Bizarre Things People Say to Authors

I’ve had a few of these myself, but my favorite remains “This book had too many horse words in it” … in reference to a book whose protagonist was an equestrienne.

A Writer's Path

by Lev Raphael

Nobody tells you that when you publish a book, it becomes a license for total strangers to say outrageous things to you that you could never imagine saying to anyone.

I’m not just talking about people who’ve actually bought your book. Even people who haven’t read your book feel encouraged to share, in the spirit of helpfulness.

At first, when you’re on tour, it’s surprising, then tiring — but eventually it’s funny, and sometimes it even gives you material for your next book. All the comments on this list have been offered to me or other writer friends in almost exactly these words:

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The Reality of Judging a Book by Its Cover

I was lucky enough to sit down with a publisher and my cover artist, and talk about what we’d done right and where we had some horrible misses. Some of it was hard to hear, because I did indeed have a pro working on the books … but the redesigns were *great,* not just good. We got a lot out of hearing some hard truths. The blogger here is right; it’s never too late to fix your covers if they weren’t all they could be.

A Writer's Path

by Katie McCoach

I think it’s time we talk about book covers.

We all know the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” but let’s be honest, this usually applies to people, and not actually a book. If we are really keeping it honest here, then readers and authors alike understand that books really are judged by the cover. A book cover is the very first thing a reader sees whether that is on a shelf at the bookstore or library, or online.

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Belton Richard dies

Rest in peace, monsieur.

Cajun, Louisiana Creole and zydeco music

Accordionist and vocalist Belton Richardhas passed away at age 77.  Richard was a popular musician whose major local hit was the song “Un autre soir ennuyant (Another Lonely Night) [originally released as “Autre soir d’ennui (Another lonely evening)”].”  His band was known as the Musical Aces.  Richard quit active performing for a while but returned to it in the 2000s.  His songs have been covered by many Cajun musicians and are considered classics in the genre.  Swallow Records released many of his tracks as 45s, but they are found on these LPs:

Belton Richard. At his best. Swallow Records. LP 6043. 1981. 33.
Belton Richard. Good n’ Cajun. Swallow Records. LP-6021. n.d.. 33.
Belton Richard. Modern sounds of Cajun music. Swallow Records. LP-6010. n.d.. 33.
Belton Richard and the Musical Aces. Louisiana Cajun music. Swallow Records. LP-6032. 1978. 33.
Belton Richard and the Musical Aces. Modern sounds of Cajun…

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10 of the Best Classic Detective Novels Everyone Should Read

10 of the Best Classic Detective Novels Everyone Should Read

Some truly marvelous books on this list, including one of my absolute favorites, “The Daughter of Time.”

Interesting Literature

Are these the greatest ever detective novels?

It’s impossible to boil down such a rich and fertile genre as detective fiction to just ten definitive classic novels, so the following list should not be viewed as the ten best detective novels ever written so much as ten classic detective novels to act as great ‘ways in’ to this popular genre of fiction. We’ve tried to allow due coverage to the golden age of detective fiction in the early- to mid-twentieth century, but have also thrown in some earlier, formative classics as well. We’ve avoided spoilers in the summaries of the novels we’ve provided, and have instead chosen to focus on the most curious or interesting aspects of those novels.

Wilkie Collins, The Moonstone. T. S. Eliot called Wilkie Collins’s The Moonstone (1868) the first and greatest of the detective novels. It wasn’t technically the first – that honour should…

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