PW Select July 2014

July 2014
Your Guide to Self-Publishing

SNL Writer Self-Publishes Kindle Single
Why All Writers Need Editors
Editing Services
for Indie Authors
Brand Yourself for Indie Success
85 New Titles Listed
19 Full Reviews
Allison Schiff is a writer living in New York City.
P U B L I S H E R S WE E K LY J U LY 2 8 , 2 0 1 4 34
Everyone Needs an Editor
B A S
The reading public has no time for
badly edited, error-ridden books.
Thats true in the traditional pub-
lishing world, of coursebut its
even more relevant for indie authors.
Sloppy work tars everyone.
E
very time a badly edited book is published, it
chips away at the reputation of the self-published
writers who arent producing rubbish, says Gary
Smailes, cofounder of BubbleCow, a U.K.-based
company that provides editing and proofreading
services to indie authors around the world. But readers are
more forgiving of self-published writers if they appear to have
taken a real effort.
Indeed, a book with no errors is a rare thing. Mistakes fre-
quently even make their way into the thoroughly vetted books
that come out of big, traditional publishing houses, where pro-
fessional editors and proofreaders rake manuscripts with the
finest of fine-tooth combs. And thats despite the fact that most
manuscripts go through an intensive editing process before
theyre even accepted by a literary agent and shopped around.
Self-published writers have to work harder to make it to that
point, Smailes says. Readers are taking a gamble on them
because theyre not vouched for by a publisher.
The fact is, slipups are probably going to end up in the final
product, but youve got to make an effort. The writers primary
task is to create work that is as compelling and error-free as
possible. A great book cover, a marketing plan, and a cool au-
thor website are all important, but if an author hasnt spent the
time and money for a solid editing job, its all just wasted effort.
Step 1: Nomenclature
Getting the terms straight will help an author get the most out
of the editing process. At a high level, theres substantive or
structural editing, which drills down deeply into things like
character development, readability, and plot. And then theres
copyediting and proofreading, which are more about the nuts
and bolts.
Before you get started with an editor, learn whats available
and think about what youll need, whether its proofreading,
copyediting, or substantive analysis, says freelance book editor
J.P. Hansen, a self-published author
himself. If you know what the differ-
ences are, youll know what to ask for.
In most cases, it makes the best sense
to start out with an in-depth structural
edit before looking at the nitty-gritty of
sentence structure or spelling. In other
words, theres no point in putting on
your lipstick if you havent even show-
ered yet.
A substantive edit focuses on the con-
tent in its entirety. Is the writer building tension? Is the writer
telling rather than showing? Is the dialogue successful? Does
the story flow from beginning to end? In a sense, submitting
your manuscript for a substantive edit is a bit like going to the
doctor for a diagnosis. If a story is inconsistent or confusing,
your editor will be able to recognize any structural issues and
offer potential solutions. A doctor will remove a mole; your
editor will let you know if a section of your book needs to be
excised.
We try and help writers pinpoint the problem; we point it
out and explain why its wrong and what they should be doing,
which makes it more of an educational process, Smailes says.
Its often about what a writer doesnt know, and what they dont
know, they cant do anything about until its pointed out to
them.
Take dialogue, for example. Good dialogue is snappy, believ-
able, and makes sense from a character standpoint. In fiction,
dialogue needs to move quickly and with a certain intensity. If
the dialogue isnt working, then the
story could fall flat. A substantive editor
will flag unsuccessful dialogue and share
advice on how it can better move the
story along.
The bottom line is very simple: in a
good book, stuff happens, says Hillel
Black, a freelance book editor responsi-
ble for putting the shine on more than
20 New York Times bestsellers. If stuff
isnt happening in a novel, a story is not
being told.
Once a writer is satisfied that her book has a solid story, a
convincing plot, and a workable structure, its time to move on
to the more technical aspects of editing.
Traditionally, the next step is the copyediting stage, the point
at which an editor goes through a manuscript sentence by sen-
tence to make suggestions on sentence structure and word
E D I T I N G S E R V I C E S
Hillel Black
J.P. Hansen
WWW. P U B L I S H E R S WE E K LY. C O M 35
E D I T I N G S E R V I C E S
choice, and to correct spelling, punctuation,
and grammar. Having moved through the
copyediting phase, a proofreader takes a final
look at a typeset book after its been laid out,
including headings, page numbers, captions,
and spacing. Part of the proofreaders job is
also to make sure that all of the copy editors
accepted changes and suggestions were
translated into the final product.
Copyediting and proofreading arent the same thing, but in
the self-publishing world, the two services have largely con-
flated. Its a resource/time issue.
In the traditional world, a book might go through multiple
copy edits and proofreaders, but youll probably find with self-
published writers that theres not the budget to pay for that,
Smailes says. We often urge self-published writers to use their
friends and family, and to get as many people as possible to read
their manuscript before proofreading. The more eyes there are,
the less room there is for error.
Of course, feedback from your buddies or your spouse should
be taken with a grain of salt.
The key thing with feedback is that if three or four people
say the same thing, then, okay, its clearly a problem that needs
fixing, but you should always think twice before blindly imple-
menting every suggestion, Smailes says. But Ive never come
across a book that hasnt been improved by an edit.
Step 2: Finding the Right Editors
Before starting a search for the perfect editors, an author needs
to be sure that her manuscript is ready. If a book needs a little
more time in the oven, an author should redraft before reaching
out. Go through as many drafts as possible before coming to
an editor, and make sure its as clean and complete as possible,
Hansen says. Dont send a first or a second draft because thats
just going to be a waste of money.
Once an author feels confident that her manuscript is ready
for professional editing, she can either hire freelance book edi-
tors or sign up with an editorial services company like Bubble-
Cow, AuthorHouse, or Lulu, to name a few. But in either case,
as ever, its vital for an author to do some research. The editor/
writer relationship is a personal one, and an author needs to
make sure shes on the same page as her editors.
The first thing you really want to know is what experience
theyve had and who theyve edited, Black says. But the most
important thing of all is to talk to the editors. Have a conversa-
tion and feel them out.
There are numerous professional editor organizations and
groups a click away online: the Professional Editors Association,
the Consulting Editors Alliance, or the Editorial Freelancers
Association. The difficulty isnt in finding editors, but in find-
ing the right editors. And it never hurts to see what fellow
writers have to say before moving forward.
You dont want any alarm bells ringing. A simple Google
search will soon reveal if there
are any potential problems,
Smailes says. Writers like to write, so you
know theyre going to go into forums and
share their opinions if theyve had a bad ex-
perience.
Its also extremely important to make sure
editors are communicative and willing to
keep in touch throughout the process. An au-
thor also needs to make sure editors are aware of the projects time
frame. If an author has a launch date or a promotional plan in her
head, she should share that information. It might also be a good
idea to include the time frame for completion in the contract.
But build lead time into the schedule. An author cant assume
editors will be able to edit and proof the book in a week. Bubble-
Cow, for example, has a policy that all books are returned to
authors within 28 days, although it often turns out to take less
time.
Step 3: Budgeting
Pricing can often depend on what it is an author is looking
for. Some editors, like Hansen, charge by page count (based on
the industry standard of roughly 250 words per page), while
others charge by word count. Black, on the other hand, charges
about $175 an hour for substantive editing. The total cost will
vary depending on the size of your manuscript, but Hansen
advises budgeting for at least between $500 and $700 to get the
job done.
Editors, especially those who cater to indie writers, will com-
monly offer different package deals. At BubbleCow, writers can
get what Smailes refers to as a substantive line edit, basically
a combination between a structural editing job and a copy edit-
ing report. When a writer contracts with Hansen for a substan-
tive editing job, copyediting and proofreading are included,
although proofreading is also available as a separate service.
Although some editors, like Black, refuse on principle to
provide potential customers with samples of their work as an
enticement, others, like Hansen, will offers clients $50 worth
of copyediting up front so the writer can see what his work is
like before committing to the full price.
With a good editor, an indie authors book has a chance of
standing out from the Amazon clutterbut it does help to have
a thick skin. There might be thousands of changes in a manuscript
after editing, though an author doesnt have to accept them all.
I often joke that our tagline should be, Were not mean, were
honest, Smailes says. We want stories to be as good as they can be,
because if self-pub-
lishing is going to
work, writers need
to be as conscien-
tious as possible to
produce the best
possible work.
9
Amazon bestseller marketing
plan = 1K sales/month
9
Ghostwriting, rewriting,
editing = awards, contracts
& readers
9
Queries & proposals = 25
clients under contract
9
20 years of experience =
creation to contract and
beyond
WritersResource.us or toll-free 866-212-9805
WritersResourceBlog.com
QUALITY COUNTS.
operativeiy and in a way that beneits
both parties more than the oid system
did, he says. Its a wonderui time not
just to be a writer, but to be one o the
many creatives out there who heip books
come to iie.
Lisa Renee Jones
Iisa Renee )ones, a New York Times and
USA Today bestseiiing author, has writ-
ten more than 40 books, inciuding the
Inside Out series,
whi c h wa s op-
tioned or teievi-
sionand she uses
not just one editor
but our.
I have ound
that no matter how expensive one editor
is, they dont catch everything, says
)ones. Iach catches something dier-
ent. 1wo o her editors are skiiied at iine
editing, she says, whereas the others
might catch iogisticai issues iike a char-
acters eye coior that changes mid-novei.
)ones says she doesnt empioy a con-
tent editor, but advises it might be heip-
ui or new authors. 1he joy o having
worked many years in the industry beore
sei-pubiishing is I worked with New
Hugh Howey
Hugh Howey is one o sei-pubiishings
biggest success storiesand one o its
greatest champions. 1he author o the
bestseiiing Wooi series is a Kindie 1op
100 author and a
=1 bestsei i er i n
Amazons science
iction category.
His series was aiso
optioned by Ridiey
Scott and Steve
Zaiiiian or a eature iim. Howey hires
an editor, David Gatewood, or aii o his
books, and sees the process as one that
beneits not just his own writing but the
creative industry as a whoie.
1he most satisying part o becoming
a successui artist has been the chance to
support other reeiancers, he says. my
editor started out as a beta reader, work-
ing with me or ree, Howey reiates.
