Book Reviews Reviewed

On Amazon

My guest is debut author and friend Una Tiers. Una is the pen name for a Chicago lawyer, so she knows what she's talking about.

My first mystery, Judge vs Nuts, will be released soon.  A year ago, when the editing process started, I dreamed of reviews raving about the magnificence of my book, written by scholars who begged for more. My potential reviewers included authors who write non-fiction books about the law or who had ties to Chicago.  Of course the occasional celebrity author would stop me on the street and ask about doing a review too.   

At the Printers Row Lit Fest last June, I attended a panel discussion with three women authors who talked about the  low numbers of women reviewers.  That made me realize my list of hopefuls were all men.  Later I approached one of the authors to thank her and asked if she was interested in taking a look at my book.  I’ll come back to this.

At the early stage “book review” pretty much sounded like “book report” to me.  As I started to read reviews I realized they were not a means to establish reading the book but an analysis or opinion after reading the book.  Reviews can cover, plot, characters, pace, grammar and more.       

Since then, my understanding continues to grow along with my confusion.  Reviews come from many sources:  readers, friends, and professional reviewers.   Now I know that “book cover blurb” means a short piece, maybe three or four sentences that would be on the back cover or inside the book.  These are my favorite.  The Amazon reviews have no set pattern.  Many reviews are so long they give away too much of the story or are just too long to read.  Some reviews are exchanges with one author helping another.  These come under heavy criticism although writers are prolific readers and well versed to write reviews.  When any denied bias is balanced with pointers on making the writing stronger, I have no complaint.  

As an attorney, I think the terms of the review should be specific and, yes, in writing.  Items to consider are:  receipt of manuscript; word count; time frame; how you will use the review and what you want.  Will the reviewer post the review on their blog or website?   Invite the reviewer to tell you if they can’t meet the time frame.  If your release is pushed back, let them know. 

The bad review is controversial.  There are reviewers who think honesty means to be simply mean and write like a bear with a thorn in their paw.  When asked about constructive comments, they are a defensive group.   There is a group that says a bad review should have explanations.  Others decline to write a bad review, meaning they write nothing.  Then we have my pet peeve group, the hiders.  Those folks make an agreement to review your book and then avoid you when you follow up.  Did they hate the book?  Want it for free?  Lose it?  Change their tiny minds about doing the review?  You won’t be able to get the answer, because the hiders, well, hide.      

There are also people in the ambiguous category.  You ask them if they would like to review your book and they respond they don’t read eBooks, don’t have an eReader, can’t read on the computer and can’t print the book out.  Is this another way to say no?  Should you print out a copy?

Despite my efforts to date I have one review.  It is short and sweet and from an author whose writing I admire.  Barbara D’Amato went to great lengths to write the review for me.  This was not only a testament of her understanding of the business but shows what a nice person will do to help a stranger with their debut book.   It means more to me now after the other reviews fell through for one reason or another.  Thank you Barbara D’Amato.  

The review:

Judge vs Nuts is a hilariously funny take on judges, but also a scathing indictment of judicial politics.  Lawyer Fiona Gavelle narrates with a wonderful, self-deprecating wit, as she goes about unraveling the murder of a Cook County judge. 

Barbara D'Amato

Author of Other Eyes

*  *  * 

Dying to visit Chicago?  Join Fiona Gavelle, attorney at law, as she unravels the mystery of the death of Judge Laslo King.  It’s a cozy, a mystery, legally oriented, traditional mystery and over all a humorcide. Judge vs Nuts.

Stop by and say hello:  Una@unatiers.com   unatiers@aol.com  and we will send you an excerpt.   Una's website is http://unatiers.com       

Mark Twain and the Value of your Writing

Una Tiers, author of the soon-to-be-released Judge vs. Nuts is my guest this week.

I sue by day and solve crimes at night (lawyer and author) and there is much similarity in my two roles.    In both I create documents and edit, revise and hone until I am satisfied that my point is clear.   

To improve my writing, I read and study other works, even old wills.  That nasty habit led me to the will of Mark Twain (aka Samuel Clemens).  Some report that it was a typewritten document and other reports say that Mark Twain wrote it by hand.  The legal language in it suggests that he at least had a co-author lawyer.  His expressed sentiments about the typewriter suggest he wrote it out by hand.

In his will, Twain talks about the management of his writings, and who should have input on decisions.    The specifics were, according to the document, discussed with his daughter and close friend and are not spelled out.  The royalties for his works were paid into a trust for the benefit of his daughter and later to grandchildren and heirs. 

Shortly after Robert Parker died, an announcement was made that his series books would continue, written by another author.  I don’t know if he made these arrangements. 

It leads me to think of my writing as an asset.  Of course I may not generate enough royalties to buy lunch just yet, but they are assets with great sentimental value for me.  Royalties may not measure the value, unless of course I sell millions of copies of Judge vs Nuts.   

