C.B. Calsing's Blog, page 8

Writing Article Posted

 I have a writing article posted over at Readers' Favorite. Check it out if you'd like to find a new way to motivate yourself to write. This method works for me, and helps me also keep track of how much I accomplish each day.

During my morning pages, where I review my tasks, set my intention for the day, and reflect on the previous day, I'll look at my score and think of why I got that and what I could do to improve it. I've found a low-scoring day leaves me feeling a little down as far as my writing goes. Striving to meet my bench mark, or beat a high score, keeps me working.

Book Review: House of Salt and Sorrows

Erin A. Craig’s House of Salt and Sorrows tells the story of the Thaumus family from the point of view of one of the twelve sisters, Annaleigh. At the beginning of the story, her mother and several of her sisters have already died, and the remaining sisters are burying another while trying to adjust to a new stepmother in the house. The circumstances around the most recent sister’s death are suspicious, and while there is talk of a family curse, Annaleigh attempts to uncover the truth about what really happened to her sister. During this, she deals with the competing feelings for her childhood friend, Fisher, and a mysterious newcomer to their island home, Cassius.
To be honest, my summary doesn’t even do justice to the rich, intertwined plot of this book. I loved it. It is mysterious, opulent, dark, romantic… It borrowed from fairy tales and Poe-esque plots and settings. It ticked so many boxes for me. I loved that I only figured out a few of the twists moments before they were revealed in the storyline, which means I was captivated but also satisfied throughout. I can’t wait to read the author’s other works. This book is entirely appropriate for upper grade advanced readers all the way through to adults, even though it is categorized as young adult. I’m a firm believer that just because the narrator is a teen doesn’t mean that teens will be the only readers who enjoy the story.
By the way, I listened to the audiobook version, and the narrator did an excellent job creating the right characters and moods with her voice. I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Check it out from your library through the Libby app!

Open to Editing Gigs!

I am currently open to new editing gigs and can promise a super quick turnaround on manuscripts up to 100,000 words. Check out the page on this site to learn about my rates and other information. Using the pen name G.G. Royale, I wrote and edited for Loose Id for over a decade. My specialty is spicy romance; the higher the heat level, the better, but I also want to make sure you have a good solid story line and characters your readers will love. I can help you create your owns style guide as we work together (if you don't already have one). I have the heart of the teacher, and my goal is to help you polish your work for publication or submission to agents.

Current endeavors

I have two current endeavors. 
Hit up bigislandbigeats.com or search your favorite podcast platform for Big Island Big Eats, the Hawaii Island Food Show.
Also,  head on over to rewriteyourmoney.blogspot.com or search your favorite podcast platform for Rewrite Your Money Story, narrative therapy and financial capability.

Review of A.L Sirous's "Jersey Ghouls"

Review
Make sure to read to the end for buy links and contests.
I love pulpy, trope-filled horror novels that are tinged with a bit of humor. And you get that right from the beginning with Jersey Ghouls. It starts with a blonde in a pith helmet in the jungle. And it all stacks up from there. You've got a small town and the trope of returning to that small town after many years absence. Tandem threats to the well being of the town, the centipedes and a big storm. A past-his-prime ex-cop protagonist. Power outages. Blocked highways...
There were some twists and turns, and some inventive characters that made this a really fun read. I unexpectedly loved the character of Mason the most. A self-aware titular "ghoul," he adds a sort of perspective stories like this are often missing.

I was also fairly impressed with the editing. A lot of indie and self-published stories lately have been so full of errors they were unreadable. This, however, only had a few errors that didn't really distract from the read, save for the name-change of a dog midchapter.

All in all I would definitely recommend this book for an entertaining take on this particular theme. Think Slither or The Crazies and you won't be far off. 

