Val Tobin's Blog, page 19
May 10, 2017
Struggling to write book reviews ?
Always remember a writers life line to promoting their books to more readers, are the reviews you write. So if you’re struggling to write a review for the book you’ve just finished reading and loved the story, but not sure where to start or how to write a review, maybe these 10 tips will help.
May 9, 2017
Indies who are looking for an editor: DO YOUR RESEARCH. PLEASE.
Great post, Kayla. Kelly edits my work as well, and I have a selfish urge to keep her all to myself. It’s difficult to find a talented and competent editor. But in all good conscience, she deserves the promotion.
There has been an increasing worry that I’ve been witnessing over the last few months. I’ve been contacted by a few people offering editing services. As someone who has been screwed over a lot in the past, I’m wary. But I realised today that there are so many new authors out there, and any of them could fall for the bullshit lines these people are trying to sell me.
You know that old saying, those who can’t do, teach? What does an author do when their books aren’t selling? I swear a lot of them these days are waking up and saying “I think I’ll be an editor today.”
Now, I’d love to be paid to read other people’s books and help them out. But there’s one thing I recognise that most of these other authors don’t. And that is I’M NOT QUALIFIED TO BE AN EDITOR.
My copy…
View original post 996 more words
May 5, 2017
Earthbound Promo May 5 to 9, 2017
Earthbound
The Experiencers prequel, Earthbound, is available for #FREE on Amazon from May 5 to May 9, 2017.
Jayden McQeen struggles to figure out what happened when she finds herself outside her body. Once declared dead, she watches her family plan her funeral and struggles to come to terms with her passing.
Though told she must cross over to the spirit realm, Jayden disregards the advice when she uncovers the truth behind her sudden death and risks becoming earthbound.
Who is the strange man she sees in the hospital’s waiting room who seems too interested in her condition? What do her coworkers know about her death? Who is the mysterious spirit who claims he wants to help her?
Written by an author with a master’s degree in parapsychology, Earthbound is riveting speculative fiction that will hold your interest and keep your nights sleepless until you reach the startling conclusion. A compelling introduction to The Valiant Chronicles series, it delves into metaphysical concepts that question beliefs and reality.
Available on all Amazon sites, including US, UK, and CA.
April 25, 2017
Stages of Deterioration in the Human Body Infographic…
You know you’re a writer when your desktop background is an infographic on the stages of deterioration in the human body.
Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog
Here’s a useful guide for Writers of Murder Stories
April 24, 2017
Little Things
Love this post.
My old Kenpo instructor (now retired) used to say, “Kata is how the system expresses itself.” It was one of those little things he’d say that made perfect sense at the time as long as you didn’t think too hard about it. Later, I’d wake up at 3am or 4am or whenever the dog decided to go out, and I’d think, “Wait. What?”
Of course, after pondering for a bit, I’d come to almost the exact same conclusion that I had when I first heard it. Full circle.
Now, for those of you scratching your heads wonder what the heck a kata is, it’s a pre-programmed set of movements that’s common in the martial arts. Some systems live and die by them, others use them sparingly, still others eschew them entirely. Think of kata as a way of chaining strikes and blocks together and you’ll get the general gist.
One…
View original post 372 more words
April 3, 2017
March 28, 2017
Book Review – Walk-In by Val Tobin
Nice review for Walk-In. Thank you, Eric Lahti.
Val Tobin has a thing for the occult. She handles it well and makes the worlds of magic and UFO abduction feel real and tangible. Having tried to do this myself, I can tell you it’s no mean feat to integrate the paranormal with the mundanity of day-to-day life. This is actually the second of Val’s books that I’ve stumbled across. The first – The Experiencers – was cracking good read with aliens. Walk-In takes the reader in a different, but no less intriguing, direction.
Now, whether or not you believe in the paranormal aspects of Tobin’s work, you have to admit she’s done her homework. Magic’s an easy thing to completely screw up in a book. It can go from an interesting plot adornment to deus-ex-machina in the blink of an eye if it isn’t handled well. Tobin’s magic is still based on rules and – at least from…
View original post 258 more words
March 6, 2017
Smashwords Promo March 5, 2017 to March 11, 2017
[image error]Smashwords has a sitewide promotion until March 11, 2017, and thousands of books are available for huge discounts.
All my published novels are at least half price — two are offered for free.
The Experiencers, A Ring of Truth, and Walk-In are each $1.50 with the coupon code RAE50. Using the same code, you can get Gillian’s Island for $2.00. Injury and Storm Lake are always free.
Smashwords conveniently provides a variety of electronic formats, so whether you have a Kindle a Kobo or prefer PDF or even HTML, you can access and read any book.
To see what other novels are offered for sale, go to the Smashwords promo page.
March 5, 2017
Can You Resist ‘Temptation’?
‘I can resist everything except temptation,’ is one of my favourite quotes by the talented Oscar Wilde. The Irish essayist, poet and novelist produced many memorable quotes.
Click graphic for page
Temptation is one of those wide-ranging areas in life. Whether we go back to Adam and Eve, or consider a multi-million dollar robbery, we are reminded of temptation.
*
In this, my latest collection of short stories I’ve employed temptation as a core theme. In a couple of the stories it may be obscure. The tale may be dealing with an imminent allure, or the after effects. The final decision does not always follow the enticement, which is where I considered true entertainment would be found.
I’ve diversified as I usually do with the plots, by using a mixture of genre for the stories. I have featured vengeance, thriller, horror, romance, paranormal, sci-fi, contemporary, and sizzling romance (not…
View original post 273 more words
