tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35297250848117152332024-03-18T04:10:08.418-07:00Mark LawrenceI'm the author of The Broken Empire, The Red Queen's War, & Book of the Ancestor trilogies - spare ideas land here.
______________ Twitter @mark__lawrence (2 underscores!)
Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.comBlogger811125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-55601051689652895132024-02-12T02:56:00.000-08:002024-02-12T02:56:52.874-08:00Two more short stories from The Library Trilogy!<p>Returns is a collection of two short stories. </p><p>The first is called <b>Returns </b>(8,000 words). It looks at the journey of a single book outside the library and the journey of two librarians (Yute is one of them) sent to recover it. It's a story about varying ways different people interact with the book. When people say, "Did we read the same book?" there's a truth behind that question and I examine it here.</p><p>The second story is <b>About Pain</b> (6,000 words). Here the tale concerns the interactions of just two people (Clovis is one of them) with a particular book, and how what they take from the novel changes over the course of their lives. When we consume a book we may find between those covers a very different story from the next person, but more than that, when we come back to it ten years later, twenty years, thirty ... we find that the more powerful a book is, the more its contents will have changed.</p><p>Here's the cover art from the great Tom Brown.</p><p>You can buy it as prints:</p><p>A4: <a href="https://thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/wentworth-in-the-library-a4-print-1">https://thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/wentworth-in-the-library-a4-print-1</a></p><p>A3: <a href="https://thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/wentworth-in-the-library-a3-print">https://thomas-brown-1.sumupstore.com/product/wentworth-in-the-library-a3-print</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4S8FLXVla7tQ8ll6Frv_aU93AV6WjM_aoSheOH7c4nc6n0mCkdCQp9YZVKZ7qGHgAb-6PFUVJvBUy4plMztGaU6jZzaVvjrNYXiwUJioLCBEpPovK08gdtSe0W1d4yTfTU3Kk-hMbfPk7CQpzxv-HcEpZ7X_Mjcl0GotsUerB-lfZSqERsUIoMYbvN9FK/s9901/Book%202%20b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="9901" data-original-width="6865" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4S8FLXVla7tQ8ll6Frv_aU93AV6WjM_aoSheOH7c4nc6n0mCkdCQp9YZVKZ7qGHgAb-6PFUVJvBUy4plMztGaU6jZzaVvjrNYXiwUJioLCBEpPovK08gdtSe0W1d4yTfTU3Kk-hMbfPk7CQpzxv-HcEpZ7X_Mjcl0GotsUerB-lfZSqERsUIoMYbvN9FK/w444-h640/Book%202%20b.jpg" width="444" /></a></div><br /><p>Get yours today!</p><p>UK: <a class="css-1qaijid r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1ny4l3l r-1ddef8g r-tjvw6i r-1loqt21" dir="ltr" href="https://t.co/C0w35fWbMN" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" role="link" style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.03); border: 0px solid black; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1d9bf0; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: TwitterChirp, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; min-width: 0px; outline-style: none; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: 1px; text-overflow: unset; white-space-collapse: preserve;" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CTYNQGBX</a></p><p>US: <a class="css-1qaijid r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0 r-poiln3 r-1ny4l3l r-1ddef8g r-tjvw6i r-1loqt21" dir="ltr" href="https://t.co/C0w35fWbMN" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" role="link" style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.03); border: 0px solid black; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1d9bf0; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: TwitterChirp, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; min-width: 0px; outline-style: none; overflow-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: 1px; text-overflow: unset; white-space-collapse: preserve;" target="_blank">amazon.com/dp/B0CTYNQGBX</a></p><p>& throw some stars at it on Goodreads!</p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/207589471-returns">https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/207589471-returns</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</a></span></span></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-68639774520227162702024-01-03T11:47:00.000-08:002024-01-03T11:47:11.460-08:00The Book That Broke The World - the cover art!<p>Unexpectedly (and, for the 2nd year in a row) the cover art for my latest book accidentally appeared on Amazon, prompting me into a hasty social media reveal using draft art, and nixing my plans for a more elaborate blogger + jigsaw puzzle reveal.</p><p>Lesson learned. Next year I do what I want with the art as soon as I get it!</p><p>Anyway - let's put that behind us and focus on the magnificence of <a href="https://tomrobertsillustration.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tom Roberts</a>' work.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7odS13aC_kEESNdOYHJVvZpFJyVPXk8TtlVwbUO7x9dTHcTjVbLTIQos7oVWOPWXXJ5RTjCMNPr15budp-X5NLWfrjp4YmGFEG3FpO5t-dq-SvQfJdBeinNK6VclWbetxfrEiTi4iJ7aDq9cqZWmhppVmgk61U_vzYkQ8QkmOanhp8gXERblPMQlHWDP/s3145/9780593437940.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3145" data-original-width="2083" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7odS13aC_kEESNdOYHJVvZpFJyVPXk8TtlVwbUO7x9dTHcTjVbLTIQos7oVWOPWXXJ5RTjCMNPr15budp-X5NLWfrjp4YmGFEG3FpO5t-dq-SvQfJdBeinNK6VclWbetxfrEiTi4iJ7aDq9cqZWmhppVmgk61U_vzYkQ8QkmOanhp8gXERblPMQlHWDP/w424-h640/9780593437940.jpg" width="424" /></a></div><br /><p>Here's a small portion near the last "t" of "That" blown up!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5yd9bEk8L3zcMmBIl2TB9oZlenE6BvnJvN031x34W4UnwNJRYXj_7WELbHcH1KUb_cqTvOjeI8QLlxS2PwNG-B2HWQLR6Vh4UaytGkQ9r07xsaJk95vTKzvUFybm4wwxTp2Xt3bU3u6vTcuGsA_L-_ui2ANFTPXX5Rk-tnpIcKH1BfsH-VpiRhvjVT3Jk/s1682/tbtbtw%20detail%202.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="817" data-original-width="1682" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5yd9bEk8L3zcMmBIl2TB9oZlenE6BvnJvN031x34W4UnwNJRYXj_7WELbHcH1KUb_cqTvOjeI8QLlxS2PwNG-B2HWQLR6Vh4UaytGkQ9r07xsaJk95vTKzvUFybm4wwxTp2Xt3bU3u6vTcuGsA_L-_ui2ANFTPXX5Rk-tnpIcKH1BfsH-VpiRhvjVT3Jk/w640-h310/tbtbtw%20detail%202.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Have a search and see if you can spot a certain doggy from book 1.</p><p>Anyway - you'll have to wait until early April for the contents. Pre-order, why don't you?</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Book-Broke-World-Library-Trilogy/dp/0593437942/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">US</a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-That-Broke-World-Library/dp/0008456763" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UK</a></p><p>And of course, the short story "<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/181669914-overdue" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Overdue</a></b>" is there if you want more Library RIGHT NOW!</p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</a></span></span></span></div><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-42938322998398185322023-12-29T05:51:00.000-08:002023-12-29T06:31:37.340-08:00The Fake Me, and how utterly crap / irresponsible Facebook is.<p>About 6 weeks ago people started telling me about a fake account on Facebook that was going around pretending to be me and trying to scam authors.</p><p>Here is is: <a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 xggy1nq x1a2a7pz xt0b8zv x1s688f x1heor9g x1bvjpef" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089611129570" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: #f0f0f0; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: 600; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; touch-action: manipulation; white-space-collapse: preserve;" tabindex="-1">https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089611129570</a></p><p>They've stolen my photo and show my books:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1IiYF88WeUCmAYgiabNIJ6iJMZjVW4qRhQDGGD6ScsXOAIo2iCREw4it8fhaC1momWXMEA22vK6z8tqnP6gA1lnNwxlDdGhothqr8o0cz9wiE99Y8yQvxtQVamkYtlUZ3h14v9HSiwo64u5G4c8IsKUbFDYVehMNMeN_DK70u8teGqS7mUDjEZKO4pHWC/s1792/fake%20me.