Stuart Aken's Blog, page 240

Fictional Worlds, by L.A. Alexander, Reviewed.

Subtitled, ‘Traditions in Narrative and the Age of Visual Culture’, this tome of nearly 400 pages of erudition is a considerable piece of work. The book is essentially about storytelling on the screen and is, in fact, part of a series under that title.
Academic, considered, analytical and full of wisdom, it is a book for those working in the film industry, for students of that medium, for critics and reviewers and, ultimately, for those who write screenplays. As a manual for study and an analytical tool for those involved in film, it is a wonderful book.
There are many illustrative case histories: unfortunately, I’ve seen vary few of the many popular films discussed, so this aspect was of less value to me. In any case, although I’ve dabbled in screenwriting and my fiction is visually based, I’m essentially a novelist. As such, I have different needs as a writer. That’s not to say that the book has nothing to offer me. The analysis of story elements and the explanation of story structure are valuable elements and I come away with a deeper understanding of the history and purpose behind story. Myth and legend form the basis of most of what we write today and the discussions of the various root tales are useful and inspiring.
My writing method is that of the pantster. I don’t plan or structure, except in the very loosest way possible. Generally, I start with a theme, develop a story beginning and ending, to which I add characters, and then allow these invented people to determine the route, the journey, of the novel. So, analysis and structural planning are of little help to me; in fact, they can be destructive of a process that relies hugely on instinct and the subconscious mingling of experience, knowledge and emotional elements. Sorry if that sounds pretentious, but it’s the nearest I can find to expressing what actually happens when I sit at the keyboard to create.
Planners and plotters, however, of which there are multitude in the writing world, will find this book invaluable. It guides and explains, suggests analogies, prompts with themes, and labels those elements of a story that such writers need to identify.

So, a book I’d definitely recommend to scholars, scriptwriters, film directors, those with an abiding interest in film, and to those writers who find their creative stimulation in plot.Related articles Reading A Writer's Mind: Exploring Short Fiction - First Thought to Finished Story Five basic elements make up a story

End the Old Year with a Bang.

Just a very quick post today. A plea for your help, and a way for you to aid readers who either have difficulty with small print or who can’t read at all due to poor eyesight. My publisher, Fantastic Books Publishing, a small independent concern, is trying to raise cash using Kickstarter so that he can launch a project that will allow the professional recording of books as audiobooks. It’s a great idea, and one that will give pleasure to many, including, of course, those readers who enjoy hearing the words of books as they go about other tasks.
The target is almost achieved and now requires only a few more to pledge a small amount each to reach the total. So, I ask that you’ll do this and make the dream come true.
Simply click here for the link. It’s a simple process. There are even rewards for those who wish to take advantage of such offers. Please make a pledge and get this project up and running.

All the Best for the Christmas Holiday

Twitter Tips for Author Tweeters.

