Book Review: Mambo Panties

Tom Doyal, the author of Mambo Panties, is an old friend of mine. By “old” I’m not referring to age, but to how long we’ve been friends. Tom lives in Austin and I live in a nearby small bump in the road. Surprisingly, we don’t see each other all that often.When he emailed and asked if I’d like to read Mambo Panties, I said, Send it to me! And he did -- actually, he sent a code so I could download it.

I had no idea what to expect of a book with the title of Mambo Panties.

 Even after reading Mambo Panties, I’m not sure what genre label to give it. It’s like going to your local History Center and reading snippets from a time long ago. It’s fiction yet the news pieces and tales feel like they were written by real people and then collected in a book to share with today’s generation. Both the stories and the news clippings are personal, relevant even today, and so close I felt as though I knew these people and the wind carried their whispers.

As an example, I’ll talk about one piece called “Housekeeping Kit.” Agnes, now living in a place called Golden Oaks, remembers back to her wedding day and the start of her life with Houston. This story, only seven and a half pages long, takes you through their wedding and the first few days of their life together as they furnish the house Monroe Felps “made them as a wedding present of one year’s rent with the customary terms for farming on shares the next year” and which Agnes and her sisters had cleaned up, including killing four rattlesnakes. By the end of just those few pages, I wanted to know more about their lives and what the future held for them.

So many of these stories would make wonderful full length character stories. But they don’t have to be. As they are, they’re snippets of lives long ago that are still relevant today. Some of the stories are longer than the one I talked about here. Some, especially the newspaper clippings, are quite short, maybe only a paragraph or two. Together, the stories and news clippings give this fiction book a feeling of non-fiction.

Mambo Panties is quiet, yet compelling … old, yet relevant … and intriguing to read, time and time again.

You can find Mambo Panties at:
Smashwords
Audio, via Tom Doyal’s website

I give Mambo Panties a rating of Hel-of-a-Read. I didn’t know what to expect when I got the book, which is just as well, since I never would have expected a peek into history to be so interesting. For me, it was indeed a Hel-of-a-Read.

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FTC Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the author, Tom Doyal. That did not influence my review. Another thing that did not influence my review was the title: Mambo Panties. I still don’t know what Mambo Panties are, and I’d like to know. So Tom, if you stop by, please explain . After reading the book, I’m sure they’re prettier than Rambo Panties. And they’re less rare than Dumbo Panties. And probably hold up better than Samba Panties and possibly not as black as Zorro Panties. But, considering the time setting, they’re nothing like Bikini Panties. There. I think I’ve broken the record for the number of times I’ve typed panties in one paragraph. So, while I say, Bye Bye Panties, I encourage you to say Hello to Mambo Panties. Hmm, I see a possible lingerie giveaway at book signings…if it's possible to do book signings for e-books. Hey, I'm just asking. Don't get your panties in a mambo.

Who Will Rule?

More and more authors are self-publishing, especially self-pubbing in the e-format. But traditional book publisher are not giving up. They’re still backing print, but are also hedging their bets by taking on publishing their clients’ books in e-form (and taking a percentage of the sales).

I came across an article on The Idea Logical Company that addresses this situation. Here are some snippets from it:

I think we’re going to see a US market that is 80% digital for narrative text reading in the pretty near future: could be as soon as two years from now but almost certainly within five.

Magazines and television networks and web sites are recognizing the reality that self-publishing ebooks is something they can do themselves without the complications (or revenue-sharing) that working with a publisher would require.

“… will publishers be able to persuade these non-publisher brands that it is worth giving up margin and some control to work with publishers in the years to come?

You can read the full article here.

My questions are: What do you think? Will publishers survive? Will they survive, but be marginalized? Will publishers survive because they are the ones who assure e- and print books are edited and worth the money? Or will readers be the gate keepers and judge of quality via their wallets?

Word Play

I received this from a friend who got it from a friend who … well, who knows where it originated. It’s a bit of fun word play.

I have been in many places, but I've never been in Cahoots. Apparently, you can't go alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone.

I've also never been in Cognito. I hear no one recognizes you there.

I have, however, been in Sane. They don't have an airport; you have to be driven there. I have made several trips there, thanks to my friends, and family.

I would like to go to Conclusions, but you have to jump, and I'm not too much on physical activity anymore.

I have also been in Doubt. That is a sad place to go, and I try not to visit there too often.

