Celebrity Co-Authors

Over the years I have read some very interesting books - mainly myteries - that feature a celebrity writing with a co-author. LOL I can see you rolling your eyes! These really can be interesting books, as the celebrity generally is there to act as the individual that is able to present a coherent background for the story based on their own experience.

The first book that I read in this genre was "Killer Instinct", written by Martina Navritalova and co-authored by Liz Nickles. The protagonist is Jordan Myles, a retired world-class tennis pro. This actually is book three in a three book series, and was well written both from the POV a accuracy in the tennis world, and a really interesting, tight story line.

The next celebrity authored book that I read was "Murder In The Mist", written by Willard Scott and co-authored by Bill Crider. The protagonist is B&B owner Stanley Waters, who is very much written along the lines of who Willard Scott is. The setting is Virgina, and the reenactment of a Civil War battle. Funny, yet serious, well written, and well researched.

The most recent celebrity co-authored book that I read was "The President Is Missing", by Bill Clinton and co-authored by James Patterson. It is a fabulous book, one that only a former president could provide such personal background for. It is fast paced, factual, and a book that you just do not want to put down.

A celebrity book series that I may look into is the "Femmes Fatales", authored by Gypsy Rose Lee (with a forward by Eric Lee Preminger). Yes, THAT Gypsy Rose Lee. (I am old enough to remember her as a talk show host when I was very young). Supposedly the series was written by Gypsy Rose Lee herself, but there is some question about whether there was a co-author (said to be Craig Rice).    

(c) August 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written consent of the author. 

When A Series That You Are Reading Hits Fail Mode!

What do we do when we really become devoted to a book series, and that series hits an epic fail? That has happened to me twice now. The first time it happened it was with an author that I had followed for years. Her books (mysteries) were exceptional. After she died, her publisher came out with two more books. The first one was a simple disappointment - obviously written from her notes, but not well done at all. The last one was screamingly bad - whomever wrote it (and it was published under the well known author's name) had never, ever read her books. By the time that I finished the book, I had made the decision to throw it away, rather than pass it on to someone else. It was really that bad, and a piss poor representation of this author and this particular series. When I went to leave a review - really the one and only bad review I have ever put up - I could see that other readers felt exactly as I did. The book was a travesty. However, I have and still reread her other books.

The second series that hit an epic fail is an author that I only recently (within the past couple of years) started to follow. I have only read three of the books in this series, but I would rate them from good to exceptional. The exception book was followed by her latest book - which is an epic fail! The family dog (which, I admit, was elderly) died and was replaced. With no explanation. Suddenly a character from her previous book was now four years older, had been adopted by the protagonist and her husband (with no clue as what happened to the aunt that had adopted her when her father, the protagonist brother, died), and the protagonsit step-son was in college with a girlfriend. I will reread the two books in this series that I know were good, and perhaps read some of the earlier books, which other reviewers are noting as being good, but I doubt that I will purchase anything more in this series. A good idea gone bad. Also, the author went into overdrive on information not relevant to the book. (She has done this to some extent in her previous books, but she left a huge footprint of yuck in this book.) 

It is difficult to deal with disappointment - we want a good series to go on forever. As authors, we can learn from this. Build strong characters, keep plots tight, and edit out anything that is not relevant to the plot, or to the character's growth.

How is your day going?

(c) August 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author. 

Book Titles - Where Do They Come From?

How do we come up with a good title for our books/stories/articles? What makes it compeling? What does it say that draws potential readers? Titles should be short, simple, and easy to remember. If they aren't, our audience will move on. More than that - they won't remember the title correctly to share it with their friends! You want to include keywords that connect to the story, and that indicate the books genre. (Anything that smacks of mystery has my attention immediately!) Also, the title is going to be on the cover (duh!), so the two need to be compatible. 

After you have come up with what you consider to be a winning (not just acceptible!) title, Google it. That winning title may already be out there! Take the high road - redo your title if it is already being used. Ummmm ... you might also want to check your punctuation! You don't want to have a major faux pas on the cover of your incredible new book! 

Make a list of possible titles. Take into consideration what your book is about, who the major character is (and how they are portrayed), the environment of your story, and what words represent your story in the strongest manner.

Once you have your list of possible titles, ask other people what they think. Ask your peers, ask your friends, ask potential readers. You may find that what is very appealing to you may not have the same affect on others. And you do want your book to sell!

You also have to make the decision on whether you want to use sub-titles. This is something that I have to pay attention to, because I have two series in mind to write (one of which is a WIP), and it is recommended that you use sub-titles in a series. 

Happy hunting!

(c) August 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author.  

Alternate Endings

Alternate Endings

from Writer's Digest

Why do I want to even consider alternate endings? Simply because I can! It sounds innovative, and exciting, and I am currently planning on doing this with a stand-alone mystery. (It would end up looking like utter nonsense if I did this in a mystery series!)

The ending of a story brings things together for the reader - it makes them want to read more of the author's work, and it makes the time spent reading the story worth it. (Think beginning, middle, end as part of a succesful cycle.) So why present more than one ending? Because it makes life intresting, for both the author and the reader. They get to flex their imaginations and see what could have been, and what could be. IMHO, used selectively, it is an excellent writing tool.

We see this in movies, and we see this on the stage. I am going to keep this discussion to alternate endings in stories and books.   What are alternate endings? They are endings that perhaps weren't planned, but that take the place of the planned ending. The storyline leads in one direction, the alternate ending is not dependent on what was presented in the story.

Why do we want to use alternate endings? We want an effective ending to our stories - we want the reader to feel that the story has been brought to an acceptable, realistic end. When we present alternate endings we can either take the facts in the story and reinterpret them, or we can bring in previously "hidden" facts. We still have to make the ending fit the characters. We aren't going to have Little Bo Peep running off to join the army!   

My issue with alternate endings is how to present them. In my short story (see link below) you will see that I simply defined each ending as "Ending Number One" and "Ending Number Two". In my book, I will present the endings in two separate chapters.

Examples of books with alternative ending include: "Meanwhile" (Jason Shiga), the "Choose Your Own Adventure" series (a game book series by R.A. Montgomery), "The French Lieutenant's Woman" (John Fowles), and "Hopscotch" (Julio Cortazar). 

Here is a recent flash fiction that I wrote with alternate endings: Finding Me. 

What do alternate endings bring to you? Do you even want them on your plate? 

(c) August 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written permission from the author.