Length of Novels - It Matters

Happy Friday! Welcome back to the humble ablog! Exciting things coming for you next week! Here's the current lineup: Monday - Author Interview with Christina Mercer, Tuesday - Your First 100 Words, Wednesday - Book Review: The Fly House, Thursday - Crypt Keeper Tour K. A. Young, Friday - Fractured Glass Cover Reveal. Yeah, so you wanna come back for all that.

Also, I'll be putting together the official reading list for UtopYA. A page will be dedicated to that endeavor. Be sure you check that out, as well as voting for the official poster design (coming soon)!

Today, we're gonna talk about the length of your novel and why it matters. Remember that post on genre from yesterday? We're keeping with that theme. So, grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Let's begin by thinking about why page count plays into your novel writing. If you write epic fantasy, your books will be really long (think LOTR) because you'll be taking time to explain things and build characters and worlds so the reader can see and feel them. You can't label a book that's 100k words in length as epic fantasy and not expect backlash from fans of the genre. In contrast, you don't want a contemporary romance to end up with a 300k word count, either.

So how to know?

Your research lies in the best seller list. Go look at the most popular books in your genre and see how many pages they have. I'll get to the math on factoring an approximate page and average word count in a moment. Write down the top three best sellers and navigate to their Amazon pages. See how long they are.

Now for the math.

I'm gonna use some numbers I grabbed really quickly from the Young Adult list here:

320 pages: If I Stay by Gayle Forman
337 pages: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
306 pages: Where She Went by Gayle Forman

See a trend? Yeah... So, we now have a page count that we'll average. Add all the numbers together:

320 + 337 + 306 = 963

Divide by three:

963 / 3 = 321

For every four pages, you have about 1k words. So, divide by four:

321 / 4 = 80.25

Multiply by one thousand:

80.25 X 1000 = 80,250

Now, I don't know about you, but I've heard Young Adult books range from 35-75k. Our number is slightly more. Go figure.

So, you can gather readers of Young Adult enjoy a length of around 80k. 

This matters because you don't want to try and sell a 300k word novel to a crowd that enjoys, on average, 80k words. You won't do well. After all, you write so others will read your work, right?

I hope this helps you in some way.

What do you think? Did you try it for your genre?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

What's in a Genre?

Happy Thursday, everyone! I bet you're all sighing with relief that the weekend is right around the corner. I know I am. Today, I'm gonna talk with you all about genres. Ever wondered where your book fits in? Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going.

Why does genre matter?

First off, there are many readers who know exactly what they like and don't like. If they're in love with young adult books, for example, they'll want around 50-100k words, language they don't have to look up, no curse words or sexual situations, and a certain amount of teen angst. If they prefer epic fantasy, they'll be looking for 200-300k words (probably a trilogy of such beasts), massive world building, and a more complex makeup of plot and language.

It matters that you understand the genre you write in. Fans like to know what kind of story they'll get beforehand.

So, if you're swimming in uncharted waters, do some research to find out what readers will expect from the genre label.

Moving on!

I'm not going over every genre out there, just the most popular ones.

• Children's - Books for kids age 7-12. Should be easier to read and not as long.
• Young Adult - This has everything to do with the main character's age. They should be 13-17. Typically deals with coming-of-age type stuff.
• New Adult - Again, it's about age. Usually 17-23ish. Deals with those college years or the first time a character sets out on their own. Can contain more sexually explicit material than young adult.
• Chick-Lit - Books for women. Most commonly contemporary, but has elements of love and sex like a romance. Women empowering.
• Mystery - Deals with solving something.
• Horror - Scares you so badly you have nightmares or soil yourself as the antagonist terrorizes those around them.
• Thriller - Keeps you turning pages because you don't know what will happen next. Deals with possible world issues (biological, political, etc...).
• Fantasy - All about other worlds. Fantastical creatures and magical powers abound.
• Historical - History that can fall into the realm of fiction or non-fiction. Never set in the present unless involving time travel.
• Romance - Usually from the woman's point of view. Centers on two people that eventually fall in love and end up together.
• Erotica - X rated fiction. Very explicit scenes.
• Western - This one is all about setting. Usually the old West (American).
• Legal Thriller - Suspenseful story centering around a trial of some sort.
• Dystopian - These novels deal with the creation of a different society.
• Hen-Lit - Novels for older women. Contemporary, but very little sex (although there may be romance).
• Contemporary - Set in this day and age.
• Science Fiction - Usually futuristic, always deals with some kind of technology. Can include other planets and all that encompasses.
• Literary - Centers on theme rather than plot. People walk away with a changed mindset.
• Urban - Setting is a city, but focus is more about the underground (hidden) section. Usually has a lot of profanity, violence, and sexual situations.
• Time Travel - As the name implies, commonly deals with messing with the natural order of things via time travel.
• Paranormal - Werewolves, vampires, and other creatures that go bump in the night. Or with special abilities of the characters (think X-Men).

