Finisher or Flinger? by Mackenzie Crowne

For a lot of years, I couldn’t bring myself to quit a book I’d started until I’d read the words “The End”. My inability to set an unfinished book aside worked out just fine for the most part, resulting in many hours of satisfying entertainment. There were, of course, those times when the genre wasn’t my favorite, or the story was okay, just not my style. On other occasions, however, I’d find myself gritting my teeth and asking, “How the hell did this book ever get published?”

Trust me when I say I’ve read some really BAD books from cover to cover. I’m talking major stinkers that left me groaning and thinking, surely, I could come up with a more believable plot line and dialog that wouldn’t make readers cringe in embarrassment for the author. The excruciating hours I spent working my way through those books are partially responsible for my decision to finally do something with my writing compulsion.

But, I digress…

The birth of my boys changed me from a finisher to a flinger and I became very selective when choosing my next escape. With my personal entertainment window shrunk to stolen minutes and nap schedules, I no longer had the time to put up with stories that didn’t hold my rapt attention. I knew firsthand that judging a book by its cover is fraught with peril, which left the blurb. The trouble with that selection process is, an interesting blurb doesn’t always translate into a well-written story, nor does it always give an accurate representation of an author’s voice. But hey, I can’t come down hard on an author for a murky blurb. As someone who’s had to produce a number of them, I can honestly say that whittling a 100k story down to 500 words is a real bitch. 

But that’s a whole other story…

Bottom line, the only sure-fire way to know if a story is any good is to dive in and read. Then, if the story isn’t for you, go ahead and fling. Life is short, after all. On the other hand, don’t be too quick to break up with that book. You never know when you’ll stumble onto a little gem that starts out iffy only to end up an all-time favorite.

For me, one of those sparkling jewels is Warrior’s Woman, book 1 of the Ly-San-Ter series by Johanna Lyndsey. The sub-genre was my problem. I’d never read a Space Travel romance and wasn’t sure I wanted to, but I persevered. (Mostly because I was on a beach vacation and only had a couple books with me. I didn’t want to waste one – and I’m SO glad I didn’t.)

This book introduced me to one of my favorite authors. If you haven’t sampled Johanna, I highly recommend her. Years later, many of her titles, including the entire Ly-San-Ter series, hold a treasured place on my re-read shelf.

So, what about you? Are you one of those people who can fling a book to the side midway through the reading because it just isn’t working for you? Or are you the type who must always finish what you’ve started?

When Mac isn’t bashing her head against her keyboard as she struggles to write the blurb for her latest release, she’s busy weaving happily-ever-afters for her characters, like the heroes and heroines of her PLAYERS series available at Kensington Publishing and wherever e-books are sold.

The Art of the Blurb by Alison Henderson

By the time you read this, I will be deep in my edits, probably moaning and tearing my hair. However, at the moment I'm taking advantage of my last few days of freedom to work on the blurb for UNDERCOVER NANNY that will become my Amazon product description.

As you know, blurbs vary widely in length and level of detail. Some are mere teasers. Others spell out most of the main plot points. I've read quite a number of articles on how to write great product descriptions, but I'm not sure I got many useful pointers from any of them. Some were written by professional marketers, and others by authors discussing the elements and style that have worked for there. I'm not a marketing guru, but personal preference seems to play a major role.

So, what about you? When you're looking for a new book, what do you look for in a blurb? Do you want a brief description that gives you an idea of the tone of the book but only a broad overview of the characters and plot? Or do you feel more comfortable (and therefore more likely to part with your hard-earned cash) if you have a better idea of the story?

I don't think most readers like super-long blurbs, so I've written two potential options for UNDERCOVER NANNY: one with approximately 100 words, and one twice that length. I would love your opinion as to which would make you more likely to hit the "Buy" button.

#1

Kidnapping. Extortion. Antiquities smuggling. Add one light-fingered, bad-tempered monkey, and it’s all in a day’s work for novice bodyguard Casey Callahan.

She has been hired to protect the five-year-old niece of archaeology professor Alec Bainbridge from would-be kidnappers while posing as the child’s nanny—a task made all the more challenging by the escapades of Balthazar, a Capuchin with an attitude.

Amid break-ins, anonymous threats, and possible arson, Casey and Alec race to identify the villains before they harm the child or make off with a priceless Egyptian artifact. All the while, their growing mutual attraction becomes a complication too powerful to ignore.

#2

Kidnapping. Extortion. Antiquities smuggling. Add one light-fingered, bad-tempered monkey, and it’s all in a day’s work for novice bodyguard Casey Callahan.

Casey has been working part-time for an all-female bodyguard agency while finishing her graduate degree. In her first solo assignment, she has been hired to protect the five-year-old niece of a handsome archaeology professor from would-be kidnappers while posing as the child’s nanny. When she arrives at the house, she is startled to learn her duties will also include wrangling the little girl’s staunch companion, an impudent Capuchin named Balthazar.

Alec Bainbridge has been balancing excavation and teaching duties with single parenthood since the death of his sister. When a stranger attempts to take his niece from school, his fears push him to hire a bodyguard. However, the young woman who shows up is a far cry from the matronly type he was expecting.

Despite Alec and Casey's best efforts, the anonymous threats continue to escalate, sending them on a race to identify the villains before they harm the child or make off with a priceless Egyptian artifact. All the while, their growing mutual attraction becomes a complication too powerful to ignore.

Do you like either? Should I mix and match elements? I want to give readers enough, but not too much. It's a fine line, and any help you can give will be most appreciated.

Alison
www.alisonhenderson

Welcome to March Madness by Jena Galifany

To most people, March Madness has something to do with Basketball. At least that's what came up when I googled it. Not my thing, though. When it comes to sports, if you want me to play football, baseball, or basketball, I'm all for it (or was some years ago. I'd probably break something now). If you want me to sit and watch, nope. It ain't happening. I'll watch drag racing. Anything else, no thank you.

March Madness in my neck of the woods will include, but is not limited to, editing and hopefully releasing my latest book, DAY LABOR,  attending a business luncheon to learn how to be better at business since I own and operate a used book store, a children's clothing store, and an answering service that is in litigation due to an upset competitor (long story best left alone for now). The court date is in March. My youngest child will be turning twenty-one on the twenty-third.

Amanda, Nick, and Jenevie - My Children

DAY LABOR is the product of the 2011 NaNoWriMo. It is a story that I wrote in my head some time ago after seeing a young man standing on the street corner with a nicely lettered sign that simply stated "DAY LABOR". He was dressed in jeans, a denim jacket and work boots. He looked ready to work at a moments notice and I was impressed by his smile and attitude as he tried to hustle some form of employment. Most of the guys like this in my town don't even stand up. They sit on the curb and hold up a scribbled sign that can hardly be read.

I saw him and he stuck in my mind. In the time it took me to drive from that corner, approximately three and a half miles to my house, I had most of the outline finished in my head. I love it when that happens. I dashed off my notes into the computer and promptly forgot about it, until NaNoWriMo came up about two years later. Now was my chance to make the story come to life. I had watched the entire "movie" in my head several times so I know it wouldn't take long.

It took me twenty-nine days to write the first draft of DAY LABOR. It is probably considered to be chick lit. After polishing and buffing and sanding it into shape, I was please when it was accepted by Red Rose Publishing. Now the real work will begin. I've been contacted by the editor and await the first round. Needless to say, I'm excited.

With luck, DAY LABOR will be released in March and I'll have eight books to brag about, I mean promote. I'm sorry I don't have any cover art yet, but I'll share it as soon as I have it.

Wish me luck and not too much MADNESS!

STORY BLURB: 

How far should a woman go to give the man she loves everything he wants? Beth does what ever it takes to assure Mark's happiness. With any luck, he will never know what she's done to give him what he wants most.