I’ve been using Twitter, as a writer, for a few years now. Recently, I’ve been conducting some experiments and doing a spot of exploration. I thought I’d share my findings, for what they’re worth, with the writing community.
I don’t have a huge following: 8,537 followers, as I compose this post, with me following 8,534 and having made 21,299 tweets. But it’s a lot more than I started with at the beginning of the year: 5,110 followers, following 5,012, and 11,823 tweets. Much of that increase has taken place in the past couple of months, with the bulk of it occurring over the month of December. This is the result of the experiments.
I belong to a group on Facebook, called ASMSG (Authors Social MediaSupport Group), just one of a number of such groups. The basic premise is that we re-tweet and post each other’s links in the hope of increasing our exposure. The group has around 780 members at present and we’re all linked with each other. There’s a good deal of activity on Facebook as well as on Twitter.
One of the things I’ve started to do is increase my re-tweeting of other members’ tweets, and that has had an impact, increasing my following. However, I believe the major contributor to the increase has been my collection of twitter handles that I then tweet; promoting these re-tweeters in groups to my followers. By advertising the fact that a tweeter retweets regularly, you encourage others to follow that tweeter. So, what’s in it for me? Well, naturally, other tweeters see what I’m doing and want to get in on the act. They follow me, retweet my tweets and I then add them to my collection. I use a Word document along with the ‘find’ function to keep track of this activity. Since it takes me about an hour each day to do this, I won’t be able to continue it for long. But the experiment has been very instructive.
It’s clear that re-tweeting the tweets of others is an excellent way of spreading not only their messages but also my own name.
So: Tip 1: If someone retweets something you’ve done, something that matters to you, have the good manners to follow them (if you don’t already) and to RT one of their tweets. You’ll build goodwill along with new followers. And thank them for the RT: your own tweet handle along with theirs will go out to the community and be seen again.
Secondly, I’ve taken to following all those who follow me, regardless of whether I’m fascinated by their activity. This may seem odd thing, but it’s connected me with others in whose tweets and activities I am interested. And it’s resulted in sales of my books. The spread is viral, you see. You’ll notice that my numbers of ‘followers’ and ‘following’ are quite close. This synchronicity seems to encourage people to follow: they see that they won’t be following without being followed back and that’s important to many tweeters.
Tip 2:Follow back those who follow you.
Are you aware that a tweet that starts with a handle; @stuartaken, for example, will go only to your followers and those who follow the named person, and not to the whole community. By starting a tweet this way, you’re effectively reducing your reach. We’re writers: exposure is vital; the more people who see your name/message, the better. So, you need to start your tweets with something other than the @ symbol. Anything will do. You’re a writer: I’m sure you can come up with alternative wording to overcome this limitation.
Tip 3:Never start a tweet with @ unless you specifically want it to be limited in its reach.
Many tweeters use automated direct messages. These are generally ignored by the bulk of tweeters. In fact, it’s not unusual for people to unfollow such tweeters, treating the DM as spam. So beware. If you must send a DM, and I’d advise against unless circumstances dictate it, make sure it’s personal, not general.
Tip 4:Avoid automatic DMs.
Programs, such as justunfollow, allow you to keep track of your followers. There are companies and individuals out there who will follow you until you follow back and then they’ll unfollow you, safe in the knowledge that most people won’t notice this sneaky way of increasing their followers. Using something like justunfollow allows you to keep an eye on those who’ve ceased to follow you and this, in turn, helps keep your followers and those you’re following in some sort of balance. Try it. It’s free, and fairly quick and easy to use.
Tip 5:Use a program to keep your followers in balance with those you’re following.
Hashtags, #, identify areas of mutual interest for tweeters. On your Twitter page you’ll see a heading,  #Discover. I bet most of you have never ventured into this land, however. Hashtags can be attached to any number of subjects. There’s one for Doncaster, one for Kindle, for Mandela, for SciFi, Fantasy, Horror, and, of course, WRITING. In fact, you name it and there’s probably a hashtag for it. So, what does this mean? It allows you to join a community with the same interests as you, it allows you to interact with them and encourages those who retweet to retweet your tweets to like-minded folk, thereby spreading your name and messages to those most likely to be interested in the topic.
Tip 6:Use hashtags (the search facility will enable you to identify the exact format you need to use for each specific tag).
One last thing that I suspect a lot of you don’t know (it’s amazing how reluctant users can be to explore websites) is that the headings on the ‘Home’ page have functions. If you click on the tab that says ‘Followers’ you’ll see it lists your followers in date order, with the most recent at the top of that list. You can quickly follow back all new followers from this one spot. Easy.
Tip 7:Explore and use the various tools Twitter supplies for use. They make life easier and save time.
Some general advice, based on my own experience:If you’re using Twitter as writer, you want the maximum audience; don’t make your tweets private or use programs like Truetwit to verify twitters. Whilst such barriers may be useful for private users, they get in the way of easy interaction with potentially useful contacts for those of us trying to spread the word. Keep an eye on spammers: the more followers you have, the more likely you are to be targeted by spammers. (I get about 1 or 2 per week). They attach a URL to your handle and you’ll discover you’re being associated with some unsavoury or money-grabbing organisation against your intentions. It’s not a real problem. Just click on the handle of the spammer and then use the drop-down menu to block them. The tweet will die immediately and the spammer will be brought to the notice of Twitter, who will stop them in their tracks, more or less at once.
A few final words of advice, if you can bear them: beware; Twitter can be addictive. Use it sparingly but effectively. And, if you like the idea of being able to schedule tweets for future dates, try out such programs as Tweetdeck or Hootsuite. And make sure your social networks and blog/website are all linked: it’ll save you a great deal of time in the long run.