Now, these genres almost always cross in some way. You can have a young adult science fiction mystery, dystopian romance, or children's western. Fractured Glass, the anthology I'm working on with four other amazing writers, is young adult sci-fi paranormal horror fantasy magic romance. Yeah, try that on for size. *grin* Basically, you can throw your hat into more than one pile because of the story elements. Just do your research and get on it.

What are you working on? What genres does it fall into?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Book Review - The Elect

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere! How about a new book review? *grin* I'm barreling my way through my TBR list, and only have a few weeks left in the year to get to them all. I won't be doing reviews in November, so you'll get the rest of these in October and December. Yeah, it's a big task, but I'm getting there! Without further ado, I bring you my recap!

Elle Todd The Elect REVIEW BELOW
Molly Taggart Off Target REVIEW HERE
Gloria Piper Finnegan's Quest REVIEW HERE
Skylar Hamilton Burris The Strange Marriage of Anne de Bourgh REVIEW HERE
Tamar Hela Feast Island REVIEW HERE
Rebecca Trogner The Last Keeper's Daughter REVIEW HERE
Scott Marlowe The Five Elements REVIEW HERE
L.K. Evans Keepers of Arden: The Brothers Volume 1 REVIEW HERE
Sarah Mäkelä The Witch Who Cried Wolf REVIEW HERE
Felicia Tatum Masked Encounters REVIEW HERE
David T Griffith The Bestiarum Vocabulum REVIEW HERE
Thaddeus White Sir Edric's Temple REVIEW HERE
Heather Topham Wood The Memory Witch REVIEW HERE
N. L. Greene Illusions Begin REVIEW HERE
J. A. Huss Tragic REVIEW HERE
Pauline Creeden Sanctuary REVIEW HERE
Casey Bond Reap REVIEW HERE 
Casey Bond Devil Creek REVIEW HERE
S. G. Daniels The Druid's Doorway REVIEW HERE
Misty Provencher The Fly House Amazon Kindle $3.99
Peprah Boasiako The Hitman Amazon Kindle $0.99
C. S. Janey Surrender To You Amazon Kindle $2.99
Morgan Wylie Silent Orchids Amazon Kindle **FREE** ~
Laura Howard The Forgotten Ones Amazon Kindle $0.99 ~
Christina Marie Morales Ambience Amazon Kindle $2.99

Title: The Elect
Author: Elle Todd
Genre: YA Paranormal Urban Fiction
Length (print): 355 Pages
Buy Link: Amazon Kindle $3.99


Synopsis:
Allison Noble never liked the Baileys. They were too good-looking, too popular, too charming to be legitimate. For most of their high school career she avoided the pair, convinced their outward affability was just a ruse to disguise their true character. Okay, yeah, she’s a little neurotic. Even so, she never suspected that what they were hiding was dangerous. It never occurred to her that they might have abilities based more in fiction than reality. Why would it? People can’t produce fire with their bare hands. There are no such things as mind control and telekinesis. Except, she discovers, there are.

The Baileys are Elect, gifted with supernatural powers Allison is able to not only sense, but use herself. In the history of the Elect, there has never been one such as she, and with good reason. Because she wasn’t born to such power, she has a difficult time controlling it. Accidents happen, putting them all at risk. As others draw near—some who wish to protect her, others who want to destroy her—she is forced to uncover the secrets of her past, and face the consequences of being what her own kind refers to as an abomination.

***Will not appear in review elsewhere. I adore the cover on this novel. While the type disappears at thumbnail size, the imagery is spot on. I'd like to see that type given an overhaul so it shows up better, but wow. Hullo, fire starter! *grin* This picture is spot on with the story inside.***

Speaking of the story!

