Authors Reviewing Other Authors

I generally make it a rule not to rate or review books written by my author friends (unless I’m blurbing a book). I find that I’m too emotionally attached to the works to give an honest assessment. (Note: Amazon has made it a policy not to allow authors to review other authors, because they are deemed to be in direct competition with each other.)

However, I DO rate books on Goodreads written by authors I don’t know — you know, the dead ones, the famous ones, the ones who are far too busy raking in the dough to notice my little ol’ estimation of their work. Without that emotional attachment to the author or book, I feel like I can just write what I think, which (I hope) is helpful to others who look to a book’s reviews in deciding whether or not to read it. And that system is just fine and dandy when I like a book — slapping a five-star rating onto a book is joyous and fun. All is right with the world. However, when it comes time to give a one-star rating or a poor review, I find myself getting anxious, like I did with today’s review for Dan Brown’s INFERNO:

1 of 5 stars This is the first audiobook I’ve listened to, so — to be fair — quite possibly it was the nature of “listening” to a book that wasn’t for me. However, I threw in the towel after about 4 and a half hours of listening. So disappointed. I absolutely loved THE DA VINCI CODE and really liked ANGELS & DEMONS. I had started THE LOST SYMBOL when it came out, but didn’t get far into it, because I found it to be more of the same, and I guess that’s how I feel about this book. Unfortunately, it was just taking too long for things to get going. What a bummer.

I feel incredibly ambivalent about this review — any bad review, for that matter. Sure, I didn’t like the book, but I keep thinking about that old adage: “If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” Particularly because I KNOW how hard it is to write a book. (It’s crazy hard.) And I KNOW how hard it is to receive a poor review. (It’s crazy harder.)

Marketing Tip #5

At the end of your eBook, place a link(s) that directs readers to where they can buy additional books of yours. This is one of the best tips I’ve read recently online (apologies for not remembering where I read it), and it makes complete sense. Readers are most apt to buy a book of yours if they’ve just read one and loved it. I can remember lots of times when I closed a book, leaned back and thought, Wow, that was good, and went to the bookstore to check out more things from that author (Dan Brown comes to mind). The best way to capitalize on that high in the eBook world is to have a link at the end of your eBook that brings readers to a book retailing website — Amazon, for example, if it’s a Kindle book. This way, they can buy another one of your books immediately — sort of like an impulse buy at the supermarket checkout, the well-I’m-here-anyway-so-I-may-as-well-buy-it kind of thinking. Chances are if readers really like your book, they will find their way to Amazon or Barnes & Noble on their own, but there’s nothing wrong with pointing them in the right direction.

Meet Richard Rose

Little does he know, but I have very vivid memories of Richard Rose, today’s featured debut author. When my oldest son, who turns 14 this Saturday, was only a few months old, he became fascinated by game shows (the bright lights, the sounds), particularly Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, which airs back-to-back every weeknight on Channel 55 on Long Island. At some point during the hour, I’d see Richard giving a preview of the upcoming nightly broadcast, which meant my little reprieve would soon be over and my infant son would once again demand my undivided attention. :) It was a pleasure to meet Richard personally recently at the Farmingdale Public Library, and I look forward to reading his new thriller.

Name: Richard Rose

Name of book: Release the Butterfly

Genre: Thriller

Date published: March 2011

Publisher: Authorhouse (self-published)

What is your day job? I’m the anchor of The News at 11 on WLNY-TV 10/55 (10 on cable, 55 over the air).  I am also the news director and the host of a weekly public affairs show FOCUS seen on Sundays.

What is your book about? Release the Butterfly is about the unintended consequences of cutting edge scientific research that often lead to the development of major new weapons of mass destruction. My research into particle accelerators at Long Island’s Brookhaven National Lab and at Geneva, Switzerland’s CERN lab started me thinking about the potential to stumble on a planet-killing weapon.

What did you find to be the most challenging part of the writing process? For me, the greatest challenge was in making the science not only plausible, but interesting to the reader.

How long did it take you to write this book? It took me six months to write the book, but I first wanted to write a book 30 years ago, so I suppose I could truly answer almost my entire adult life.

