Allison Symes's Blog, page 38
September 10, 2018
Read the Book First or Watch the Film?
When it comes to adaptations, do you read the original book first or watch the film and then decide to go and read the book?
I must admit I've done both. I read The Lord of the Rings before seeing the films. I read Oliver Twist after seeing Alec Guinness play Fagin on TV all those years ago. (Mesmerising performance in evil manipulation there!).
I must admit one thing I love about the Muppets' version of A Christmas Carol is they plug reading the original book right at the end of the film. (And they're right - you should read it!).
A good adaptation will bring a story to life and help draw people into reading the original book. A bad one will do the exact opposite!
So where DO you turn first - the book or the film? Why do you think you've chosen as you have?
I must admit I've done both. I read The Lord of the Rings before seeing the films. I read Oliver Twist after seeing Alec Guinness play Fagin on TV all those years ago. (Mesmerising performance in evil manipulation there!).
I must admit one thing I love about the Muppets' version of A Christmas Carol is they plug reading the original book right at the end of the film. (And they're right - you should read it!).
A good adaptation will bring a story to life and help draw people into reading the original book. A bad one will do the exact opposite!
So where DO you turn first - the book or the film? Why do you think you've chosen as you have?
September 4, 2018
Favourite Moments
Some of my favourite moments in a book come when a character has to face up to something they would never anticipate and find a way of dealing with it.
For example, my favourite Agatha Christie novel is Murder on the Orient Express, because Poirot has to deal with a situation he would not have guessed at and which in many ways should never have been able to happen. The David Suchet TV adaptation particularly plays on this element. (Not going to say more than that - no spoilers here! But if you've not read the book and/or watched the TV adaptation, try and do so. It really is a great story).
This element works especially well with a series character like Poirot when you have already come to know a lot about how they operate and think. To have that all thrown up in the air keeps the character and you, the reader, on your toes. Always a good thing, I think.
It confirms to me that what makes a really good story is the strength of the character, whether they're a hero or a villain. Plots are fine but you need well rounded characters to carry them out!
For example, my favourite Agatha Christie novel is Murder on the Orient Express, because Poirot has to deal with a situation he would not have guessed at and which in many ways should never have been able to happen. The David Suchet TV adaptation particularly plays on this element. (Not going to say more than that - no spoilers here! But if you've not read the book and/or watched the TV adaptation, try and do so. It really is a great story).
This element works especially well with a series character like Poirot when you have already come to know a lot about how they operate and think. To have that all thrown up in the air keeps the character and you, the reader, on your toes. Always a good thing, I think.
It confirms to me that what makes a really good story is the strength of the character, whether they're a hero or a villain. Plots are fine but you need well rounded characters to carry them out!
August 29, 2018
Where Do You Turn First?
So you have limited time to read (it is ever so!) and you can choose between reading one hardback, one paperback, or pick one option from your Kindle? Which would you automatically plump for over the others?
I'd go for the paperback every time (partly because while I have some hardbacks, my paperback collection is far greater). There is still the element of the "go for the real book" here, much as I love the Kindle.
Where the Kindle does come into its own is when I'm away anywhere and the last thing I want to do is lug a lot of books along with me (unless they're by me and I'm trying to sell them of course!).
The other reason I'd go for the paperback first is I'd want the experience of the "whole book". You can't smell a Kindle's "pages" but you can do it with a paper book - and I have and will continue to do so.
I do like the smell of a book. I like the look of a well designed cover. I like the feel of a paperback in my hands. So there is the whole tactile experience going on here.
I do know I'm not the only reader/writer to feel that way so if I'm weird, I know I've got company. Very well read company, I should add!
So what would you pick then and why? Comments welcome.
I'd go for the paperback every time (partly because while I have some hardbacks, my paperback collection is far greater). There is still the element of the "go for the real book" here, much as I love the Kindle.
Where the Kindle does come into its own is when I'm away anywhere and the last thing I want to do is lug a lot of books along with me (unless they're by me and I'm trying to sell them of course!).
The other reason I'd go for the paperback first is I'd want the experience of the "whole book". You can't smell a Kindle's "pages" but you can do it with a paper book - and I have and will continue to do so.
I do like the smell of a book. I like the look of a well designed cover. I like the feel of a paperback in my hands. So there is the whole tactile experience going on here.
I do know I'm not the only reader/writer to feel that way so if I'm weird, I know I've got company. Very well read company, I should add!
So what would you pick then and why? Comments welcome.
August 22, 2018
What Do I Want From a Story?
Call me fussy but there are certain things I want from any and every story, regardless of genre.
1. Intriguing characters.
2. A life or death situation (this can be life or death in the literal sense or a character making the proverbial mountain out of a molehill but it is still life or death to them).
3. Dialogue that rattles along.
4. A sense of place but not too much physical description, please. I just want enough images to form a vision of the whole thing but a few telling details are enough for that.
5. When the story ends, I'm sorry because I've loved being "with" the characters.
All of the above is why I read in and out of my genre as I love to find out how other writers achieve these things. And it has added considerably to both my online and physical bookshelves!
1. Intriguing characters.
2. A life or death situation (this can be life or death in the literal sense or a character making the proverbial mountain out of a molehill but it is still life or death to them).
3. Dialogue that rattles along.
4. A sense of place but not too much physical description, please. I just want enough images to form a vision of the whole thing but a few telling details are enough for that.
5. When the story ends, I'm sorry because I've loved being "with" the characters.
All of the above is why I read in and out of my genre as I love to find out how other writers achieve these things. And it has added considerably to both my online and physical bookshelves!
August 17, 2018
Coming Back To Earth
Have just got back from my annual highlight - the
Swanwick Writers' Summer School.
Had a wonderful time discussing and learning about all things connected to the worlds of books and stories. What's not to like about that?
But, as ever with these things, you come back home again and you feel shattered and a bit flat. (You take in far more than you know you are when you are there and then I think the physical/mental tiredness of that hits you later).
So what can help you perk up again?
Why, nothing but a good book of course!
And the lovely thing about being a writer? You need to read widely, in and out of genre, to help feed your own imagination in any case, but you also get to write the books and with a lot of hard work, and some luck, get them out there.
So happy reading and writing!
Swanwick Writers' Summer School.
Had a wonderful time discussing and learning about all things connected to the worlds of books and stories. What's not to like about that?
But, as ever with these things, you come back home again and you feel shattered and a bit flat. (You take in far more than you know you are when you are there and then I think the physical/mental tiredness of that hits you later).
So what can help you perk up again?
Why, nothing but a good book of course!
And the lovely thing about being a writer? You need to read widely, in and out of genre, to help feed your own imagination in any case, but you also get to write the books and with a lot of hard work, and some luck, get them out there.
So happy reading and writing!
August 9, 2018
Getting Away From It All
I shall be getting away from it all shortly at the Swanwick Writers' Summer School once again but will be immersed in a world of stories and books (reading and writing them!). Bliss!
So what books go with you when you get away from it all?
I pack my Kindle and what I read depends on my mood, naturally, though I am currently enjoying Lucy Worsley's A Very British Murder and hope to finish that by the end of the week. The book is great. It is usually a question of how long can I keep my eyes open at the end of the day! That is the trouble with bedtime reading...
There's a couple of other crime novels I want to read as well while I'm away. And after that I may well turn back to humour again. I do find I like to read a few stories or books in a genre, then switch to another one and read a few in that for a bit. Still, it all mixes up the reading and then there is always the delight of the wondrous world of non-fiction too!
So whatever your holiday/summer reading is, enjoy!
So what books go with you when you get away from it all?
I pack my Kindle and what I read depends on my mood, naturally, though I am currently enjoying Lucy Worsley's A Very British Murder and hope to finish that by the end of the week. The book is great. It is usually a question of how long can I keep my eyes open at the end of the day! That is the trouble with bedtime reading...
There's a couple of other crime novels I want to read as well while I'm away. And after that I may well turn back to humour again. I do find I like to read a few stories or books in a genre, then switch to another one and read a few in that for a bit. Still, it all mixes up the reading and then there is always the delight of the wondrous world of non-fiction too!
So whatever your holiday/summer reading is, enjoy!
August 2, 2018
Heatwaves and Reading
Is the hot weather (in the UK at least) encouraging you to read more or less than you would usually?
I find I'm "dipping" into things more, especially magazines, given by the end of the day, when I'd usually like to read for a while before lights out, I'm feeling far too washed out to read much. Oh and I am reading more magazines on Kindle now, which was something I never thought I'd do, but I've got on better with it than I thought I would.
Magazine reading is ideal for that feeling washed out to concentrate much scenario, as are short story and flash fiction anthologies. Quick reads when you feel as if your brain has melted are ideal. The literary fiction can definitely wait for when it is cooler!
Looking at my reading patterns over the year, I tend to read more novels over the autumn and winter months. It's not a conscious thing. I suppose you hone in to the fact that with the nights drawing in, now's the time to get on with a good, LONG book!
Meanwhile it's back to the cool drinks and quick reads for me!
I find I'm "dipping" into things more, especially magazines, given by the end of the day, when I'd usually like to read for a while before lights out, I'm feeling far too washed out to read much. Oh and I am reading more magazines on Kindle now, which was something I never thought I'd do, but I've got on better with it than I thought I would.
Magazine reading is ideal for that feeling washed out to concentrate much scenario, as are short story and flash fiction anthologies. Quick reads when you feel as if your brain has melted are ideal. The literary fiction can definitely wait for when it is cooler!
Looking at my reading patterns over the year, I tend to read more novels over the autumn and winter months. It's not a conscious thing. I suppose you hone in to the fact that with the nights drawing in, now's the time to get on with a good, LONG book!
Meanwhile it's back to the cool drinks and quick reads for me!
July 27, 2018
How influential are book titles to you?
When writing my own stories, I must have a title to help me get started, even if I change it later on. I am very fond of "open" titles where I could go in several directions with it. It helps to keep the reader guessing!
With books, I want a title to intrigue me enough to make me want to go on to read the blurb and maybe then the first paragraph or two. I then want to read the book to see if it lives up to the promise given by that title and the blurb.
But I never buy a book on the strength of its title alone. I see the role of a title is to "get me through the door" so I look at the book in more detail in the first place.
Some of my favourite titles include The Lord of the Rings (don't you just want to know who the Lord is?), The ABC Murders (how can the alphabet be relevant to a crime), and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (got to find out where they all come into a story, yes?).
What are your favourite book titles and why?
With books, I want a title to intrigue me enough to make me want to go on to read the blurb and maybe then the first paragraph or two. I then want to read the book to see if it lives up to the promise given by that title and the blurb.
But I never buy a book on the strength of its title alone. I see the role of a title is to "get me through the door" so I look at the book in more detail in the first place.
Some of my favourite titles include The Lord of the Rings (don't you just want to know who the Lord is?), The ABC Murders (how can the alphabet be relevant to a crime), and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (got to find out where they all come into a story, yes?).
What are your favourite book titles and why?
July 21, 2018
Book Covers
I think everyone does judge a book by its cover. How else can you do so? You need something to draw you in initially and that is the cover's job.
I like a cover to be appropriate for whatever it is I'm reading and, ironically for a writer, I want the picture to do most of the work.
I've sometimes given opinions on book covers before the books concerned are published and the ones with lots of text merely look cluttered. Far from giving me more to read on the cover, too much text here switches me off.
Where I do want the text is on the back for the blurb. Have you ever read a book, enticed by the blurb and cover, but the story fails to deliver on its promise? I think most of us have and you just feel let down. (All writers beware here!)
The great thing here though is that despite the cover and blurb being really important, it is STILL the story that matters most of all. And what we are all after is a story that entertains, educates, keeps us gripped to the final page and so on.
Happy reading!
I like a cover to be appropriate for whatever it is I'm reading and, ironically for a writer, I want the picture to do most of the work.
I've sometimes given opinions on book covers before the books concerned are published and the ones with lots of text merely look cluttered. Far from giving me more to read on the cover, too much text here switches me off.
Where I do want the text is on the back for the blurb. Have you ever read a book, enticed by the blurb and cover, but the story fails to deliver on its promise? I think most of us have and you just feel let down. (All writers beware here!)
The great thing here though is that despite the cover and blurb being really important, it is STILL the story that matters most of all. And what we are all after is a story that entertains, educates, keeps us gripped to the final page and so on.
Happy reading!
July 16, 2018
Helpful Book Reviews
What do you find most helpful in a book review?
Speaking as a writer and reader, I love to see the following in any review, regardless of its length.
1. A good description of the central idea of the book. (This tends to indicate genre and often age range too).
2. Whether the reviewer liked it or not and good reasons why. (Nobody likes a troll! I want to know what people liked about what I've written and what they feel I could do better. I'm not necessarily going to agree but if several are saying the same thing, then it's time to look again. From the reader viewpoint, I want to see sensible reasons given. "Not to my taste" doesn't really tell you enough).
3. The review is clearly an honest one. I need to be able to gauge whether someone's book is likely to appeal to me. Several comments, offering differing views, is a very good help to me to work out, yes this is likely to appeal or conversely that it won't!
I write reviews myself sometimes and do follow my own advice here. The great thing about being a writer yourself is it kind of makes it easy for you to come up with a good review. You write the kind of review you would love to see on your own book or, if you do really dislike what you've just read, to still pick out where you think the book might appeal, while honestly admitting it wasn't for you. (I love the honesty behind that sort of review).
So happy reading and reviewing!
Speaking as a writer and reader, I love to see the following in any review, regardless of its length.
1. A good description of the central idea of the book. (This tends to indicate genre and often age range too).
2. Whether the reviewer liked it or not and good reasons why. (Nobody likes a troll! I want to know what people liked about what I've written and what they feel I could do better. I'm not necessarily going to agree but if several are saying the same thing, then it's time to look again. From the reader viewpoint, I want to see sensible reasons given. "Not to my taste" doesn't really tell you enough).
3. The review is clearly an honest one. I need to be able to gauge whether someone's book is likely to appeal to me. Several comments, offering differing views, is a very good help to me to work out, yes this is likely to appeal or conversely that it won't!
I write reviews myself sometimes and do follow my own advice here. The great thing about being a writer yourself is it kind of makes it easy for you to come up with a good review. You write the kind of review you would love to see on your own book or, if you do really dislike what you've just read, to still pick out where you think the book might appeal, while honestly admitting it wasn't for you. (I love the honesty behind that sort of review).
So happy reading and reviewing!