I grabbed a sample of The Elect when Ms. Todd pitched it to me during my 12 Days event on my blog. From there, I was sucked into the story and knew when I got to the last page and wanted more, I had to have this novel. So, I grabbed it, added it to my TBR list, and dove in. Let's move on to my thoughts.

From a Reader's Perspective:
Hello? Two girls breaking in to their high school to pay it forward to a girl who's wrecked the life of more than one person? I'm in! So many things could've gone wrong, and the drama of the people those girls find in the school not knowing who they were? Great tension in the beginning of this book. I was turning pages to see what happened next. But then, bam! I had the brakes thrown on me. My resulting whiplash served to annoy the heck out of the brain that kept screaming for more. As a result, I found myself putting the book down more than once out of frustration. What I'm saying is, there's a huge lag of action through the middle part of the story as the characters are built and go through day-to-day operations and interactions. Then, all of a sudden, near the end, the story picks up and rushes to a close. I left feeling like a lot of the potential for plot pacing wasn't realized. There's also a huge cliffhanger, which left me wanting the next book, but also peeved about the dragging on only to rush to an open end.

I loved the characters, and their personalities and abilities were interesting as all get out. They're people I could relate to those in my own life, and I could picture them perfectly. But, like I said, I would've liked to see them built as the action unfolded. World building was phenomenal, Ms. Todd really outdid herself with the infrastructure of this whole Elect secret society thing. It was charming.

Nate and Ryan. Couldn't keep those two straight. They needed more than one syllable to differentiate. But some of the twists were cool, and I chuckled more than once at the teen interactions and speech.

From an Editor's Perspective:
I've started highlighting only those things I think should be pointed out when I'm reading for review. Otherwise, I end up with pages and pages of notes. Pronouns were all over the place, and some things I had to re-read more than once to make sense of them because of those issues. Commas are sprinkled around where they shouldn't be, and they were left out where they should appear. It creates, problems when, reading a sentence. See what I mean? Because of these, I can't give a star for editing.

Rating:
1 Star for giving me a great beginning and wonderful characters
1 Star for world building, and a unique perspective
1 Star for the couple of twists I didn't see coming and the laughter
-1 Star for nomenclature of characters and a middle that dragged on and on and on
-1 Star for grammar, punctuation, and pronoun issues
Overall: 3 out of 5 stars. Recommended for those that are looking for a different take on young adult paranormal.

What do you think? Have you read it? Do you plan to?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Teaser Tuesday - From Deities by Mary Ting

Teaser Tuesday

Mason let out a soft chuckle. “Did you just call me Mace? It sounds hot coming out of your mouth. I’ll seal the deal with my love shock.” Positioning his thumb near mine, small illuminating sparks flew out from it. They looked like small, glowing branches, yet moved like long spider legs. Slowly, he moved it closer. It sizzled and crackled first, then it wrapped around my thumb. It was the coolest sight. Where our thumbs were touching glowed. The longer the light touched me, the warmer it got in that area. Then it continued to weave from my hand down to my arm, making my arm shimmer.

Watching in awe, I gave him the biggest smile I could. Suddenly, my body jerked and I dropped my hand. “Ouch.”

Mason captured it and rubbed the area. “Shit! I’m so sorry. Sometimes I can’t control it around you.”

I formed my lips into a wicked, sexy grin. “Sometimes, I don’t want you to.”

Title: From Deities
Author: Mary Ting
Series: Descendant Prophecies #2
Publication: October 13th, 2014

A mysterious stranger enters Skylar’s inner circle, throwing her life out of balance. As secrets are revealed, she learns of the New Olympus; a dwelling for the descendants of the Gods. The Grand family must strive to work together with these descendants to discover the key to their rescue from the clutches of the growing evil vultures of Hades. As the threat increases, Skylar must learn to control her newfound powers before it’s too late.

Purchase:

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Kobo | Google Play

From Gods

(Book #1 in the Descendant Prophecies series)

Read chapters 1-3

Purchase:

 Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA

B&N | Kobo | Google Play

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Mary Ting resides in Southern California with her husband and two children. She enjoys oil painting and making jewelry. Writing her first novel, Crossroads Saga, happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother, and inspired by a dream she once had as a young girl. When she started reading new adult novels, she fell in love with the genre. It was the reason she had to write one-Something Great. Why the pen name, M Clarke? She tours with Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children’s chapter book-No Bullies Allowed.

