Authors Interacting with Readers Online - More Controversial Than I Thought

Okay, before I get into the nitty gritty, I'd like to make a few announcements:

1) My "official" blog tour starts today. If you visit and comment on posts throughout the tour, there's a chance to win a gift certificate. : ) Today's post is over at Romancing Rakes where I'm talking about The Anatomy of a Sex Scene. (There's also a review of the book here.) I'd love it if you guys would stop by and say hi!

2) So, uh, I have a book coming out. SQUEE!!!!!! CRASH INTO YOU drops tomorrow. Though I will refrain from begging--*ahem* for now--I will be your BFF (you know, virtually braid your hair and paint your toenails) if you check out a copy. (Um, for you boys, I'll buy the beer and cue up the big screen for the bowl games.) And really, if nothing else, you can buy a copy just to see if I've followed all that writing advice I'm sharing on here all the time. And then make fun of me when I didn't. ;)

Okay, so onto today's topic...

Authors Interacting With Readers Online - Some Things to Think About

This past week I ran across a thought-provoking post over at Dear Author, Is there room on the internet for authorial interaction? In the post, Jane talks about the role of the author and when it's appropriate for the author to interact with the readers (when it adds value and when it taints things.)

The post itself is enough to get you thinking, but the slew of comments are just as enlightening. I was truly surprised to find out how some readers feel about authorial interaction.

Most agree (and I can see this point) that an author should not be commenting on reviews--mainly because once the author shows up it can make others clam up. Who wants to say something negative once they know the author is there listening?

But I was surprised to see that this even went as far as applying to the author saying thank you for the review. Jane and some other reviewers mentioned that a thank you almost makes them feel uncomfortable, especially in response to a negative review,because it implies that the reviewer has done a "favor" for the author. (I'm assuming this is for reviews you didn't directly set up with the reviewer. If you directly interacted with the blogger--like setting up a blog tour--then a thank you is obviously in order.)

Now, I'm southern. I say thank you for EVERYTHING. It's like a reflex. To think that my thank you may make someone uncomfortable kind of took me aback. When I say thank you, it's simply because I'm appreciative that the person took the time to read my book and to comment on it publicly (which is press--regardless of the content of the review.) Reviews are important. So my instinct would be to thank someone if I saw that they reviewed my book. (Plus I'm a dorky new author and just want to hug everyone who reads my book, lol.)

But perhaps the thank you should be a case by case basis and should be done privately via email instead of posting it on the review and shutting down other comments. 

The other issue that was interesting was how many of the commenters didn't like interacting with authors. They preferred to read and discuss the book without knowing anything about the author. They didn't want to hear the writer's perspective on why they wrote something the way they did.

I can understand this in the forum of a review. You don't want the author "defending" themselves in the comments, but seeing that many are opposed to any interaction is a little surprising and flies in the face of all we're told about connecting with readers online.

Some readers felt very strongly--finding authors "friending" readers on social networking sites as "rude". And another said they had enough drama in their life and didn't want to read about the author's life. Another was unhappy with authors hanging out on "reader" sites. One person said authors should only be known by their work. Also, many assume that if we're online and discussing books that aren't our own, we're just friends with that author and it's not genuine.

This prompted author Courtney Milan to ask in the comments:

How safe is it for authors to participate in discussions of books at all? Do people just assume that authors are friends with the author? Does that chill discussion?

The whole post and discussion was rather enlightening for me, a bit depressing and frankly, isolating. Yes, I absolutely agree that authors should refrain from commenting/defending/attacking in the comments sections of reviews. That's a given.

But now we're not supposed to discuss other books and we're not supposed to go in "reader" groups/areas? Yes, we're writers, but first and foremost we're READERS. Just because I have a book out there doesn't mean I'm not also voracious reader who loves to discuss books with others. Hearing that my presence in a reader group may be construed as something self-serving made me a little sad. Like I can't play on that playground anymore.

And maybe I'm the exception but even before I was a writer, I loved the idea of getting to know the authors behind the books I enjoyed. I liked reading the "why they wrote the book" posts or little explanations and insider information about the story. If I was actually able to discuss/chat about the book with them, well, awesome! So I know that there are other readers out there like me.

And maybe that's why the responses to the post surprised me. And, of course, this is a specific sample and may not represent readers as a whole. Many people commenting on the post were authors and book bloggers. Book bloggers are not your casual readers. They deal with authors daily. So I'm sure if you've dealt with one too many difficult authors, you can become a little more wary and jaded.

