Terry Odell's Blog, page 105

Deadly Engagement Cover Reveal

The manuscript for Deadly Engagement, my new Mapleton Mystery Novella, is in the hands of my editor. This is where (Every. Single. Time.) I await her email saying, “What EVER were you thinking? This is garbage.”

Meanwhile, here’s a sneak peek at the cover, created by Kim Killion at The Killion Group.  You can see a little more about the novella here.

The post Deadly Engagement Cover Reveal appeared first on Terry Odell.

A Thick Skin – What Every Author Must Have

One of the first requirements of being an author is a thick skin. As in rhinoceros hide thick. Sadly, it’s one of those easier said than done things.

From the beginning, when your baby is still growing, there are critical comments from critique partners. Learning to look at them as constructive and helpful takes some getting used to. You need to be growing a thick skin.

Then (if you’re going the traditional route), it’s the whole query process. If you’re submitting to agents, odds are, you’ll...

What’s Cooking Wednesday – Pumpkin Apple Pie Revisited

 

Pumpkin Apple Pie is our family favorite for Thanksgiving that rolls two traditional desserts into one. Perfect for smaller families, or people who can’t make up their minds!

Being spread out all over the country, we never had a big family gathering. One pie was always enough, so this combo version kept everyone happy. The first time I made it, I followed the recipe which included ‘from scratch’ apple pie filling. I realized it was almost identical to the canned variety, but with more cinna...

Time Warps. Misplaced Modifiers. Beware the “ING” Construction.

Time Warps. Misplaced Modifiers. Beware the “ING” Construction.

You don’t have to read science fiction to run into a time warp. At the very first writer’s conference I attended, an agent said she would reject a query with more than 1 sentence beginning with the “ing” construction. Her explanation—it’s too easy to make mistakes with that sentence structure.

But is it wrong? No. You have to be careful, and you have to pay attention. There are different reasons to avoid, or minimize use of those...

What About Unlikeable Characters?

Unlikeable Characters

Talking about Likeable Characters on Monday raises the question, “What about unlikeable characters?” I’m repeating a post that I ran in 2010, with a few updates.

As authors, we want readers to care about our characters. If the protagonists are unlikeable characters, why should they finish reading the book? It’s especially critical for a series, because a reader who doesn’t like the character isn’t likely to read the rest of the books. I know I follow a series when the ch...

What’s Cooking Wednesday – Curried Fruit Bread Dressing

Since Thanksgiving is coming soon, I thought I’d re-share my family’s favorite dressing recipe, Curried Fruit Bread Dressing. I found in in a magazine decades ago, and it was stuffing for a goose, but it looked good, so I made it, and the family has been insisting on it ever since. (It used to be called “Stuffing” but since it’s no longer considered ‘safe’ to cook a stuffed bird, I’ve changed the name to dressing.) I know that when the kids were little, if ever I cooked anything with curry, t...

Is It All About Likeable Characters?

Do Characters Have to be Likeable All the Time?

Authors are always trying to create likeable characters. When you’re reading, you want to encounter characters you can root for. For me, books are more about the characters than anything else. Of course, I want a good story, but if I don’t like the characters, I probably won’t enjoy the book. If it’s part of a series, I probably won’t read the rest. But what are likeable characters and how likeable do they have to be?

I belong to a critique grou...

Why I’m Not Doing NaNoWriMo

Why I’m Not Doing NaNoWriMo

In 2014, I did my first and last venture into the world of NaNoWriMo. I’m revisiting the post I wrote after that experience. Note that it was written in 2014, and although the books mentioned in this post are different, the gist is the same. The timing is right for me again this year, as I am ready to start my next book (Blackthorne, Inc. #8), but the process is a different game. Here’s what I wrote back in 2014:

For those who are unaware, every November is Nation...

Paying to Advertise a Free Book – Part 3

Paying to Advertise a Free Book – Part 3

In Part 1, I shared my results after running two ads in the Fussy Librarian and Free Booksy newsletters when I made When Danger Calls a free book. Then, in Part 2, I shared the books’ rankings on Amazon’s free site.

Today, I’ll share download results from two additional newsletters that promote free books: eReader News Today (ENT) and Robin Reads (RR).

My data are far from scientific, as it’s virtually impossible to control all the variables. Spacing...

Beta Readers Needed for a Mapleton Mystery Novella

Beta Readers Needed

I’ve finished the first draft of my second Mapleton Mystery novella, Deadly Engagement. I’m in need of a few beta readers—people who can read and comment on a 33, 000 word manuscript (that’s about 100 double-spaced manuscript pages) no later than November 10th. Formats are either epub, mobi, or PDF.

I’m NOT looking for proofreaders; I’m looking for overall impressions of the story, the characters, and whether things hold together.

The novella follows Deadly Production and...