Why did you decide to self-publish? The literary market collapsed just as I finished the book, and, so far, I haev been unable to find a literary agent. Meanwhile, I have completed the screenplay version, because everyone tells me it should be a movie, and I am actively trying to market this as well.

Did you experience writer’s block? I never experienced writer’s block once I decided this was the topic, but it also took me 30 years to decide this would be the topic of my first book. So that would be a new record for writer’s block, I suppose.

What was your favorite part of writing this book? Trying to visualize possible applications for theoretical concepts, like the DNA Tracker-Neutron Transformer. I actually feel I predicted what are now current events – a stealth fighter for China (just unveiled) and an aircraft carrier (now in the works).  And I loved working in some military hardware for the U.S. and China that is still on their drawing board or just being deployed. My hope was to channel H.G. Wells, Tom Clancy and Dan Brown.  Now, there’s a challenge.

Is there another novel on the horizon? I am considering a second book to be called “Manila Highway” about a Filipino woman who comes to the U.S. hoping for opportunity and winds up being a long-distance trucker in Texas and the deep south.  It’s based on a real person.

What tools/methods have you employed to promote your book? What advice would you give to writers regarding promotion? I am signing books at libraries and, hopefully, bookstores, and I’m working on a launch party for this summer. I’m working with a publicist.

Oprah has famously said that there is no such thing as luck, without preparation and a moment of opportunity. Would you agree or disagree with regard to your own success as a writer? I would agree with Oprah, and the advice I would give other writers is to believe in yourself and your idea and follow it through. Whether it becomes a hit or not, you followed your vision. I once read that O’Reilly, the great 19th century American writer, didn’t write his first book until he was in his sixties and in prison for bankruptcy (debtors’ prison). So good luck to all of us!

What Kind of Thriller is ‘Baby Grand’?

“What kind of book is Baby Grand?”

I’m asked that all the time. And my answer?

It’s a thriller.

That seems to have satisfied everyone — including myself — but over the past few days I’ve been doing research and reading lots of thriller flap copy, and it seems that many (virtually all) thrillers are defined more specifically. And that got me wondering: What IS Baby Grand?

A “thriller,” by definition, uses suspense, excitement and tension as its main elements and uses literary devices such as plot twists, red herrings and cliffhangers. My novel, for sure, fits in there. But beyond that, it gets murky (note: subgenre categories from Wikipedia):

• Conspiracy thriller: The hero/heroine confronts a large, powerful group of enemies whose true extent only he/she recognizes.

Hmmm, don’t think it’s this one.

• Crime thriller: This is a suspenseful account of a successful or failed crime or crimes, often focusing on the criminal rather than a policeman.

Yes, there is a crime in Baby Grand. A kidnapping. And I do focus on the criminals, as much as, or perhaps more than, the police. This is a definite contender.

• Disaster thriller: The main conflict is due to some sort of natural or artificial disaster, such as floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, etc.

Uh, no.

• Erotic thriller: Think Basic Instinct. ‘Nuff said.

Uh, no. Actually… Well, not really.

• Legal thriller: John Grisham is the guru of this subgenre in which the hero is a lawyer who confronts enemies both inside and outside the courtroom.

One of my favorite legal thrillers was Primal Fear by William Diehl. (The last line of the book still stays with me.) Let’s see: There are two lawyers in Baby Grand, but I would not consider it to be a legal thriller.

• Medical thriller: The heroes, of course, are in the medical profession here.

Michael Crichton sucked me into this genre long ago. But no doctors in Baby Grand. Well, there is, but he’s such a minor character.

• Mystery thriller: ???

This subgenre was always bit murky to me, because “mysteries” and “thrillers” often overlap or go hand-in-hand. It seems a bit redundant to say “mystery thriller.” Am I wrong? Someone, please set me straight…

A Writer’s Digest article separates “mystery” and “thriller” this way: “A ‘mystery’ follows an intellectual protagonist who puts together clues to solve a crime after it’s been committed, and a ‘thriller’ details the prevention of a crime before it has been committed.” I don’t know if I buy that. That would make The Da Vinci Code a mystery, not a thriller. And Baby Grand too. No way.

