Maggie James's Blog, page 16
November 11, 2015
Five Prolific Writers
By Maggie James
I'm a huge admirer of Stephen King. I love his work, but I'm also in awe of his prolific output. Many of his novels are over 700 pages in length and he's written so damn many of them - fifty-four, to be exact! He's also penned over two hundred short stories and five non-fiction books. OK, so he embarked on his writing career decades ago, but even so the sheer volume of his output is impressive. In this week's blog post, I'll examine five other prolific authors.1. Dame Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie was an English crime novelist, short story writer and playwright. She wrote sixty-nine novels and nineteen plays, published over a fifty-six year period, and she also authored romantic fiction under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. Her murder mystery play, The Mousetrap, holds the record for being the world's longest-running theatre production; in 1971 she was made a Dame of the British Empire for her enormous contribution to literature.
Besides being prolific, Dame Agatha is the most published novelist in history, and her estimated sales are in the region of three billion (!) books. I read all her detective stories during my teens, being swept away by the sleuthing skills of Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, as well as Christie's fascinating plots.
Her novels have been translated into over one hundred languages. 'And Then There Were None' is her best-selling title, having sold over 100 million copies to date, making it one of the most popular books of all time. Wow!
2. Dame Barbara Cartland
Another Dame of the British Empire! Barbara Cartland wrote 723 novels, which have been translated into thirty-six languages, and she holds the world record for the most novels published in a single year - twenty-three. Twenty-three?! Did she ever sleep? Admittedly her books tend to be short, but even so...
She wrote romantic fiction primarily but also plays and music. Her book sales reportedly top 750 million copies, although some sources have put the figure at over two billion. Two billion?! Even if the first figure is more accurate, that's a lot of book sales - I can only aspire to such numbers!
Barbara Cartland's books are tame by today's standard, featuring virginal heroines and little, if any, sexual imagery. Her later novels were historical romances, which made it easier to cast virgins as the protagonists. During her later years, she became a self-proclaimed expert on romance although her views were considered hopelessly outdated by many. I well remember her many television appearances in which she'd expound her views on various issues, including gentlemanly conduct and how to keep the romance in relationships. She was a very memorable character, usually appearing bedecked in jewels, wearing flouncy pink dresses and clutching a fluffy white dog. They don't make them like that anymore!
3. Nora Roberts
The only one of my chosen novelists still alive, Nora Roberts also writes romance novels and to date has published two hundred and nine. She concentrates on one book at a time, which makes her prolific output even more remakable. She writes for eight hours a day, every day, without fail, even when on holiday. (I'm starting to doubt whether the authors I've chosen are human!)
In the nineties, her publishers decided they couldn't keep pace with her output and asked her to consider adopting a pseudonym so they could publish more of her work each year. She decided to use her new pen name to switch tack and begin writing romantic suspense fiction, under the name of J D Robb. As J D Robb, Roberts has also published a series of science fiction novels set in the mid-twenty-first century, featuring a New York City detective. Whilst these novels are police procedural ones as well as science fiction, J D Robb has maintained the romantic element by focusing on the relationship between Detective Eve Dallas and her husband.
Since 1999, every one of Nora Roberts's books has been a New York Times bestseller, and she was the first novelist to be admitted to the Romance Writers of America's Hall of Fame. An amazing woman!
4. John Creasey
John Creasey was an English crime and science fiction writer with six hundred novels to his credit, using twenty-eight pseudonyms. Six hundred?! I need to up my game, and quickly...
Many of his characters, such as The Honourable Richard Rollison (The Toff) and Commander George Gideon of Scotland Yard, continued through a series. Besides crime and science fiction, he also wrote Western novels and romances, using his various pen names.
In 1962, Creasey won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) for 'Gideon's Fire', written under his pseudonym J. J. Marric. In 1969 he received the MWA's greatest honour, the Grand Master Award.
In the UK, Creasey founded The Crime Writers Association (CWA), which awards the New Blood Dagger each year for a first book by an unpublished writer. Another recipient of a UK honour, he was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for his services during World War Two.
5. Isaac Asimov
The last of our prolific wordsmiths, Isaac Asimov, was a science fiction writer, although he also wrote scientific non-fiction, being a professor of biochemistry at Boston University. He either wrote or edited over five hundred books as well as an estimated ninety thousand letters. Like the other authors I've mentioned, Asimov's works have been extensively translated into other languages.
Asimov received several awards for his writing, as well as fourteen honorary doctorate degrees. His short story 'Nightfall', written in 1941, was voted by The Science Fiction Writers of America as the best one ever written in its genre and he was made a Grand Master of the SFWA in 1987. His most interesting accolade may well be the fact that in 2009 a crater on Mars was named after him - I love that!
Unusual facts about Asimov? He claimed in the third volume of his autobiography to love small, enclosed spaces, citing his childhood desire to own a subway magazine stand, in which he'd ensconce himself and listen to the rumble of the trains as he read. Each to their own...
Phew! I feel exhausted...
I'm sure you're probably as dumbstruck as I am at the literary output of the authors I've mentioned! I feel tired just thinking about writing six hundred books - although, given my late start as a novelist, it's unlikely I'll achieve one hundred titles, let alone six times that number. Speaking of which, I'd better stop blogging and get back to writing - I'll catch up with you again in my next post. Until then...
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Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
I'm a huge admirer of Stephen King. I love his work, but I'm also in awe of his prolific output. Many of his novels are over 700 pages in length and he's written so damn many of them - fifty-four, to be exact! He's also penned over two hundred short stories and five non-fiction books. OK, so he embarked on his writing career decades ago, but even so the sheer volume of his output is impressive. In this week's blog post, I'll examine five other prolific authors.1. Dame Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie was an English crime novelist, short story writer and playwright. She wrote sixty-nine novels and nineteen plays, published over a fifty-six year period, and she also authored romantic fiction under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. Her murder mystery play, The Mousetrap, holds the record for being the world's longest-running theatre production; in 1971 she was made a Dame of the British Empire for her enormous contribution to literature.Besides being prolific, Dame Agatha is the most published novelist in history, and her estimated sales are in the region of three billion (!) books. I read all her detective stories during my teens, being swept away by the sleuthing skills of Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, as well as Christie's fascinating plots.
Her novels have been translated into over one hundred languages. 'And Then There Were None' is her best-selling title, having sold over 100 million copies to date, making it one of the most popular books of all time. Wow!
2. Dame Barbara Cartland
Another Dame of the British Empire! Barbara Cartland wrote 723 novels, which have been translated into thirty-six languages, and she holds the world record for the most novels published in a single year - twenty-three. Twenty-three?! Did she ever sleep? Admittedly her books tend to be short, but even so...She wrote romantic fiction primarily but also plays and music. Her book sales reportedly top 750 million copies, although some sources have put the figure at over two billion. Two billion?! Even if the first figure is more accurate, that's a lot of book sales - I can only aspire to such numbers!
Barbara Cartland's books are tame by today's standard, featuring virginal heroines and little, if any, sexual imagery. Her later novels were historical romances, which made it easier to cast virgins as the protagonists. During her later years, she became a self-proclaimed expert on romance although her views were considered hopelessly outdated by many. I well remember her many television appearances in which she'd expound her views on various issues, including gentlemanly conduct and how to keep the romance in relationships. She was a very memorable character, usually appearing bedecked in jewels, wearing flouncy pink dresses and clutching a fluffy white dog. They don't make them like that anymore!
3. Nora Roberts
The only one of my chosen novelists still alive, Nora Roberts also writes romance novels and to date has published two hundred and nine. She concentrates on one book at a time, which makes her prolific output even more remakable. She writes for eight hours a day, every day, without fail, even when on holiday. (I'm starting to doubt whether the authors I've chosen are human!)In the nineties, her publishers decided they couldn't keep pace with her output and asked her to consider adopting a pseudonym so they could publish more of her work each year. She decided to use her new pen name to switch tack and begin writing romantic suspense fiction, under the name of J D Robb. As J D Robb, Roberts has also published a series of science fiction novels set in the mid-twenty-first century, featuring a New York City detective. Whilst these novels are police procedural ones as well as science fiction, J D Robb has maintained the romantic element by focusing on the relationship between Detective Eve Dallas and her husband.
Since 1999, every one of Nora Roberts's books has been a New York Times bestseller, and she was the first novelist to be admitted to the Romance Writers of America's Hall of Fame. An amazing woman!
4. John Creasey
John Creasey was an English crime and science fiction writer with six hundred novels to his credit, using twenty-eight pseudonyms. Six hundred?! I need to up my game, and quickly...Many of his characters, such as The Honourable Richard Rollison (The Toff) and Commander George Gideon of Scotland Yard, continued through a series. Besides crime and science fiction, he also wrote Western novels and romances, using his various pen names.
In 1962, Creasey won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) for 'Gideon's Fire', written under his pseudonym J. J. Marric. In 1969 he received the MWA's greatest honour, the Grand Master Award.
In the UK, Creasey founded The Crime Writers Association (CWA), which awards the New Blood Dagger each year for a first book by an unpublished writer. Another recipient of a UK honour, he was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for his services during World War Two.
5. Isaac Asimov
The last of our prolific wordsmiths, Isaac Asimov, was a science fiction writer, although he also wrote scientific non-fiction, being a professor of biochemistry at Boston University. He either wrote or edited over five hundred books as well as an estimated ninety thousand letters. Like the other authors I've mentioned, Asimov's works have been extensively translated into other languages.Asimov received several awards for his writing, as well as fourteen honorary doctorate degrees. His short story 'Nightfall', written in 1941, was voted by The Science Fiction Writers of America as the best one ever written in its genre and he was made a Grand Master of the SFWA in 1987. His most interesting accolade may well be the fact that in 2009 a crater on Mars was named after him - I love that!
Unusual facts about Asimov? He claimed in the third volume of his autobiography to love small, enclosed spaces, citing his childhood desire to own a subway magazine stand, in which he'd ensconce himself and listen to the rumble of the trains as he read. Each to their own...
Phew! I feel exhausted...
I'm sure you're probably as dumbstruck as I am at the literary output of the authors I've mentioned! I feel tired just thinking about writing six hundred books - although, given my late start as a novelist, it's unlikely I'll achieve one hundred titles, let alone six times that number. Speaking of which, I'd better stop blogging and get back to writing - I'll catch up with you again in my next post. Until then...
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Get your free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
October 29, 2015
Preparing for NaNoWriMo 2015
By Maggie James
Let the madness begin...
Courtesy of NaNoWriMoAfter a two-year break, I'm delighted to be participating again in the annual NaNoWriMo competition. NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month, a madcap event in which entrants pledge to complete a 50,000-word novel during the month of November. I wrote Sister, Psychopath for NaNoWriMo 2011 and Guilty Innocence for 2012.