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1792" data-original-width="828" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1IiYF88WeUCmAYgiabNIJ6iJMZjVW4qRhQDGGD6ScsXOAIo2iCREw4it8fhaC1momWXMEA22vK6z8tqnP6gA1lnNwxlDdGhothqr8o0cz9wiE99Y8yQvxtQVamkYtlUZ3h14v9HSiwo64u5G4c8IsKUbFDYVehMNMeN_DK70u8teGqS7mUDjEZKO4pHWC/w296-h640/fake%20me.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><br /><p>The account's interactions with other authors sent up immediate red flags - they were trying to sell writing services.</p><p>The account has been reported hundreds of times but nearly 2 months later it's still operating, still trying to scam people. Only today I was told by someone that the account had approached them and encourage them to use this person's marketing services:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYajqaKcE1Ksi63hyphenhyphen3bC7_tOdGUNullHHs4XY2Dk9-TCxA5uGl1wNBUP77__JJY1QYbaxS9a5AKaSaMXeoUl7Tzo1xvwvHslvyb8LKyxHzc62MuceLnx9vh_FPqKsGmLnyjuOEUAA3l4yd_QruZ-E0H4IeZxkm4mLHnIo7G895d6Sd14H7CyBxlRHzGxpt/s1080/fake%20me%202.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="1080" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYajqaKcE1Ksi63hyphenhyphen3bC7_tOdGUNullHHs4XY2Dk9-TCxA5uGl1wNBUP77__JJY1QYbaxS9a5AKaSaMXeoUl7Tzo1xvwvHslvyb8LKyxHzc62MuceLnx9vh_FPqKsGmLnyjuOEUAA3l4yd_QruZ-E0H4IeZxkm4mLHnIo7G895d6Sd14H7CyBxlRHzGxpt/w640-h410/fake%20me%202.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>Note - I have only the word of one facebook user concerning this connection and I am making no accusations against this person.</p><p>I have no such reservations concerning the person using my image to try to scam people though.</p><p>Facebook on the other hand, seem perfectly happy with the situation. Despite hundreds of people reporting the account, and it being a blatant example of scamming with all the evidence right out in the open ... 6 weeks later they're fine with the scammer still scamming.</p><p><br /></p><p>That's it. Just be careful out there. I'm busy writing. I don't go contacting random people I've never spoken to.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>UPDATE!</b></p><p>Clearly someone else reported the account today (probably the guy who alerted me that the account had just tried to scam them):</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlijPLxDMVRaiLmNu2V8bxJaYS98P1wd1JWUKNXDdFG4j-BD-0fhor5jnPNrQUzAdd4ZHtipvUpcGAobBqft2riny1xK2bZafFLLfwYiIaKg0nU_BFdb7JXAFIYFMVBZrr98mjst9U6XSh3OveuDdluu22Wam4oq1nTIuKbCo-kiaMp1l3emq3alqfhUPm/s1191/fake%20me%203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="689" data-original-width="1191" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlijPLxDMVRaiLmNu2V8bxJaYS98P1wd1JWUKNXDdFG4j-BD-0fhor5jnPNrQUzAdd4ZHtipvUpcGAobBqft2riny1xK2bZafFLLfwYiIaKg0nU_BFdb7JXAFIYFMVBZrr98mjst9U6XSh3OveuDdluu22Wam4oq1nTIuKbCo-kiaMp1l3emq3alqfhUPm/w640-h370/fake%20me%203.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>It took the braniacs at Facebook <b>ONE MINUTE</b> to decide that the account using my name, my photo, and images of my books "isn't pretending to be you".... <br /><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-size: xx-large; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a></p><div style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</a></span></span></span></div><div><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-30490479190906255142023-12-16T10:47:00.000-08:002023-12-16T10:47:08.597-08:00My reading in 2023<p>I do this every year, so you can step back for more than a decade should you so choose. Here's the link to <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2022/12/my-reading-in-2022.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">2022</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP0XBsgDKgeoyKa0liWry1HgympupT8Ykxx69Vk9hgdbHrVaH7kynTWUVO-_TO9EFEHhylsoLo3FarXQrzkIgTk9TDcjUQk0DmtGmZQ_BcedWPDOXq-H2wKifP1ssG8ra5fjQoZnD115E3HkokIEn7HRXhU-IY9gx09BwR5BH0dUORMkYScg5UOwmu6zxo/s738/books23.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="651" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP0XBsgDKgeoyKa0liWry1HgympupT8Ykxx69Vk9hgdbHrVaH7kynTWUVO-_TO9EFEHhylsoLo3FarXQrzkIgTk9TDcjUQk0DmtGmZQ_BcedWPDOXq-H2wKifP1ssG8ra5fjQoZnD115E3HkokIEn7HRXhU-IY9gx09BwR5BH0dUORMkYScg5UOwmu6zxo/w564-h640/books23.png" width="564" /></a></div><br /><p>Goodreads (via its 'Year in reading') decided to make <b>The Blacktongue Thief</b> bigger than the rest, but coincidentally it is my favourite read of 2023.</p><p>All of these were good reads and several of them were excellent. <b>The Words of Kings and Prophets</b> was a fine follow up to <b>The Children of Gods and Fighting Men</b>. <b>The Prophet of Edan</b> was a strong sequel to <b>The Way of Edan</b>. I'm looking forward to book 3 in both these trilogies.</p><p>Here are links to my Goodreads reviews for all 9 books (in the order I read them):</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5164367659" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Blacktongue Thief</span></b></a></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5387529429" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">A Discovery of Witches</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5515635514" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sons of Darkness</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59612836" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Hexologists</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4030238069" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Morgan of Sea and Storms</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/171285064" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Prophet of Edan</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5598571606" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Words of Kings and Prophets</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5936571102" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Tenth Gift</a></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5942713839" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Hills of Heather and Bone</a></span></b></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSNCLdcgwQ6nyTM-dMFP-A-awTsM16QdN3R2Qh9ylpUQFhieLc0eaFnrgc5561mxTtcfV9laPbegkFngb5kQbPBv22xATcSBxa3-Lb_bVvrYO5DK3lXpVKj3Gtm8kk-JSqW1f4yxUNjvJDp6JhK_1d5wRm_kUwNaRfNrrmh5lumBitHcSxPQMu0MneHyQ/s892/goodreads23i.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="892" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSNCLdcgwQ6nyTM-dMFP-A-awTsM16QdN3R2Qh9ylpUQFhieLc0eaFnrgc5561mxTtcfV9laPbegkFngb5kQbPBv22xATcSBxa3-Lb_bVvrYO5DK3lXpVKj3Gtm8kk-JSqW1f4yxUNjvJDp6JhK_1d5wRm_kUwNaRfNrrmh5lumBitHcSxPQMu0MneHyQ/w640-h272/goodreads23i.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQD3vZ_s9fkjYI-1qKtn6lCDUH7TUPQcMOQkxlUN83V582npUAlTob7NhRfJtwo7kVYDj9y3hiN_DNUECwagvr33IwBqn4_j53ewqqw_ose2xUU9x-TnEqn3XnJuzJvzRnEfN18c98Xsa6TseWiBzaZwp9f2150RLCECaKU3H8g-hkOuCqIyIINT_dgrzV/s1022/goodreads23ii.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="1022" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQD3vZ_s9fkjYI-1qKtn6lCDUH7TUPQcMOQkxlUN83V582npUAlTob7NhRfJtwo7kVYDj9y3hiN_DNUECwagvr33IwBqn4_j53ewqqw_ose2xUU9x-TnEqn3XnJuzJvzRnEfN18c98Xsa6TseWiBzaZwp9f2150RLCECaKU3H8g-hkOuCqIyIINT_dgrzV/w640-h290/goodreads23ii.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;" /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> <a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</a></span></span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"> </span></span><p></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-73263787274513782472023-12-14T07:16:00.000-08:002023-12-14T07:23:29.970-08:00A Year In Numbers ... 13!<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: large;">Wow ... 13. I've been at this a while. It's starting to rival the time spent doing my 'real' job, the 23 years spent as a research scientist (overlapping 5 of the 13 years spent as a published author).