I haven’t been sleeping all that well of late. That’s not a good thing in some ways, but on the other hand, it means I’m awake before dawn, and I can pop on down to the beach to see what the sunrise has to offer. Mostly, I go to the same place each time, where…
Everybody gets rotten reviews. It’s part of the territory. Your first one or two star is a coming of age, your movement from beginner to seasoned veteran. I’m not going to lecture you on survival techniques. The world and his wife has done that already. I’m usually a subscriber to the DO NOT READ THEM…
Good heavens, it’s 2015 already. Whodathunk? December 31st 2014 has, at the stroke of a clock, become January 1st 2015. It’s one of those times, a cusp, a watershed. Or so it would appear. We have to remember to put 2015, not 2014, when we write a date, and when our birthdays arrive we’ll be…
So. What do I have to show for 2014? A refurbished house A brief whip around the Whitsundays (fodder for the latest book – still in progress) The possums and the lorikeets are in dispute about ownership of the big nest box in the palm tree. On the basis of ‘needs must’ one of the…
At long last, I finally got my chance to watch the extended edition of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. Having discussed the picture with some Facebook friends, I thought I’d write down a few spoilerless thoughts. If you’ve seen it, too, I’d love to know what you thought. First things first. The Hobbit trilogy…
Reviews. It’s one of the buzz words in the author world – especially if you’re self published or small press. Many articles have been written about how to handle negative reviews, how to get reviews, how to write reviews and whether reviews actually matter. One thing that constantly comes up, in comments or in the…
Death. It’s something that everyone reading this post must face at some time. At my age, many people I have known and loved have passed the final portal. Some deaths were expected, and indeed, were a relief to the dying and to those left behind. Others died suddenly, brutally, and far too young. Yet others…
A review is just somebody’s opinion. It’s something of a truism, of course. And sometimes, it’s not even true. Some reviews are deliberate attempts to undermine a book’s (or a movie’s, or a restaurant’s) reputation. Sometimes they’re the reverse – paid-for reviews, or reviews left by well-meaning family and friends. Let’s exclude those from the…
Since Facebook became a paying concern, author Facebook pages have become (in my opinion) pretty much a waste of time. Here’s my take on that issue. However, that doesn’t mean Facebook is a waste of time. Increasingly, as Facebook’s ever-changing algorithms weed out posts from our friends and replace them with sponsored ads, people are…
Authors, you can’t be too careful when crafting that precious first page for your tour de force. This is a case study. Since he retired, my husband has read a lot of books. He tends to like crime, thrillers, mystery – that sort of thing. And he often picks up free books from Smashwords. As…