Dialogue Tags – An Editor’s Worst Nightmare (almost!) #writingtips #writinganovel

Posted on March 17, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

This is great advice that I follow every time I read through my drafts. It’s also advice I’ve passed along to the ladies in my writing group. It’s amazing how many dialogue tags you can get rid of when you really try, perfect for reducing that word count!

Alison Williams Writing

dialogue tag 1

When my children were small, I worked for a while at their school. One of my roles was to take the ‘able and gifted’ children for creative writing lessons. Part of this was to increase their vocabulary and we duly spent a great deal of time thinking about different words, more interesting words, particularly more interesting words than ‘said’ and ‘asked’. Honestly, I’ve spent hours writing down word after word after word that could, technically anyway, be used instead of ‘said’!

Now I spend a great deal of time highlighting more unusual and interesting dialogue tags and begging my clients to please, please, please delete them and, if they must use a dialogue tag at all, then stick to ‘said’ and ‘asked’.

I can hear the intake of breath from here – particularly from those of you who are newer writers (and possibly from some of those who aren’t and…

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10 Things That Make A Book Successful

Posted on March 14, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

Great article to get you thinking and may just point out where you’re going wrong!

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Why are some books successful when others aren’t? Lots of reasons. A new release carries a lot of excitement by all parties because it’s NEW. Your excitement as an author spills over everywhere. Ea…

Source: 10 Things That Make A Book Successful

Enter to #win #epicfantasy Visions of Zarua in the #Goodreads #Giveaway

Posted on March 10, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

Top reviewers say;

‘Thrilling and dark fantasy novel that really keeps you gripped from beginning to end!’

‘The perfect amount of epicness.’

Two wizards, 350 years apart. Together they must save the realm of Paltria from Zarua’s dark past.

Apprentice wizard Paddren is plagued by visions of a city on the brink of annihilation. When his master Kalesh dies in mysterious circumstances, the Royal Order of Wizards refuses to investigate. Helped by his childhood friend, the skilled tracker Varnia, and her lover Leyoch, Paddren vows to find the killer. The investigation leads Paddren down a sinister path of assassins, secret sects and creatures conjured by blood magic. But he is guided by a connection with a wizard from centuries ago – a wizard whose history holds the key to the horror at the heart of the abandoned city of Zarua. Can Paddren decipher his visions in time to save the Paltrian people from the dark menace of Zarua’s past?

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I’ve decided to run another Goodreads Giveaway, though I’m limiting it to the UK. Sorry to everyone else, I just wanted to have a UK winner this time. I will run another giveaway in the future though.

The giveaway runs 10th – 24th March and 1 lucky winner from the UK will receive a signed paperback.

If you are intrigued by the blurb and fancy a bargain, I’m running a price promo on Visions of Zarua. Ebook only 99p / $1.99 available. amazon smashwords nook

Click Goodreads Giveaway to enter now.

Please share and spread the word.

#WordlessWednesday – Dinnertime!

Posted on March 9, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

#Bookreview – The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza #Crime #Thriller

Posted on March 8, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza

Crime Thriller – Book One of Detective Erica Foster.

396 (page-turning) pages

I ordered this during its pre-order period. The combination of great cover art, cool title, discount price and great reviews made me think, let’s take a chance.

It was a very fast paced and exciting read, the kind of book you just can’t put down. I enjoyed the story and meeting Erica Foster who is a troubled, but engaging lead character. I liked how her backstory was slowly revealed throughout the story, it really helped the reader understand why she was such a mess and sunk herself so heavily into her work. Getting justice became her sole priority, even at the risk of her own safety. I was rooting for her to succeed the whole way through.

The serial killer element to the story also kept me reading, and there were plenty of red herrings to leave me guessing at the killer’s identity.

The Girl in the Ice is current #1 in the UK kindle mystery chart and has 484 reviews (346 of them are 5 star). I rate it 4 out of 5 stars – there were just a couple of tiny details that made me wonder on its believability, otherwise it would have been a 5. I still highly recommend this gripping read and can’t wait for the next instalment.

You can buy Girl in the Ice at Amazon UK or Amazon US

Today’s Featured Author – Suzanne Rogerson

Posted on March 4, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

I’m very pleased to be the featured author on Into Another World’s blog this week.

