Book reviews

I had to face a one star review the day after my book was published. I perhaps shouldn't be telling you this, but I am. I think most of us have to deal with a one star review sooner or later. I confess it didn't (still doesn't) feel nice. It's only two lines long, but, nevertheless, I re-read it a few times. 

Then I stopped, breathed and a thought occurred. The book's publication day was on 1st July 2015, and the review appeared on 2nd July. It reads:

"I barely made it through this book."

Ummm...what? Don't quite get this. The book was bought the previous day (although the review doesn’t come from a verified purchaser) so the reviewer has read it in one day and has written: I barely made it through...

If I don't like a book - it doesn't matter why - I don't read it in a day, it takes me a week or even more, because I have a hard time convincing myself to carry on. But that's obviously just me.

But then I got a four star review, by verified purchaser katiematie, saying: 

"I found this a very entertaining debut book.... It is an easy to follow storyline and you do not have to be a racing fan to be able to enjoy it.

Like a track there are a lot of twists and turns throughout the storyline..." 

It was like a bandage over my bruised writing confidence. 

Not long after that, I saw a tweet: 

"It's a well crafted story and your book ought to be read!" says @BeaumontBee

And then there were three - yes THREE - 5 star reviews.  Two appeared on the same day and all three are from verified purchasers.

Here are some snippets:

Always reading says:

"This is a great racy read."           

Renata says:

"This book is really amazing. The story of the book is thrilling from the beginning to end. You could find there love, tension, joy, sadness and a lot of surprises. I could recommend this book. I couldn't break away from reading."

and Michele says:

"Wow... I was spellbound, excited, enthralled and glued to the story line with lots of twists keeping you, not wanting to put the book down. You feel as if you're there in Monaco and all the wonderful places you are taken to. I highly recommend this fast paced book."

Now, that kinda makes you forget about the first one, doesn't it? You don't have to believe me. The reviews - all of them - are right there, on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and on Goodreads. You can check them for yourself.

But as with all new, not known or indie authors out there, I'm trying to get as may reviews as possible, so:  

Thank you if you have purchased or if you're going to purchase Racing Heart. We all know time is scarce, so I thank you for taking the time to read it. If you enjoyed it, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author’s best friend and it would be much appreciated. Thank you again. 

Walking in somebody else's shoes

is something that writers try to do. From story to story, from novel to novel, from one fictional character to another. Isn't that the truth? With each and every story that comes into our heads, we are trying to walk in someone else's shoes. 

We stumble, we fall, we walk and we try to run too. 

That is one of the purposes of writing. To "crawl" into somebody else's mind and live that life. It doesn't matter if it's only for a little while. That's what we do. And to be honest, I'm proud that I can do it.

So, not long ago, I was - to put it nicely - accused of being  impatient, bossy, pushy, etc...

I won't deny it; I can be all those things. 

If it is important for my children, my family and, not least, for me - I can be even worse than that. Believe me; I can be.

I read those accusations and couldn't defend myself. I didn't feel that in that particular case I was all those things. But I said to myself:

'Okay. It's one of those days - a bad day. I'll live.'

But then I saw it, right there, written between the lines; You can't put yourself into my shoes and see how hard life can be.'

To be honest, I wasn't even trying to. And for that reason instead of being hurt, (what was the purpose of the accusation), I had to laugh.

I learned very quickly that until you walk a few miles in somebody else's shoes, you can't say that you truly understand their life. No matter how hard we try, we can't. 

And that goes for everyone. Yes, some of us are lucky enough to have a vivid imagination, the ability to 'create lives', but those are fictional lives and they are what we make them. 

But real life? We all bear our own personal crosses. Perhaps my life is easy, perhaps it isn't. It doesn't matter. You know only what I choose to share with you and nothing more. How you picture my life is up to you, but don't say you know how it is. Believe me, you don't.

I won't apologize for the way I am. This is one part of me and all anyone can do is accept me or...don't. 

In this era of social networking sometimes we reveal too much.  

I choose not to.

My Author's Interview - On Alison Williams Writing

I never thought that one day I would be giving interviews! I thought I would be anonymous and mysterious. That was one of the reasons I chose to use a pen name.

But then, who will promote a book if not the author herself?

I always wondered what kind of questions there would be if I was ever interviewed. To be honest, I was a bit afraid of them. What would my answers be? How would I sound? 

But then my first interview questions came. I read the questions and sat down and wrote the answers. Wow, I felt great when I first read it - I actually sounded great (pat on my back =) ). 

And not long after that 'first one', lovely Alison agreed to interview me on her blog Alison Williams Writing. 

Alison is a writer and an editor. She writes historical fiction, but is fascinated by the ordinary people whose lives were touched by the decisions, the beliefs and the whims of those who had power over them and who now fill our history books. She wants to tell the stories of how it was for those ordinary people, caught in events they couldn't control. 

Alison has  already published two historical novels; The Black Hours and Blackwater both available on Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble for the Nook and in the Apple Store.  

And here you can find my interview: #AuthorInterview: June Moonbridge @JMoonbridge

With every interview you'll learn something new. Be afraid... Be very afraid... ;)