JERSEY GHOULSA.L. SiroisGenre: Horror
Publisher: Azure Spider Publications
Publication Date: June 15, 2018A disabled cop and his ex battle giant centipedes and ghouls in a small riverside community that's about to be flooded out.The rain-drenched riverside town of Sherwood's Landing, NJ is invaded by a species of centipede from Central America armed with psychedelic venom. Former cop Lafferty "Hoff" Hoffman and his ex-girlfriend Beatrice St. John are swept into terror as their neighbors are enslaved by a centipede-generated group mind. Those remaining free must band together to survive the onslaught of ravenous ghouls.Add to GoodreadsPurchase LinksAvailable on Amazon.comBook Tour ScheduleFollow the book tour from July 11 - 24, 2018.Join us and visit each tour stop daily and discover more features, excerpts, reviews, interviews, fun facts and more! To check the latest tour schedule, visit the Jersey Ghouls Book Page at Book Unleashed. About A.L. Sirois
A.L. Sirois is a writer, developmental editor, graphic artist and a performing musician. His publication career began in 1973 with the appearance of the short-short story "War Baby" in Fantastic (It would be called "flash fiction" nowadays.). He has gone on to have fiction in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, Fantastic, Amazing Stories, and Thema, and online at Electric Spec, Mystery Weekly, Every Day Fiction and Flash Fiction Online, among other publications. His story "In the Conservatory," from Thema, was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. In addition to JERSEY GHOULS, other Sirois works include a children's book, DINOSAUR DRESS UP (Tambourine Press / William Morrow), a graphic novel, THE ENDLESS INCIDENT (2014), and a fantasy novel, THE BOHEMIAN MAGICIAN, published in 2017.As an artist, he has hundreds of drawings, paintings and illustrations to his credit. Al has contributed comic art for DC, Marvel, and Charlton, and has scripted for Warren Publications. He wrote and drew "Bugs in the System" for witzend #12, the famous comics fanzine started by MAD artist Wally Wood. He lives in Rockingham County, North Carolina, with his wife and occasional collaborator, author Grace Marcus. Together they are writing a Young Adult novel set in ancient Egypt.Social media links: Facebook | TwitterGiveawayWIN FREE BOOK AND MORE Prizes up for grabs:1. Print Copy of Jersey Ghouls by A.L. Sirois
2. Color Rough of the book cover, painted in acrylics on illustration board
3. Drawing of the book cover on tracing paper
4. Drawing of the book cover on layout bond paperContest runs from June 15 - July 24, 2018.a Rafflecopter giveawayIn partnership with Book Unleashed Blog Tours

When Pie is Punishment

I've joined a lot of homesteading and pioneering groups on Facebook recently in an effort to get motivated to work my 1.1 acres here in Hawaii. A recent post had a comment which started, "Take your favorite sour cream and raisin pie recipe..." I laughed aloud because, who has a favorite sour cream and raisin pie recipe? I have a favorite peanut butter pie recipe, and a favorite key lime pie recipe. I also have a favorite apple pie recipe. But sour cream and raisin?

Now, this sour cream and rains pie is a pie with which I am not familiar. I assumed, correctly, that it had to be some regional favorite. I also assumed that it would have to have booze in it.

I was wrong about the latter. Which made me wonder, why would anyone eat a raisin pie without booze in it? It feels like a pie that is made to punish you rather than be enjoyed. Like, oh, you want pie? Fine, but it's going to have raisins in it. I viewed several slices online, and I thought to myself, now if those were blueberries, maybe we'd have something.

But raisins?

I don't really like raisins. If my grapes are going to be old, they'd better be in wine.

Review of "The Spitting Post"

I love stories which are reminiscent of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,  where a hero or heroine is whisked off to another land and you're not entirely sure whether what's happening is a hallucination, coma dream, or reality.

While not a children's book, Jason R. Barden's The Spitting Post is firmly rooted in that tradition. Our main character (or so we are led to believe) is in a car accident and wakes up in another world. He then embarks on a quest to find the love of his life, The Green Maiden, at a location she has specified. Somehow our main character has inhabited this world before, though he has no memory of it.

The strength in this story lays with the gruesome details and imaginative antagonists the author developed to inhabit his imaginary world. The protagonist is propelled along on a series of quests, and this is a plot definitely driven by events, not by character development.

My three biggest complaints are as follows: I never really connected with the narrator. Some of the extensive song lyric inclusions seemed like an attempt to get word count up and didn't really lend to the story. Finally, I read up to the shaggy dog ending and it hit me like a brick wall, and not in a good way. The ending could have used some rethinking and a polish, since the reader does not get a real sense of growth or change in the final perspective.

Part Secret Window, and part Tarnsman of Gor this book draws on a lot of source material that readers will find familiar and satisfying.

JERSEY GHOULSA.L. SiroisGenre: HorrorPublisher: Azure Spi...