But here are my takeaways from the post:

1. Saying thank you publicly for a review may not always be a good thing. Send a note privately if you'd like to thank the reviewer.

2. Commenting on a review in any way can shut down reader discussion.

3. Readers may see you as an intruder with an agenda if you join book discussion groups. (So make sure you don't have an ulterior motive for joining.)

4. You may not be the best person to publicly promo your friends books (and vice versa) because many readers will only see it as helping a friend. This doesn't mean don't do it, but understand that it may hold less weight than independent reviewers so make sure you mix it up when you're promoting your book.

5. Some readers don't want to "connect" with you. It may taint their reading experience. Respect that. So interact, be available, chat, blog but don't go "hunting" readers and injecting yourself into their online lives if you weren't invited.

6. Don't jump into Facebook or Twitter discussions when people are discussing your book unless you're invited or messaged directly.

7. Do everything with genuineness. Don't "friend" people because you want them to buy your book. Friend them because you want to get to know them. (Duh.)

8. If certain issues or questions keep coming up in reviews, don't necessarily address them in the comments. Write a blog post on your own blog answering those questions so that readers who are interested in knowing more can seek it out if they'd like. (Good fodder for FAQ section.)

So what do you think about all this? Were you surprised by any of it? And how do you think these things should be handled? Do you think this represents a large group of readers or is more specific to bloggers who deal with authors daily?

The (Not So) Dreaded Synopsis - 5 Tips To Set You Free

We've all heard the term the "dreaded synopsis", right? Yes, that horrible beast of thing you have to write summarizing a whole 100k book into just a few scant pages. I know I'm not the only one who queried the agents who didn't require a synopsis first just so I could avoid writing  the damn thing. (Tell me I'm not the only one who did that.)

I mean, what's to like about the thing? You have to cut out parts you want to put in, your voice can get drained because you have so little room to work with, you don't have space to talk about that kickass secondary character you worked in. God, why do agents/editors put us through this form of torture? *insert melodramatic music here*

Okay, so I thought all those things. Every time I had to write a synopsis for a completed book I wanted to bang my head with a blunt object. It was painful. The writing, not the banging, I didn't actually do the blunt object thing.

So when I got my *cue angels singing* book deal, I thought--yay, down with the queries and synopses for-evah!

WRONG.

Queries and synopses NEVER go away, dude. They just get called different things. The synopsis becomes a proposal and then the query becomes writing your back cover copy. (Yes, you will end up writing most of your back cover copy because the marketing department hasn't read your book so inevitably aren't going to get the blurb just right.)

And guess what, with proposals, now you have to write your synopsis BEFORE YOU WRITE THE BOOK. *plugs ears to block out the collective screams of pantsers everywhere*

As a pantser, I can tell you I was absolutely terrified of doing this. I don't plot ahead. I don't know what the story is going to look like until I write it. I actually was trying to figure out how I could write the book really fast just so I didn't have to write up a proposal. But alas, I'm not that fast of a writer. And yes, it'd actually be kind of nice to get a book deal and confirmation that said book will be published one day before I write the actual book.

So after going to a few workshops on writing synopses, off I went to draft synopses for books 3 and 4 with deep fear in my heart.

And guess what I discovered?

Writing them before you've written the book is SO MUCH EASIER. Like wow. Like I finished one synopsis each day. For reals. 

And I realized all this time why writing them after is so hard. After you've finished the book, you know every little detail and nuance of your story. You have a buttload of information you're trying cut down to the bones. But all that content can overwhelm you. You can lose perspective on what is most important to get across.

However, when you try to draft it before you've written the story, all you can do is write it in broad strokes. You don't know the details yet, so you only focus on the big turning points. And bam--there's your synopsis.

I'd heard of people writing queries before writing their books and thought that was nuts, but now I get it. You're not locking yourself into some strict guideline like an outline would. You're just giving yourself a general map. You put yourself on the right highway even though you may take unexpected side streets along the way. It's really been a revelation to me.

So here are my...

