Q&A with Josh Lanyon discussion
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What Are you Reading?
I am up to the fourth audiobook in the Gregory Ashe Hazard and Somerset series. I absolutely LOVE this mystery series. It's much more leaning towards detective fiction tropes than romance, but it is really excellent. I love the complicated characters and backstories of the two protagonists.
SamSpayedPI wrote: "Haldis wrote: "Anyone else, while reading One Night in Boukos, have the song One Night in Bangkok playing on a continual loop in one's head? ....or is it just me? :-)"Well, it is ..."
You are so welcome.
One Night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble
Not much between despair and ecstasy
Haldis wrote: "One Night in Bangkok makes a hard man humbleNot much between despair and ecstasy ..."
I would invite you, but the queens we use would not excite you!
I get my kicks above the waistline, sunshine!
OK, to return to our regularly scheduled programming . . . I opened To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis to look for a quote, and I ended up rereading the entire book because it's so good. Laugh-out-loud SF/Romance (m/f or I'd nominate it for our book of the month in a heartbeat).
"I’ve never understood how a river works,” Terence said. “If one’s pipe or one’s hat falls in, even if it’s only a foot from shore, it goes bang into the current, straight out to sea, and round the Cape to India . . . But in a boat, when one wants to be in the current, it’s all eddies and whirlpools and side currents, and one’s lucky if he doesn’t end up in the middle of the towpath. And even if the Lady of Shalott didn’t end up in the reeds, there’s the problem of the locks."
SamSpayedPI wrote: "OK, to return to our regularly scheduled programming . . . I opened To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis to look for a quote, and I ended up rereading the entire..."
I read this last year and I absolutely loved it. One of my favourite things I read last year. This is so funny and so well written. Really wonderful.
I was trying to find a LGBT webcomic I used to read*, and I found these interesting lists:10 webcomics
https://comicsverse.com/love-is-love-...
40 webcomics (2017)
http://www.comicosity.com/queer-and-o...
other 40 webcomics (2018)
http://www.comicosity.com/hang-on-for...
* JFYI if you ask yourself why I didn't bookmark the comic: Google Chrome doesn't ask you if you are really sure that you want to delete bookmarks ;-).
Have you found your comic again, Antonella?Two queer comics from those lists I can recommend:
I've been reading Tripping Over You for years. It's a contemporary romance and it's entertaining and the artwork is snappy.
http://www.trippingoveryou.com/
Novae is gorgeous and intriguing. It's a fantasy-romance-mystery and the plot is currently thickening. Beautiful artwork.
http://www.novaecomic.com/
Alison wrote: "Have you found your comic again, Antonella?"No, I got lost ;-). Thank you for the recs, which will help me to get even more lost...
I absolutely recommend
The Less Than Epic Adventures of TJ and Amal, Vol. 1: Poor Boys and Pilgrims.You can still read it for free starting here:
http://tjandamal.com/comic/?id=5
I bought it on paper, it is totally worth.
Antonella wrote: "Alison wrote: "Have you found your comic again, Antonella?"No, I got lost ;-). Thank you for the recs, which will help me to get even more lost...
I absolutely recommend [bookcover:The Less Than..."
Oh yes! Forgot about that one. It's lovely. :)
Antonella wrote: "Alison wrote: "Have you found your comic again, Antonella?"No, I got lost ;-). Thank you for the recs, which will help me to get even more lost...
I absolutely recommend [bookcover:The Less Than..."
I LOVED TJ and Amal. That was a wonderful comic.
Yesterday I've read online all the existing installments of
O Human Star. Excellent and well thought, also for the positive representation of queer and trans characters beside the two MCs.It starts here: http://ohumanstar.com/comic/chapter-1...
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Jordan wrote: "That looks really interesting, Antonella! I like the art and the premise so far of what I’ve read."I had wanted to read it for a long time because I had heard good things about it.
Jordan wrote: "Just finished Salt Magic, Skin Magic, and you’ll have to hop on over to the BOM thread for my thoughts!"I'm going to be traveling this weekend and have it on my phone to read. Doubt I'll finish before the month is out, but I hope there's still some conversation. *^_^*
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Also, thanks goes to Karen for starting that conversation we had last weekend about werewolf books that reminded me I hadn’t finished this series.
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Just bought it! I've heard so many good things.
