Favourite Book Quotes Tag

I was kindly tagged by Rachel (who you should definitely be following) to do the Favourite Book Quotes Tag.

Rules:
1. Mention the creator of the tag (Celine @Celinelingg).
2. Mention the blogger who tagged you.
3. List down 5 of your favourite book quotes along with the reasons.
4. Spread the love and tag some people to participate and connect! (There’s no limit in number, so have some fun and just tag!).

Being tagged for this made me realise how bad I actually am at keeping track of quotes I love, which is a shame. That said, here is a random selection of a few that have stayed with me, in no particular order. There are 6, because I had already picked them out before I realised we were supposed to choose 5, and I couldn’t decide which one to cut!  😛

1. The Lightkeepers by Abby Geni

“To remember is to rewrite. To photograph is to replace. The only reliable memories, I suppose, are the ones that have been forgotten. They are the dark rooms of the mind. Unopened, untouched, and uncorrupted.”

I love this because it’s a very interesting take on the notion of memory. Geni repeatedly likens it to her heroine’s work as a photographer, drawing parallels between retelling a story, and choosing what to frame when setting up a picture – both being valid means of altering the truth. It’s thus vitally important in understanding the character’s reliability as a narrator, with much of the book exploring the idea that storytelling is used as a means of protection from trauma.

2. All We Shall Know by Donal Ryan

“Martin Toppy is the son of a famous Traveller and the father of my unborn child. He’s seventeen, I’m thirty-three. I was his teacher. I’d have killed myself by now if I was brave enough. I don’t think it would hurt the baby. His little heart would stop with mine. He wouldn’t feel himself leaving one world of darkness for another, his spirit untangling itself from me.”

Talk about powerful opening lines that hook you straight away. This paragraph sets the tone perfectly for Ryan’s exhilaratingly stressful story about a brilliant and morally complex heroine.

3. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

“I have love in me the likes of which you can scarcely imagine, and rage the likes of which you would not believe. If I cannot satisfy the one, I will indulge the other.”

This, in part, is representative of my love for Frankenstein in general. But I think it also establishes the often-overlooked complexity of the eponymous doctor’s creation, in a suitably eloquent and unsettling manner. It’s one of many instances in which Shelley asks us to ponder what really makes a monster.

4. The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

“When people are cruel it’s often said that they have no heart, only a cold space or lump of ice in their chest. This was never true of Avalon. She had no heart, everyone knew, but there was nothing cold about her. In her chest burned an enormous coal, white-hot, brighter than the North Star. North knew the truth about Avalon: she was made of fire, and she would burn them all.”

I’ve always loved this. It’s one of the most evocative descriptions of an antagonist I’ve read.

5. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

“The road to Manderley lay ahead. There was no moon. The sky above our heads was inky black. But the sky on the horizon was not dark at all. It was shot with crimson, like a splash of blood. And the ashes blew towards us with the salt wind from the sea.”

Daphne du Maurier, queen of atmosphere, doing what she does best. This is one of my favourite books of all time, so it had to feature on here in some shape or form.

6. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

“To many, I was myth incarnate, the embodiment of a most superb legend, a fairy tale. Some considered me a monster, a mutation. To my great misfortune, I was once mistaken for an angel. To my mother, I was everything. To my father, nothing at all. To my grandmother, I was a daily reminder of loves long lost. But I knew the truth—deep down, I always did. I was just a girl.”

I think this quote perfectly captures the dreamlike beauty and off-kilter magic of the novel, with its tone of wonder and pathos. Featured at the start of the book, it is also a good indicator of what lies ahead; a multi-generational family saga, plagued by loss, yet tinged with hope. I’m not a re-reader, but something about this book has really stayed with me, and I often feel compelled to return to it. Perhaps this is the year I will finally do so.

***

I’ll stop there, as I’ve already surpassed the required number of 5, and I could easily get carried away. Thanks again to Rachel for tagging me! Since it’s taken me a while to get to it, and I’ve done a few tags recently, I’ll once again leave this open for anyone who hasn’t yet been tagged, but would like to get involved. Let me know if you do it so I can check out your chosen quotes!

A Happy Little Update

Just a quick post today to share a bit of writerly news with anyone who may happen to be vaguely interested. In the last couple of weeks I’ve had two prose poems published in the newly launched literary magazine, Cauldron Anthology. Drawing on mythology and the ‘wild feminine’, the theme for the first issue was Sirens, which formed the basis for the inspiration behind each of the poems I submitted.