One question I'm often asked is, 'what do you win?' The answer is nothing, apart from the satisfaction of taking part and completing a novel, or at least 50, ooo words of it. NaNoWriMo is great fun, but it can be hard going; on average, only 15% of entrants are proclaimed winners, meaning they've met the required word count. Those who succeed get a range of opportunities from the competition's sponsors, such as 50% off my favourite writing software, Scrivener, or help with formatting their novel.
The main benefit, in my opinion, is the chance to kiss goodbye to procrastination and crack on with your story. In addition, the cameraderie of joining in with thousands of other writers is incredible. The NaNoWriMo forums provide help of every kind, with boards devoted to plot issues, finding critique partners, sharing ideas, as well as regional ones where you can contact fellow novelists in your area. It's a great way to connect with other authors.
Arson, murder and fractured families...
I've blogged before and described in my book, Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft, about how I'm a planner when it comes to my books. The NaNoWriMo winning threshold is 50,000 words but I aim to write my entire novel (75,000+ words) in November if possible, and to achieve that I need to be organised. The competition starts in a couple of days, and I've completed a rough outline for each chapter, along with my character notes, research and word targets, ready to get going on Sunday.
I'm sure there's more planning I should have done, yet part of me is itching to crack on with the writing. However good my outline is, once I get going I tend to spot issues I hadn't noticed before. Sometimes these are plot glitches, other times it's a chance to take the story down a new and exciting path.
So what will I be writing about? For my 2015 NaNoWriMo entry, I'm examining pyromania - a fascination with fire, manifesting in a compulsive need to set things alight. Throw in a brutal murder of a young girl and a fractured family, and the scene's set for my fifth full-length novel!
My five tips for NaNoWriMo success
My 2012 winner's badgeI enjoy helping other writers when I can. So what advice would I give novice NaNoWriMo participants? Well, there's no 'one size fits all' formula, but here are my five tips for NaNoWriMo success.
1. Commit to success. 85% of entrants fail to complete their NaNoWriMo novel; I believe it helps to make a firm resolve to see it through. Tell yourself you'll do this, no matter what, and reward yourself along the way. Passed the halfway 25,000-word stage? Then celebrate! Plan how you'll mark crossing the 50,000-word line, thus giving yourself something to look forward to.
2. Get organised. Set up your NaNoWriMo profile, browse the website, and take advantage of the many resources on offer. Familiarise yourself with how the competition works. Decide how you'll write - will you use Microsoft Word, an online application such as LitLift, or pen and paper? Do you need a novelist buddy to help spur you to success? Find one via the NaNoWriMo forums. Think of anything that might prevent you completing your novel, and brainstorm ways around such issues.
3. Prepare an outline, however basic. Even if you're a seat-of-the-pants writer, I urge you to write a few notes about your plot and characters and the journey on which you'll take them. It can help stave off writer's block if you keep a summary of your idea to hand, ready for when your muse deserts you.
4. Recruit support. Make sure those close to you know you're entering NaNo and that you need space in which to write. You can also turn to the NaNoWriMo forums for help. Connect with novelists in your age group, in your region, or those writing in the same genre. You're never on your own with NaNoWriMo- if your mojo is flagging and you're losing the plot - reach out and connect!
5. Pace yourself. Steady Eddies who write every day are more likely to win than those who crank out their word counts in fits and starts. It's not uncommon for entrants to flag mid-month, then face a huge catch-up task in the final week. Many become overwhelmed and give up. Don't let that be you.
How many words will you aim for each day? Are there any dates on which you can't write due to prior commitments? Why not use a calendar, either paper or digital, and schedule out the month's writing to fit around them? That way you'll have a solid plan to ensure you hit the 50,000-word mark, making it seem less daunting. You only need to write 1,667 words each day to win. I'm a slow (and terrible) typist, yet I can manage 1,667 words in about two hours.
As for finding the time, ditch watching TV during November, get up earlier or go to bed later, work through your lunch hour - if you want NaNoWriMo success badly enough, you'll find the time.
What if you don't make it to 50, 000 words?
Don't beat yourself up over it! Perhaps you've only managed 20,000 words whilst your NaNoWriMo writing buddies proudly display their winner banners on their profiles. In my opinion, you've not failed. You've still written 20,000 words towards your novel, and most likely learned a lot about yourself and the writing process. Stick with your book, and in another three months you could have a completed first draft. Besides, November rolls around annually without fail - you'll get another chance next year!
Will you be joining in the fun?
Are you entering NaNoWriMo this year? If so, leave a comment and let me know, or add me as a writing buddy via the NaNoWriMo website. My user name is savingforoz (find me by clicking the link), and my avatar is the cute kitten in the picture. I look forward to connecting with you!
Enjoyed this blog post? Please share via the buttons below:
Get your free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
Let the madness begin...
Courtesy of NaNoWriMoAfter a two-year break, I'm delighted to be participating again in the annual NaNoWriMo competition. NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month, a madcap event in which entrants pledge to complete a 50,000-word novel during the month of November. I wrote Sister, Psychopath for NaNoWriMo 2011 and Guilty Innocence for 2012.One question I'm often asked is, 'what do you win?' The answer is nothing, apart from the satisfaction of taking part and completing a novel, or at least 50, ooo words of it. NaNoWriMo is great fun, but it can be hard going; on average, only 15% of entrants are proclaimed winners, meaning they've met the required word count. Those who succeed get a range of opportunities from the competition's sponsors, such as 50% off my favourite writing software, Scrivener, or help with formatting their novel.
The main benefit, in my opinion, is the chance to kiss goodbye to procrastination and crack on with your story. In addition, the cameraderie of joining in with thousands of other writers is incredible. The NaNoWriMo forums provide help of every kind, with boards devoted to plot issues, finding critique partners, sharing ideas, as well as regional ones where you can contact fellow novelists in your area. It's a great way to connect with other authors.
Arson, murder and fractured families...
I've blogged before and described in my book, Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft, about how I'm a planner when it comes to my books. The NaNoWriMo winning threshold is 50,000 words but I aim to write my entire novel (75,000+ words) in November if possible, and to achieve that I need to be organised. The competition starts in a couple of days, and I've completed a rough outline for each chapter, along with my character notes, research and word targets, ready to get going on Sunday.I'm sure there's more planning I should have done, yet part of me is itching to crack on with the writing. However good my outline is, once I get going I tend to spot issues I hadn't noticed before. Sometimes these are plot glitches, other times it's a chance to take the story down a new and exciting path.
So what will I be writing about? For my 2015 NaNoWriMo entry, I'm examining pyromania - a fascination with fire, manifesting in a compulsive need to set things alight. Throw in a brutal murder of a young girl and a fractured family, and the scene's set for my fifth full-length novel!
My five tips for NaNoWriMo success
My 2012 winner's badgeI enjoy helping other writers when I can. So what advice would I give novice NaNoWriMo participants? Well, there's no 'one size fits all' formula, but here are my five tips for NaNoWriMo success.1. Commit to success. 85% of entrants fail to complete their NaNoWriMo novel; I believe it helps to make a firm resolve to see it through. Tell yourself you'll do this, no matter what, and reward yourself along the way. Passed the halfway 25,000-word stage? Then celebrate! Plan how you'll mark crossing the 50,000-word line, thus giving yourself something to look forward to.
2. Get organised. Set up your NaNoWriMo profile, browse the website, and take advantage of the many resources on offer. Familiarise yourself with how the competition works. Decide how you'll write - will you use Microsoft Word, an online application such as LitLift, or pen and paper? Do you need a novelist buddy to help spur you to success? Find one via the NaNoWriMo forums. Think of anything that might prevent you completing your novel, and brainstorm ways around such issues.
3. Prepare an outline, however basic. Even if you're a seat-of-the-pants writer, I urge you to write a few notes about your plot and characters and the journey on which you'll take them. It can help stave off writer's block if you keep a summary of your idea to hand, ready for when your muse deserts you.
4. Recruit support. Make sure those close to you know you're entering NaNo and that you need space in which to write. You can also turn to the NaNoWriMo forums for help. Connect with novelists in your age group, in your region, or those writing in the same genre. You're never on your own with NaNoWriMo- if your mojo is flagging and you're losing the plot - reach out and connect!
5. Pace yourself. Steady Eddies who write every day are more likely to win than those who crank out their word counts in fits and starts. It's not uncommon for entrants to flag mid-month, then face a huge catch-up task in the final week. Many become overwhelmed and give up. Don't let that be you.
How many words will you aim for each day? Are there any dates on which you can't write due to prior commitments? Why not use a calendar, either paper or digital, and schedule out the month's writing to fit around them? That way you'll have a solid plan to ensure you hit the 50,000-word mark, making it seem less daunting. You only need to write 1,667 words each day to win. I'm a slow (and terrible) typist, yet I can manage 1,667 words in about two hours.
As for finding the time, ditch watching TV during November, get up earlier or go to bed later, work through your lunch hour - if you want NaNoWriMo success badly enough, you'll find the time.
What if you don't make it to 50, 000 words?
Don't beat yourself up over it! Perhaps you've only managed 20,000 words whilst your NaNoWriMo writing buddies proudly display their winner banners on their profiles. In my opinion, you've not failed. You've still written 20,000 words towards your novel, and most likely learned a lot about yourself and the writing process. Stick with your book, and in another three months you could have a completed first draft. Besides, November rolls around annually without fail - you'll get another chance next year!Will you be joining in the fun?
Are you entering NaNoWriMo this year? If so, leave a comment and let me know, or add me as a writing buddy via the NaNoWriMo website. My user name is savingforoz (find me by clicking the link), and my avatar is the cute kitten in the picture. I look forward to connecting with you!Enjoyed this blog post? Please share via the buttons below:
Get your free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
October 21, 2015
Hardback novels versus paperback ones - which do you prefer?
By Maggie James
I buy a lot of ebooks, and when I purchase a physical copy of a novel, it's usually the paperback version. Why? Partly force of habit, but also because they're cheap and take up less room on my bookshelves than hardbacks. My love of browsing charity shops has led me to buy some hardback novels recently, however, and I admit they provide a different level of reading experience. Something about the weight and solidarity of them is very attractive.
Hardbacks are proving surprisingly resilient in this digital age. For the publishers, they generate more profit than paperbacks, and for readers they provide a premium quality reading experience. Often the cover artwork is superior to that of the paperback version and some come with bookmarks and embossed jackets. They are also durable, making them popular with libraries and collectors. I'd certainly prefer a hardback copy should I ever be seeking an autograph! Stephen King, I'm heading your way with my copy of Rose Madder...
