Review: The Sun Dwellers

Review: The Sun Dwellers by David Estes

The Sun Dwellers by David Estes

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Absolutely a must read!

The Dwellers Saga concludes with the Sun Dwellers. Adele and Tristan set off for the Sun Realm with their close friends on a mission to kill the tyrant, President Nailin. They face nearly impossible odds on what just may turn out to be a suicide mission, but the Sun Dweller army is wreaking havoc in the Moon and Star Realms and their people can't last for long.

The action and imagery in this story surpassed even my high expectations (based on its predecessors). The artificial sky with it's man made sun and diamond stars captured my imagination. The reveling citizens, the crowds, the disguises, all are vividly portrayed in a fun and fluid way. And of course, the end game is fantastic and kept me up way too late for my own good.

Legacy post: Getting Published, a daunting task.

I'm new to blogspot, but not necessarily new to blogging (well, not brand new anyways).  My Goodreads blog has been going strong since last October with many posts covering topics such as self-publishing, agents, writing and pre-writing.  As such, I plan to share some of my legacy posts with you periodically, starting with my very first blog post, "Getting published, a daunting task".  

Don't want to wait for the next legacy post?  Just click the title below to jump to my Goodreads blog.  I'm sure it will keep you busy for some time.

October 31, 2012

Getting published, a daunting task.

Welcome to my blog.
I decided to start this blog to celebrate my favorite pastime, reading, and more recently, writing.

This year has been an uncommon one for me in that I've managed to totally immerse myself in the art, starting in January when I finally wrapped up my first writing project, The Golden Ship, and first considered the prospect of getting it published.

Getting published: a daunting task. What do publishers want? They want you to have an agent. Yikes, an agent? Yes, I researched it for months on Writers Digest and on various publishers' webpages. All signs pointed to an agent. Statements like, we no longer accept direct submissions, were common. So, I started researching ways to attract an agent.

What do agents want? To find out, I joined Writers Digest and started collecting notes on the new agents they advertise. New agents are an excellent opportunity for new writers, so they said. I also visited and devoted countless hours to reading the blogs of a few well established agents. My favorite was Getting past the gatekeeper. It revealed valuable insight into what agents like and things to avoid. Plus, I learned about query letters, bios, and submissions for the first time.

This was getting complicated.

Published on October 31, 2012 12:34 • Tags: agents, publishing,writing

The Star Dwellers by David Estes

Review: The Star Dwellers by David Estes

The Star Dwellers by David Estes

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The Star Dwellers is an adventure that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

The story picks up just after Adele and Tristan part ways. Adele and Tawni are in the tunnels leading to the Star Realm and Tristan, Roc and Elsey are with Ben Rose (Adele's father) in the resistance headquarters in the Moon Realm.

Adele's adventure is fraught with danger as she first dodges Sun Realm troups and later fights insanity brought on by an insidious illness. But, both she and Tawni make it through and reach the Star Realm, if not in one piece, then near enough to be of use. But not all is as expected in the dreary underworld of the Tri-Realms. Their army is better equipped than they should be and Adele is suspicious.

Self-publishing on Kindle

Hello all,

I've been a little heavier on the book reviews than on official blog posts lately. Every time I finish one I sign up for two more, totally my fault of course. But today I'm on vacation and my "currently reading" shelf is down to a reasonable three, so it's time for a real post, the topic: self-publishing on Kindle.

Recently, a friend of mine told me how publishing my books has inspired her to write one of her own. She also told me that figuring out how to self-publish was difficult, even with web addresses in hand. So, here's a quick run down of how to get your story published on Kindle.

1. Read Building Your Book for Kindle. This free book walks you through the process, with instructions geared towards people writing their books in Microsoft Word and, of course, publishing on Kindle.

2. Write your book, edit your book, and proofread your book. Make it as perfect as you can possibly get it. Reviewers on Amazon can be brutal. Consider asking some close friends to review it and give you comments, or, if you have the cash, consider soliciting the help of a professional.

Review: The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Two Towers is the second book in J.R.R. Tolkien's epic fantasy, The Lord of the Rings. The story picks up right after the Fellowship tasked with destroying Sauron's One Ring parts ways for good.

First up, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli set out to rescue Merry and Pippin, who were taken by the orcs of Saruman at the end of the previous book. Running for three days, they encounter Eomer of the Rohirim (or Riders of Rohan) who inform them that the orcs have been slain and no hobbits spotted. In return for a promise to return them, the three companions borrow three riderless horses to complete their journey to Fangorn Forrest hoping against all odds that Merry and Pippen live.

Review: Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Fellowship of the Ring is an epic fantasy set in Middle Earth starring hobbits, dwarves, elves and even a few men.

I love this story. I remember the first time I read it, at twelve. It took me three days to get through the Hobbit and the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. All I did was eat, sleep, and read.

I remember the chills that ran down my spine as Frodo and Sam first hid from the mysterious black riders (Ringwraiths) as they raced through the Shire and later on the road to Rivendell. The simple ring of invisibility (from The Hobbit) having taken on a dark purpose and the formation of the fellowship of the ring to take it into the very heart of Mordor captured my mind and drew me on.

The characters, the places and the enemies are what make the story so memorable to me. So I wanted to list each below with a brief description (most are spoilers if you haven't read this before, but probably not that bad if you've seen the movie).

Review: Oooeelie by Kenneth Crowe

Oooeelie by Kenneth Crowe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Intriguing and complex...

Oooeelie, a superior being who crash lands on earth tens of thousands of years ago in mankind's infancy, is stranded. Lonely, he mentally connects with a human girl to form a bridge between himself and her tribe. In the process, she speaks the very first fully formed word, Oooeelie.

Fast forward to modern day New York, the original Oooeelie is long dead. However, he isn't gone. Joanna, a dissatisfied woman is plagued by recurring dreams that feature strange cave paintings, a shaman and her dog, Oooeelie. Through chance, she comes across a picture in an old book that exactly matches her dreams and tracks its origins to an address in the city. What she doesn't know is that the building hosts the offices of the Order of Man, an organization whose members have systematically tracked down and destroyed Oooeelies throughout history.

Beyond Goodreads: book-based social networking

It's been awhile since I last posted about my travails as an independent author, and one of the trickiest and most time consuming activities for any author is marketing. That's why I decided to write a short blurb on a few of the book related social networks I've come across since my books were published last year.

Currently, I know of three: Goodreads, Shelfari, and LibraryThing.

So here's what I think.

Goodreads 
What I like: free, easy to use, vibrant community of active members, meeting other authors, Read to Review programs, groups, message boards, free blog, author dashboard, html tips, ability to edit reviews and blogs you've written, ability to post reading status updates, talks to Facebook, ability to follow reviews, become a fan, block people from following you, friending

Am I addicted to it: yes

What I don't like: can't save a review in progress, have to finish in one sitting, book setup as an author is a pain in the behind (worth it, but painful), you have to upload your own picture of your cover or your book has the dreary generic look