I've been in Flexible, but only when it was very important to stand firm.

Sometimes I'm in Capable, and I go there more often as I'm getting older.

One of my favorite places to be is in Suspense! It really gets the adrenalin flowing and pumps up the old heart! At my age I need all the stimuli I can get!

Let’s Talk Christmas

No! Let’s don’t talk Christmas. Okay, just a teeny bit.

I was zipping around the Internet and came across Neiman Marcus’ Christmas Book – their fabulous, you-can-only-afford-if-you’re-super-rich list of Christmas gifts. To be fair, some of the items on the list of 600 ideas are under $250, but not the “book” related gift that I thought I’d tell you about.

For a mere $125,000, Publishing house Assouline will custom build you a library filled with 250 of their books.

Eduard de Lange, vice president of sales and distribution for New York-based Assouline, says the company will create the library anywhere a customer choses: "It could be in a mansion. It could be on a boat, on an airplane," he said.

Can they build it in my office closet, which currently serves as my “library”?

Cover Killers

Penny C. Sansevieri, in HuffPost Books lists “8 Mistakes That Will Absolutely Kill Your Book.”

Personally, I think covers can make or break a book. There have been plenty of times I’ve picked a book off the shelf in a store, looked at the cover and put the book back. The cover didn’t appeal to me and I didn’t even bother to turn it over to read the backcover.

Some folks think covers are not so important in the age of e-books. I think they are. I still look at the covers. (I also want more backcovers on e-books and an easy way to turn to them. I sometimes buy a book and don’t get around to reading it for weeks – I’d like to remind myself why I bought it.)

Here are Sansevieri’s eight questions she asked about the importance of book covers:
1. How long does the average consumer spend viewing a book cover before they decide to buy or not buy the book?
(The answer depends on whether you’re looking at a print book or an e-book.)

2. What are the biggest mistakes you see in book cover design?
(Are you looking for good, fast and cheap? You can’t have all three.)

3. Is it ever a good idea to put your picture on a book cover?
(Probably not, but maybe so.)

4. What do bookstore book buyers look for in a book cover?
(Yep, even bookstore book buyers look at the covers, but you might be surprised by exactly what attracts them most.)

5. What distinguishes a bestselling, brand-building book from one that practically guarantees your book will never sell?
(Too many things in this answer to list here, so zip over and read it.)

6. How did one of your self-published authors reach bestseller status (over 1,500,000 copies sold!) without being in a bookstore?
(An author’s book sold steadily for many years, then they redesigned the cover and it really took off.)

7. How can authors evaluate and know that their title and subtitle are clear, compelling and appropriate for their market?
(If your book will have both a title and a subtitle, then you need to know what the purpose of each is.)

8. How can I be sure I'm choosing the right cover design?
(Three things to do here and you, not your designer, will be doing most of the work.)

So, there you are. Eight questions. In the parenthises, I’ve listed a reason to go read each answer if you’re at the stage of creating your book cover. If that’s sometime in the future, the article is still worth reading and saving for when that day comes.

I know some of you have created your book covers already. What would you add to this list?

Seriously?

Ever read an article and you say to yourself, Seriously? I kept repeating that to myself as I read an article on the site, death + taxes. The name of the site should have been a blinking yellow light.

Diddy, who used to be PDiddy, who used to be … I have no clue what his real name is … is releasing a coffee table book. A book of butts. Female butts. That’s it. Butts. But the article assures the reader that the book is not porn or “another lurid fetishist item.” What makes them not lurid? Why, the photos are taken by an Italian photographer named Raphael Mazzucco, that’s what.

Seriously?

Casualties of War

The war between Amazon and Barnes & Noble is heating up. Not unexpectedly, you and I, the readers, may be the casualties. I was reading an article by John R. Quain on FoxNews about the war and had a sinking feeling that readers will be the ones who take the hit in this fight.

Amazon is coming out this Fall with its Amazon Fire, an eReader with color (think iPad). They’ve made a deal with DC Comics to be the exclusive reader for about 100 graphic novels from DC Comics. As you might have guessed, Barnes & Noble was not happy about this exclusive deal and immediately pulled all of those titles off their shelves in their bookstores. As John Quain noted:

If publishers are going to enter into a format war based on exclusive arrangements with specific booksellers, why should the company dedicate its valuable shelf space to books that its own customers can't buy on its Nook device?

