UK Amazon Kindle Forum discussion
This topic is about
Michael Cargill
Meet the Authors
>
Michael Cargill - 2nd edition of Saying Goodbye to Warsaw
I made some amendments to that last one...
I'm reading the blurb and wondering if that was the book you sent me a few months back?I don't remember many women in it.
I have slept since then though :)
Blurb needs more work.Completely different approach, I think?
I think one problem with the blurb is it clashes with the title.'We go again' carries a lot of echoes of 'here we go again'
That hints at resignation, at a feeling of 'yes we'll go, we'll do the job,then we can go home and get on with our lives'
But your blurb is far more gung ho talking about justice and revenge
Right! Took a break from this yesterday (did some editing instead) and have approached it from a different angle:Not long after surviving the horrors of D-Day, Corporal James Bowden finds himself as part a small group of soldiers marching through Nazi-occupied France.
Supplied with orders that are vague and unspecific and surrounded by men he doesn't know, will James survive society’s desire for justice and revenge?
I like that much better :)How about finishing the last sentence after "..., will James survive?" I'm not sure the last few words are necessary.
Thank the effing Christ for that! I was gnashing my teeth with frustration about this (doing the blurb is a pain at the best of times).In my head, the bit about society's desire for revenge (rather than the soldier's) gives it an extra hook over stories of a similar nature.
Dave sez the blurb does nothing for him but has no advice on improving it so he's a waste of space...
I read a book recently on how to write blurbs. Gotta Read It! - Five Simple Steps to a Fiction Pitch That Sells
which gave these five 'rules' for an effective blurb:
1) Tell them who the main characters is.
2) Tell them what the main character wants the most.
3) What stands in the way of them achieving that goal?
4) What are they willing to do, or must do, to achieve that goal.
5) What is at stake (crucial part, as the reader needs to know there will be a satisfying conclusion)?
It may be worth a try.
Interesting stuff, thanks David!I might email Amazon and see if they're willing to ban blurbs, it would make my life much easier.
Michael wrote: "Interesting stuff, thanks David!I might email Amazon and see if they're willing to ban blurbs, it would make my life much easier."
I know what you mean.
I don't usually pay much attention to blurbs as I find they put me off more often than they make me want to read something. They always seem so... I dunno... overwrought.
So my blurbs are usually rubbish - which is why I read the book, I suppose.
Some of your versions seemed to have most of the things in these rules, so I would say you are almost there.
No, I don't read blurbs much either. That's what the sample feature is for.
Rosemary (The Nosemanny) wrote: "No, I don't read blurbs much either. That's what the sample feature is for."Yes. If I'm uncertain, I think the look inside or the sample is more use than the blurb.
But then I also dislike and try to avoid TV and film trailers too.
I read blurbs. I wanna know what a book is about but don't want too much info.It's a hard line to walk.
Nor me. Can't be arsed with long blurbs, nor a bunch of reviews stuck in the blurby bit.Just tell me what it's about in as few words as possible.
Patti (baconater) wrote: "Nor me. Can't be arsed with long blurbs, nor a bunch of reviews stuck in the blurby bit.Just tell me what it's about in as few words as possible."
It starts.
Then a bunch of stuff happens.
Then it stops.
Patti (baconater) wrote: "Jeez, david. Spoilers!"It' all right I didn't mention the bacon....
Oh, bugger.
the words startNothing happens
the words stop
Gingerlily - Elephant Philosopher wrote: "the words startNothing happens
the words stop"
Samuel Beckett?
Gonna write Darren's next blurb for him.Giggle. Sat. Boom.
So here we are, my new book has finally been published!Set in WWII, We Go Again is a story that not only touches on the relationship between soldiers, but also offers an insight into the effects that war can have on a person’s state of mind.
Of course, no war story would be complete without any action and this one is packed to the rafters with guns, tanks, planes, some French civilians… and a little birdy tells me that there’s even a smidgen of romance to be found somewhere within its pages as well.
Reviewers and Goodreads modmins are welcome to make use of the links below to download themselves a free copy.
