Men vs Women - Author's Voice

Happy Thursday, and welcome to another writing tips post, everyone! Today, we're talking about your author voice and how it translates to the reader vs how you want it to translate. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

How about a slice of truth to start us off?

If you're a female, chances are very good that, no matter how hard you try, you'll sound like a female when you write (even if from a male POV). Same goes for you males.

While there are authors who've managed to pull off writing as the opposite sex, I'm positive their editor made a huge difference. If that editor was male and the voice in the book was male, he likely told the author that a man/boy would never think/say/do "this." Likewise for the male writing as a female, using a female editor.

So how can we, as writers, fix it?

Let's go into the male writing as a female first:

Women are emotionally driven creatures. We cry, we care, and we talk about our personal lives a lot. When we talk, we generally use softer words like "would you mind" and "what do you think about this." We're often unsure about what we say or how it will come off to other people (we care about what you hear), and we don't like to hurt feelings or be crass.

Our thought process leans toward our families or responsibilities when we're in peril, and most of us aren't as highly competitive as men. To get us interested, you have to put out a ton of feeling and market to our gentle, helpful, feminine side. We also love to be empowered.

Now, women writing as men:

Men are action and solution driven creatures. If there's no clear goal, and the character isn't fighting toward something they can achieve against all odds, men won't identify. They use clear, demanding speech, that tends to lean toward sarcasm and "taboo" topics. They don't talk about personal things, and they generally prefer confrontation to descriptive floweriness.

Their thought process leans toward the thrill of the moment, and most of them desire to win. To get them interested, you have to market to their competitive, thrill-seeking side.

How do you get to know a woman's thought process? Spend time talking with them, asking questions, and paying attention to how they interact with their peers. Same goes for how to get into a man's head. You have to really immerse yourself in the gender if you want to be believable.

Go now and take a look at ads geared toward women, and then look at some geared toward men. See any difference? That's what connecting with a gender is all about. Books work the exact same way.

If you're a non-fiction writer, you may need to create two separate books; one that uses language women want, and one that appeals to men.

Male readers consume only 20% of the literary fiction read today. Know what that means? Right! Women are left with a whopping 80% of the pie.

Wow.

So what do the other 80% of men read? Sci-Fi, History, and Political. Certainly food for thought.

Have you stepped into the shoes of the opposite gender? How did it work out for you?

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

Jo

Book Review - Never Forgotten

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I have a book review for you today. *grin* This title will go into the 2014 Time for Books Review Team pool (I'm finally up to 14 reviews this year). If you haven't been over there to check out the reviews these awesome ladies and gents have read, you gotta check it out. With today's book, it'll make 340. I'm blown away by their commitment. Here are the bloggers involved:

Me (obviously)
Kelly Risser
Ashley Simpson
Maria Pease
Elizabeth Newton
K. J. Farnham
David Rose
Tia Bach
Ren Reidy
Beth and Tiffany
Samantha
Ashley Bodette
Rachel Barnard
Karen Metcalf
Autumn Nauling

Be sure and check them out. Great reviewers up there!

Let's get on to the book on the table for review today.

Title: Never Forgotten (Never Forgotten Book 1)
Author: Kelly Risser
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Length (print): 314 pages
Buy link: Amazon Kindle FREE

Blurb:
How can one day go so very wrong? One minute Meara Quinn is making plans for how she will spend the Summer before her senior year and the next she's finding out that her mother's cancer has returned and they are moving away from the only home she's ever known.

Now every day is a struggle as Meara is trying to cope with her mother's illness, being forced to move to another country to live with grandparents—whom she thought disowned her mother—and having weird visions of a father who was absent her entire life. Top it all off with one whopping secret that everyone seems bent on keeping from her, and Meara has the perfect ingredients for a major melt down.

The only things keeping her from coming unglued are some new friends and Evan—the son of her mother's childhood friend—who seems to know Meara almost better than she knows herself.

Together with Evan and her friends, Meara embarks on a new journey to unlock the secrets that will not only tell Meara who she is, but what she is.

***Will not appear in review elsewhere. You all know what a book cover lover I am. This one speaks so much to what's inside. That lighthouse provides a turning point for the main character, and the softness screams inner turmoil. I love the font, love the boldness of the text, and appreciate the author's name being a definitive part of the overall design. Nicely done.***

Moving on to the review!