JERSEY GHOULSA.L. SiroisGenre: Horror
Publisher: Azure Spider Publications
Publication Date: June 15, 2018A disabled cop and his ex battle giant centipedes and ghouls in a small riverside community that's about to be flooded out.The rain-drenched riverside town of Sherwood's Landing, NJ is invaded by a species of centipede from Central America armed with psychedelic venom. Former cop Lafferty "Hoff" Hoffman and his ex-girlfriend Beatrice St. John are swept into terror as their neighbors are enslaved by a centipede-generated group mind. Those remaining free must band together to survive the onslaught of ravenous ghouls.Add to GoodreadsPurchase LinksGet the eBook copy of Jersey Ghouls for only 99 cents! Offer ends June 15, 2018.Available on Amazon.com ExcerptTerry Haggerty was no pushover. She had gone to work at sixteen to save money for college, which is where she met Rook. Before the kids came, they'd often spent weekends at campsites throughout the region. Rook was an avid fisherman and hunter, and although she hadn't had any familiarity with firearms before she met him, Terry now owned two or three guns and was proud of her ability to shoot.Under Rook’s tutelage, Terry always made sure her guns were in excellent condition. She went now to the gun cabinet in the living room. She kept most of her attention on the sounds from the back porch. From the cabinet she took out her .22 pistol and loaded it. Then she stuck it into the waist of her jeans, and pulled her shirt out to hide it.She went into the kitchen. She paused at the door to the back porch and drew a breath. Someone out there swore quietly, and there was the tinkle of glass.Enough, she thought, and opened the door.Grant White and Rick Carrington stood in the dusk outside. They looked in at her with dull surprise on their faces. She relaxed. She knew them well. They were friends of her late son, Loren, even though they'd been a year ahead of him at school. But what the devil were they up to?"Hi, guys," she said. "Que pasa?"Rick snarled in response, and her hackles rose as she realized they were both filthy, covered with mud and dried blood. Something was very wrong here. She pulled the gun out of her waistband. "Just stop right there," she said, pointing it at Rick, who stood slightly in front of Grant at the broken window.Rick snarled again, but Grant laid an arm on his shoulder. "Hi, Ms. Haggerty," he said in an oily voice. Her hackles rose even further at the sound of it. "We were just wondering where Greg was.""He's upstairs having a nap."Grant grinned in a particularly nasty way. She'd never seen such a feral expression on anyone's face. "Oh, I don't think he is," he said. "I think maybe he's out looking for... Jessa."Unconsciously she took a step or two toward the boys at the window. Their eyes... she leaned forward for a better look.Rick's arm snaked out faster than she would have believed and seized her sleeve. Terry staggered back and broke free. Rick shrieked wordlessly at her, a sound that didn’t sound as though it could have come from a human throat. Grant shoved him aside and tried to force himself through the broken window. She watched in horror as the glass gashed his flesh. He ignored it. Terry realized she was in mortal danger. She raised her gun and discharged it into his face. He slumped forward without a word. Though her ears rang from the shot, she heard the thud thud thud of Rick Carrington’s feet as he fled into the woods.Book Tour ScheduleFollow the upcoming book tour from July 11 - 24, 2018.Join us and visit each tour stop daily and discover more features, excerpts, reviews, interviews, fun facts and more! To check the latest tour schedule, visit the Jersey Ghouls Book Page at Book Unleashed.About A.L. Sirois
A.L. Sirois is a writer, developmental editor, graphic artist and a performing musician. His publication career began in 1973 with the appearance of the short-short story "War Baby" in Fantastic. (It would be called "flash fiction" nowadays.) He has gone on to have fiction in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, Fantastic, Amazing Stories, and Thema, and online at Electric Spec, Mystery Weekly, Every Day Fiction and Flash Fiction Online, among other publications. His story "In the Conservatory," from Thema, was nominated for the Pushcart Prize. In addition to JERSEY GHOULS, other Sirois works include a children's book, DINOSAUR DRESS UP (Tambourine Press / William Morrow), a graphic novel, THE ENDLESS INCIDENT (2014), and a fantasy novel, THE BOHEMIAN MAGICIAN, published in 2017.As an artist, he has hundreds of drawings, paintings and illustrations to his credit. Al has contributed comic art for DC, Marvel, and Charlton, and has scripted for Warren Publications. He wrote and drew "Bugs in the System" for witzend #12, the famous comics fanzine started by for MAD artist Wally Wood. He lives in Rockingham County, North Carolina with his wife and occasional collaborator, author Grace Marcus. Together they are writing a Young Adult novel set in ancient Egypt.Social media links: Facebook | TwitterGiveawayWIN FREE BOOK AND MORE Prizes up for grabs:1. Print Copy of Jersey Ghouls by A.L. Sirois
2. Color Rough of the book cover, painted in acrylics on illustration board
3. Drawing of the book cover on tracing paper
4. Drawing of the book cover on layout bond paperContest runs from June 15 - July 24, 2018.a Rafflecopter giveawayIn partnership with Book Unleashed Blog Tours