I hereby relegate this category to the Scooby-Doo Mysteries until further notice…

• Political thriller: The hero must ensure the stability of the government that may or may not employ him.

Hmmm… Phillip Grand is governor of New York and plays a leading role in Baby Grand, but the stability of the government? Nah, doesn’t apply.

• Psychological thriller: The conflict between the main characters is mental and emotional, rather than physical.

There is a definite psychological component to Baby Grand. Perhaps this is our winner? But when I think of psychological thrillers, I think of The Silence of the Lambs. Or is that a crime thriller? Help!

• Religious thriller: The plot is closely connected to religious objects, institutions and questions.

Dan Brown’s Angels & Demons fits nicely here. Baby Grand? Nope.

• Supernatural thriller: This subgenre brings in otherworldly elements, from aliens and ghosts to weird psychic or superhuman abilities.

Nope.

• Techno thriller: Sophisticated technology plays a prominent role.

Unless you consider Facebook sophisticated, then this one is a definite no.

The verdict? Can you believe, I’m still not sure. But I guess if I were forced to choose – you know, if I had a gun to my head – I’d pick crime thriller. Otherwise, I’m back to thriller. Plain and simple.

What?! I’m a Literary Snob?

Even though my local Borders only had one copy of Good Girls Don’t Get Fat — and it was lurking somewhere in the “back” unable to be found by the store employee (would they treat Dr. Oz this way?) — I ended up leaving the store a happy camper having stumbled upon a terrific sale: Buy One Already Heavily Discounted Book & Get One Free. Yippee! Two books for only four bucks!

One of the books, Invictus, I figured I’d read before seeing the film, and the other was a chick-lit-type book that I imagined I’d hand over to my friend Viki after I was done.

Well, yesterday I decided to take a break from not reading Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol and started the chick lit book.

I didn’t get to the end of the first page, and I had already scribbled notes all over a Post-It. (I used to scribble all kinds of things in my books as I read them, but have since learned that if this book is ever going to have a life beyond my shelves, nobody — friends, family, flea market shoppers — cares what I think.) This is what I wrote:

1. What?! This book opens with an alarm clock ringing? Isn’t that How Not to Start a Novel 101?
2. I’ve already counted 5 adverbs, and I’m only on page 5, and the book starts on page 5.

OMG, I exclaimed in my head, so as not to alarm my kids, I’m a literary snob!

Wait a minute, I thought. Clearly, if you take a look at my bookshelves, I most certainly am not. There is an eclectic — if not bizarre — assortment of reading material to be found: Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Stephen King’s On Writing, David Baldacci’s Split Second, Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass and Fast Track Networking by Lucy Rosen (with Claudia Gryvatz Copquin, of course), just to name a few.

Then what am I? Somewhere in the middle, between the National Enquirer and War and Peace, which is where I imagine most people are. I’m a gal who can appreciate a beautiful description, but doesn’t want to require oxygen in the middle of a sentence or consult a thesaurus on every other page.

The problem is, of course, that I’m a writer. And when you’re a writer — as my book clubmates know — it’s very difficult to enjoy a book just as a book. You judge that book by what’s outside its cover — by what you’re writing, what you haven’t gotten published, what you have gotten published, what you’re writing professors have told you. I imagine it’s like being a filmmaker. I mean, is it ever possible for those people to really enjoy a film again? Aren’t they constantly looking at the lighting, the acting, the staging?

Truth be told, the adverb thing doesn’t really bother me, as I explained in my blog post, In Defense of Adverbs, although unnecessary or poorly chosen adverbs are cumbersome and tend to stop me in my tracks, making me lament what could have been a stronger verb. I think I’m just all caught up in waiting mode, having finished Baby Grand and being anxious to see what happens. Once I gave myself a good talking-to, telling myself “so what” if this novel reads more like a blog post, maybe that’s the point — Lord knows, I go adverb-happy in this blog — I was finally able to sit back and enjoy the book, which I’m now halfway through.