I grabbed this book a couple of weeks ago on Amazon and dove right in. I've never read a book that dealt with sea creatures, and I was super intrigued. I liked that the author based the tale on well-known myths, and I learned about some new things I'd never heard of. Anyway, let's get to the juicy stuff.

From a Reader's Perspective:
Character wise, I liked Meara. I thought she and her mother had a beautiful bond going on, and every time something horrid would happen, I held my breath as I waited to see if it would be "the" moment. I found myself torn between relief and exasperation several times because I wanted the story to move forward at the same time I wanted the mother to survive just a little longer. Pacing was steady, but slow. It's like a simmer that never reaches the boil it's threatening. When the big moments were happening, I wanted more emotion from Meara. I'm intrigued by her father, her aunts, and the guys at the club. All the members of the family seem to have a lot of mystery surrounding them.

There's one place where Meara is getting a pedicure, but I knew she was self-conscious of her feet, and I wondered if that was something she'd do. Seemed out of character.

Plot wise, it was most excellent. I could clearly see the main character experience change from page one to the end. She started out as a shy girl who didn't take risks ever. By the end, she was still scared, but willing to take a leap of faith to discover herself.

If you're looking for answers to any of the mysteries of the family, you won't find them in this series starter. It's more of the day to day life of Meara as her future hangs in the balance. Like I said before, the pace is slow, but it seems more about discovery and raising the questions to be answered in later books.

Yes, there's a cliffhanger, and I want to read book two so I can have some answers. Luckily, all three books in the series are already out.

From an Editor's Perspective:
It needs a proofreader with a really good eye. There are a number of misused words, and some repetitive scenes that would be cleaned up with one more run through. Example: She caught herself, and her checks grew red. Other than those, it was clean on the pronouns, punctuation, and structure.

Rating:
1 Star for giving me a mother/daughter relationship I loved
1 Star for plot and a growing MC
1 Star for introducing me to new myths and making me want more
-1 Star for pacing and never quite hitting full boil
.5 Star for editing
-.5 Star for editing
Overall, 3.5 out of 5 stars. I round up when clicking stars, so this book will get a 4. Recommended if you enjoy a book that takes its time and leaves you wanting more.

What do you think? Have you read it? Plan to?

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

Jo

Avoiding the Backstory Infodump by Using Layers

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, we're talking about backstory. Every character has one, but no one wants it shoved in their face in huge chunks. I'll be giving you some ways to work the yummy goodness in as your story progresses so you can avoid the dreaded infodump. Ready? Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

#1: Throw out tidbits in dialogue

This one can be fun. Say you have two characters arguing. One friend screams at the main character about an embarrassing or revealing thing that happened in the past that shaped the MC's personality. Boom. Backstory. One character can also be talking to another and reveal something about the MC's past to explain why he/she reacted the way they did in a situation. There's no need for a whole conversation about it; just throw things in here or there.

#2: First person thoughts

I have an excellent example of this one! In Fractured Glass Kelly Risser lets Sloan remember a time when she and Diego rode an amusement park ride and he yakked afterward. This reveal came when he groaned through her earpiece after she flipped around and around, and she needed to recall his motion sickness issue. It flowed right into the story, but gave the reader a better understanding of Diego.

#3: Memories

This one can be a bit tricky. Some people go into memories as a whole separate scene, but they don't have to be set apart. You can add a snatch of them here and there like sprinkles, rather than dredging the entire cupcake and leaving the reader with a mouth full of pasty yuck. When the character sees a rose, he/she can have three lines of memory that recalls the funeral of a good friend. Don't get bogged down in details.

#4: Third person narrative

While it isn't the best way to work in a lot of drama, you can have the narrator recall a situation where the MC changed or did something amazing/horrid. "This one time, at band camp, Harry and Joe..." You get my point.

#5: Long flashbacks or dreams

This is where you cut out a chunk of story and lend it to the character's drama. It becomes a whole separate scene in the chapter where you go into feelings, who, what, when, and where. Long flashbacks should be used sparingly (italics are hard on the eyes). If in a dream sequence, try offsetting it with asterisks rather than setting in italics. Be sure you're setting time and space in there somewhere so you don't lose the reader.

#6: Paperwork

Exactly what it says. Maybe the character finds an old newspaper article stuffed in a photo album that was locked in a trunk in the attic for fifty years. Perhaps it's birth certificates. If you're V. C. Andrews, it would most certainly be the latter, and the document revealing Mom and Dad as brother and sister won't be discovered by the child until the last page of the last book. Yikes.

Something important to remember: Don't use these items until your story has been well established. Readers need some mystery as they dive into the prose, and most don't want to be dumped on early in the novel. When there's nothing left to discover, why keep reading?

I hope you found these tips useful.

Any you hadn't thought of?

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

Jo

A Daily Cup of Jo - Veteran Interview with Elizabeth Kirke

Happy Monday, everyone! Today's post will be short and sweet because we're officially kicking off the radio show (and I'm super nervous and unable to think right now). Ha!

You'll remember my guest, Elizabeth Kirke, from the interview I did with her a while back (find it here).

Jump on over and join in at 10am EST! You can find us here. We'll open the floor to questions the last five minutes of air time.

If you miss it live, you can always listen to it later via the same link. I hope you enjoy it!

What do you think? Did you listen?

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

Jo

13 Rules for Stronger Writing

Happy Friday, everyone! Wow, it's the weekend already. I feel like I've missed out on a couple of days in here somehow. Anywho, today is all about making your writing stronger. I have thirteen tips that'll help you keep your writing flowing. Ready? Awesome. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

No dallying today. Right into it. When examples are given, what you shouldn't do will be in red, what you should do will be in green.

1. Use active voice. Don't use were. Reconstruct your sentences to read as it is. Example: There were fifteen girls standing on the field. Fifteen girls stand on the field.
2. Kill the truth. If reality is blocking, make up new rules. You're writing fiction, after all.
3. Unite common phrases. Things that go together, stay together. Example: Molly lifted her arm and then, with a roar like a lion, she began beating the door. Molly lifted her arm, roared like a lion, and beat the door.
4. Write as you see. When you're writing, think visually about the scene, and use the imagery as fodder.
5. Catch the beat. All writing has a rhythm. You know it. Use it.
6. IT is a horror story. Beware of dangling "it" in your prose. Example: I thought it was strange. I thought the chair scooting across the floor by itself was strange.
7. Sentence structure variation. Don't write the same sentence over and over. Example: I walked into the kitchen. I got a glass from the cabinet. I filled the glass with water, and I drank. I drank it in one gulp. I walked into the kitchen, grabbed a glass, and filled it with water. As thirsty as I was, it went down in one gulp.
8. Marry related words. Keep things together that go together. Example: Henry stared at the float in the pool that was spinning in the middle. Henry stared at the float spinning in the middle of the pool.
9. Allow the reader to infer. Don't over explain. Example: "I'll do anything I can to help," Tina said lovingly. "I'll do anything I can to help," Tina said.
10. Create parallels. Mix some ideas and compare two unrelated things.
11. Kill repetition. Don't use the same word more than once in a paragraph; your reader will feel like they're reading the same sentence again and again.
12. Use one instead of two. If you can delete a word and not lose meaning, do so. Example: A scary, creepy spider is crawling up my leg. A creepy spider is crawling up my leg.
13. Beef up with stronger verbs and concrete nouns. Use these to replace adverbs and adjectives.

I hope you got some good tips today. Any of these that you didn't know?

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

Jo

Authors Reviewing Authors - Warning: Opinion Piece Ahead!

Happy Thursday, everyone! Today, I'm going to talk about a hot-button topic I've seen floating around Facebook and give you my two cents on the issue. I may make you angry, or I may make you think. Either way, know this is just one person's opinion. We all have them, and you know what they say about that. Fair warning. If you don't think you'd like to hear mine, feel free to stop reading (I'll be okay).

For those of you still with me, brace yourselves.

Amazon's ToS says you're not allowed to review competing products. For authors, that means you're not supposed to review books on Amazon.

Well, I wonder if anyone considered that most authors were readers long before they became writers. In my humble opinion, this is one way Amazon uses to be able to remove sock puppet reviews with zero backlash. If someone goes to the site and slams a ton of books that aren't theirs into the ether, Amazon can remove them and point to their ToS as reason.

Okay, I get that. I can even get behind it because it makes sense. You don't post a crappy review on a book just to drag it down in the ranks so yours can shine.