Review of "Silent Meridian"

I was really exited when I saw this Elizabeth Crowens' Silent Meridian posted as a possibility to review with Books Unleashed. I love steam punk and gaslight fiction. I love stories that incorporate historic figures in fun, imaginative ways, as Seth Grahame-Smith did with Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter or in another story I reviewed, Tim Symonds's Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Einstein's Daughter.  In my mind these stories work best when one or two historic characters are thrown into the path of our protagonist. I also love alternative methods of time travel stories, as I am a huge Doctor Who fan.
So I gave this story a couple of thumbs-up before I even read it. There are a lot of really interesting elements going on it. For the most part the protagonist is likable and I sympathized with him. I enjoyed the various settings and the mysticism built in.

Ultimately, however, it left me feeling as if it could have used another good edit before it went out to audiences. A few typos and, more jarringly, inconsistencies really pulled me out of the enjoyment of the reading. And the plot never really seemed to gel. I never felt as if I understood what the real struggle was for the protagonist, where he needed to get by the end of the story.

The blurb:

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is obsessed with a legendary red book. Its peculiar stories have come to life, and rumors claim that it has rewritten its own endings. Convinced that possessing this book will help him write his ever-popular Sherlock Holmes stories, he takes on an unlikely partner, John Patrick Scott, known to most as a concert musician and paranormal investigator. Although in his humble opinion, Scott considers himself more of an ethereal archaeologist and a time traveler professor.
Together they explore lost worlds and excavate realms beyond the knowledge of historians when they go back in time to find it. But everything backfires, and their friendship is tested to the limits. Both discover that karmic ties and unconscionable crimes have followed them like ghosts from the past, wreaking havoc on the present and possibly the future.
Silent Meridian reveals the alternate histories of Conan Doyle, H.G. Wells, Houdini, Jung and other luminaries in the secret diaries of a new kind of Doctor Watson, John Patrick Scott, in an X Files for the 19th century. Stay tuned for A Pocketful of Lodestones, book two in the Time Traveler Professor series by Elizabeth Crowens.

Review of "Scenes and Sequels"

Mike Klaassen has written a book, Scenes and Sequels, that is fairly easy to understand and pretty useful for an aspiring writer. In it, he explains how to use scene and sequel to help craft a better novel. This information could be utilized before drafting or as an analysis tool once a first draft is complete.
In addition to the exploration of the concepts of scene and sequel, Mr. Klaassen provides several concrete examples from novels with which most readers will be familiar. He also uses a fairy tale and passages from his own writing. These help effectively illustrate the structures he is discussing. As a writer myself, I can't over stress the need for writers to first be avid readers, and his analysis helps drive home that point.
While reading this book, I was also reading Raymond Chandler’s The High Window. I found myself thinking of the novel's structure in terms of scene and sequel, and being able to see the structure in action gave me some insight into my own writing.
A lot of the work here can be found elsewhere, so if a reader has already explored this topic, he or she may not find anything new, other than the specific examples.
My biggest problem with Scenes and Sequels is the use of filler to increase word count. The author repeats a great deal of information, summarizes chapters at both the beginnings and endings, and includes a large glossary of literary terms, many of which are not applicable to the text. I would definitely feel more comfortable buying this book if the cover price were lower.
All in all, I would recommend this to an author who has yet to put pen to paper, someone who feels as if he or she has a novel inside but does not yet know how to go about organizing it. I think this book could help a writer like that hit the ground running and end up less frustrated in the long run.