All The Stuff You Don't Really Care To Know

I'm a huge fan of the Fever series, by Karen Marie Moning. A HUGE FAN...this is a must read series!!! But this entry isn't about converting you all into fever fanatics--though I HIGHLY recommend the series!

Over the last few months I've been trying to buy all hardcovers of my favorite books for my library, and it's a slow process because I'm poor and they're expensive. I rarely buy used books online because I'm always so disappointed with their condition, but today I had to make an exception. The hardcover of Darkfever is out-of-print, and most of the "very good" used copies are priced at $59 and way up. I've seen copies being bold for over $100.

It's ridiculous! And there is no telling how much the original copy of these books will be worth once the movie is released. I don't even want to think of the price poor people will be forced to pay!

In my time away from the Internet, I've had some time to get a lot of reading in. It would take several weeks to list all the new favorites that got added to my list and since I don't have that kind of time, I'll just list them as they become relevant to whatever is going on in my life. Today it's the release of Hard Bitten, the fourth installment of Chloe Neill's Chicagoland Vampires series.

Don't let the tacky leather suit scare you away. This is a fantastic series. The first book made me laugh, the second made me cry, and the third left me feeling like a junkie awaiting her next fix. Really, what more could you ask from a series. You have heroine that's as funny as she is realist, a hero that I always want to see naked even when I think a swift kick in the balls is necessary, and a plot that is interesting as it is unpredictable.
 

So I've been gone for forever and a day, huh?

I wish I had some really awesome excuse for being gone so long, like I won the lottery or snagged an agent and have been so busy with my book tour I didn't have a second left for anything else. Truth is, life just hasn't been kind lately. With the way things have been going, I'm surprised I'm still standing. If I could sue life for emotional damages, the interest off my settlement alone would support my grandchildren's grandchildren. But I'm sure most of you could say the same.

Want the good news now?

Turns out our currently screwed up economy hasn't really hurt the publishing industry at all. In Fact, there was a 3.6% growth in sales between 2009 and 2010. In this economy, that's impressive; but what's even more impressive is the 164% growth in sales for ebooks. You might need to take a second to precess that. It took me a second to wrap my head around that number.

The news only gets better for aspiring authors. Right now, the epublishing companies are looking for new material and they're usually open to unpublished authors, even those of us without agents. The pay on these projects isn't as high, but they're great opportunities to build up your portfolio.

So look into it, this might be you're ticket to the big times. Just don't forget me when you get there.

So for my birthday a friend got me and my sister--it's her birthday too--tickets to see Clay Walker. He's one of my favorite country musicians, though you probably won't like him if you don't enjoy a little twang in your country. I'm really excited to hear his song, "The Chain of Love," which is probably my all time favorite song, mainly because of its message--If you're good to people, that good will find its way back to you. So, if you've got the time, read the WHOLE way through.

He was driving home one evening
In his beat up Pontiac
When an old lady flagged him down,
Her Mercedes had a flat
He could see that she was frightened,
Standing out there in the snow
'Til he said I'm here to help you ma'am,
By the way my name is Joe

She said I'm from St. Louis,
And I'm only passing through
I must have seen a hundred cars go by,
This is awful nice of you
When he changed the tire,
And closed her trunk
And was about to drive away,
She said how much do I owe you
Here's what he had to say

You don't owe me a thing, I've been there too
Someone once helped me out,
Just the way I'm helping you
If you really want to pay me back,
Here's what you do
Don't let the chain of love end with you

Well a few miles down the road,
The lady saw a small cafe
She went in to grab a bite to eat,
And then be on her way
But she couldn't help but notice,
How the waitress smiled so sweet
And how she must've been eight months along,
And dead on her feet

And though she didn't know her story,
And she probably never will
When the waitress went to get her change,
From a hundred dollar bill
The lady slipped right out the door,
And on a napkin left a note
There were tears in the waitress's eyes,
When she read what she wrote

You don't owe me a thing,
I've been there too
Someone once helped me out,
Just the way I'm helping you
If you really want to pay me back,
Here's what you do
Don't let the chain of love end with you

That night when she got home from work,
The waitress climbed into bed
She was thinkin' about the money,
And what the lady's note had said
As her husband lay there sleeping,
She whispered soft and low
Everything's gonna be alright, I love you, Joe

 

It's sad how few aspiring authors realize the importance of reading to their craft. People think they they can just jump up and decide to write a book, and the Internet will provide guidance. There's nothing wrong with that so long as you realize that the best guidance is found by studying the craft of those who have already found success in an area you strive to succeed. Doing this doesn't only help you get a firsthand view of good characterization, plot, and grammar, but more importantly it gives you a view of the negatives as well. So that way, you know what NOT to do.

Those reasons aside, reading inspires us. People who tell you not to let a book you love influence the direction of your current project are sending the wrong message. What they mean is, DON'T COPY! Yes, it is important to have an original idea, but you have to realize that EVERYTHING has been done before. What makes an author successful is how they make an aged storyline feel fresh and new!

The thing that brought this rant on was the inspiration for my latest project, The Knight's Conquest by Juliet Landon. It's a historical romance I read earlier this week that I wasn't all that impressed with. But it got the wheels turning. I've never actually tried a to write a story about vampires/immortals. I've had a lot of ideas, but none of my ideas were original enough to be worth the effort in this overcrowded market. But thanks to to this mediocre book, I've suddenly got an plot that I think is different, to say the least.
 
So my advice for all of you aspiring authors out there who maybe be suffering from writers block, or cliche plots, is this; Pick up a book from an genre that you're not familiar with. If that one doesn't inspire you, pick up another. Once you find a element you like from one of those books, make it the most important aspect of your story , and then get to writing. Don't worry about cliches or anything like that. Just get the story out the way you feel it should be told. Weeding out "bad stuff" is what rewriting and editing is for!