Five Quick and Dirty Tips For Writing a Synopsis

1. Try writing it before you write your story--even if you're a pantser. (Haven't you been listening to my testimonial? "This is life-changing, man"--she says in her Cheech & Chong voice)

2. Set aside a paragraph each for your two (or three) main characters at the beginning and fill in their backstory.

This was something I learned in the workshops I went to. We often get bogged down in the synopsis because we're in present tense and trying to work in the characters' backstories at the same time, which makes things feel disjointed. So just pull the backstory out as a separate thing. You can structure the synopsis like this:

• Hero--His backstory and the important little tidbits about him (one paragraph)

• Heroine--Her backstory and a few things about her. (one paragraph)

• Antagonist/Villain/Etc--one paragraph

• Summary: "As the story opens..."<--This is where the summary starts. Your opening. You can focus on the action now that the backstory is already fleshed out.

3. Don't worry about subplots and all your secondary characters. 

Stay focused on the main plot thread, goal, motivation, conflict, and characters.

4. Don't lose your voice.

I went to one workshop where the presenter said you pretty much have to lose your voice in a synopsis. I totally disagree. I have read and written some very voice-heavy synopsis and think they're more compelling that way. (Note: This is not writing the summary in the voice of your character, but in your author voice and style. If your story is dark and  ominous, your synopsis should read that way as well.)

5. Get in and get out.

Yes, you'll read on some websites that a synopsis can be one page for every 20 pages of prose. Well, really, who wants to write and/or read that long a synopsis? If I wrote one that long, I'd no longer want to write the story because I would've already told it (the pantser flaw.) You can summarize a full-length novel in 1-5 single-spaced pages in my opinion. My synopsis generally run about 2-3 pages. If you're venturing into 8-10 page land, you haven't cut it down to the most important parts yet.

So there, try those things and I bet you'll be able to scratch out that "dreaded" that always precedes the word "synopsis". You may even find it *gasp* fun like I did.

So how do you feel about the synopsis? Have you ever tried writing one before you write the story? If so, are you a plotter or pantser? What tips do you have that help you write a synopsis?

Nine Writer Woes and the Books to Cure Them

headdesk colbert pics on Sodahead

I'm a writing book whore. I can't deny it. I know every how-to-write book says this ones is "the only writing book you'll ever need". But yeah, whatever. Not true. Every book on craft I pick up, I learn SOMETHING new. A new technique, a new way to look at things, an a-ha moment on something I was having trouble with. These books feed your writer brain like Reese's chocolate easter eggs feed your soul--wait, the egg thing may just be me, but you see what I'm getting at. So I figured I would compile a list from my personal stash of writing books to recommend.

Nine Writer Woes and the Books to Cure Them

Problem #1: You're a pantser and are dying to figure out a way to SIMPLY plot. 

Though I have a little nerdgasm looking at pictures of people's plotting white boards with all their notes and post-its and color-coding and index carding, the idea of actually doing that to one of my stories makes my throat close up in anaphylactic shock. But, at the same time, I crave some organization, some rough map of where I'm going. Enter my newest favorite book, *pets its cover* Seriously, life-changing. I'm planning a guest post going into more detail on this one. But for now, just go buy it. : ) Don't worry that it says screenwriting, it totally applies to novels as well.

Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need

Problem #2: You keep getting partial requests but not follow-up full requests. So, you may, um, suck at openings. 

Hooked: Write Fiction That Grabs Readers at Page One & Never Lets Them Go

Problem #3:  You're writing your first book and are absolutely overwhelmed by the process.

Your First Novel: An Author Agent Team Share the Keys to Achieving Your Dream

Problem #4:  Your stories seem to lose focus or meander during the process.
Or maybe you're getting feedback from critters saying--I'm not really sure why your character is doing this or this scene doesn't seem to have a focus/point. This means you need to get down to the bones that hold a character and story together. This one is a classic you'll hear recommended over and over.

http://www.debradixon.com/gmc.html (If you buy this one, get it from this link. It's cheaper directly from her site.)

Problem #5:  You know you can write, but your books still aren't getting that agent or publisher. 
You get feedback like, "You clearly have talent, but the story or characters just didn't resonate with me or reach out and grab me."

The Fire in Fiction: Passion, Purpose and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great

Problem #6: When you go back to edit your book, you have to cut a ton of scenes because they just aren't moving the story forward or adding anything.

Make a Scene: Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time

Problem #7 You need to write some hawt scenes, but whoa, shock of all shocks, sex isn't that easy to write! Who knew?

Passionate Ink: A Guide to Writing Erotic Romance

Problem #8: You've been told you need to "tighten" your writing.

