Kim Lauer: What is Wrong With All the Self-Publishing?

Kim Lauer: What is Wrong With All the Self-Publishing?: What is wrong with all the self-publishing? Only that I don’t have time to read all these awesome books that intrigue me. I see many indep...

What is Wrong With All the Self-Publishing?

What is wrong with all the self-publishing?

Only that I don’t have time to read all these awesome books that intrigue me.  I see many independent authors advertising their books on their blogs, on twitter, on facebook, and anywhere else they can.  As a result, my attention is continually being grasped by a title or a premise.  I started to actually write the titles down on a scrap piece of paper so that I stopped forgetting them.  I plan on downloading them all and reading them when I finally have some time; maybe during the holidays.

I have read a few already and was privileged to get to write reviews and post the author’s website and twitter address on my blog.  Our electronic age has really made interacting with the author of your favorite books not only a possibility but an enhancement of the reading experience.  I love that I can tweet someone about how much their book moved me.  I am excited knowing that the author can and will read my review.  We can even ask questions and learn more about the motivation and development of our favorite characters.  What people used to have to go to signings and readings for, we can get with clicks of buttons. 

All of this said, I am still trying to get published the old-fashioned way – for now.  Maybe it is because I don’t trust myself to publicize and promote as well as many authors.  Maybe I am still naïve about how this all works.  One thing is for sure; I am extremely grateful to all the indie publishers out there.  It is a real pleasure for me to get to read your work and to be able to interact with you online.  Thank you for giving us worlds to explore and lose ourselves in and for taking them time to make us feel like family.

I have a handful of titles I will include in case you want to be as hungry to devour them as I am, but beware!!!  Once you get sucked in there is never enough time to read all the books that look so great.  You can get all of them at amazon or smashwords. 

Cornerstone – Misty Provencher

Frightened Boy – Scott Kelly

New Blood – Paul Dorset

The Paradox Series – Patti Roberts

The Fall of Billy Hitchings –Kirkus MacGowan

Kim Lauer: Review of Farsighted

Kim Lauer: Review of Farsighted: I just finished reading Farsighted by Emlyn Chand. The book is about a blind guy named Alex who starts to have visions of the future. H...

Review of Farsighted

I just finished reading Farsighted by Emlyn Chand.  The book is about a blind guy named Alex who starts to have visions of the future.  He works together with some other psychics to prevent something awful happening to his love interest.  Overall, I enjoyed the book very much.  I loved how the reader was transported into Alex’s world without sight.  The author did a fabulous job of describing things with sounds and smells and touch.  I definitely appreciated this new way of sensing what was going on in the book.  I also felt at times that it was pleasantly ironic to be sort of blind to what was going on in Alex’s glimpses of the future.  This is not an easy task to accomplish for a writer.

I am a youth worker, and as a result I always think about whether I would recommend the book to my youth kids.  I think Farsighted is something they would enjoy.  Alex explores feelings of independence and deals with parental issues that every teen faces.  The book also provides the bit of fantasy and romance that my girls especially enjoy reading about.  I think Farsighted can offer some good discussion about people with disabilities and how they survive “normally” in the world.

The book I am currently working on getting published is about seven kids who find objects that give them supernatural abilities.  I enjoyed reading about Alex and his friends who have special gifts.  I liked how they were living in a very normal world, with classes and parental issues and hormones, but that they also possessed talents that helped them to make a difference in the world.  This theme is something I am trying to portray in my manuscript as well.  I always get nervous when there are books similar to mine, but Ms. Chand’s characters and story are very different than my own, and she possesses a smart, direct writing style that isn’t easily duplicated. 

Thanks, Emlyn, for allowing me to read your manuscript.  I know many people in the online community have been talking about it.  It reminded me of a scene from You’ve Got Mail (yes, I am that old) when a character mentioned that it was like the whole city was talking about Kathleen Kelly that day.  It was like everyone was talking about Farsighted all at once, and I am privileged to be one of them.  I know this isn’t the last we have seen of Ms. Chand, and I will be continuing to follow her and the lovable Farsighted characters. 

You should check them out too!  http://www.emlynchand.com

Kim Lauer: Research While Working

Kim Lauer: Research While Working: How lucky am I that my current job allows me to also do research for my books? Before you get too excited and jealous, let me clarify. I...

Research While Working

How lucky am I that my current job allows me to also do research for my books?  Before you get too excited and jealous, let me clarify.  I am not given permission and payment to leave work and do research for my writing.  I am, however, provided with opportunities to research middle school youth and their silly and sweet behaviors on a regular basis.  I am a minister to children and youth, and I write Middle Grade Adventure/Suspense books (with light fantasy).  I am a lucky girl.

This weekend will be one of those times when I get to fully immerse myself in the world of a child.  I am going camping Friday-Sunday with sixteen third-fifth graders.  I am really looking forward to this weekend for many reasons.  I have never done a trip for this age group, so I am excited to get to know these kids better.  I am also pumped about the amount of time we will get to spend in God’s Word together.  Obviously, the writer in me is eager to get to observe and learn from such a magical group of little ones for two whole days. 

I hope to be able to report back on some things that I learn from my fun weekend.  Usually when I set out to do observation and get ideas from the kids, I end up forgetting to take note and get sucked into having a blast.  That, too, is fine with me.  I aim to be a fun adult that the kids can bond with and someone who brings them closer to Jesus.  If I get a little insight into their brains while doing this, all the better.    

I was just feeling blessed today that God allows me to do research for my writing, while fulfilling my current role as a youth minister.  I wanted to share my joy with all of you.  I hope you are feeling affirmed in your current vocation too.  Wish me luck!

Faking Faith Review

 

I recently read Faking Faith by Josie Bloss.  I stumbled upon the book when looking for possible agents.  I was immediately drawn to it because of the premise.  A teen girl goes way too far, way too quickly with a boy.  She then is drawn into an online world of super-fundamentalist, homeschooled Christians.  She pretends to be a girl, Faith, with the same beliefs.  This facade eventually provides her with an opportunity to submerse herself into one of the super-Christian girl’s family.  We then see the complete opposite of the dating spectrum, with dating escorts and basically arranged marriages.

I am a youth worker, and so I was interested in reading this book about a girl who pretends to have faith in order to fit in to a world with which she has no experience.  I am also always looking for new ways to discuss dating with my middle school kids.  To be honest, I was apprehensive as I started reading that the Christian girl and her extremely fundamentalist views were going to be made fun of and Christians would, yet again, get a bad name.  I was pleasantly surprised by the honesty and vulnerability of both the protagonist and this Christian girl, Abigail.   Forgiveness and second chances was a major theme in this book, and I appreciated it.

I think it is a great book for teens because it shows both extremes of the dating world.  The main character makes a big mistake and then sees how others are making different missteps by being too strict about dating.  The novel ends with the protagonist finding a healthy view and understanding of dating, and the reader ends up rooting for her and her new love interest.  I would definitely recommend it to my youth kids, and we will be discussing the book further in some upcoming discussions about dating.  I have to just say thank you to Ms. Bloss for not exploiting Christianity and making Abigail so lovable and loving.

You should check out the book too.

 http://josiebloss.com/