On the other side of the issue, Barnes & Noble has exclusive deals for titles, like the interactive Peanuts books. And on another side of the issue, some publishers such as Macmillan and Simon & Schuster don’t let libraries lend their e-books.

Already, writers are struggling to get their books ready for a widespread array of formats. One is hard enough, let alone multiple formats, although there are some sites that will format for several different devices.

So here you’ve got this war going on between the big boys and, in the end, readers are likely to be the casualties. What happened to the idea of having an e-format that was readable on all eReaders? That was my hope – probably just a wish in the wind. This battle may continue until one company crushes the others or someone leads the giants into compromise.

As a writer, what do you think of this war? As a reader, how does it affect you?

A Tale of Success

USAToday has an article about one author’s success with e-books that is an interesting read. The article starts with the main reason why authors move from the “old” way of publishing to self-publishing:

Money. (Isn't it always about money?) Instead of earning an 8% royalty on a $7.99 paperback, about 65 cents, the author can earn 70% on a $2.99 book, about $2.09 (this depends on the royalty structure, which can get boringly complicated). The important thing: I bet you noticed the reader benefits, too. Who wouldn't rather get the same book for $3 instead of $8?

The article focuses on author Marie Force, whom Joyce Lamb, the writer of the article, calls a best-selling author. Lamb asked why Force self-published. To which she answered:

Well, I wasn't a best-selling author until I self-published. My self-published books propelled me to the Kindle top 100 on Amazon and the Nook top 100 on Barnes & Noble.

Force pushes herself to get her work out to the public:

 Between my own books and books I had coming from two publishers, I had a new book out every month from November 2010 to August 2011. I believe the regular releases built momentum and excitement for my two series.

She doesn’t just depend on her quantity of books to draw in readers:

Another thing that has made self-publishing such a viable option for authors is the daily contact we now have with our readers through Facebook, Twitter, blogs, e-mail, etc. We are able to foster those relationships in ways we never could before social media became a part of everyday life. It's a different experience for a reader who feels she is buying her friend's book, rather than an author she doesn't know personally. I've tried to be very accessible to my readers, and have been blessed with many new friends and a loyal following.

Her sales figures keep accumulating.

These kinds of success stories motivate more writers to turn to self-publishing and e-publishing. Do any of you have your own tale of success?

Are Publishers Irrelevant?

According to an article in The Bookseller, former Borders UK chief Philip Downer seems to think publishers may be becoming irrelevant. At a meeting in Frankfurt, he urged them to act before that becomes a reality.

 Downer said he was concerned that publishers could go the same way of chain booksellers if e-book prices were driven down and the new technology damaged "supplier diversity".

He urged publishers to join together and set the agenda rather than allow Apple, Amazon and Google to determine the future. He also advised publishers to create a free e-book reader so that once again the content is what excites readers, not the device.

So, I ask you: If you could get an eReader for free and publishers embraced eBooks and sold them at a competitive price, would that save the “book”? It also asks the question, would authors stop the mass exodus to self-publishing? Or would publishers have to come up with a more lucrative deal for writers?

I ask that last question because at the same conference, literary agents are also discussing the eBook, according to another article in The Bookseller.

Robert Gottlieb, chairman of the US literary agency Trident Media Group, warned that power is shifting from publishers to authors.

Publishers are frightened to death of the e-book market, because they see the opportunity for authors, that they did not have before.

Will publishers embrace the change? Will they offer authors a higher eBook rate? Are they too late to stop the tsunami of authors moving to self-publishing?

Gays in YA?

Do publishers and agents prefer straight characters over gay ones in Young Adult books? There’s something of a debate going on at the moment.

Rachel Manija Brown and Sherwood Smith co-wrote a post-apocalyptic young adult novel and sent it off to agents. They got offered representation, on the condition that they make a gay character straight, or cut him out altogether.

The authors decided that was the line they wouldn’t cross and they declined the offer. Brown replied:

“Making a gay character straight is a line in the sand which I will not cross. That is a moral issue. I work with teenagers, and some of them are gay. They never get to read fantasy novels where people like them are the heroes, and that’s not right.”

This one agent was not the only agent to reject the book:

 Previous agents had also offered to take a second look if we did rewrites… including cutting the viewpoint of Yuki, the gay character.

And they did have an offer to represent the book, but turned it down because of creative differences that had nothing to do with the identities of the characters.

Forcing all major characters in YA novels into a straight white mold is a widespread, systemic problem which requires long-term, consistent action.

