Announcement, FLASH Reviews, & A Happy Place Gets Ugly

Happy Labor Day!

I don't know about you, but this time of year always feels really busy to me. Since school started Aug. 6, I've edited four books, read two, and I've started the process on what will be my Big Announcement... 

I'm going to self-publish a book. (I know!)

In 2010, I wrote a book that got me my first offer of representation. I went with a different agent, who ultimately couldn't sell the book, but she liked it so much, she actually encouraged me to self-publish it.

So with much nail-chewing and hand-wringing, I'm doing it! And I can't say thank you enough to my writer-friends Susan Quinn (link) and Jolene Perry (link) for encouraging me, answering too many emails from me, and basically pulling/pushing me through my nerves.

These two ladies are not just excellent writers and amazing critique partners, they're the best kind of friends. AND they have excellent resources for indie authors on their blogs! I strongly encourage you to get to know them.

I'll show you covers, give blurbs, etc., as it evolves. My goal is to have it out in the next month or so, and of course, I'll give you all the play by play as the process unfolds. And as I have serious karmic payback to do, ask me questions! I'll try to answer them.

Now for the Flash Reviews!

In the middle of all that, I could not stop reading two books, so you know they're awesome.

STAY by Deb Caletti (link)

I discovered Deb (it's like we're friends) back in 2010 when I was working on my soon-to-be-indie book, and fell in love with her writing. Honey, Baby, Sweetheart had me laughing and crying by like Chapter 3. (The church sign? The dad and the carseat?)

But I also had issues with her stories. I didn't care for The Secret Life of Prince Charming very much, so I was slow to read Stay. Mistake! This book was almost impossible to put down.

From the start, it's magnetic with Clara seeing Christian in the gym. But it's told "after the fact." Something bad has happened, and she's hiding out with her dad at the beach, shell-shocked and paranoid.

I love all the characters in Stay, and though (again) I had an issue with how a certain situation was handled, I highly recommend reading this one!

KNEE DEEP by Jolene Perry (link)

This is the first book I've read by my good friend Jolene up there, and I picked it up because we were talking about Stay, and she mentioned she'd written a book about an abusive relationship.

I wasn't sure I wanted to read it just yet because, well, bad boyfriend overload! But I got it, thinking I'd just dip into the beginning and if it got too intense, I'd put it aside and recover with a Sweet Valley High book or something.

I started reading and could not put it down.

Ronnie's first boyfriend is her neighbor Shawn. He's her first "peanut butter kiss" (love that), he's runaway trips to the beach... but his family moves away. The two keep in touch through letters and occasional family trips, until he moves back.

But a different guy seems to have returned from the one who left. Shawn's family is troubled, and he's picked up some bad (and painful) habits. Ronnie can't seem to let go of the boy she remembers, but she has to before it's too late.

Knee Deep had me smiling, crying, angry, but I had to find out what happened. Awesome characters, fantastic chemistry, great writing--you will love this book.

Finally, what's this about a happy place turned ugly? Well, it falls under the heading, "Say It Isn't So."

In my self-publishing research, I've uncovered an issue that has shocked, angered, and kind of scared me. In the past year, I've heard some of my indie-writer-friends talk about reviewers on Goodreads. And I've seen warnings along the lines of "never engage with reviewers."

Good or bad?At first I was like, "Yeah, that's true. If you get a negative review, you just have to take your lumps with grace. It stings, but not everybody's going to like your book."

Lately, I've heard something more sinister is happening. I've been told there's this cabal on GR targeting authors and basically killing books (and careers) with low ratings and nasty, sometimes ad hominem reviews.

And I've been told it can be over things like giving a low rating to one of their friends' books.

Is this true, writer-friends? Have any of you bumped into this?

Being a book lover, book reviewer, former journalist, and founder of a book club, I can't believe this is happening--or being allowed to happen. One of my favorite things is talking books, freely and openly. And I still want to believe that if a book's really good, no amount of meanness can kill it.

But I'm new. And I have no reason not to believe the source of this information.

It makes me wonder if I even want to be on GR, and that's just sad. GR can be such a useful tool. And it's really impossible for an author to avoid--anyone can make a GR page for your book.

If this really is happening, can anything be done? Are any of my writer-friends taking steps to guard against it? What? and Why or Why not?

Have a great week, reader- and writer-friends! Time to hit it. <3