Changing a Book After Its Published

Some authors, based on reviews and suggestions, change a book after it has been published. I'm not talking about fixing punctuation, grammar, typos, etc. Those are changes that should be made. I'm talking about plot changes, rearranging paragraphs, even deleting entire characters.

To me, that just seems wrong. It's like when George Lucas started messing with Star Wars in his "Special Editions". Adding deleted scenes is one thing. I think it would be cool to see a section in the back of a book of those scenes, maybe with little notes throughout the book telling us what page the scene is on. But changing plot lines, deleting/adding sentences throughout the book, stuff like that, it makes me uneasy.

So what do you guys think? Should a book be reworked to that extent once it's been published?

What Is a Writer?

There's a reason I'm a writer and not an artist.

Exercise Your Right to Read

It's Banned Book Week, the time to celebrate your right to read whatever the heck you want! From September 24th (that's today) through October 1st, show your support by reading one of the many books that have been banned over the decades. Can you believe The Lord of the Rings was once burned? It's the cornerstone of modern fantasy! Call of the Wild was banned in Italy and burned by the Nazis. Ok, that one I understand. Call of the Wild made me cry like a baby. I wanted to burn it, too. And who would want to ban Harry Potter? Crazy people! Twilight has been challenged, too, but probably not for the reasons I'd want to ban it. I kid, I kid... or do I?☻

The list of banned classics can be found here. Use the navigation on the side to find more recently banned books.

What is your favorite banned book? What will you be reading this week to support your right to read?

Guest Post: Why Epic Fantasy is Like Shakespeare

Today we have a guest post from the lovely and talented Rhiannon Paille.

Doesn't he look a bit like Dracula?

Why Epic Fantasy is Like Shakespeare

The same reason some of us don’t understand Shakespeare is the same reason that some of us don’t understand Epic Fantasy.

It’s not written the way people talk.

It’s not about making references to guns instead of swords (a la Romeo and Juliet 1996, loved how the guns had the brand name of “Sword”) or cell phones instead of telegrams it’s something else entirely.

It’s all the little words. Today when a boy is hot we just say he’s hot. We don’t go on about how he’s pulchritudinous (which to me doesn’t sound hot at all), or bounteous or becoming. These days we’d say he was attractive, stunning, hot, amazing, beautiful, pretty.

Shakespeare would have gone on and on about a girl’s beauty by comparing her to flowers and the moon and everything else under the sun that’s pretty. And then he’d insult a man by saying he was as pink as a flower (meaning he was gay) and that’s where some of us get lost. We miss the jokes and the snarky comments and the things that make books written in modern language so popular.

When a book is written in modern language, we get it.

When we’re trying to remember what carom, wan, cinch, tarry, esker, roil, etc. etc. means, it stops us from envisioning what’s actually going on in the scene. It’s hard to follow a story when we’re all getting caught up in the words we’ve never heard of before.

And then there’s the conundrum that a lot of the popular Epic Fantasy was written 70-80 years ago. J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis being the biggest examples of that, one day they are going to be the new Shakespeare. Can you imagine the day J.K. Rowling becomes Shakespeare? (You know, when Harry Potter has been around for 80 or 100 years?)

I’ve been the queen of the thesaurus this past year, writing down interesting words I don’t recognize in books and then looking them up. I actively expand my vocabulary, but there’s always room for more growth. I think it’s fun to read epic fantasy for the words, the quests, the adventures, the demons and it gives me a glimpse into the past that I can only get from these books.

When it came to my books, which are epic fantasy, but end up being historical fantasy and later urban fantasy all the while being paranormal romance, I had to choose my words carefully. I chose to write as modern as I could, without removing anything that’s really cool about the land, the characters and the storyline. With any luck, my epic fantasy won’t be difficult to decode. ;)

How about you? What was the last epic fantasy book you read? Did you get it?