A nuts and bolts guide that will get your waistband cinched up quicker than Jenny Craig...

The Book on Writing: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Well

Problem #9: You just want a kickass book on writing and want to hear Stephen King talk about what adverbs have to do with hell. 

On Writing: 10th Anniversary Edition: A Memoir of the Craft

Yeah, so I don't  have a tenth, I know. Round numbers and all, but whatevs. On a different note though, I do have a bit of news. I found out yesterday that my official release month for my book is January 2012! So you all need to make sure your New Year's Resolution next year is to treat yourself to some hawt romance and read CRASH INTO YOU. That is all. :)

So do you suffer from any of these above afflictions? Which one? Do you have any of these books? What's your favorite craft book and why?

Why You Should Read Debut Authors

We all have our favorite authors, the ones we go back to again and again. The ones we buy no matter what the story may be about because we know they won't let us down. And this is a great thing. We want to support those authors who always manage to sweep up into their stories and leave us satisfied at the end. That's the kind of author we all strive to be.

However, sometimes that means we can get into a pattern of only reading those go-to authors and we miss out on all the new authors breaking in. It's hard sometimes to part with money and take a risk on a new author, but here's why I think we should:

1. Debut authors offer us a glimpse into stories that captured an editor's (and usually agent's) attention. These are breakthrough books. These stories were so good, they beat all the odds and got the book deal. We can learn from that.

2. Debut authors were "one of us" (the unpubbed/pre-pubbed) not that long ago. We know how hard it was for them to get to the point they're at, so don't we want to support them and  help them be successful?

3. Because these stories got to this point, you're probably going to end up with a really great read and maybe a new author to add to your favorites list!

And if you're looking for suggestions for a debut author...

My agency-mate, Ashley March's Seducing the Duchess was released this week. I'm 2/3 of the way through reading it and it is fabulous.  So much fun.

Here's the blurb (from Amazon):

Love and marriage don't have to be strangers... 

Gambling. Carousing. Flirting. Charlotte, Duchess of Rutherford, will do anything to escape her painful marriage and force her husband to divorce her. But when Phillip, Duke of Rutherford, promises a divorce if Charlotte will help him become a better husband for another woman, she wonders if she really wants to lose him...

Now how can you resist that hook? :)


So what debut author have you read lately that you'd recommend? Do you tend to stick to your favorite authors or do you venture out and try new ones?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Break Out" - Foo Fighters

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

First Annual You Rock! Book Awards: My Picks for 2009

It's been a busy reading year for me, so I thought today I would share my top picks for a number of different categories.  Not all these books were necessarily published in 2009 because, well, I'm not going look up publishing dates, I do have my research limits.  :)  But I did read them all in 2009, so that should count for something, right?  If I reviewed the book on here, then I have provided the link next to the title.

So now for the first annual Fiction Groupie You Rock! Book Awards...

BEST YOUNG ADULT SERIES

The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare (my review here)

The Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead (my review here)

The Wake Series by Lisa McMann (my review here)

HONORABLE MENTIONS

The Uglies Series by Scott Westerfeld (my review here)

The Marked Series by PC & Kristin Cast (review here and here)

BEST SINGLE TITLE YA

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher (my review here)

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

BEST "SWEET" YA

Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

BEST ROMANCE

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (review)

Freudian Slip by Erica Orloff (review)

Make Me Yours by Betina Krahn (review)

BEST PARANORMAL ROMANCE

The Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series by Charlaine Harris (review)

Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon (review)

BEST EROTIC ROMANCE

Laid Bare by Lauren Dane

Wicked Ties and Decadent by Shayla Black (review)

The Sweet Series by Maya Banks (review)

BEST WRITING BOOKS

On Writing by Stephen King

Make a Scene by Jordan Rosenfeld

Hooked by Les Edgerton

Your First Novel by Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb

The Fire in Fiction by Donald Maass

Alright, those are my picks.  So what about you?  Are any of these your favorites, too?  And what are some of your top picks that you've read this year?


