Lynne Stringer's Blog, page 21

Writing reviews

Do you like reading? Do you like to support your favourite authors? Please, help us out and write a review at every book site you visit.

You have no idea how much your review (even if it’s only short) can encourage others to try the book themselves. When we authors ask people to buy our books it’s never as convincing as you, the reader, writing an excited review about the book you loved. Of course we’re going to say our book is great! But you can be the difference when it comes to getting the word out about our work.

When I look at my books on Goodreads I like it when people leave ratings (not so much the low ones, but never mind!) but it’s even better when they write reviews. It gives me an idea of what they enjoyed and what they didn’t. One of the most frustrating things about the one star ratings I have received is that, of the three of them, two have no reviews, so I don’t know what they didn’t like about it. Not that it would necessarily change anything if it did. Sometimes a particular author’s work just doesn’t ‘gel’ with some people.

So if you liked my book, telling everyone online with a review is a great way to do it. It’s fantastic and helpful. Please do it as much as you like!

What makes a good novel?

Do you know what makes a good novel? Sometimes I wonder if I do. This could be a serious problem, since I write them, but I think it’s harder to pin down than most people realise.

If you asked everyone this question, most of us would answer differently. With some people the differences would be extreme. Some would definitely mention technique, some might suggest that technique is old hat and emotion is all that’s required.

While technique can pin it down for some people, what actually makes a novel a good one can be a nebulous thing. Certainly, not using any technique can make it difficult for anyone to engage in the story, but by the same token, sometimes it’s editors like me and other publishers who spend their time complaining about an author’s lack of technique and the absence of things like point of view, for example, when the average reader wouldn’t even notice it.

I think emotion does play a big part, because emotion is usually what tugs at us when it comes to fiction. So I think that emotion and technique are equally important. Both should be present in a good novel.

But who says I’m right? What do you think makes a good novel?

Do celebrities deserve what they get?

If I was sunbathing in my backyard (not gonna happen, I assure you, but this is hypothetical, of course!) and a man peered over my fence and started taking photos of me I’d call the police and have him arrested. Where I live they come down pretty hard on that kind of thing. It’s often equated (deservedly so) with stalking. I certainly don’t think it’s nice behaviour, do you?

But it seems that this kind of behaviour is just fine if you happen to be famous.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I know that a lot of famous people can get away with plenty. They are often let off when they commit a crime and sometimes nothing seems to catch up to them. They also have a lot of money and worldwide acclaim. These things can make people think that they deserve a little inconvenience when it comes to the paparazzi taking photos and invading their privacy. I mean, they’ve got it all, haven’t they? They wanted to be rich and famous and that goes with the territory, so they should just cop it on the chin.

I disagree with that for a number of reasons. For a start, while I do have a problem with them not always receiving their dues when they commit a crime, I would rather see that change, if possible than think that the intrusion of journalists somehow makes up for it.

Secondly, I don’t think money and worldwide acclaim is all it’s cracked up to be, and I think a lot of celebrities probably realise that, certainly once they get it. Also, sometimes people who act, for instance, do not go into it because they want to be famous but because they like acting. After all, there are hundreds of thousands of actors and only a few we hear from on a regular basis, so many would probably go into acting not thinking that they were ever going to be that successful. They were just doing what they loved. It seems unfair, if this is the case, that they should have to deal with that kind of scrutiny.

Most importantly, these clashes with the press can be life threatening. I think everyone who was around in 1997 remembers where they were when they heard the news about the death of the Princess of Wales, and regardless of arguments relating to drunk drivers and possible white cars having caused the accident, the fact remains that they would not have had to take evasive action at all if not for the hounding of the paparazzi. Not to mention that these photos are usually only used to satisfy the public’s insatiable desire to know what the celebrities are doing in their private lives. Do we really need to know? Should we? I don’t think so.

So I think that some laws need to be brought in to limit the paparazzi’s ability to go after celebrities. Sure, if they’re committing a crime, then they should be photographed so that it can be used as evidence in a court of law, but if they’re playing with their kids in the backyard or going to a romantic dinner I think it’s only fair that they’re left alone.

Music as a muse

Are you inspired by music? I am, particularly in my writing.

Each of my books so far have featured a ‘playlist’. A playlist is like a soundtrack. My playlists feature songs or music that inspired or helped me write certain scenes. I often have scenes laid out to a particular piece of music and I play them together in my head, with the piece of music playing along with the action.

