Free books for the Kindle

I’m officially a traitor (to my beloved books). I got a Kindle for Christmas.

I wanted to be able to read the free ebooks offered by new authors. (and maybe Sherlock Holmes in a less back breaking format.)

Now I have to fill it up. (Just what I needed, more books to add to my growing to-read list.) I was surprised at how many sites there are out there listing the daily free books.

My favorite site so far is http://digitalbooktoday.com/free-kindle-books/

http://www.pixelofink.com/ is one of the top sites and features daily kindle deals for popular books too. (Maze Runner today for $2)

http://ereadernewstoday.com/ is another top site. I don’t like the layout as much as the others, but it has a mailing list where you can pick which genres you’re interested in.

http://www.mobileread.com/forums/ is a forum site to discuss kindle books.

http://bargainebookhunter.com/category/free/ Another good listing. It as cover art and descriptions on the site, unlike digitalbooktoday.

I’m still new to all this ebook stuff. Anyone know of any good sites that I missed?

For those of you looking to promote your free book http://onlineinternetmarketinghelp.com/23-free-sites-to-promote-your-free-kindle-books-on-amazon/ lists all the sites and links to the submission forms.

Coming next week, what makes me download a book and what makes me turn away.

What makes a character a person?

It isn't knowing their entire history or being able to picture exactly what they look like. It is feeling as though you know the character. Something happens and you know how that character would react, how they would feel, what they would think. As a writer I have to know my characters this well, but it would be boring if I wrote out all the ins and outs of my characters. 

So how does a writer get across enough of a character's personality? By showing them in different settings, showing the kind of person they are, and hearing the thoughts inside their heads. Their personality needs to be consistent, though they can grow as a person as all people do.

A character cannot be unfailable, they cannot be perfect. They cannot be pure evil or pure good, for people don't come that way. They have goals and dreams, fears and weaknesses. Sometimes it is a characters quirks that make them the most likable.

A pet peeve of mine is cookie-cutter characters that are a walking stereotype. In fantasy this is the solider, the thief, and the wizard. One can write these characters, but there has to be more to them than what they are. I think what makes a good writer a great writer is having realistic side characters as well as main characters.

What do you think makes for the best characters?

An Original Idea

One of the biggest problems nowadays is having an original plot. I wonder if the ancient Greeks thought that all the stories had been told. People often say that today, though I don't believe it is true. There may be fewer ideas left out there, but they can't ever be all used up.

I used to think I could only write a story if it was completely original. This became a problem. I'd get a good idea, but then I'd read or watch something and find them too similar, so I'd scrap my story. I realized that if I continued to do this I would never write anything. As much as I want to write a totally original story I had to understand that no matter how original I think my story is, there is going to be something out there that is somewhat similar.

Everyone is influenced by what they have seen and what they have read. No two stories can be the same, being told by two different individuals.

Writing a good Plot

A plot is probably the most important part of a story. It is the actual story. Good characters can only redeem a poor plot so much.

A plot all begins with an idea. Where these ideas come from I'm not sure. Maybe we all have our personal muse looking out for us. Mine sure has a strange sense of humor.

I find it hard to explain how an idea turns into a plot. I organize my story in my head so I know what is coming or just start writing and see where it goes. Some people write everything out before they start the actual story.

This site shows how to create a plot outline.http://www.how-to-write-a-book-now.com/plot-outline.html

When I write a story I make sure that the character and therefore the reader sees hints of what is coming. As the tension develops in the story, so does the plot. When I write I don't really concentrate on all of the parts that make up a plot. I go back through before I'm finished making sure my plot makes sense.

A conclusion has to wrap things up satisfactorily. It doesn't matter as much how many pages it takes as long as the story seems over. There is a delicate balance between leaving the reader wanting more and leaving them feeling cheated.

How do you develop a plot? Do you write out a whole summary or do you only know the basics before you start a story?

Novel Editing - What to cut

As a child whenever I finished a rough draft I felt like, "Okay, it's done. Why would I need to edit it? It's perfect." If only it were that easy.

I'm still working on editing my novel. I'm struggling with my word count, so I'm cutting away. Here are some tips that I've found helpful.

* The hardest part for me is cutting something out that I think is good. If it isn't relevant to the plot or character development it has to go, no matter how beautiful the scene or how funny the dialogue.

* Don't repeat telling the same tale more than once. I always want to hear how a character retells the story when relating it to another character, but this redundancy isn't necessary.

* I cut out the backstory, working it into the story itself and dramatically reducing the word count.

* Removing words, such as just, actually, like. If I can still understand the sentence without the word, it doesn't need to be there. This includes removing adjectives when there is more than one in a sentence or overusing the -ly ending words.

* Make things less wordy. Rewrite sentences keeping the important parts, but using fewer words. Easier said than done, but most of my cuts seem to be of this nature.

*If my mind wanders during a section or a sentence, it doesn't seem fluid or is confusing I know it has to be rewritten or cut entirely.

* Excess descriptions. I still want to tell what the characters and places look like, but I've found the key is that the more important the scene or character the more descripton they need. If it is a passing village not important to the plot I don't have to spend all that much time describing it.

* What NOT to do: Don't write a summary instead of dialogue, especially if it is important to the plot. I don't mean leaving in every small talk conversation during dinner, but I like to feel like I am actually there when the character's talk or do something as opposed to reading about it after the fact.

Agree? Disagree? Know of anything I missed? Please let me know, I appreciate your feedback.

Characters and their flaws

In order to make characters well rounded and have them feel like real people they can't be perfect, they need flaws.

I think it is easier to give characters flaws than strengths you don't possess. Even if I'm not afraid of something my characters still can be. I'm currently facing the problem of giving my character a good sense of direction, whereas I have none. I am doing this by making detailed maps and writing down directions so I can make it seem like she knows where she's going.

Some character faults can seem cliched such as clumsiness. When I write a character doing something I have actually done it somehow seems less credible. What are some good character faults?

Gobbledygook

When writing fantasy or science fiction you have to create so much, this includes a lot of words. The names of people, worlds, magic or invented sciences and sometimes even more.

As a reader it can be very confusing picking up a book for the first time and finding it full of nonsense words. Some authors create new words for everything, days of the week, units of measurement, seasons and even social classes. It can be a bit overwhelming at first. So where do you draw the line at what to rename?

This is one of the problems I faced as a writer. I wanted to rename enough to make it feel like a unique alien world, yet not confuse my readers. In the end I decided to keep my renaming to a minimum, partly for my own sanity, but mostly because my book is more geared towards young adults and I wanted it to be as accessible as possible.

I feel the need to also defend authors who chose to do the opposite. One of my favorite authors, LE Modesitte Jr, always renames absolutely everything. It hasn't prevented me from enjoying his work, though it did take me a bit of perseverance to get into it in the first place.