Kibkabe Araya's Blog, page 45
February 23, 2017
Sparkles With ‘Deceptive Innocence’
by
My rating:
Bellona Dantes is seeking revenge for her mother jailed for the death of the rich financier she was having an affair with. Bell, at the time, was a young teenager absorbed into the foster care system. Now as a twentysomething, she’s created a formula to bring down the Gables: the family who she’s convinced covered up the murder of their colleague by implicating her mother, who later committed suicide in jail.
The story starts with Bell as a bartender at a questionable bar where she knows Lander Gable frequents. They fall in a lusty affair that may be love as she becomes conflicted with bringing him down with his brother Travis; sister-in-law Jessica, who she’s a personal assistant to; and their father Edmund for what they did to her mother.
Sorta spoiler: The actual revenge continues in the next book I have yet to read, but this novel is mostly Bell and Lander sex scenes with Bell getting a feel for all her targets. Lander even buys her a formal dress for Jessica’s fundraiser toward the end, and it sounds like an event with fireworks, but it doesn’t happen in these pages.
Overall, it’s a sophisticated chick lit thriller that’s well-written with a not-too-complicated plot. In first person voice, Bell goes back and forth constantly in questioning her feelings for Lander. It comes off as annoying at first but could be realistic when mixing love and revenge.
I don’t usually read chick lit masked as an erotic thriller, but when I received Kyra Davis’ “Deceptive Innocence (Pure Sin #1)” in a giveaway, I gave it a try because my idea for a chick lit novel was heading in that dark direction as well. And this showed me the way.
I’m putting pieces together slowly for a novel about a digital journalist who falls for a tech tycoon in Silicon Beach only to witness him being kidnapped. Originally, it was going to be working girl falling for rich guy and all the amenities, but then I had another idea for a girl searching for her entrepreneur boyfriend who’s gone missing amid financial trouble at his startup. So I combined these ideas into one and began studying similar literature since it’s a genre I never dipped in. These were the formulaic points I found:
Steamy sex scenes: The reader must blush or nibble on a nail for the best effect. This took up about 40 percent of the novel. I would scale back for mine for more thriller than erotica, but description is key for realness.Animosity between characters: The characters must hate each other so much that they’re not speaking, so the protagonist can twist their minds with misleading information. Bell played Lander and Travis against each each other by simply dropping prevarications around them and claiming it came from the other brother. Travis hates wife Jessica and vice versa, so the communication is off between them. Lander hates father Edmund because of how he treated his mother during cancer stint. Hate wins in this genre.Potential losses: If Bell’s plan works, she gets vengeance for her mother. Except the plan could set off losses for different characters such as Travis losing status in the company, Lander losing status, mob friend Micah losing money, etc. For a thriller involving business, money is gold and everyone must feel it slipping between their fingers.
February 20, 2017
‘Jane the Virgin’ TV Review: Chapter Fifty-Six
The CW’s “Jane the Virgin” is one of my fave TV series about an aspiring novelist. In its third season, main character Jane Villanueva had a normal trajectory to novelhood with being a student then a teacher then a literary agent assistant while mostly being a hotel waitress. Magically, last week after finishing her romance novel based on her dead husband, she gets a book deal. Now, her career really sounds like made for TV.
Within one episode, she turned her work into an author showcase and received a book deal totaling $50,000. What she does wrong seems like a teachable moment: Don’t quit your day job until you cash every check.
Despite her luck, Jane doesn’t seek consultation about the financial side of the deal and quits her job with the demanding literary agent she’s been working with only for a few episodes, or technically a span of three years. When the publishing house sends the contract of the breakdown of the money, she learns it’s not all in one check but in increments over time until the book is published.
Crisis mode. She needs her job back. Cycling with her ex-boss and making the extravagant promise of luring an author back to the firm doesn’t work. In the end, she’s back to waitressing at the Marbella hotel. It’s an easy fallback choice with familial connections, but she had a desirable position for a budding novelist. She messed up. Or the effect of her error may melt away once the book is published in a year, or at the end of the season this spring in TV time.