One of them is entitled Incubation, and it uses imagery of Sirens to explore gender inequality and the culture of victim blaming. The other, Protest, was inspired largely by the recent women’s marches and a growing need for unity.

Warmest thanks to anyone who checks out the poems and supports Cauldron Anthology in their early days as an emerging publication.

Allergic to the Letter ‘E’

writing challenge

I was kindly tagged my Melissa Barker-Simpson to take part in this frustratingly fun writing challenge, which has us write a paragraph without using the letter ‘E’ anywhere. Having been at a loss as to what to write about, I decided to write precisely about that very predicament. So, here is my entry:

—

A man sits by his laptop, staring blankly at a monitor which has stood idly in his stubborn watch for far too long. It’s only an unassuming blogging task – how could it possibly birth such a bout of dumfounding block to all logic. Alas, that blinking cursor taunts with its flashing joy. But snubbing a loss, this man will hunt victory with words; small in many minds, possibly, but crucial for his own sanity.

—

Here are the rules:

1) Write a whole paragraph (a paragraph sounds easy right?) without any word containing the letter “e” (still easy?)

2) By reading this you are already signed up.

3) Challenge at least five bloggers to do the challenge. They must do it within 24 hours or it is considered as failure.

4) If you fail or pass, suffer in the Page of Lame.

5) If you win, wallow in the Page of Fame.

—

I’m making it an open tag because, yes, let’s face it, it’s the easier option 😉 but also because I found this a surprisingly worthwhile exercise and want to encourage you all to give it a go.

February in Books

books, books, books!

It’s time for my second short reading update of 2015! When it comes to books, February was a good month for me. Not only did I release one of my own, I also managed to read 6 of them, taking my yearly total up to 15 thus far and keeping me well on track to reach my 40 book target by the end of December.

Within the mix this time round were a graphic novel and an indie poetry collection, keeping that sense of variety and diversity going which I’m really pleased about and hope to carry forward into March.

How are you getting on with your reading goals? Did you read any good books in February?

Reading Update

January in books!

Since this is the first time I’ve set myself a reading challenge over on Goodreads, I thought it would be a nice idea to post a sort of monthly update throughout the year to keep track of my progress so far. My official target is at least 40 books and within that I am hoping to include a mix of adult, YA, kid’s lit, graphic novels, poetry, traditional and indie books – a bit of everything!

As things stand, I’ve read 9 books so far this year, which I’m pleased with (here’s hoping the momentum lasts). Within those, there’s a decent mix of fiction genres, a poetry collection and 3 indie books which feels like a pretty solid start to my 2015 reading ventures.

How is your reading going? Any good books to recommend?

We (don’t) need to talk…

Writing can be intensely personal

I was doing a little digging around to find out more about Amy Zhang, whose recently released debut novel, Falling into Place, is creating a bit of buzz, partly because it was written and published all by the time she was just 18 years old. Everything about this girl is knocking stereotypes right out of the park: She’s young; she’s female; she’s of Asian ancestry, and yet she’s already chasing and achieving her dreams. I can’t speak for the quality of the book, having not read it yet myself, but can say that regardless; Amy Zhang is pretty darn impressive.

More to the point, I was reading an interview with the author when I stumbled upon this quote:

“I try very, very hard to keep my writing life and […] the rest of my life separate. I can honestly count the number of people who know me personally and are also aware that I write on my fingers. Writing is something I love so much that I’m honestly terrified to talk about it with people I know.”

This hit me like a ton of bricks because I relate to it so much. Obviously by this point, having released two books of my own, people who know me generally know that I write, but I can honestly say that – like Amy – I can count the number of serious, in-depth conversations I’ve had about my work with loved ones on just one hand. Sure, they get excited for me when I release something. I post about it on my Facebook to let everyone know at once; some of them like the post; some of them share it; heck, a few of them even buy and read it, but very few of them truly understand the extent of what I do.

This is, ironically, largely down to my own doing. Whenever a friend or family member has attempted to show an interest in my writing, be it asking of the ins and outs of publishing or the details of my current projects, I clam up and mumble a half-hearted, awkward response that tells them next to nothing of any significance. This isn’t because I don’t care. On the contrary, it’s because I care so much that I find it difficult to let them into that part of my life. I can’t explain it; it just feels wrong somehow to talk about my imaginary worlds, fictional characters and royalty payments with the people I’ve known since our schooldays… They know what I love to do and are happy to let me get on with it.