For people who have favourite best-selling authors, it can make sense to purchase the hardback editions. There's no waiting around for the paperback version, and if you want something beautiful for your bookshelves, hardbacks fit the bill.
The dust jackets stir up some debate, however. Some people love them, others hate them - me, I'm ambivalent on the subject - but they do provide handy page markers when folded inside. They have their good and bad points - they help keep the book clean, yet have a tendency to look tattered quickly.
People who prefer paperbacks cite the cheaper prices and greater portability, both of which are valid considerations. They're also more suited to impulse buys; I suspect few people buy hardback novels from as yet unread authors.
Horses for courses, as they say. Now I've rediscovered hardbacks, I'll continue to buy my fiction in a mix of formats. What about you? Do you have a preference one way or another? Leave a comment and let me know!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Get your free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
I buy a lot of ebooks, and when I purchase a physical copy of a novel, it's usually the paperback version. Why? Partly force of habit, but also because they're cheap and take up less room on my bookshelves than hardbacks. My love of browsing charity shops has led me to buy some hardback novels recently, however, and I admit they provide a different level of reading experience. Something about the weight and solidarity of them is very attractive.Hardbacks are proving surprisingly resilient in this digital age. For the publishers, they generate more profit than paperbacks, and for readers they provide a premium quality reading experience. Often the cover artwork is superior to that of the paperback version and some come with bookmarks and embossed jackets. They are also durable, making them popular with libraries and collectors. I'd certainly prefer a hardback copy should I ever be seeking an autograph! Stephen King, I'm heading your way with my copy of Rose Madder...
For people who have favourite best-selling authors, it can make sense to purchase the hardback editions. There's no waiting around for the paperback version, and if you want something beautiful for your bookshelves, hardbacks fit the bill.
The dust jackets stir up some debate, however. Some people love them, others hate them - me, I'm ambivalent on the subject - but they do provide handy page markers when folded inside. They have their good and bad points - they help keep the book clean, yet have a tendency to look tattered quickly.
People who prefer paperbacks cite the cheaper prices and greater portability, both of which are valid considerations. They're also more suited to impulse buys; I suspect few people buy hardback novels from as yet unread authors.
Horses for courses, as they say. Now I've rediscovered hardbacks, I'll continue to buy my fiction in a mix of formats. What about you? Do you have a preference one way or another? Leave a comment and let me know!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Get your free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
October 14, 2015
Five years later: what I've learned on my writing journey
By Maggie James
Sucre in Bolivia, where I wrote my first novel.Five years ago I quit my job and went off travelling for a year. The aim was to return with a draft of my first novel; I'd explore Asia and South America whilst accomplishing my life-long dream of becoming an author. Fed up with my employment, annoyed at my procrastination over writing, embued since birth with wanderlust, it seemed the ideal solution. Armed with my laptop, I flew to Bangkok for the first leg of my journey, confident I was poised to become a writer at last.
With a few false starts, that's what happened. After a fantastic trip, I returned to England in October 2011 with a completed draft of His Kidnapper's Shoes. The manuscript was too long, requiring a lot of pruning; it was done, however, meaning I'd kept my promise to myself. The joy I experienced after writing the last word is hard to describe - it was a very emotional moment. In my ignorance, I believed the hardest part was out of the way. Little did I know...
I soon discovered being a novelist involves much more than just writing. I had no idea how to edit my book, for example. Back then, the process consisted of me reading my narrative, trying to spot what needed changing. Nowadays I'm far more organised, with rounds of editing for different things; one for grammar and punctuation, another for flow and style, and so on. I was also ignorant of the need for an author's platform, meaning I had to play catch up whilst getting His Kidnapper's Shoes ready for publication.
What I've achieved so far...
I started writing my second novel, Sister Psychopath, in November 2011 as part of the NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) competition. I'd still not published His Kidnapper's Shoes, being immersed in selling my house, making an abortive move to Portsmouth, returning to Bristol and buying my flat. All that took time and energy away from my writing, meaning I didn't publish His Kidnapper's Shoes until 2013, although in the meantime I worked on Sister Psychopath and developed my author platform.
It's now October 2015, five years since I quit my accountancy role. In that time, I've written and published four full-length novels, one novella and a 'how-to' guide for newbie writers. I've also resurrected and published the four health books I wrote whilst practising as a nutritional therapist, and collated my first three novels into a box set. I now have eleven published titles, and am poised to start work on the twelfth. I've achieved my ambition of becoming a writer and I'm delighted about that!
Many people have been very supportive
What have I learned over the last five years? A lot about my fellow humans. I've made big changes, and this can be hard for other people to deal with. In general I've been overwhelmed by the support and encouragement I've received, including from other novelists, but some people have responded negatively. A few have chosen to ignore my new career, others have treated it as a joke - a nice hobby, perhaps, but not something to take seriously. That's a shame, but to be expected - some individuals feel threatened by other people's lifestyle changes. Such reactions have been greatly outweighed by the encouragement I've garnered elsewhere. I've also received wonderful support from unexpected sources, and that's been a pleasant surprise.
Every new book is a challenge
I've also learned a huge amount about writing. I've streamlined my processes, particularly plotting and editing, so they're much more efficient. As for book marketing and promotion, I'm still getting to grips with this area - it's not my natural forte!
The geeky side of me has enjoyed setting up my blog and website, as well as getting the hang of the wonderful software that is Scrivener. (More about Scrivener here).
I continue to learn more about my particular writing quirks. In common with other novelists, certain motifs often crop up in my fiction - for example, my characters tend to clench their guts a lot in tense situations. (Stay close to a toilet, guys!) I've noticed this with other writers' books; it can be a hard habit to break. I'm working on it...
I'll continue to set myself a new challenge with every novel; so far it's proved both interesting and beneficial. For example, with The Second Captive I explored writing in scenes and with a two-part novel structure. I'd been sceptical before about this, preferring to write in whole chapters, but I discovered I enjoyed that way of working. With my next book, I want to plot more deeply than I've ever done before, and see how that affects the editing process. I don't doubt that I'll carry on developing and growing along my writing journey.
It's been a fantastic five years, and I've never regretted my decision to leave accountancy and pursue my novel-writing dreams. I shudder to think what I'd be doing now if I hadn't made that change - probably still servicing the same clients, living in the same house, and without having spent ten incredible months in South America, a continent that enthralls me.
What do I aim to achieve in the next five years? By 2020, I hope to have at least eighteen published titles, and to combine writing with my perpetual wanderlust. I'd love to end up a nomadic novelist, travelling the world with my laptop, writing as I go. Whatever happens, I'm buckling up for an incredible ride! Will you join me?
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Get a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
Sucre in Bolivia, where I wrote my first novel.Five years ago I quit my job and went off travelling for a year. The aim was to return with a draft of my first novel; I'd explore Asia and South America whilst accomplishing my life-long dream of becoming an author. Fed up with my employment, annoyed at my procrastination over writing, embued since birth with wanderlust, it seemed the ideal solution. Armed with my laptop, I flew to Bangkok for the first leg of my journey, confident I was poised to become a writer at last.With a few false starts, that's what happened. After a fantastic trip, I returned to England in October 2011 with a completed draft of His Kidnapper's Shoes. The manuscript was too long, requiring a lot of pruning; it was done, however, meaning I'd kept my promise to myself. The joy I experienced after writing the last word is hard to describe - it was a very emotional moment. In my ignorance, I believed the hardest part was out of the way. Little did I know...
I soon discovered being a novelist involves much more than just writing. I had no idea how to edit my book, for example. Back then, the process consisted of me reading my narrative, trying to spot what needed changing. Nowadays I'm far more organised, with rounds of editing for different things; one for grammar and punctuation, another for flow and style, and so on. I was also ignorant of the need for an author's platform, meaning I had to play catch up whilst getting His Kidnapper's Shoes ready for publication.
What I've achieved so far...
I started writing my second novel, Sister Psychopath, in November 2011 as part of the NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) competition. I'd still not published His Kidnapper's Shoes, being immersed in selling my house, making an abortive move to Portsmouth, returning to Bristol and buying my flat. All that took time and energy away from my writing, meaning I didn't publish His Kidnapper's Shoes until 2013, although in the meantime I worked on Sister Psychopath and developed my author platform.It's now October 2015, five years since I quit my accountancy role. In that time, I've written and published four full-length novels, one novella and a 'how-to' guide for newbie writers. I've also resurrected and published the four health books I wrote whilst practising as a nutritional therapist, and collated my first three novels into a box set. I now have eleven published titles, and am poised to start work on the twelfth. I've achieved my ambition of becoming a writer and I'm delighted about that!
Many people have been very supportive
What have I learned over the last five years? A lot about my fellow humans. I've made big changes, and this can be hard for other people to deal with. In general I've been overwhelmed by the support and encouragement I've received, including from other novelists, but some people have responded negatively. A few have chosen to ignore my new career, others have treated it as a joke - a nice hobby, perhaps, but not something to take seriously. That's a shame, but to be expected - some individuals feel threatened by other people's lifestyle changes. Such reactions have been greatly outweighed by the encouragement I've garnered elsewhere. I've also received wonderful support from unexpected sources, and that's been a pleasant surprise.
Every new book is a challenge
I've also learned a huge amount about writing. I've streamlined my processes, particularly plotting and editing, so they're much more efficient. As for book marketing and promotion, I'm still getting to grips with this area - it's not my natural forte!The geeky side of me has enjoyed setting up my blog and website, as well as getting the hang of the wonderful software that is Scrivener. (More about Scrivener here).
I continue to learn more about my particular writing quirks. In common with other novelists, certain motifs often crop up in my fiction - for example, my characters tend to clench their guts a lot in tense situations. (Stay close to a toilet, guys!) I've noticed this with other writers' books; it can be a hard habit to break. I'm working on it...
I'll continue to set myself a new challenge with every novel; so far it's proved both interesting and beneficial. For example, with The Second Captive I explored writing in scenes and with a two-part novel structure. I'd been sceptical before about this, preferring to write in whole chapters, but I discovered I enjoyed that way of working. With my next book, I want to plot more deeply than I've ever done before, and see how that affects the editing process. I don't doubt that I'll carry on developing and growing along my writing journey.
It's been a fantastic five years, and I've never regretted my decision to leave accountancy and pursue my novel-writing dreams. I shudder to think what I'd be doing now if I hadn't made that change - probably still servicing the same clients, living in the same house, and without having spent ten incredible months in South America, a continent that enthralls me.
What do I aim to achieve in the next five years? By 2020, I hope to have at least eighteen published titles, and to combine writing with my perpetual wanderlust. I'd love to end up a nomadic novelist, travelling the world with my laptop, writing as I go. Whatever happens, I'm buckling up for an incredible ride! Will you join me?
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Get a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes!
