Books and Dog Shows

What I'm Reading: Lost in Shadow, by CJ Lyons.

I confess I really like watching the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, especially the little animated dust mops. But there's something more to it than just watching dogs.

Kind of like publishing, right? Sure. Dogs and books. Obviously connected, right?

What we see on television are the final rounds. Each breed has already been winnowed down to its best representative. So, when things start, labs are competing with labs, and bulldogs with bulldogs. Then these compete with others in their respective groups.

At this point, they're looking at groups made up of lots of different breeds. Taking some information from the Westminster Kennel Club's website, here are a few of the groups:

SPORTING: These are gun dogs that were developed to assist the hunter, and generally have high energy and stable temperaments. Pointers and Setters point and mark the game, Spaniels flush the bird, Retrievers recover the game from land or water.

On Reading for Contests

What I'm reading: Tombstone Courage, by J. A. Jance

What I'm writing: Mystery short, e-publishing workshop

I finished my last Rita read. I have to admit, I wouldn't have picked up any of these books from the shelf based on type, cover, or blurb. However, I did have a couple of pleasant surprises.

I read 8 entries. Five of them reinforced why I don't read much in that sub-genre. I know there's good stuff to be had, and certainly the 'classic' romance has a tremendous following, but I found much of the writing left a lot to be desired. It seems that if these books are shorter by publisher's requirements, then authors ought to make every word count. Why did they have to keep reminding me that the hero/heroine's inner conflict was caused by a bad marriage/early trauma/family problems. I get it. I'm not likely to forget from one chapter to the next.

I got to book 6 with high hopes. The story was interesting, the writing was clean, and I wasn't being barraged with repetition. But then the holes started showing. If an author creates a problem, such as an injury, for her hero, fine. But you can't just ignore it when it doesn't fit the scene. And please find a better way to show me you're an expert in your field or that you've done your homework. It doesn't need to be on the page unless it moves the plot.

Number 7 kept me turning pages for most of the story, although it, too was a genre I don't read, and have a lot of trouble accepting. Since the heroine started out as someone I could identify with, that helped string me along. I'll probably give this one a high score even though I didn't "like" it.

Which brings me to book 8. Another one set in a world I'm not familiar with, nor particularly interested in. Yet the author drew me in, sprinkling the information logically, relevant to the characters and the plot so I enjoyed learning something new. And the emotional connections were there, making me laugh, making me cry.

So – 8 reads. One keeper. It sure reinforces everything you hear when you're trying to break into the business. It's a matter of marketability. What sells, or what the publisher predicts will sell, get published. Often, unfortunately, it doesn't have a lot to do with how great the story is, or how well the author can tell it.

I've been researching e-publishing for the workshops I'm giving, and there's a lot of misinformation out there, one major point being that if it's in print it's good, and if it's electronic it's inferior (or erotica, which is an entirely different conversation, best saved for another day.)