Howey insisted on paying him or his
work and began recommending him to
other authorsand Gatewood now
works as an editor uii-time. And my
ormer editor at Simon s Schuster is now
doing reeiance work, he adds.
1he market is reaiiy changing and ai-
iowing individuais to work together co-
\ork editors at aimost every house and
wrote over ~0 stories. I had time to iearn
my crat. Someone who didnt have that
experience might need heip in content,
she says.
)ones notes, Ive tried editors at aii
price ranges and I ind they are aii hu-
man. 1hey miss things. Her soiution is
to hire a cost-eective service or a pri-
mary edit, oiiowed by a backup proo-
er. She uses one main service that em-
pioys two editors or ;1.50 a page. A
second service charges 60 a page or one
person. And she keeps a ourth prooer on
deck i needed. 1his gets me more eyes,
and I ind each person has a strength.
Penny Reid
Penny Reid is the author o the Knitting
in the City series, a Chicago-based ro-
mance series about a group o young
women who are aii members o the same
knitting group. Ater upioading her irst
book, Neanderthal Seeks Human, to Ama-
zonand oering it or reeit was
downioaded 8,000 times in our days.
1he book was initiaiiy meant or a se-
iect group o riends, but when it took o
she noticed some reviews made mention
o typos and punctuation probiems. I
think it is inappropriate or me to expect
peopie to purchase my books i I know
the books contain copious typos, says
Reid. It was at
that point she en-
iisted the editing
services o Cre-
ateSpace so she
couid upioad a
corrected edition.
I didnt] want my book to suer iower
reviews because o something so easiiy
ixabie, she says. Reid chose CreateSpace
because it seemed iike the saest bet, and
she had no contacts in the pubiishing
worid to advise herthe company
Indie Authors Talk Editors
Bv )ixxiiii mcC~i1xiv
Indie authors aii agree. hiring an editor to work on your
manuscript is one o the best and most necessary investments
an author can make. Iditing takes both time and money and
can encompass anything rom a substantiative (i.e. structurai
or content) editwhere the editor makes suggestions on
character and piot deveiopment, chapter organization, and
big-picture issuesto copyediting and prooreading. We
taiked to eight successui indie authors who shared their edit-
ing experiences and oered some tips and advice as weii.
E D I T I N G A D V I C E

A
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B
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charged 0.016 per word, which meant
$1,800 for the edit. The drawback was
that the service didnt allow contact be-
tween the author and editorso she
never knew who was editing her book.
She eventually connected with IndieGo
Publishing, which charges the same rate
as CreateSpace.
After her first book, Reid figured out
a system to ensure her manuscript was
properly edited. She first sends the man-
uscript to five beta readers who she en-
lists through Goodreads or Amazon, and
they provide a content edit. They review
the first draft for consistency, character-
ization, flow, pacing, overall impres-
sions, etc., and provide feedback via a
template form that Ive created. She
rewards these beta readers with $10 Am-
azon gift cards or a signed paperback.
Once shes incorporated their sugges-
tions, she sends that draft to IndieGo
Publishing for a second look.
Know the difference between a content
edit, copy/line edit, and proofreading,
Reid says. She advises that while beta read-
ers can save an author money by taking the
place of a content editor, its more labor
intensive for the author. A professional
content editor is extremely expensive.
James Minter
A U.K. humor writer with five titles un-
der his belt, and winner of the bronze
award in the adult fiction category of the
Wishing Shelf Independent Book
Awards for his title The Hole Opportunity,
James Minter says that no author can do
without an editor.
From day one I was aware of the need
to respect my readers and do justice to
myself and my storytelling, he says.
With his first book, his wife recommend-
ed an editor who was affordable and who
also lived nearby. Not knowing any bet-
ter, he says, I submitted my 90,000
word manuscript to
her. It came back
several weeks later
with an invoice for
400. While his
editor had marked
punctuation and
grammar corrections, she hadnt ad-
dressed many larger issues like POV
shifts, verb tense slips, and general over-
writing. It was my first book. In my
heart of hearts I knew I could do better,
but I was keen to get it up on Amazon,
and I accepted what shed done since she
was, after all, the professional.
For his second book, he had a better
understanding of the difference between
a copyedit and a structural/content edit.
He contacted the Society for Editors and
Proofreaders and researched its database
until he found a senior editor with experi-
ence editing humorous fiction. Several
weeks and 1,200 lighter I had a heavily
red-penned manuscript, but with little
regard for structural corrections, he says.
She had been thorough, but there was no
conversation, no interaction between us.
Minter felt disappointed with the experi-
ence. Hed also reached out to an editor
online who had agreed to do a sample edit
for himand she replied with extensive
annotations and addressed various con-
tent issues. She was the first to show me
the power of the edit, he says.
He finally connected with a prize-
winning literary fiction writer who also
excels at editing. Submit your work to
her and she produces a detailed report
including why something is not work-
ing, or points out where a POV is
breached, and any of the other myriad
things you as a writer can fall foul of.
Remember, a structural editor is an
essential part of your writing toolkit, so
choose wisely, Minter says. Appreciate
the difference between a copy edit and a
structural editand understand the edit
process is as important as the writing
process, and can take months.
A.G. Riddle
The author of three science fiction novels
that have sold more than half a million
copies through Amazon alone, A.G. Rid-
dle uses both a content editor and a copy
editor.
Riddle is one of Hugh Howeys benefi-
ciaries, finding his content editor, David
Gatewood, through Howeys recommen-
dation. Gatewood offered suggestions
about plot changes, char-
acter arcs, shortening and
removing chapters, and chapter transi-
tions, as well as flagging logic and con-
tinuity issues and offering word choice
suggestionsfor a total cost of $2,700.
I believe that Davids edit added a ton
of value, says Riddle. I learned a lot
during the process, and he improved the
novel a great deal.
He advises authors to find an editor
who has worked on books in their genre
(ideally, books the
author has read and
liked)and then to
be pati ent. Be
willing to wait if
the editors calendar
is crowded, says
Riddle. Releasing a higher-quality novel
later is better than releasing a grammati-
cally correct draft now.
Arnie Kotler
Editing Services
Arnie is the intelligent
and conscientious editor
I had been looking for.
Tom Peek, author of
Daughters of Fire
www.KoaBooks.com
Developmental Editing
Coauthoring
Packaging
Author Tours & Publicity
Self-Publishing Guidance
Help Getting Published
Arnie is the founder
of Parallax Press
and Koa Books,
editing works by
Thich Nhat Hanh,
Robert A. Johnson,
Joanna Macy, and
many other authors.
T.L. Haddix
T.L Haddix, who lives
in Indiana, writes romance and romance
suspense and is the author of the popular
Firefly Hollow series. The more eyes
you can get on a book prior to publica-
tion, the better, she says.
When she published her first book in
2010, she acknowledges there was a stig-
ma attached to self-publishing. Com-
mon knowledge then was that writers
who wanted to be taken seriously in the
business were edited, she says. I knew
that in order to provide readers with the
best possible book, I had to have more
than just my eyes on a book. To do this
she uses beta readers, copy and line edi-
tors, and a proofreader.
She confides that
content edits can be
tough, but theyre
worth it. I had a lot
of suggesti ons to
move scenes or chap-
t er s ar ound. The
most painful thing I
heard was this isnt
important to the story and it needs to
go. Once she learned from that experi-
ence, she says her writing became tight-
er. After a while, the focus became less
on moving large chunks around than on
cleaning up clunky sentence structure
and the like.
Shes also learned not everyone who
hangs out a shingle as an editor is worthy
of the title. She mentions editors who
introduced errors or tried to alter her
writing voice. Theres nothing more
frustrating than paying good money for
an edit only to find yourself in worse
shape than you were before. She says au-
thors should look at the reviews for books
with a particular editor. A huge red flag
is if several of the authors an editor works
with have tons of reviews that focus more
on the errors in the books instead of the
stories themselves...multiple authors us-
ing the same editor who have those errors
is not just a coincidence.
Finally, she encourages writers to hone
their craft. Do whatever it takes to learn
writing English so you know if your edi-
tor is good or not. The only thing worse
than having to fix bad edits is not
knowing theyre bad in the first place.
Kristen Proby
The New York Times and USA Today best-
selling indie author of the With Me in
Seattle series and the Love Under the Big
Sky series, Kristen Proby is a firm be-
liever in the value of a good editor. It
will mean the difference between being
mediocre and being a professional to be
taken seriously, she says.
Proby admits that because of her own
inexperience, her first novels werent pro-
fessionally editedsomething she says
she regretted as her career progressed. In
2013, she hired an editing service called
the Formatting Fairies to copyedit all of
her previously published novels. I know
without a doubt that it increased the
value of my earlier
books, taking them
from acceptable to
polished, and it
makes me feel more
confident in the
product Im releas-
ing to the reader.
While she says editing for content is
important, she finds the line editing and
copyediting part of the editorial process
the most important. Line and copy edits
are where I find I need the most help, to
find typos and to correct my grammar.
She recommends authors send a sam-
ple of their work consisting of a few
pages to several editors and ask for a com-
plimentary sample edit before commit-
ting to an editor. Its important that you
and your editor work well together, and
that the person youve hired understands
your vision and your goal.
J.M. Madden
A former deputy sheriff in Central
Ohio, J.M. Madden began her writing
career when she decided to join the Ken-
tucky Romance Writers groupand to-
day she is a USA Today bestselling indie
author of 16 romances. The necessity of
a good edit is something Madden says
she believes strongly in.
After initially placing a few pieces with
a small e-book publisher, Madden decided
to switch to self-publishing in order to
take control of her royalties, cover art, and
the editing process. While she admits she
learned a lot from the various editors at
her e-book publisher, she realized that in
order to publish independently, shed
need to hire an editor to enable her to pub-
lish a professional
product. I realized
as I went through
all the levels of edit-
ing there that I
di dn t know as
much about writ-
ing as I thought I did.
One of the first groups she employed
was Authors Red Room, now called
NovelNeeds. They only charged a cou-
ple hundred dollars to edit a novella, and
they were unique in that the manuscript
went through two editors, Madden says.