Someone said, "Authors reviewing authors is unprofessional. Once we've written books, we can't appreciate books like we used to."

It's this I have an issue with.

You see, I'm an author and editor, and I can still read a book where I get totally lost in the scenarios, characters, and world.

Do I see errors more prominently now? Yes, I do.

Does that ruin the story for me? Nope.

Does that mean I don't make the mistakes I see? Nope.

I understand books won't be error free. Hell, most trade published books have errors. But as a person, I'm allowed to be bothered and voice my opinion.

I don't take ARC copies for review. When something happens and I either end up not being able to read and review the book or I don't like it, I feel terrible about it. I decided long ago to only take books for review once a year, in December, during my big event, and I buy each and every one I choose (yeah, I like having the little "Amazon Verified Purchase" thing on my review).

I refuse to rate a book less than three stars. Why? Because anything less than that and I don't finish reading the book. How can I review something I haven't read all of? If it kept my interest to the last page, it deserves more than two stars. That, in and of itself, is worthy of three stars.

Professionalism denotes I contact the author privately (if I choose to do so) if I find a gross number of errors, not me going into the realm of internet and slamming the title (though I'd be within my rights to do so). If I just didn't like the story? Well, then it's up to me as a reader to stop reading the title and let it go. If the author asks, I'll tell them. If not, I don't lose sleep over it.

I do think we all need boundaries of what we will and won't do.

Here's the crux of the issue: Would I say something in my review that I wouldn't say to the author directly? Absolutely not. If I read a book and have a thought, I'd be willing to discuss the why and where with the author all day. Again, that doesn't mean I don't make the same mistakes, it means it's easier to see errors in someone else's work than it is my own. This is why we have beta-readers and book reviewers. If we won't be honest, who will be?

Let me be transparent with you all for a moment. If I didn't write book reviews, or hold my blog's big review request event each year, how many of you would lose out? What is it you'd be losing?

If authors didn't review books, how many reviews do you really think there would be?

I've been reading since I was very young. I took weekly trips to the library beginning at age six, and I devoured up to ten books a week. When I realized I could help others find great books by providing feedback in the form of a review, I jumped at the chance to do so. As a bonus, this helps the authors find readers and increase their review numbers.

How many people pay for a review? Why do they do that? Well, because reviews matter. Those paid ones aren't even guaranteed to be positive.

Not everyone is going to love every book--that's nonsensical. But for anyone to tell me I shouldn't be writing reviews because I write books is also nonsensical. Could I burn a bridge or two? Yes, I could. But anyone who takes my review and turns it negative won't be back to ask for another one anyway, right? Could they troll my books? Yes, they could.

Will that stop me? Nope.

Why? Because I feel I've done more good than harm, and trolls are easy to spot (readers can tell).

Here are most of my reviews. To date, I've published almost 100 on Amazon.

If I can't be professional about a negative review as much as I am about a positive one, I'm in the wrong business.

It all boils down to this: I'm a person who loves books. I'll continue to do what I did (recommend books to other people), before the internet existed and before I became an author, until I can no longer type. No one will come between me and my books. Amazon kicks me off? Okay. I have a blog. Blogger shuts me down? Well, I'll go elsewhere. Either way, my reviews aren't going anywhere, and no one should expect them to or tell me I'm in the wrong. Making a blanket statement that calls reviewers who are also authors unprofessional... Well, it's unprofessional.

"Opinions are like assholes. Everyone has one, but no one really wants to hear them."

After all, a love of books and storytelling is why we all started writing, isn't it?

How many book bloggers have become authors later on? Does that make all the reviews they've written and plan to continue to write obsolete?

Is it fair of me to expect other people to review my books if I'm not out there writing reviews for someone else and paying it forward?

Get in here and give me your opinion. Just remember to play nice.

If I didn't do my event each year, what would you miss? If I quit writing reviews, what would you miss? Would you care? Why? What have you gained?

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

Jo

Book Review - Refuge

Happy Wednesday! You all know what Wednesday means, right? Yup, you got it, a book review. This will go into the 2015 Time for Books Review Team's pool, making our count to date 323! Want to join in the fun? You still can! Grab the badge, decide on a commitment level, create a post on your book blog saying you're joining, add your name and link to the linky thing here, and get to reading! That's it. Every time you read a book and review it, come on back and put your review in the list. Easy peasy!