 
 

**Today's Theme Song**

"The Best of You" - Foo Fighters

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

 

Why do you read what you read?*

Since it is Thanksgiving week, I am rerunning some posts I did before I had many followers. I will still be responding to your comments. Here is my very first post, hope you enjoy. I look forward to hearing about your own reading journey

**REPOSTED from 7/15/09**

As I start this blog, I found myself wondering how I became such a book-obsessed dork and why I prefer certain types of stories to others. Looking back, I've decided that reading development is kind of like that Plinko game from the Price is Right--certain people and book experiences bump you in one direction or the other. Some of us land in the $5000 slot and become lifelong readers of every type of book, others land in zero and miss out completely, and many of us fall somewhere in between finding a particular reading niche. Here's how my Plinko game went:

4th grade: Inspired by my mother's love of mystery novels, I start reading James Howe's Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery series and Betty Ren Wright'sThe Dollhouse Murders .

Result: A love of stories that scare me and make me laugh. This also leads to me being convinced that my room is haunted by an evil stuffed monkey that has sat on my shelf since toddlerhood. Monkey gets evicted to the attic, I sleep on the couch for six months (seriously.)

5th grade: My teacher, Mrs. Hymel, starts reading a chapter a day of Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time to the class. I'm hooked. I go to the library to get the book because I can't tolerate waiting for her to finish. I proceed to read the rest of the series in rapid succession. When I'm finished with those, I move on to The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

Result: My love for both fantasy and series books is planted.

6th grade: We're assigned to read Where the Red Fern Grows

and Bridge to Terabithia . Amazing literary books. But both tore me to shreds. I had just lost my grandmother who I was extremely close to and books involving deaths just shattered me.

Result: I develop a respect but also a wariness for literary fiction. In addition, I acquire a lifelong aversion to novels that kill off the dog. I go on a binge of R.L. Stinehorror books (such as The Baby-Sitter (Point Horror Series)

)and Roald Dahl instead. I also began to indulge my budding interest in the paranormal. My science fair projects for this year: ESP and Poltergeists.

9th grade: I dig through my mom's book collection and pull out V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind . These books were depressing, full of drama, gothic, darkly romantic, and totally addictive. But why do I remember these? Because in the second book there was (wait for it) sex. Gasp. I was a very naive at fourteen and found this to be so scandalous. This is the first time I remember hiding the spine of the book while I was reading in public just in case. Of course, I went on to read like twenty more books by Ms. Andrews.

Result: Discover that romance + sexy + darkness = awesomeness

10th grade: I realize that most of my favorite horror movies started as books. I go through a Stephen King and Anne Rice phase. I also read a "based on true events" book called The Black Hope Horror: The True Story of a Haunting that scares the bejesus out of me. I have to remove the book from my room at night so I can sleep.

Result: Decide psychics, monsters, vampires, and ghosts are by far way cooler than normal humans.

9th grade-12th grade: My teachers beat us over the head with the classics because that's their job. I know now these books are works of art, masterpieces, etc. But as a teenager, I thought all of them (outside of Shakespeare and Poe) were big giant suckfests.

Result: I raise the stock of the Cliff Notes company (allowing me to ace all English tests and papers) and am further turned off by the term "literary."

And what do I do with the time I should be using to read my assigned books? I write my own romance novel because clearly there is no chance of actual romantic interludes in my own angsty life. A hundred and fifty typed pages of sappy teenage indulgence is born and titled Kismet. My male protagonist bears a strikingresemblance to Joe McIntyre of New Kids on the Block.

College: I start off with a double major: Psyc and English, but feel overwhelmed. I drop English because it's not as "practical", but still sneak in a few classes. LSU offers a Vampires in Literature class. How frigging cool is that? Not only do I get the chance to read stacks of vamp novels, I get the chance to write short stories about them, too.

Result: Regret dropping the English major. Promise myself that once I get settled in my psychology career, I will try to write in my free time.

So now, years later, where does that leave me?

Reading and writing the same things I grew to love as a child. My Plinko chip landed in the voracious reader of genre fiction slot. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not closed off to the literary side, but honestly its not the first thing I pick up. So, be warned that most of my reviews on here will fall under genre fiction.

So, I'm curious. What books from your past guided your tastes? Can you remember that first moment or first book that really hooked you on reading? Or something that turned you away from a certain genre? Leave a comment and let me know.

**Today's Theme Song**

"Thnks Fr Th Mmrs"-- Fall Out Boy

(player in sidebar, take a listen)

Face Off Friday: Movie vs. Book (and Contest Winner!)

The results are in and the winner of the gift certificate is....at the bottom of the page. :)

First, I wanted to talk about movies and books. Tonight I'm going to see New Moon (yes, I've told you, I'm a Twilight dork, so I'm braving the crowds on opening night.) But, I'm going in with relatively low expectations.