That’s why I love this platform so much, as – whether it’s odd or not – I can happily chat away endlessly about all things literature with fellow readers and writers around the world, many of whom I consider dear friends but who are, I suppose, technically strangers.

I like to hope this is something that is universal. ‘Real life’ friends are, for many of us, all about escaping the stresses of our day to day routines. They’re the people we go to at the end of a long week to unwind, take our mind off things and recharge, so we can start all over again. The last thing most people want to do after work is talk about their day at the office; maybe this is just my equivalent of that same feeling.

I’d love to know if this is something you also experience or if it is yet another quirk to add to my list?

Never Give Up

Never give up – You never know when you’ll hit success.

A while back, I wrote a post urging budding writers to take a moment to overlook the often pessimistic view of ‘making it’ and look instead on the bright side for once. As a means of encouragement, I shared a number of examples where well-known books or authors pushed past hardships and rejection to reach the dizzying heights of success. It went down pretty well, and in the interest of spreading a little more positivity, I decided to follow it up with a few more cases.

• George Orwell was told that there would not be a market for his now classic book, Animal Farm.
• In a rejection letter for one of his books, John le Carré was told he “did not have a future” in writing.
• The iconic, world renowned book, The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank was rejected 15 times before a publisher agreed to distribute it.
• Dr Seuss was told his work was “too different” to find a place in the market. He went on to become the 9^th best-selling author of all time.
• The War of the Worlds was described as a “horrid book” but has never been out of publication since it was first released in 1898.
• Despite leading a troubled life and battling with ongoing mental illness, Virginia Woolf produced some of the most celebrated works of fiction in the English language.
• Rudyard Kipling was told he didn’t know how to use the English language properly. His work, The Jungle Book, is now one of the most recognisable stories of a generation.
• Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov was rejected by 5 publishers, who feared backlash for its controversial content.
• C.S. Lewis was repeatedly rejected for years but persisted regardless. The Chronicles of Narnia became a global phenomenon and has so far been translated into 47 different languages.
• Bestselling author James Patterson was turned away by 12 publishers before securing an agent.
• Veronica Roth became a best-selling author with the widely popular Divergent trilogy and had already secured a massive multi-movie deal by her early 20s.
• The cultural smash hit, Chicken Soup for the Soul, was turned down a whopping 140 times before it was picked up.
• A cutting rejection letter claimed The Wind in the Willows would “never sell”. It has since sold more than 25 million copies.
• Fearing her work would not be taken seriously, Mary Anne Evans decided to take on a pseudonym. Under her male pen-name, George Eliot, she solidified herself in the literature Hall of Fame, with her novels still discussed and enjoyed hundreds of years later.

There you have it; another glimpse into the lighter side of the seemingly cut-throat world of publishing. Work hard and keep chasing your dreams; success could be right around the corner.

On the Home Stretch

The end is near!

It’s just a quick update today to say that edits and read-throughs of my work in progress, False Awakening, are – generally speaking – finished. Today I begin the exciting but often complicated process of formatting to finally get this manuscript ‘book friendly’ so that I can place an order for a proof copy. By that point, it’s a case of getting a feel for my new creation, making sure I’m happy with it, ironing out any last creases and then, dare I say it, releasing it into the world. Things seem (*touch wood*) to be on track for the October release I’ve been hoping for. Excuse me while I simultaneously squeal and hyperventilate.

Are you working on anything at the moment? Are you making good progress?

Slow and Steady

My WIP is slowly coming together.

I’ve officially finished the first round of edits for False Awakening, my current WIP. A beta reader will soon start working on it and cover art has already been taken care of. It certainly feels like momentum is building and I’m on track to meet (or perhaps, dare I say it, even exceed) the general October deadline I’ve had in mind for some time. I am well aware however that there is still work to be done and celebrations will have to wait for now; anything can happen in the realms of editing and publishing.

Watching this manuscript slowly but surely become a book is hugely exciting and I can’t wait to have another story out there in the world for people to read and hopefully enjoy.

What are you currently working on? Are you happy with your progress?

The Ups and Downs of Marketing

Marketing isn’t exactly known for being fun…

We writers like to think of ourselves as the creative sort but as much as we’d love to live in our peaceful countryside retreat, releasing our latest book into the world every year or so as royalty cheques come rolling in, that is unfortunately not the reality. In order to have any chance of ‘making it’ as a writer – by which I mean generating sales and earning some money – then we also have to embrace the fact that we are self-employed business people.

