Tag: Writers toolbox

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Book Review: Art & Craft of Writing – Secret Advice for Writers by Victoria Mixon.

Art & Craft of Writing Fiction: Secret Advice for WritersArt & Craft of Writing: Secret Advice for Writers by Victoria Mixon

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As you can guess from the title, Art & Craft of Writing: Secret Advice for Writers by Victoria Mixon is a non-fiction title providing insights into the craft of writing.

The Cover: This cover has a warm feel to it and it works for the non-fiction genre. I’m not a huge fan of the font used, but the black band with white writing makes the text clearly visible.

The Good Stuff: I have been writing for some time now and I’m always looking for new information. There were one or two nuggets in this book for me, but mainly it was that Victoria looks at things from a slightly different angle and explains them in a slightly different way. This resonated with me and I will keep this book on hand for reference in the future.

The Bad Stuff: It’s a pretty short book and a lot of the information has been covered before.

Overall this book is put together from the authors most popular blog posts. In my opinion it is worth a read, you may not get new information from it, but you may look at things with a new found appreciation and understanding. This one gets an ink splattered 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks from me.

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. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Book Reviews by Alex Foster.

Book Reviews: How to get reviews quickly with the methods used by publishers and professional writersBook Reviews by Alex Foster

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book comes with the tag line: How to get reviews quickly with the methods used by publishers and professional writers. It provides advice on how to gain reviews that comply with Amazon’s guidelines.

The Cover: I don’t mind this cover. It is clearly a non-fiction title, the image of the book lends itself to the craft of writing, and the title tells the reader what it is about.

The Good Stuff: This is an informative book and will help you gain reviews if you follow some of the advice. There are definitely some good tips and ideas here, some you can use straight off the cuff, but others you will need to adapt or dismiss to comply with Amazon’s rules.

The Bad Stuff: Some of the techniques listed here may have complied with Amazon’s guidelines when the book was written, but Amazon’s policies continually change and I do not believe all methods are acceptable any longer. So take extra care to ensure you are not breaching the terms and conditions on Amazon or any other platform you are selling your books through, before applying these techniques.

Personally, I did not find this book particularly useful. However, if you are just starting out and trying to gain some reviews, there is some good information in here that may give you some ideas. You will need to be careful that you do not apply outdated techniques though, as it notes in this book, Amazon can be quite strict on authors that do not follow their guidelines. I’m giving this one a 3 out of 5 golden bookmarks based on its limited usefulness to those that are not very well informed on this topic.

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. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Creating Character Arcs by K.M.Weiland.

Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author's Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development (Helping Writers Become Authors Book 7)Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author’s Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development by K.M. Weiland

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Creating Character Arcs by K.M.Weiland is a guide for authors to help them improve the writing of their character arcs.

The Cover: I think this cover is a fairly good fit. The image shows  a persons journey across a mountain range that peaks in the middle, symbolic of the character arc. The colours work well and the title defines the books content. The fonts are clear too. It is clearly a non-fiction title covering character arcs.

The Good Stuff: I read this all the way through and at the start I was thinking ‘this is all pretty obvious’… and it is, but this book spells it out and makes you aware of the process and methods. It really opened my eyes to how little consideration I have put into planning my character arcs in the past. I will certainly be more aware of this in future and I think I will be inclined to give it greater consideration when I put pen to paper. Hopefully I will see further improvement in my own writing from reading this title.

The Bad Stuff: There were a lot of examples in the book and I know they may be useful to some, especially as the examples cover different genres, but it felt like filler to me. I know that what clicks with one person may not click with another, so having more examples can be beneficial. For me, it seemed like padding out the pages with unrequired wordage.

Overall it was a good read, easy to understand and informative and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a better understanding of character arcs. I’m giving this one a character changing 4 out of 5 Golden Bookmarks!

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. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Writing Fiction for Dummies by Randy Ingermanson.

Writing Fiction for DummiesWriting Fiction for Dummies by Randy Ingermanson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Writing fiction for dummies is a guide for writers the covers of on pretty much everything you need to know about writing.

The Cover: The cover for this book is the perfect fit. It is clear to the reader that it is a non-fiction title, the fonts and colours work, and the branding aligns with other “for Dummies” titles on the market.

The Good Stuff: This book has a heap of useful information for writers that are beginning their journey. Even intermediate writers will get a lot from this book as it is jam packed with useful information.

The Bad Stuff: There is a fair bit of repetition in this book and you may find yourself frustrated by it or skipping over bits here and there because of it.

On the whole this is a very informative read, it covers off on pretty much everything. If you are just starting out as a writer and looking for a book with info on writing techniques, planning, editing and publishing, this would be a good choice. It gets 4 out of 5 golden bookmarks from me.

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

Amazon.com.au
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com
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. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy by David Gerrold

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy

Worlds of Wonder: How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Worlds of Wonder – How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy by David Gerrold is a non-fiction title for writers who are looking to learn about the craft of writing in the genres of science fiction and fantasy.

The Cover: I really wasn’t sold on this cover. It didn’t really suggest the book was non-fiction, the picture didn’t really work for me, and I really didn’t like the font used on the title and author name. It made the book look less professional to me. If I took the text away from the cover all together, this could have been a sci-fi, horror, or thriller novel in my opinion.

The Good Stuff: Wow! I thought the last book I read on the craft of writing was good, but this book blew me away. This has to be the best book for writers that I have read. David Gerrold really has a firm grip on the craft. I am the target audience for this book and it did its job, really hitting the mark for me. The chapters are succinct, no waffle, no filler, no repeating the same thing 3 times, just solid direct writing. The words run smoothly and make perfect sense to me as a writer and to top it all off, my version was published in 2001. David Gerrold’s text is relevant today as much as it was back then and seems to be timeless.

The Bad Stuff: I’m pretty sure I have covered all the bad stuff in the cover section.

Overall, I found this book to be pretty amazing. If you can only afford to buy one book on writing this year I would recommend you make it this one. It is clear and concise, covers a wealth of information, provides some solid advice, and the writing is interesting. This one is getting a star making, writer creating 5 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. You can also find his titles available in libraries.

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Book Review – Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction by Lisa Tuttle.

Writing Fantasy & Science FictionWriting Fantasy & Science Fiction by Lisa Tuttle

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction by Lisa Tuttle is a non-fiction book for writers that covers off on everything you need to know to become a good speculative fiction writer.

The Cover: I have the 2nd edition of this title and the cover is the perfect fit for this non-fiction title. It is simple, has a clear title, an image that suits a book on writing, and strong, clear fonts.

The Good Stuff: I found this to be one of the best books for writers that I have read. It is written in a very natural, smooth flowing way that makes it easy to understand. The advice within this book is sound and will help writers of all genres. It covers off on pretty much everything you need to know as a writer and contains all the information I have obtained from numerous other titles, all in the one place, without waffling on with pages of unnecessary words.

The Bad Stuff: I acknowledge that this title was printed in 2005. It has plenty of information on Style, character development, plotting, etc… It also gives details on agents, publishing, editing, and cover letters. While this content is all perfectly valid and I believe still current, the book would be even better if it had some reference to Indie publishing and e-books. Maybe this will come in a newer edition.

Overall, this is an excellent book for new writers and I feel it would make a good addition to many experienced writers book shelves. I found it an interesting and easy read with valuable information on the craft of writing. This one gets a well-deserved, writer-making, story-forming 5 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

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 – 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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