Website † Facebook † GoodReads † Twitter † Instagram † Pinterest 

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Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Yeah! What do you think? Sound good?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo 

UtopYA Mindset: Lift as You Climb

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm gonna discuss the heart and soul of UtopYA con. It's something you can feel in the air when you're surrounded by the people who attend, and something I believe in with every fiber of my being. Grab your coffee and a comfy chair and let's get going!

Lift as You Climb

As a saying, this is pretty easy to understand, right? As you move your booty up a mountain, you pull the people trailing you up, too. Why? What's the point? If you've worked your arse off to reach those heights, have the mad skills to do it quickly, and are on the top of your game, why should you help others and/or not step on them or cut them loose?

Imagine this:

You start at the foot of the mountain with fifty friends. Your confidence is high and you begin your climb. Thirty people stay on the ground because they're afraid to fail or fall. There's no time to go back and support any of them or talk them through how to begin.

So, you and twenty are now on your way.

You're climbing, dangling, sweating like a pig, but you pull into the lead. You're laughing, talking, having fun with your friends. Way back in the back, five folks are falling behind. Five behind you stop to pull those people forward so you don't bother. Who has time to pause and give advice?

Still, you're in the lead and only ten people are anywhere near you. A little over halfway, and you're feeling pretty awesome. You chance a look back and see the people on the ground having a cookout, eating steak, having a drink, and laughing together. Sweat drips into your eyes and stings. But you're still in the lead, so you press on.

Someone behind you slips and is dangling from the people above. Those folks stop, throw ropes, drop anchors into the rock face, and proceed to haul that dangler up. However, one person is determined to pass you. (S)He closes in, causing you to regain your focus and resume your climb.

Faster you both go until the unthinkable happens, and you get passed. You sneer, snarl, and start sweating again as you pick up the already unbelievable pace you've set. Sheer will allows you to pass that person. They stumble and slide backward, almost to the mid-point of the climb. Why? Because they asked for your hand and you didn't give it to them when they needed it.

A few more feet and you'll be at the top. You strain, push, give it your all, and arrive with a puffed up chest, exhausted muscles, and the title: best of the best.

But you're all alone. You pace, you peer down from the edge, and you pick your teeth with your nails while you wait.

One by one, the others begin to trickle up to the top with you. This is when the strangest thing happens: They lean over and pull others up, helping them to make it that last few feet.

You walk over and try to shake hands. But no one will talk to you. Though you're surrounded with people who began as your friends, you're now a stranger to them. Those slights of not taking the time to help, rescue them when they needed it, or plant an anchor to give them a chance are remembered.

What did they arrive at the top with? Camaraderie. Friendship. Trust in one another. Willingness to help and to be helped.

Eventually, you go back to the bottom and home. After all, there's no reason to stay if you have none of the above, right?

While you may remain King or Queen of the mountain climb forever, you didn't pay your knowledge forward and lost out on what you could've had.

That person you didn't give a hand to? (S)He goes on to party and climb with these people regularly, is well liked, and enjoys success along with those others who helped and were helped.

~

Do you get the idea?

Even though you have what it takes to get to the top alone, if you don't help others along the way, what will that success get you besides infamy (and infamy for what)?

I love this idea. It reeks of everything I hold near and dear. There may be people out there I've pissed off along the way with my opinions or openness, but there are far more who I've helped avoid mistakes by speaking out. If I have it or know it, I'm willing to share it.

At UtopYA, you find most people are of the lift as you climb mentality. It's an awesome conference and atmosphere I thrive in. You probably would, too.

What do you think? Have you experienced either being left behind or being the one on top?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Free on Kindle - The Frivolity Fairies: A Christmas Short Story and Bronya - Book One of the Mystic Series

Happy, happy Saturday, everyone! Today, I'm happy to be sharing my freebies (finally)! There are two up for grabs. Enough of my jawing, let's get to the good stuff. *grin* Get your clicking fingers ready!

