Arthuriana -- all things King Arthur ! discussion
Future Group Discussions
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Oct 1 - Dec 31 2017: Alternate Ancient England/Arthurian Aesthetic Author Cross-Read
Would prefer this to be my book on the list if that's OK.Kaffka, the Holy Grail, and a Woman Who Reads: The Quests of Sir Kay
https://www.amazon.com/Kaffka-Holy-Gr...
Thanks for organising all this S.W., it's looking great. I've added all the books to my 'to read' list. Just to clarify, 4-5 star reviews we post, but 3 or less we send as notes to the author?
M.L. wrote: "Thanks for organising all this S.W., it's looking great. I've added all the books to my 'to read' list. Just to clarify, 4-5 star reviews we post, but 3 or less we send as notes to the author?"Yes, I think that'll be best for the career-level all the authors are at. Then if an author is ok with the notes sent to them to be published as say a 3-stars, they can give the reviewer a private ok. I can't imagine a lower rating even being offered, as the common-interest subject matter and writing quality are already pre-screened by me. --But I am doing this along with many other duties and I might miss something. And I just finished with a read in another group that got kinda sticky towards the end due to arguments over a review, and boy none of us serious authors have got time for 'dat. :=) Btw we also have 3 more authors on-the-fence due, again, to time issues, but we're almost there!
Rusty wrote: "Would prefer this to be my book on the list if that's OK.Kaffka, the Holy Grail, and a Woman Who Reads: The Quests of Sir Kay
You got it, Rusty.
We now have 10 authors. However, I started early so as to give a bit of extra time in case someone drops out (which effects the assigning); plus, we might even get 11 or 12, and that'll be nice too. Things should be ok for an early start mid-Sept. I think.One author also asked of she could Amazon gift an e-book: if ok with her assigned reader, that should be fine. And the Amazon gifting helps your sales rank too, so I've read up on just now.
Great! I'm good with a mid-Sept start. It'll be nice to have a break from all the editing. Looking forward to it!
We now have 11, but more than 10 is ok. It looks like we might start a bit early, mid-Sept, but the first of three reviews still won't be due until Oct. 31 (then Nov 30 and Dec 31).
Thanks for including me. I look forward to participating, although these days I am not a fast reader. Also looking forward to meeting everyone.
Hi, I'm looking forward to taking part also . Finishing off a book at the moment (it's seasonal so I really need to have it out by November), but 4 weeks allowed per book is generous, so it shouldn't be a problem.
So many great looking books and interesting authors involved! I can't wait :)
Thank you for this, S.W. I look forward to reading, and to hearing from others!I've just returned from a business trip to England (I'm a voice actor and I appeared at an anime con). After the working weekend, I spent one day in Glastonbury and, believe it or not, four days in South Cadbury. There's not much to do there. The only business is a pub, a good one, where everyone is kind to strangers. If you go, rent a car so you can visit the surrounding countryside.
I went because I set my novel at Cadbury Castle, the iron age hill fort that is thought by some to have been Camelot. I had never been there, so I read everything I could find and learned what I could. A friend even went to the hill fort and took pictures for me.
I hope to write many books, but "Camelot & Vine" is a story from deep in my heart. Going to Cadbury hill fort was a dream come true. We stayed at a B&B in South Cadbury and our host was concerned that I'd be disappointed after imagining the hill so carefully for so long. But it was just as I hoped, and I walked around the perimeter remarking to my husband, "This is where such and such happened," and "here's where the great hall was," and "over there is where this scene took place," etc.
I'm going on too long. It was an amazing visit, and not long enough. I hope to go back some day.
I went to Cadbury Castle as well this summer. An amazing place. Certainly not disappointing in any way.
I suppose if one is looking for turrets and moats it could be disappointing, but I loved every inch of it.
Thanks Petrea. I'm just waiting to hear from two members, then I'll post the 3 books per reader.
