So denied, so I lied.
I’m having trouble finding words tonight when I know there’s a lot to say. My mind is filled with drumming and a language of sounds that doesn’t bode well for the written word. The drumbeat moves me forward and backward at the same time, capturing my heart in natural rhythm. At the very least, I have a few words about my recent reads.
“Never judge a book by its cover.” How often have we heard that?! However, that’s exactly why I picked up this book. The inner pages were littered with interesting photographs from a decade of forgotten photography. Early tricks of the art have always caught my eye. After all, I was a photographer in my first artful profession. I’m sad to say that the photos were the best part of this book. Ransom Riggs’ Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children left me wanting more. For a nearly four-hundred page book, I found myself easily bored with the first part. It was so very long and drawn out that I kept putting it down. But a part of me really wanted to see where the author was going with this YA read. When I finally reached part two where the protagonist actually gets to the plot, I was very intrigued by the peculiars, their stories, and supernatural abilities. It became the fantastical work that I was hoping for! Yay! Well.. not so yay. Turns out, this endless book was the first part of a series. *whompwhomp* Not only did I fight to get to the goodies, it ends abruptly in the middle of… well… something… without a single ounce of resolution. The amount of painstaking work it took to get to the end just wasn’t worth it. I probably won’t be reading book two. Though the writing was strong, the plot was poorly executed. The protagonist was your typical oddball rambling teenager, the saving grace of this was the peculiar children. Out of five stars, I’d give this one a three. For a pure lack of overall focus and guidance.
This next title by none other than the lovely D.F. Krieger earned itself a full five stars from me. I’m a stickler for indigenous titles no matter how fantastical or realistic. Overall I enjoyed His Prey, the characters were strong and the writing superb. The first scene between Nyna and Atian had me holding my breath. Tasteful and taboo all at once, my two favorite things. One of the greatest aspects of this short work was the pace and the exposition of the overall story. His Prey earned not only a good rating but a spot in my “reference” section. I’ve said this before with romance shorts, I wish it was longer. The characters and plot were so strong that I think it could have been an excellent long piece. Part of me just doesn’t like letting go of good writing so that plays a huge role in my “I want it longer” tantrums. I really enjoyed this and highly recommend it. The cover is lovely as the story! I expect nothing less from Breathless Press!
Update on my work:
My YA title is presently in the beta process after going through two rounds of deeper edits. I hope to get it out for queries again by the end of the year. Book 2 in the legacy series is presently in a rewrite (and edit) process before I submit it to my editor. I’m hoping to do that by the end of November with a release goal of early 2013. That’s if everything goes as planned. Glyph should be out in print soon as well! I can’t wait for that. I’ve got a few places lined up for signings in the southern New York area. That will be new territory for me. I’m also working on a poetry chapbook and sending some of my short nonfiction stuff to some litmags. I don’t have much faith in any of that though. I’m not sure what it will take to have faith in it, but I’ll just have to wait and see.
Finally, I’ve started offering developmental mentoring and manuscript consultation services for writers. So far it’s been going very well! For more details, check out my website at www.maxellendale.com. I’m also working on developing a plotting and character development workshop for 2013 after I’m officially awarded my MFA. Keep checking back for updates!
Back to writing for me.
Cheers,
Max
