K.A. Ashcomb's Blog, page 73
November 8, 2018
Writing: Writing Group And Path to Happiness
Hello everyone! Those who have followed me from the beginning know I struggle with being social; that starting the whole marketing and connecting to readers and writers was something I would have rather opt out. Now as I have forced myself out of my shell by first joining to Goodreads’ Humor Club and then spreading there on like a virus, I have found more courage to engage with others. So much, in fact, I have joined in a Fantasy Writers’ group. Yay!
The group fell into my lap. A week before...
November 2, 2018
Book Review: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christopher McDougall
[image error]I loved this book! Read it, be inspired by it, and find the love for running that hides in all of us in it. Christopher McDougall’s writing was amazing. It was a mixture of a personal journey, biography to other runners, the science of running, and argumentation why we humans are running people who have forgotten the art of running because of the padding in our shoes. Shoes that causes injuries and restricts the feeling you get from running.
Every time I opened the book I wanted to take my Fi...
Book Review: Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk
[image error]Okay, I read this, and now I’m confused. Not because I didn’t understand what I read but because I can’t decide what to think. Survivor is a book that switched from an okay start to spellbinding middle to a bizarre end which still holds me. Dear Chuck Palahniuk, what did you want to say?
Are our destinies our own or do we repeat what is expected of us? We can’t escape the cultural influence surrounding us. It pushes us toward things that are shown to be valuable. So, no we are not free to cho...
October 29, 2018
Book Review: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
[image error]Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion is one of those books which are hard to review solely on its content because of its meaning and wide goes beyond the pages. The book is an argumentation against religion and God, and Dawkins does a great job with it, going over all the possible counter arguments for his hypothesis. I have to say there were occasions where his argumentation sounded hastened and as if he was saying “because I say so,” like with agnosticism. I didn’t feel like I got what he woul...
October 26, 2018
Self-Publishing: Amazon Ads
A few words about my Amazon Ad campaigns. I had seven running for over two months, and now it is time to recap how much they cost me and what was the gain and what ads I should continue making. Fun, eh?
Before I go to the ads, I’ll share what is going on with me and my book. I have been working on my second novel (BON), you might have noticed its character and place sheets I have been posting. I’m beyond that. I’m editing chapter 11/30. So I’m getting there, but slowly. The process is slower...
October 22, 2018
Book Review: Mort by Terry Pratchett
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My journey through Discworld continues on. This time it was Mort’s turn. The first thought which popped into my mind was the song by Muse Thoughts of a Dying Atheist. Pratchett made with the character of Death dying bearable and not as scary. It is something that happens to all of us. But before I continue on this line of thought, I say my first and second thoughts about the book. Mort is oddly enough a lighter of Discworld novels even when it is about dying. The book concentrates more on th...
October 18, 2018
Writing: The Necromantic Agency – Setting Sketch (And a Few Updates About My Self-Publishing Life)
Sorry that I have been absent posting about my writing and self-publishing. It has been a hectic month, and to be honest, I have had a slump with the optimism about my future as a writer and carrying on. You know, one of those things you get once in a while; too often, if you ask me.
So, what is new? I quit my job, and now I’m a full-time writer without credentials to do so. Silly me. But my day job was killing me gradually. (Yes, I know this post doesn’t have a cheery note.) I have been tuni...
October 15, 2018
Book Review: Philosophy: Who Needs It by Ayn Rand
Philosophy: Who Needs It is a collection of essays by Ayn Rand. In them, she summarizes her philosophical views and argues for rationality and unbiased observation, and brings up her objectivism philosophy. She sees philosophical principles important part of our lives, arguments, and communication. She argues that we should understand philosophy better to understand better how we all use it in our lives even in things like proverbs.
I agree with Ayn Rand on the importance of philosophy, using...
October 10, 2018
Book Review: Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins
Choice, love, and all that comes together in one humorous book. As I read the book, Tom Robbins style felt familiar. It reminded me of Kurt Vonnegut one of my favorite writers. They both have that organic style of storytelling which sucks you in, or at least it should, but with Still Life with Woodpecker that didn’t happen. It is because I couldn’t care less for Princess Leigh-Cheri and her struggles. This is my problem, not the books.
I couldn’t relate to the characters, and thus I can’t giv...
October 9, 2018
Book Review: The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative by Florence Williams
Okay, I’ll be upfront. I’m not able to make an impartial review from the book. Nature and going out weekly preferably daily means a lot to me, and I was ready to agree with all the research introduced in the book. Thankfully Florence Williams was critical on my behalf. She commented on the research’s weaknesses. That is rare to find in popular science books. Science is not worth anything if you can’t look the subject through a critical eye. That is why I recommend this book, and because what...
