Karen L. Syed's Blog, page 7
December 13, 2012
Color me a bad writer! Really?
One-Quote Review: Thief of Hearts by Karen L. Syed
Posted on April 14, 2012 by Kelly
One-Quote Review: Thief of Hearts by Karen L. Syed
Title: Thief of Hearts
Author: Karen L. Syed
Genre(s): Historical, Short Story
Publisher: Echelon Press, February 2012
Purchase: Amazon, free
Quick blurb: TSTL heroine + angsty kidnapper = amateur mess.
Grade: D
The difference between her present dilemma and what always miraculously happens in her dreams made her sad, and a little frightened.
It made me a little nauseous.
December 12, 2012
The 12/12/12 Day of Holiday eReads
Click links below to Buy on Kindle!
Totally Decked by Gale Borger (Short Mystery)
An Angel’s Wish by Karen L. Syed (Short Time-Travel Romance)
Steampunk Santa by Marc Vun Kannon (Short Steampunk)
Christmas With Daisy by Mary Cunningham (Short Juvenile Fiction)
Special Gifts by Lois Carroll (Short Fiction)
Dead Holiday by Jeffrey Martin (Short Fiction)
Cold Comfort by Ellis Vidler (Romantic Suspense)
Bite Deep by Marc Vun Kannon (Short Vampire)
The Hanakkuh Time Capsule by Yvonne Eve Walus (Short Fiction)
A Merry Little Murder by Mary Welk (Cozy Mystery)
Cuffed Vol 5. : The Christmas Tree Caper & Joe’s No Doze by Bill Howe and Suzanne Rorhus (Short Juvenile Non-Fiction)
Tell us YOUR favorite Holiday read!!
December 5, 2012
December 3, 2012
November 26, 2012
Give the Gift of Mystery & Mayhem
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Tagged: marilyn meredith, mystery novels, mystery series, Raging Water, readers, tempe crabtree
November 21, 2012
I can rock me some Gluten Free Muffins (recipe)
I am by no means a great cook, but I like to think I can hold my own. I am in the midst of the holiday prep work for family Thanksgiving at my house tomorrow. This is the first time I have ever hosted this holiday, so I don’t want it to suck. I also don’t want to be sick the entire day.
A year or so back, we discovered that I am Gluten intolerant. How much does that suck? A lot, but even more so since I am diabetic and so much of the GF stuff is made with rice or potato substances. I am also disturbed that so many GF recipes call for so many freaking things I can’t pronounce. Damnit I don’t want Xantham gum in my mouth if I can’t blow bubbles.
So, since I cannot do the yummy Hawiian rolls, I had to come up with a Plan B. Plan B is my own recipe. Below is Plan B. And I must say that those little muffins are damn good!
Gluten-Free Mini Jalapeno Corn Muffins
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: Approx. 15- 20 min
Yields: 24 minis + 3 regular muffins
Ingredients:
1 c. GF Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Flour
1 c. Quaker Yellow Cornmeal (Not all cornmeal is GF)
1/4 c. Sugar
1 tbs. Baking Powder
3/4 tsp. Salt
5 tbs. Butter (melted)
2 Eggs (room temperature)
1 c. Milk (room temperature)
1 Jalapeno Pepper (unseeded)
1/4 c. Grated Parmesan Cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Spray muffins pan(s) with butter spray.
1. Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cheese in a mixing bowl.
2. Add melted butter, eggs, warmed milk, and jalapeno a Magic Bullet cup. You can also use a blender or other similar appliance. Zip these ingredients until the jalapeno is finely zipped (no big chunks).
3. Add wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients and whisk until blended well..
4. Scoop batter into mini muffin pan (24 ct. muffins). Fill each one almost to the top. There will be batter left over so I made 3 regular muffins (for testing purposes.)
5. Place in oven and bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until a toothpick goes in and comes out clean.
Tagged: Bob's Red Mill, Cornbread, food, Gluten Free, Jalapeno, muffins, recipe
November 19, 2012
November 18, 2012
Romance to heat up your holidays!
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Tagged: gangsters, Karen L. Syed, Moonlight for maggie, reporters, romance novels, romantic suspense
November 15, 2012
Bad review, bad person?
There is a discussion going on in one of the groups I belong to and my opinion on the subject seems quite different than that of many others participating. I have responded there several times, but I felt that it would be best if I moved my opinion off the group, so I wouldn’t just be keeping the argument going. The topic of discussion is whether or not 1 or 2 star reviews should be posted publicly, especially by other authors.