Thanks for joining, Molly. That just leaves confirmation from, oddly enough, the very first author to jump on board. I see he hasn't been active on Goodreads for almost 2 months. I'll wait another few days, then I'll post the read lists.:=)
Here's the final list and the assignments. I might need to repair a few links....Before Halloween, please post your first review in the thread, using Goodreads and Amazon links (and any others like your social media sites). Example:
S.W.'s review of ______ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Amazon USA _____________________
Amazon UK ____________________
Optional Facebook/blog etc. _____________
(1) S.W. Wilcox "Bards of Fantasia V.2" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(2) Cheryl Carpinello "Young Knights of the Round Table: The King's Ransom" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(3) Susan Peek "The King's Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(4) Eric Tanafon "Wolf's Head" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed "Logres" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(6) Rusty Rhoad "Kaffka, the Holy Grail...." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(7) J.M. Hofer "Islands in the Mist" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(8) Robert E. Bjork "Freya & Wulf: A 9th-Century Love Story" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(9) Petrea Burchard "Camelot & Vine" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(10) Molly Bilinski "Lady of Sherwood" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(1) I, S.W. Wilcox. will send a message to the 3 authors below me for their email address. I will then send them a .pdf and/or ask if I can Amazon gift them an e-book, which will count towards my sales rank. Find your bolded name and do the same for the 3 below you.
(2) Cheryl Carpinello "Young Knights of the Round Table: The King's Ransom" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(3) Susan Peek "The King's Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(4) Eric Tanafon "Wolf's Head" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(2) Cheryl Carpinello your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(3) Susan Peek "The King's Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(4) Eric Tanafon "Wolf's Head" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed "Logres" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(3) Susan Peek your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(4) Eric Tanafon "Wolf's Head" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed "Logres" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(6) Rusty Rhoad "Kaffka, the Holy Grail...." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(4) Eric Tanafon your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed "Logres" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(6) Rusty Rhoad "Kaffka, the Holy Grail...." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(7) J.M. Hofer "Islands in the Mist" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(6) Rusty Rhoad "Kaffka, the Holy Grail...." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(7) J.M. Hofer "Islands in the Mist" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(8) Robert E. Bjork "Freya & Wulf: A 9th-Century Love Story" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(6) Rusty Rhoad your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(7) J.M. Hofer "Islands in the Mist" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(8) Robert E. Bjork "Freya & Wulf: A 9th-Century Love Story" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(9) Petrea Burchard "Camelot & Vine" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(7) J.M. Hofer your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(8) Robert E. Bjork "Freya & Wulf: A 9th-Century Love Story" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(9) Petrea Burchard "Camelot & Vine" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(10) Molly Bilinski "Lady of Sherwood" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(8) Robert E. Bjork your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(9) Petrea Burchard "Camelot & Vine" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(10) Molly Bilinski "Lady of Sherwood" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(1) S.W. Wilcox "Bards of Fantasia V.2" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(9) Petrea Burchard your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(10) Molly Bilinski "Lady of Sherwood" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(1) S.W. Wilcox "Bards of Fantasia V.2" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(2) Cheryl Carpinello "Young Knights of the Round Table: The King's Ransom" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(10) Molly Bilinski your contact list is below. Message them for their email address from their book/author link.
(1) S.W. Wilcox "Bards of Fantasia V.2" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(2) Cheryl Carpinello "Young Knights of the Round Table: The King's Ransom" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(3) Susan Peek "The King's Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Excellent! Though all my links lead to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Happy to read it again but I think JK has enough reviews! I'll look up the authors myself, no worries :)
Emailed all my contacts. Looking forward to hearing from the other authors!
OK - I think I've done this correctly - I've emailed the 3 authors on my list, as well as reached out to the authors who have me on their list. Let's start reading! ;)
Lol, M.L., I made a note to check the links today (too wiped out last night) but I had no idea bouncing them to and from MS Word 2013 would default the links to Harry Potter books!
S.W. wrote: "Lol, M.L., I made a note to check the links today (too wiped out last night) but I had no idea bouncing them to and from MS Word 2013 would default the links to Harry Potter books!"It's a J.K. Rowling conspiracy!
Lol: the wedding invites are going out today too: J.K. Gates (or would it be Bill Rowling?) :0)
Okay, I've messaged my three reviewers too. This is exciting. I'm looking forward to reading my assigned books!
Thanks Susan: that's all you need to do, and the three authors who'll read your book should be in touch shortly.
I think we should all agree to provide reviews on Amazon as well as Goodreads. Very little extra effort, adds a lot.
Rusty wrote: "I think we should all agree to provide reviews on Amazon as well as Goodreads. Very little extra effort, adds a lot."For sure Rusty, providing all have made their $50 minimum purchase with a valid debit/credit card there to qualify (gift cards no longer count.) I don't want to require that, but now is a good time to gift copies to friends and family -- plus a good time do any other early holiday shopping there. Of course social media posting is welcome too.