This title is from my TBR created during the 12 Days of Review Requests event here on the blog. As a quick reminder, here's where I am in the process:
The Release Club 1 - Misty Provencher - Review HERE
Dry Stories - Kate Baggot - Review HERE
Fragile Creatures - Kristina Circelli - Review HERE
8 Weeks - Bethany Lopez - Review HERE
Moonlight - David Rose - Review HERE
Refuge - Violet Haze - Review Below

Currently reading: From the Wreckage - Michelle G. Miller - Amazon Kindle FREE

Bound by Duty - Stormy Smith - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Shadows on Snow (A Flipped Fairy Tale) - Starla Hutchon - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Tree of Everlasting Knowledge - Christine Nolfi - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Facade: A Vampire Love Story - R. M. Webb - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Siren - Jennifer Melzer - Amazon Kindle (Pre-order) $3.99 Grab a sample on Drive!
Queen of Someday - Sherry Ficklin - Amazon Kindle $5.99
At One's Beast - Rachel Barnard - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Unseen - Stephanie Erickson - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Heart Thief - S. Lee Benedict - Amazon Kindle $4.99
Kindling Flames-Gathering Tinder - Julie Wetzel - Amazon Kindle FREE
Kinetic: Book One of the Kinetic Trilogy - C. M. Zimmer - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Destiny Finds Her - Miranda Lynn - Amazon Kindle $2.99
To Get Me to You - Kait Nolan - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Lady of Souls - Jenn Gott - Amazon Kindle $4.99
Sticks and Stones - Shawn McGuire - Amazon Kindle $0.99
Good Luck With That Thing You're Doing: One Woman's Adventures in Dating, Plumbing and Other Full Contact Sports - Karen Yankosky - Amazon Kindle $2.99
Desprite Measures-The Caledonian Sprite - Deborah Jay - Amazon Kindle $2.99
The Last Guardian Rises - Rebecca Trogner - Amazon Kindle $0.99 

Here's a little about the book:

Title: Refuge (Evie #1)
Author: Violet Haze
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Length (print): 112 pages
Buy Link: Amazon Kindle $2.99

Blurb:
Zee has no idea who she is, or how she ended up in the psych ward of a hospital three months ago. Living a rather blissful life of quiet time, three meals a day, and therapy involving two doctors — one of which has a sexy voice and nice hands — Zee isn’t ready to cope with her truth.

As her memory returns, Zee discovers exactly who she is and what happened, and reality catches up with her in a way she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to deal with.

Ultimately, Zee makes choices which lead her and the one person closest to her down new paths neither of them could’ve seen coming.


Ready for the review? So am I! Let's get to it:

I grabbed a sample of Refuge when the author pitched it to me during my 12 Days of Review Requests event on my blog. Mental illness? Yes, please! I'm familiar with Haze's writing from her other name, C. S. Janey, so I figured I'd enjoy it. Well, I was intrigued enough by the end of the sample to snag a copy and add it to my TBR for 2015. Okay, enough about how I came to own the book, let's get to the good stuff.

From a Reader's Perspective:
This was a quick, short read that packed a lot of punch. I enjoyed the author's storytelling. There were moments when I wondered what the heck was going on, only to have a chapter that took me back in time to show me. While short stories usually don't give you much of a feel for the main character, I felt like I got a good handle on the main character, Zee. Much of her life is completely identifiable, and her reasoning in the end was on par with what someone in her situation might do. Flow/pacing was great, and the plot was a most excellent one. Completely tore at my heartstrings. I wanted more, but the end of this novelette says there's a book two, so I'm okay and not okay with the way it left me hanging.

From an Editor's Perspective:
I found a number of misplaced commas, but they were only slightly bothersome. While I'll have to detract half a star, because it's such a short work and I expect fewer mistakes, it's nothing to worry over. There's plenty of structure variation to keep you interested.

Rating:
1 Star for plot and engagement of my emotions
1 Star for character development
1 Star for twisting and turning in a most excellent manner
.5 Stars for the ending (me being sort of okay)
-.5 Stars for the ending (me wanting more but being sad)
.5 Stars for construct and variation of sentences
-.5 Stars for comma usage
Overall: 4 out of 5 stars. Recommended if you're looking for a short read with an excellent plot and good character development.

Have you read it? Plan to?

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

Jo