Oh, and by all means, please feel free to follow me at @stuartaken. I’ll follow you back as soon as I can, I promise!

Want 10% Off the Price of a Kindle?

I have a voucher to give one person 10% off the price of a Kindle. No strings, no need for you to pass any sort of test. It's first come, first served. So, go to the top of the page and click on 'Contact me' and let me have your email address via that link. I need this to forward you the email that will give you the discount. But be quick, as this is a one off.

A Short Story

Something from my past is now on a great website, where you'll find hundreds of great short stories; Look for it here: 

Bluff, by Susan Yanguas, Reviewed.

Subtitled, a ‘Po-po Poker Mystery’, Bluff is a crime novel, set in USA, with a new detective and a sassy female ‘victim’ paired for the romance element. It is one of a series, hence the subtitle.
I know almost nothing about poker, but that didn’t impair my understanding, or my enjoyment of the book. There is humour, tension, a moral message and a credible outcome in this woman in jeopardy tale. The female character, Abigail, is strong and intelligent as well as ‘model girl’ attractive, which helps the plot and the reader’s enjoyment. The male lead is a detective of Italian descent, who I’ll call ‘Sal’, since great play is made of the fact that his colleagues find his full name more or less unpronounceable.
A good detective read, this book is a step above many others in the genre, simply by the inclusion of corruption amongst the wealthy business class and, in particular, a definite criticism of the American legal system’s vulnerability to distortion through the power of money.

I enjoyed the read. The story held my attention and the characters were well drawn. I recommend it to all who enjoy a good, honest crime tale.

Related articles Poker Strategy: Bluffing Your Cards How to bluff in your life? Mastering the poker Bluff

Publishing an Epic Fantasy Trilogy.

Placing an epic fantasy trilogy with a publisher is never easy: for a writer with no track record in the genre, it’s all but impossible. But I was determined to try the route. Apart from any other considerations, I wanted to ensure the work was properly edited. I was also concerned to have a professionally designed cover that could be carried through the whole series. And the maps needed to be made accessible to readers. Finally, and most importantly for me, the expertise that a publisher can bring to marketing and sales is something I just don’t possess.
The books I’ve self-published have been universally admired by those who’ve read them, but sales have been disappointing. This in spite of extensive work in social networking and the other areas of marketing I can afford. So, clearly, there’s some element missing from the promotion activity. My suspicion is that, in common with a lot of writers, I lack the hard-nosed confidence of the salesman and this is reflected in my own efforts at marketing. A publisher can provide the effort and conviction needed for sales.
The following interview between myself and Dan Grubb of Fantastic Books Publishing should explain why I’m delighted and excited that this independent publisher has taken me on.