Great work getting this together, S.W., and so happy to see so many authors writing and interested in Arthurian lore. I had hoped to participate but work has put a wrench in that, but I plan on picking up a few of these where/when I can.
No prob Brian, I have you on the "14 maybe's list" for a possible spring read. And get ready for another fierce Pennsylvania winter! I lived there 5 years for college, and it's about as bad in Utah, but the stores are closer here, thankfully.
Does anyone else find it super annoying how the Harry Potter books are always hogging the top of the Arthurian charts on Amazon? They're not Arthurian!!!I'll be posting all my reviews on Amazon UK, and will also make sure to add all the books to my 'currently reading' list on Goodreads, and might also do a few status updates as I make progress to try and generate a bit of interest for each book.
Sent my book to one author so far, still waiting on two, and have been contacted by two authors whose works I am now waiting to receive! It's all very exciting :) I don't usually get the time to read much (too busy writing) so it's nice to have a good excuse to make time for it. And doing it all again in the Spring sounds like a fantastic idea!
Another thought - I'll make sure to advertise what I'm reading on Twitter. I don't have many followers but every little helps!
M.L. wrote: "Does anyone else find it super annoying how the Harry Potter books are always hogging the top of the Arthurian charts on Amazon? They're not Arthurian!!!For "Potter" and Arthur, I liken the elderly wizard Dumbledore to Merlin, especially Merlin's legendary school of astronomy (and wizardry) rumored to lie in Caerleon on Britain's southwestern Welsh coast. (Clearly not Avalon though, as the series is too death-shy to tackle that middle-march between earth and fairyland-paradise.) Geoffrey of Monmouth's passage certainly inspired my Academy of Elemental Arcana my heroes visit after escaping a trap on the Welsh coast in A Poem for Britain.
Now Harry and pals are plainly the antithesis of the battle-lord and Christianity-challenged Arthur we come to expect, and I personally struggle to watch any of the "Potter" films past the first--and that ending, arrgghh so rushed and low-budget. I DO like the "Half-Blood Prince" too though, but that's mostly due to the masterful performance from Prof Snape, courtesy of Alan Rickman.
Hello everyone. I've been away at a show and now my computer is acting up. Will try to catch up tonight before it starts being crazy again.Cheryl
Thanks Cheryl: I've been trying to gift the e-book for my three readers all weekend, and my head is spinning a bit from Amazon's 1-click method protocols, plus other glitches from the book being on pre-order and going live just before the weekend etc.It's good we started early, so we have a week or two for everyone to contact each other and get all the internet-gremlins worked-out. Computers! lol.
A couple reviews are going the private-notes-route already but that's good! I can't imagine a writer wanting a harsh public critique when they could get encouraging, positive notes instead--and free too! Some editors would charge hundreds at least for story "coverage." And all the feedback is from authors working in similar subgenres and not yet professionally published, so please try to match your appreciativeness of any feedback to the reviewer's level of politeness. Even an "Ok thank you" is fine too. But for this Round Table, I'd encourage taking the opportunity offered by any historical arcana the author-reviewer might share; save yourself some research time, and at least file it away for future use.So far I'm really enjoying Molly's Lady of Sherwood and since the avg. rating was only 3.26 iirc, I went ahead and added my favorable ADVANCE-rating/review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... GR does need a day or so to factor new ratings to the average though.
I've sent all 3 of mine and received all 3 to review; started reading one and am loving it so far.
I've got all three of mine - and same! Loving the first one. This is great fun :)
Diane wrote: "My theory is the typos are reproducing [in my manuscript] like an alien force inside the covers."My hypothesis is our eyes adjust to one format, such as a computer screen, and in so doing tend to miss apostrophes and quote marks. Then on the other hand, mental fatigue leads one to overlook many of those -ed and -ing endings for tense agreements. It's also common to find places where and/then/with aren't used to their best effect....
Book 1, "Kaffka, the Holy Grail, and a Woman Who Reads: The Quests of Sir Kay," is read and reviewed! Extremely fun, lots of laughs. Moving on to Book 2, "Logres," by M.L. Mackworth-Praed.
J.M. wrote: "Book 1, "Kaffka, the Holy Grail, and a Woman Who Reads: The Quests of Sir Kay," is read and reviewed! Extremely fun, lots of laughs. Moving on to Book 2, "Logres," by M.L. Mackworth-Praed."Thanks JM. I see you posted to Amazon USA too.