The Frivolity Fairies: A Christmas Short Story
Get it FREE on Amazon for Kindle, and FREE on Smashwords for all others!
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Christmas
Length: ~35 pages

Synopsis:
It's Christmas Eve, 2014, and thirteen-year-old Shirley is listening to the same bedtime story she's heard every year. This year, she comes face to face with the frivolity fairies from the tale; naughty, careless creatures who cause mischief with no regard to morality. In a tale of Christmas spirit, magic, and happy endings, find out what happens when one little girl sets out to make things right.








Bronya ~ Mystic Book One
Get it FREE on Amazon for Kindle, and FREE on Smashwords for all others!
Genre: New Adult Paranormal (18+ for language)
Length: ~ 108 pages

Synopsis:
This is book one of the Mystic series. A set of New Adult Paranormal novellas that speak out against issues faced in the world today, showing how strong women can overcome anything.

Bronya Thibodeaux is a senior at Houma High School whose life is about to be changed forever. She's always felt like an outcast, but thinks she may have found a friend when a strange, new girl named Markaza who has blue hair, a number of tattoos, and a strange way of dressing appears.

Bronya's life choices make her a pariah in her small town. After getting thrown out of school, not being able to find a job, and being subjected to ridicule and cruel treatment, Bronya chooses to leave her old life behind forever when she receives a compelling invitation from a mysterious company named WSTW.

What Bronya doesn't know, is the mysterious company is owned by Markaza; a mystic who knows the end of the world is coming and is gathering together the only people who can stop the evil that's threatening to take over. Bronya is just the first. But going to New York is only a baby step toward her true journey. As Bronya races against the clock to unlock a power she never knew she had, Markaza races to collect the others: Lily, Shelia, Melody, and Coralie.

Happy reading!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Becoming a Book Blogger - All About the Benjamins

Happy Friday, everyone! Today's post will conclude the series. I bet you're all excited, huh? You have your new book review blog, and you're off to the races! Well, you have one more thing to consider, and that's money. Yes, I said money. You know, the cash flow from your blog. Beware, there are some things you must keep in mind, but I'm gonna walk you through all that. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

Here are the posts in this series (in case you're late to the game):

• Choosing a Name and Review Policy
• Branding Yourself With Imagery
• Picking a Platform for Publishing
• Design Considerations
• Structuring Your Rating System
• Building an Audience - Social Media Crazy
• Writing Reviews
• Money, You Say? (you're there now)

Okay, I kinda lied! Today isn't only about the money, though we'll go into that in a few minutes. I'm also going to discuss where you need to post those reviews you've written (besides your blog), and we'll talk for a moment about ethics.

Yes, ethics. It's a hot button for me.

Where to post your reviews:

• Amazon.com
• Barnesandnoble.com
• Goodreads.com

You can copy and paste your reviews from your blog to those sites.

Ethics:
Don't ever accept money for writing a review. It's frowned upon, because a lot of people (myself included) believe the exchange of money taints the reviewer's opinion. You'd be more inclined to give five stars to an author's book if they paid you $250, right? Yeah. So, just don't do it.

Don't create more than one account and leave a bunch of reviews on the same book. This also is frowned upon (and can get you banned from a lot of the review sites out there). Plus, it's just wrong on so many levels.

*steps off the soapbox*

Now, down to money matters! Yeah, I know you've been waiting for this one. Since you're not accepting payment for writing reviews, how do you make money with your new found love?

There are two easy ways I know of:
Become an Amazon Affiliate - When you post the review, add your affiliate code to the link (Amazon will show you how to do this).
Monetize Your Blog with AdWords - This is set up through Google. They'll display ads on your blog, and they'll be more than happy to pay you when someone clicks on a link.

IF you choose to become an Amazon affiliate, be sure you put on your blog the following disclaimer: Purchase links help to support this blog.

So people will know you're using affiliate links.

Again, you run into ethical things when you use those kinds of links, but most people don't care as long as you're honest in your reviews (if you aren't, they'll come back and blast you for it). Why would it be a problem? Because, if you give a book that deserves two stars five stars, throw an affiliate link in there, and the person buys it only to find out the book is terrible, you've just made money on your lie. Bad practice.

Well, that concludes my little series on becoming a book blogger. I hope you all enjoyed it, and you end up with fabulous, healthy, popular review blogs that get a ton of traffic.

Did you follow along? Create a book blog? Share your links below!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo