Phil Giunta's Blog, page 116

About This Writing Stuff...

Back from vacation and already wishing I had stayed at the beach.  Just having one of those weeks... but today, author John Scalzi explains how not to be boring while Kristine Kathryn Rusch offers some slush pile truths.  Chuck Sambuchino of Writer's Digest provides a myriad of articles including how to make cool YouTube videos to promote your book and how the "rule of three" can help you pitch...and much more!


When the Story You're Writing Isn't Working: An Interview with Donald Miller by Melissa Wuske

SF Author John Scalzi Explains How Not To Be Boring by Scott Francis

Slush Pile Truths by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Be Strategic in What You Consume to Boost Productivity by Todd Henry / posted by Jane Friedman


From Chuck Sambuchino

Find an Agent: A Little Un-Advice by Stephanie Stiles

How the "Rule of 3" Can Help You Pitch by Randy Russell

Agent Advice: Lindsay Clemons of Larson Pomada Literary Agency posted by Chuck Sambuchino

5 Tips for Making a Really Cool YouTube Video to Promote Your Book by Dan Elish

How I Got My Agent by Reavis Wortham

Book Review: Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu

If you think the plethora of phobias plaguing detective Adrian Monk is insufferable, wait until he is reinstated to the San Francisco Police Department as acting captain of homicide.  When the Blue Flu strikes the SFPD, including Captain Leland Stottlemeyer and Lt. Randy Disher, the mayor reinstates Monk along with three other former detectives, each with their own mental issues....and assistants.   Much to the chagrin of Stottlemeyer, Monk happily accepts the job of commanding the "scabs", and delves into a series of murders that include astrologers, a cop-killer, and a predator with a female foot fetish known as the Golden Gate Strangler.

Monk's team includes a retiree with bouts of senility aided by his bored, apathetic granddaughter, a gunslinger with anger issues who bullies his counselor, and a paranoiac with a tinfoil covered head full of alien abduction conspiracies shadowed by her shrink. 

They make Natalie grateful, believe me. 

As usual with his Monk novels, Lee Goldberg adroitly captures the characters and creates plausible mysteries-within-mysteries as on the television series. Each of Goldberg's stories is told completely from the POV of Natalie Teeger, a young widow and single mom who is also Adrian Monk's full time assistant/caretaker.  As a long time fan of the TV series, I can easily hear the voices of Tony Shalhoub, Ted Levine, Jason Gray-Stanford, and Traylor Howard when reading the dialogue.  There is little to no fluff in the Monk novels which I also admire.  Each scene and chapter moves the story along while also taking the time for character development.
 

Book Review: Mr. Monk Goes To Hawaii

I always wanted to see a follow up story where private detective Adrian Monk takes the "cool pill" prescribed by Dr. Kroger in the televised episode "Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine". I found it hilarious and at the same time, very poignant and touching to observe what happens when the pill's effects wear off and Monk returns to his life of OCD and social paranoia.  I was curious to see how differently Natalie would handle the situation as opposed to Sharona, Monk's former assistant/nurse.

I was not disappointed. Lee Goldberg, writer of several Monk TV episodes, crafts the story adeptly, putting Monk on the pill only at the beginning and end of the story and describing Monk's behavior in detail the first time while leaving it to the reader's imagination for his second dose.

In between, Monk finds himself in Hawaii, intruding on Natalie's vacation.  While there, he solves a myriad of crimes for the police including murder, a series of burglaries, and drug smuggling. Before and after the crimes, Monk also publicly reveals a lying bigamist (to Natalie's embarrassment) and a charlatan psychic (who also turns out to be a killer). 

This the second Monk novel I've read, the first being Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse, and I enjoyed them both.  Coincidentally, each book was completed while vacationing in Rehoboth Beach, DE.  Perhaps I'm starting a tradition. I am currently nearing the end of Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu which I started the day before my vacation concluded.  I'll post a review here shortly.



 

Live from ThrillerFest!

No, I did not attend ThrillerFest (I'm vacationing in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware as I write this) but Zachary Petit of Writer's Digest was kind enough to send along a series of articles based on discussions from the convention.  Read on!

Plot Like a Bestseller: 8 Things You Should Know  by William Bernhardt

3 Things to Do Before You Start Writing Your Thriller by Michael Palmer 

One Simple Question All Writers Should Ask Themselves by Douglas Preston

One Simple Way to Sharpen Your Pitch  by Jon Land

7 Keys to a Thriller That Actually Thrills by Steven James

The Future: A Brief Survival Kit by Simon Lipskar

About this Writing Stuff...

This week, Mark C. Newton offers 10 tips for building your writing checklist.  Humor writer Justin Halpern of Sh*t My Dad Says shares his writing insights while JA Konrath dumps on the Tsunami of Crap.   Susan Cushman talks about fiction that reads fast and Jane Friedman reveals one of the secret ingredients of platform building.


The Tsunami of Crap by JA Konrath

10 Tips for Building Your Writing Checklist by Mark C. Newton / posted by Chuck Sambuchino

Humorist Justin Halpern's Uncensored Writing Insights

Numbering Pages of a Prologue by Brian A. Klems

Speed: Writing Fiction that Reads Fast by Susan Cushman / posted by Jane Friedman

How to Be a Click Magnet: Improve Your Search Engine Results by Hollis Gillespie / posted by Chuck Sambuchino

Agent Advice: Dawn Frederick of Red Sofa Literary posted by Chuck Sambuchino

New Agent Alert: Lauren Ruth of BookEnds, LLC posted by Chuck Sambuchino

The Hidden, Secret Ingredient of Platform: Relationships by Jane Friedman

Next Generation Hobbies

Yesterday, I drove up to Sugar Loaf near Chester, NY to visit Next Generation Hobbies, a fairly new hobby shop started by Anthony Mangano (formerly of HiWay Hobby House in Ramsey, NJ). My buddies and I agreed it was well worth the three hour trip (it would have been 2 hours if not for Pocono area traffic jams).

The shop has an excellent selection of SF, horror, auto, and military kits as well as supplies, and some model trains and action figures. For my birthda, I treated myself to a Romulan Bird of Prey and two USS Reliant model kits. Next Gen Hobbies is a great shop that I hope will be around for a long time.

In addition, one of my amigos that went along gave me a Vulcan Shuttle model kit and a Three Stooges DVD set for my b-day.  

 

A Day on the Water for My 40th B-Day!

A great day of fishing at Beltzville Lake in Carbon County , PA for my 40th b-day. Couldn't have asked for better weather or variety of fish including largemouth and smallmouth bass, perch, even a few rock bass but best of all was the chain pickerel that came as the final fish of the day! I didn't have time to measure him because I had to take the pics myself on my iPhone and get it back into the water, but I estimate it at approximately 14" long. Not too shabby!

Author Interview: Kieryn Nicolas

At the risk of sounding like that creepy Benny Mardones song, she's just sixteen years old...and has two novels on the market already!   I learned about Kieryn Nicolas through the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group when she announced the release of her second YA novel, Flawless Ruins, earlier this month.  On my relentless quest for new blog material and the opportunity to promote other authors, I reached out to Kieryn at that time and she graciously agreed to an interview. 

On Saturday, June 25th, I had the opportunity to meet Kieryn and her mom at the Allentown Library as part of Kieryn's book tour.   It was a pleasure to chat with them and I was very impressed by their promotional materials. I walked away with two signed books, a stack of bookmarks, even an autographed poster promoting literacy.  It instills hope when I find someone so young with the commitment, talent, and ambition to achieve the long term goal of completing not just one, but two novels.

And as I understand it, there are plenty more on the way.  It's an honor to welcome Kieryn to my blog...

1.       First, tell us where we can find you online such as blogs, websites, Facebook, etc.

My website is www.kierynnicolas.com. I blog at www.kierynnicolas.blogspot.com, and also at www.yalitsix.blogspot.com on Tuesdays. I have twitter (kierynnicolas) and feel free to friend me on Facebook!

  

2.       What genres do you enjoy reading and which authors influenced you? When did you decide to venture into the craft of fiction writing?

I enjoy almost any genre, as long as I connect with the characters. I usually gravitate to the YA section of the library but recently I’ve enjoyed some memoirs and even some nonfiction. I think Mary Pope Osborne, author of the Magic Tree House books, was a big influence when I was younger—I read every book in that series, even the nonfiction companion guides. Also, J.K. Rowling (of course) spurred my imagination. Because I read at an early age, I started making up stories at an early age too, and as soon as I understood writing I’d write them down.
 

 

3.       Your first YA novel, RAIN (Quake, April 2009) is a globe trotting tale of teen espionage.  Please tell us with us how the story came about?   

To be honest, it started with a weird dream, one I couldn’t get out of my head for days afterward. Finally I sat down to write a scene with the elements of spies, friendship, and Australia (which was not only in the dream, but also top of my real-life Places I Really Want To Go list), and that scene turned into a novel.  

        How long did it take you to write from concept to final draft? 

A year and a half—six months on the rough draft, and a year for it to simmer and undergo revisions. 

 

4.       You followed up the next year with a short story, Poison Ivy (Quake eBooks, November 2010) that touches on themes of peer pressure and the courage to stand for what’s right, even at the cost of losing social status.   Was this story born from your own personal experiences?

Poison Ivy is fictional, but the idea formed after I read To Kill a Mockingbird. The themes and concepts of that (amazing) book rolled around in my mind and I decided to apply similar ideas to a social setting with which I was familiar.  

 

 

5.       Your latest YA novel, Flawless Ruins (Quake, May 2011) , is set in a post-war, futuristic America where women have advanced further in society than ever before.  Your protagonist, Morgan Waters, seems to live a fairly blissful life until she discovers something disturbing in her ‘flawless’ society.

 

What more can you tell us about the world you created in Flawless Ruins?  What inspired the story?

The idea for Flawless Ruins was a detour my mind took as I complained about girls—fictional and real—who had/thought they had “perfect” love interests. The world of Flawless Ruins is just that—perfect! With a few strings attached, of course. Or maybe they’re more like iron cables. Because nothing is perfect, not even in the future. 

Are you a science fiction fan or was this genre new territory for you?  

I’m not a science fiction fan and I’m not not a science fiction fan—I’m a story fan. If a story is good I’ll enjoy reading it, regardless of the genre—I think the same can be said for writing a story.  :-) 

 

6.       According to your bio, you were a competitive figure skater for nine years. What sparked your interest in skating?    What made you decide to stop competing? 

My grandma gave me skating lessons when I turned four, and I fell in love. Even though I got extremely nervous at competitions, I loved the challenge of working on new techniques (and landing double jumps, once I got to that level!) and doing the annual ice show at my rink was as exciting as a second holiday season. However, when I reached a certain point, I had to choose between dedicating my life to skating (which would’ve required moving) or allowing myself to explore other activities, such as writing and school activities. I’m usually an all-or-nothing kind of person, and I chose the latter. I’m glad I did, because now I’ve had the opportunity to pursue taekwondo and writing and I still have all the lessons I learned from skating, like how to deal with competition and how to apply stage makeup. Important stuff. 

 

7.       What does Kieryn Nicolas do when she isn’t writing?

 
Kieryn likes to sleep in! But that only happens during the summer. When she’s awake, Kieryn goes running and hangs out with her friends and reads awesome books. Sometimes she argues with her sister, but usually they get along. Ish. Also, she works on her driving-a-motor-vehicle skills. They’re kind of coming along.


 

About This Writing Stuff...

This week's batch of articles comes from a variety of sources.  What does J.A. Konrath mean by an  'estributor'?  M.J. Rose talks about reaching out to book clubs while Becky Levine discusses balancing your writing with summer fun.   Alan Rinzler explains why you should trust your readers and John Locke becomes the first self-published author to sell one million books on Kindle.  Read on!



5 Things More Important than Talent by Jane Friedman

Reaching Out to Book Clubs by M.J. Rose on Writer Unboxed

Summer Writing by Becky Levine

Are You Hoarding Ideas?  by James Chartrand

How to Write Like No One is Watching by Ali Luke

Agent Advice: Deidre Knight of the Knight Agency by Ricki Schultz / posted by Chuck Sambuchino

The First Self Published Author to Sell 1 Million Kindle Books by Laura Hazard Owen

Trusting the Reader by Alan Rinzler

Estributors Redux by J.A. Konrath

The Toy Robot Museum in Adamstown, PA

Adamstown, PA is known as the Antiques Capital of USA and since 2002, I've been visiting the Toy Robot Museum in the Stoudtburg Village  at least two to three times per year.  

Curator and retired NYC police officer, Joe Knedlhans has managed to compile over 2,100 toy robots from the 1960s to modern day.   His collection began when his late wife, model and Hollywood actress Margo Moore , bought a toy robot for him on a lark.  In his days on the force, Joe worked on the team that employed robots to assess dangerous situations prior to sending in human officers.

This past weekend, my fiancee and I  went out there with my friend and publisher, Steven H. Wilson and his family and my friend Omar Caal who had celebrated a recent birthday.   For the Wilsons, it was a first time visit and everyone seemed to have a good time.  Omar donated a Robby the Robot ornament to the museum and I donated an autographed photo of actor Robert Dix from Forbidden Planet.  In the past, I've donated autograph photos from Leslie Neilsen, Kenny Baker (R2-D2), and Nancy Allen (RoboCop).

After the museum, it was off to lunch then a trip to just a few of the many antique shops, far too numerous to visit in one day.  Some of my favorites include The Mad Hatter, German Trading Post, Antiques Co-Op, Renninger's, and Adams Antique Mall.

We ended the night with a wonderful dinner at Johnny's Steakhouse with Joe.   All in all, a fun day was had by all and it was a pleasure to spend time with good friends!