SA: At a time when many writers are turning to self-publishing, Dan, can you detail the advantages of publishing with Fantastic Books Publishing?
Dan:  Professional editing/proofreading, professional covers on both e, print and eventually audio versions. A publisher ISBN (as opposed to a bought one) and registration of your work in all professional databases including the British library.SA: What stages do your books go through prior to publication?
Dan: Editing, editing and editing. These three are probably the most important! Then off to the proofreaders and then on to a collection of beta readers who will offer opinion/review from lots of different places globally. This gives us an indication of how popular your work may be and how to focus marketing efforts accordingly. These guys will also leave reviews on sites such as Goodreads and Amazon following release.
SA: My book, A Seared Sky: Joinings, is due for publication early next year. At what stage is the process for this book at present?
Dan: The editing is looking good. You're a very talented writer and as such there is really very little to do on the editing front. The proofreading is a 6 stage process involving professionals initially, followed by 5 straight read throughs by our team. The last read through I do myself before sending it off to ebook production and typesetting.
The cover, thanks to your beautifully drawn maps is reaching final stages and I should have a cover for you by the end of the month. (SA – It turned out I’d misunderstood the design concept: Doh! Dan and I discussed the beautifully designed original cover options and agreed on a slightly different approach, which has delayed the initial pre-Xmas launch. But we’re both happy with the new concept and, understanding the importance of book covers, are willing to accept the delay to get it right.) The cover will also give us some great marketing images to begin spreading around the internet.
SA: I know that you are very keen on audio presentation alongside the usual publication route. Can you explain the philosophy of Fantastic Books Publishingon this aspect of book production?
Dan: When we were growing up, audio books were cool. They were a way of 'reading' after lights out in bed and also a great way to enjoy our favourite books on the move. With today's resurgence of personal audio devices (ipods, phones, tablets, MP3 players), we think it's time to make audio books cool again. There are many worthy reasons beyond convenience that we feel audio books should come back to the forefront, the main one being making books accessible to the blind and partially sighted community but, beyond that, there are also many more people who can't enjoy the traditional reading experience such as dyslexic folks (who can alter ereader screens to be more accessible but perhaps would be able to enjoy the book much more as the fully immersive experience that an audio book provides). The target for audio books isn't always to help with medical problems though. I love to listen to audio books while stuck in traffic, training or out walking the dog. Another great benefit of audio books is for those who are temporarily hospitalised with, for example, back problems. It might not be comfortable/practical for them to be holding a book or an ereader for extended periods of time whereas they can just press play once on an audio book and enjoy hours of uninterrupted listening.
SA: Your terms for authors seem more generous than those offered by most publishers. Can you tell my readers about your concerns for your writers.
Dan: We were shocked to discover some of the royalty rates paid to some authors, especially those involved in huge 'string' deals where their first book has been accepted only on the understanding that their next 5 books are all given to the same publisher and the publisher sets the timeframe for their release. Here at Fantastic Books we understand that life can sometimes throw a spanner into the works and so we leave timeframes flexible. Imagine breaking a leg and, as well as dealing with loss of earnings and the inconvenience of being hospitalised/bedbound for a while, also finding yourself in breach of contract!

And so we decided that for every book sale, we would never make more than the author makes. Period.
We give 10% of operating profit to a charity of the author's choosing.
We NEVER ask for the rights to more than 1 book at a time. We want you to come back to us with your next book because we have done a good job, not because you are contractually obliged to.
Writers should be given the freedom to write, that's the guiding principle behind Fantastic Books Publishing.

SA: I expect any writer reading this will fully understand why I'm so pleased with the publishing deal. I'd like to take this opportunity to publicly thank Dan for his time and understanding.
Dan gave a really interesting talk on marketing to my writing group. Click here for a link to a post about that.
I wrote a previous post about the early stages of the publishing process, which you can access here.

November Was NaNoWriMo Month: So What?