Into Another World

Please welcome to my blog author Suzanna Rogerson. Her book, Visions of Zaura, is currently special for $1.99 for a limited time.

Interview

Please tell us about your current release?

Visions of Zarua is my debut fantasy novel, which I self-published in November 2015.

The novel focuses on the interlinking stories of two wizards who live 350 years apart. The first is an apprentice wizard named Paddren who’s been plagued by visions of death ever since he was a boy. The second wizard, Jago, is a junior wizard who lived 350 years before Paddren’s story begins. Jago returns to Zarua after a five year absence to find a dark undertow sweeping through the city. But the Elders refuse to believe Zarua is under threat, a mistake that has far reaching consequences.

Both wizards must fight to save the realm of Paltria from the dark menace of Zarua’s past.

How did…

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Visions of Zarua 99p / $1.99. My #Mslexia Ad & Subscriber Spotlight in #WritingMagazine

Posted on March 3, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

Two days ago I received the new Mslexia magazine and was very happy to see my ad for Visions of Zarua at the top of their noticeboard on page 12.

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If you can’t read my blurry picture, the ad states ‘Visions of Zarua by Suzanne Rogerson. Paddren is plagued by visions of a city on the brink of annihilation. When his master dies investigating the visions, Paddren vows to find the killer. His childhood friend, the skilled tracker Varnia, and her lover Leyoch agree to help. They’re guided by a wizard from centuries ago – a wizard whose history holds the key to the horror at the heart of the abandoned city of Zarua. Can Paddren decipher his visions in time to save the Paltrian people from the dark menace of Zarua’s past?’

Then today, I received my Writing Magazine and right in the centre is my piece in the Subscriber Spotlight section.

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(Hopefully this picture is a little easier to read.)

These magazine pieces have come at the perfect time to drum up a bit of interest in Visions of Zarua as I have just set up a kindle and ebook price promotion of 99p / $1.99. I’m hoping this will help persuade people to take a chance on my debut epic fantasy.

Available to buy here: amazon smashwords

I’m looking into ways to advertise this price promo, so any tips you can offer will be very welcome.

I also have news of another Goodreads Giveaway. This time I’ve limited it to the UK, but I will do another worldwide giveaway in the future. The giveaway runs from 10th to 24th March, so I will be shouting about it nearer the time.

Please share and help spread the word.

#WordlessWednesday – #photo Our plum tree still looking good after today’s hailstorm

Posted on March 2, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

#TuesdayBookBlog #review of Fire, Bed and Bone – Henrietta Branford #childrensbooks

Posted on March 1, 2016 by suzannerogersonfantasyauthor

My Rating 5 out of 5.

Pages 136.

Blurb from the front cover, which makes an interesting change.

‘A revolt is brewing. The year is 1381 and unrest is spreading like plague. England’s peasants are ready to rise against their unjust landlords. The violent upheaval will affect everyone – even dogs, like the old hunting bitch through whose eyes, ears and nose these dramatic events are revealed.’

Children’s book – I’d say 9+ but the book doesn’t state. I would be happy for my 9 year old to read it, and I think my son (11) would enjoy it too (in fact my son read ‘White Wolf’ by Henrietta Branford a couple of years ago and said it was one of his favourite books).

My daughter bought Fire, Bed and Bone at her school fair. She said she really liked the cover and the blurb and that’s why she picked it out of loads of other books. I decided to read a page or two just to see if it was suitable, but I couldn’t stop reading. I read the book in a couple of evenings, though around page 100 it almost became too emotional to read (that might just be me as I’m a sucker for an animal story).

This book is brilliantly written. I was immediately drawn into the world of ‘old dog’ as she is affectionately called by her owners. But she is not old and has two litters through the story, proving herself a fiercely protective and loving mother. She is also devoted to her owners Rufus and Comfort, and their children. I loved her voice and all the little details that she as a dog notices about people and the world around her. I was not surprised to read Henrietta Branford grew up in The New Forest, England (a place close to my heart) and that she learnt a great deal from her father about animals from a shooting and fishing perspective.

It’s a short, wonderful read, and I recommend it to everyone.

I can’t wait for both my children (and my husband) to read it and see what they think. It will be an interesting experiment, something we haven’t had the chance to do as a family before. I look forward to updating this post with their opinions, I only hope they love Fire, Bed and Bone as much as me.