How do you place a value on your writing after you die?  Is there a clause in your will or trust directing the royalties?  Will it fall into the residual clause (everything left) of your estate?  Will any unpublished works simply make you more interesting posthumously?  Pet trusts are very popular, why not a plan for your books?

 Excerpt:

 At the cemetery, the funeral guy directed the cars to park two across on the narrow (but plowed) roads.

We waited while the pallbearers struggled to maintain their footing, slipping and sliding a little while they carried the coffin from the hearse to the grave.

"What would happen if they dropped him?" I whispered.

  

In Una's words . . .  

My mystery writing didn’t start out as a surreptitious teaching tool; it started with a need to reduce stress after a particularly awful day in court.  From time to time I added a victim and did more editing than writing.  The process was slow. 

After meeting a slew of mystery writers, I noticed that I was introduced to the day to day life of a librarian, a food critic, a minister’s family, a several detectives and more. 

Given the opportunity, I invite you to meet one attorney on a day to day basis.  We’ll untangle a murder along the way and slip in a great deal of information about the legal system.  Judge vs Nuts will be available in February of 2012.  Join my mailing list for an email for the big release on my birthday.  http://unatiers.com

Thank you to Ellis Vidler, for inviting me to her magnificent blog.

Una Tiers Interviews Ellis

I'm delighted to interview Ellis Vidler about her new book, Cold Comfort.  Let's start with a little background about your first two novels, Haunting Refrain and The Peeper.

My grandmother had a streak of psychic ability—she knew when something was wrong with a family member, so that sort of thing always interested me. I don't know how Haunting Refrain came to me, but that's what I wanted to write. After a writing class with Scott Regan, I decided I'd better get on with it.

I met Jim Christopher, a South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) veteran, and he had an idea for a story. He asked if I'd like to write it with him. It was such fun, and I learned so much from him.

And you just published some short stories?  Yes, Tea in the Afternoon, is a collection of three Southern stories, based on remembrances I heard and people I knew, but they're entirely fictitious.

You have a touching dedication to Tea.  It's dedicated to my parents, who gave me a wonderful childhood. We lived in a small town in Mississippi where my friend and I rode double, barefoot and bareback, on her horse though fields and back roads. We stopped at farmhouses for water for us and the horse.

Then my family moved to another small town in Alabama, where I played outside all day, usually in the river bottom or woods. The rule was home by dark. It was a different world.

Can you tell us an early memory about your parents and books? My father read Tarzan of the Apes and the Oz books to me when I was very young. Tarzan remains one of my favorites. Mother read to me too. They said, "You'll learn to read for yourself when you go to school." I cried after my first day of kindergarten because they didn't teach me to read.

 Now we can talk about Cold Comfort. Where is the book set? Claire, my protagonist, owns a Christmas shop in Williamsburg, VA.  There are also scenes on the South Carolina coast at McClellanville and Georgetown and some in Washington, DC.

How did you create your villain? I usually see the characters first, and he suited the crime I had in mind. He did evolve a little more as I wrote, but I saw him from the beginning.  You identify aftershave and tobacco with him.  Why? Both are unpleasant smells to me and seemed to fit in his character. I wanted Claire to have hints of trouble but nothing specific at first.

What about Claire Spencer, where did she come from? Claire’s strong sense of doing what she has to came from a friend I admired.  The rest of her grew and developed as I wrote. My critique partners thought she was too ladylike and pushed me to make her tougher. They were right. She's not a kickass type, but she's strong and determined.

Your pace in Cold Comfort is fast.  How do you help the reader mark how much time has passed? Goodness, I don't know. I guess I just tell when the scenes occur. You know, in the morning, by mid afternoon, at four o'clock, whatever it is. All my books take place in a short period of time. I like the sense of urgency that comes from time limits.

You are so prolific, what's next? I'm working on two books, one about Kate McGuire's friend Gwen, from Haunting Refrain, and a character from Cold Comfort. This one begins on Isla Mujeres in Mexico and ends up in the southeastern United States.

The second one is about Kate's cousin, Alex Jenrette, who also has some inconvenient psychic ability. It's set on a fictitious island off the coast of Charleston, SC. I love the bad guys in this one, but the good guy is giving me trouble. I think he needs a personality transplant.

Thank you for meeting with me, Cold Comfort sounds great.

            Una, you're a dear to do this. I can't wait till your book, Judge vs Nuts, comes out. You're such a funny character yourself, I know it's going to be a fun read. I expect you back when it's released.

Here's Una's cover. Her book will be released soon.

Ellis's Book is available at

http://tinyurl.com/ev-cc-Smash

http://tinyurl.com/ev-cc-Omni

          http://tinyurl.com/ev-cc-Kindle