Month: June 2019

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Getting Back on Track

railroad tracks in city
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Hello Readers,

It’s been a while since I posted anything more than a quote or a book review, truth is I’ve been side-tracked. After being made redundant, I took a little break overseas, I’ve dived into a double diploma, and I have been searching for a new job. Fortunately, I think the break has done me good, I’ve made a bit of a dent in my diplomas, and I have just scored a new job. So, hopefully I will be able to get back into a routine of some sort now.

As far as my writing goes, I’ve got a few short stories waiting for me to publish them. I plan to wrap these up in an anthology together with my currently published short stories. I need to get the new stories edited and find a cover for the book first though.

I’m also trying to read more. More authors – trying to find another that hits the spot like my favourite one, but that’s a tough gig – and more books on the craft of writing. The most recent craft book I’ve read was on scene and structure and I’m about to get stuck into one on building characters. I hope these will help me improve my writing and give me the inspiration to get back into writing some of the novels I’ve put aside to stew.

So what have you been reading?

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Book Review – Scene and Structure by Jack M. Bickham

Scene & Structure (Elements of Fiction Writing)Scene & Structure by Jack M. Bickham

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Scene and Structure by Jack M. Bickham is a non-fiction title for writers, covering proven techniques used to write a compelling story.

The Cover: The cover works well for this title. The image reflects a non-fiction book and the title links it to the craft of writing.

The Good Stuff: At my stage as a writer, when I read books on the craft of writing I often find that there is very little to be learned from the content. This book was very different. It could be that I have not delved deeply enough into the topics covered here before, or maybe for some reason I have just not connected with the concepts, but I found that I learned a great deal from this title. It covers a great deal of content and does not go over the same ground repeatedly, using different words, as some books tend to do. The information is written in a logical way that I found really easy to understand. I also love the fact that there are further examples held back for an appendices, with a line by line breakdown that explains how the techniques have been applied.

The Bad Stuff: While I did skip read some small parts of this book, I can’t say that there was any bad stuff in it. More-so it was techniques I am familiar with and did not feel the need to go over, or one example too many that I didn’t wish to read through.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and can say I have learnt a good deal from it. This title gives a detailed, yet easy to understand, explanation of structure and form, cause and effect, stimulus and response, scenes and sequels, and chapters and plot. Well worth the money and time invested. I’m giving this book a well-formed, purposely crafted, 5 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from:

amazon.com.au

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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Book Review – Red Country by Joe Abercrombie.

Red Country (First Law World, #6)

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie follows Shy South and her ‘father’ Lamb across wild country in search of kidnapped family.

The Cover: In my opinion, the worst thing about Joe Abercrombie’s books are the covers. At best they are quite plain, but I really don’t like this one at all. I don’t think this cover fits with the story, it isn’t clear what you are getting, and if I didn’t know the author (and love his writing style), this cover would not have caught my attention. I can only hope he updates them at some point with covers that do his stories justice and deserve to grace the front of his novels.

The Good Stuff: There is everything I have come to expect from a Joe Abercrombie book, right here in this novel – Blood, gore and treachery a-plenty, well developed characters and a great yarn. We see some of his old, well-loved characters like Cosca, Shivers and the Bloody Nine. I love Logen Nine Fingers and I would have liked to have seen more of him, but he does play more than a cameo role in this story and that kept my appetite sated. The characters, are in line with Joe’s style, they are hard cases you love and hate all the same. They have a visible character arc through the story and come out changed characters at the end.

The Bad Stuff: For me, this book was somewhat different from the others I’ve read by Joe. This one had a real western feel to it, which will be pleasing to some, but I would have preferred something more in line with his previous works in this world. I also didn’t connect to the main character as well in this novel as I have to his past protagonists.

I’m giving this book a menacing, sunken eyed, evil grin with 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks.

Want to know if you agree with my review? Grab your own copy from these links:

amazon.com
amazon.com.au
Kobo

Allan Walsh writes Fantasy and Horror. If you’re looking for something new to read in these genres, why not check out his books here.

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