Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion
2019 Read Harder Challenge
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Task #23: A self-published book
Hugh Howey is mostly self-pubbed, and he's a huge advocate of self-publishing. Broad Reach Publishing is Howey's personal S Corp, not a small press.
I'm going to read Belinda Blinked for this one. My Dad Wrote A Porno is my favourite podcast and the books were self published for Amazon Kindle by author Rocky Flintstone. It'll tide me over until the next series of the podcast!
For this task, I will be reading "Foul is Fair" by Jeffrey Cook and Katherine Perkins.
Julie wrote: "I don't think it sounds harsh. I'm double dipping a few categories for the same reasons. :) If anyone else needs help finding a currently self published book for this category, I found a few blog..."
Thank you for these links. I was going to go with Eragon, but the posts about originally self-published vs currently self-published got me thinking. Thanks to these links I found The Last April which I think will be my new choice.
I'm trying to fulfill these prompts with books for my Around-the-World Reading Challenge. So, I'm choosing Kaffir of Karthala; the translation is published by Amazon's CreateSpace.
ive just come accross the book Dear Maude by Denise Leibig. i was wondering if being published by an indie publishers counts as self published? this book would also count for the Less than 100 reviews category
I just realized that the book I was planning to read for the historical romance task is self-published: The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo. Supposedly it's short and fun, although I'll have to confirm once I've actually read it!I believe it's also an epistolary novel, but I've got several books in mind for that task, so I don't know whether I'll need it for that category.
Does written by an author that started her own publishing company count? I came across The Bigamist by Mary Turner Thompson when looking for the true crime task.
My husband is part of a Twitter community that includes many self published authors. They use #writingcommunity - that might be a good place to find ideas.His book, Percival Gynt and the Conspiracy of Days got a good review from Publisher's Weekly. If you like Douglas Adams, you might like it. There are free companion stories available at http://www.drewmelbourne.com/othersto... to read to see if you might like his book.
I don't think reading his book for the third time would count towards my challenge list :) so I'm thinking about checking out The Fictional Mother as a double-dipper with tasks 3 & 9 (won a literary award but has fewer than 100 reviews).
I'm not sure if this book is self published. A Season to Dance by Rebecca Heflin. It lists the publisher as Rebecca Heflin Books, LLC but that's also the name of the author, so ... ?
Kimberley wrote: "I think I’ll read something by Penny Reid for this. I enjoyed her stories on Cocktales and from what I can tell all her books are self published. Please correct me if I’m wrong/confirm I’m right! ..."
She is self published! She even designs her own book covers. I highly recommend her Winston Brothers series. Talia Hibbert is also an awesome self published romance author.
Eragon by Christopher Paolini - I had no idea this started out that way. Somehow I missed out on the sensation when it was first released.
I'm going to read Nimbus by BJ Keeton and Austin King. It also satisfies #9 (fewer than 100 reviews). BJ is an acquaintance of mine. All of his books are self published, and my friend did the cover art for his Technomage series.
I read somewhere that Woolf's To the Lighthouse is self-published. Does it count for this challenge?
Sarah wrote: "I'm using The Duchess War for this task. Almost all of Courtney Milan's books are self-published so many of them would be possibilities for this task."I love Courtney Milan, thanks for the suggestion. That's great if her books fit this category.
Daung wrote: "I read somewhere that Woolf's To the Lighthouse is self-published. Does it count for this challenge?"It was published by Hogarth Press, which Woolf and her husband founded. So technically yes, but I think the point of this challenge would be to read something that wasn't published by a publishing house.
Nikki wrote: "Daung wrote: "I read somewhere that Woolf's To the Lighthouse is self-published. Does it count for this challenge?"It was published by Hogarth Press, which Woolf and her husband foun..."
According to Wikipedia it states:
Between 1917 and 1946 the Press published 527 titles
Just realised that Galexy Books is the author's own self-publishing company - The Summoning of Barker Moon will be the go for this one, for me! Set in the rural capital of Adelaide where I grow up.
I decided to use Sevis Lwa: The Vibrational Crossroads of Vodou by Manbo Vye Zo Komande La Menfo for this challenge. I'm one of her students, though; I don't think it would be the best choice for someone who doesn't have any involvement in Vodou or another African Diaspora religion.