Indie authors need all the income/audience they can get. If you've only posted at GR and Zon USA, please check if the book you reviewed is on the Zon UK site too. Here's how (borrowed from another GR thread):
The key thing to remember when trying to leave a review on any Zon site that is not your own country is NOT to make a new account there.
To get to the book on the site you want, go to the book on your regular Amazon site and change the amazon.com to amazon.co.uk (or the other way around) in the address bar and leave all the rest of the address the same.
If you are confronted with a sign in screen, just sign in with your own, regular account details and you should have no problem.
I have never purchased anything from Amazon in India or Canada or Australia, but I have left reviews on all those places by signing in with my UK account, so I know it works. As long as you are an Amazon customer in good standing in your own country, you can post a book review on any Amazon site.
If you purchased the book it will only show up as 'Verified Purchase' on your home site though.
Hope this helps anyone who is struggling and also puts to bed the myth that you need to make purchases from a foreign Zon to be able to post a review there.
Oh, one more thing J.M. To comply with both Zon's tos and FCC rules. please add this disclaimer at the end of your reviews: "I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I thank the author for sharing a copy of the book with me."
This solves the two requirements from Amazon. 1) that you are not forced to leave a review in exchange for the copy of the book; and 2) that you disclose you received a free copy.
S.W. wrote: "Here's an easy way to also post to Amazon UK."I'll be using this method to post my reviews on Amazon.com, so this is good to know! I assume it works both ways?
J.M. wrote: "Moving on to Book 2, "Logres," by M.L. Mackworth-Praed."
Ooh, hope you enjoy it! :)
It should work both ways across the pond, I believe, M.L.
M.L. wrote: "S.W. wrote: "Here's an easy way to also post to Amazon UK."I'll be using this method to post my reviews on Amazon.com, so this is good to know! I assume it works both ways?
J.M. wrote: "Moving o..."
Yes, can't wait! I went ahead and bought it on Amazon so I could read it on my Kindle while I'm traveling.
J.M. wrote: "Yes, can't wait! I went ahead and bought it on Amazon so I could read it on my Kindle while I'm traveling."That's very kind of you! I'll keep this in mind when it's my turn to review yours, perhaps for the spring read?
And I've just finished penning my first review for Robin Hood: Wolf's Head, I'll be posting it up shortly!
Enjoying this group read a lot so far! Here's my first review. I've also emailed a more in-depth review to the author. M.L.'s review of Robin Hood: Wolf's Head: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Amazon USA: https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-re...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R1R4R...
Three good reviews so far, two good reviews-in-progress, three private notes, and unknown status from Molly & Susan [as of 10-17-17]. One of the notes briefly shared with me aligned quite nicely with this rubric that I co-created in another review group.Basically, if 2 of these 4 main points failed for the reviewer, then expect friendly notes. I've done 20 reviews on GR so far, and only 2 were in the below 3-star range, and this rubric is a good summary of the processes I used.
1) Were the characters strong?
2) Was the dialogue crisp?
3) Did the plot have twists and turns, and was it full of surprises?
4) Was the intro mindblowing and/or Was the ending satisfying?
Then Laura's criteria could be offset like this, each one counting for 1/10th of a point (mostly weighed in reviewer's private scorecard before posting/privately sharing):
4.1 pacing (4.2 if off, were the settings noteworthy?)
4.3 word choice (4.4 were there special historical challenges?)
4.5 varied sentence structure (4.6 how varied need it be if for young readers? too verbose? not verbose enough?)
4.7 proofreading typos/small errors (4.8 did these really distract?)
4.9 theme (hardest to grade, subject for MFA debates. 4.10 Was the conflict a tired cliche? or too gross?)
I've just written and posted my review for "Kaffka, the Holy Grail, and a Woman Who Reads: The Quests of Sir Kay" by Rusty Rhoad. Loved it! I'm excited to start my next read.https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R3FZQ...
https://www.amazon.com/review/R1SUJAB...
Three good reviews so far, two good reviews-in-progress, three private notes, and unknown status from Molly & Susan [as of 10-17-17].Petrea reviewed Rusty a bit out of order, so he has 2 reviews already. So Petrea, please read Robert's book next, as he's expecting his critique in a couple weeks. Robert in turn needs to critique J.M. before anyone--or at least post/share a review-status. Her book IS 500-pages +, so I understand anyone reading that might need an extra few weeks to finish.