The telenovela-inspired show likes to factor frantic moments into Jane’s life, so this book deal may see more dings before blossoming into her dream.
All I really need to say:
In canceling Milo’s book contract, Simon & Schuster made a business decision the same way they made a business decision when they decided to publish that man in the first place. When his comments about pedophilia/pederasty came to light, Simon & Schuster realized it would cost them more money to do business with Milo than he could earn for them. They did not finally “do the right thing” and now we know where their threshold, pun intended, lies. They were fine with his racist and xenophobic and sexist ideologies. They were fine with his transphobia, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. They were fine with how he encourages his followers to harass women and people of color and transgender people online. Let me assure you, as someone who endured a bit of that harassment, it is breathtaking in its scope, intensity, and cruelty but hey, we must protect the freedom of speech. Certainly, Simon & Schuster was not alone in what they were willing to tolerate. A great many people were perfectly comfortable with the targets of Milo’s hateful attention until that attention hit too close to home.
Because I’ve been asked, I will not be publishing my book with Simon & Schuster now that they have dropped Milo. After I pulled my book, they changed the release date of Dangerous from March to June 13, the day my next book, Hunger, comes out. I said nothing because I was neither threatened nor concerned but it did reinforce for me that this was not a company I wanted to do business with. My protest stands. Simon & Schuster should have never enabled Milo in the first place. I see what they are willing to tolerate and I stand against all of it. Also, I’ve received far better offers for How to Be Heard from other publishers.
There are some who will spin the cancellation of this book contract as a failure of the freedom of speech but such is not the case. This is yet another example of how we are afforded the freedom of speech but there is no freedom from the consequences of what we say.
Book Review: ‘The Sun Is Also A Star’ by Nicola Yoon
The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola YoonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
What I love about Nicola Yoon’s young adult novels is they simplistically explore pure teenage love. This novel touches on timely issues with Natasha, who’s being deported with her family back to Jamaica, and Daniel, who’s dealing with academic pressures brought on by his Korean parents. They both live in New York with immigrant parents and are trying to find their own version of the American dream. They meet on the street, like so many other New Yorkers, and totally connect despite Natasha scientifically explaining how love doesn’t exist while Daniel uses poetry to explain it does. Despite their cultural differences, they find themselves interconnected as Daniel tries to help Natasha fight back the deportation order while they fall in love all in one day. To stretch a book in the span of one day is a feat, and the author does it well, with short chapters from viewpoints of Natasha, Daniel, and the others they come into contact on that fateful day. It’s a feel-good love story that brings up issues of the day such as Daniel’s parents owning a black hair store and Natasha’s parents coming into the country illegally. It can be devoured quickly with satisfaction.
View all my reviews
February 15, 2017
"There are as many worlds as there are kinds of days, and as an opal changes its colors and its fire..."
- John Steinbeck
February 12, 2017
Sparkles with ‘Ruby’
The mermaid young adult novel I’m working on strangely came alive once it took the literary fiction path. Originally, during brainstorming, the novel would sound realistically imaginary, but once I chose the setting, the story became deeper. Now, I’m reading more literary fiction — my top genre anyway — to better study the art of the writing.
I recently completed “Ruby” by Cynthia Bond (book review here), and the story was intense, poignant. I read it on Kindle, where the ebook highlights passages, but this story had numerous passages I wanted to highlight, but then one jutted out from the rest because it connected to a moment in my novel.
The two main characters are Ruby Bell, an emotionally broken woman trying to survive a life of rape, and Ephram Jennings, a naive man who wants to love her despite her shortcomings. In the passage, it tells the story of Ephram’s grandmother saying goodbye to his mother once she marries the untrustworthy Reverend Jennings. It’s a motherly goodbye when a child moves onto a stage of adulthood.