The major project for November was the completion of the first draft of book 3 of the fantasy trilogy, A Seared Sky. The book stood at 111,079 words when I set out on the NaNoWriMo journey and it ended up at 194,352 words. That’s 83,273 words during the month, though I actually completed the book on 21st November.
I accompanied my wife to the frozen north to visit her relatives and friends for the pre-Xmas get-together and that took a few days out of the month. I read 4 books and reviewed 3 of them; the last one was reviewed in December. And I completed 4 blog posts. I also wrote a couple of poems I’m intending to submit to contests this month. So, all in all, a pretty satisfactory month’s writing.
The end of NaNoWriMo generally leaves a void to be filled. I’ve been pretty busy with other things, so it’s only today that I’ve started feeling the need to create again. Lots of ideas for short stories, and there’s a novel brewing somewhere in the back of my mind.
The 1stvolume of the fantasy trilogy was supposed to be published this month, but, as can happen in the publishing world, a technical issue has delayed that. No-one’s fault: just one of those irritating things that sometimes occur. Because we’ll miss the Xmas window, we now intend to publish in Spring 2014. So, the marketing and pre-launch activity I was expecting to participate in is no longer necessary and I find myself with a small spell of spare time. Those poems, stories and the novel start to beckon. And, I think I might put one of my ebooks out as a paperback: possibly The Methuselah Strain. There are still large numbers of people who don’t yet have the facilities or the desire to go digital and it seems a shame to exclude them from the circle of readers.

The pie chart shows how my time has been spread over the month. I urge you to do something similar, especially if you have a tendency to procrastinate; and what writer doesn’t? Keeping a record of time spent on the various aspects of your writing activities can be surprisingly informative and sometimes a little alarming!Related articles NaNoWriMo, Part 2 Looking Back At NaNoWriMo 2013 NaNoWriMo, Don't Stop Now NaNoWriMo Is Over. The Real Work Begins Now. NaNoWriMo - I Did It!

My Writing Process - Blog Tour

Today is Blog Tour Day where authors answer questions about their writing process. Linda Acaster, novelist, writing tutor, and professional editor, posted last week, and I thank her for my invite. Check out her writing process here: 