3-Star review
Many say no, because it is mean and humiliating. Okay, but my question is, if an author doesn’t want people to review their books honestly, should we really be worried about their feelings getting hurt? Of course we should, but there is the whole point that when you put yourself and your work out in the public and ask people what they think, you had better have thick enough skin to accept all the answers. It is unrealistic to think everyone will like your book.
I have been criticized repeatedly over the years for a 1-star review I posted of THE LOVELY BONES. Okay, I posted the review publicly so everyone has a right to point out their agreement or disagreement. So be it. Does it make me a bad person because I did not like this book and said so publicly? I didn’t rag on the author, I was not malicious or hurtful. I was honest in my opinion.
My review of The Lovely Bones
I have to admit to reading this book because of all the fuss. Everyone raved about how wonderful it was and so beautifully written, etc. I was very disappointed.
I found the voice of the main character to be contrived and out of character. I hated hearing the story being told by a child in an adult voice. It took away a lot of the emotional impact for me.
I think this could have been much better.
I think it is quite to the point and professional. No one has to like it, it is my opinion.
2-Star Review
Why would you bother to post a review of a book you read and then not be honest? The point of reviews is to help other readers have a better knowledge of what that book is about and what other readers think of it. What happens to the industry if everyone who reads a book either posts a positive review or no review at all, even if they did not like the book and had solid reasons for the dislike? The industry would become a shallow popularity contest…oh wait, it already has. I am furious when I buy a book that has gotten 25 5-star reviews claiming it to be the best book ever and then when I read it I discover that it is poorly edited, poorly constructed, dipping with multitudes of plotholes, and just plain bad. I feel cheated and mislead by each and every person who failed to point out even one of the problems. Now, I am the first to agree that even a poorly written book can be exciting and engaging, I have read many. I simply tell fellow readers how much I loved the story, but to be prepared for lots of editorial issues. Honest, not cruel. But I certainly would not give it a 5-star review, even if I knew the author.
Bottom line is, a review is intended to serve a specific purpose, if the reviewers cannot be honest, then why bother, it just makes things icky for the rest of us.
One last note. This is for all you authors out there. If you are not willing to give an honest review and STAND BEHIND IT (this means posting it, whether good or bad) then do us all a favor and don’t review books by friends and other authors you know. This is just my personal request/opinion.
I would love to know what you all think of this, whether you agree with me or not. Please don’t hesitate to share your comments, this is a no judgment zone.
Tagged: authors, book reviews, books, Did Anyone Die?, GoodReads, popularity contest, reading, reviewing, Stella Stafford, Steve Berry, The Romancov Prophecy, writers
November 6, 2012
Open Letter to Amazon.com
Re: Amazon Reviews
Dear Mr. Bezos, et al,
I would like to take this opportunity to implore you to reconsider your decision to remove a number of reviews from your web site. I fully acknowledge that you, as the business, have a right to do as you see fit with your company. I would however, like to point out a few things to you regarding this new enforcement of a policy we were unaware existed.
By disallowing authors from posting reviews for books written by other authors, you are eliminating a huge venue for the promotion of the books you sell. As I am sure you are aware, for decades, publishing houses have relied on the “blurbs” of other authors to promote their books. This is common practice and should not play a role in the financial considerations of the “blurbing” author.
I hope you will reconsider your stance that authors are in competition with one another. This goes without saying, but with a few exceptions, authors have learned to co-exist peacefully without raking each other over the coals and trying to ruin one another.
Your determination that an author stands to gain financially in some manner when offering a review of another author’s book is simply befuddling. It’s a big industry and we deserve more credit than to be lumped in with the corporate moguls who are only in it for the money, no matter the cost to those they tromp on. I gain nothing by reviewing a book by Nora Roberts, except perhaps the knowledge that if I loved her latest book and say so, someone else will see my review on your site and buy that book to read.
I would also like to point out that there are by far more effective ways to handle some of the problems you have surely run up against in your review process. Instead of alienating us, why not incorporate some new aspects into the submission process. I would think that by allowing the reviewer to clearly state their relationship to the book (for example, a series of choices with radio buttons indicating this information):
Reader
Author
Publisher
Editor
Bookseller
Librarian
Other readers and potential consumers can decide on their own whether a certain review merits their consideration. I feel compelled to tell you that so many authors feel abused by Amazon.com with this enforcement of the “no competition review” rule. As it stands now, you are not only alienating publishers, editors, and authors, but also booksellers, as they are the ones who truly stand to gain financially by posting favorable or over-exaggerated reviews. How will you weed out their reviews?
On behalf of multi-purpose readers worldwide, please reconsider your actions and give some thought to simply allowing people to say how they feel, no matter who they are.
With respect,
Karen Syed
Multi-purpose reader
Tagged: corporate moguls, Nora Roberts
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