reviews

The Rush to Publish

8 October 2019 by villia Leave a Comment

Last night, someone sent me a message saying Under the Black Sand was being discussed in a reader’s group on Facebook. That is pretty cool, so I took a look. She was happy with it and the novel kept her interested and I was thrilled to read that. However…

She mentioned having to ignore typos. I immediately recognised that she must have been one of the first buyers of the book and that she had that dreaded first upload.

I worked on that story for seven years. Wrote the screenplay for the short film and shot it in 2006, finished the edit in 2008 and had it premiered at a film festival. Then I wrote a screenplay for a full movie and that was finished in 2010. I was then told to write the novel and that was done in 2011. A year later a completely different version was completed where it takes place in Scotland rather than Iceland. I was adviced, by a beta reader, to move it back to Iceland and I did. Finally, I published the finished novel in 2013.

Typos. Yeah, I guess I must have been tired of the story, I wanted it out, out of my system and into the world. After seven years, I rushed it.

When I first heard of the problems, I went through it again, fixed a few things – not just the typos – and re-uploaded it. And I learned a lesson.

Never publish a book until it’s done. Never publish a book because you want it out of your system. Publish it because it is ready to be published.

I offered her a new copy but she said it wasn’t too bad. I said I looked forward to hearing what she thought after she’d finished reading it.

Always remember, the work you publish is out in the world and revisions won’t fix copies already sold. Make you work the best it can be before you publish.

Reviews – What are they Good For?

5 October 2019 by villia Leave a Comment

Nothing is more rewarding to an author than seeing their book reviewed. It doesn’t really matter all that much whether it’s positive or negative. The fact that someone took the time and effort to read your novel and write a review is humbling. Positive rewiews are better, of course. They stroke our ego and make us feel good about ourselves. Still, nobody has managed to write only stellar fiction and critical reviews help us grow as writers and create better future work for you, the reader. We must expect criticism as much as we hope for compliments.

Thankfully, Under the Black Sand enjoyed favourable reviews, only getting four or five stars. There weren’t many, but each one encouraged me to keep going. I never received any reviews for my second novel, Blood and Rain. There may be all kinds of reasons for that.
– The genre may be less popular. Everyone was mad about Nordic and Icelandic things.
– The book may be less interesting, but then, it is being translated into two languages, unlike the Black Sand.
– I didn’t push it like the first.

Maybe I should have. I love the setting and some of my favourite characters are in it. Celestina definitely has the best character introduction in any of my stories.

Here is hoping Undir Svörtum Sandi will be reviewed when it comes out in just under two weeks. It will encourage me to write more, maybe in my native language, and it will tell me if I’m doing things well or need to improve in certain areas.

Below are some of the reviews placed for Under the Black Sand.

★★★★★ – Amazon
A unique story in a unique environment.
21 January 2015 – A story unlike other love stories. Contains all the aspects that makes you want to keep on reading (power, lust, love and well described feelings and sceneries). Movie material.

★★★★★ – Amazon UK
Unusual fast moving story
28 May 2014 – I bought this book as I like stories based in Iceland. It sat in my ‘wish list’ for ages as I was unsure whether or not to buy. There were no reviews to guide me. However I am so happy that I did in the end purchase it.
This fast moving story is about a forceful businessman, set in todays post 2008 bank collapse Iceland, trying to get a large project passed a political and environmental resistance to his plan. As the story develops you get flashbacks to the past, his past, which eventually consumes his time. It is a story of love over the centuries, of struggle against hard times and also of murder. I cannot give to much away as this will ruin your enjoyment. If you like a slightly supernatural story this is for you. Very good.

★★★★ – Amazon
Gripping story
6 February 2015 – Very good story; starts a bit slow, but if you keep going it will eventually grip you. It made me want to watch the short movie in which the book is based. I very much enjoyed the way the history of Iceland is used as a backdrop for the story, that works very well. The pronunciation guide was a nice touch, by the way.

★★★★ – Goodreads
Nordic spirits and a Nordic Tiger
11 May 2015 – This crime novel swings from standard mystery to very different mythology. Very pleasing story that is tied up well. Most of the characters are very real but not sympathetic. No sweethearts traipsing through this tundra. Great melding of ancient and co temporary conflict.

★★★★ – Bol (translated from Dutch)
Intriguing
29 September 2019 – An intriguing, non-linear, dark and moody book. Well written but no easy meal. The experienced reader will be rewarded with a beautiful and powerful story.

Reviews and indy authors

28 February 2017 by villia Leave a Comment

As mentioned in a previous post, my novels are self-published. This means I have no means of displaying posters in city centres or underground stations, they won’t be lying face up in bookstores and there won’t be any morning television appearances where I explain where the spark came from and what I’m trying to tell the world.

I can say anything I want here, I can share my Smashwords interview with you, I can bombard my Facebook page and let the gems rain down on you on Twitter, but you won’t see me or my novels standing proud next to you on a poster at the bus stop. My reach is limited. But all is not lost.

Reviews are the most effective way to advertise my work. I know quita few people have read my debut novel, Under the Black Sand. I know at least some liked it, as the reviews were good and I was told so by quite a few readers I’ve met in person. An advance reader told me Blood and Rain was even better than Under the Black Sand. She’s read them both. I can see where she’s coming from, as Blood and Rain was designed to be a much easier read.

So I’m asking you to post a review if you’ve read my novels and you like them. Anything will do, from “I liked it” to a huge dissection of the characters and what the story did for you.

Whatever you do, please post a review. Doesn’t matter where. We all have our favourite online outlets, whether it be Amazon, Kobo or whatever. Just post that review. It is the only effective way I have to have my work seen by a larger audience.

Thank you.

Here are a couple of reviews for Under the Black Sand. They range from a single sentence to a few paragraphs:

This crime novel swings from standard mystery to very different mythology. Very pleasing story that is tied up well. Most of the characters are very real but not sympathetic. No sweethearts traipsing through this tundra. Great melding of ancient and co temporary conflict.

—

An interesting tale.

—

I bought this book as I like stories based in Iceland. It sat in my ‘wish list’ for ages as I was unsure whether or not to buy. There were no reviews to guide me. However I am so happy that I did in the end purchase it.

This fast moving story is about a forceful businessman, set in todays post 2008 bank collapse Iceland, trying to get a large project passed a political and environmental restistance to his plan. As the story develops you get flashbacks to the past, his past, which eventually consumes his time. It is a story of love over the centuries, of struggle against hard times and also of murder. I cannot give to much away as this will ruin your enjoyment. If you like a slightly supernatural story this is for you. Very good.