“Your daddy and me named you Otha. It means ‘wealth.’ You were your daddy’s treasure from the time you were born until he died. He used to say there were rubies buried deep inside of you. Remember, baby, don’t never let a man mine you for your riches. Don’t let him take a pickax to that treasure in your soul. Remember, they can’t get it until you give it to them. They might lie and try to trick you out of it, baby, and they’ll try. They might lay a hand on you, or worse, they might break your spirit, but the only way they can get it is to convince you it’s not yours to start with. To convince you there’s nothing there but a lump of coal.” — Marilyn Daniels aka Otha Jennings’ mother in “Ruby” by Cynthia Bond
In my novel, with elements from Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale classic, the girl’s grandmother gives her a gold necklace on her 16th birthday. One reason I stepped back from the novel I started last summer was the dialogue was lacking, and I couldn’t find the characters’ voices. The moment was stuck with a simple quote from the grandmother, nothing like the above quote in “Ruby,” but when I read the passage, I realized my passage needed improvement with realness in the emotion.
So I’m restructuring that part along with other previous parts, now that my story is a tad more fleshed out. And still looking for sparkles in the novel I’m currently reading.
February 5, 2017
Book Review: ‘Ruby’ by Cynthia Bond
Ruby by Cynthia BondMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This story will stick with you. Ruby Bell is a broken woman with a long history of sexual assault that it has made her accept assault with numbing continuity. Ephram Jennings always admired Ruby from afar and finally takes the leap to show her love. The stories of the two characters and the town of Liberty intertwine in so many ways that they don’t know what’s pulling them together. Warning: The story has vivid rape and murder scenes, but these disturbing things happened in real places like fictional Liberty. Ruby obviously has mental health issues, but nobody reported her to the mental hospital, so the town watches her deteriorate and do nothing to help her except Ephram. And Ephram’s safe upbringing in the arms of his sister who acted as her mother doesn’t quite know how to deal with Ruby’s issues. But he tries. The story has the aura of classics like “Their Eyes Were Watching God” with Ephram loving Ruby and Ruby trying to accept that love; “Beloved” with the spirits haunting Ruby in plain sight and through others; “The Bluest Eye” with a child being tortured for being pretty. Since it’s beautifully written, the story flowed effortlessly, but the roughness of the content will strike you.
View all my reviews
January 22, 2017
Passion In the Air
A sunshiny Saturday before the storm — perfect weather to walk around the neighborhood to the nearest Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf to add words to my latest novel project.
I never been to one because Starbucks is across the street and its goodies are practically free with the numerous gift cards I get. But I decided to try another cafe chain after seeing it highlighted on Undercover Boss earlier in the week.
As soon as I enter the cafe, women began pouring into line with colorful signs folded under their arms from the Women’s March downtown, searching for hot beverages upon stomping in the winds for various civil rights. I bought an oolong tea, which even with the added honey, tasted bitter. I sat in the back corner next to the full-length window, where even more women flooded into the square, fresh off the subway, still equipped with signs. Some women accompanied by girls, boys, or men.
The hustle and bustle felt effervescent. Though a journalist who can’t participate in protests of any kind, I found the marchers’ bright hope radiating through the air outside and inside the cafe. I wrote and wrote for two hours, spilling 2,800 words onto digital paper — a high for the year so far.
January 16, 2017
Writing at Alchemist Coffee Project
My main New Year’s resolution was to write. Because of my workaholic lifestyle, I don’t write on a regular schedule, which is always a problem come Jan. 1. But this year I desperately want to reach my goal by cutting back on other activities and fighting for focus. One way to stay on track: write at cafes.
Not an original concept, indie cafes provide the environment I need to see other people working on projects while sipping exotic teas.
This holiday weekend, I chose to head to Alchemist Coffee Project within walking distance from my home. I ordered a savory peach peony tea and sat in the crowded cafe with my laptop. With the only seat left by the window producing loads of sunlight, I sat down with the solar energy radiating on me to rein in my focus.
