Angie Gallion's Blog, page 8

Arnco by Ben Muse

Arncois Ben's first published work and when I asked him which of all his books he would  like to see highlighted here it was this one.  I understand why.  I just completed my second read through ofArncoand saw things in it this time that I missed the first.  I loved many things about this book, first of which is the locale in which it is set.  Arnco, Georgia is a mill town without a mill about 40 miles outstide of Atlanta.  It is a village with a cast of characters familiar in all small towns throughout this country, with that strong rural identity.  It is a love story, as much between our hero and a childhood friend he is reunited with, as it is between he and the town he remembers from summers spent on his Grandmother's porch.I felt the pull to go back home reading this book, I felt the need to sit on my own childhood front porch with the people who taught me to be the person I am.  I was relieved with the maturity shown in handling the growing love affair between Allie and Jake and the fact that I didn't have to read through teenage gropings and flirtations.  This love is a grown up love between people who have their own complex lives that a love has to fit within.Arnois full of complex life histories that echo very clearly the reality we all live.I also have to say that Ben Muse has accomplished something that I find very difficult.  He works from two different narrative perspectives through the book and he does it so masterfully that I did not feel interupted by the shiftings in points of view.   If you haven't given this book a try it is well worth the read.Kudos, Ben.

What I'm working on this week...

To everybody who asked me at the end of readingintoxic"What happens next?" I'm pleased to tell you that the first draft ofPurgushas been sent out to my few select beta readers for feedback.  I finished my first draft edits last night and sent it out first thing this morning.Purgusis the continuation of Alison's journey and picks up whereintoxicleft off.  I'm so excited to see how they respond and hope to havePurgusout by the end of 2016.In other news I'm doing a read through for author Jonathan Dunne, of his latest workThe Lighthouse Jive,which he anticipates having out to press in thenext couple of months.  I will let you know as I come through it, so far I'm finding it whimsical and full of fun.Our next indie/small press book review will beArncoby Atlanta native, Ben Muse.  It's a novel about coming home.  We all know how complicated that story gets.  For this of you who don't know, it is author Ben Muse who inspired me to move forward with self publishing my work.  He was been a wonderful resource and has  been an encouraging friend along the way.

The Walking Bridge by Rick Sanders

https://www.amazon.com/Walking-Bridge... me preface this by telling you that this is the first book I have actually read since before my children were born and that was in 2009.  I ingest books in audio format almost exclusively because I can still vaccuum or cook or clean the toilet while I do.  I was expecting it to be a struggle to actually read, because I have such a hard time sitting still, but The Walking Bridge by Rick Sanders drew my right in and I found myself hating to let it go to do the things I had to do.  Good job, Rick, now I know I can still read.The Walking Bridge is a mystery that takes place on and around the Walking Bridge in Chattanooga, TN.  The bridge itself takes on a personality and has a role to play in the unfolding of events.  The descriptions of art throughout Chattanooga and well as the amazing descriptives of the area were delicately wrought and I so often felt that I could see very clearly the locale Sanders describes.  The author's intelligence and thoughtfullness comes through in his work and he touches on a variety of thought provoking concepts as the story unfolds around the disappearance of local business man Brad Compton.The players include a wife, Cat, a homeless man named Kevin who was perhaps the most intriqueing character in the book for me, with his education and his chosen life as a "hobo", and Brad's Doppelganger Trevor.  There is a kidnapping and a lost girl and child rescued from a roadside accident.  There are storms that threaten the fabric of the bridge and both the north and south sides of it.   There are scenes that made me feel uncomfortablt and more than once I wanted to tell a character "Don't do it. Don't go there. Stop!" That is a testament to Sanders' skill as a writer.  It is a complex and intricate weave that left me guessing from one chapter to the next as his characters twined amongst the beautiful backdrop of Chattonooga and the surrounding area.  I was intriqued with Sanders' ability to keep me off-footed as to the motives and circumstances that brought his cahracters into each others lives.  I wanted to understand.  I wanted to hear the rest of their stories, how they came to this point, and Sanders did not disappoint.In all of my own writing I delve into the human condition and Sanders does as well in this complex and intricate work.  I will recommend this book, first of all to my brother, Terry Leon, who thinks as much as he lives and will really enjoy some of the existential conversations that take place.  I am sure, that like me, he will very much enjoy the artists' eye in this work.I will leave with this, perhaps my favorite line in the whole book "The walking bridge hung high and dry above the Tennessee River, lacing the north and south shores together like a loose stitch over a wound that would not heal."  It is the opening line of the book and the rest does not disappoint.   Sanders, Rick (2016-04-08). The Walking Bridge (Kindle Locations 44-45). thewordverve inc. Kindle Edition.