Rhi was never a normal girl. She tried, but she couldn’t get rid of the visions, the voices in her head, and the hallucinations. When she was on the edge of crazy someone pulled her back and explained it all. She wasn’t insane. She was psychic, really psychic, too psychic. Her life was an urban fantasy wrapped in a paranormal romance and served with a side of horror. To escape her everyday weirdness she began writing fantasy. She frequents twitter and facebook, but if you really want to get to know her you should visit her site: www.rhiannonpaille.com . Her book Flame of Surrender (The Ferryman and The Flame #1) comes out November 1st, 2011. Check it out here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11841693-flame-of-surrender

Please Help the Victims of Flood 2011

In 2006, upstate New York suffered through what was called the "500-year flood", meaning it had a 0.2% chance of ever happening in the first place. A week and a half ago, the same area was affected by flooding far worse, flooding not seen in nearly 100 years. 

The interstate running through the biggest local city was shut down for days, the mall flooded, several stores destroyed. At one point, the National Guard was following the main river as it overflowed, trying to relieve some of the torment the inhabitants of the floodplains were dealing with.

Petco, a national pet store chain, is now in the middle of an investigation after they reportedly allowed 100 animals to die when 4 feet of water rose inside.

Kids in schools throughout the area were sent home early from their very first day of school and most schools remained closed through the first week. Some are still closed a week and a half later. Entire corn crops were lost, bringing even further hardship to farmers already affected by a dreadful year.

My home is located at the top of a hill, thankfully, but hundreds in my town are struggling to deal with the disaster. On October 2, a benefit will be held for those who are still suffering from the effects of the flood. I will donate $1 for every one of my ebooks between now and then, and $3 for every print book.

If you would like to donate to the flood relief directly, the Red Cross is in desperate need of assistance.

Why I Chose to Self-Publish

One of the most common questions people ask an indie author is "Why did you choose to self-publish". For me, it was an easy choice. Like many writers, I started out with the goal of being published by a traditional publisher. I didn't think I could self-publish. I didn't have the money to sink into something like that.

Me sending queries

I finished my book and started writing query letters. And, man, did it suck monkey butt. I hated it. Every single moment of it. I actually think I threw a couple of three-year-old-esque tantrums over it. While I was struggling with those (and spending way too much money on paper, ink, and shipping), a friend in Second Life kept talking about indie publishing.

So I sent the letters and waited... and waited... and waited. In the meantime, I started actually listening to what this friend was saying and doing my own research.

I found out that it really doesn't cost all that much to self-publish. I enjoy using Photoshop, so I do most of my own covers. Some have called them amateurish, but I like them, so they can suck it. (Yes, I know that's rude, but so is insulting someone's work just because you're hiding behind a computer screen.)

Formatting is fairly easy as well. There are guides galore out there that will walk you through each step in the process. Editing can be expensive, but I've found a very good editor who is relatively affordable. (I didn't use an editor at first, but that is one thing I do recommend if you can swing it. If you can't, get a couple people that you know have good grammar to take a look until you make enough sales to afford an editor.)

Aside from editing, the only real expense is for print books. They're not required. You can do it all digitally if you like, but there are a ton of people out there who do not read ebooks yet. And I mean a ton. And it's always nice to have a couple copies to hand out when you want to just give your book to someone.

Me as an indie author

Since I published my books, I have received a couple rejection notices (I'm still waiting for many of them, almost a year later). They all said something to the effect of "We like it, but we don't think we can sell it." Well, I like it, and I am currently selling it, but thanks anyway.

Maybe my books will never be best sellers and maybe I won't be a millionaire. But I like the books I write, and other people apparently like the books I write since they keep buying them. And that's good enough for me.

Do You Remember?

It has been 10 years since that fateful day, 10 years since four planes were hijacked and threw the entire United States into chaos. That day is etched on the hearts of this nation and will never be forgotten by those who experienced it.

I remember that day very clearly even now. I was a sophomore at Ohio State, working at the child care center to pay the bills. I was on my way to work, cutting through the rec center to get to the bus stop. A crowd had formed around the bank of televisions near the exit and I stopped to see what they were so focused on. It was silent. No one said a word. They were all glued to the TVs. I looked closely at the caption. I had to read it twice before I could comprehend what had happened.

As I watched, the second plane flew into the second tower. I was horrified, but the bus came, so I had to leave. I spent the day in the childcare center with my coworkers, listening to the updates on the radio. For several hours, we believed the entire Pentagon had collapsed. It was awful.