</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: large;">I'm actually starting to get old 😮</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: large;">60 has been sighted in the not too distant future.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: large;">Anyway, onto the traditional accounting:</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: x-large;">It has been a very good 2023 all told!</span></p><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-6018427005186565861" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 21.78px; line-height: 1.4; position: relative; width: 890px;"><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: large;">I have spent some weeks in hospital with my <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2015/11/i-dont-travel.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">youngest daughter</a> which is never much fun, but they were somewhat less critical than in the previous 3 years, and there's never been a year of her life we didn't spend some time there. I did quadrupal my number of nights with zero sleep, which had previously stood at 1, arising from a ball at university and the studenting afterwards. The three this year resulted from stays of 27, 23, and 19 hours in the emergency room with Celyn.</span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: quot;">This post follows up from similar posts at the same time in <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2022/12/a-year-in-numbers-12.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">2022</a>, <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2021/12/a-year-in-numbers-eleven.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2021</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2020/12/a-year-in-numbers-ten.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2020</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2019/12/a-year-in-numbers-nine.html" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2019</a>, </span><a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2018/12/a-year-in-numbers-eight.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2018</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2017/12/a-year-in-numbers-seven.html" style="color: #336699; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2017</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/a-year-in-numbers-six.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2016</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/a-year-in-numbers-five.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2015</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/a-year-in-numbers-four.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;">2014</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/a-year-in-numbers-three.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2013</a><span style="font-family: quot;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/a-year-in-numbers-two.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2012</a><span style="font-family: quot;"> and </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/year-in-numbers.html" style="color: #6699cc; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2011</a><span style="font-family: quot;"> I record a year of ups and less ups. I take a minute to do the sums and raid the scrapbook.</span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: quot;">I've now had my </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-family: quot; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>Patreon</b></a><span style="font-family: quot;"> for more than 2 years and it has been great fun so far. It's a platform that allows readers to support authors directly and encourages more exchange. I've done loads of chapter critques, sent out 100+ signed books as prizes, tuckerised a bunch of people. We have a Discord that gets a lot of chat, and each Patreon tier comes with perks, which can be anything from book plates, and free stories, to free signed books and writing consults. I currently have 118 patrons, up 5 from last year, so a definite slowdown there, but these are hard times for lots of people - many thanks!</span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh827afmcc6MwO8VB2TfQcIM6tB03v-JJc7ZPwAOdYnFtEGxY8wZaLsOfLyjzU6qF9uHZ-ltxmEoGXFPWQUMYNlWYxlLop8ArJ4ROTZmZDB-BYkAqqxIlCz12qcZTvvk9Z0ksMX0Syh7oqGHfR5Pz4pv5ZoGutL8x7VL5vcyOLCfDiPEc069IV1Q46yMw=s2624" style="color: #336699; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="2624" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh827afmcc6MwO8VB2TfQcIM6tB03v-JJc7ZPwAOdYnFtEGxY8wZaLsOfLyjzU6qF9uHZ-ltxmEoGXFPWQUMYNlWYxlLop8ArJ4ROTZmZDB-BYkAqqxIlCz12qcZTvvk9Z0ksMX0Syh7oqGHfR5Pz4pv5ZoGutL8x7VL5vcyOLCfDiPEc069IV1Q46yMw=w400-h293" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><p><br /></p></span></span><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"></p><p style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-family: quot; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Book-That-Wouldnt-Library-Trilogy/dp/0593437918/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Book That Wouldn't Burn</a> came out in 2023, opening the Library Trilogy trilogy (correct, the trilogy is called The Library Trilogy). </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: quot; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: quot; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAHplfbPocS3V2nKMZdQz7kLLPaUUXL3_Qq_Y2NFCiqEciSMTTtZ1483Y8HKlXSwXZmThKl2UP0X9d6HL_DJgVJ6pW4ktl65csDEwFB34GLFs1u1iAxwzcPpGE9PPzHCbqtg7KkuTUnobu5FSuEg7gqyJijH1JCAUq8kcDlod5QCzWM4KITkWE_3vhsR7Q/s500/tbtwb%20ace.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAHplfbPocS3V2nKMZdQz7kLLPaUUXL3_Qq_Y2NFCiqEciSMTTtZ1483Y8HKlXSwXZmThKl2UP0X9d6HL_DJgVJ6pW4ktl65csDEwFB34GLFs1u1iAxwzcPpGE9PPzHCbqtg7KkuTUnobu5FSuEg7gqyJijH1JCAUq8kcDlod5QCzWM4KITkWE_3vhsR7Q/w265-h400/tbtwb%20ace.jpg" width="265" /></a></span></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">The book's performed well with multiple reprints in hardcover and it made the Goodreads Choice Awards for best fantasy. It's just passed 9,000 ratings, which probably makes it my bestselling book since one or all of the Ancestor trilogy.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">April 2023 sees the release of book 2, </span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Book-Broke-World-Library-Trilogy/dp/0593437942/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">THE BOOK THAT BROKE THE WORLD</a>.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-family: quot; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I can't share the cover yet, but here's a small detail!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tj6vEG-XomqCPWY3pC15_EW0NTCsR0C8Vh_ZeqyxYyKZrPYR7WJXw0slNdiSOEdwyIUpDe8H0bvfpKkhxY8wLotnt-lwwGEuAL_zzqH5sy76vH1i-all6MXEfcGynvrbAPqZvAU8O_OlUc2H_6DbYf23FPlnbxJvZGal_Cav2CmMTtv5qbzy-uiN4hKY/s842/TBTBTW%20detail.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="605" data-original-width="842" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tj6vEG-XomqCPWY3pC15_EW0NTCsR0C8Vh_ZeqyxYyKZrPYR7WJXw0slNdiSOEdwyIUpDe8H0bvfpKkhxY8wLotnt-lwwGEuAL_zzqH5sy76vH1i-all6MXEfcGynvrbAPqZvAU8O_OlUc2H_6DbYf23FPlnbxJvZGal_Cav2CmMTtv5qbzy-uiN4hKY/w400-h288/TBTBTW%20detail.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Pre-order for the win (<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Book-Broke-World-Library-Trilogy/dp/0593437942/ref=sr_1_1" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>US</b></a> or <span style="color: #336699;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Broke-World-Library-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B0CHVQX425/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>UK</b></a></span>)! <br /></span></span><p></p><p>10th anniversary editions of Emperor of Thorns are coming from The Broken Binding!</p><p>They're signed & numbered.</p><p>In the US you can order a <a href="https://grimoakpress.com/collections/limited-editions/products/emperor-of-thorns-limited-edition" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>leather-bound deluxe copy</b></a> with internal art from original cover artist Jason Chan. An object of beauty!