It worked. Along with the rainbow setting across my keyboard from the sunlight mixing with the bronze fixtures, I rewrote the first chapter of my mermaid young adult novel and reread and reworked parts of the 18,000-word document. It took four hours. I had stopped writing it in September because my focus dissipated into other projects that didn’t progress.
When I sit at these quiet places, things get done. And I need more things to get done this year, so I’ll be going on more low-key adventures.
December 31, 2016
Hopping On That Novelist Train In 2016
2016 was the first year I spent seriously as a novelist-in-training. I want to be published and had realized I wasn’t putting any effort in being published. My fuzzy resolutions had to do with getting on that road and seeing what obstacles may be in the way. And the road was a little rocky at times.
1. Left a writing group
In the fall of 2015, for my birthday, I made a resolution to join a writing group. I found one on Meetup.com that met every other weekend. At first, I got into the groove of the group. Most members were double my age, and because of this a few were rude toward me which I took as racial discrimination. I ignored that discomfort since others were fine. But I shouldn’t have shared my sacred writing with those few racists. Strike one.
Once I molded my full manuscript in better shape, I began sharing it. With the first ten pages, I received good feedback and added changes. Then came to share the full manuscript. I shared mine and received others. While reading other manuscripts, I became frustrated. I felt awful that I disliked their stories and thought the structure was weak or the writing was weak, or a combination of both. Strike two.
In spring, we shared our thoughts on the manuscript. One of the racists refused to read mine. Another member tried to make my story about him and his experiences in New York because my story was set in the city - in a part of the city I doubt he knew anything about. Another woman told me to take out a mention of a tampon because men would stop reading. The other critiques failed to pick up on the obvious themes of mental health and destructive relationships. When I returned home and looked at the revisions, I felt they didn’t understand the theme and purpose of my novel. It’s about college girl drowning in depression and making decisions on relationships along the way like in The Bell Jar or Prozac Nation. But one member even said he didn’t read novels. This worried me. Strike three.
I was out.
2. Read more books
Due to anxiety zapping my focus, I had essentially stopped reading books. But I was feverishly writing when I had a chance. Looking back, it didn’t make sense. I had become one of those people who carried a best-selling novel from three years ago around in my purse because I had been carrying it for the last three years in hopes to read it at a doctor’s appointment or any other tedious event though I would just pull out my smartphone for entertainment instead.
So again after my 2015 birthday, I decided to read books again to improve my writing and also to study how the authors created the structures, storylines, and characters. The resolution continued through the year. Last January, I had planned to read 15 books during the year. I read 38 books. I even read 100 pages of Jojo Moyes’ After You today to start a new book in the new year.
3. Joined another writing group
After feeling the last writing group wasn’t a good fit, I was on the lookout for another one. But this time I would have to pay for it.
With my reading game up, I joined Mocha Girls Read, now a nationwide book club, which had invited members to the LA Times Festival of Books. Back to a bibliophilic life, I was ecstatic about the festival. I listened to authors talk about their books on the soundstage, listened to youth poetry, walked around to the different booths until one caught my eye.
The Women’s National Book Association booth promoted their upcoming events to support local female authors. Again, a lot of the members of the group seemed to be double my age from the list of officers, but I decided to check out the calendar. Then I saw her name. Francesca Lia Block was my favorite young adult author during the teenage years. I would read her books back to back. She was going to be a speaker at a WNBA tea.
I met Francesca at the tea and approached her about her writing workshops. I joined her email list and went to an event of hers, where I met former students who loved her workshops. They even took the workshops repeatedly. So I decided to take one.
For ten weeks, I finally felt like a group of writers understood my stories, and they wrote stories I understood. Because we all understood our stories, the critiques were a lot more helpful. The other writing group had critiques that became insults due to lack of understanding. With the right critiques, I was able to turn my novel around and start another new novel on the right foot.
This past year was productive though I wish it was more productive. I dropped out of NaNoWriMo by Day 10, for example. For 2017, I will have focused resolutions to spend more time on getting published and working on other projects. I’m still working on those resolutions…
