hurt. I’m an author, and introducing you to the books of other authors is a lot of fun for me! But other things were meant to be talked about on this blog, too.

Writing, for one thing … and life … and poetry … and … and puppies. WHERE HAVE ALL THE PUPPIES GONE? LONG TIME PASSING! (points for you if you get the reference … and, no, there will be no prizes for the people with the most points …)

So I intend to move most of my reviews to a new blog I’ve created with Blogger, Reveries Reviews. On this blog, I will also be featuring interviews with authors and other bloggers, cover reveals, guest reviews, and more book-related posts.

If you want you know more about it, let me know in the comments![image error]

~Kellyn Roth

Introducing Reveries Reviews

Hello, my name is Kellyn Roth. I'm an author, a blogger, a homeschooled student, a Christian, a country girl, and (this is what should matter to you) a reader. I've loved stories for as long as I can remember - I never was one of those kids who simply couldn't get into books - and now I hope you share them with you on this blog, Reveries Reviews.

In the past, I posted the reviews of novels I'd recently read on my personal/author blog/website, Reveries (https://kellynroth.wordpress.com/). Since I began accepting review requests from authors and publishers instead of simply reading whichever books I feel like reading, buying them or finding them at the local library myself, I have found that posting reviews once a week is simply not enough.

So Reveries Reviews was born! I've been getting it ready for a while now, and it's finally time to share!

Want to get your book reviewed? Check out the review policy page. You can also contact me about an interview (whether you be author or blogger) or perhaps you'd like to do a guest review! I also do cover reveals, and I'd love to participate in blog tours.

I hope you enjoy the reviews, interviews, and other reading-related posts made here!

Sincerely,
~Kellyn Roth

How to Avoid the Nightmares of Editing

If you think I’m about to tell you how NOT to edit, you’re wrong. I’m just going to tell you how to edit without pain.

What? you say. That’s impossible! The definition of editing is ‘a painful process by which authors attempt to improve their books.’

That’s not true! Editing doesn’t have to be awful!

Of course is does!

Well, aren’t we Mr. Optimistic! Shut your pessimistic mouth and listen! I’m about to give you a five-step guide to editing your novel!

This is what I’m doing right now with The Lady of the Vineyard.[image error]

Step One: Break

Your novel is finished! You’re excited and happy and a little bit exhausted! Time to start editing, right?

Wrong.

Time to take a break.

I’m not suggesting ‘set is aside for a year.’ Or yet a month, which I consider too extreme unless the next month happens to be December (see NaNoWriMo) in which case that makes sense.

But most of the time … I’m suggesting a week. A week in which you don’t do anything. That includes working on other projects! Blog a little more. Respond to those emails that are backing up. Read like a crazy … reader. DON’T YOU DARE WRITE; DON’T YOU DARE EDIT! TRY NOT THINK ABOUT YOUR BOOK AT ALL! You can do it! I know you can!

It’s great if you can schedule this week full of activity off the internet, though. I was at horse camp for a week after I finished The Lady of the Vineyard. That was really great!

Step Two: Revision

When this week is up? Come back, read through your novel once, making notes on what needs changed. As you go, you can pick out typos, add in a scene or two, trash the first draft bilge, etc. Don’t concentrate too much on improving sentence structure or anything … this is mostly just for the plot and a little for the characters. Make your novel make sense.

For a novella like The Lady of the Vineyard, this doesn’t take long, especially since I tend to revise while writing.

The 30 Song Challenge

Once-again, I was nominated for a tag. Actually, I’ve probably been nominated by several people for tags, but … I don’t have time for every single one, I’m afraid. But I chose to do this one because … SONGS!!!

FNWC, Challenge #2

It’s time for the second entry in the FNWC contest, hosted by Rutvi of https://sosugarsweet.wordpress.com/.

The Prompts I Used

Not very many, I know, but I tried.[image error]

Ten Seconds to 2nd Grade

    “Gem Farjon, you have ten seconds to get down those stairs! Do you hear me, young lady? Ten!”

Gem sighed and stood up. “Good-bye, Shelley,” she said to the chair opposite her. “I guess I’m going to have to go again. I know we don’t spend much time together any more, but we’ll figure it out, ok?”

“Nine!”

In Gem’s mind, Shelley nodded.

“I’ll tell the rest of my story later. And then I’ll tell you another. The one about the burnt rose,” she added. The burnt rose was a fairytale her grandfather had made up. She didn’t remember him – he’d died when she was a little baby – but he had been an author and written her a story.

“Eight! Gem, I mean it! It’s time for school. And you’d better have your room picked up, too, young lady! You’re seven whole years old; it’s time for you to be responsible!”

Gem scurried to pick up her clothing.

“Seven.”

Gem heard her mother’s steps coming towards her room. Thankfully, Mrs. Farjon paused a few doors down the hall.

“Louisa, aren’t you supposed to be going to school, too?” she asked Gem’s big sister.

The evil school-enforcer, Gem thought.

“Yes, Mamma, but I wanted to finish this chapter first. It’s a great book! Here, listen to this. ‘She parted the leaves to reveal a throne. I pulled at my shirt. “It’s hot.” “It has to be hot to ride her ice-cold heart of stone.”’ What do you think of that?”

“I think you’re reading trashy novels again. Gem, six!”

Gem shoved her pajamas under her bed, pushed Daisy’s chair, her chair, the table, and the tea-set into her closet, and slammed the door. Poor Shelley! Gem thought, then, No, a second grader can’t have an imaginary friend. I shan’t have Shelley anymore.

    Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

    “Gem, are you ready to go to school?” Mrs. Farjon glanced about her room. “Well. It looks great in here. I am pleasantly surprised. Grab your backpack.”

Yes, that is the same character from the last prompt, only many years younger and going by her childhood nickname.[image error]

~Kellyn Roth