Sign up for my newsletter and you'll receive a free copy of His Kidnapper's Shoes in either Kindle, epub or PDF format! What will you get from my emails? Books from other novelists (with their permission, of course!), reading recommendations, discounts on my future releases, as well as promotions and giveaways. I'll contact you every two months or when I release a new title, and will never divulge your details to any third parties. To sign up, enter your email address in the box in the sidebar. Thank you!Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
September 23, 2015
News round-up for September 2015
By Maggie James
Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 has now been published!
Click the image to buy on AmazonSeptember has been a busy month for me! This week I published a box set of my first three novels, available in Kindle format from Amazon. I've been meaning to do this for ages and now it's done, I've no idea why I procrastinated for so long. It didn't take much time to compile all three novels into one e-book, and I'm delighted that it's now available for sale.
Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 comprises His Kidnapper's Shoes, Sister Psychopath and Guilty Innocence.
A tense novel of psychological suspense, His Kidnapper's Shoes weaves one man’s quest for his identity with one woman's need to heal her troubled past. More details here.
A study of sibling rivalry and dysfunctional relationships, Sister, Psychopath tells the story of one woman’s struggle to survive the damage inflicted by her sociopathic sister. More details here.
A gritty novel examining child murder and dysfunctional families, Guilty Innocence tells of one man’s struggle to break free from his past. More details here.
Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 is available at the bargain price of £4.99/US$7.99 from Amazon in Kindle format. When I have another three standalone titles, I'll be compiling them into Box Set 2!
Changes to the Maggie James Fiction newsletter
Sign up by clicking the picture!I'm planning to make big changes to my newsletter. When I started it, I planned to send it only when I released a new fiction title. However, it was November 2014 when I published The Second Captive; that's a long time without contacting my email list. In future, I intend to be much more proactive with my newsletter, and offer my subscribers some goodies along the way. Here's what you can expect:
1. I'll be sending the newsletter every two months and also whenever I release a new title. I don't want to inundate your inbox with emails, so this seems reasonable. You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time.
2. I plan to offer free e-books from the thriller, suspense, mystery and horror genres (with each author's consent, of course!). Everyone wins here. My subscribers get free books and the chance to read new authors' work. Other novelists get their books promoted for free. I get to recommend other great writers and to keep my subscribers happy. Right now I'm working on compiling a list of possible novels to offer.
3. I'll be recommending books that I've particularly enjoyed since the last newsletter. You'll get to hear about great fiction that might otherwise have passed under your radar.
4. I'll be updating my subscribers as to what I'm writing, how it's going, and estimated publication dates. I'll offer discounts for anyone who pre-orders my books, and occasional competitions and giveaways.
Sounds good? You can sign up here.
How to get His Kidnapper's Shoes for free!
Click the image to go to AmazonIn other news, His Kidnapper's Shoes is free on Amazon between September 23 and 25 2015 inclusive. You can download it via this link. I'll be running another free promotion on the book on October 17 and 18 2015.
I'm also offering His Kidnapper's Shoes to anyone who signs up for my newsletter (link here). Why am I doing this? Because I'd like to introduce as many people as possible to my books, and I have a special affection for His Kidnapper's Shoes because it was my debut novel. It's also proved very popular, earning lots of great reviews, and seemed the obvious choice to offer as a gift to my readers.
So if you'd like to stay posted on news from Maggie James Fiction and haven't yet read His Kidnapper's Shoes, why not sign up? Here's the link again.
Future book promotions
I'll be offering Kindle Countdown deals on The Second Captive in October 2015 and Guilty Innocence/Sister, Psychopath in November 2015. The dates have yet to be confirmed, but the price will be $0.99/£0.99 for a seven-day period.
Progress with Blackwater Lake
I'm delighted to say that Blackwater Lake should be published by the end of September 2015. I'm working on incorporating the suggestions made by my wonderful beta readers, and once that's done, I'll be able to upload the files to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, etc. I plan to make Blackwater Lake free on all sales platforms and also on my website. It's a 25,000-word novella, so not as long as my other fiction. Here's the synopsis:
Matthew Stanyer fears the worst when he reports his parents missing. Beset with worries about his wife, Evie, whose dementia is rapidly worsening, Joseph Stanyer has been struggling to cope. When the bodies of Matthew's parents are found close to Blackwater Lake, a local beauty spot, the inquest rules the deaths as a murder-suicide. A conclusion that's supported by the note Joseph leaves for his son.
Grief-stricken, Matthew begins to clear his parents' house of decades of compulsive hoarding. And discovers the dark enigmas hidden within. Ones that lead Matthew to ask: why did his father choose Blackwater Lake to end his life? What other secrets do its waters conceal?
Future Maggie James Fiction titles
My focus at present is very much on getting Blackwater Lake published, but once that's done I'll turn my attention to plotting my sixth, seventh and eighth fiction titles. What I have in mind is a trilogy of novels, all featuring the same warped main character. Yes, another one of my psychopaths! I plan to plot the first book during October 2015 and to write at least 50,000 words during the annual NaNoWriMo writing competition.
This will probably be the last news round-up that I post here, as I'll be using my newsletter for that purpose from now on. I prefer to keep my blog for discussion articles, book reviews, author interviews and the like. Thanks for reading!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 has now been published!
Click the image to buy on AmazonSeptember has been a busy month for me! This week I published a box set of my first three novels, available in Kindle format from Amazon. I've been meaning to do this for ages and now it's done, I've no idea why I procrastinated for so long. It didn't take much time to compile all three novels into one e-book, and I'm delighted that it's now available for sale.Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 comprises His Kidnapper's Shoes, Sister Psychopath and Guilty Innocence.
A tense novel of psychological suspense, His Kidnapper's Shoes weaves one man’s quest for his identity with one woman's need to heal her troubled past. More details here.
A study of sibling rivalry and dysfunctional relationships, Sister, Psychopath tells the story of one woman’s struggle to survive the damage inflicted by her sociopathic sister. More details here.
A gritty novel examining child murder and dysfunctional families, Guilty Innocence tells of one man’s struggle to break free from his past. More details here.
Shadows of the Mind Box Set 1 is available at the bargain price of £4.99/US$7.99 from Amazon in Kindle format. When I have another three standalone titles, I'll be compiling them into Box Set 2!
Changes to the Maggie James Fiction newsletter
Sign up by clicking the picture!I'm planning to make big changes to my newsletter. When I started it, I planned to send it only when I released a new fiction title. However, it was November 2014 when I published The Second Captive; that's a long time without contacting my email list. In future, I intend to be much more proactive with my newsletter, and offer my subscribers some goodies along the way. Here's what you can expect:1. I'll be sending the newsletter every two months and also whenever I release a new title. I don't want to inundate your inbox with emails, so this seems reasonable. You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time.
2. I plan to offer free e-books from the thriller, suspense, mystery and horror genres (with each author's consent, of course!). Everyone wins here. My subscribers get free books and the chance to read new authors' work. Other novelists get their books promoted for free. I get to recommend other great writers and to keep my subscribers happy. Right now I'm working on compiling a list of possible novels to offer.
3. I'll be recommending books that I've particularly enjoyed since the last newsletter. You'll get to hear about great fiction that might otherwise have passed under your radar.
4. I'll be updating my subscribers as to what I'm writing, how it's going, and estimated publication dates. I'll offer discounts for anyone who pre-orders my books, and occasional competitions and giveaways.
Sounds good? You can sign up here.
How to get His Kidnapper's Shoes for free!
Click the image to go to AmazonIn other news, His Kidnapper's Shoes is free on Amazon between September 23 and 25 2015 inclusive. You can download it via this link. I'll be running another free promotion on the book on October 17 and 18 2015.I'm also offering His Kidnapper's Shoes to anyone who signs up for my newsletter (link here). Why am I doing this? Because I'd like to introduce as many people as possible to my books, and I have a special affection for His Kidnapper's Shoes because it was my debut novel. It's also proved very popular, earning lots of great reviews, and seemed the obvious choice to offer as a gift to my readers.
So if you'd like to stay posted on news from Maggie James Fiction and haven't yet read His Kidnapper's Shoes, why not sign up? Here's the link again.
Future book promotions
I'll be offering Kindle Countdown deals on The Second Captive in October 2015 and Guilty Innocence/Sister, Psychopath in November 2015. The dates have yet to be confirmed, but the price will be $0.99/£0.99 for a seven-day period.
Progress with Blackwater Lake
I'm delighted to say that Blackwater Lake should be published by the end of September 2015. I'm working on incorporating the suggestions made by my wonderful beta readers, and once that's done, I'll be able to upload the files to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple, etc. I plan to make Blackwater Lake free on all sales platforms and also on my website. It's a 25,000-word novella, so not as long as my other fiction. Here's the synopsis:Matthew Stanyer fears the worst when he reports his parents missing. Beset with worries about his wife, Evie, whose dementia is rapidly worsening, Joseph Stanyer has been struggling to cope. When the bodies of Matthew's parents are found close to Blackwater Lake, a local beauty spot, the inquest rules the deaths as a murder-suicide. A conclusion that's supported by the note Joseph leaves for his son.
Grief-stricken, Matthew begins to clear his parents' house of decades of compulsive hoarding. And discovers the dark enigmas hidden within. Ones that lead Matthew to ask: why did his father choose Blackwater Lake to end his life? What other secrets do its waters conceal?
Future Maggie James Fiction titles
My focus at present is very much on getting Blackwater Lake published, but once that's done I'll turn my attention to plotting my sixth, seventh and eighth fiction titles. What I have in mind is a trilogy of novels, all featuring the same warped main character. Yes, another one of my psychopaths! I plan to plot the first book during October 2015 and to write at least 50,000 words during the annual NaNoWriMo writing competition.