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pfaAOTnyqmyjE4-4W1Q9zehmVAmYtP3p8T5lC5RNOK8yLei_81SkbfLT_ZmH8nIr1RIjU7ezWdOwb0EIGMkApVqrjiUEVvMz7PPoNQgk5OfKiIVVM_A2xq3IMboDm1ABhbMkEP4ZabcdnXtFfHyE_hVz_zPIrSLBkaABg_V2LdF_xTL0eXgjF1-2a21I/s833/EoT%20GOP%20cover.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="833" data-original-width="557" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pfaAOTnyqmyjE4-4W1Q9zehmVAmYtP3p8T5lC5RNOK8yLei_81SkbfLT_ZmH8nIr1RIjU7ezWdOwb0EIGMkApVqrjiUEVvMz7PPoNQgk5OfKiIVVM_A2xq3IMboDm1ABhbMkEP4ZabcdnXtFfHyE_hVz_zPIrSLBkaABg_V2LdF_xTL0eXgjF1-2a21I/w268-h400/EoT%20GOP%20cover.png" width="268" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>Lies, damn lies, and statistics to follow:</p><p>Goodreads continues to bug out in major ways every week, but at least this year my stats have headed up rather than down. In fact, having gathered over 42,000 new ratings I've passed the half million mark!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaGO29TwbUcFA_CN-YQW8CXAk7gm7dJPCOW0ktAbUkuRyCXGvctGoBwm_1snFiHdu9CEhpQeFgjdpCe0qVWXy1V7GCAesB9ee32hna2dXpeMzp7mTmiPZRUK4eM2MdIgu7rnr9zDinhwD5UVVcMjPuOu0cE-B4YJd6lTHCOe_RIjzJuGjqS7MpOj5c18X2/s693/goodreads%20year.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="672" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaGO29TwbUcFA_CN-YQW8CXAk7gm7dJPCOW0ktAbUkuRyCXGvctGoBwm_1snFiHdu9CEhpQeFgjdpCe0qVWXy1V7GCAesB9ee32hna2dXpeMzp7mTmiPZRUK4eM2MdIgu7rnr9zDinhwD5UVVcMjPuOu0cE-B4YJd6lTHCOe_RIjzJuGjqS7MpOj5c18X2/w620-h640/goodreads%20year.png" width="620" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>The blog is bumping along around 1,000 hits a day - which isn't terrible - and passed 4.5 million in total in 2023.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuwzRmFhpvyvf2EQwH8_MZgtJoKlpUnsa2dzUJZHNiSLM38H74jwlHTNW0whGbB0BlNBMWHsBEWlYRWQMOi-DwikySTNJQEViZGn1WMp-rLhd8O3HF0CHYZhRI_hqbxyOjICILpwVz2bjowDMnMkGh04d4cZXcAykfvq1zVXMWEYmsRfHWTdq13O_DH1hB/s1260/blogstats%2023.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="1260" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuwzRmFhpvyvf2EQwH8_MZgtJoKlpUnsa2dzUJZHNiSLM38H74jwlHTNW0whGbB0BlNBMWHsBEWlYRWQMOi-DwikySTNJQEViZGn1WMp-rLhd8O3HF0CHYZhRI_hqbxyOjICILpwVz2bjowDMnMkGh04d4cZXcAykfvq1zVXMWEYmsRfHWTdq13O_DH1hB/w640-h204/blogstats%2023.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The blog also had what was by far its biggest single day ever (a hair shy of 100,000 hits), after an AI-generated cover won the SPFBO cover contest after being misrepresent as the work of a human artist.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: 23.95px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="line-height: 27px;">I'm still on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/mark___lawrence/" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Instagram</a>. And have added Threads and Bluesky to the failing Pintrest and Tumblr (I'm easy enough to find on them and too lazy to put links). </span></div><div style="font-size: 23.95px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-size: 23.95px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="line-height: 27px;">And finally, as ever, our favourite cesspit of witch hunts and fake news: <a href="https://twitter.com/Mark__Lawrence" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, where I continue my crawl forward with an extra 2,200 followers this year, despite Mr Musk's continuing attempts to incinerate his 44 billion dollars.</span></div><p><span style="font-size: 21.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"></span><span style="font-size: 21.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"></span><span style="font-size: 21.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"></span><span style="font-size: 21.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7fFB8CwH832vaGuT-WfX2V2_Br33IM3-MHFcWycfo9iwP6pTv7xtuS8FDoI3nC7aGgDLnDDDDgynxxZGWcpqK86S0uqWN3Iu7AL5_SrMCdS8iUL4Ht53HkGNMd2CAITmugeiwxGrTsACJ67Yx93jwp4Ew_6lb1PBIc2IaZU2NMzvNqO8I1AstQCJYfSrs/s772/twitter%20profile%2023.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="772" height="544" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7fFB8CwH832vaGuT-WfX2V2_Br33IM3-MHFcWycfo9iwP6pTv7xtuS8FDoI3nC7aGgDLnDDDDgynxxZGWcpqK86S0uqWN3Iu7AL5_SrMCdS8iUL4Ht53HkGNMd2CAITmugeiwxGrTsACJ67Yx93jwp4Ew_6lb1PBIc2IaZU2NMzvNqO8I1AstQCJYfSrs/w640-h544/twitter%20profile%2023.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: 23.95px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 27px;">Many thanks to all my readers for keeping me going! I hope you all have happy holidays and that 2024 is good to us all!</span></div><span style="font-size: 21.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><span style="text-align: start;"></span><div style="font-size: 23.95px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"></span></div><b style="text-align: start;"></b><i style="text-align: start;"></i><u style="text-align: start;"></u><sub style="text-align: start;"></sub><sup style="text-align: start;"></sup><strike style="text-align: start;"></strike><br style="text-align: start;" /><b style="text-align: start;"></b><i style="text-align: start;"></i><u style="text-align: start;"></u><sub style="text-align: start;"></sub><sup style="text-align: start;"></sup><strike style="text-align: start;"></strike><br style="text-align: start;" /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><br style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;" /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><span style="font-size: xx-large;"> </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-size: xx-large; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br style="text-align: start;" /><div style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</a></span></span></span></div><div style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><br /></span></span></div></div></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-58779657190666083662023-11-27T04:05:00.000-08:002024-01-06T07:37:15.089-08:00Goodreads Choice Awards - Best Fantasy 2023<p><b>THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN</b> got selected for the Goodreads Choice Awards nominee list, of 20 titles vying for Best Fantasy of 2023.</p><p>This happened to my first dozen or so books, with a bunch of them making the finals (I think King of Thorns came 4th!), but it hasn't happened for a while, and the merging of the fantasy catagory with paranormal romance buried the chances of making the list for a lot of epic fantasy since romance is so popular.</p><p>(For the record <span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><span style="font-family: times;">my books have been in the Goodreads Choice Award category for Best Fantasy eleven times, once in the Best Science Fiction category, for One Word Kill, and miraculously I was even in as an artist! That was for Wheelmouse And All The Crazy Robots which I did with Cely and was included in the award's Best Picturebook category.)</span></span></p><p>Anyway, don't be mistaken: this is entirely a popularity contest.</p><p>I'm posting this late since the first round of voting has just finished, and I very much doubt I'll make the final ten.</p><p>This year there's a new catagory called Romantasy, that has sucked out a lot of the super popular romance fantasies from the Fantasy catagory and this (plus the success of TBTWB) has allowed me to sneak back onto the list.</p><p>Here are some of the nominees.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA80MUaS-_XtPgAb0kXF3VwhyLLyg5aTm1h7Qjt0iu970k4y89G_YzycAQb26VxfqaPkWMJJV1mRL4piLv3CadKKmrlKTvsV1s7czOrLGVA9vaWevBcpGY7N09o56ByhwvAHrCMLRkZg9SbpzB0YVgEE_gzfdQArRZBQik5vytWfQ5FLfiCb4s506GCwnE/s1328/choice%20vote.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="730" data-original-width="1328" height="352" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA80MUaS-_XtPgAb0kXF3VwhyLLyg5aTm1h7Qjt0iu970k4y89G_YzycAQb26VxfqaPkWMJJV1mRL4piLv3CadKKmrlKTvsV1s7czOrLGVA9vaWevBcpGY7N09o56ByhwvAHrCMLRkZg9SbpzB0YVgEE_gzfdQArRZBQik5vytWfQ5FLfiCb4s506GCwnE/w640-h352/choice%20vote.