This of course brings us to the ever-present, deeply intimidating issue of marketing. It’s the means by which we let people know about us as writers and our work as viable forms of entertainment but shoving ourselves in people’s faces and demanding they support our career is never much fun. This means we, including myself, are always on the lookout for new, interesting and effective ways to promote our books.

I must admit I didn’t do a huge amount to market my debut novel, The Vessel, as my focus was on gaining experience in the world of publishing and dipping my toe in the water as it were but it is an issue I know will require more attention in the future. I for one am always grateful when someone shares their tips and experiences with regards to marketing but sadly I don’t think it happens often enough. So, in the spirit of honesty and mutual support, here is a breakdown of what I tried and how effective it was in my case.

• Word of mouth: It may sound cliché but you truly cannot underestimate the power of word-of-mouth when it comes to writers. I would comfortably say that the vast majority of my sales have been friends of friends who learned about my book through the people they know. To give specific examples, I began by posting on my facebook that my book was available, so as to let my close friends know. Thankfully, several of them bought the book but also shared the post, thus generating more subsequent likes and shares, culminating in increased sales. i.e. My best friend sharing the news led to their aunt in America buying my book; my mother sharing the post led to several of her friends buying my book, as well as her cousin in Australia, which in turn led to her daughter and two others in Oz buying it. The ripple effect can be huge.
• Blogging: One of the main reasons I set up my blog was to establish a platform through which I could share my work and connect with readers and writers alike. I’ve been thrilled, not only with the like-minded people I have met and the supportive nature of the community, but also because I know I have made sales and brought in a couple of reviews based on these fantastic connections.
• Local ads: I ran an ad for three months in a monthly print publication that gets sent to thousands of homes in my local area. It’s near impossible to know how many sales, if any, this actually generated but I did have a few people commenting unprompted that they had seen it and it was nice to know I had done something closer to home.
• Online ads: I ran an ad on facebook that got lots of clicks – way more than I had ever anticipated. Again, it’s hard to know what this led to in actual sales and in hindsight, I think I ran it too early, before the book had brought in any customer reviews, which definitely helps lend it some power. It would be interesting to see how one fared in comparison now, though I haven’t heard great things in all honesty.
• Promotions: I briefly ran a free promotion of the Kindle version of my book. This led to well in excess of 100 downloads, mostly between the US and UK, with a few elsewhere. Though I obviously didn’t get money from this endeavour, it did directly result in two positive customer reviews on the book’s Amazon UK page, which was a success in my eyes.

I hope that onslaught of information held something of interest for you; be it that it encouraged you to try or even avoid certain methods. It’s important to remember that there is no set formula and it’s a case of finding what works for us as individuals. In light of this, here are a few techniques I hope to try in the future.

• Release another book: I remember reading once (I wish I could recall where) that the best way to market a book is to write another one. It makes sense; the first thing we do when we finish a good book is look to see what else the writer has produced, meaning that having several books available can be very useful. It also shows to readers that you are a serious storyteller and not simply a ‘one story wonder’. I’m well on the way to finishing my next book, False Awakening, so this should be achievable in the near future.
• Business cards: I must admit I’m not sure how or where I would distribute them yet but I like the idea of having something tangible, like business cards or even personalised bookmarks, to hand out to people. Not everyone has embraced the online world and even more of them still like having something physical they can hold in their hands. You’re a lot more likely to be remembered if you can give someone a visual cue to take home with them than you are if you simply say, “look me up on twitter.”
• Social media: I don’t have a business facebook page yet (I shied away from one, saying I wasn’t ‘famous’ enough to warrant one; stupid, I know…) but I do plan to set one up in the future. I am on twitter but don’t yet have a huge following. I often see writers with 20,000 followers and am amazed (before I realise they are following 30,000 people). I would rather take my time to build a following of people whose tweets I’m actually interested in; I don’t want good tweeters lost in a wash of spammy promotion. I’m also a registered author on Goodreads but I haven’t ventured into the site all that much yet. By all means add me or my books and help show me the ropes! (I’d be very grateful). The social media world overall is definitely something I need to increase my presence on; the main focus of which will of course always be my WordPress blog, which has a much more in-depth, interactive and personal feel.

I apologise for rambling on somewhat and good on you if you’ve stuck with me long enough to be reading this. I hope any fellow writers out there found it useful in some capacity. I’d love if you would share your experiences with me in the comments.

What marketing methods have you tried? Which have proven to be successful for you? Do you have any tips you recommend trying?