They made content suggestions as well
as punctuation and mechanics sugges-
tions, and the manuscript was definitely
better off from the attention. She later
went through several personal editors.
Some were okay and some made me
cringe at what they sent back, she re-
members. The advantage to being an
indie author is that you can take the edits
that you want, and you arent obligated
to take everything.
She finally settled with her current
editor, Mary Yakovets, who re-edited a
book of Maddens that had already been
released in order to prove her worth. She
sent me three pages of developmental
edits, time shift issues, and punctuation
issues we had missed. I hired her on the
spot. And at 0.006 per word, she is very
affordable.
She advises other indie authors to talk
to their friends and other authors to see
which editors they use: Word of mouth
is fabulous in the indie community.
Most of all, she advises every author to go
through the editing processits an op-
portunity to learn.
Jennifer McCartney is an author and editor.

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Bv )ixxiiii mcC~i1xiv
Coming ahead o the
much-anticipated
October reiease o Yes
Please, Amy Poehiers
memoir, I Triggered
Her Bully, a sei-pub-
iished book by a or-
mer Saturday Night
Live and Comedy Centrai writer, appears to have
ound the right readers at the right time.
C
indy Caponeras book coiiects a series o humor-
ous, iinked essays based on her iie, tiny mem-
oirs, as she caiis them. 1he stories cover her
chiidhood in Chicago, as weii as her experi-
ences moving to New \ork, getting married,
and working as a teievision writer, a job shes had since being
hired at SNL in 1995. 1he book takes its name rom its irst
essay, which is about Caponeras ather, a retired Chicago ire
chie she describes as a big neighborhood bar ighter and a
bit o a buiiy, and who taught her how to stand up or hersei,
with mixed resuits.
1he book comes in at 8~ pages, just the right iength to catch
the eye o David Bium at the Kindie Singies pubiishing division
at Amazon. A Kindie Singie is usuaiiy iong-orm journaiism or
short- to noveiia-iength iction. According to Caponera, Bium
read the book soon ater she upioaded it in may via Kindie
Direct and then got in touch. Ater some discussion, she agreed
to make the book avaiiabie as a singie, and soon it took o.
1hey did a iot o promotions and giveaways to their Amazon]
Prime members and other reguiar Kindie readers, Caponera
says. Its a sheer numbers game, and the more hands you can
get your book in the better. I Triggered Her Bully is now a top
100 Kindie book in the noniction singies categories or humor
and memoir. 1he book has aiso been eatured in the Chicago
Tribune and Variety.
Caponera had severai amous riends heip promote the book
and notes, or exampie, that Adam mcKay, writer and director
o Anchorman and Step Brothers, wrote the oreword. I think I
had a ieg up because I had been writing or teievision or many
years beore I pubiished the book, Caponera says o the initiai
pubiicity. But once the book was picked up by Kindie Singies,
she hired a pubiicist to capitaiize on the exposure. I was abie
to get a iot o teievision, radio, and podcast attention, she says.
Whiie Caponera admits she got iucky with the Amazon Kin-
die Singies promotion, the writing and pubiishing process was
a iong and airiy unusuai one. And the book actuaiiy got its start
in Ios Angeies as a series o monoiogues.
What inspired it was an opportunity to read stories out ioud
and having to have a story done by the date o said show, Ca-
ponera says. I had to have a story. She eventuaiiy puiied a ew
essays together and created a show that she perormed at I.A.
theaters. Caponera considered pubiishing the stories or three
years beore she inaiiy decided to oiiow through, ater which,
she says, the universe put the peopie in my path I needed to
heip me inish. She describes the resuiting book as one o the
most emotionai and iabor-intensive projects shes ever done.
Caponera says she decided to sei-pubiish airiy eariy in the
process. I beiieve the pubiishing industry is going the way o
the music industry 10 years ago. Its iike the Wiid West out
there now, she says. Ater doing some research, she conciuded
that because o the reiativeiy short iength o the book and the
act that comedic essays are a tough category, it might be a
hard seii to traditionai pubiishers. 1heres oniy one David Se-
daris, she says.
She aiso observed simiiar trends in the pubiishing and teievi-
sion industries. Pubiishers] want you to have a buiit-in oi-
iowing, and they take a much bigger percentage, she says.
Caponera aiso didnt iike the idea o spending six months trying
to ind a pubiisher when she couid sei-pubiish on her own
scheduie. Ater attending a our-hour seminar on sei-pubiish-
ing, she decided, Aii I had to do was ind someone to heip me
push aii o the technicai buttons. And ind a great copy editor.
1hey are actuaiiy worth aii the money.
Her advice to other writers who may be scrambiing to come
up with unds or an editor or cover designer is to be creative.
Iveryone has riends that have skiiis, she says. \ou can aiways
pay someone with a dinner or the promise o oneor barter
some skiii that you have or their heip. She maintains that a iot
o startup money isnt a necessity. I youre smart enough to
write stories, youre smart enough to igure out creative ways to
get the project done. Shes aiso optimistic about the iong-term
prospects or indie authors. I you are proiiic, Caponera says,
you can start a smaii writing business and do pretty weii...I
dont know i it wiii send your kids to private schooi, but it can
certainiy suppiement your income] and aiso be very uiiiiing
creativeiy, which makes going to a job you dont iike that much
iess painui.
Jennifer McCartney is an author and editor.
I N D I E S U C C E S S
A Funny Story
SNL writers sei-pubiished
book inds success as a Kindie Singie
Brand Yourself for Indie Success
B B K S
What is a brand, anyway?
T
here are dozens of def-
initions of this mar-
keting term, but one
we particularly like is
from Heidi Cohen of
Riverside Marketing Strategies. She
says, Brands are shorthand market-
ing messages that create emotional
bonds with consumers. Emotional bonds. Thats such a good
point, and its at the very heart of why indie authors need to
brand themselves in the first place. Unless self-publishers are
able to find readers and create an emotional connection with
them, they are probably going to be seriously disappointed
with their book sales.
But Im an author, you say, not a boutique or a grocery store.
By now, most of us realize that to be successful authors we have
to do two things: first, make our books the best they can be,
and second, connect with our readers. And the only way to find
our readers, like it or not, is to market ourselves like crazy. Once
the idea of branding yourself has settled in, the next step is to
figure out how to do it. Remember, your goal is to create a
digital footprint that will help you sell your book. Here are
some suggestions gleaned from dozens of marketing experts as
well as super-successful self-published authors.
1. Tell your story. Who are you, what do you care about, what is
unique about what you have to offer your readers, and why are you the
best person for the job?
2. Promote benefits. Whats in it for the reader? Is your book a
heart-stopping thriller about a serial killer in New Orleans in the 20s,
the true story of the disappearance of the bison from the western
plains, or new research on how to lose five pounds in five days? Will
your book entertain, educate, or terrify the reader? Be clear about why
your potential readers should trust you with their time. What is in it for
them?
3. Keep it fresh. Make sure your blogs, interviews, videos, news-
letters are up-to-date, lively, and engaging. Stay on top of your game.
If you dont, someone else may just come along and steal your audi-
ence.
4. Keep it simple. Whatever your message, present it clearly and di-
rectly. No one has time to try to figure out what you are getting at.
5. Keep it coming. Youve created a platform, now start to build on
it. Talk about the next book in your series or the book you are plan-
ning to write, even if it doesnt fit into a series. Be persistent, be con-
sistent, be available.
We asked Holly Brady, former director of the Stanford Pub-
lishing Courses, for her thoughts on successful self-branding. I
think the most important thing to tell an indie author about
self-branding is this: dont ask people to buy your book, she
says. What you want to do is engage people in conversations
about your area of expertiseyour books subject (nonfiction) or
the writing process (fiction). Be authentic and generous in your
contributions to that conversation. Theyll find your book.
Nina Amir, author of The Author Training Manual, says, Dont
wait until youve finished your book to think about branding.
Develop a big-picture view of all the potential books you might
write, figure out what ties them together and how you want to
be known by your readers. Then create a website that speaks to
this brand and fill it up with photos, a great bio, a blog, and links
to your Twitter and Facebook pages.
If you are writing fiction, theres a good chance your followers
will be interested in how the creative process works for you.
Where did you get the idea for the 15-year-old protagonist who
gets separated from her parents while hiking in the Smokey
Mountains, or the inspiration for your love story about high
school sweethearts who reconnect in Siena, Italy, after 40 years?
C.J. Lyons, the much acclaimed pediatric E.R. doctor turned
author from No Rules, Just Write! says, My brand is Thrillers
with Heart. She defines brand as the emotional promise you
make to your audienceand keep with every story you tell and
everything you do. She often combines the marketing of her
books with fund-raising for charity. Her novel Broken inspired
a major contribution to the American Heart Association and her
Buy a Book, Make a Difference foundation has raised almost
$100,000 for forensic scholarships for police officers from un-
derserved communities.
The website ForbesWoman calls Cindy Ratzlaff, a brand mar-
keter and communications consultant, one of the Top 20 Best
Branded Women on Twitter. Her advice: Brand yourself with
your namenot the name of your first book. If your name is
Sally Smith or John Jones and your URL is taken then tack on
author or writer or sleuth or something that lets people know
what you care about. You are the heart of your brand. Stake your
claim to your name, or some variation of it, create an account on
the major social media sites, and youll be off and running.
B O O K WO R K S C O L U MN
Betty Kelly Sargent is the founder and CEO of BookWorks.
S E L F P U B L I S H E D L I S T I N G S
BIOGRAPHY &
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
The Ugly One in the Middle: An
Adoptees Wicked and Hilarious Search
for Identity and Love
Al ex Stan Campbel l .
Alexis Broadcasting Co.
$29.95 hardcover (408p),
ISBN 9780993655005;
$ 7 e - b o o k I S B N
9780993655036
Bookstores; Amazon; BN.com; Kobo
The story of an adoptees search through
five marriages to find two womenhis
birth mother and the angelic girl of his
dreams.
Escape from Shanghai
Paul C. Huang. PCH Publishing. $9.95
paper (235p), ISBN 9780615970745
Amazon; BN.com
Hua ng s ha r e s t he
never-before-told gov-
ernment secrets that his
mother, Jane Sun, discov-
ered during World War
II and chronicles her har-
rowing escape from brutal
Japanese forces.