This will probably be the last news round-up that I post here, as I'll be using my newsletter for that purpose from now on. I prefer to keep my blog for discussion articles, book reviews, author interviews and the like. Thanks for reading!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
September 15, 2015
A Literary Landscape of Ireland
By Maggie James/Michelle Mangan
Something a little different this week! I am indebted to Michelle Mangan (http://www.thedunloe.com/), who has compiled this interesting literary map of Ireland. Ireland has a rich history of producing talented writers, including Nobel laureates Samuel Beckett, George Bernard Shaw, Seamus Heaney and W.B. Yeats. Click below for a literary journey around this fascinating country. You can also find it here: http://bit.ly/1W3L40H
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
Something a little different this week! I am indebted to Michelle Mangan (http://www.thedunloe.com/), who has compiled this interesting literary map of Ireland. Ireland has a rich history of producing talented writers, including Nobel laureates Samuel Beckett, George Bernard Shaw, Seamus Heaney and W.B. Yeats. Click below for a literary journey around this fascinating country. You can also find it here: http://bit.ly/1W3L40HEnjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
September 9, 2015
Why readers should support indie authors
Guest post by Sam Marquis
Readers should support authors of any stripe for only one reason: great writing
Years ago, when I was a literary neophyte and secretly harbored delusions of grandeur about the publishing industry, mega-author James Patterson gave me a blistering review for my Colorado-based earthquake thriller Blind Thrust. The simple truth is I deserved it (he also gave me a glowing quote for my book The Coalition, but that’s another story). I fully deserved his ridicule for the first incarnation of Blind Thrust—fully deserved to be flogged like an 18th century seaman in the Royal Navy—because my novel was, though I didn’t know it at the time, not up to industry standards in terms of the opening and overall plotting. It was not a bad novel; it just wasn’t sufficiently enticing to persuade someone to shell out $20 at Barnes and Noble or Tattered Cover. In other words, I didn’t give the creator of the Alec Cross Series and the biggest-selling author since the Precambrian Era sufficient justification to promote me or my writing because the book I was peddling was flawed, even though it was reasonably well written and seemed to me and my circle of reviewers at the time to be promising. In short, I had done the unspeakable thing that no storyteller—whether you are indie, traditional legacy, or a cave-painting Cro-Magnon at Lascaux—should ever do, and that is put out a story that isn’t quite ready for prime time. To my infinite chagrin, I had not earned the right for James Patterson to lend me his support for this particular novel.
So what did I do? I went back and rewrote the book. Literally salvaged the submerged wreckage and rewrote the whole bloody thing. Then I had it professionally edited. Then I rewrote it again and edited it some more until I had revised it at least a dozen times. The editorial process landed me an agent, who proceeded to give me more editorial input, but at this point they were only minor tweaks because the book was highly polished. And now, recently, I received a completely different response to this reconstituted prose that had once been considered slush pile fodder. And from a highly credible critic I might add, someone who knows a thing or two about the written word, as he has perused hundreds of thousands of pages of non-fiction and fiction alike in his lengthy career in politics and as a Homo sapien sapien:
“Blind Thrust kept me up until 1 a.m. two nights in a row. I could not put it down. An intriguing mystery that intertwined
geology, fracking, and places in Colorado that I know well. Great fun.” —Roy R. Romer, 39th Governor of Colorado
73 eager fans on four continents...
The quote, I might also add, was unsolicited. So, by a simple twist of fate, the three-term governor of the Centennial State and one-time chairman/co-chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, Leadership Council, and National Committee, as well as the Clinton-Gore '96 campaign, got hold of an Advance Reading Copy of Blind Thrust, proceeded to read it cover to cover, and decided to give me a rave review (Okay, full disclosure, he snagged a copy of the ARC from his son, my friend Tim, that had been laying there on a table in Vail, but please note that the honorable Gov. Romer doesn’t know me from Donald Trump). What’s important about the episode is that a book that was once justifiably pilloried in its earliest incarnation had miraculously become so enthralling that a highly discriminating reader who presumably likes to go to bed early could not put it down and was forced to stay up late two nights in a row to finish the book. That same discriminating reader then proceeded to send me an unsolicited book blurb declaring before the entire world (or at least the 73 people from four continents, including my 94-year old Aunt Margaret, who will actually read my book): “I could not put it down.” Now the quote has made its way onto the front and back covers of Blind Thrust, which will be released in October for my 73 eager fans.
There is only one reason that any of this happened: the novel went from subpar, or just not good enough for publication, to something closer to superb, or at least good enough that it was deemed “unputdownable” by an unbiased reviewer whose opinion actually matters.
Authors should hold readers hostage with their writing
So why should readers support indie and traditional legacy authors? For only one reason: good solid writing. Craftsmanship. Actual hard work, sacrifice, and talent coming together into an amalgam of significance.
Having gone through this experience, I realize now what the ultimate goal of a thriller writer should be: Make people stay up late at night against their will and not want to put the book down. Hold them hostage with your writing. Because they will only go against their will if the suspense is so gripping, the plot and characters so riveting and unpredictable that the story literally casts a temporary spell over them. Because the book you’ve penned—even if it’s not Moby Dick or David Copperfield—is quite good in its own unique way. And that is the only reason why readers should support authors, be they indie or traditional legacy authors or those fur-clad, cave-dwelling raconteurs at Lascaux.
Because a work is actually really damned good.
Unfortunately, it is hard to make something hard to put down and make every page, indeed every line or paragraph, fume with tension. I know I have failed miserably in the past and I will no doubt fail again in the future. But ultimately quality and constant tension should always be the goal in a suspense novel. Nothing else should matter. We all have to write better and put forward the best material we can. Material that has been thoroughly vetted and edited and re-edited until we are bleary-eyed and brain-dead and so utterly preoccupied with making the thing good that our friends and significant others are convinced that we’ve taken a lover on the side. Ultimately, readers don’t care if you received your Creative Writing degree from Oxford or Yale, are a mega-best-seller, or are close friends with J.K Rowling or Lee Child.
They just want a great story. Over and over again, every time out.
Readers will always support great writing. And they will stay up late at night to read it.
But only if we writers put in the hard work and truly do our jobs. I had to learn that lesson the hard way.
More about Samuel Marquis
Samuel MarquisSamuel Marquis works by day as Vice-President – hydrogeology for an environmental consulting firm in Boulder, CO, and by night as writer of historical and modern suspense novels. He is the author of “The Slush Pile Brigade” (Mount Sopris Publishing, September 15, 2015, $12.99, $2.99) and “Blind Thrust” (October 2015, $12.99, $2.99), has published over 25 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals/books, and has served as an expert witness on multimillion dollar environmental cases.
He can be reached on his website at www.samuelmarquisbooks.com or by email at samuelmarquisbooks@gmail.com.
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Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!
Get early bird discounts on my books!
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Readers should support authors of any stripe for only one reason: great writing
Years ago, when I was a literary neophyte and secretly harbored delusions of grandeur about the publishing industry, mega-author James Patterson gave me a blistering review for my Colorado-based earthquake thriller Blind Thrust. The simple truth is I deserved it (he also gave me a glowing quote for my book The Coalition, but that’s another story). I fully deserved his ridicule for the first incarnation of Blind Thrust—fully deserved to be flogged like an 18th century seaman in the Royal Navy—because my novel was, though I didn’t know it at the time, not up to industry standards in terms of the opening and overall plotting. It was not a bad novel; it just wasn’t sufficiently enticing to persuade someone to shell out $20 at Barnes and Noble or Tattered Cover. In other words, I didn’t give the creator of the Alec Cross Series and the biggest-selling author since the Precambrian Era sufficient justification to promote me or my writing because the book I was peddling was flawed, even though it was reasonably well written and seemed to me and my circle of reviewers at the time to be promising. In short, I had done the unspeakable thing that no storyteller—whether you are indie, traditional legacy, or a cave-painting Cro-Magnon at Lascaux—should ever do, and that is put out a story that isn’t quite ready for prime time. To my infinite chagrin, I had not earned the right for James Patterson to lend me his support for this particular novel.So what did I do? I went back and rewrote the book. Literally salvaged the submerged wreckage and rewrote the whole bloody thing. Then I had it professionally edited. Then I rewrote it again and edited it some more until I had revised it at least a dozen times. The editorial process landed me an agent, who proceeded to give me more editorial input, but at this point they were only minor tweaks because the book was highly polished. And now, recently, I received a completely different response to this reconstituted prose that had once been considered slush pile fodder. And from a highly credible critic I might add, someone who knows a thing or two about the written word, as he has perused hundreds of thousands of pages of non-fiction and fiction alike in his lengthy career in politics and as a Homo sapien sapien:
“Blind Thrust kept me up until 1 a.m. two nights in a row. I could not put it down. An intriguing mystery that intertwined
geology, fracking, and places in Colorado that I know well. Great fun.” —Roy R. Romer, 39th Governor of Colorado
73 eager fans on four continents...
The quote, I might also add, was unsolicited. So, by a simple twist of fate, the three-term governor of the Centennial State and one-time chairman/co-chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, Leadership Council, and National Committee, as well as the Clinton-Gore '96 campaign, got hold of an Advance Reading Copy of Blind Thrust, proceeded to read it cover to cover, and decided to give me a rave review (Okay, full disclosure, he snagged a copy of the ARC from his son, my friend Tim, that had been laying there on a table in Vail, but please note that the honorable Gov. Romer doesn’t know me from Donald Trump). What’s important about the episode is that a book that was once justifiably pilloried in its earliest incarnation had miraculously become so enthralling that a highly discriminating reader who presumably likes to go to bed early could not put it down and was forced to stay up late two nights in a row to finish the book. That same discriminating reader then proceeded to send me an unsolicited book blurb declaring before the entire world (or at least the 73 people from four continents, including my 94-year old Aunt Margaret, who will actually read my book): “I could not put it down.” Now the quote has made its way onto the front and back covers of Blind Thrust, which will be released in October for my 73 eager fans.There is only one reason that any of this happened: the novel went from subpar, or just not good enough for publication, to something closer to superb, or at least good enough that it was deemed “unputdownable” by an unbiased reviewer whose opinion actually matters.
Authors should hold readers hostage with their writing
So why should readers support indie and traditional legacy authors? For only one reason: good solid writing. Craftsmanship. Actual hard work, sacrifice, and talent coming together into an amalgam of significance.Having gone through this experience, I realize now what the ultimate goal of a thriller writer should be: Make people stay up late at night against their will and not want to put the book down. Hold them hostage with your writing. Because they will only go against their will if the suspense is so gripping, the plot and characters so riveting and unpredictable that the story literally casts a temporary spell over them. Because the book you’ve penned—even if it’s not Moby Dick or David Copperfield—is quite good in its own unique way. And that is the only reason why readers should support authors, be they indie or traditional legacy authors or those fur-clad, cave-dwelling raconteurs at Lascaux.
Because a work is actually really damned good.
Unfortunately, it is hard to make something hard to put down and make every page, indeed every line or paragraph, fume with tension. I know I have failed miserably in the past and I will no doubt fail again in the future. But ultimately quality and constant tension should always be the goal in a suspense novel. Nothing else should matter. We all have to write better and put forward the best material we can. Material that has been thoroughly vetted and edited and re-edited until we are bleary-eyed and brain-dead and so utterly preoccupied with making the thing good that our friends and significant others are convinced that we’ve taken a lover on the side. Ultimately, readers don’t care if you received your Creative Writing degree from Oxford or Yale, are a mega-best-seller, or are close friends with J.K Rowling or Lee Child.
They just want a great story. Over and over again, every time out.
Readers will always support great writing. And they will stay up late at night to read it.
But only if we writers put in the hard work and truly do our jobs. I had to learn that lesson the hard way.
