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Dear Extra Squeeze Team, I Have a Pandemic Story . . . Too Soon?

November 30, 2020 by in category The Extra Squeeze by The Extra Squeeze Team tagged as , , ,

Dear Extra Squeeze Team, I think I have a best-selling pandemic story on my hands! Is it ever too late or too soon to write about something like that?

Robin Blakely | The Extra Squeeze Team | A Slice of Orange

Robin Blakely

PR/Business Development coach for writers and artists; CEO, Creative Center of America; member, Forbes Coaches Council.

If you have a best-selling story about any period of time, write it. The very best stories have a timeless essence that touches hearts and ignites imaginations, no matter when or where the stories are set. It is never too soon or too late to write a story that jars the soul. But, by the same token, don’t imagine that the pandemic theme is the thing that will cause readers to pick up the book.

 

A million pandemic-themed stories are being created right now; many not very good. The market always faces trends that cause certain subjects, themes, or genres to spike in popularity at certain times. If that is the wave you want to ride, get there early. But that wave may not be the one for you—you may not be done fast enough to be part of that perceived market interest.

 

If in doubt, go good. Good work weathers mass upticks in interest. Focus on the good work.

H. O. Charles | A Slice of Orange

H.O. Charles

Cover designer and author of the fantasy series, The Fireblade Array


No! Think of all the war novels that are still being written, and all those written during the wars. Different, developing situations give rise to different and interesting outlooks.

 

Jenny Jensen | A Slice of Orange

Jenny Jensen

Developmental editor who has worked for twenty plus years with new and established authors of both fiction and non-fiction, traditional and indie.

Yea! I’ve been waiting for this. I think now is the perfect time to offer a good fictional Corvid plot. I see no reason why such a story would be “too soon” or “too late”.  If the tale is well written, soundly plotted, has a great cast of characters and a riveting dramatic arc it will always be timely as a good book.

 

The pandemic is top of everyone’s mind right now. (How often has a single event held that much sway at once with the entire human species?) There is so much crazy mis-information blitzing around that a large number of us just ignore it all, take precautions and wait to hear about a vaccine. I’d welcome a good pandemic story. Fiction has always been the media where we can talk about anything. Go for it.

Rebecca Forster | Extra Squeeze

Rebecca Forster 

USA Today Bestselling author of 35 books, including the Witness series and the new Finn O’Brien series.

I was recently interviewed and asked if I was going to address the pandemic. My answer was, ‘Yes if it works organically into my story’.

 

Will I make the pandemic the focus of a book? The answer is no. I very seldom write a ripped-from-the-headlines book because headlines change faster than you can blink these days.

 

I do write ripped-from-the-inside-pages books because that’s where I find small stories, about real people and personal tragedy and triumph. For me, it’s always about the characters.

 

Every writer is different, though. If this book is eating at you, write it, own it, and market it. It might be just be the blockbuster you feel it is.

Good luck.

The Extra Squeeze | A Slice of Orange

Ever wonder what industry professionals think about the issues that can really impact our careers? Each month The Extra Squeeze features a fresh topic related to books and publishing.

Amazon mover and shaker Rebecca Forster and her handpicked team of book professionals offer frank responses from the POV of each of their specialties — Writing, Editing, PR/Biz Development, and Cover Design.

If you have a question for The Extra Squeeze Team, use our handy dandy contact form.

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The Book Review that touched my heart by Jina Bacarr

October 10, 2020 by in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sometimes, you get it right….

When I saw this review of my Titanic love story THE RUNAWAY GIRL, it tugged at my heart.

Yes, it’s a wonderful 5 star review, but more importantly, my story has captured the interest of a young girl who wasn’t much of a reader beforehand. 

Amazon Review:

Crystal E. Rose

Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2020

My daughter has not read the whole book yet but likes it. She likes the romance part. She is not much of a reader and I always see this book in her hands.
 
================
 
Wow. What sets my kettle brewing is that this young girl has discovered the joy of reading through the eyes of Ava O’Reilly, my intrepid Irish heroine who flees to America for a new life when she’s wrongly accused of stealing a diamond bracelet.
 