So recently, I've done a lot of book bashing and that seems unfair considering the some of the amazing novels I've gotten through this year; namely, the one you see above. I know, I know! It's a kids book, but I don't discriminate against literature!

Ella Enchanted was so good, I cried at the end of this book because I couldn't bear for it to be over. Even though there was that feeling of completion, I just couldn't stand knowing there would be no more adventure!

This book is one of those few masterpieces that arrive in our time. It was a brilliant fairytale, and it corrected everything the story of Cinderella got wrong. Like a prince who loved past beautiful, and a heroine who was not only kind and beautiful, but defiant as well. In Addition, as much as I loved Ella, I envied her until the point of shame!

READ IT! I COMMAND YOU!

I'm sure y'all remember me going crazy over this movie a couple months ago. This is the trailer of the remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street. It's due out April 30, 2010.

When I first decided to try my hand at fantasy/sci-fi/paranormal/what-else-you-want-to-title-it, I was overwhelmed by the task of creating the world in which my story would take place. I quickly realized building an entire world is harder--in astronomical proportions--than creating a character dimension, and that's no easy feat! As I always do when a task becomes to difficult to manage, I turned to the Internet for guidance. I found hundreds of websites with hordes of advice and questionnaires to help you get started, but there were hundreds and hundreds of questions, and you just couldn't get to them all in one sitting. So naturally, after a day or two I'd get bored and give up.

I ended just doing it the old fashioned way, figuring it out as I went along. That was a really bad idea!!!! Sure it works with plot and such, but not with world building. Halfway through the story I started to notice major inconsistencies, which lead to rewrite after rewrite. Now days, I sit down and force myself to finish those stupid questionnaires. It's a lot easier than rewriting your story 15 times!

The link I have below is to one of my favorite websites for world building. It's a 30 day process for those of you who are in no rush, and who like having deadlines and a plan. And the good thing is, if you want to get ahead you can. So, check it out.

http://www.web-writer.net/fantasy/days/index.html

I was so sad to see Saving Abel snatch up the label of one hit wonder. After "Addicted" people just forgot this band existed, and that's a shame because they have so much to offer. This southern rock album is versatile and addictive. It's a must have. I'm determined to bring the spotlight back to these guys! Songs to check out would be, "Sailed Away," "Running From You," "Out of My Face," and the rest of the album!

Wow, so I have another story to tell you guys, but this time it didn't happen at Kroger--it happened when I got back from Kroger. We pulled up in the driveway and my brother's girlfriend had to get something from her trunk, so I watched as she dug through this enormous pile of crap that looked a lot my room. She stumbled across this book and squealed, "Oh my God, this is the best book ever! You have to read it!"

I take the book, and peel off a melted stick of gum--that's how valuable it was to her." You're just gonna love that!" she promises, and scurries up the side walk all giddily like she's just introduced me to my soul mate. I looked down at the cover, Skinny Bitch: A No-Nonsense guide For Savvy Girls Who Want To Stop Eatting Crap and Start looking Fabulous!

I seriously doubted that I would, but went with that whole don't judge a book by it's cover saying and gave this piece of crap a shot.  At first, it wasn't that bad. It basically explained why low-fat, low-calorie, and low-carb foods are bad for you. I wasn't even too repulsed by the excessive swearing, and constant insults to the reader.

But then the authors revealed their true motive for writing the book; they wanted to convert the entire world into vegans.

Now, let me stop here and explain that I have nothing against a vegan lifestyle. It's noble, and I understand and accept that there are perks  to the diet. I don't even really mind reading books about vegan-ism, but I expect a little warning from writer in either the title or the blurb on the back, so that I know what I'm getting into ahead of time. But apparently these authors have no issues with false advertisement, so long as they're the ones doing it--we'll get to that later!

Anyhow, for the rest of the book the authors explain the evils of the food industry, and then try and convince you that humans aren't meant to eat meat.

Now, I could understand and agree with their position on slaughterhouses, they're terrible, cruel places. We as a society should be more concerned with how we kill our meat.  BUT were not supposed to eat meat? You're kidding right? I can accept that people choose not to eat meat products but don't tell me that it's not natural for the human body!

And I don't even have to defend my position on this because the authors do it for me. They go on and on about how human bodies aren't strong enough to be hunters --which in their book means that nature never intended for us to consume flesh--and how our digestive system isn't built for breaking down meat. . But at the end they say, "Don't forget to take vitamin B12, it's an essential nutrient that can only be found in meat products."

Am I the only one who caught that? How can they tell me that humans were meant to be herbivores when a vitamin crucial to our survival can only be found in meat products?

I get that they were just pulling any card they could to convert people to their way of thinking, but they ended up proving just how stupid they are. These girls are two ex-models--one a "self-proclaimed expert," and the other with a degree in holistic nutrition from an unaccredited college--and they want to educate the world by spitting out deceptive information. Even better, they constantly bash they food industry for false advertisement to sell products!

Isn't that what they did? So not only are they stupid and bitchy, but they're hypocrites as well!

They pretty much consider all human-carnivores devil spans, and when you think about slaughterhouses, yes, we seem that way. I wholeheartedly disagree with the way we slaughter cattle in America. It's sickening and inhumane, but moving to a vegan diet is not the answer for everyone.

If I had to give these girls credit for anything, it'd be compiling this awesome list of sources in the back. These woman might not have been the best people to spread the word, but they chose a good cause.

So the next time you're at the Barnes & Nobles, grab this book up, flip to the back, and pick out something from their recommended reading section and buy that instead!