Although I am looking forward to the eye candy, I know that movies typically don't live up to experience of the book. Part of this is because movies can't really "tell" you much, they have to "show" everything which, of course, is preferable in novels as well. But it means we can't hear as much internal dialogue and voice and we have to rely on the actors to nail how we pictured the characters reacting. It's almost impossible for a movie to meet the level our imaginations can achieve when reading.

So here's my Face Off Friday question:

 

Should you read the book first so that you can experience the story in it's pure form before seeing the movie?

Or, should you see the movie first and enjoy it for what it is before your expectations skyrocket, then read the book and enrich the experience?

 

I personally am a read first, see movie second person. Although on the few occasions where I saw the movie first (John Grisham's The Firm), I liked the movie much more than I probably would have had I read the book first.

So how about you? What's your style? And have you ever found a movie that was BETTER than the book or that perfectly lived up to your expectations?

Also, just a note, but I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week. I am hosting family for the week and am doing all the cooking for Turkey Day, so instead of new blog posts, I will be re-running some of my earlier posts that I did before I had most of you following. I will still be responding to comments and such, but I probably won't be making it to very many blogs.

Okay and finally, the winner of the certificate is....NATALIE MURPHY!!! Congrats! I'll be emailing you later today.

Thanks to all of you who entered and I loved all the blog suggestions. I will definitely be covering those in future posts! :)

Here's the random.org breakdown, which picked the winner:

List Randomizer

There were 31 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

1. Natalie Murphy
2. Gavin
3. UberGrumpy
4. Donna Hole
5. Angela
6. Jessica Kennedy
7. Fiction Vixen
8. Stephanie H.
9. Shannon O'Donnell
10. Susan R. Mills
11. jbchicoine
12. Dawn Hullender
13. Julie
14. Julie Dao
15. Amber Tidd Murphy
16. Joshua
17. Stephanie Thornton
18. Stephanie L. McGee
19. Ash. Elizabeth
20. Angie Ledbetter
21. jenheadjen
22. AjFrey
23. Tabitha Bird
24. Patti
25. Alice in Wonderland
26. CKHB
27. Jennifer Shirk
28. Angie
29. melane
30. sherrinda
31. Makita Jazzqueen

Timestamp: 2009-11-20 15:40:43 UTC

**Today's Theme Song**

"Uprising"-- Muse

(in honor of Twilight, a little Muse--my player isn't working, i'm trying to fix it)

Face Off Friday: EReaders v. Traditional Book

First off, I would like to apologize for my slacker status this week. On top of being busy with revision stuff, I have had a super cranky toddler who is suffering with a painful ear. So I have gotten ridiculously behind on blog reading and commenting. So if you haven't seen me around your blog or I've let super short comments, that is why. Hopefully this weekend, I will get some time to catch up. I miss reading all of your great posts.

Alright, so on to our Friday Face Off ...

As I mentioned in a previous post, I recently purchased a Kindle. I did this with the utmost reluctance. I couldn't imagine enjoying reading on an electronic device. Books are so, well, perfect. Some people use retail therapy, I have book therapy. If I've had a bad day, a few hours in a library, Borders, or the used book store will rejuvenate me like a soak in a hot tub. So how could I possibly like some plastic box that claimed to be a book substitute? *places my nose high in the air*

However, my closets were starting to tumble over with piles of books and my husband kept mentioning that those Kindle things look pretty cool--HINT HINT YOU FRIGGING PACK RAT. So, when I received some money for a holiday, I decided that maybe I should give one of these new fandangled devices a try. I checked to make sure there was a return policy (there is) and then put it in my Amazon cart. I literally closed out the order three times in the matter of two weeks before I got myself to hit the purchase button. Then, I finally did it.

And now.

*ducks book-loving head in shame* I'm a convert.

So I thought I would give my opinion about the pros and cons of each method for those of you wrestling with the decision like I did. I know there are many other ereaders besides the Kindle, but since I have no experience with those, I will speak specifically about Amazon's Kindle.

Traditional Book v. Kindle

For those who sniff books and say ahh....

• Looking for books in a store/library is half the fun
• A book won't break (although it may fade, get worn, etc.)
• Books are relatively inexpensive
• You can check them out from the library
• You can buy/sell them used
• Friends can borrow them after you finish
• You always have a physical copy if you want to save it
• Covers are pretty to look at
• Shelves of books in your house makes you feel warm and fuzzy
• Anytime you want to flip back through a book, it's there

For the progressive...