How far should a man go to provide for the needs of the woman he loves? Troy will do what ever it takes to provide for his wife during her high risk pregnancy. With any luck, she will never know what he's done to give her the best care money can buy.

EXCERPT:

“Breakfast is ready.” Beth called down the hall and watched as Mark trudged toward her, tucking in his shirt tail. As he passed her on the way to the kitchen, he gave her a weak peck on the cheek. “How romantic.”

“Best I can do. Apparently I’m not good for much any more.” He dropped into the chair at the table, and took a slow drink of his coffee.

Beth grimaced. “Now you're sounding like Grant. You’re great at a lot of things, Mark. Why are you letting the whole thing get to you like this? Does this challenge have anything to do with Grant and that stupid letter almost a year ago?” She sat at her place across from him, and took her fork in hand.

“Grant has nothing to do with me being a failure. That’s all on me.” Mark poured syrup on his pancakes. He took another drink of coffee, his gaze on his plate.

“This all started with that letter. Did he tell you that if you had a baby in a certain amount of time, you’d get into his will?” She huffed as she grasped at any idea that would explain why the urgency and pressure. “Tell him to stuff it. We don’t need his money. We’ve got plenty of our own.”

Mark shouted, “It’s not the money.” Beth jumped at his out-burst, and dropped her fork into her plate. “I want a baby!” Mark stood abruptly, turned and left the room.

Beth remained at the table, unable to understand what just happened. Mark had never raised his voice to her before. Tears pooled in her eyes as she sat stunned. She waited for him to come back into the room. She could hear him gathering his things for work. She’d wait, and give him some time to calm down. She tensed when she heard his foot falls coming down the hall. He stopped at the kitchen door and stared at her for a long moment.

“I’m sorry, Beth. I don’t know why this is eating at me like it is. I nearly beat a confession out of some scum bag yesterday. If Ari hadn’t stopped me, I’d probably be up on charges of brutality. I just wish I could do this one thing. That would make everything all right again.” He moved to her side, knelt down, and took her hand. “We’ll find some way to make this happen. I promise.” He kissed her hand, and stood. “I’ve got to go.”

            Before she could respond, Mark walked briskly through the kitchen and out the door to the garage. She listened to the outside garage door opening and closing. Beth took a deep breath as she made up her mind to seek out the man that could possibly help give her husband what he so desperately wanted.

________________________

So there you have it. My version of March Madness. By the end of March, I should have a new book to promote, a business free and clear of any legal matters and all of my children of legal age. I'm sure after all of this, I'll be ready to move into April with happy dances and songs.

No, wait. April 1st, my husband will  turn fifty-five. April 2nd, Jury Duty. (sigh)

Cheers!

Jena Galifany

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Book Blurbs That Grab Readers

By Glenys O'Connell

Some days the words just don't flow. Usually, being a journalist, if you give me any subject and ask for 500 words, I'm right there. Done.

Yet this month, out of the blue, I looked at the lovely list of topics posted for this month for the Roses blog and - zippp! - my mind went blank.

That's an experience similar to staring at the blue screen of death when your computer crashes.

Help!

I tried all the usual things: extra strong coffee; refusing to leave the office chair until I'd written; moving out to the patio with a notebook hoping a change of scene would spur some neuron activity; taking a walk; eating chocolate - none of the tried and true tactics worked.It got worse as I watched my fellow Roses coming up with all kinds of clever blogs on the themes while my screen remained - blank.

I don't know why....

And when I did start thinking in a writerly fashion, it turned out I was way off topic. I was actually thinking about book blurbs, the short descriptions on the back cover that hope to hook you into buying.

So instead of something fascinatingly informative and witty about frogs or history or Easter, here are my thoughts on book blurbs:

If you are anything like me, you are attracted first by the title and cover, and then by the back cover blurb. 