Nikki wrote: "Daung wrote: "I read somewhere that Woolf's To the Lighthouse is self-published. Does it count for this challenge?"
It was published by Hogarth Press, which Woolf and her husband foun..."
Thanks. I decided to read Cherringham: Murder on Thames instead.
It was published by Hogarth Press, which Woolf and her husband foun..."
Thanks. I decided to read Cherringham: Murder on Thames instead.
Emily wrote: "I just realized that the book I was planning to read for the historical romance task is self-published: The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo. Supposedly it's short and fun, although I'll h..."I just read that for historical romance too, and I had no idea it was self-published! I have other plans for the self-published category, but this is good to know in case I find myself needing to double dip!
It is short, I read it in an afternoon between work projects.
And it is fun. :)
And, yes, it does count as epistolary as well. It is a series of diary entries. I already read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for that one, though.
Enjoy!!
I'm planning to read Ellis Avery's The Family Tooth, her memoir of her mother's death and her own cancer diagnosis. Avery passed away this week. She originally self published this but it received a starred review from Kirkus.
I'm going to try Take the Monkeys and Run by Karen Cantwell. It's been sitting on my Kindle for quite a while, and looks like it may well be funny and a good mystery. The author is now up to 5 in this series.
I read Liquid City by A.C. Buchanan for this, because they are an author friend of mine who is unreservedly awesome and I love their writing. This was no exception. It's a sci-fi novella about exploring, with a squid sidekick, a maze of tunnels beneath a city which has some increasingly lively characteristics... Lots of fun, with a great ending.
I have been following Nora Roberts' posts about the plagiarism that she has discovered of not only her own works but those of others all at the hands of self publishing authors.I am wary to take on this task because I do not want to contribute to plagiarism.
Curious to hear thoughts of others.
Jessica wrote: "I have been following Nora Roberts' posts about the plagiarism that she has discovered of not only her own works but those of others all at the hands of self publishing authors.I am wary to take ..."
These are a few bad actors. One of the first authors to start shouting about these cut and paste Amazon books was Courtney Milan, and she is self published.
Nikki wrote: "I'm planning to read Ellis Avery's The Family Tooth, her memoir of her mother's death and her own cancer diagnosis. Avery passed away this week. She originally self published this but it received a..."Thank you! I did not realize this was self-published and it is on my TBR
I am having a hard time telling if a book is self published. I just finished Accidental Thief by C.J. Davis, Jamie Davis. It was published by MedicCast Productions. I’m not understanding the process of self published. Would this book count for this prompt?
Lisa wrote: "I'm going to try Take the Monkeys and Run by Karen Cantwell. It's been sitting on my Kindle for quite a while, and looks like it may well be funny and a good mystery. The author is n..."Thanks for this recommendation. It was already on my TBR, but had overlooked it!
It looks like no one's recommended K.J. Charles for this, but a lot of her romances (queer historicals) are self published. I read Any Old Diamonds.
If anyone wants to use something short/quick for this task, any of the Crimson Falls novellas are worth a look. I know that Sight in the Dark just became available for pre-order on Amazon, all the rest (total of eight) are available or will be soon, to be released on April 11. They will all be $2.99 on Kindle. It's eight murder mysteries, all standalone and set in the same town in different times.The Stranger in the Woods
Returned Home
The Last Dupont
All the Dark Corners
Sherri wrote: "I am having a hard time telling if a book is self published. I just finished Accidental Thief by C.J. Davis, Jamie Davis. It was published by MedicCast Productions. I’m not understanding the proces..."I believe this is self-published. Went down a rabbit hole from the Amazon site > Jamie Davis podcasts under the Mediccast name, and it doesn't look like anyone else is affiliated with that production company.
A link from his website jamiedavisbooks.com linked to
mediccast.com.
I read Rafe by Rebekah Weatherspoon for this. It was a fun read with characters to root for, though I thought it would have benefited from even a little bit of tension and conflict to keep things moving.
One of the best books I've ever read is Growin Up White! He maintained total control by self-publishing for which I greatly respect him. Especially after hearing from other authors how publishers change titles, insist on deletion of "feel-good" endings, etc. I know several other people who have read it based on my recommendation and all of them loved it as well!