I have found that sometimes a song has changed an already written scene because I can see how well the song goes with the action. For example, in The Heir there is a scene when they are being attacked (this is near the end; I am being deliberately vague for those who haven’t read the book yet). After this scene was written, I began to imagine it with Muse’s Map of the Problematique playing behind it. So powerful did the influence of that piece of music become, I adapted the scene to fit it more effectively. I did the same thing with The Crown, in the scene where they are racing back for something (if you’ve read the book you know what it is they’re racing to!). Another Muse song – Glorious – fit it so well that I added elements to make it fit even more effectively.

Of course, it also happens prior to writing. There’s a scene about two thirds into The Reign of which I had only a sketchy idea in my head. At the time I was listening to Hearing Damage by Thom Yorke quite a bit, and before long, I found the scene unfolding as I listened to the music. Also, it helped with another manuscript I am working on (tentatively titled More than Survival). I had thought of the opening scene, but had no real drive to write it, until I happened to be thinking of it while listening to Justin Timberlake’s Cry Me a River. It fit so well that I sat down and started typing.

So music is definitely a muse for me. How about you? What helps motivate you in your creativity?

Must-read books

Do you read the books that people consider a ‘must read’?

I admit that I usually don’t. My contrary nature usually kicks in if people wave books at me and say, ‘You’ve got to read this! It’s fantastic!’ I’m more inclined to read a book if I see you’ve given it a good review than if you try and convince me it’s in my best interest to do so.

Then there are those books out there that everyone thinks are fabulous, but have they read them? My father, who was bookseller for many years, tells the story of a customer who used to buy Penguin books as soon as they came out, but he later confessed to my father that he never read any of them. He just liked the way they looked on his shelf. Maybe they made him feel like an intellectual.

Anatole France once said, ‘The books that everybody admires are those that nobody reads’. I agree with this assessment. The ones that get the highest praise are often purchased and not read. I was at a writers’ conference a while ago and someone was speaking about a book that a lot of people bought, but no one had ever read past the third chapter. I’m not sure that’s a good thing.

While these books may be the ones considered wine by many, I think, like Mark Twain, I’d prefer it if my books are like water. As Twain put it, ‘My books are water; those of the great geniuses are wine. Everybody drinks water.’ I don’t think my books would ever be considered wine, but I’m fine with that.

Kindle vs real book

Are you a Kindle convert or do you insist that a real book with pages is the way to go? Is ebook the way of the future? Will paper books eventually die out? I have heard that, in some places, people are buying real books more as a house accessory. They buy good looking, hardcover books by the metre to put on their shelves to add an extra interior design element to their home. Does this mean the era of the real book is over? Will it soon be considered an outdated accessory?

I don’t think we will see the end of real books. I think there will always be enough people around who favour them to keep them going. After all, if we don’t have a real book, where do we get the author to sign when we go to book signings?

On the books signings I’ve been on the bookstores certainly seemed busy, even the smaller ones. This is good to see. I’m sure business has fallen a little since the ebook revolution. That’s inevitable. Ebooks are new and exciting, not to mention extremely convenient. They make it easier to take a lot of books with you if you’re going on holidays somewhere, for instance.

It does worry me that some bookstores will go out of business as a result of ebooks, although I think online stores will be equally to blame when that happens. Hopefully, some will still remain for those of us who like the feel of a real book in our hands. While I like ebooks as well – I have a Kindle and took in on holidays with me recently – I still like a real book too. I like the weight of it. I like the smell of it. I’ll try and keep the industry going. Who’s with me?

Book to Screen Adaptations

I think everyone who is a book lover has, at some point, seen a movie of a book they love. From what I hear, most of us find them a pale copy of the original work.

I think the first book to screen adaptation I ever saw was Charlotte’s Web, from the 1970s cartoon adaptation. It was quite accurate, as I recall, the only difference being the timing of when Charlotte died. I mentioned a few weeks ago being disappointed as a child at changes made to Disney’s version of 101 Dalmatians. Since then, I have seen many changes to many stories as they made their way to the large and small screen, usually with considerably different degrees of accuracy.

I remember well the Anne of Green Gables TV miniseries they did in the ’80s. The first one was reasonably accurate, but the second combined elements of three different books and made major story alterations. At first, I wasn’t happy about this, but then I began to appreciate the new angles and scenes that the miniseries gave me and I enjoyed it for what it was.

Ironically, I now think that sometimes a little deviation works better. When movies try to cram in too much of the book the movie usually seems (to me) to be hurried and cluttered. The Little Women movie in the ’90s was pretty accurate, but although critics raved about it, I hated it. It felt rushed as they tried to get all the major story elements in. I didn’t think it worked at all.