The Ambivalent Memoirist:
Obsessions Digressions Epiphanies
Sandra Hurtes. CreateSpace. $12.95
paper (217p), ISBN 9781492359722;
A memoir of Tennessee Williamss last year and a
novel for adults about growing up dyslexic are among the titles that booksellers,
publishers, and agents are encouraged to take a look at in the listings of self-pub-
lished books below. Some of these authors are waiting to be discovered; others have
a track record and a following, and are doing it on their own.
New Titles
from Self-Publishers
Tnc 8j 1i1ics sunri11cn ron oun ann PW Scicc1
$5. 99 e- book ASI N
B00HJQQ50W
Amazon; BN.com
A daughter of Holo-
caust survivors searches
for home through teach-
ing, writing, and explor-
ing family history.
In the Frightened Heart of Me:
Tennessee Williamss Last Year
Tony Narducci. iUniverse. $31.95 hard-
cover (302p), ISBN 9781475965957;
$3.99 e-book ISBN 9781475965964
iUniverse; BN.com; Amazon
A memoir of Tennes-
see Williamss last year as
seen through the eyes of a
young man who idolized
the great playwright and
became an intimate com-
panion and love object.
Includes eight love let-
ters written by Williams.
Cry of the Phoenix
Colleen OConnor. Cats
Eye Enterprises. $19.95
paper ( 207p) , I SBN
9780978398804
Amazon; Macs Fireweed
Books
A story of personal tragedy to triumph.
Born in Vancouver, OConnor was married
by the age of 15 to a young Navy recruit.
Within five years, despite her protests
and without just causeher three children
were taken from her. At the heart of this
story lies a secret.
BODY, MIND & SPIRIT
The Hunger for Home: The Map of
My Journey, with Space for Yours
Elizabeth Fox Brewer. Citrine Press. $15
pa pe r ( 426p) , I SBN
9780615788500
Amazon; BN.com
Joy and meaning dont
have to be places you visit.
This book can help you
make them your home.
BUSINESS &
ECONOMICS
Guardians of the Dream: The Enduring
Legacy of Americas Immigrants
Paul Hsu. Maxwell Publishing. $24.95
hardcover (192p), ISBN 9780986073502;
B00JQMJR0M; BN ID
2940149460748
Guardiansofthedream.com
Stories of those who
have fostered the entrepre-
neurial spirit and achieved
great success, enriching the economy and
improving Americas ability to compete in
the world.
FICTION
In the Shadow of Lies: A Mystery
Novel
M.A. Adler. She Writes Press. $16.95
paper (280p), ISBN 9781938314827;
$9.95 e-book ISBN 9781938314896
Bookstores; Amazon; BN.com
Not a love note to the
greatest generation but
a haunting portrayal of
prejudice, deception, and
murder set in tumultuous
Richmond, Calif., during
WWII.
Far Away, I Land
Viki Alles-Crouch. Inkwater Press.
$21.95 paper (370p),
ISBN 9781629010250;
B00KC2Z8W6
Amazon; BN.com
Connecting the lives of
people who meet purely
by chance, this story trav-
els through World War II Europe and the
island of Ceylon.
The Dog Boy
Noel Anenberg. But-
t o n Wi l l o w Pr e s s .
$12.95 paper (288p),
ISBN 9780615827216;
$1. 95 e- book I SBN
9780989568401
Amazon; BN.com
A mother and son struggle against
racism in 1940s America.
Exorcising the Sins
F. Damion Barela. CreateSpace. $15.99
paper (320p), ISBN 9781493706433
Amazon; BN.com
Possessed as a boy by
the unthinkable sins of
a priest, a man living in
darkness finds an unorth-
odox way of casting out
the ecclesiastic evil.
Progeny
Anita Bihovsky. Anita Bihovsky. $12.99
9 7 8 1 4 9 5 4 7 4 8 0 4 ;
B00J5IB1DI
Amazon; BN.com
After learning that her
dying mother isnt her
biological parent, Selene
endeavors to discover her birth mothers
identity and stumbles into a life-threaten-
ing situation.
The Good Ones
L a Wa n d a Bu t l e r .
CreateSpace. $9. 99
9 7 8 1 4 8 2 7 7 7 1 8 5 ;
$6. 99 e-book ASIN
B00GJ6DD76
Amazon; BN.com
A cop with a past tries to take down the
deadliest gangster in the city to rescue the best
friend he lost in childhood, only to find out
that the truth isnt as clear-cut as he thought.
Pockets of the Dead:
Dawnland, Vol. 1
Karen Carr. CreateSpace.
$9. 99 paper ( 230p) ,
ISBN 9781495958991;
9 9 e - b o o k AS I N
B00I9HAMZE
Amazon; BN.com
Meet Hella Paige: she kills zombies. Its
not her faulther virus kills them. Worse,
her bite turns humans into them.
The Great Liars: They Knew He
Knew. Too Bad for Him.
Jerry Jay Carroll. Jerry Jay
Carroll. $14 paper (362p),
ISBN 9780989826907;
B00IEM9TKI
Amazon; BN.com
Lowell Brady knows
too many secrets about
the Pearl Harbor attack treachery. When
he tells oral historian Harriet Gallatin, she
too must be silenced.
30 Days
G.R. Case. Cool Blue Books. $15.99
9 7 8 0 9 7 2 1 5 9 3 2 6 ;
$6. 99 e - book I SBN
9780972159333
BN.com; Amazon
Marcus Freling kid-
naps and t or t ur es a
murderer in the Catskill
Mountains after his niece is killed by the
man in Harlem, N.Y.
A Tight Grip: A Novel
About Golf, Love
Affairs, and Women of
a Certain Age
Kay Rae Chomic. She
Writes Press. $16.95
9781938314766; $9.95
e-book ISBN 9781938314773
Amazon; BN.com
In a celebration of female friendship,
Jane Par Parker processes life, discovers
the power of adversity, and evolves as a per-
son, an athlete, and a best friend.
Death Tunnel
Robert Curtis. CreateSpace.
$16. 97 paper ( 767p) ,
ISBN 9781493524495;
$6. 99 e - bo o k AS I N
B00IIOWAP8; BN ID
2940045860413
Amazon; Smashwords; BN.com
An aging assassin describes how he
dressed up the murder of a beloved mem-
ber of the British royal family to look like
an accident.
The Return of the
Santa Fe Super Chief
Douglas Folsom. Cre-
a t e S p a c e . $ 1 2 . 9 5
9 7 8 1 4 8 0 0 7 4 7 3 6 ;
9781623469214
Amazon; BN.com
When a mysterious stranger challenges
successful ad executive Roger Storm to
restore a famous old luxury train, Roger
risks everything to attain a happiness that
he never knew he was missing.
The Dancing Road
Pamela Fox. CreateSpace. $8.99 paper
(189p), ISBN 9781495351051; $5.99
e-book ASIN B00JFHEPUK
Amazon; BN.com
Recently widowed,
Meli Stone embarks on
an adventurous journey
that leads to self-discov-
ery. Traveling from Santa
Clarita to Broken Arrow,
pulling a renovated Air-
stream, Meli learns about her Cherokee
heritage, herself, and life.
A Little Piece of Me
Stephen A. Geller. AuthorHouse. $26.95
hardcover (290p), ISBN 9781481762328;
$3.99 e-book ISBN 9781481762311
AuthorHouse
Accomplished pia-
nist Marcia Kleinman
is forced to make heart-
wrenching decisions.
Her little boy will likely
need a liver transplant,
and she wants to donate a
portion of her own liver.
Mr. Boardwalk
Louis Greenstein. New
Door Books. $14. 95
paper ( 310p) , ISBN
9 7 8 0 9 7 8 8 6 3 6 7 8 ;
9780978863685
Newdoorbooks.com
On the Atlantic City boardwalk, a boy
discovers friendship and romance, but then
his boardwalk life collapses. Decades later
he tries to learn from his past.
Ox Herding: A Secular
Pilgrimage
J a c k i e Gr i f f i t h s .
Jackie Griffiths. $9.08
9 7 8 0 9 9 2 9 2 8 7 0 4 ;
9780992928711
jackie@jgriff.net; (01144) 7841-382506
(U.K.)
After a mysterious note is left to her in a
will, Jae embarks on a fateful philosophical
adventure to find the answers she seeks.
Jumping the Line
Mi c h a e l G. Ha r -
pol d. Book Publ i sh-
ers Network. $16.95
9 7 8 1 9 4 0 5 9 8 0 5 5 ;
B00GS96KQA
(907) 225-1315
A Mexican jumps the linethe U.S. bor-
derand takes the job of a Mexican-Amer-
ican farmworker. Years later, the farmwork-
ers son and the illegal immigrant meet.
Growing Up Greenwich: A Tale of
Wealth, Race, Sex and Change, and a
Few Good Nuns
Sar ah I t o. Sar ah I t o. $9. 99 I SBN
9781495113864
Amazon; BN.com
A snarky, some-
what true tale of
growing up work-
ing class in what is
arguably Americas
wealthiest community, from 1959 to 1979.
Defending Eve:
A Divorce Lawyers
Secrets to Keeping
LoveNot Ending It!
Adam Scott Jaffe. Adam
Sc ot t J a f f e . $17. 99
9781482030594; $7.99
e-book ISBN 9781624889189
adamscottjaffe.com
Inspired by true events but not meant as
a self-help book, this story intends to leave
the reader with many valuable lessons to
better all relationships.
Due Unto: Denmark
Veseys Story
K.F. Jones. Two Har-
bor s Pr e s s . $24. 95
h a r d c o v e r ( 3 9 6 p ) ,
ISBN 9781484084854;
B00E2OV0W2
Amazon; jellybooks.com;
BN.com
In 1799, Denmark buys his freedom
with lottery winnings. When threatened,
he must decide: To what extremes will he
go to protect his family?
Bloodridge: Spies Lie,
Book 1
D. S. Ka ne . Swi f t s -
hadow Group. $14.99
9 7 8 0 9 9 6 0 5 9 1 0 7 ;
9780996059114
Amazon; BN.com
After Jon Sommerss fiance dies in a car
bombing, he is visited by Mossad spymas-
ter Yigdal Ben-Levy, who recruits him by
telling him who the bomb maker was. But
things arent as they appear.