• One device can hold hundreds of your books (mine holds 1500), saving your closets
• What we love about books is the story not the paper and that stays the same
• After the initial cost of the device, ebooks are often cheaper, hardbacks are 9.99
• You can take your library with you anywhere
• You can read books with covers or titles like these in public and people are none the wiser. You could be reading Chaucer for all they know. Not that I ever do this, *ahem*.
• 
• There is a whole world of ebooks (some very good) that are only available in e-format. I was totally missing out.
• Not printing all those paperbacks is more friendly to the environment
• Instant gratification--you want a book, you can download it in 60 seconds wirelessly
• There is a built in dictionary, which I didn't expect to be so helpful, but is great
• You can upload word documents onto it--so you can read your own manuscript or your crit buddies' on it
• There are tons of free ebooks and promotions available
• Your purchases are saved online, so if your reader breaks or you get a new one, everything you bought is still available to redownload
• The battery life is ridiculously long
• You can highlight and bookmark passages, which is super helpful for me with reviews. If I run across a quote I love, I just highlight it and it saves it in a file for me.

To be fair, I'll also point on some of the concerns about E-readers.

• The upfront cost ($299 or more) is steep
• You can't lend/sell your books after you've read them
• You lose the library option (although they are looking at ways of incorporating this option)
• They can break and eventually (like any electronic device), you'll want to buy the newest version of it
• Some are concerned about straining their eyes--I will say this worried me, but the e-ink technology really does read like a book, not a computer screen. Most of the time I completely forget I'm not reading a paper book.
• You don't get to see the cover/back copy and there are no page numbers (just percentage done), which I hope they change in the future.
• Not all books are available as ebooks. This was a huge concern of mine, but all but one of the books I've wanted lately were available. The selection is huge.

So that's my take. I ♥ my Kindle. I still hang out at the bookstore, but I just make note of what I want then look it up when I get home. I never thought I'd be such a believer, but my experience has sold me.

So how about you? Would you ever consider getting an Ereader? For those of you who have one, what's been your experience? And am I the only one who's sniffing books?

**Today's Theme Song**

"I'm A Believer" - The Monkees

(player in sidebar--go ahead, take a listen)

Rating Books Like Movies

Created by OnePlusYou - Free Dating Site

So apparently, my blog is rated PG. My parents would be so proud. I was hoping I would at least garner a PG-13, but oh well. ;) If you want to check your rating, go here.

This rating got me to thinking though. A while back I posted about the sex in young adult books. Many of you commented that you prefer to both write and buy wholesome. However, the norm for most teen books these days is to have a bit more than wholesome. Some it's mere sexual tension or comments, some it's full out sex/drugs/violence. So I started wondering about ratings.

We use rating systems for a number of things already. Movies, music, and video games come to mind. These handy letters let us decide what we want to see/hear personally and what we allow our children to be exposed to. So, should this be considered for books?

And I'm not just talking about YA books, but all books. The level of sex, language, and violence in novels can vary greatly. For instance, in the romance genre, you can find anything from inspirational (where a kiss before marriage may be taboo) to straight up erotica (where hardly any line goes uncrossed). Many category publishers draw up their own rating systems to let readers know what to expect.

Harlequin does it by having separate lines with different sensuality levels. For instance, you know if you pick up a Steeple Chase book from Harlequin, you're going to get a sweet romance. You pick up a Blaze (high sensuality) or a Spice (erotica), you know there will be no fade to black sex scenes. Everything will be out there for the reading. So readers have the option to decide what they are comfortable with.

So could this work for other books? What if you picked up the latest thriller and on the back it said "Rated R for adult. Contains graphic violence, torture scenes, and language." Or, you picked up a YA for your kid and it said "15 and up, contains mild sexual situations and some foul language." Would you pay attention to that rating?

Many people will argue against the rating because it could lead to censorship. What if libraries (or Walmart--as they did with the CDs with explicit lyrics) decided they wouldn't stock any teen books that weren't PG? What would happen to the authors who write great edgy YA? What great stories would readers miss out on? Or, a library/store in a conservative community could decide that no x-rated books were allowed for adults, so all sensual romance/erotica was banned. (I shudder at the thought, lol.)