According to the people who study these things, writers have something like 30 seconds to impress you once you, the potential purchaser, pick up the book. Getting you to open the covers and read the first few lines is crucial! If the book doesn’t grab you then, you'll quite likely put it back on the shelf. So the major part of that battle is to capture your interest enough to get you to actually pick up the book and open the covers. Which means you’ve got to have something pretty special in the back cover blurb.

Tough, but not as hard as it is in movies,where scriptwriters put together a one or two line pitch or ‘logline’ in order to grab a filmmaker’s attention. In classes, I ask students to write a ‘blurb’ about their story in just a couple of sentences and that usually evokes some pretty loud groans, although once they’ve mastered the art, most writers think it’s a real benefit. Distilling your story down to its very essence in a couple of sentences clarifies it for you; it also tells you pretty quickly whether you’ve got a strong idea or not.

Using these few sentences to describe your story can make an editor-grabbing beginning to a query letter! In this stripped down story line, you need to have the names of the main characters, something about their motives, the challenge facing them, and their reactions. The Who, What, When, and Why. You can keep the How part a secret for now – it’s good to leave the reader hungry to know the ending of your story and the fate of the protagonists.

Here’s the blurb for Marrying Money, my soon to be in print romantic comedy release from Red Rose Publishing

Diana, Lady Ashburnham, needs to find a rich husband, and fast.She’s the last of an aristocratic line stretching back 500 years, and she’s broke. The family fortunes have been eaten up by the crumbling mansion and impoverished estate. Not wanting to be known as the ‘Ashburnham Who Lost The Lot’, she refuses to sell off heirloom jewellery or let the estate be auctioned off to a dot.com millionaire or heavy metal rock star.That’s when Diana has her Great Idea – she’ll follow a new take on the way her ancestors raised money – by marrying money! So Diana corals her best friend, Sally Barnes, into joining her on a trip to Ireland to try to net a – preferably titled – millionaire.

See – an entire short novel condensed into six lines. Yet those lines tell the reader a lot about the story, the characters, motivation and setting, without giving away the whole plot.

Another way writers capture a reader’s interest is to have a few lines from a well-known author – or at least someone better known than yourself – praising your story. That’s not so easy to get until you’re fairly well known or you have made a point of making lots of writer friends who now feel indebted to you.

There are dangers inherent in this, however. Groucho Marx is supposed to have written the following note to an author who had requested some kind words to put on the back cover of his novel: ‘From the moment I picked up your book until the moment I put it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Some day I intend reading it.’ Uhmm, when you think about it, not really much of a recommendation!

Then there’s the equally obscure comment from a Victorian English Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, himself the author of several books: ‘Dear Sir, thank you for sending me a copy of your book, which I shall waste no time in reading.’ That’s a double meaning I wouldn’t want on my back cover!

One last thing – have you ever wondered where the word ‘blurb’ came from? (No? Okay, maybe it's just my mind that goes off at these tangents)You must admit it’s a bit of a weird word and doesn’t seem to have any scholarly Latin or Greek roots. According to an article in the Toronto Globe & Mail newspaper about this very topic, we can thank a writer named Gelett Burgess for the phenomena. It seems, according to the Globe, that Burgess wanted to grab attention for his funny book, ‘Are You a Bromide?’ published in 1907. He did so by putting a picture of a pretty young woman on the cover. This fictional young lady’s name was Miss Belinda Blurb, and she assured would-be readers that Burgess’ book was ‘…a terrific read.’

So, readers and fellow authors, what back cover blurbs have grabbed you? Do you like humorous ones, or those that hint of something dark and deadly? How important is the blurb to you when deciding to buy a book? Please share some of your thoughts in the comments column!

Glenys O’Connell is hard at work on a blurb for her next book, Saving Maggie, a romantic suspense/paranormal, and Naked Writing:The No Frills Way to Write Your Book.. Meanwhile, for those who like a lot of humor with their romance, her latest release is Marrying Money, a romantic comendy set in the UK and Ireland,currently an ebook and scheduled to be released in print later this year.