I just listened to Soulless. It is steampunk/urban fantasy set in Victorian London. I thought it was very entertaining with vampires, werewolves and a strong female lead. It has a romance but that isnt the focus of the story. I thought it was really good urban fantasy and I highly recommend the audiobook.
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Ah! I have always wanted to read at least one of Carriger's series. I was thinking about it while I was watching the Umbrella Academy. Maybe I'll try the audio.
Josh wrote: "Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "I just listened to Soulless. It is steampunk/urban fantasy set in Victorian London. I thought it was very entertaining with vampires, werewolves and..."The audibook is good fun. I ordered the manga of the series (because I do like my comics) but I intend to listen to the other books this year.
Gail Carriger's books are fun. It's been years, but I remember them being quite entertaining. She's been writing queer romance lately, which is pretty cool.
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I did read a little short story she did a while back on Smashwords. I enjoyed it!
I'm going to try this new way of showing what else I'm reading by linking to my review of To See the Sun. I liked this more old-fashioned science fiction plot with people working to settle a new planet. Like an Asimov, with m/m romance! https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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I’ve also started a new shelf where I can keep Book Group nomination ideas and I just put this on it!
Marge wrote: "I'm going to try this new way of showing what else I'm reading by linking to my review of To See the Sun..."Thank you, your description (like an Asimov, with m/m romance!) is for sure appealing to me. I think I'll buy it.
Read the excerpt or buy the book for $3.99 here:
https://riptidepublishing.com/collect...
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Hey, that works really well. We've got your review for more detail and book info--but we can also see right off the bat what you liked about the book (which goes into the decision of whether to click to the review)
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I’ve also started a new shelf where I can keep Book Group nomination ideas and I just put this on it!"
Oh. Good thought!
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I’ve also started a new shelf where I can keep Book Group nomination ideas and I jus..."
Right now it's one personal shelf that combines ideas for both groups I lead, but I just realized I could potentially create bookshelves within each group to do this same thing. Hmmmm...
Josh wrote: "Hey, that works really well. We've got your review for more detail and book info--but we can also see right off the bat what you liked about the book (which goes into the decision of whether to click to the review)..."Now I just hope I didn't oversell it! LOL
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Jordan wrote: "I need to get back into properly reviewing what I read. I’ve gotten lazy in recent years."Me too.
And before I tried to motivate only low ratings. Now I think I should write a review also for 5-stars ratings.
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Me too.
And before I tried to motivate only low ratings. Now I think I should write a re..."
I have that form that I create with help from members here, that I use for reviews at work. I even modified it for regular fiction and other things. But I've not posted a review with it here in forever. I think it's good to review all star ratings no matter what they are.
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From a writer's perspective it's very difficult to get reviews in the same way I used to. It's now standard practice for authors to organize reviews through paid sites, arc teams, etc.
Which means a lot of readers are now committed to a certain amount of reviewing and don't have time for "extra" reviewing. Except the readers who hate any given book. THOSE people have boundless energy. ALWAYS. :-D
You can tell when, for example, a new book launches with 67 reviews but the book is only in the 4000s and below rankings that the reviews have been organized.
And there's nothing wrong with this--everyone is trying desperately to tap into Amazon's algorithms which do factor in reviews--specifically quantity of reviews--it's just that you can no longer judge genuine enthusiasm for a book by the number of reviews.
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Me too.
And before I tried to motivate only low ratings. Now I think I should write a re..."
:-D :-D :-D
This is the truth. The people who hate books have endless energy for what they didn't like.
The readers who love books--and I'm talking about sincere love-- tend, disappointingly, to be much shorter.
Josh wrote: "The readers who love books--and I'm talking about sincere love-- tend, disappointingly, to be much shorter."Well, my reasoning was that - considering the very few 5-stars rating I give - they speak for themselves. But as I said, I changed of mind
Antonella wrote: "And before I tried to motivate only low ratings. Now I think I should write a re..."Somewhere several years ago I read that Goodreads gives more weight to stars if a review is included. So I always try to write something when I give a five star review, even if it's only a sentence.
I have also gotten lazy and am writing fewer and shorter reviews. But, since reading reviews is like having a book conversation with friends, I still try to write some reviews. Especially for books which don't have very many reviews. I used to try to copy and paste some of my higher ratings over to Amazon, since I know they are important for authors. But when Amazon became a jerk about posting reviews for "friends" I quit doing that--unless the review really IS for a friend. LOL
Josh wrote: "This is the truth. The people who hate books have endless energy for what they didn't like. The readers who love books--and I'm talking about sincere love-- tend, disappointingly, to be much shorter..."
