Terry Odell's Blog, page 73

Sometimes it’s Okay to Tell, not Show

Show, Don’t Tell. We’ve all heard it. But is telling really all that bad?

Narrative exposition can be an efficient way to get information to the readers. The “trick” is to make sure that the telling remains true to the character. His opinions, his observations, his experiences. What you don’t want is author intrusion. Anything “told” should be from the characters point of view.

I think Michael Connelly does this very well. He rarely pulls me out of the story when his characters relate...

Advance Reader Copies for Reviewers

Deadly Fun: Advance Reader Copies for Reviewers

Deadly Fun is available for pre-order, but I also need reviewers. It’s a fact of life that reviews make a difference when it comes to promotion and visibility. I know I’ve dropped the ball here, because I once had a team, albeit a small one, of early readers. I’ve searched, but I can’t find my spreadsheet.

So, I’m starting over.

If you would like an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of Deadly Fun, and would consider leaving a review, I’d be happy to...

Friday Giveaway

Friday Giveaway

Sometimes, the aging mind totally blanks on things. A while back, I was in charge of organizing contests for Booklover’s Bench, a blog geared to readers, and I paid for the group’s Rafflecopter subscription. I’m no longer with that group (but they still run contests every month–check them out!), but I forgot to cancel the subscription, which automatically renewed. Rather than try to get my money back, I decided I needed to start running contests.

First up: A copy of The...

It’s Official – Pre-Order Deadly Fun Now.

It’s Official – Pre-Order Deadly Fun Now.

Deadly Fun is now available for pre-order for Apple Books, Amazon Kindle, Kobo, Nook, and Smashwords. Buy now, and the book will be waiting in your e-reader on February 24th (which also happens to be my birthday).

Choose your favorite e-store here.

Remember. I share all my pre-order royalties with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in honor of my daughter.

Someone is playing a game with Mapleton’s Chief of Police … and it’s deadly.

For Mapleton...

An Easy Editing Tip

An Easy Editing Tip

I thought I’d share how I deal with the first steps of my editing system. My editor returns the manuscript file I sent her, and has it marked up using Track Changes. It comes back looking like this. (You can click on the images to enlarge them.)

The first thing I do, to avoid losing any of her feedback, is to save the file using a different name. That’s the file I’ll be working from, so her original file will remain intact.

Next, I open the original I sent her. Maybe I’m...

Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome

There are times when you wonder what the heck you’re doing, trying to write books. Your sales are plummeting, and you think the world has finally found out you’ve been faking it all along. Your editor is late with your edits, and you just know it’s because the book is garbage. Imposter syndrome hits with a sledgehammer. You think the book you’ve just finished will be your last. The first twenty-five were flukes. Why bother writing another one?

And then you open your email...

Things To Do While You Wait

Things To Do While You Wait

The best laid plans, and all that …

I had blocked out this week to work on edits for Deadly Fun, get my “not-quite-polished” manuscript up for preorder, knowing there would be plenty of time to refine it before my projected official release date.

However, life happens, and my editor is still working on the manuscript, and I’m optimistically” looking at only a one-week delay. What to do while I’m waiting? The covers are done, my narrator is on board.

Hit the mall?...

Deadly Fun Has a Cover

I’ve been out of town spending time with my mother, who’s almost 94. While I was away, Kim Killion of The Killion Group sent me the finalized cover for Deadly Fun, my new Mapleton Mystery novel. Here’s how the process works: I tell Kim what I’m envisioning for the cover, and send her some possible images to use. She then creates a mockup, and we work from there. This cover was “almost right” the first time, but we made some modifications so it would better match the rest of the series and...

Know When Enough is Enough

Enough is Enough Already

I talked about repetition in Monday’s post. Today, another peeve from this same author. I understand (and agree) that sometimes telling is more efficient than showing. But how much? While I can understand his desire to make sure the reader understands background, I’m not fond of his technique, which is to step in as the author and provide details that don’t seem worth stopping forward motion.

Michael Connelly feeds in background, but it never pulls me out of the...

A Repetition Repeat

Avoid Repetition
I’m reading a book by a popular author, and far be it from me to tell him he’s making “mistakes,” but I’m about a quarter of the way through, and already he’s bugging the heck out of me with the way his characters re-tell things the reader already knows. Yes, another character doesn’t know it yet, but these virtually verbatim repetitions have me skimming and gritting my teeth. I thought it might be a good time to rerun a post I did several years ago on the topic. So yes, I’m...