A Review Site
Authors are often banned from leaving reviews on sites such
as Amazon. They consider it competition. But many authors are actually avid
readers and know a good book when they read it. Also the author world is
extremely small and we tend to know one another. We know the new authors and
the great ones.
Non-author/average readers often obtain books directly from
an author or publisher as a gift or as a member of a fan club. Amazon frowns on
reviews from such readers.
Amazon is trying to do the right thing and make certain that
all their reviews are from legitimate purchases and are not prejudiced in any
way. They are attempting to make sure that the reviews posted are not from the
author, the author’s mother, or best friend.
So after a little frustration over the situation, I decided
to create a site where anyone can review a book that they liked. No one has to
write a long book report, just a line or two as to why they liked it. As an independent
review site, it can become a reader go-to spot to find a great story. Do you
love a mystery or vampire? What if another author that you happen to love says
this is a great book? You’re going to read it, right?
So here it is http://reviewingthebestbooks.wordpress.com
except it’s in need of reviews! This site opens the door for anyone
to post a review of an e-book that they have read and loved. Any spelling and
grammar mistakes in it should be minimal. Remember, there’s not a book out
there that doesn’t have a few flaws. If it has more than a few, please do not
post a review. It doesn’t have to the best thing you’ve read in your lifetime,
just a book that you have enjoyed. You know the one that you’d tell your best
friend about or recommend it to your mom or brother.
So please come over. Bookmark the page and drop a line or
two about your favorites under the genre headings at the top of the page. (Find the genre and then add your review in the comments section.) And if it’s the best thing you’ve ever read – tell us
in your review. If you can add the link to the ebook, you’ll make it easier on
the next person to find that book.
The Secret
The story behind A Calling in Wyoming isn’t a secret because I've told it a few times.
A dear friend’s son looked at me one day and asked if I’d write a romance for
him. That roughly translated into will you put your matchmaking skills together
and find me a super nice girl? Oh, how I wish I could find this handsome young
man the perfect woman, but I don’t know too many women in that age bracket. At
the time, I just laughed and said I’d see what I could do. But the idea of
writing a romance, and making him the hero, played on my mind.
And lets be honest, he’s my friend’s son. Anything I wrote
would have to be a sweet romance. I certainly couldn’t leave the bedroom door
open. One, I don’t want to think of him in those terms and two, his
religious
beliefs forbids such activity. But several things did fall into place. He is
from the west and he moved with his family to the east. So dropping him into a
pair of cowboy boots worked just fine. He’s also an avid reader with an
inquisitive mind and always looking for answers. But that whole church/faith thing
with him… I couldn’t ignore it.
When my husband and I moved to Virginia, a million years
ago, we thought we were moving directly into an apartment that we had reserved.
Long story short, we got here and the apartment wasn’t ready. We wound up
living with a family member who was married to the minister of a small church.
Just ducky! My husband was a devote catholic, and me, I’m the atheist, but
we’re living in the house with them. (Yes, for all those Catholics who are
wondering, I promised to raise my children to be Catholics, and no, the priest
was not happy.) So I got a first-hand taste of small town churches and what
everyone expects of the minister.
All of it combined and rattled around in my head until
the story emerged. I wrote A Calling in Wyoming. It’s not about
Christianity, it’s about choices and doing what you truly love. What if
something like this happened to the real Adam? What would he do? I’m not
spoiling anything - it’s a romance so I knew he’d get the girl in the end, but
what happens along the way? You don’t just uproot someone. And when you’re
young and making good money… Do you walk away from that? Don’t we all wish some
fairy godmother is going to tap us on the shoulder and tell us what to do?
When I published the book, I sent a copy to the real Adam
and asked him to read it. I saw him a few weeks later, and asked him would you
take the job. He sort of smirked and walked away. Yeah, I nailed him! I was
certain he’d take the job.
Here's the secret. A few weeks back or over a year after the publication of
that story, he stopped by his mother’s house and informed her that he was
making plans to move away. He had to take a few college classes locally to
close some gaps in his education and he was headed off to a seminary. His mom
had all the normal motherly reactions. As a widow, it will leave her alone in
an area and she depends on him for many things. But she’s so darn proud of him
that her heart is ready to burst. When she told me, I started to giggle. Yeah,
I nailed him. Now if I could only find him a real girl.