Measure of Danger
Jay Klages. Jay Klages.
9780692220825
Amazon
Kade Sims is a young
former intelligence offi-
cer recruited to collect evidence of orga-
nized crime at a biotech company in rural
Oregon. Instead he uncovers the activities
of a high-tech militia and a savage terror
threat to the nation.
Farmers Son
N.E. Lasater. N.E. Lasater.
$14.95 paper (384p),
ISBN 9780990306900;
9780990306917
Amazon; BN.com
What do you do when you cant read?
How do you answer when your father
calls you his defective son? Those of us
with learning disabilities will find spe-
cial meaning, but everyone will enjoy the
story of Bobby and his family (Thomas H.
Kean, dyslexic, former governor of New
Jersey). Lasater has a true understanding
of the struggles and isolation many feel
(William Gaston Caperton III, dyslexic,
former CEO, the College Board).
Lastborn: A Phantasmago-
rical Tale
Prudence Brown Lev.
CreateSpace. $12. 75
9781491003312; $9.99
e-book ASIN B00JV-
VSNKI
Amazon; BN.com
A fact-driven narrative that recreates the
last year of the dinosaurs, including the
apocalyptic ending to their reign on Earth.
Memoirs of a Coma-
tose Brain Surgeon:
Medical Thriller
Charles Benedict Lewi-
son. CreateSpace. $20.30
9781484880272; $3.99
e-book ASIN B00JZAOLLA
Amazon
A pioneering brain-machine-interfacing
surgeon gets shot, goes into a coma, and
delves into his subconscious mind to regen-
erate his body and reenergize his soul.
The Clever Mill Horse
Jodi Lew-Smith. Caspian
Press. $16.99 paper (424p),
ISBN 9780991341207;
9780991341214
Amazon
In 1810, Ella Kenyon
is happiest in the thick New York woods,
tracking game. But shes vowed to finish
her grandfathers lifework: a machine that
could rescue her family and save her strug-
gling town. Fulfilling her promise takes
Ella from Iroquois country to the sophisti-
cated streets of Philadelphia and to Wash-
ington City, a capital younger and wilder
than Ella herself.
Deep Down Things
Ta ma r a Li ns e . Wi l -
l ow Wor ds . $14. 95
9 7 8 0 9 9 1 3 8 6 7 3 4 ;
9780991386741
Tamaralinse.com
Three siblings are torn apart by a char-
ismatic bullrider turned writer, but love
triumphs despite tragedy.
Beyond the Mangroves
Linda Marie. iUniverse. $19.95 paper
(336p), ISBN 9781491726174; $3.99
e-book ISBN 9781491726198
BN.com; Amazon
A tal e of betrayal
and trust; love lost and
found. The story of a
l i f e of survi val af ter
overwhelming treach-
ery and abandonment
in the most unlikely of
placesan island hidden deep within the
watery expanse of the Everglades.
Status Quo
He n r y Mo s q u e r a .
Oddity Media. $9.99
9 7 8 0 9 9 1 6 6 0 1 0 0 ;
9780991660117
Amazon
A struggling author writes an offensive
novel to get attention. It skyrockets him
to fame and fortune, but success comes at
a great price.
The Rule of Equity
Jonathan Neville. Let-
mereadit.com. $14.99
9 7 8 1 4 8 2 6 8 7 4 2 2 ;
$4. 99 e-book ASIN
B00I60E85E
Jonathaneneville.com
Native Americans conspire with high-
ranking insiders in the federal government
to reclaim their sovereignty and save the
nation from imminent collapse.
Flying into the Storm
Bill Norris. Nekko Books.
$14.99 paper (259p),
ISBN 9780991540914;
9780991540921
Amazon; BN.com
A novel of war, duty,
compassion, and friendship that carries the
reader through the jungles of Vietnam and
into the heart and mind of the American
soldier.
Tea Cups & Tiger Claws
Timothy Patrick. Coun-
try Scri bbl er. $15. 99
pa pe r ( 435p) , I SBN
9 7 8 0 9 8 9 3 5 4 4 0 0 ;
$4. 99 e - bo o k AS I N
B00HKN1J3M
Amazon; BN.com
In 1916, the birth of identical triplets
excites a small town. Soon the sisters are
split uptwo are sent to live in a man-
sion, and the third is abandoned in a work
camp. Over the next 50 years, their lives
will intersect in surprising ways.
The Tri-Ad: The Rise
and Fall
Steve & Sandy Peck.
RoseDog Books. $26
9 7 8 1 4 8 0 9 0 3 6 7 8 ;
$ 2 1 e - b o o k I S BN
9781480901056
Rosedogbooks.com
Three childhood friends control orga-
nized crime in San Francisco. But when
their empire starts to crumble, can they
save one another and their souls?
Resurgere
Da v i d Chr i s t o phe r
Perez. David C Perez.
$14 pa pe r ( 292p) ,
ISBN 9780991568901;
9780991568925
Davidcperezwriter.com
When Daniel, 22 and extremely intel-
ligent, loses the greatest love of his life,
his mind and life begin to unravel in eerie,
mysterious ways.
Blood Doctrine
Christian Piatt. Square
Core Medi a. $14. 99
9781938633553; $7.50
e-book
Christianpiatt.com
What if through modern science we had
the power to resurrect Jesus? And what role
could a teenage boy play? Speculative fic-
tion appropriate for young adults.
True Colors: The Colors
Trilogy, Book Three
K.R. Raye. J-pad Publish-
ing. $13.95 paper (408p),
ISBN 9781940361093;
$5. 99 e - bo o k I S BN
9781940361079
ColorsTrilogy.com
After tragedy strikes, Imani, Melody,
and Lance try to rekindle their college
friendship. Can they move forward or will
ghosts from their past haunt them?
Childhood Games
J.M. Roach. Roach City
Publ i s hi ng. $16. 99
9781499309089; $3.99
e-book ASIN B00K1LM-
WUO
Amazon; BN.com
They broke her and rebuilt her as a
weapon. They trained her to be unstop-
pablethey succeeded. They raised her to
be obedientthey failed.
Song of the High-
lands: The Cambels
K. E. Saxon. Passi on
Fl owe r Publ i s hi ng.
$22.99 paper (574p),
ISBN 9781499399059;
9780988180383
Amazon; BN.com
He captured her innocence with his sav-
age desire; she conquered his heart with
her song.
The Birdcatcher: 30th
Anniversary Revisit
Walter Joseph Schenck
Jr. iUniverse. $29.95
9 7 8 1 4 6 2 0 0 5 8 2 6 ;
$3. 99 e-book ISBN
9781462005833
BN.com; Amazon
A mans stories of Vietnam and his abil-
ity to absorb other peoples personalities
may help him find redemption.
Steal Away
Ra y a n n e S i n c l a i r .
Hopetoun Publishing.
$12.95 paper (234p),
ISBN 9780989750202;
9780989750219
Amazon; BN.com
On a trip to the British Isles as a break
from job hunting, Anne Ledwell meets a
handsome Scotsman. Hes smitten with her
after one short evening together, but how
will she feel about him once she knows his
past? A story about family, faith, friends,
and strength of character.
Widows Walk: Part 2,
The Reckoning
Ke n n e t h S p i l l i a s .
Abbott Press. $16.99
9 7 8 1 4 5 8 2 1 3 0 1 3 ;
9781458213006
Kennethspillias.com
Rev. Jim Donovan made a fresh start
with his family in the peaceful town of
Paradise. Soon feelings of sin stir within
him, and he struggles to escape evil. Will
Jim rise above his demons and find forgive-
ness, or will his own sin destroy him, along
with those he loves?
Only the Dead Can
Talk
Al Sundel . Al f r ed
Sundel. $4.99 e-book
ISBN 9781626528819
E-book retailers
This post-Holocaust
thriller focuses on one little Mengele
from the Nazi Doctors Trial. A DNA pio-
neer, his gory experiments surpass Jack the
Rippers.
Atlantic LoveSong
G.J. Supernovich. Red Barn Books of
Vermont. $15.95 paper (242p), ISBN
9781935922445; $2. 99
e-book ISBN 9781935922452
Amazon; BN.com
Par k r anger Jul i a
DeCar l o del i ght s i n
r a i s i ng a nd r e l e a s -
ing eaglets in Maines
Acadia National Park,
while hoping for another
chance at love. She thinks
shes found it when she meets David Zuck-
erman, owner of an outdoor clothing store.
But David has custody of his daughter
will the three find the flexibility and cour-
age to form a new family?
Every Day Needs a
Dog
Billi Tiner. Tinerbooks.
$10.50 paper (264p),
ISBN 9781499371123;
B00K5A01ZE
Amazon; BN.com
When Elizabeth Fischer loses her big-
city job, shes left with big bills and few
options. She reluctantly accepts a job as
president of an animal shelter in a small
town. She has no idea how much her life is
about to change.
Captive
Emily Vance. Xlibris.
$19.99 paper (396p),
ISBN 9781493184002;
$3. 99 e-book ISBN
9781493184019
Xlibris
After escaping sacrifice in ancient
Tenochtitln, Mati must escape death as
the city wages war with the Spanish con-
quistadors.
Mateguas Island:
A Novel of Terror and Suspense
Linda Watkins. Argon
Press. $16.95 paper (382p),
ISBN 9780991055449;
9780991055456
Amazon; BN.com
On a remote island, a
troubled family is try-
ing to start over. But unbe-
knownst to them, their inher-
ited property is shrouded in ancient magic
that could destroy them.
The Killer App:
Would You Die to Be
Young Again?
John Writher. Higive.
com. $9.99 paper (342p),
ISBN 9780992837310;
B00IP1ZUYW
Amazon; BN.com
In a future generation, Britain is crippled
by the costs of an aging population. The
new prime minister teams up with a ruth-
less American businessman and a genetic
scientist wedded to her laboratory, and the
trio hatch a killer experiment to revolution-
ize society. All they need is someone willing
to die to be young again.
