Book Review: Roamer A Lost to Found Rescue Dog Story By Michael Delaware

Genre: Mid grade fiction

Synopsis: Barney gets separated from his family during the evacuation from Hurricane Katrina. He ends up lost and living on the beach, befriending some of the lost humans living there as well.

My Take: This is a sad story. It has a Lady and the Tramp feel, with a darker twist. There are some beautifully written lines that make me miss the ocean, such as "The wind blew softly across the water in the gulf, and he could smell the salt in the air as he watched the persistent pattern of waves splashing over the sandy shore."

But I had a hard time getting into the story. For one, it bounces around a lot. I know, we are getting the story from the perspective of a dog. However, I feel like the author could have done better managing the flow. As it is, this short read feels a bit repetitive. I would not read this story with my middle grader as it is a bit traumatizing. There is a Where the Red Fern Grows moment that really pulled me from the story because it went from sad to super dark real quick.

The layout also bugged me. The author typically writes nonfiction, and he kept a nonfiction layout. It felt strange. I also had a hard time with the way he displayed speech in italics, rather than quotes. I will give him points for consistency at least.

The last complaint was the grammar. Several times the word women was used, when it was intended to be woman. There were also several points of syntax error. When it comes to these things, I am a bit more demanding than the average reader. When it comes to writing geared toward youth, I find such errors unforgivable as it dumbs down our children.

To sum up: There is some beautiful imagery in the story, and I think if the author expanded the story, organized the flow, and brought the reading level up, it would be a great YA book, like Where the Red Fern Grows, but at it's current length and structure, I would not read it to my boys.

Blundering Along, Blogging and Building

Hello lovelies,

As you know, I have been working on building my blogging more intentionally. I have been working on more consistency and I think I am getting that down pretty well. Now I am looking to expand. I have been approaching other authors to do more author interviews, character spotlights, and guest posts on my site to help fill the posts, as well as reaching out to other bloggers to participate in blog hops and blog tours.

I am really excited about one we have coming up in January, New Year New Books blog tour being hosted by Ama et Bema. If you are a reader, you should definitely follow along as we will be showcasing several authors who have new releases in 2016. If you are a blogger, Ama is looking for any bloggers who would like to be a tour host, and if you are an author who has a book coming out in early 2016, definitely get in touch with her so we can showcase your books!

I really enjoy doing blog tours and hops. It is so much fun, not only as a host, but also as a reader being able to go to other blogs and see their different takes.

Anyone else participating in a blog hop or blog tour, let me know as I would love to participate!

I am also reaching out to other bloggers as a guest blogger. This has been a fun and interesting part of building and growing. It often feels hard enough to come up with content for my own blog, and now I am reaching out to these other bloggers and have to come up for content for them as well! But it is fun to be able to step into another writer's space and engage with their audiences. It is also nice because typically they tell me what they would like me to write! Takes a lot of pressure off, let me tell you!

So any bloggers out there who would like me to write on your blog, just let me know what topic you would like covered (Or let me know you would like me to come write on your blog and I will offer some suggestions based on your content. I can handle some pressure ;)  )

And in that vein, I was recently invited to guest post on Tasha's Thinkings, for her Writerly Wednesday post about Editing. (Yes, it goes live today!) If you are looking for an editor, and the different terms are confusing you, (like content editing, line editing, copy editing, final edits and proof reading)  then you will definitely want to check this post out.

 Any thoughts? Share in the comments below!

Until next time,

Keep Reading and Writing!

The Importance of Being Edited

Editing, or the lack thereof, is the hot topic in the indie publishing world right now. No longer can indie authors hope to break out without paying for an editor. Readers just won't put up with the crap even for a good story (Although, I saw Fifty Shades, and it's stellar lack thereof, so.... sure.) 

But as a serious writer, I do see the importance and the need for proper editing. If we do not make an effort to present the best book possible, then we are just creating garbage. And after spending the last two years reading a lot of indie books, I completely agree. I get annoyed when I pay for a traditional book and find massive errors. When I bought Suzanne Collin's Hunger Games in hard cover, I was so disgusted by the numerous sentences which I could not even begin to decipher because the traditional publisher didn't bother to pay for an editor. 

She got shafted. 

But as more and more indie authors get on board, I have noticed another problem. Editor's prices are so all over the charts. I know this, because I free lance on occasion as an editor. Every time, I want to make sure I am charging fair prices so I check the climate. 

There are a lot of sharks out there ready to make a quick buck off us authors. And the problem with editing is that (unlike, say cover art) an author doesn't know what she doesn't know. How do you pick a good editor, and know you are getting a good editor?

I have heard so many horror stories of authors paying upwards of $1,000 and then having readers complain about the book not being properly edited. Just because you get a bunch of red ink, doesn't mean the editor did a good job. 

Are they providing just grammar, will they provide content editing, what about fact checking?

How does an author know an editor will do a good job? How do they know they will get charged an appropriate price? Talk to other authors and see who they have used. Check references. Read the editor's works. Ask questions. Make sure you know what you are getting, when you will get it, and how much it will cost. Most importantly, have a contract. 

But don't let the fear of not knowing prevent you from getting your book edited. Do the research. It will make your book better and will allow you to be competitive. Just be sure to factor that cost into setting the price of your book. 

Update on the Homefront

Things are about to get very exciting. I have in my hands Lynette White's Enemy Unmasked, and am beginning edits tonight! She is releasing in July so I will have my hands full getting her to market in time. But I am excited for the challenge.

I am also going to be gearing up to edit Hell School: Fresh Meat for a September release, as I don't want to be rushed between Lynette's release and my own.

I also have the sequel for The Hunters demanding to be put to paper. It has started haunting my dreams so I best stop ignoring that.

What does all this mean for my lovely readers?

Well, you will probably be seeing more posts about editing... and less book reviews. I am bummed too, believe me. But at the same time, it is refreshing to get back to editing!

You will also be seeing a lot more of my poetry posts as they are quicker and easier, given the important stuff is already written.

If you need me, please be patient. Things are going to be a bit crazy busy around here!

Writer Ramblings: The Simple Joys

I am excited about a few things this week.

1. I am almost finished with the rough draft for Hell School: Fresh Meat.
2. I am about to start editing my friend Lynette White's second book in the Destiny Series.
3. I have begun creating the audio book for The Hunters.


The rough draft has been long coming. I meant to be done last summer and have it published in November, but life happens. I am pleased to finally be in the home stretch. Editing Lynette's book will be a nice break and get me back into editor's mode so I can polish up Hell School after.

As for the audio book, I am a little nervous. I have gone round and round trying to decide what to do with the audio book versions of my books. I wanted to do ensemble casts, but that never ended up playing out. I wanted to hire someone to do them, but I totally get now why audio books are so expensive sometimes. Some of the rates I was quoted were more than I make an hour at my day job!

I've done a lot of research and decided to do the audio book myself with sound effects.  I am debating whether to release it in segments, or as one whole piece. I already have four hours recorded, and am not even halfway through the book. Plus I have editing and the sound effects to add in. It is a lot of work, but I think it will be well worth it.

Are any of you readers fans of audio books? What do you think about sound effects added in? Would you rather pay $1 for each hourly segment, or an upfront $15. for the whole book? I am guessing on price at this point, but I think it will be around 10-15 hours total.

Let me know your thoughts on audio books in the comments below.

Until next time,

Keep reading!