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The reason I make a song and dance about the vote is that it's a great marketing opportunity, and when you write for a living, such chances are not to sniffed at.</p><p>Look at the impact of the contest on the "to read" stats of TBTWB!</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMAXi1CtRs5CeYPiUivHuOXhu3bPWpxYjXpQte5IOBKRXiORLxu7to7UXggBvE3Ffkhmv9LmSrf7ovhfPAapGjd7mny1iW7AeQoM73Z-wj8KNfIPa46haJvU9wIRdwZMZyRJs0ukfqIDRsfAubXUOAaGmQYZVg0fK6lVWeDvOlgBabqRkAeeD17u0CLFn/s881/choice%20awards.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="881" height="576" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVMAXi1CtRs5CeYPiUivHuOXhu3bPWpxYjXpQte5IOBKRXiORLxu7to7UXggBvE3Ffkhmv9LmSrf7ovhfPAapGjd7mny1iW7AeQoM73Z-wj8KNfIPa46haJvU9wIRdwZMZyRJs0ukfqIDRsfAubXUOAaGmQYZVg0fK6lVWeDvOlgBabqRkAeeD17u0CLFn/w640-h576/choice%20awards.png" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I say this is a popularity contest because it's the simple truth. Very few readers will have read more than a handful of the 20 nominees. I suspect most will have read 0 or 1.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thus people are going to vote primarily for the book they read, rather than compare across the field and vote for the one they thought was best.</div><div><br /></div><div>Votes will be tightly correlated with number of readers, which in turn is tightly correlated with number of Goodreads ratings.</div><div><br /></div><div>Below, I've plotted "number of goodreads ratings" for the 20 titles, and indicated TBTWB with an arrow. As you can see, it's one of the least read titles, and as such has almost no chance of making the final ten.</div><div><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZEXiR5CybMX7u5ImJzol-flObvwkMUZuGvvHdW2ACwVDJSFuU3jLd34S5GHKFbVyCV0gE-eOkCRupCbHd6wJ0OUQfrnInvlbfRd_QKA4MPIj8WP3-7wYhL87cxnsq4N6aW2gu3rqXd4D4nGGyLB40IdIt-wsYxXuSbQ46zOjb2iF14aRWDVT8iWy4pH9P/s977/choice%20graph.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="977" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZEXiR5CybMX7u5ImJzol-flObvwkMUZuGvvHdW2ACwVDJSFuU3jLd34S5GHKFbVyCV0gE-eOkCRupCbHd6wJ0OUQfrnInvlbfRd_QKA4MPIj8WP3-7wYhL87cxnsq4N6aW2gu3rqXd4D4nGGyLB40IdIt-wsYxXuSbQ46zOjb2iF14aRWDVT8iWy4pH9P/w640-h376/choice%20graph.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>However, if it did, that would be big boost in visibility, and thus it's well worth motivating my readership to vote for the book.<div><br /></div><div>Additionally, every vote appears in that reader's friends' timestreams on Goodreads and advertises to them the fact that their friend really liked the book. And that helps win me more readers.</div><div><br /></div><div>So it's all good!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Technical aside: </div><div><br /></div><div><i>A final note on selection. It's a numerical thing, not a value judgement. Goodreads runs an algorithm that looks at 'number of ratings', 'number of "to reads", and average rating. It also applies a heavy weighting towards book 1s.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>The weighting for "average rating" can't be linear since this year Godkiller didn't make the list despite having more ratings than TBTWB (~10k vs ~8k) and similar "to read" / "added" numbers. The difference in average rating can't account for the selection in a linear mannner, so clearly having a lower average hurts quite a bit.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><p>So, that's it! Many thanks for reading the book, and for voting for it, if you did.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div><p><br /></p></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-27501484811834611802023-11-14T07:23:00.000-08:002023-11-16T02:52:34.321-08:00THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN cover art!<p>You can get Tom Robert's raw art in poster-sized A2 format on deluxe paper. There's a ton of detail that goes unresolved on the book covers and can be dived into in this magnificent image.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-xHYypMANEHXmL5zSUGbk003ZW1TTNaDvT9N4Xcny4dIhqK8bVi0D7Sk4yEswP-7sf5E5rXb_zmtE6O5UaCERzju8TF4Vw6ed6tKXeZVaZNZuE6G4eVoryVthL9614DyNSwkNlStrInNEtwwF5p4I6Nd1o9vBWaJte9ihU5mRmh1w4i_ohd9YAbgfDnfY/s843/tbtwb%20poster.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="843" data-original-width="843" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-xHYypMANEHXmL5zSUGbk003ZW1TTNaDvT9N4Xcny4dIhqK8bVi0D7Sk4yEswP-7sf5E5rXb_zmtE6O5UaCERzju8TF4Vw6ed6tKXeZVaZNZuE6G4eVoryVthL9614DyNSwkNlStrInNEtwwF5p4I6Nd1o9vBWaJte9ihU5mRmh1w4i_ohd9YAbgfDnfY/w640-h640/tbtwb%20poster.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Here is my framed copy along side Tom Brown's uncoloured original for the cover of the library short story, Overdue. The coloured version seen at an unflattering angle on the carpet.</p><p>The massive picture is Jason Chan's cover art for Prince of Thorns.</p><p>Get your copy of Tom Robert's cover art here: <a href="https://tomrobertsillustration.com/products/the-book-that-wouldnt-burn">https://tomrobertsillustration.com/</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQqXa_vO_Ndf81i1N3rZV4xREBG9lmIzWRGaT4u69BlNEK7Y6aHhMsgqnVzYAw5nv3CZmj1jbVudHKZNWOTFI6JrkQtc-Bz5NEcO6t1pRRWXc6JoG511vb3k1pqJKjamhXk-LsLf4N59nFtc__JAufBljLI_r25f_ynfrvlfMrhMO4e6GntJ2AI6C7zJr1/s787/tbtwb%20poster2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="787" data-original-width="778" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQqXa_vO_Ndf81i1N3rZV4xREBG9lmIzWRGaT4u69BlNEK7Y6aHhMsgqnVzYAw5nv3CZmj1jbVudHKZNWOTFI6JrkQtc-Bz5NEcO6t1pRRWXc6JoG511vb3k1pqJKjamhXk-LsLf4N59nFtc__JAufBljLI_r25f_ynfrvlfMrhMO4e6GntJ2AI6C7zJr1/w632-h640/tbtwb%20poster2.jpg" width="632" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdnAePW2EEZD1OU1GUXKUHCAaMeCLPrtOSa554RZG5Ty_RhMptqEjXusV37YyH3D0awaNXuzeXcKuJ_cx80E7OsmgTLQhwy6tFBX7gLL2xkfGDs9YI8esMdBpi0vHG_cIPEL8JV6FO_BSepjqj6tBcuDZZFNfO3vHZZbOjJ8fxA3Rqmo5lPZaIOnTq9MTZ/s2048/poster%201.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdnAePW2EEZD1OU1GUXKUHCAaMeCLPrtOSa554RZG5Ty_RhMptqEjXusV37YyH3D0awaNXuzeXcKuJ_cx80E7OsmgTLQhwy6tFBX7gLL2xkfGDs9YI8esMdBpi0vHG_cIPEL8JV6FO_BSepjqj6tBcuDZZFNfO3vHZZbOjJ8fxA3Rqmo5lPZaIOnTq9MTZ/w640-h480/poster%201.JPEG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div><p><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-78282996520535927472023-11-10T07:38:00.004-08:002023-11-10T07:42:11.465-08:00Goodreads Droop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbLGrsGHTWK9J6tfupmK0HPvT60KqiORtkslpmDxrvW4VRUj3hmFiSMp04iqAjAH8LIQqoKgyzfaqbkd4qX6uqpKdooVPvLXzAmPSQ0ZBtWpHSsjF5HAY0jlpX1cUYruGgx6GAuYVWcTA15vYEmJ79r1jr9nJHMZKEBxbddZ2ij4KsU4ZJLLtMdQwawyM/s1212/tree.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="457" data-original-width="1212" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbLGrsGHTWK9J6tfupmK0HPvT60KqiORtkslpmDxrvW4VRUj3hmFiSMp04iqAjAH8LIQqoKgyzfaqbkd4qX6uqpKdooVPvLXzAmPSQ0ZBtWpHSsjF5HAY0jlpX1cUYruGgx6GAuYVWcTA15vYEmJ79r1jr9nJHMZKEBxbddZ2ij4KsU4ZJLLtMdQwawyM/w640-h242/tree.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I imagine that this post will only be of interest to close observers of Goodreads - primarily authors. So, I'll put the tl:dr here:</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">The average rating for books on Goodreads reduces swiftly as they get more ratings.</span></b></p><p><br /></p><p>When a book has ten or twenty ratings, many or all of them might come from friends and family, and the tendency is for these to rate highly. The first few hundred ratings will often come from highly motivated people - they may be fans of the author, or interested in new authors, and are generally predisposed to be generous. So that intitial high rating falls but not too much.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7hOhSGQQN89xJxFtggg2R_g4Lo6Jf_YZ_MbxXw1dnMz_rNZc3cjW9UqiZXcVQ_OM8qJHIfa_4fnWWqiSXDCUBnIRb5MuASCjTymwMDn4mChIeRb6MaKPzirr3AkbjzwvSbRjh2QfAfGBjMUYyHYnilYjXSEv5ezJFCERxO-EhRese1OJ4jdUOF04MNli/s825/numbers.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="818" data-original-width="825" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE7hOhSGQQN89xJxFtggg2R_g4Lo6Jf_YZ_MbxXw1dnMz_rNZc3cjW9UqiZXcVQ_OM8qJHIfa_4fnWWqiSXDCUBnIRb5MuASCjTymwMDn4mChIeRb6MaKPzirr3AkbjzwvSbRjh2QfAfGBjMUYyHYnilYjXSEv5ezJFCERxO-EhRese1OJ4jdUOF04MNli/s320/numbers.