I wonder…
 
Will my book go on her keeper shelf as she gets older?
 
Will she look back on it fondly when she’s plowing through college textbooks and remember the joy she found ‘reading for fun’?
 
Will she grab the dog-eared copy off the shelf in a moment of needing a hug when her romantic life isn’t going so well?
 
Will she re-read it wrapped up in a cozy blanket, holding her hot cocoa? When her eyes tire easily and her hands hurt from arthritis, but her heart soars to once again walk the decks of the Titanic with Ava and remember when she was young?
 
I hope so.
 
Not because it’s my story, but because we never forget the books that touched our hearts when we were young and introduced us to new worlds and changed our lives.
 
And if my story set this young girl on a lifelong love of reading, then I couldn’t be more pleased. 
 
It doesn’t get better than that.
 
Jina
 
PS — for UK readers THE RUNAWAY GIRL in PRINT is now available online in THE WORKS for a sale price of 2 pounds and will be available in the brick and mortar THE WORKS stores in less than a fortnight!
 
 

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THE RUNAWAY GIRL

Two women hold the keys to his heart. Only one will survive that fateful night…

When Ava O’Reilly is wrongly accused of stealing from her employer, she has no option but to flee Ireland. The law is after her, and she has only one chance at escape – the Titanic.

Aboard the ship of dreams, she runs straight into the arms of Captain ‘Buck’ Blackthorn, a dashing gentleman gambler who promises to be her protector. He is intrigued by her Irish beauty and manages to disguise her as the maid of his good friend, the lovely Countess of Marbury. Little does he realise, that the Countess is also in love with him.

As the fateful night approaches, tragedy strikes further when Ava is separated from Buck, and must make a daring choice that will change her life forever…

A sweeping historical romance set aboard the Titanic, from the author of Her Lost Love (Christmas Once Again).

Praise for Jina Bacarr:

‘A delightful holiday romance that has all the charm of a classic Christmas movie. Christmas Once Again is perfect for anyone who loves a holiday romance brimming with mistletoe, hope, and what ifs.’ Andie Newton, author of The Girl I Left Behind ‘A breathtaking holiday romance that is sure to stay with you long after reading’

‘A mesmerizing holiday romance that is sure to sweep you off your feet and take you away to another place, another time.’

‘A fabulous book you won’t want to miss’ https://youtu.be/S-33oEM4DlI

THE RUNAWAY GIRL e-book, print and audio book:

THE RUNAWAY GIRL
Buy from Amazon
Buy from Apple Books
Buy from Barnes and Noble
Buy from Kobo
 
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THE RESISTANCE GIRL pubs October 27th!
 
 Paris WW 2 — check out the 5 star and 4 star reviews on NetGalley!
This book is incredible a truly remarkable story, Sylvie diary, notes photo's and recordings are inspiring. the real story of glamourous Sylvie Martone has to be solved and told. She will never be forgotten.
I loved it
 — Booklover B 

 

 

https://twitter.com/BoldwoodBooks/status/1315245890874093569

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Meet the unsung heroine of publishing: Miss Proofreader by Jina Bacarr