When we privately discussed our encounter with the agent, we heard from other writers whose prospective agents made altering a character’s minority identity—sexual orientation, race, disability—a condition of representation.

You might be worried that these YA characters where having explicit sex. The author say there is only one kiss between the gay characters.

You can read the longer article in Publishers Weekly.

Is there a bias against gay characters? Or characters of color? Or disabled characters?

Stealing Books

A twenty-seven year old guy in Manhattan is being held at Rikers for stealing books from the library. He stole 20 books and tried to resell them to bookstores. He was busted twice in September and could face a seven-year sentence.

 Library security had banned him and confiscated three library cards he had been issued, and he was also banned from the Strand bookstore in Union Square, they said.

Hansen was already charged with trying to sneak out of the public library with 11 unchecked books.

In September 2009, he was busted in Union Square Park for cutting labels off stolen library books. Two months later, he was nabbed for shoplifting from a Barnes & Noble.

Last July, he was arrested inside Tompkins Square library while attempting to remove library books, the sources said.

Lest you think he’s just an avid reader, his plan was to sell the library books to make money for his drug habit.

Kinda makes you long for the 1950s and ‘60s when libraries were revered, doesn’t it?

Apps are Coming

Not surprisingly, apps are coming to children’s e-books. There have already been some made, so the Austin chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators is exploring the possibilities at an all-day symposium this coming Sunday.

The Austin American Statesman, in an article called “Storybook apps for kids a major topic among children's book writers and artists” noted:

In 2003, writer and Austinite Lindsey Lane and illustrator Melissa Iwai published an adorable children's book called "Snuggle Mountain."

This year, the story had a digital comeback. It was released as an app for the iPad and iPhone/iPod Touch devices in May.

Deanna Roy, an Austin author and publisher at Casey Shay Press said:

Authors and developers can no longer settle for a book with a painting or puzzle game at the end. They have to be brilliant, interactive and bold….

True apps offer interactivity and delightful unexpected features a paper book could never include. Otherwise, you just have a screen version of a paper book.

This is not all that surprising to me. What do you think? Are apps for kids’ e-books the next big step in children’s publishing? How long before all children’s e-books will have apps?

Book Review: The Arranger

The Arranger by L.J. Sellers is a futuristic suspense. In this book’s version of the future, the biggest show on earth is a game where the best of the best contestants from around the world compete. Winner takes all. The game, called the Gauntlet, is sort of a cross between Big Brother, Survivor and Gladiators. It’s dangerous and grueling, yet Lara Evans, and others from around the world, compete because they need the money to survive in a world where global warming, unemployment and crime have increased, and society has fallen into a dark hole. Lara, the protagonist and one of the contestants, has to compete against the fiercest contestants from around the world, not all of them honest.

She’s not doing it for glory, though. She’s doing it to be able to survive in the “regular” world after the game.

I liked Lara. She has an internal moral compass, but is no pushover. She’s strong and determined, and desperate enough that you’re never sure if she might go to the dark side to win. She has so much riding on the contest.

There’s a hint of romance, but the real focus of The Arranger is the competition and how much Lara will give up to win – her life, her morals? You don’t get to know much about Lara before the competition starts, but you begin to know her through her actions and interactions with other characters and competitors. By the end of the book, she will have to make a decision that could alter her life and cost her the game.

Sellers paints a grim, yet believable, near future. She also gives us a flawed heroine. Given all the “games” on television today, the Gauntlet is very believable as a global competition. If the television stations haven’t thought of it already, they may steal the idea.

Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Powell’s

Considering the character and the world she lives in are both compelling, I give The Arranger a rating of Hel-of-a-Writer.

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FTC Disclaimer: The author sent me The Arranger, but that did not influence my review. I watch Survivor. I also watch The Amazing Race. Each year I swear upon a stack of tortillas that I will not watch Big Brother. And I would stick to that oath if one of the other channels would put something, anything, worth watching opposite it. As it is, I just stick to swearing. If I may, here in this official FTC Disclaimer, offer a suggestion: Create The Gauntlet and put it opposite Big Brother. Spare me from another episode of whiney butts and mean-spirited twenty-somethings. Please. I beg you. Write me and I’ll pass on to L.J. your offer to buy TV rights for The Arranger. If you won’t do that, then I recommend we sic Lara on the next bunch of dingbats in the Big Brother house.