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>Next come the general readers who like the genre and specifics of the book but may have no general good feeling towards the author, and rate purely on what's in front of them. Over the first few thousand ratings the average will generally drop swiftly.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pNPuYWYJWzpWFk1U8FqmydGbjfv2VF9_xN5L8rqEyW1Bk7Af_QO6uzwFIL8Ol-e6brgwCMad22NDFhboR7mI6oTPJP7bdsVy9s5hU6Siqpjzj1vGYWYaeydFPaI7U7ct03nlFKPCPYe1H5HwvAg8AIew8-SODzVHQ-Vqwspzg8122CFjLdgLOfPrR1KH/s225/arrow.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pNPuYWYJWzpWFk1U8FqmydGbjfv2VF9_xN5L8rqEyW1Bk7Af_QO6uzwFIL8Ol-e6brgwCMad22NDFhboR7mI6oTPJP7bdsVy9s5hU6Siqpjzj1vGYWYaeydFPaI7U7ct03nlFKPCPYe1H5HwvAg8AIew8-SODzVHQ-Vqwspzg8122CFjLdgLOfPrR1KH/s1600/arrow.png" width="225" /></a></div><br /><p>Note: if the book isn't fortunate enough to reach a large audience then it may stall out in the 10s, 100s, or low 1000s of ratings, keeping some of its "inflated" average. Here "inflated" means "inflated compared to the rating from a wide readership".</p><p>Next a book encounters people drawn in by the hype, people coerced to read it by friends, people worn down by constant mentions of it. All of these people are minded to judge it fairly harshly. A hyped book needs taking down a peg. A book your friends won't shut up about ... well, you've your own mind, don't you? etc...</p><p>The deline continues slowly towards 10,000 ratings, and then very slowly towards 50,000. Eventually an equilibrium will probably be reached.</p><p>I noticed this phenomenum years ago and dubbed it the <b>Goodreads droop</b>.</p><p><br /></p><p>THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN has seen the same pattern:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja5pJe9Cpbnm33sYsCsEYhPbbmH65RpOadi10tOHmbJtwuh6BUAxkcBIN2kOJBH0WSqox1pivPQiWsdy1W8c0njraGCRnqtER6l2X43V4IQeF4oS8n1GFJyfpRH0-5Gf3cl8nYY3LyfVJfId87HfEZQF2MEPKmurrWgJe2cgMJWby2c6eCe9vNQefp8E46/s818/droop.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="818" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja5pJe9Cpbnm33sYsCsEYhPbbmH65RpOadi10tOHmbJtwuh6BUAxkcBIN2kOJBH0WSqox1pivPQiWsdy1W8c0njraGCRnqtER6l2X43V4IQeF4oS8n1GFJyfpRH0-5Gf3cl8nYY3LyfVJfId87HfEZQF2MEPKmurrWgJe2cgMJWby2c6eCe9vNQefp8E46/w640-h388/droop.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>The rating a book gets will depend on how much people like it (obviously) but is also genre dependent. YA books score better in general since young readers have generally read less widely and have had less time to become jaded. They are meeting many things for the first time and are suitably impressed.</p><p>Literary fiction readers are often highly critical and low scoring.</p><p>And so it goes.</p><p>For a fantasy book written for adults (I put it this way since "adult fantasy" can evoke very different mental images) it is very unusual to maintain an average above 4.5 past 1000 ratings, though many books can achieve this below 100 ratings.</p><p>Given the apparent ubiquity of the Goodreads droop I urge you to be extra impressed by books like A Game of Thrones which has kept a 4.44 average into the MILLIONS, and by several of Sanderson's books that have kept averages above 4.50 into the hundreds of thousands. These are astonishing achievements when you factor in the droop.</p><p><br /></p><p>Anyway - that's it. I just wanted somewhere to store this graph. Hence the blog post! </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="font-size: 19.8px; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-55559998482768340072023-11-05T14:53:00.003-08:002023-11-05T14:55:53.661-08:00Line 1s from this year's SPFBO finalists!<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj94igwRRkwRgNRO_S_dGlZG0oQqs6rgrTvmLntvv-2l3mFTnOQYo9uTo3pNERThNAZO-zQpYm81A05oY1F448Po_qgxIDlcm_MDCdKxjYv45FYhCH-di6PukOhslR2oJwAfnZZpmv8xjQB74_4HTzy6nOgqT7m8jC7bbwbIaS-YOUJSZoAxuSMc_BsELjB/s1050/SPFBO%209%20finalists.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="1050" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj94igwRRkwRgNRO_S_dGlZG0oQqs6rgrTvmLntvv-2l3mFTnOQYo9uTo3pNERThNAZO-zQpYm81A05oY1F448Po_qgxIDlcm_MDCdKxjYv45FYhCH-di6PukOhslR2oJwAfnZZpmv8xjQB74_4HTzy6nOgqT7m8jC7bbwbIaS-YOUJSZoAxuSMc_BsELjB/w640-h386/SPFBO%209%20finalists.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2023/09/finalists-for-spfbo-9.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">This year's SPFBO</a> has produced 10 excellent finalists, and in due course each of the ten blogs will read each of the ten books, producing a champion for us and ranking all the books with a score.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Judgemental? Yes. But that's what draws the eyes that self-published books need if they're to do well.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I thought I would take a look at the first line (or lines) of each of the finalists and give my thoughts on them. Since judgements are what people like, I'm going to order them to find which is my favourite, and then, totally tongue-in-cheek predict the order the blogs will score them based purely on this inadequate assessment.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">So here they are in the order that their first line captured me. Just the first line. The second and third etc may redeem or betray the start, but my ranking is based on what leads up to the first period.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Note, that of course while all authors strive to make every line good, a book whose first line, paragraph, or page are not immediately hooking the reader can still sink those hooks to great depth over the long run and prove to be astounding reads.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The reason I focus so much on the opening in my analysis is two-fold:</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">i) it's easy to do!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">ii) modern readers are so easily distracted that grabbing them early can be a very good strategy - too slow and many of them may bail on you.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Last Ranger</span></b><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGV8UHosSs5YgocfHEVmoBliSUIPtTvFEiK8GB9CzRsiTXTeamum3V8I4_Y7JAryfX8UDB53A2xla7T1nff-B09MHUOKRjF_u791rdrAQ6JdhQ8DGSqakZ6jiFcMX7f4rAcf87gCM0KeGtSpNZXjcdCFCFkCNGbMxyiDZBMtfnorKCf4jtqrQT9DpmlFyi/s752/line5.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="203" data-original-width="752" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGV8UHosSs5YgocfHEVmoBliSUIPtTvFEiK8GB9CzRsiTXTeamum3V8I4_Y7JAryfX8UDB53A2xla7T1nff-B09MHUOKRjF_u791rdrAQ6JdhQ8DGSqakZ6jiFcMX7f4rAcf87gCM0KeGtSpNZXjcdCFCFkCNGbMxyiDZBMtfnorKCf4jtqrQT9DpmlFyi/w640-h172/line5.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Well, we have two parties. Silver fox + Hidden One. But not a lot else.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on we get some generalities before that pay off "a second life", which admittedly is a good hook.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">Master of the Void</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 4.15pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Tap. Tap. Tap.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 4.15pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Orimund Laetus
shifted irritably in his high-backed wooden chair. There were many things in
this world that vexed him. Too many to list really, but dripping rain gutters