Arthuriana -- all things King Arthur !
Books mentioned in this topic
A Poem for Britain, A Contest for England (other topics)A Queen's Spy (other topics)
A Queen's Traitor (other topics)
Islands in the Mist (other topics)
Camelot & Vine (other topics)
More...
Each author will read 3 books, 4 weeks given to each. In turn, you'll get 3 reviews back from these authors of similar interests. This will be non-reciprocal, to avoid those strange Amazon rules. In other words, none of the authors you review will be ones reviewing YOUR tome. If you can't finish the quota, let the MOD know: the usual procedure is not being allowed to join any subsequent group-reads. Nobody is forced to complete the group read, one just hopes as a matter of courtesy. You also will get 4 weeks per book, not all 3 books in a month. A Goodreads review is required, and also at Amazon if you've made the required min. purchase there. Social media and blog posts are appreciated too. Before Halloween, please post your first review in the thread, using Goodreads and Amazon links (and any others like your social media sites). Example:
S.W.'s review of ______ https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Amazon USA _____________________
Amazon UK _______(thread message #40 shows how, easily, just change the amazon.com to amazon.co.uk, or the other way around, in the address bar to go to the foreign site's book page)
Optional Facebook/blog etc. _____________
Rating system is simple: "Stars of 4 to 5, your reviewing is alive; stars of 3 or less, give as notes to the authors instead." This will save my moderation duties so much time, as any misunderstandings can easily be solved in private messages. Hopefully this intro might also fuel future working relationships. I also previewed all the authors queried, so the quality of books will be very high. And a .pdf copy should suffice for emailing. You may also Amazon "gift" to improve your sales rank: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/top... (Note for e-book gifting, you must have linked a valid debit/credit card. To review, you must have at least $50 in purchases thru that card, and not from gift cards or from linked-used-book-sellers. Giftees must also claim the gift thru email within 24 hours to count as a sale.)
Goodreads review etiquette is that of formal definition of the book as set in print. Example: "_________ is a _____ book in the Arthurian Aesthetic (and/ or) Alternate Ancient England genre [etc.].... Features it shows that help define that genre include________. Features I specifically liked or that tripped me up a bit include_______. [Done]. However, for this particular read, feel free to extend your definition a bit to include interrelated arts like film/plays/poetry, as well as any historical/etymological/archaeological background you'd like to share.
For posts on Amazon, a Goodreads member stated this eloquently: My reviews are not being deleted and I read at least 4-5 books per week. Remember to say at the end of your review: "I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I thank the author for sharing a copy of the book with me." This solves the two requirements from Amazon. 1) that you are not forced to leave a review in exchange for the copy of the book; and 2) that you disclose you received a free copy.
Apparent yes's:
(1) S.W. Wilcox "Bards of Fantasia V.2" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(2) Cheryl Carpinello "Young Knights of the Round Table: The King's Ransom" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(3) Susan Peek "The King's Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
(4) Eric Tanafon "Wolf's Head" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(5) M.L. Mackworth-Praed "Logres" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(6) Rusty Rhoad "Kaffka, the Holy Grail...." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(7) J.M. Hofer "Islands in the Mist" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(8) Robert E. Bjork "Freya & Wulf: A 9th-Century Love Story" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
(9) Petrea Burchard "Camelot & Vine" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
(10) Molly Bilinski "Lady of Sherwood" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Another 10 of 50 Arthur/Britain/Celtic Goodreads authors asked a few days ago. Will contact more in a few days. Update 8-8-17: 15 more asked, 15 checked-off as no GR messaging allowed, Update 8-16-17, last 10 asked. All have been re-asked as of Sept 1st.
"Too swamped/maybe in spring" replies so far,
Theresa Tomlinson "The Tribute Wife"
Ruth Downie "The Bear and the Wolf"
Ann Swinfen "The Huntsman's Tale"
Octavia Randolph "The Circle of Ceridwen"
Elisabeth Waters "Treasures of Albion"
Karla Tipton "Rings of Passage"
J.G. McKenney "The Book Knights"
Matthew Harffy "The Serpent Sword"
Brian Wainwright "Within the Fetterlock"
Mick Foster "Hamlet's Bastard"
Melanie Karsak "Highland Raven"
Unsure of:
Mark Adderley "The Hawk and the Wolf"
James Loftus ("Untitled")
Brian Lang "Knight's Journal #1"
Glen Batchelor "Awake, King Arthur"