So I have mixed feelings on this (what's new). Part of me likes the idea of a rating. No so much to censor what I'm reading, but more just to know what to pick up when a mood strikes me. Sometimes I'm okay with reading graphic violence, sometimes I'm in the mood for something milder. I also think that parents have the right to know what they're kids are reading. (Although, I lean more on the side of letting them read it if appropriately aged, then have a discussion about some of the more adult themes if necessary. I would have hated to be stuck with only squeaky clean books as a child. A lot of edgy YA is awesome.)

But on the other hand, it does make me nervous to think that some books/authors could be censored. My YA tends to lean to edgy and my adult romance has no closed doors, so I could be one of those people to get stamped with a naughty rating (if I ever were so lucky to be published.) I would hate to see any author's creative freedom be choked by having to play to the market. And God help us all if Walmart starts deciding what is okay for us to read.

So what are your thoughts? Do you think ratings would be helpful? Or do you fear the fallout they would cause?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Livin' on the Edge" - Aerosmith

(player in sidebar--go ahead, take a listen)

Face Off Friday: YA Lit and Sex

As most of you know, young adult books are all the rage right now. Many are calling it a YA renaissance. I know that many of you who read this blog both write (and read) YA, as I do. So hopefully this is a relevant topic for you guys.

When I was writing my YA, I had the constant worry about where to draw the line on the controversial things, particularly sex and cursing. In my teen years, YA lit was very different. Most of the books were pretty clean. There were the exceptions that many of the libraries banned (Judy Blume's Forever and the book Go Ask Alice come to mind), but for the most part books were "wholesome". So, in theory, when reading YA we were protected from the "adult" things. Right?

Well, this theory didn't hold true for me because by fourteen, I was bored with YA and had moved on to adult novels. As I mentioned in a previous post, I started V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic series my freshman year of high school. Looking back, these books would probably be considered YA now. The protagonist was a teen. However, the books had sex, so at that time, they were marketed as adult fiction. And as for cursing, well I had a thing for Stephen King books in high school too, so...

In today's YA market, the books run the gamut--from the squeaky clean to the shocking. So when writing, I had to make the decision of where I would fall on this issue. People on each side of this debate feel very strongly about their opinions. I'll give you the argument, then I'll tell you what I ultimately decided worked for me.

Wholesome vs. Edgy

For love of the wholesome:

• Books with cursing, sex, and drugs normalize these behaviors and encourage teens to participate in them
• These books are pornographic and are selling sex to kids
• They teach teens (girls especially) that their worth is tied into their ability to please a boy
• The situations in these books expose children to adult situations that they aren't prepared to handle or interpret correctly

In defense of edgy:

• These books, although it is unfortunate, reflect reality: many teens are in fact having sex, some are exposed to drugs, and the majority are cursing.
• Teens are programmed to think about sex so we're not giving them any ideas with the books
• There is safety in fantasy. Perhaps teens can explore the topic through a book instead of in real life. For instance, in Forever, the sex is there but so are the emotional consequences that can happen in a sexual relationship.
• Most YA authors, although I'm sure there are exceptions, do not put sex in for gratuitous purposes, but for plot purposes.
• Has anyone watched TV lately or seen a movie or listened to the radio? Teens see a lot more sex outside of books than they see inside them.
• Teens can connect with a character who is struggling with the difficult issues and not feel as alone.
• Teen readers won't believe you if all your characters are squeaky clean
• If it's kept out of YA, the kids (like me) will just move to adult books, which may paint sex in a much more gratuitous and tempting light (sans consequences).

Both arguments have good points. So what did I do? I ended up trusting my characters. If in real life, I felt the character would curse, then I let him (where it would have the most impact.) I also put in some sexual situations and dialogue, but nothing beyond making out actually happens.

Why? Because of plot reasons. If I had felt my character was ready to have sex, then I probably would have let her. But the story didn't lead me that way. So I guess I fall on the liberal side in this debate. Perhaps I'm jaded from working with troubled teens in my past. They always trusted me more in therapy when I didn't balk at or preach about the things they were experiencing. I just let them talk through their feelings and offered some insight to try to lead them in a better direction.

So where do you fall in the debate? How did you make the decisions in your own YA? If you're a parent of a teen, how do you feel about what your child reads?

**Today's Theme Song**

"Don't Tell Me" - Avril Lavigne

(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)