More about Samuel Marquis
Samuel MarquisSamuel Marquis works by day as Vice-President – hydrogeology for an environmental consulting firm in Boulder, CO, and by night as writer of historical and modern suspense novels. He is the author of “The Slush Pile Brigade” (Mount Sopris Publishing, September 15, 2015, $12.99, $2.99) and “Blind Thrust” (October 2015, $12.99, $2.99), has published over 25 articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals/books, and has served as an expert witness on multimillion dollar environmental cases.He can be reached on his website at www.samuelmarquisbooks.com or by email at samuelmarquisbooks@gmail.com.
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September 4, 2015
Book review - Mr Mercedes by Stephen King
By Maggie James
An engrossing 'straight-up' crime thriller from a master wordsmith
It's been a while since I wrote a book review, and Mr Mercedes by Stephen King is a worthy way to resume! The novel is King's venture into straight crime thrillers, the first of a trilogy. Fans of his horror and supernatural titles won't find their familiar fare here. No clowns, no haunted hotels, no Boo'ya Moon. Instead Mr Mercedes recounts the good versus evil battle of Bill Hodges, a retired police officer, and Brady Hartsfield, a computer genius with a bad Oedipal complex and an even worse loathing of humanity.
The book begins with a bang, recounting the senseless slaying of eight people by Brady Hartsfield, committed by ploughing a stolen Mercedes into a crowd. Years later, retired detective Bill Hodges's failure to capture the Mercedes Killer haunts him as he drifts through his days on a diet of junk food and daytime television. Then he receives a taunting letter from Mr Mercedes, an attempt to goad him into suicide. Instead, it induces the opposite effect, Hodges is spurred into action, committed to capturing the killer before he strikes again. Let the battle commence....
The novel has more twists and turns than a maze, never failing to thrill. Twice in the book (I'll not say more as I don't want to give plot spoilers) the events had me yelling, 'Oh my God!' at the pages. The way King enables Hartsfield to stalk Hodges without the latter realising is creepy beyond belief.
Novelists are often advised to torture their characters to excite readers. In Mr Mercedes, Stephen King doesn't hesitate to dispatch the modern day equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition to persecute his players. Speaking of whom, Mr Mercedes introduces a trio of characters that continue through the trilogy. First Bill Hodges, the man who rediscovers his zest for life through hunting Brady Hartsfield. Jerome Robinson, the computer-savvy student, a foil for Hodges's technical ineptitude. Finally, there's Holly Gibney, a seemingly minor character whose demons seem destined to hinder Hodges, not help him.
The lesser characters are equally compelling. Deborah Hartsfield, Brady's alcoholic mother, inspires empathy as we learn the reason for her drinking. At the same time, her unorthodox relationship with her disturbed son won't win her a 'Mother of the Year' award. Aunt Charlotte is a master study of a self-absorbed whiner engorged with entitlement issues. The only character I disliked (although she's one of the 'good guys') is Janelle Patterson. Her condescending attitude towards Hodges warrants a kick up the backside. She dispenses sexual favours his way as though rewarding a well-trained dog with a ham bone. Yuk.
A dash or humour, and less is not always more...
No 2 in the trilogyUnlike many straight-up crime thrillers, the novel is laced with humour. Take our introduction to Bill Hodges. He's at a point in his life when blowing his brains out holds increasing appeal. We witness his ennui via the daytime television shows with which he self-medicates. King's descriptions of a trashy reality TV programme are hilarious, yet provide a not-so-subtle commentary on modern life.
His books have often been criticised for being long-winded. By comparison to some of his work (Under the Dome, The Stand, etc.), Mr Mercedes, at 405 pages, is a short read. Yet it still contains much that critics might say could be axed without interfering with the plot. Take the description of the reality TV show. The fighting between Knockout Bods One and Two and their shared lover doesn't add to the action, reveals nothing about the book's characters. Yet somehow it works. Those passages inject humour, a counterpoint to the awfulness of Hodges's life post-retirement. Yes, King is prone to lengthy prose, some of which doesn't add to his books. With a master wordsmith like him, though, it doesn't detract either. The man is probably capable of rewriting the phone book and making it thrilling. His wizardry with words ensures that, no matter what tangent he zooms off on, it'll be entertaining.
Mr Mercedes is the first in a trilogy, and the second book, Finders Keepers, has already been published. Our heroic trio of Hodges, Robinson and Gibney continue their crime-fighting spree, this time tackling an obsessive fan whose preoccupation with a famous writer goes too far. Wait - have't we been there before? Annie Wilkes in Misery? King seems to enjoy examining the trials and tribulations of a novelist (Misery, Lisey's Story, Bag of Bones, etc). I don't doubt Finders Keepers, in King's capable hands, will spin an original twist on a familiar theme.
Back to Mr Mercedes. I devoured this book, loving the ride on which King takes the reader. The only part that didn't gel for me was the final scene, which I thought stretched credibility too far. On the other hand, in its own way it's oddly humorous. Given how I loved the rest of the book, it's a minor issue. And now, thanks to Messrs King and Mercedes, I know what a crush freak is. Believe me, if I could erase that particular piece of knowledge from my brain, I would!
Have you read Mr Mercedes?
I hope you enjoyed this book review! Have you read Mr Mercedes? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Thoughts, opinions? Leave a comment and let me know!
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Get early bird discounts on my books!
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An engrossing 'straight-up' crime thriller from a master wordsmith
It's been a while since I wrote a book review, and Mr Mercedes by Stephen King is a worthy way to resume! The novel is King's venture into straight crime thrillers, the first of a trilogy. Fans of his horror and supernatural titles won't find their familiar fare here. No clowns, no haunted hotels, no Boo'ya Moon. Instead Mr Mercedes recounts the good versus evil battle of Bill Hodges, a retired police officer, and Brady Hartsfield, a computer genius with a bad Oedipal complex and an even worse loathing of humanity.The book begins with a bang, recounting the senseless slaying of eight people by Brady Hartsfield, committed by ploughing a stolen Mercedes into a crowd. Years later, retired detective Bill Hodges's failure to capture the Mercedes Killer haunts him as he drifts through his days on a diet of junk food and daytime television. Then he receives a taunting letter from Mr Mercedes, an attempt to goad him into suicide. Instead, it induces the opposite effect, Hodges is spurred into action, committed to capturing the killer before he strikes again. Let the battle commence....
The novel has more twists and turns than a maze, never failing to thrill. Twice in the book (I'll not say more as I don't want to give plot spoilers) the events had me yelling, 'Oh my God!' at the pages. The way King enables Hartsfield to stalk Hodges without the latter realising is creepy beyond belief.
Novelists are often advised to torture their characters to excite readers. In Mr Mercedes, Stephen King doesn't hesitate to dispatch the modern day equivalent of the Spanish Inquisition to persecute his players. Speaking of whom, Mr Mercedes introduces a trio of characters that continue through the trilogy. First Bill Hodges, the man who rediscovers his zest for life through hunting Brady Hartsfield. Jerome Robinson, the computer-savvy student, a foil for Hodges's technical ineptitude. Finally, there's Holly Gibney, a seemingly minor character whose demons seem destined to hinder Hodges, not help him.
The lesser characters are equally compelling. Deborah Hartsfield, Brady's alcoholic mother, inspires empathy as we learn the reason for her drinking. At the same time, her unorthodox relationship with her disturbed son won't win her a 'Mother of the Year' award. Aunt Charlotte is a master study of a self-absorbed whiner engorged with entitlement issues. The only character I disliked (although she's one of the 'good guys') is Janelle Patterson. Her condescending attitude towards Hodges warrants a kick up the backside. She dispenses sexual favours his way as though rewarding a well-trained dog with a ham bone. Yuk.
A dash or humour, and less is not always more...
No 2 in the trilogyUnlike many straight-up crime thrillers, the novel is laced with humour. Take our introduction to Bill Hodges. He's at a point in his life when blowing his brains out holds increasing appeal. We witness his ennui via the daytime television shows with which he self-medicates. King's descriptions of a trashy reality TV programme are hilarious, yet provide a not-so-subtle commentary on modern life.His books have often been criticised for being long-winded. By comparison to some of his work (Under the Dome, The Stand, etc.), Mr Mercedes, at 405 pages, is a short read. Yet it still contains much that critics might say could be axed without interfering with the plot. Take the description of the reality TV show. The fighting between Knockout Bods One and Two and their shared lover doesn't add to the action, reveals nothing about the book's characters. Yet somehow it works. Those passages inject humour, a counterpoint to the awfulness of Hodges's life post-retirement. Yes, King is prone to lengthy prose, some of which doesn't add to his books. With a master wordsmith like him, though, it doesn't detract either. The man is probably capable of rewriting the phone book and making it thrilling. His wizardry with words ensures that, no matter what tangent he zooms off on, it'll be entertaining.
Mr Mercedes is the first in a trilogy, and the second book, Finders Keepers, has already been published. Our heroic trio of Hodges, Robinson and Gibney continue their crime-fighting spree, this time tackling an obsessive fan whose preoccupation with a famous writer goes too far. Wait - have't we been there before? Annie Wilkes in Misery? King seems to enjoy examining the trials and tribulations of a novelist (Misery, Lisey's Story, Bag of Bones, etc). I don't doubt Finders Keepers, in King's capable hands, will spin an original twist on a familiar theme.
Back to Mr Mercedes. I devoured this book, loving the ride on which King takes the reader. The only part that didn't gel for me was the final scene, which I thought stretched credibility too far. On the other hand, in its own way it's oddly humorous. Given how I loved the rest of the book, it's a minor issue. And now, thanks to Messrs King and Mercedes, I know what a crush freak is. Believe me, if I could erase that particular piece of knowledge from my brain, I would!
Have you read Mr Mercedes?
I hope you enjoyed this book review! Have you read Mr Mercedes? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Thoughts, opinions? Leave a comment and let me know!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
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If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
August 27, 2015
News round-up for August 2015
By Maggie James
This week's blog post is an update on what's happening at Maggie James Fiction. Lots of people have been asking me how I'm getting on with Blackwater Lake and what projects I'm planning. So, without further ado, here's the lowdown on what I've been up to, and what's in the pipeline....My progress with Blackwater Lake
Blackwater LakeI'm making headway with my novella, Blackwater Lake, which I'm now revising and editing. I have a reasonable draft but some plot elements need tweaking. This part of the writing process always takes me the longest. Good job I enjoy it!
I've posted before about how I challenge myself with each book I write. With Blackwater Lake, the test was to find out how quickly I could finish it. I have to report that I've failed miserably with this! The first draft was completed within a couple of weeks, but since then the editing process has slowed progress. At first I thought I'd have the book ready for July. Now I'm shooting for September.