As for my post: welcome. Can’t get many of you in here; the box room of a small bungalow isn’t big enough to house all my books, desk and equipment, never mind a group of interested visitors. One day I’ll get that house with a view over the sea, a large study and the antique desk I deserve. Until then, perhaps best if we continue to meet in the virtual world, or I might be accused of emulating the Black Hole of Calcutta!
1) What am I working on?
Last month, I took part in the NaNoWri Mo challenge (if you’re not familiar with it, have a look at the November posts for info). My project was the completion of the 1st draft of book 3 of the fantasy trilogy I’ve been writing for a while. Now I’m about to start the lengthy and involved process of editing that raw draft to make it into a piece of writing that people will want to read. It currently stands at around 195,000words. Whether it will grow or shrink depends on what I decide to exclude and how much further description I include. Whilst I’m doing a first draft, I tend to concentrate on story and leave the details of setting and atmosphere until I start the editing stage. I think that’s one of the reasons I enjoy editing almost as much as the initial creation. I am also working on other writing projects: a novel in embryonic form, still growing in the subconscious; short stories, and I’m exploring poetry as a way of expressing some of my emotional responses to injustice, beauty, environment and other issues that arouse my passions.
2) How does my work differ from others of its genre?
Genre? Did someone say ‘genre’? I’m all for rules, when essential, but the idea that a book can be somehow labelled in any sort of precise way is anathema to me. Yes. Works of art can be pigeon-holed as ‘portrait’, ‘landscape’, ‘abstract’, ‘figurative’, etc. But I don’t think anyone would then subdivide these identifying labels into ‘male portrait with feather in hat’, or ‘landscape painting including characters from a mythical scene taken from Greek legend’. Okay, I know I’m exaggerating a tiny weeny bit, but it seems to me that the simple labels, ‘Romance’, ‘Mystery’, ‘Thriller’, ‘Crime’, ‘Historical’, ‘Sci-fi’ and ‘Fantasy’ ought to be enough for most purposes. The rest is just an effort to encourage readers to restrict themselves to very narrow forms of storytelling. And that is hardly healthy for readers, is it?
So, my work differs inasmuch as I stray outside the normal boundaries set by those who wish to attempt to restrict me to a specific genre. Breaking Faith is a romance featuring an element of the thriller and the mystery novel. My current fantasy trilogy, A Seared Sky, is an epic fantasy tale involving a quest within an invented world and all that implies, but including elements of the thriller, romance, crime and philosophy. Does that answer the question?  
3) Why do I write what I do?
My inspirations are multitude. My interests are wide. I’m a storyteller at heart, so I want to spread my imagination’s offspring to as wide an audience as possible. I write because I’m compelled by some weird internal guiding entity to express myself in the written word. My mind is full of ideas, characters, thoughts and questions and, since they excite, delight and intrigue me, I hope I can share those emotions with readers as I marshal them onto the page in the form of stories.
4) How does your writing process work?I’m one of those writers for whom plot is a cage, so I write by the seat of my pants. For short works, I sit down at the keyboard and write. Usually, a story emerges. Sometimes, that story is usable, after a bit of editorial work to smooth the raw edges. If it isn’t, I discard or completely re-write it. With longer works, I am visited by an idea that demands attention. This can be something as simple as a question that floats out of the ether at a particular time. For example, Breaking Faitharose from a simple question that entered my mind as I stared into the depths of a slightly sinister natural hole in the ground: ‘What if there was a woman’s body down there?’ I’ve no idea where this came from, or why. But it was the trigger for the story. I generally start with interesting characters I’ve devised in advance. Then I work out a very, very loose framework on which I can hang challenges for my characters to face. I generally know the end, but I never know the journey I will take to reach that destination. I think it’s this lack of pre-ordained form and structure that prevents me entering the lucrative world of crime writing. That requires an approach that involves the solving of puzzles and the laying of false and true evidence along a trail. And that is too much planning for the way I work.The current trilogy came out my questioning why it is that religion, as a general rule, is so fixated on sex and nudity and why, since most worshippers seem to be generally good people, those in charge are so often very far from good. But, avoiding the urge to preach my own version of what should be believed, I’ve turned the themes into a story that moves through landscapes and entangles many disparate characters into its multiple threads to take the reader on a ride that I hope will make them gasp, sigh, laugh and cry. Emotion, after all, is what reading is all about, so it is also what writing must be all about, too.
Monday 9th December: a very different author explains her writing process: Lynne Constantine is co-author of Circle Dance, a novel about two Greek-American sisters thrust into life-changing circumstances. There should have been two more authors to continue this tour from here, but, well, authors can be dreadfully unreliable you know!Lynne Constantine’slove of the written word began early. An avid Nancy Drew reader in elementary school – the highlight of her week was going to the store with her father and buying the next book in the series. When the day arrived that she was able to solve the mystery half way through – she reluctantly set them aside and moved on to other books. For as long as she can remember, she has been prodded to “get her nose out of the book” when vacationing with friends. Her love of mystery and suspense is as strong today as it was back then and she is a voracious reader of thrillers and suspense. She wrote her first book, Circle Dance, with her sister Valerie. Circle Dance was a legacy of love fueled by the desire to pass on to their children the traditions and experiences unique to them as second generation Greek Americans. Lynne was raised in a close-knit family surrounded by extended family and “adopted” family through the Greek community. Both she and her sister wanted to leave a legacy for their children and future generations of a bygone era.Lynne attended Hellenic College where she earned her undergraduate degree in Human Development. She went on to earn her masters degree in Business Administration at Johns Hopkins University. She has an extensive marketing background and over eighteen years of business experience. She left the corporate world in 2000 to pursue her writing full time. She has written for magazines and journals but her true passion is fiction.A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Lynne relocated to the New York area with her husband and children. In addition to her writing, she is active in her church and local community. She serves on the board of her town’s Women’s League – a philanthropic organization dedicated to helping women and children. She is passionate about education, reading, health, and wellness. She enjoys traveling, spending time on the beach and talking walks with her family and their adorable golden retriever. Lynne is currently finishing up her next novel – a thriller. Related articles My Writing Process - Blog Tour The Writing Process Blog Tour My Writing Process Blog Tour