HEALTH & FITNESS
The Thyroid Cure: The Functional
Mind-Body Approach to Reversing
Your Autoimmune Condition and
Reclaiming Your Health!
Michelle Corey. Vibrant
Wa y Pr e s s . $24. 95
9 7 8 1 9 3 9 3 7 6 0 0 8 ;
9781939376015
Thethyroidcure.com
A comprehensive dis-
cussion of autoimmune thyroid disease for
patients and health care providers alike.
HISTORY
Minoan Signs: An
African Language
G. J . K. Ca mp b e l l -
Dunn. BookWhirl.com.
$45.30 paper (136p),
ISBN 978-1618563606;
$9.99 e-book
Bookwhirl.com
This Linear A decipherment uses the
comparative method to identify the lan-
guage group of Linear A and explores the
sounds, forms, and grammar.
The Boys of Chattanooga
Clyde Hedges. Clyde Hedges. $13.50
paper (370p), ISBN 9781477650394
Amazon; BN.com
The story of the siege
of and battle for Chatta-
nooga fought in Novem-
ber 1863 as seen through
the eyes of three common
soldiers.
JUVENILE FICTION
Rocket Ship
C.O.B. Grey Line Press. $10 paper (265p),
ISBN 9780983002833; $5 e-book ISBN
9780983002840
Greylinepress.com
The s t or y of t wo
friends and the extremes
they go through to save
each other and others like
them, before the world
they live in destroys them
all. Ages 812.
Aba and Shamana: The Legend Begins
Cynthia L. Floriani. Vivid Publishing.
$3.99 e-book ISBN 9781925171808
Amazon; BN.com
A story of love and
friendship between Aba,
a giant donkey imbued
with supernatural abili-
ties, and Shamana, the
young girl who raises
him. Ages 710.
The Umpire
William Francis. CreateSpace. $10.99
paper (318p), ISBN 9781495493577;
$3.99 e-book
Amazon; BN.com
Michael Briggs dreams
of reaching the major
leagues, not as a player
but as an umpire. Follow
Michaels journey from a
geeky teenager bullied by
jocks to a young man pursuing his passion.
Ages 12up.
Piko, the Dog with No Tail
Tom Gillaspy, illus. by Larry Underkoffler.
Beavers Pond Press. $14.95 hardcover
(32p), ISBN 9781592989430
Bookhousefulfillment.com
On an adventure to find her missing tail
because she doesnt
think she is beauti-
ful without it, Piko
finds friendship,
bravery, and true
beauty. Ages 47.
Dark & Day
Israel Grey. TechTree Publishing. $15.55
paper (445p), ISBN 9780615368047;
$6. 99 e-book ISBN
9780984926312
Amazon; BN.com
The Dark is an icy
wasteland where people
i n steampunk ci ti es
dream of returning to
the stars. The Day is a
lush land of magic, where mythological
creatures live in harmony under the still-
burning sun. Then a boy discovers a relic
that could destroy the fragile balance. Ages
10up.
Serge Backwards
Rob Gruen. Content&.
$9. 95 paper ( 112p) ,
ISBN 9781494483906;
B00IOE8AC4
(917) 951-1524
A singing mailbox,
electric dental floss
middle-schooler Serge Everetts inventions
went nowhere. But when Serge invents a
way to send drops from a drippy faucet back
up the spout, he gets reversed through time
as the rest of the world moves forward. Can
Serge ever turn himself around? Ages 812.
Veggie Rhapsody: I Want You in My
Lunch
Ray Anthony James,
i l l u s . b y S o mme r
Jackson. CreateSpace.
$10. 26 paper (28p),
ISBN 9781495219290
Amazon; BN.com
A book of rhymes that
encourages kids to include veggies in their
lunch. The crunch-and-munch refrain will
get children humming this book, which
creates a subliminal link to eating veggies.
Ages 36.
Silence in the Wild:
A Summer in Maine
Dale C. Jellison. Cre-
a t e S p a c e . $ 1 1 . 9 9
9 7 8 1 4 9 4 8 5 3 6 8 6 ;
B00IMLMGA6; BN ID
2940045721738
Silenceinthewild.com
A coming-of-age adventure that follows a
12-year-old boy who wears a hearing aid as
he learns about hope, friendship, and survival
at a summer camp in Maine. Ages 812.
The Overending: Wood
Cow Chronicles, #2
Rick Johnson. CreateSpace.
$11. 99 paper (284p),
ISBN 9781497328686;
9780692224069
Amazon; BN.com
For untold ages, Tilk Duraow has been
the impregnable center of the High Ones
slaving system. But now 15-year-old Hel-
gas revolution puts it at risk. Ages 11up.
Peety and the Magic Bone
Nikole Lawson. Nikole Lawson. $15 paper
(56p), ISBN 9781494462604; $8 e-book
ASIN B00JMV92IE
Amazon; BN.com
Fol l ow Peety and
Sparky on a magical
adventure where the
true gifts in life are
revealedthe grass isnt
always greener on the
other side. Ages 58.
St. Blair: Children of the Night
E.W. Skinner. E.W. Skinner. $14.95 paper
(196p), ISBN 9781499149210; $2.99
e-book ASIN B00GDJ06OM
Amazon; BN.com
Sybille Malone lives in an overpopulated
Manhattan, Region One,
of Global Good 2202. She
is desperate until she finds
a relic of a past civiliza-
tion. Ages 13up.
Violet Storm
Anna Soliveres. Anna Soliveres. $12.99
9 7 8 0 9 9 6 0 1 4 9 0 8 ;
$4. 99 e-book ISBN
9780996014915
Amazon; BN.com
Aeva Storm is a cham-
pion athlete with all
the skills of a fighter,
augmented against her will to become a
weapon that will change the fate of the
world. Ages 12up.
Little Jimmy Says, Same Is Lame
Jimmy Vee, illus. by Mike Motz. Atlas
Press. $17.99 hardcover (32p), ISBN
9780985478223
Amazon
Little Jimmy is
a small guy with a
big mission: help
people realize how
special they really
are. Readers will
find out what makes them unique and why
being different is actually cool. Ages 48.
A Monster for Tea
Walter Williams. Fernwood & Hedges
Books. $15.99 hardcover (32p), ISBN
9780989069830
Amazon; BN.com
The little girl
was not afraid of
t he mons t er
she invited him
to tea. The mon-
ster did not know
what tea was. He only knew about eat-
ing people and animals and tearing apart
buildings and breathing fire. Ages 48.
JUVENILE
NONFICTION
Maezies Pumpkin Patch: Based on a
True Story
Lynn Martin Snowden. Petu-
nia Publications. $17. 95
hardcover (32p), ISBN 9780991492909
(626) 300-8764
Maezi e r ecei ves
national news cover-
age after her pumpkin
patch is looted. With
support from many,
she finds the spirit
needed to recreate her
magnificent patch. Ages 36.
MEDICAL
Grow Younger Like Me: Feel 29 Again
and Again: How to Look, Feel, and
Function Younger Without Stress
Vernon F. Williams, MD. Advantage
Media Group. $26.99 hardcover (198p),
ISBN 9781599324753;
$9. 99 e-book ASIN
B00JPQNW2I; BN ID
2940149229697
Growyoungeragain.com
A medical doctors
personal battle to regain
his health, happiness,
and youthfulness provides readers with a
guide to feeling younger again.
NONFICTION
The Perfect Lovers Handbook: The
Reason of Great Love Stories
Robert Dubois. CreateSpace. $9 paper
(76p), ISBN 9781499267570; $4.99
e-book ASIN B00K5YWIPQ
Amazon
After more than 20 years of experience
in loving women, Robert
Dubois decided that his
knowledge should benefit
other men as well. This is
a book about the game of
love, marriage, and liai-
sons. Dubois says it can
save your marriage.
The Coconut Latitudes: Secrets, Storms,
and Survival in the Caribbean
Rita M. Gardner. She Writes Press. $16.95
paper (204p), ISBN 9781631529016
Amazon
Gardners father moved the family to an
isolated beachfront coconut
plantation in the Dominican
Republichis idea of paradise. But its in
the path of hurricanes and in the grip of a
brutal dictator. A memoir
of surviving a reality far
from the envisioned Eden
and of the terrible cost of
keeping secrets.
1,001 Tips for Writ-
ers: Words of Wisdom
About Writing, Getting Published, and
Living the Literary Life
Wi l l i am A. Gordon. North Ri dge
Books. $15. 95 paper (192p), ISBN
9780937813102; $8.95 e-book ISBN
9780937813096
Nrbooks.com; Amazon;
BN.com
This quotation book
offers advice about writ-
ing and getting pub-
lished today. Gordons
goal is to give writers a
better head start.
My Soul Is Among Lions: Pages from
the Breast Cancer Archives
Ellen Leopold. Valley Green Press. $9 paper
(192p), ISBN 9780989873703; $3.99
e-book ISBN 9780989873727
Amazon; BN.com
A selection of articles
and essays on the social
history of breast cancer
written over the past 20
years and a memoir writ-
ten 100 years ago.
POETRY
Forced Attrition
Danny Schneider. CreateSpace. $15 paper
(114p), ISBN 9780615975436; $9.99
e-book ASIN B00J7OQDQA
Amazon; BN.com
A c o l l e c t i o n o f
thoughts put to page
from years lived, as well as
the struggles of man and
the relation we have with
nature, religion, love, and
most of all one another.
RELIGION
Predestination: The Pharaoh Account
of Grace
Joachim P.C. Acolatse Jr. AuthorHouse.
$16.95 paper (228p),
ISBN 9781491854709;
9781491854716
AuthorHouse
An exegesis of predes-
tination Scripture, con-
sonant with John 3:16,
presents an explanation of Gods call,
justification, and glorification, including
Pharaoh and the Exodus account.
The Hidden Light: Exploring the Bib-
lical Creation Story and Its Wisdom
for Today
Andrew D. Kaplan. East Rock Books. $16.39
paper (184p), ISBN 9780991331901; $1
e-book ASIN B00KESO1F8
Amazon
Scholarly and spiri-
tual, filled with color
illustrations and engag-
ing stories, this book is
intended to enhance the
readers understanding
and appreciation of the
Bibles most mysterious story.