September 11, 2020 by in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , Ode to my Proofreader My proofreader has the eye of an eagle and patience of a saint, No matter what I write, she swears not to faint Through missed commas, wrong tenses, and a lost full stop or two She carries on in spite of, through and through But what I never expected when I sent my m/s off with a sigh Was that parts of my book would make her cry… ——— Last month I wrote about the copy edits and mentioned that I sent my Paris WW 2 historical novel is off to the proofreader! Oh, my, I had no idea I’d make her cry… I actually stopped in the middle of proofreading my manuscript when she sent it back to me and shed a tear or two myself, I felt so bad for upsetting her. My first thought was… I had to change the scene, make it happy, not have this lovely professional proofreader stop her work because my characters made her cry. How dare they! I was totally surprised how much this affected me. It’s okay for me to bawl my eyes out when bad stuff happens to my heroine, but I think we writers live in a bubble and don’t know realize how much the stories we tell affect our readers. They’re just as invested in the story as we are. And for that I thank you for allowing my stories to touch your soul, wrench your heart, and send you on a journey to a place far, far away, but bring them home, nourish them, cheer with them cry with them when you let our characters come into your life. And yes, my proofreader did finish her proofreading on time (with a tissue or two in tow).
————– THE RUNAWAY GIRL Two women hold the keys to his heart. Only one will survive that fateful night… When Ava O’Reilly is wrongly accused of stealing from her employer, she has no option but to flee Ireland. The law is after her, and she has only one chance at escape – the Titanic. Aboard the ship of dreams, she runs straight into the arms of Captain ‘Buck’ Blackthorn, a dashing gentleman gambler who promises to be her protector. He is intrigued by her Irish beauty and manages to disguise her as the maid of his good friend, the lovely Countess of Marbury. Little does he realise, that the Countess is also in love with him. As the fateful night approaches, tragedy strikes further when Ava is separated from Buck, and must make a daring choice that will change her life forever… A sweeping historical romance set aboard the Titanic, from the author of Her Lost Love (Christmas Once Again). Praise for Jina Bacarr: ‘A delightful holiday romance that has all the charm of a classic Christmas movie. Christmas Once Again is perfect for anyone who loves a holiday romance brimming with mistletoe, hope, and what ifs.’ Andie Newton, author of The Girl I Left Behind ‘A breathtaking holiday romance that is sure to stay with you long after reading’ ‘A mesmerizing holiday romance that is sure to sweep you off your feet and take you away to another place, another time.’ ‘A fabulous book you won’t want to miss’ THE RUNAWAY GIRL e-book, print and audio book:
THE RUNAWAY GIRL
Buy from Amazon
Buy from Apple Books
Buy from Barnes and Noble
Buy from Kobo
BONUS this month: meet Daisy in my Boldwood Books 1st anniversary video!
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Why copy edits keep me up at night by Jina Bacarr

August 11, 2020 by in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

copy edits done and gone

every comma, typo, everything wrong

fixed and buttoned up nice and tight

trying so hard to get it all right

now to sleep perchance to dream in bliss?

no…tossing & turning, wondering, what did I miss?

——————

My Paris WW 2 historical novel is off to the proofreader!

——————-

Once upon a time in Hollywoodland far, far away, I wrote tons of scripts for kids’ TV shows. I remember one show I was hired to work on where my script was considered the ‘hallmark’ of the series — it had all the elements they wanted in each script and they used it as a ‘sample’ to show other writers they brought on what they wanted.

Wow.

Yes, it was cool. Simple, right? Give them a good script, get a paycheck, grab another assignment.

Oh, no, my innocent ones.

It wasn’t at all like that. I met with the producers (seasoned pros) every day for two weeks until we hammered out the characters, the plot, subplot, theme… met with the toy company so I could see what the ‘toys’ looked like. Wrote an outline — a detailed outline — three times.

Got more notes. Wrote the script… rewrote it.

Then another meeting that went something like this: ‘You got the story down… characters good… ‘ say the producers. ‘But change the big action scene to include…………’

‘Why?’ I ask.

‘Because the toy company wants to introduce this …………. toy in the episode.’

I grin, say nothing. Remember rent is due. ‘You got it.’

In the end, it was a great episode with an emotional connection between the hero and his father and lots of action, but it didn’t just happen. All those meetings, notes paid off. It was a team effort and I learned back then that’s what makes good scripts. And good books.

The team.

Copy edits are a big part of that team.

Yes, I cringe, freak out, yell, and cry when I see those ‘comments’ on the right side of the page, but I’m so grateful for the time, skill, dedication, and heartfelt emotion the copy editor puts into her work. She knows this is my ‘baby’, yet it’s her job to find everything that ‘doesn’t’ work.

So a big THANK YOU to my copy editor on my Paris WW 2 historical coming out in October (cover reveal soon!) for putting up with my mistakes and asking the hard questions so I get it right.

You done good, kid.

—————

Blog tour coming up Oct 27 – Nov 2 already filled up except for one spot Yay!!


————–

THE RUNAWAY GIRL

Two women hold the keys to his heart. Only one will survive that fateful night…

When Ava O’Reilly is wrongly accused of stealing from her employer, she has no option but to flee Ireland. The law is after her, and she has only one chance at escape – the Titanic.