I'm annoyed with myself for taking so long, but it's a lesson learned. Even though I plan my books before starting, I need to do so in more detail. Sometimes a plot element seems fine at the planning stage, but once I start writing I discover it won't work. I guess many fiction writers experience that, though!
Anyway, I hope to have a reasonable draft to send to my wonderful beta readers soon. Here's a synopsis of the plot:
Matthew Stanyer fears the worst when he reports his parents missing. Beset with worries about his wife, Evie, whose dementia is rapidly worsening, Joseph Stanyer has been struggling to cope. When the bodies of Matthew's parents are found close to Blackwater Lake, a local beauty spot, the inquest rules the deaths as a murder-suicide. A conclusion that's supported by the note Joseph leaves for his son.
Grief-stricken, Matthew begins to clear his parents' house of decades of compulsive hoarding. And discovers the dark enigmas hidden within. Ones that lead Matthew to ask: why did his father choose Blackwater Lake to end his life? What other secrets do its waters conceal?
Watch your back, Stephen King!
In other news, my non-fiction book, Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft, has been doing well. In a recent promotion the book rose to no 3 in its category in the bestseller ranks, pipped by Stephen King's excellent 'On Writing' at number 2.
I've been delighted by the very positive comments I've received about my book. Would-be novelists have told me it's inspired them to write, and established authors have said they've learned from it too. That was always my aim, so I'm very pleased. Thank you to everyone who has bought and reviewed Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft. For anyone interested, here's the Amazon link.
I've hired a book publicist!
Like many authors, first and foremost I want to write. Marketing isn't something I ever needed to do before I became a novelist. Whilst I've enjoyed it more than I thought I would, book promotion doesn't come easily to me.
To address the issue, I've hired a book publicist. The success of Write Your Novel! was very much helped by the excellent work she did, and I'm very pleased I've made this move. It's early days yet, but I believe we'll work well together.
What else is in the pipeline?
I'm not sure what will follow Blackwater Lake. I'm toying with the idea of writing a series, although I'm unclear whether they'll be novellas or full-length books. (My natural inclination is to write longer fiction.) On the other hand, I have an idea that really fires me up for a full-length standalone book! One that will pose me my greatest challenge yet. Decisions, decisions...
I'm also considering releasing my first three novels as a box set. I'd need to compile them into one e-book and get a 3D cover done. That won't take long, so if I go ahead I'll do so once Blackwater Lake is published. That reminds me - I have a book to finish! Back to the editing process...
See you next week!
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Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
This week's blog post is an update on what's happening at Maggie James Fiction. Lots of people have been asking me how I'm getting on with Blackwater Lake and what projects I'm planning. So, without further ado, here's the lowdown on what I've been up to, and what's in the pipeline....My progress with Blackwater Lake
Blackwater LakeI'm making headway with my novella, Blackwater Lake, which I'm now revising and editing. I have a reasonable draft but some plot elements need tweaking. This part of the writing process always takes me the longest. Good job I enjoy it!I've posted before about how I challenge myself with each book I write. With Blackwater Lake, the test was to find out how quickly I could finish it. I have to report that I've failed miserably with this! The first draft was completed within a couple of weeks, but since then the editing process has slowed progress. At first I thought I'd have the book ready for July. Now I'm shooting for September.
I'm annoyed with myself for taking so long, but it's a lesson learned. Even though I plan my books before starting, I need to do so in more detail. Sometimes a plot element seems fine at the planning stage, but once I start writing I discover it won't work. I guess many fiction writers experience that, though!
Anyway, I hope to have a reasonable draft to send to my wonderful beta readers soon. Here's a synopsis of the plot:
Matthew Stanyer fears the worst when he reports his parents missing. Beset with worries about his wife, Evie, whose dementia is rapidly worsening, Joseph Stanyer has been struggling to cope. When the bodies of Matthew's parents are found close to Blackwater Lake, a local beauty spot, the inquest rules the deaths as a murder-suicide. A conclusion that's supported by the note Joseph leaves for his son.
Grief-stricken, Matthew begins to clear his parents' house of decades of compulsive hoarding. And discovers the dark enigmas hidden within. Ones that lead Matthew to ask: why did his father choose Blackwater Lake to end his life? What other secrets do its waters conceal?
Watch your back, Stephen King!
In other news, my non-fiction book, Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft, has been doing well. In a recent promotion the book rose to no 3 in its category in the bestseller ranks, pipped by Stephen King's excellent 'On Writing' at number 2.I've been delighted by the very positive comments I've received about my book. Would-be novelists have told me it's inspired them to write, and established authors have said they've learned from it too. That was always my aim, so I'm very pleased. Thank you to everyone who has bought and reviewed Write Your Novel! From Getting Started to First Draft. For anyone interested, here's the Amazon link.
I've hired a book publicist!
Like many authors, first and foremost I want to write. Marketing isn't something I ever needed to do before I became a novelist. Whilst I've enjoyed it more than I thought I would, book promotion doesn't come easily to me. To address the issue, I've hired a book publicist. The success of Write Your Novel! was very much helped by the excellent work she did, and I'm very pleased I've made this move. It's early days yet, but I believe we'll work well together.
What else is in the pipeline?
I'm not sure what will follow Blackwater Lake. I'm toying with the idea of writing a series, although I'm unclear whether they'll be novellas or full-length books. (My natural inclination is to write longer fiction.) On the other hand, I have an idea that really fires me up for a full-length standalone book! One that will pose me my greatest challenge yet. Decisions, decisions...
I'm also considering releasing my first three novels as a box set. I'd need to compile them into one e-book and get a 3D cover done. That won't take long, so if I go ahead I'll do so once Blackwater Lake is published. That reminds me - I have a book to finish! Back to the editing process...
See you next week!
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Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
August 4, 2015
5 novels inspired by real-life crimes
By Maggie James
My second novel, Sister, Psychopath, was inspired by a real-life crime. At a writing workshop, our facilitator told us about a murder carried out by a mentally disturbed woman. She fixated on a male colleague, a married man who had a young child. They were never lovers but her obsession with him steadily grew, so much so that she decided to murder his wife and child, believing she could then marry him. She went ahead and killed his family, but her daughter became suspicious and contacted the police. The woman was arrested and convicted, receiving a life sentence.
When I heard this, my curiosity was piqued. How would it feel, I wondered, to be that woman's daughter? To make such a terrible discovery about her mother? The point our facilitator was making was that true crime is often a great source of inspiration for fiction writers. In this instance, it certainly was for me. Out of this premise came the character of Megan Copeland in Sister, Psychopath. I ended up taking the novel down a different path, away from Tilly Copeland's fixation on her boss, exploring instead the relationship between Megan and her sociopathic sister Chloe. However, I'll always be grateful to our workshop leader for sowing the seeds for my second novel that day.
My experience isn't unusual, of course. Many novels have been influenced by true-life crimes. In this week's blog post I'll continue my 'Five' series by giving some examples.
1. Psycho - Robert Bloch, 1959
Written in 1959 by Robert Bloch, Psycho was inspired by the real-life crime of Ed Gein, arrested in 1957 for the murders of two women in Wisconsin. When police searched his home, they found furniture and clothing made of skin and female body parts. Gein had raided graveyards to make a skin suit that he planned to wear while pretending to be his dead mother. Bloch's novel created the iconic character of motel owner Norman Bates, who murders his mother and takes on her personality. Even if they've not read the book, most people are familiar with the story from the famous Alfred Hitchcock film. Remember the shower scene?!
Here's the synopsis of the novel from Amazon:
'She was a fugitive, lost in a storm. That was when she saw the sign: motel - vacancy. The sign was unlit, the motel dark. She switched off the engine, and sat thinking, alone and frightened. She had nobody. The stolen money wouldn't help her, and Sam couldn't either, because she had taken the wrong turning; she was on a strange road. There was nothing she could do now - she had made her grave and she'd have to lie in it. She froze. Where had that come from? Grave. It was bed, not grave. She shivered in the cold car, surrounded by shadows. Then, without a sound, a dark shape emerged from the blackness and the car door opened. Psycho is not a tale for queasy stomachs or faint hearts. It is filled with horrifying suspense and the climax, instead of being a relief, will hit the reader with bone-shattering force.'2. The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris, 1988
The exploits of Ed Gein also served as the inspiration for Thomas Harris's 1998 novel The Silence of The Lambs. In the book, Gein morphs into a serial killer known as Buffalo Bill, a man who kidnaps overweight women, starves them for a few days and then kills and skins them. Like Psycho, most people know the story even if they've not read the book. Who hasn't seen the film clip of Hannibal Lecter expressing his preference for Chianti to accompany a dish of human liver?!
Here's the Amazon synopsis of the novel:
'An FBI trainee. A psychopath locked up for unspeakable crimes.
And a serial killer getting ever closer to his latest victim ...
FBI rookie Clarice Starling turns to Dr. Hannibal Lecter, monster cannibal held in a hospital for the criminally insane, for insight into the deadly madman she must find. As Dr. Lecter invites her into the darkest chambers of his mind, he forces her to confront her own childhood demons as the price of understanding, an unspeakable tuition he exacts to teach her how the monster thinks. And time is running out . . .'
3. The Black Dahlia - James Ellroy, 1987
James Ellroy based The Black Dahlia on one of Hollywood’s most infamous unsolved crimes. In 1947, waitress Elizabeth Short’s body was found mutilated and dumped in a car park in Los Angeles. The murder horrified the public; newspapers weighed in by sensationalising the case, nicknaming the victim 'Black Dahlia' because she always wore black clothing.
Ellroy's novel explores how the lives of the two detectives who investigate the case, Dwight Bleichert and Lee Blanchard, are destroyed by it. For Blanchard, the case revives memories of his sister Laurie, who vanished and was never found, fuelling his fears about what might have happened to her. Bleichert, however, develops an obsession with Black Dahlia, fancying himself in love and making connections between her troubled life and his own.
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'A neo-noir crime novel from the legendary crime novelist James Ellroy. Los Angeles, 15th January 1947: a beautiful young woman walked into the night and met her horrific destiny.
Five days later, her tortured body was found drained of blood and cut in half. The newspapers called her 'The Black Dahlia'. Two cops are caught up in the investigation and embark on a hellish journey that takes them to the core of the dead girl's twisted life...'
4. We Need to Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver, 2003
Lionel Shriver's 2003 novel We Need To Talk About Kevin was inspired by the 1999 shootings in Colombine, USA. The Colorado town is where Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered twelve fellow students and a teacher at their high school. Shriver references the killings in her novel by making the Kevin of the title commit mass murder in a similar way.