Pense
S a m Ta t u m. De v -
von House Publ i sh-
ing. $15 paper (280p),
ISBN 9780966774801;
$9. 99 e-book ISBN
9780966774825
(214) 213-2081
There is a grand crevasse between science
and theology, two disciplines whose focus
is truth. Tatum offers his evidence that the
Bible points to science, and science points
to the Bible.
SELFHELP
Stress Less: 10 Balancing Insights on
Work and Life
Amy Freeman. Daylight Press. $14.99
paper (84p), ISBN 9780964197121; $8.99
e-book ISBN 9780964197138
Amazon; Ingram; BN.com
This book offers 10 tan-
gible ways to deal with
stress, balance a busy
life, and embrace peace
of mind. Worksheets and
interactive video access
included.
Our Dreams for Our Children: Creating
Legacies that Inspire Each New Gen-
eration to Achieve a Brighter Future
Richard O. Weijo. CreateSpace. $13.99
paper (154p), ISBN 9781493763443;
$4.99 e-book ASIN B00KGCGLZK
Amazon: BN.com
A wake-up call to baby
boomers to discover the
power of legacy and to
start now to plan how
they will share their
legacies for the benefit of
future generations.
TECHNOLOGY &
ENGINEERING
The Art of Troubleshooting
Jason Maxham. CreateSpace. $49.99 paper
(356p), ISBN 9781497522152; $2.99
e-book ASIN B00KJNT51I
Amazon
A combination of the-
ory and practice to help
the reader master the
principles that underlie
the diagnosis and repair
of all machines.
TRAVEL
Lost, Kidnapped, Eaten Alive! True
Stories from a Curious Traveler
Laurie McAndish King. Destination
Insights. $14.95 paper (230p), ISBN
9780985267278; $7.99 e-book ASIN
B00LKRX43W
Amazon; Ingram
Part cul tural tour,
part prayer to the natu-
ral world, this collection
of travel stories circles
the globe with lively
adventures and intimate
insights.
A Tight Grip: A Novel About
Golf, Love Affairs, and Women
of a Certain Age
Kay Rae Chomic. She Writes Press, $16.95,
paper (225p) ISBN 978-1-938314-76-6
When 46-year-old local golf celebrity
Jane Par Parker is arrested by Deputy
Dee Dee Virgil
for driving un-
der the influ-
ence, the inci-
dent becomes
front-page news.
And while Par is
still determined
to win an up-
coming golf
tournament, she
finds herself
forced to confront her marriage to alco-
holic Nick, the anniversary of her fathers
murder, and herself. Chomics novel may
appeal to fans of the genre, but it suffers
from an unlikable protagonist. Addition-
ally, a lack of tension, predictable plot-
ting, and underdeveloped characters will
prevent many readers from ever fully en-
gaging with Par and her struggle.
Due Unto: Denmark Veseys Story
K.F. Jones. Two Harbors Press, $24.95 paper
(396p) ISBN 978-1-62652-732-4
Denmark Vesey is known to history as
the leader of an attempted slave revolt in
Charleston, S.C., in 1822. This novel
from Jones de-
picts Veseys
life: his youth,
his enslave-
ment, his
emancipation,
and his re-en-
slavement. Lat-
er, while in
Charleston, in
1799, Vesey
won a lottery
prize that allowed him to buy his free-
dom, though he was later arrested and ex-
ecuted for planning the slave revolt. Jones
creates a plausible depiction of Veseys life
and struggle, as well as ably rendering the
tragedy and indignation of slave life.
While the addition of a love story slows
the novels pace and is somewhat distract-
ing from the central narrative, fans of his-
torical fiction will find Veseys story fasci-
nating and well told.
Far Away, I Land
Viki Alles-Crouch. Inkwater Press, $21.95 pa-
per (370p) ISBN 978-1-62901-025-0
This novel follows the lives of a young
Hungarian girl named Erzsike during
World War II; a Sri Lankan boy named
Prema, who is abused by his father; and
Robert Cross, a British soldier haunted by
war memories. Over the course of the
bookwhich in its structure is somewhat
reminiscent of
David Mitchells
Cloud Atlasthe
many story lines
and lives eventu-
ally converge.
While Alles-
Crouch excels at
description
those of the Sri
Lankan setting
are particularly
well renderedthe novels pacing is un-
even and some of its characters are too
broadly drawn. Readers will likely be less
curious about how the stories connect and
more interested in getting a richer por-
trayal of the main characters.
Farmers Son
N.E. Lasater. N.E. Lasater, $14.95 paper
(384p) ISBN 978-0-9903069-0-0
Dyslexia propels this emotionally in-
tense drama chronicling familial abuse
and power struggles. Ashamed of his in-
ability to prop-
erly read, Bobby
McAllister suc-
cumbs to his fa-
thers constant
ridicule and sac-
rifices his col-
lege plans to
work the family
farm and marry
childhood
sweetheart Sar-
ah. Years later, Bobby
discovers that his own
son Kevin is also dys-
lexic. Can Bobby stop punishing himself
for his condition and confront his father
before his marriage and family are de-
stroyed? This compassionate and honest
examination of the relationships between
fathers and sons features complex, emo-
tionally scarred characters. While dyslexia
results in much of the characters anguish,
rage, and suffering, the pain that family
members inflict on one another is the
dark heart of the modern rural tragedy.
With an ending that is both shocking and
redemptive, this is a powerful drama with
a conscience.
My Lady Viper:
Tales from the Tudor Court
E. Knight. Knight Media, $15.99 paper (410p)
ISBN 978-0-9903245-0-8
Knight delivers a suspenseful historical
romance replete with political conspiracies
and erotic encounters set in 16th-century
England. Struggling to survive during
the reign of King Henry VIII, Lady Anne
Seymour ma-
nipulates politi-
cal alliances in
an effort to safe-
guard her fami-
lys lives when
her sister-in-
law, Jane Sey-
mour, marries
the King.
Struggling be-
tween ambition
and conscience, Anne must maintain the
Kings favor and preserve his marriage to
Jane. But when her heart beats for dash-
ing Sir Anthony Browne, she is torn be-
tween duty and lust. In this ably plotted
first book in a new series, Knight skillful-
ly captures the atmosphere of the Tudor
Court. In Anne, the author creates a para-
doxical but well drawn heroine full of
self-destructive desire. Characters are
drawn in broad, colorful strokes, merging
grand historical pageantry with psycho-
logical depth. Fans of historical fiction
will find themselves eagerly awaiting the
Fiction
Reviews
next installment in the series
from Knight.
Tea Cups & Tiger Claws
Timothy Patrick. Country Scribbler, $15.99
paper (435p) ISBN 978-0-9893544-0-0
In Patricks uneven novel, the lives of
triplet girls born in 1916 take very differ-
ent paths after a wealthy woman adopts
daughters Abigail and Judith from poor,
earthy Ermel Railer and her husband, Jeb.
The third sister, Dorthea, is not as
luckyand
eventually she
ends up in a
work camp.
However, over
the next half-
century, the sis-
ters paths cross
as Dorthea em-
barks on a re-
lentless and in-
creasingly vi-
cious quest for
the life her sisters obtained. While the
books theme of true merit versus appar-
ent virtue is fascinating, the novel suffers
from poor plotting and underdeveloped
characters. Additionally, the storys cli-
max is implausible, melodramatic, and
drawn-out. In the end, these deficiencies
will prevent readers from becoming fully
engaged in the sisters story.
The Birdcatcher:
30th Anniversary Revisit
Walter Joseph Schenck Jr. iUniverse, $29.95
paper (568p) ISBN 978-1-4620-0582-6
Formerly a second lieutenant, Private
Abel Joseph Jarrett is on a quest to re-
deem a soulhis ownin this idiosyn-
cratically powerful drama of the Vietnam
War. An encounter with mystic Mark Ev-
ans persuades
Jarrett that
Vietnam will be
the forging
ground in the
battle for his
soul. Obsessed
with the need to
atone for the
murder of an or-
derly under his
command, Jar-
rett sees himself as a vacant personality
controlled by an entity called the Bird-
catcher. Jarretts bizarre quest to escape
from his void of isolation by absorbing
the personality of another, as he did with
the orderly, takes on increasingly surreal
dimensions, with the dissolution of Viet-
nam providing a violent backdrop to his
own struggle. As Jarrett encounters
death, sex, and the blandishments of the
Birdcatcher, Schenck weaves an odyssey
that is both startlingly unique and virtu-
ally incommunicable. Despite some ten-
dentious dialogue and Jarretts excessive
self-reflection, Schenck has delivered a
tantalizing and startlingly original work.
The Dancing Road
Pamela Fox. CreateSpace, $8.99, paper
(189p) ISBN 978-1-4953-5105-1
After the death of her husband, mid-
dle-aged Meli hits the road on voyage of
self-discovery. Plagued by doubts and
guilt, she survives grief with the support
of good friends. During her trip from
Santa Clarita,
Calif., to Bro-
ken Arrow,
Okla., Meli
learns about
her Native
American heri-
tageand
works to dis-
cover herself.
While Fox
presents read-
ers with an appealing storyan thirty-
something woman taking to the road to
find herself after a tragedyher execu-
tion is often shaky and the novel proves
overly sentimental. Many of the charac-
ters are unlikeable, which prevents reader
from engaging with the story, and stilted
dialog further hampers what could have
been an interesting journey.
The Killer App:
Would You Die to Be Young Again
John Writher. Higive.com, $9.99 paper (342p)
ISBN 978-0-9928373-1-0
In the near future, British Prime Min-
ister Robert Hand is facing a crisis: the
U.K.s economy is in trouble because of
the rising number of aging pensioners
and the soaring cost of entitlement pro-
grams. But
businessman
Bill Haugan has
a plan. A bril-
liant geneticist
named Janet
Icks has discov-
ered a way of
transferring a
persons DNA
along with all
the persons
memoriesinto a newborn babys body.
Haugan proposes that Britain use this
procedure to restructure the age of its
population. This fast-paced techno-thrill-
er address issues like overpopulation, the
morality of scientific progress, and indi-
vidual agencyand sets them against hu-
manitys ever-present fear of mortality.