There is something perverse about human nature, which I fight every time I review a book. I can quickly think of 5 or 6 things I didn't like in the book I'm trying to give a positive review of, but only 1 or 2 good things. So I just try to work a little harder to think of what I enjoyed.
I don't leave many low reviews, because I don't like to be mean, and often other people might enjoy a book I didn't care for. If I do, it's usually because I'm ticked off that I wasted my time reading something not good, and it's almost always for an author who won't ever see my little review. For example, my last few two star reviews have been for Nora Roberts/JD Robb. *snort*
Ije the Devourer of Books wrote: "I just listened to Soulless. It is steampunk/urban fantasy set in Victorian London. I thought it was very entertaining with vampires, werewolves and a strong female lead. It has a ro..."I love that series! I listen to the audiobooks, very entertaining.
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Somewhere several years ago I read that Goodreads gives more weight to stars if a review is i..."
Amazon has created the monster of paid reviews by 1 - putting too much weight on reviews in their algorithm and 2 - putting so many restrictions on how can review.
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The readers who love books--and I'm talking about sincere love-- tend, disap..."
To this day a certain amount of readers review in the hope of guiding the author to writing the type of books they personally like.
And I know this because once upon a time I used to do this. :-D
But it doesn't work like that, and, you're right, all that happens is a reader ends up bringing down the score of a writer they actually really enjoy.
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The readers who love books--and I'm talking about sincere love-- tend, disappointingly, to..."
Hey, I'm the same. Even when I enjoy a book, what usually comes first to mind is where the book could have even better--and worse, even though I know how unhelpful it is to getting the results I want from the writer--I often feel *obliged* to go heavier on the criticisms.
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I'm looking forward to it!
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It's an alleged autobiography of ten volumes. He's written seven and is bringing them out monthly. He's mostly written the last three...."
Interesting! Although I don't get the strategy behind all those spoilers in the book description.
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Think about it... just about every product you buy online, every business you visit, every service you use, requests feedback or a review. When I attend or host a tango event feedback survey requests are pretty much a given.
I understand that it’s how commerce works these days, but admit I’m very stingy with feedback. I don’t do Amazon purchase or book reviews anymore. I do leave Etsy reviews (never negative ones). I occasionally write a short GoodReads review, usually just a few comments from my perspective as a reader, not a reviewer.
Because I am a reader, not a reviewer. Although early on in my discovery of m/m days, or even before that in my paranormal binge reading days, I imagined setting up a very cool review blog, I didn’t. Because... I’m selfish with my reading time, and I don’t ever want those instances when I’m inclined or delighted to share a very lines about what I’ve read to feel like an obligation.
I rate (here on GR) every book I read that I enjoyed. If I didn’t like a book or am conflicted about my feelings, I mark it read, not rated. I also use GR shelves as content and comments tags.
I enjoy participating in the book discussions here.
These days it seems as if we are asked to review everything. I really dislike being asked to review theatre visits, or concerts, or my shopping experience, or a meal I ate etc. I don't mind giving occasional feedback but reviews are generally for public consumption and reviewing everything and everywhere lessens my own enjoyment.
I review books on Netgalley because I get the books for free and I get to read a lot of comics that way. If I don't like a book then I will post the negative review on Netgalley but not elsewhere. I don't always review books I buy for myself, unless I have something to say about the reading experience.
Interesting discussion. I rate and write a review for everything I read. "Review" being used very loosely. :) Even if it's just one sentence or a few words, I write something about how I felt about the book. And it is very much how I felt about the book, not serious literary criticism or anything. As Karen said, I'm a reader, not a reviewer. I will occasionally post a good review to Amazon if I think the author could use a boost. I agree that it's very difficult to write anything useful about books I love beyond saying I love them.
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Q&A with Josh Lanyon
Books mentioned in this topic
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Sing for the Coming of the Longest Night (other topics)
A Shattered Silver Crown (other topics)
A Shattered Silver Crown (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Jordan Castillo Price (other topics)Alexis Hall (other topics)
Katherine Fabian (other topics)
Iona Datt Sharma (other topics)
Cynthia Zhang (other topics)
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Well, it is now! Thanks so much.