Reviewers - epub mobi Kindle and PDF
Paperback and ebook purchase links Amazon UK Amazon US Smashwords
Not long after surviving the horrors of D-Day, Corporal James Bowden finds himself as part of a small group of soldiers marching through Nazi-occupied France.
Supplied with orders that are vague and unspecific and surrounded by men he doesn’t know, will James survive society’s desire for justice and revenge?
Right, authorly update time!I've (finally) finished another short story that is destined for the short story collection I have planned. It's written from a first person diary perspective, and this is the first time I've tried to do something like that.
Given the complete lack of dialogue and alternative viewpoints, it was teeth-grindingly hard at first but I eventually found some kind of flow and I think it worked out well.
I've got one or two potential ideas for my next short story, though I'm not yet decided which one I'll be going with. I'm hoping that whichever direction I choose will end up being the final one I need to complete the collection.
Authorly update:I've just this minute finished off a short story, which also means that my upcoming collection of short stories is finished!
Sort of.
I've still got all the editing and stuff to come, but it means the end is now in sight.
There are six stories - the first three lean towards being light hearted and humorous, the fourth is a 'serious' fantasy story, fifth is a thriller type story involving a nurse, and the last one is a heart warming story about a man who quits his IT job to go and work in a children's nursery.
Watch this space!
Why are you posting pictures of my family? That's outrageous.
Michael Cargill wrote: "Why are you posting pictures of my family? That's outrageous."Only 'see no evil' :-)
OIY! Mikey!You hibernating?
You Gotta get hold of the series of this.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_M...
Thanks, that looks interesting.Generally speaking I've avoided alternate history fiction because I'd end sitting there going "BUT THAT WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED!" every few pages.
We watched the first couple of episodes of the show last night. It's good.
I watched that first series of Man in the High Castle and found myself enjoying it. Looking forward to seeing the rest.Authorly update!
By and large, I'm finished with the editing for the short stories in my up and coming short story collection. I'll be doing one more round for the shorter ones, which shouldn't take too long, and I hope to be begging you find people to do a spot of beta reading within the next fortnight or so.
I am yet to decide on what names to give the individual stories and what to call the collection itself... not to mention having no real idea what kind of cover I'll be aiming for.
Such is life as a pantster.
Beta readers are now needed for my short story collection!There's six stories in total and the volume itself is around 55k words in size.
It's a bit of a mixture with some humour, a fantasy story, a sociopath nurse, and a heart warming story about someone who quits their job to go and work in a childrens' nursery.
If you're interested in lending a hand then feel free to either message me your email address, leave it in a comment here , or contact me directly at mcargill79@gmail.com
I'll be looking to send it out within the next week or so.
I'm up for it. Do you still have my email address?
Hurrah!I've probably got your address somewhere, but it's probably best if you tell me again...
Happy to help. Do you have my email address? Nice and easy - it's willATwillonce.com.Replace the AT with @ and it should work.
If you're happy to possibly wait a week for it to be read, I'll happily beta read it for you :)
Claire, a week is fine and I'm not in any particular rush for this.Bosh your email address up before you change your mind...
Kath, I got your email thanks.
If you can find my email, send it to me. If not, tough ;p :)
UK Amazon Kindle Forum
Books mentioned in this topic
Saying Goodbye to Warsaw (other topics)Shades of Grey (other topics)
Underneath (other topics)
We Go Again (other topics)
We Go Again (other topics)
More...
D Day, 1945: after nursing his pride for four long years, Corporal James Bowden is readying himself to once again take on the might of the German war machine.
Since forcing the withdrawal of the British Army from the beaches of Dunkirk, the Luftwaffe has unleashed misery and devastation upon the towns and cities of his nation. Confronted with the dilemma of evacuating their children to the safety of the countryside, women have sent ripples across society by signing up and serving with distinction.
After witnessing again and again just how dangerous his fiancee’s role in the war can be, James is hungry for justice and revenge... but will he survive the horrors that await him in Nazi occupied France?