So I have decided that I don’t mind a little deviation, especially if it helps the story work well as a movie. After all, movies and books are two different mediums that tell stories in different ways. I think it’s unrealistic to expect a good movie to be made if allowances aren’t made in the transfer from book to screen. There are still some things I hold sacrosanct, such as the characters themselves and their behaviour. That should be true to the book, no matter how much the scenes themselves change. I’m also not fond of giving characters different fates from the ones in the books. I don’t think that’s necessary, but I’m not the kind of person who’s going to get upset over every little change.

What we believe

Does what you believe influence what you read? To what extent?

This question has been prompted by the controversy surrounding the release of the movie version of Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game as a result of Mr Card’s outspoken opposition to homosexuality. I haven’t read the book or seen the movie, but as far as I’m aware there is no opposition to homosexuality in the pages of the story itself, but the controversy has arisen because of the views he has aired publicly through other media.

I don’t want this blog to become yet another forum for debating homosexuality, so if you are commenting here, please do NOT comment on that subject. What I am asking is this: how far does what an author believes in their private lives influence your decision on whether or not to read their book, especially if it’s clear that their personal beliefs do not appear on the pages of what they have written?

I think what an author believes will always influence his/her writing to a certain extent. After all, we are a product of our beliefs. They affect our lives. That’s why we have them. However, I wouldn’t necessarily refuse to read a book written by someone who is an atheist, for example (and I have probably read many of them!) just because my views on the existence of God differs from theirs. Of course, if the book has blatant themes that I disagree with, I will probably avoid it, as it is likely to make me angry, but sometimes reading someone else’s opinion on something, even if it’s only through the pages of their novel, can create greater understanding of differing points of view. After all, we are all people, even though we hold different points of view on sensitive subjects. I think this fact often gets lost in the passion for our causes, but I think trying to see others’ points of view can be helpful in creating a better understanding of each other.

A new year

Tomorrow is the first day of January 2014.

2013 was a good year for me. I had two books published and their reception was good in most cases. Most people seemed to enjoy reading The Heir, so much so that they were begging me for its sequel, The Crown, and now they have been asking when they can expect the release of The Reign. It’s May 2014, just so you know.

The release of both books brought with it a whole bevy of new responsibilities in the area of marketing. Suddenly I found myself talking about my books online in different forums, and in public at writers’ groups and book clubs. I made sure I appeared at bookstores to do book signings (which usually went well) and tried to be as active as possible in promoting myself. This has proved the biggest challenge for me. I’ve posted before about how much I hate self-promotion, but it seems it is part and parcel with being an author, especially when you’re with a small publisher. I need to do as much as possible to support my publisher in her commitment to me and publishing my novels. I just wish it wasn’t so difficult to do!

I’m having a short holiday at the moment, but I know it won’t be long before I need to get back into it in preparation for the release of The Reign. Soon I will start work on its website page. Then I will be preparing for the book launch. Then it will be back into the book signings and the other things that go with a release. It can be daunting to do all this, but as a well-known actor said not long ago, opportunities look like hard work. Or, as Einstein put it, any idea is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. To believe any differently is kidding yourself.

Being an author can be hard work, but it’s rewarding. It’s a good thing too, because I can’t stop writing!

Merry Christmas!

Tomorrow is Christmas Day. Living in Australia means that we are one of the first to celebrate Christmas, as it comes to the southern hemisphere before the northern one. In one way this is good, as it makes my wait shorter, but in another way, it’s bad, because it means that Christmas is over sooner.

I love Christmas. I love the preparations for it: putting up the tree, putting up the lights, buying presents and wrapping them. I love the day itself too. It’s fun to spend time with family and give them a little something to remind them that they are special to me.

It’s especially fun when there are children around. My son is seven, so he’s still very much into the present thing at the moment. I know I’ll be up with him in the early hours of the morning helping him open the packages in his stocking and enjoying his excitement at everything he gets.

I know that Christmas is not a bundle of fun for everyone. For some people there are bitter and sad memories associated with it. For others, it is a reminder that they don’t have families or perhaps even the money to celebrate Christmas. But I hope that, wherever you are this Christmas, you will remember that you were loved.

I am a Christian, and I believe that God loves every one of us. I believe he showed this love many, hmany years ago when a baby was born in Bethlehem. It is this baby’s birth that many of us remember at Christmastime. Regardless of who you are or what you’ve done, God sent this baby for you because He loves you. So please remember that you are important to the One I believe is the most important of all.

God’s richest blessings to you this Christmas.