The book is structured in the form of letters from Eva Khatchadourian to her estranged husband Franklin Plaskett, in which she charts her cold relationship with their son Kevin. Her maternal indifference and occasional violence towards the boy may, she fears, have contributed to his sociopathic tendencies. In the book, Shriver examines the age-old question of nature versus nurture to determine why Kevin acts the way he does. L acking normal emotions and the capacity for love, he is contemptuous and manipulative, reserving special hatred for his mother. He's certainly a hard character to like, let alone love.
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'Eva never really wanted to be a mother; certainly not the mother of the unlovable boy who murdered seven of his fellow high school students, a cafeteria worker and a teacher who tried to befriend him. Now, two years later, it is time for her to come to terms with marriage, career, family, parenthood and Kevin's horrific rampage in a series of startlingly direct correspondences with her absent husband, Franklyn. Uneasy with the sacrifices and social demotion of motherhood from the start, Eva fears that her alarming dislike for her own son may be responsible for driving him so nihilistically off the rails.'5. Room - Emma Donoghue, 2010
Emma Donoghue wrote her acclaimed novel, Room, in 2010 after the Josef Fritzl case became news world-wide. In 2008, Elisabeth Fritzl, 42, told police she had been held captive by her father for twenty-four years in makeshift accommodation below the family home in Austria. Fritzl had raped her throughout that time and as a result she had given birth to seven children by him. Among them was five-year-old Felix, the inspiration for Donoghue’s Jack, held captive along with his mother in Room.
To me, Room is an incredible book. Emma Donoghue took a brave step in narrating its events from the perspective of a five-year-old boy and her gamble largely pays off. In places, it doesn't quite work - Jack sometimes acts with a maturity beyond such a young child's capabilities, but I still consider Room an excellent read. Had I written it, I'd have told the story from Ma's point of view, as I suspect many authors would have done. I admire Donoghue, therefore, for not taking the obvious route when writing the book. Her way is powerful because of course, Jack doesn't understand his situation, enhancing the suspense for the reader as the truth about Room is revealed. His childish perception also acts as a tool to inject humour into the narrative. It's gripping stuff!
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'Today I'm five. I was four last night going to sleep in Wardrobe, but when I wake up in Bed in the dark I'm changed to five, abracadabra.
Jack lives with his Ma in Room. Room has a single locked door and a skylight, and it measures ten feet by ten feet. Jack loves watching TV but he knows that nothing he sees on the screen is truly real - only him, Ma and the things in Room. Until the day Ma admits there is a world outside.
Devastating yet uplifting, Room by Emma Donoghue is a luminous portrait of a boundless maternal love. It has sold more than two million copies, was a number one bestseller and was shortlisted for the Man Booker and Orange prizes. Few books have reached modern classic status so swiftly.'
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My second novel, Sister, Psychopath, was inspired by a real-life crime. At a writing workshop, our facilitator told us about a murder carried out by a mentally disturbed woman. She fixated on a male colleague, a married man who had a young child. They were never lovers but her obsession with him steadily grew, so much so that she decided to murder his wife and child, believing she could then marry him. She went ahead and killed his family, but her daughter became suspicious and contacted the police. The woman was arrested and convicted, receiving a life sentence.When I heard this, my curiosity was piqued. How would it feel, I wondered, to be that woman's daughter? To make such a terrible discovery about her mother? The point our facilitator was making was that true crime is often a great source of inspiration for fiction writers. In this instance, it certainly was for me. Out of this premise came the character of Megan Copeland in Sister, Psychopath. I ended up taking the novel down a different path, away from Tilly Copeland's fixation on her boss, exploring instead the relationship between Megan and her sociopathic sister Chloe. However, I'll always be grateful to our workshop leader for sowing the seeds for my second novel that day.
My experience isn't unusual, of course. Many novels have been influenced by true-life crimes. In this week's blog post I'll continue my 'Five' series by giving some examples.
1. Psycho - Robert Bloch, 1959
Written in 1959 by Robert Bloch, Psycho was inspired by the real-life crime of Ed Gein, arrested in 1957 for the murders of two women in Wisconsin. When police searched his home, they found furniture and clothing made of skin and female body parts. Gein had raided graveyards to make a skin suit that he planned to wear while pretending to be his dead mother. Bloch's novel created the iconic character of motel owner Norman Bates, who murders his mother and takes on her personality. Even if they've not read the book, most people are familiar with the story from the famous Alfred Hitchcock film. Remember the shower scene?!Here's the synopsis of the novel from Amazon:
'She was a fugitive, lost in a storm. That was when she saw the sign: motel - vacancy. The sign was unlit, the motel dark. She switched off the engine, and sat thinking, alone and frightened. She had nobody. The stolen money wouldn't help her, and Sam couldn't either, because she had taken the wrong turning; she was on a strange road. There was nothing she could do now - she had made her grave and she'd have to lie in it. She froze. Where had that come from? Grave. It was bed, not grave. She shivered in the cold car, surrounded by shadows. Then, without a sound, a dark shape emerged from the blackness and the car door opened. Psycho is not a tale for queasy stomachs or faint hearts. It is filled with horrifying suspense and the climax, instead of being a relief, will hit the reader with bone-shattering force.'2. The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris, 1988
The exploits of Ed Gein also served as the inspiration for Thomas Harris's 1998 novel The Silence of The Lambs. In the book, Gein morphs into a serial killer known as Buffalo Bill, a man who kidnaps overweight women, starves them for a few days and then kills and skins them. Like Psycho, most people know the story even if they've not read the book. Who hasn't seen the film clip of Hannibal Lecter expressing his preference for Chianti to accompany a dish of human liver?!Here's the Amazon synopsis of the novel:
'An FBI trainee. A psychopath locked up for unspeakable crimes.
And a serial killer getting ever closer to his latest victim ...
FBI rookie Clarice Starling turns to Dr. Hannibal Lecter, monster cannibal held in a hospital for the criminally insane, for insight into the deadly madman she must find. As Dr. Lecter invites her into the darkest chambers of his mind, he forces her to confront her own childhood demons as the price of understanding, an unspeakable tuition he exacts to teach her how the monster thinks. And time is running out . . .'
3. The Black Dahlia - James Ellroy, 1987
James Ellroy based The Black Dahlia on one of Hollywood’s most infamous unsolved crimes. In 1947, waitress Elizabeth Short’s body was found mutilated and dumped in a car park in Los Angeles. The murder horrified the public; newspapers weighed in by sensationalising the case, nicknaming the victim 'Black Dahlia' because she always wore black clothing.Ellroy's novel explores how the lives of the two detectives who investigate the case, Dwight Bleichert and Lee Blanchard, are destroyed by it. For Blanchard, the case revives memories of his sister Laurie, who vanished and was never found, fuelling his fears about what might have happened to her. Bleichert, however, develops an obsession with Black Dahlia, fancying himself in love and making connections between her troubled life and his own.
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'A neo-noir crime novel from the legendary crime novelist James Ellroy. Los Angeles, 15th January 1947: a beautiful young woman walked into the night and met her horrific destiny.
Five days later, her tortured body was found drained of blood and cut in half. The newspapers called her 'The Black Dahlia'. Two cops are caught up in the investigation and embark on a hellish journey that takes them to the core of the dead girl's twisted life...'
4. We Need to Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver, 2003
Lionel Shriver's 2003 novel We Need To Talk About Kevin was inspired by the 1999 shootings in Colombine, USA. The Colorado town is where Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered twelve fellow students and a teacher at their high school. Shriver references the killings in her novel by making the Kevin of the title commit mass murder in a similar way.The book is structured in the form of letters from Eva Khatchadourian to her estranged husband Franklin Plaskett, in which she charts her cold relationship with their son Kevin. Her maternal indifference and occasional violence towards the boy may, she fears, have contributed to his sociopathic tendencies. In the book, Shriver examines the age-old question of nature versus nurture to determine why Kevin acts the way he does. L acking normal emotions and the capacity for love, he is contemptuous and manipulative, reserving special hatred for his mother. He's certainly a hard character to like, let alone love.
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'Eva never really wanted to be a mother; certainly not the mother of the unlovable boy who murdered seven of his fellow high school students, a cafeteria worker and a teacher who tried to befriend him. Now, two years later, it is time for her to come to terms with marriage, career, family, parenthood and Kevin's horrific rampage in a series of startlingly direct correspondences with her absent husband, Franklyn. Uneasy with the sacrifices and social demotion of motherhood from the start, Eva fears that her alarming dislike for her own son may be responsible for driving him so nihilistically off the rails.'5. Room - Emma Donoghue, 2010
Emma Donoghue wrote her acclaimed novel, Room, in 2010 after the Josef Fritzl case became news world-wide. In 2008, Elisabeth Fritzl, 42, told police she had been held captive by her father for twenty-four years in makeshift accommodation below the family home in Austria. Fritzl had raped her throughout that time and as a result she had given birth to seven children by him. Among them was five-year-old Felix, the inspiration for Donoghue’s Jack, held captive along with his mother in Room. To me, Room is an incredible book. Emma Donoghue took a brave step in narrating its events from the perspective of a five-year-old boy and her gamble largely pays off. In places, it doesn't quite work - Jack sometimes acts with a maturity beyond such a young child's capabilities, but I still consider Room an excellent read. Had I written it, I'd have told the story from Ma's point of view, as I suspect many authors would have done. I admire Donoghue, therefore, for not taking the obvious route when writing the book. Her way is powerful because of course, Jack doesn't understand his situation, enhancing the suspense for the reader as the truth about Room is revealed. His childish perception also acts as a tool to inject humour into the narrative. It's gripping stuff!
Here's the synopsis from Amazon:
'Today I'm five. I was four last night going to sleep in Wardrobe, but when I wake up in Bed in the dark I'm changed to five, abracadabra.
Jack lives with his Ma in Room. Room has a single locked door and a skylight, and it measures ten feet by ten feet. Jack loves watching TV but he knows that nothing he sees on the screen is truly real - only him, Ma and the things in Room. Until the day Ma admits there is a world outside.
Devastating yet uplifting, Room by Emma Donoghue is a luminous portrait of a boundless maternal love. It has sold more than two million copies, was a number one bestseller and was shortlisted for the Man Booker and Orange prizes. Few books have reached modern classic status so swiftly.'
Let's hear from you!
What novels based on real-life crimes have you enjoyed? Leave me a comment and let me know!
Enjoyed this post? Please share via the links below:
Why not subscribe to my blog?
If you've enjoyed this post, how about subscribing to my blog via RSS feed or email? Either click the links in my blog sidebar or sign up via Networked Blogs, also in the sidebar. It'll be great to have you on board!Get early bird discounts on my books!
Want early bird discounts on my future releases, as well as information about special promotions and giveaways? Simply enter your details in the form at the top of the sidebar. I respect your privacy and will never sell your details to any third parties.