And while the concept may be better than
the execution and Haugan a cartoonish
villain, Writhers novel is a compelling,
chilling page-turner.
The Rule of Equity
Jonathan Neville. Letmereadit.com, $16.99
paper (342p) ISBN 978-1482687-42-2
Combining an economic war against
the United States and a complex plot in-
tended to provide justice for Native
Americans is an interesting premise, but
its execution is mixed in this fast-paced
thriller. Nev-
illes book
opens with a
bloody ritual
at Thomas Jef-
fersons Indian
Mound in Vir-
ginia, involv-
ing a man later
identified as
Assistant Sec-
retary of the
Interior for Indian Affairs Hyrum Cobb.
The knife-wielding medicine man con-
ducting the ceremony warns Cobb that all
men to previously undergo the ordeal
died without fulfilling their destiny. The
action then flashes forward two years, as
the author slowly teases out what that
destiny is, beginning with the murders of
two government officials in Washington,
D.C. Unraveling the scheme falls to a
somewhat clichd pair: Tom Madison, a
R E V I E W S
successful businessman able to kick butt
when needed, and his ex-wife, Magena
Brown, who turns out to be Hyrums
niece. Although the resolution strains cre-
dulity, the pacing and clever plot twists
will satisfy fans of the genre.
The Strange Birth, Short Life,
and Sudden Death of Justice Girl
Julian David Stone. For the Duration Press,
$14.95 paper (408p) ISBN 978-0-9898315-0-5
The golden age of television comes to
life in this scathingly critical and im-
mensely entertaining novel from Stone.
Set in 1950s New York, TV writer Jonny
Dirby loses his job for refusing to sign a
loyalty oath to
the United
States during
the Red Scare.
But when he
seeks revenge by
altering the dia-
logue of sketch
parodying Su-
perman before
its broadcast, he
inadvertently
creates Justice Girl, a character that
quickly grabs viewers hearts. Jonny is
quickly rehired to create an entire show
around Justice girl. The catch? Justice
Girl is played by Felicity, a communist
hunting fanatic determined to blacklist
Johnny. Stone draws upon his career in
entertainment to drive this lurid depic-
tion of mass medias power in shaping our
fantasies, values, ideals, and fears. The au-
thor ably captures the tension and excite-
ment of live television, focusing on how
quickly this medium made and destroyed
both careers and lives. This modern fable
of fame and failure emphasizes the politi-
cal and economic agendas that molded
the entertainment industry and a genera-
tion. This fast-paced and emotionally vi-
brant satire is a treat for television buffs
and general readers alike.
Thorns of Rosewood
Gina M. Barlean, illus. by Victorine Lieske.
Gina M. Barlean, $15 paper (326p) ISBN 978-
1-4928-8235-0
In 1974, four women suspected of kill-
ing a judges wife in the small town of
Rosewood, Neb., were set freebut did
they get away with murder? Years later,
Gloria Larson, editor of the local paper in
Rosewood, is curious about what hap-
pened to the womendubbed the
Thorns of
Rosewood
after their re-
lease. Gloria be-
comes more in-
terested in the
case when her
adoptive par-
ents reveal that
her birth moth-
er was from
Rosewood and
was suspected of murder in 1974. Gloria
tracks the four women down, finding
them at an assisted-living facility in Lin-
coln, where she convinces them to tell
their story. Despite some plot points that
strain credulity, this is an enjoyable and
compelling novel. Barlean skillfully ren-
ders the books small town setting, while
the companionship of the women is be-
lievable. Gloria and the four Thorns of
Rosewood are well-developed charac-
tersand readers will find themselves ea-
ger to learn their story.
Widows Walk, Part 1: The Preci-
pice
Kenneth Spillias. Abbot, $17.99, paper
(246p) ISBN 978-1-4582-0728-9
Sex, violence, and the supernatural
clash with compassion in this serviceable
yet flawed modern morality play. When
Jim Donovan was 16 years old, to events
occurred that would shape the course of
his life: he was
sexually humil-
iated by a girl
named Rachel
Feinberg and
his father died.
When he later
suffers a ner-
vous break-
down, Jim
finds himself in
therapy with
the sinister Dr. Pierre Pere. And after his
rise to prominence as an evangelist at a
mega-church in South Florida, Jim is
toppled by scandal and becomes em-
broiled in a struggle between good and
evil. In this first in a series
from Spillia, vivid character-
ization and evocative atmo-
sphere are somewhat diluted by the au-
thors emphasis on rigid morality. Still,
readers searching for a quick paced super-
natural thriller will delight in this Chris-
tian parable.
Nonfiction
Catalyst: How Confidence Reacts
with Our Strengths to Shape What
We Achieve and Who We Become
Steven Smith and David Marcum. Veracity,
$9.99 e-book (110p) ISBN 978-0-9915680-0-0
In Smith and Marcums fascinating
study of what constitutes true confi-
dencea catalyst of human achieve-
mentthe authors examine research on
character strengths, expose how strengths
can become weaknesses or counterfeits,
and offer an ex-
ploration of
how both
strengths and
weaknesses
might play out
in readers lives.
The authors
make thought-
ful, well-argued
points about
which traits
come from places of strength and which
come from a places of weakness and over-
compensation. Readers will certainly rec-
ognize some of the character traits dis-
cussed here in themselves. And while the
authors could have provided more tools to
help readers dissect strength and weak-
nesses in their own lives, this is an engag-
ing study that will be useful to most peo-
ple.
Midlife Cabernet:
Life, Love & Laughter After Fifty
Elaine Ambrose. Mill Park Publishing, $12 pa-
per (224p) ISBN 978-0-9883980-7-8
Ambrose faces the frights, frustrations,
and fancies of aging in this refreshingly
honest and laugh-out-loud funny survival
guide for middle-aged women. Infusing
her prose with sarcastic dark humor, the
author offers homespun recommendations
R E V I E W S
on dating and sex, raising
adult children, and the phys-
ical effects of agingall
with brazen cheer. From stressful divorces
and facing Christmas alone to disastrous
sexual misadven-
tures nothing is
sacred or off lim-
its. The authors
prose is lively
and entertain-
ing, with state-
ments like one
of the many ad-
vantages of liv-
ing in the last
third of life is
that I dont accept crap from anyone.
Sure to be irritated and edified, women
over 40 will find a lot to like here.
My Soul Is Among Lions:
Pages from the Breast Cancer
Archives
Ellen Leopold. Valley Green Press, $9, paper
(192p) ISBN 978-0-9898737-0-3
In this important collection of articles
and essays, righteous outrage, education,
and the redeeming power of love inform
powerful narratives of women battling
breast cancer. Leopolds book documents
not only the fear
and pain of the
disease but also
the economic,
political, and
gender conflicts
women have
faced seeking
proper treat-
ment. Among
the many high-
lights is Katha-
rine Lee Batess
poignant account of the death of her life
partner, Katharine Coman. In Shopping
For The Cure, profit-induced charities
are exposed, while the public cheerfully
buys into corporate interests in The Tyr-
anny of Cheerfulness, exchanging activ-
ism for cause marketing. Urging read-
ers to be advocates of change, this collec-
tion expose a culture almost as destructive
as the disease that it unwittingly accom-
modates.
The Ambivalent Memoirist:
Obsessions Digressions Epiphanies
Sandra Hurtes. CreateSpace, $12.95, paper
(217p) ISBN 978-1-4923-5972-2
Hurtes offers up a scathingly honest
memoir full of compassion and wit that
infuses ordinary events with intimacy and
intensity. A divorce and overbearing par-
ents complicate
Hurtess at-
tempts to rein-
vent herself in
Brooklyn
Heights. Teach-
ing college
English courses
and preparing
her first essay
collection, she
must address
her own pain and doubts, as well as her
parents experiences during the Holo-
caust. Hurtes makes her raw, intimate
struggles relevant to anyone who has
loved, lost, and grappled with indecision
and missed chances. Writing as art and
psychological salvation is at the heart of
this book, taking readers deep below the
surface of words toward personal vindi-
cation.
The Coconut Latitudes:
Secrets, Storms, and Survival
in the Caribbean
Rita M. Gardner, illus. by Mike Morgenfield.
She Writes Press, $16.95 paper (204p) ISBN
978-1-63152-901-6
Their father claims they are in paradise,
but shadows fall over Eden for an Ameri-
can family forced to settle in a beautiful
but volatile and
poverty-stricken
Dominican Re-
public ruled by
dictator Rafael
Trujillo. In this
poignant, jar-
ring memoir and
coming-of-age
story, Gardner
recounts the
pain, sacrifices,
secrets, and infrequent joys of a dysfunc-
tional family heading towards catastro-
phe. Throughout, storms serve as rich
metaphors for pain, tragedy, and isolation,
while natural beauty and family love clash
with violent personalities and cruelty.
Gardner has written a rich, haunting
book that vividly captures her childhood
and makes everyday turmoil vital through
precise and honest prose.
Childrens
Books
Fiction
Kell, the Alien
Darcy Pattison, illus. by Rich Davis. Mims
House, $10.99 paper (116p) ISBN 978-1-
62944-021-7
After Kell and his alien parents become
stranded on Earth, Kell is forced to enroll
as a third-grade student and adjust to life
on this planet. (Conveniently, they look
just like humans and speak English per-
fectly well, though they do shed their
skin at awkward times.) When Kells
classmate and neighbor Bree tells him
that she wants
an alien-themed
party for her
ninth birthday,
Kell volunteers
his familys ser-
vices. Under-
standing hu-
mans (especially
Earthling
girls) is tricky
for Kell, and hes
also trying to avoid the school principal,
Mrs. Lynx, who is obsessed with finding
aliens. Despite setbacks, the party is a
success, launching an event-planning
business for Kells familys and setting the
stage for later books in Aliens, Inc. series
from author/publisher Pattison (Wisdom,
the Midway Albatross). Kells observa-
tions of Earth and details about life on
planet Bix are amusing, and Daviss wiry
b&w line art further enlivens an engag-
ing, accessible story. Kells struggles to fit
in will resonate just fine with Earths
readers. Simultaneously available: Kell
and the Horse Apple Parade and Kell and
the Giants. Ages 710.
R E V I E W S

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July 2014

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