Aboard the ship of dreams, she runs straight into the arms of Captain ‘Buck’ Blackthorn, a dashing gentleman gambler who promises to be her protector. He is intrigued by her Irish beauty and manages to disguise her as the maid of his good friend, the lovely Countess of Marbury. Little does he realise, that the Countess is also in love with him.

As the fateful night approaches, tragedy strikes further when Ava is separated from Buck, and must make a daring choice that will change her life forever…

A sweeping historical romance set aboard the Titanic, from the author of Her Lost Love (Christmas Once Again).

Praise for Jina Bacarr:

‘A delightful holiday romance that has all the charm of a classic Christmas movie. Christmas Once Again is perfect for anyone who loves a holiday romance brimming with mistletoe, hope, and what ifs.’ Andie Newton, author of The Girl I Left Behind ‘A breathtaking holiday romance that is sure to stay with you long after reading’

‘A mesmerizing holiday romance that is sure to sweep you off your feet and take you away to another place, another time.’

‘A fabulous book you won’t want to miss’ https://youtu.be/S-33oEM4DlI

THE RUNAWAY GIRL e-book, print and audio book:

THE RUNAWAY GIRL
Buy from Amazon
Buy from Apple Books
Buy from Barnes and Noble
Buy from Kobo
 
 
 
BONUS this month: meet Daisy in my Boldwood Books 1st anniversary video!
 

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To sleep or not to sleep… why I stayed up till dawn every night to finish my book by Jina Bacarr

June 11, 2020 by in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’ve worked nights a lot.

On late night radio.

In a U.S. Army service club

Dancer/Singer/Cocktail waitress.

Theatre productions.

Yeah, a lot. But you’d think as a writer I could choose to work the day shift. I tried, really tried, but my brain seems to be wired to work late.

So here I am at 3:36 a.m. writing my Slice of Orange Blog for this month. I don’ t know if it’s because of the lovely quiet, the comforting shades of night that envelop you like a cozy blanket, or the two pots of coffee, but I’m a night writer.

What’s your favorite time to write? Day, night?

Leave me a comment and it will be fun to see who writes when. But the bottom line is,

WE WRITE.

And that’s all that matters.

Jina

PS — I just finished my Paris WW 2 historical fiction story. Wow, what a challenge.

I adore Paris… I remember as a kid visiting the City of Light with my parents.

I never forgot seeing buildings around the city that still had bullet holes in them from the German Occupation.

I remember wondering what it was like in 1943 if you were a Resistance fighter… now I know. My book is about a brave woman who was.

Merci.

————–

THE RUNAWAY GIRL

Two women hold the keys to his heart. Only one will survive that fateful night…

When Ava O’Reilly is wrongly accused of stealing from her employer, she has no option but to flee Ireland. The law is after her, and she has only one chance at escape – the Titanic.

Aboard the ship of dreams, she runs straight into the arms of Captain ‘Buck’ Blackthorn, a dashing gentleman gambler who promises to be her protector. He is intrigued by her Irish beauty and manages to disguise her as the maid of his good friend, the lovely Countess of Marbury. Little does he realise, that the Countess is also in love with him.

As the fateful night approaches, tragedy strikes further when Ava is separated from Buck, and must make a daring choice that will change her life forever…

A sweeping historical romance set aboard the Titanic, from the author of Her Lost Love (Christmas Once Again).

Praise for Jina Bacarr:

‘A delightful holiday romance that has all the charm of a classic Christmas movie. Christmas Once Again is perfect for anyone who loves a holiday romance brimming with mistletoe, hope, and what ifs.’ Andie Newton, author of The Girl I Left Behind ‘A breathtaking holiday romance that is sure to stay with you long after reading’

‘A mesmerizing holiday romance that is sure to sweep you off your feet and take you away to another place, another time.’

‘A fabulous book you won’t want to miss’

THE RUNAWAY GIRL e-book, print and audio book:

THE RUNAWAY GIRL
Buy from Amazon
Buy from Apple Books
Buy from Barnes and Noble
Buy from Kobo
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