had to be in the top ten.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">This one is copied text rather than a screen capture from Amazon because the preview on Amazon doesn't actually reach line 1 of chapter 1 (unless you count the song).</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Here I break my own rule and do not count the "taps" as line 1 (or lines 1, 2 and 3).</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">I'm not generally a fan of two-name introductions. For a PoV it feels a bit distant. This is a very minor nit.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Most chairs are wood. Probably only worth mentioning what it's made of if it's something unusual. Like ham. And do we need space in line 1 to tell us it's high backed?</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on a bit further we do learn that our man is an irritable sort. But being annoyed by a dripping gutter is not the most hooky of openings.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">Daughter of the Beast</span></b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQXzahfXU6hN9lycDVk_WQNlovIgnN3Oa76Z9dAxhOBCDLRyo2ibXsJgt9Tdr6bGe4p-xlvDfgH7mlcVXPgzRKZSWrmRlqcwUG1BX2FYD-sjT3wBfxrlES4NtwIgSUeTan84MEREBNJcB49WhpLN6tV-BLaRdnDm2l6AMQsIbLPDByrwkMUJ0DlsEP13k2/s752/line4.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="108" data-original-width="752" height="92" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQXzahfXU6hN9lycDVk_WQNlovIgnN3Oa76Z9dAxhOBCDLRyo2ibXsJgt9Tdr6bGe4p-xlvDfgH7mlcVXPgzRKZSWrmRlqcwUG1BX2FYD-sjT3wBfxrlES4NtwIgSUeTan84MEREBNJcB49WhpLN6tV-BLaRdnDm2l6AMQsIbLPDByrwkMUJ0DlsEP13k2/w640-h92/line4.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Nice to start in the middle of something, it's a good way to get to know the character/s, plus if it's a fight there's tension/threat there from the get go. On the other hand, it is a bit generic here: parry, blow, lash out, attack. Specifics are far more interesting. Show us. Put us there. Make it hurt.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on: I see we're committed to this fight. The underestimation possibly introduces tension. It continues to be a bit generic though. I don't even know what weapons they're using.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Last Fang of God</span></b><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif532K2Rvfa1-ig7PpzhxKsvIXYU25hHIe4e1wY-n2PkacmzDbeym7oA-6beX8wiBAUUNBzU9Qnm0wjRH4Uf780OnCBFKR7lert_3qUZ9GmPxNEm8Vx7XfyASoTl_IsSMJ8ytCwvoDBNbOcTEJGEE0l2pvldpHzNRLzjM2BNDVN926o7vmvjymKglqsFfd/s752/line6.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="157" data-original-width="752" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif532K2Rvfa1-ig7PpzhxKsvIXYU25hHIe4e1wY-n2PkacmzDbeym7oA-6beX8wiBAUUNBzU9Qnm0wjRH4Uf780OnCBFKR7lert_3qUZ9GmPxNEm8Vx7XfyASoTl_IsSMJ8ytCwvoDBNbOcTEJGEE0l2pvldpHzNRLzjM2BNDVN926o7vmvjymKglqsFfd/w640-h134/line6.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">An immediate threat. A sense of vulnerability (he's in bed). A question. Nothing super hooky or original in line one, but solid enough.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Subsequent line follows the focus. Our man has a knife in bed.</span></p><p><br /></p><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">A Rival Most Vial</span></b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8b9sR4_8pGlMFClMkSLUp95YKUecmqxmKXjscx4ap6QcuF20PtalYQnO-Y807Ec_zbSvYCu5Xp43oucWBtxsHXG1RLkeQ5CvnpTENQfKHj_fbpiTd8DQLT3c5BheGATIx2O5N4XrNtxfYyVkAGCoXPImf8VdbfFZVhBoa1nm6VoAzQmXkurs-MU6rEnwg/s752/line10.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="133" data-original-width="752" height="114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8b9sR4_8pGlMFClMkSLUp95YKUecmqxmKXjscx4ap6QcuF20PtalYQnO-Y807Ec_zbSvYCu5Xp43oucWBtxsHXG1RLkeQ5CvnpTENQfKHj_fbpiTd8DQLT3c5BheGATIx2O5N4XrNtxfYyVkAGCoXPImf8VdbfFZVhBoa1nm6VoAzQmXkurs-MU6rEnwg/w640-h114/line10.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><br /><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">A solid opening having something in common with some of the others - an innocuous event combined with a surprising revelation. But it works.</span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Nit note on the two name intro again. I may be the only person on earth who feels this way 😀.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #990000;">Pressing on: We get a gentle intro to the shop, quiet and peaceful. Which but for the first line could be said to be a bit dull and indulgent. But with the first line it's now playing with the reader who is waiting all agog to see who will come in through the door and is eating up the description in order to get to that bit.</span> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Wickwire Watch </span></b></p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQNvdBtG7Ks7s-wMn2DWerUBXjPcLT5SvcGEKr9gIFGF1aKw9ckx9GIBWjtJt_8PvHVgCU7QPNF2ipCaxpPnBFhY2lCBM2IBHgaIZxmUiUXbv-_Z89xww4UZyCWg48YPEfaPRXtGmMLwyafoxGorLMirloJH2A4wTpc77l1OTZwj_7VQek5orLWZ4fBgvt/s752/line2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="171" data-original-width="752" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQNvdBtG7Ks7s-wMn2DWerUBXjPcLT5SvcGEKr9gIFGF1aKw9ckx9GIBWjtJt_8PvHVgCU7QPNF2ipCaxpPnBFhY2lCBM2IBHgaIZxmUiUXbv-_Z89xww4UZyCWg48YPEfaPRXtGmMLwyafoxGorLMirloJH2A4wTpc77l1OTZwj_7VQek5orLWZ4fBgvt/w640-h146/line2.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">This is a good, punchy first line. It immediately poses questions, and also carries a sense of humour with it. "Mr Bash" is a bit distant given we're going to immediately be inside this gentleman's head and be asked to share his aches and pains. </span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on we see no immediate threat but learn that he is probably not a young man, and that the sense of humour was likely his, not the narrator's, given his entertaining thoughts on the cold.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">It should be noted that the weather is not as great a scene setter as people think. And cold is weather. "It was a dark and stormy night." is a derided opener, not a praised one.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">However, the cold is used well here.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Cold West</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcWHemmyUeRkPSUhS95gq4oI0mAhQd1E15Fg1yvPZOJZHeEst6w62e96MOenaCwscRQrmqpVaUNytVjCbaFXtUxImmj1_eWpmC_GAWbg7k4vrThqmbDBYKnamQbQZvVvhAdZLsBIMBl1Ka_tj7ReykpQKByuF_EuMlWttoivIVi72Sb2GzOddoKFriOy-X/s752/line8.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="123" data-original-width="752" height="104" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcWHemmyUeRkPSUhS95gq4oI0mAhQd1E15Fg1yvPZOJZHeEst6w62e96MOenaCwscRQrmqpVaUNytVjCbaFXtUxImmj1_eWpmC_GAWbg7k4vrThqmbDBYKnamQbQZvVvhAdZLsBIMBl1Ka_tj7ReykpQKByuF_EuMlWttoivIVi72Sb2GzOddoKFriOy-X/w640-h104/line8.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">It's a general statement, but it's a good one. It begs questions because we immediately assume our character has met, and probably lost, the love of his life, and that he probably had/has a lot of "mean" in him. So already we're keen to meet him.</span></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on: We conclude the saying with some nice bloody imagery which also builds the vibe. And then we're in first person, in the head of the person who met and lost their love, and who has regained all their mean!</span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">Hills Of Heather And Bone</span></b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEgOyMm4JvSmdCqZQKRWbKu1v8LfxJ_SZa4hzyaWRNkSk-zYe3bgfnLWY7-RF4J-z0FbitLzmp5udE_GWWwr3lQsKe55G6_1_dfBINvPMv44_DICOOhPyf1jx4TAZibKQ3h0pObbkIti_kBKOgSR2AcZnXwYYtO6FPLWlpc6NNgwu74k7VunnG0VNhQoE/s752/line9i.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="115" data-original-width="752" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEgOyMm4JvSmdCqZQKRWbKu1v8LfxJ_SZa4hzyaWRNkSk-zYe3bgfnLWY7-RF4J-z0FbitLzmp5udE_GWWwr3lQsKe55G6_1_dfBINvPMv44_DICOOhPyf1jx4TAZibKQ3h0pObbkIti_kBKOgSR2AcZnXwYYtO6FPLWlpc6NNgwu74k7VunnG0VNhQoE/w640-h98/line9i.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAPPuHghfbxrbbTBfZllM-9zq4mV91Z0YiotNQDN_JkKsA8wRvUL11SrmyhrAzAbi6A1J0RXqZGOfjQw32Lr0JdkWgk7ba2j93IS4Kpay5r3bc25qOo0hBA8IqF0K1jyyQy9nuAdwk39LexQcEqQb36o8_JatjYantZtQ_s_ZIXmRfUYajwkHz6J1HuHKe/s752/line9ii.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="108" data-original-width="752" height="92" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAPPuHghfbxrbbTBfZllM-9zq4mV91Z0YiotNQDN_JkKsA8wRvUL11SrmyhrAzAbi6A1J0RXqZGOfjQw32Lr0JdkWgk7ba2j93IS4Kpay5r3bc25qOo0hBA8IqF0K1jyyQy9nuAdwk39LexQcEqQb36o8_JatjYantZtQ_s_ZIXmRfUYajwkHz6J1HuHKe/w640-h92/line9ii.