The Perks of Being . . . Self-Published

For years I dreamed of publishing.  I would write and write and write and then I would think about writing queries and trying to find an agent and trying to find a publisher who published the type of stuff I write, who accepts unsolicited manuscripts, and then I though about all that time waiting for somebody to decide to give my submission a read, and I'd shove it back in the drawer, completely overwhelmed.  One day I lamented this situation to my good friend Jenny and she told me about her cousin who was just getting ready to publish his second book.  She had mentioned him before so I asked if she would put me in touch with him so I could pick his brain.I reached out, he responded and we went back and forth on messenger, he agreed to read the book that I wanted to put out,intoxic,and told me I had something that was solid and publishable and why didn't I just self-publish.   Well I had always thought of self publishing as what you did if you couldn't get published traditionallly.  I did a little research and found out that the industry has changed from those days and now the trend is to self publish.  Even if you go with a traditional publisher it seems that unless you are a Ken Follett or a Diana Gabaldon the perks are less than they used to be. From speaking with a friend in the editingfield she told me that she has authors from traditional publishing houses who still seek her out to edit their work because they feel the editing in house is less than enough.  I spoke with an author over the weekend who went with a small press and has discovered that they do next to nothing to promote her work beyond providing her with a small stack of bookmarks and the file to print more.  Beyond that, she doesn't own the rights to her work anymore, the publisher does, so where I am preparing to releaseintoxicin audio within the next few weeks she doesn't have the rights to do the same.  She is at the mercy of her small press understanding the industry and promoting her work in whatever form they see fit.  I even read some accounts of bestselling authors who opted out of traditional publishing contracts to do it on their own.  I read some books on the subject and decided, why not?I put it out and guess what? The responses have been great.  The only down side is that I am my marketer.  All of the self-promotion makes me cringe sometimes, but overall it has been a great accomplishment and experience.  I don't know that my book has to go to number one anywhere for me to feel like a success.  Seeing the reviews on Amazon telling me that they hope I write more is quite incredible. I am writing more, and my second book, the continuation of Alison's journey will be out before 2016 closes (I hope). There are many perks to being self published, the most important one is that I am in control of my publishing, I am in control of when my work goes to press.If you are sitting on the fence about how to publish, do a little research.  The resources are out there.  There are several companies that will help you without charging you to do it.  I used Createspace.com for my print, and although there is a learning curve on the royalties and how they are calculated and paid, it has been a walk through process and I have been very pleased with my end product.  I used KDP - Kindle Direct Publishing for my digital, and it couldn't be any easier.  I am using the ACX Audio Creation Exchange for my Audio, and I am super thrilled about that.  I put out requests for auditions and listened to the submissions I received, chose the voice the suited my character and requested her.  We worked out a contract and she is diligently bringingintoxicto life for all the listening world.  I am thrilled.  It has been an amazing seven weeks.  I can't wait to see what comes with my second book,purgus.Feel free to ask me questions, I'll answer if I know and if I can't I may know where you could go to get the answers you need.  Don't be daunted.  Don't be overwhelmed.  Write, love the writing and if you want to share it, share it.Happy writing!

Gallion Picks

I spent the yesterday afternoon with some local writers at an Author Event at Walls of Books in Peachtree City, GA and what I realized was that we are all voracious readers.  A couple of us only read book we can touch, I almost never read without Audio becasue I find it so hard to sit still.  One of us prefers the ease and convience of Digital.  Regardless of how we are consuming our books we are all ingesting them with tremendous appetite.I'm going to start detailing the reading I am doing on my site for those of you who want to see what is being read in between the writings.  I will promise to read book by all the many talented and accomplished writers who are not being promoted by the Oprah Winfrey Book Club and NY Times Bestsellers.  Of course I'll read those, too but you'll get plenty of reviews for them everywhere else.  The books I want to talk about are the ones that haven't found their legs yet.  With that being said, let me introduce my very first Gallion Pick -The Walking Bridgeby Rick Sanders.  I'm starting it today so look for my review over the next week.  Join me if you would like, I'd love to know whay you think too.  Rick's book is available on Amazon.com and at your local bookstore as well as you massive bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, Borders).  Pick it up today and read along with me, let's see if we agree.P.S. Of course, if you haven't readintoxicyet, I'd love for you to pick that up first...