Fear was strong among the adults that day, but the children were our saving grace. They were all too young to understand what was happening. And they forced us to focus on what really mattered at the time--keeping the kids safe and happy. They were their usual joyous selves and brought smiles to our faces when we needed them most.

Where were you on September 11th? And what happened that day to give you hope that America could rise above the destruction?

All Hallows' Moon Release!

SM Reine, fellow author and Twitter fanatic, is releasing her next book All Hallows' Moon today! It is technically the sequel to Six Moon Summer, but it works very well on its own, so you can read it first or check them both out.

Rylie survived becoming a werewolf at great cost. She moves to her aunt’s ranch in the hopes she can enroll in a new high school and quietly continue her life... with a few distinct changes. She transforms into a beast every new and full moon and struggles to control her murderous urges.

Without many werewolves left, it’s hard to stay in hiding. A family of hunters -- Eleanor, Abel, and Seth -- recognize the signs and follow Rylie to her new home. They want to stop her before she murders someone, and the only way to do it is with a silver bullet. Seth soon realizes the werewolf is Rylie, the one monster he failed to kill. Worse yet, he’s still in love with her.

Torn between family and love, Rylie struggles to reconcile her feelings and control the wolf within while Seth fights to do what’s right. But what is right-- obeying desire or duty?

About SM Reine
SM Reine is an author of dark fantasy for teen and adult audiences. Her most widely known work is "Six Moon Summer," which has been hailed as "fresh and fast-paced" and "captivating." She lives in Nevada with her husband, the Helpful Baby, and too many black animals to count.


Check out more about her books and her epic battles with supernatural bugs at her blog! 

The Great Review Debate

Ah, the power of a review. We rely on reviews quite a bit in the internet age. Whether buying an appliance or deciding which movie to see, the opinions of others often play heavily into our decisions. Books are no different. We have to hear about it one way or another. Friends, relatives, television, forums--they all provide reviews of a form.

Lately, I've seen a lot of people say that a writer can't honestly review another writer. My question is "Why?" All writers first started out as readers. You can't be a writer unless you read. My favorite phrase to describe myself is "Reader by nature, writer by choice." I was born to read. While I enjoy writing, I can do without it if I have to. I can't go for very long without reading. It's too important a part of my life.

So why shouldn't I review the books I really liked (or really hated)? Just because I may have chatted with the author through Kindleboards or Twitter, it doesn't mean I view their books any differently than I would have had I found them through a friend or in a bookstore. Reviews are important. They're not meant to boost a writer's ego or tear them down. They're meant to inform the readers whether a book is worth their precious time. When I write reviews, it's from a reader's perspective. And that's the way most writer/reader/reviewers work. Just because someone wrote a book, it doesn't mean they have an ulterior motive in doing so. And if they do, they're abusing the review system and should be dragged out into the street and drowned in their own pudding.

On a side note: I'll rarely review a book if I can't give it at least 3 stars. First, I have a horrible powerful guilty conscience that won't let me be that mean to someone unless the book is really really awful and I feel I have to warn the public. Second, if I rate a book a 1 or 2, I likely either didn't finish it, or I remember so little about it that I can't rightly justify giving an opinion. 

How heavily do reviews play into your book-purchasing decisions? And do you take a review less seriously if you know it was written by an author?

Indie Book of the Month - Young Lord of Khadora

It's that time again! After much consideration, I ended up going through the books I have on my Kindle to find something new and interesting that I haven't read yet. I found Young Lord of Khadora, by Richard S. Tuttle.

Squad Leader Marak has a problem. His mother is a slave and he is forbidden to communicate with her. When he is caught trying to see her, he receives a very unusual punishment-- he is promoted, which will let him see her without repercussions.

But his elation is short-lived. Marak is supposed to be sacrificed so that the clan lord can save face, but the young warrior has other ideas. Given the opportunity to manage an estate that stands on the brink of failure, Marak turns the table on the powerful lords who enslave the people of Khadora.

Young Lord of Khadora is the first novel in the Forbidden Legacy series. 

I've heard nothing about this book elsewhere, but I picked it up as a freebie awhile ago. A bit of searching revealed that it was first published on Createspace back in 1998 (13 years ago! I didn't even know Createspace was that old!). Reviews seem to be mixed. So far, I'm enjoying it.

Have you read this book? Let me know what you thought!