I plan to read "Dead star twilight" by Chez Pazienza for this challenge. I originally bought it from his website a long time ago but have never read it. He was also a journalist so this title would be a two-fer.
Mod
I just finished beta-reading the latest from an author friend (Sabrina Flynn) who self-pubs all of her books, so I'm going to count that for this challenge and vote up her amazing historical mystery series. Starts with From the Ashes.
I lucked into my selection for a self-published book at my neighborhood little free library box.Letters from Liberia: The Adventures of an Ebola Medical Volunteer
It read really fast, and not just because I had always been fascinated by what sort of person would be compelled to leave their comfy life and volunteer themselves to be exposed to perhaps the most horrifying disease imaginable. Dr Joe Spann's letters home to his friends and family were smoothed out and edited into mini-chapters, that read easily, and ended all too soon.
I was glad to find this book, as I was really wary of potentially wasting valuable reading time on janky self-published fiction, and I'm not into self-help or many of the other dodgy sounding non-fiction options I've seen.
Deb wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I'm using The Duchess War for this task. Almost all of Courtney Milan's books are self-published so many of them would be possibilities for this task."I love Courtne..."
I read this book for this part of the challenge too.
I read The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, which was originally self-published. I enjoyed it a lot, but apparently the "sequels" are not actually following the same group of characters, whom I grew to love over the book, so I'm unsure if I will end up reading A Closed and Common Orbit and Record of a Spaceborn Few. Be aware: this book does NOT shy away from talking about adult topics, but it does so in a really respectful and tasteful fashion.
Jane wrote: "I read The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, which was originally self-published. I enjoyed it a lot, but apparently the "sequels" are not actually following the ..."Good to know since this is the book I would like to read for the Popsugar set in space task!
I found something that had so few Goodreads reviews, it wasn't even on Goodreads until I added it! Chika Gujarathi is a local resident who put together some self-published board books of words in English and Hindi. She donated some copies to the library where I work and I saw that the books were self-published. So I added one to Goodreads and read it! It took me all of ten minutes, since it was a board book. Easiest category so far and it double dips for something with very few Goodreads reviews - it was published in March of 2018.
I found a lesbian retelling of Hades and Persephone on tumblr that was "published" by Createspace (a self-publishing service) The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer
Here's a link to the free download if anyone's interested!
http://hatchingphoenix.com/podcasts/T...
Anyone looking for a quick and fun read can check out my friend's book Westwood Monster Patrol by Andrea Beatriz Arango She's hosting a giveaway for it right now and it's available on Kindle Unlimited.
I think I've hit the jackpot on this task.I was looking for an local author to fill this task and came across Scott A. Ford, a Winnipeg-based graphic novelist. His self-published work, The Giant's Well, won a Manitoba Book Award in 2017.
He's put in on his website for free (link below), and it's a beautifully illustrated, impeccably conceptualized and creepy folktale. It relies on subtle menace and suspense. There is not a single iota of violence or gore, but it manages to be more chilling than some horror I've read. I loved the meeting of language and visual style. The result really is captivating and unique.
I'm seriously tempted to buy a hard copy after reading this online. I have a feeling his other work might be showing up on my graphic novel shelf in the near future.
https://scottafordart.com/giants-well-2
Alexis wrote: "I think I've hit the jackpot on this task.I was looking for an local author to fill this task and came across Scott A. Ford, a Winnipeg-based graphic novelist. His self-published work, The Giant'..."
Thank you for posting this! I hadn't picked a book for this task yet, and this ones sounds great! Can't wait to read it. =)
edit: just read it, that was wonderful! I loved the story, the drawings, it was beautiful!
Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Dracula vs. Hitler (other topics)Stepping Off the Edge: Faith and Fiasco in a Philippine Mission (other topics)
Westwood Monster Patrol (other topics)
The Baller (other topics)
The Dark Wife (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Andrea Beatriz Arango (other topics)Sarah Diemer (other topics)
Chika Gujarathi (other topics)
Sabrina Flynn (other topics)
K.J. Charles (other topics)
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If anyone else needs help finding a currently self published book for this category, I found a few blogs that solely review self published authors.
https://www.selfpublishingreview.com/
https://indiereader.com/
I just found a book in a series I thought was defunct because I wasn't seeing them in shelves anymore on one of them. Bonus is that it's available for $4 for Kindle. :)