Against The Rules

For writers who get a little overwhelmed by all the "rules" of writing, I encourage a look at today's refreshing blog post over at novel journey by Athol Dickson (February 17th):

http://www.noveljourney.blogspot.com

Recommended Read: Lost Mission by Athol Dickson

I'm not a big fan of book reviews so you won't find that here. Often book reviews reveal so much of the story in their review it's pointless to read the book.

I will say simply that this book is well worth the read. I mentioned in another post the reason I picked up the book was the beautiful book cover. And it contained a well crafted story within. Personally, I love reading the types of books that "wear you out." They wear you out by keeping your wheels turning and by their intensity. Granted, reading such intense stories is probably not something I could do one after the other.

The other thing I liked about this book is that it is not easily predictable. You can't read two chapters and figure out the rest. It takes quite a while to figure out how these characters are going to impact each other.

It was a fun way to spend my Saturday.

But so much for fun. I need to get back to my own writing! 8-)

Most Appealing Book Cover?

We've been discussing novel book covers on a writer's loop I'm on. For me, a book cover is a huge deal. I thresh through a lot of books at the bookstore based on cover alone. If the cover wows me, I'll pick up the book and read the back cover blurb. If that wows me I'll read the first page.

There are many different genres and many different tastes in cover art.

So what's the most appealing book cover you've seen recently?

I can think of two recent books whose cover art has appealed to me.

First, Jim Rubart's Rooms. You can see the cover art by clicking here:

http://www.amazon.com/Rooms-Novel-James-L-Rubart/dp/0805448888/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277391173&sr=1-1

I LOVE the colors--those cool green/blue variations and the solitude of the house in the woods. And a hint of mystery.

And the book cover on Athol Dickson's Lost Mission just knocked my socks off:

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Mission-Novel-Athol-Dickson/dp/1416583475/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277391316&sr=1-1

Being a southwestern girl, this tilted mission and the warm orange hues grabbed me right away. The cover also implies stormy weather--also grabbed my attention. I've only just begun to read the book but from the opening pages it looks like a storm is brewing within as well.

Do you have a book cover that has grabbed you lately? Send me the book's link.