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">This is a good first line. It immediately gives us a fantasy vibe with questions about this death beneath the dirt AND it marries the idea to an unexpected spot of gardening. The ivy still gives us room to believe it might be a graveyard or something but the ... lettuce. Death and lettuce. Colour me intrigued.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on: we find the death is a mouse skull, and get more plant description. But there's a touch of macbre, touching the eye sockets, and then a necromantic connection. Feels original and begs questions.</span></div><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Murder at Spindle Manor</b></span><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUyBPndrtbkOZctzTqE6zMSyzJf4gXDaKiFWe6BFEpb_xdt9iKh-BW74aoJE9jEydgV7suDRd86WTm56MhNDSwyKJzq1sMS9zf_MdubDphExQVvfWEFvlPQzWStpWUQYEt4npoI_30FBYev8PqwDqVMf5UjWRWuKl2hzNTVcs3gPGzTcx7oyUINaPeTtZE/s752/line7.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="142" data-original-width="752" height="120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUyBPndrtbkOZctzTqE6zMSyzJf4gXDaKiFWe6BFEpb_xdt9iKh-BW74aoJE9jEydgV7suDRd86WTm56MhNDSwyKJzq1sMS9zf_MdubDphExQVvfWEFvlPQzWStpWUQYEt4npoI_30FBYev8PqwDqVMf5UjWRWuKl2hzNTVcs3gPGzTcx7oyUINaPeTtZE/w640-h120/line7.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">This offers the other side of the Wickwire Watch coin. One arrives not knowing he's going to die. Here she arrives intending to kill someone.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Again, I find two name intros for PoV characters a touch distancing. Again, it's a minor nit.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">I like this line for several reasons. I like the contrast of the specific formal opening, a precise time and place and name, with the open generality of intending to kill <i><u>someone</u></i>. Not a specific person. Someone. That begs all sorts of questions.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Moving on, rather like the Wickwire Watch opening, we get some weather (generally not a great way to open, though so tempting to do). But still, I'm here for the woman with her intention to kill someone!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Fall Is All There Is</span></b><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Q1CyC-h8QGflO2nbeOtVCl_ITJG92hxzeAuxi9bDNxmvwCNIDKcQ-z4F0LTWHwwJZOuErLmuyOYNYnsIqoglU3jH61gG4ZbZ_tbuZtGE6SWrWpTO0dy9xceA4ixYxajwilE45kEf0KVXqWpTDX8VbqHmesBxbIhsb2W5SaLYyqa4tQbOwFRDcUoomkwX/s752/line3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="95" data-original-width="752" height="80" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Q1CyC-h8QGflO2nbeOtVCl_ITJG92hxzeAuxi9bDNxmvwCNIDKcQ-z4F0LTWHwwJZOuErLmuyOYNYnsIqoglU3jH61gG4ZbZ_tbuZtGE6SWrWpTO0dy9xceA4ixYxajwilE45kEf0KVXqWpTDX8VbqHmesBxbIhsb2W5SaLYyqa4tQbOwFRDcUoomkwX/w640-h80/line3.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Another fine punchy opening. The threat is more specific than "going to die tonight" but it's also firmly in the past rather than the future, and less fatal. </span></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;">Pressing on: again, we're simultaneously gifted the promise of an amusing point of view, which is engaging. The image of the torture implements being displayed heightens the threat, and the self-depricating humour undercuts it nicely.</span></p><p></p><p><br /></p></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div></div></div></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-41649598095602472552023-11-01T09:42:00.002-07:002023-11-01T09:44:42.825-07:00My first convention panel!<p>I went to Comic Con last weekened and sat on a panel!</p><p><br /></p><p>It wasn't my first convention - I've been to Bristolcon every year since 2012, save when the pandemic closed it. Though I've never sat on a panel and most of those years I've not actually been into the convention, just sat in the bar immediately outside the doors and chatted with folk.</p><p><br /></p><p>And it wasn't the first time I've on panel-like things. The three Grim Gatherings were essentially a panel, but with a dedicated audience and nothing else on the agenda.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuni9YrcqaFmOepcf7wgwcr82P0n2Jd7gubkiML7znm5bWp9Yu-lwJabY83gNkqjT9CcSHj_kZiDLj-WSDkTcGebNCvJpweD5k0935lwQW7bVVfuDywUJTitofbYfqCH22KSqOuPO_skthwNqZMjIUHD3avqwALe-qgiYi1MiBArSWUtJWT0WgI6hyJe02/s1024/gg1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="726" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuni9YrcqaFmOepcf7wgwcr82P0n2Jd7gubkiML7znm5bWp9Yu-lwJabY83gNkqjT9CcSHj_kZiDLj-WSDkTcGebNCvJpweD5k0935lwQW7bVVfuDywUJTitofbYfqCH22KSqOuPO_skthwNqZMjIUHD3avqwALe-qgiYi1MiBArSWUtJWT0WgI6hyJe02/w284-h400/gg1.png" width="284" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb4rtR2PZ0Q6r0liDhyTflWskxukRzoT_zTmQAbuFXeur9WvVlu8SwjmDP7gJHHflywfNg-aoS1zbzynxxqPw_FGALPSJpQsjmV_pO82qb6W21qmOhxCMvNDfWyRwv4Yo4Db4Y8lOvLppKeu8OBApGZenbUynm4dqsT_ObOtTA8VZVw1I8jtfxH1iwV02P/s900/gg3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="900" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb4rtR2PZ0Q6r0liDhyTflWskxukRzoT_zTmQAbuFXeur9WvVlu8SwjmDP7gJHHflywfNg-aoS1zbzynxxqPw_FGALPSJpQsjmV_pO82qb6W21qmOhxCMvNDfWyRwv4Yo4Db4Y8lOvLppKeu8OBApGZenbUynm4dqsT_ObOtTA8VZVw1I8jtfxH1iwV02P/w640-h480/gg3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /></div>But it was my first convention panel!<div><br /></div><div>Comic Con is very different from Bristolcon. The latter is a one day affair involving a couple of hundred people. The former a 3 day monster where tens of thousands come through the doors, a great many of them in spectacular costumes, and almost all of them there for the comics / comic-based shows.</div><div><br /></div><div>But Forbidden Planet run a stall, and along with the comics and graphic novels the chain offers books. So I was invited down along with Ed McDonald, Justin Lee Anderson, and Esmi Jikiemi-Pearson to debate "epic fantasy"!</div><div><br /></div><div>I normally say no, but since Celyn turned 18 we've had steadily more care since she is now technically an independent adult. And Forbidden Planet have been hugely supportive - stocking lots of my books and having me in to sign a ton of that stock. (go get some signed copies from them!)</div><div><br /></div><div>So along I went.</div><div><br /></div><div>The audience, whilst a vanishingly small fraction of the attendees, was also much larger than I'd faced before as an author.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqHpqs37sVyIp2-FS-1GISDOsojFK9VdRl7N3mQbkJNKV8zIP63ncRDpS9g1tfhbhuFDanq50BUlfPPSwCXhJY4Gu7G1Ts81oegQQN_KcfmAnn5eD6JYSmg6ozF0GMmbAx2gMzhAa6RIAMuVRx82XQIw8eDTec8CVoBhV2Re-UOfHE7aOGPIXD8ZiZnss3/s1536/crowd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="732" data-original-width="1536" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqHpqs37sVyIp2-FS-1GISDOsojFK9VdRl7N3mQbkJNKV8zIP63ncRDpS9g1tfhbhuFDanq50BUlfPPSwCXhJY4Gu7G1Ts81oegQQN_KcfmAnn5eD6JYSmg6ozF0GMmbAx2gMzhAa6RIAMuVRx82XQIw8eDTec8CVoBhV2Re-UOfHE7aOGPIXD8ZiZnss3/w640-h306/crowd.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">(you should be able to make out Esmi on stage at the extreme right - the rest of us are out of shot)</div><div><br /><p>They had very comfortable seats and I unintentionally ended up slap bang in the middle.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrvdhnkFxtFYEesuxW75h58SG_GPl102_5SZ2mVCYZpD6UCiQl2DGnKWrnz9uwyk0Cc2Kw4rCysajQyGrFonlQ-wRc_jsxOnvv7YBTypzux7AsWcO5nht20mqgitBQjG9Be1FRa4avuNJYDqH9x6NxN_uRVNbF8cT9DQS85SZ2I_PFoeeD1yamae4-mYbJ/s2048/mcm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrvdhnkFxtFYEesuxW75h58SG_GPl102_5SZ2mVCYZpD6UCiQl2DGnKWrnz9uwyk0Cc2Kw4rCysajQyGrFonlQ-wRc_jsxOnvv7YBTypzux7AsWcO5nht20mqgitBQjG9Be1FRa4avuNJYDqH9x6NxN_uRVNbF8cT9DQS85SZ2I_PFoeeD1yamae4-mYbJ/w480-h640/mcm.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>And after the panel - which flashed by with very little contribution from me that I can remember... There was a signing. My queue never looked more than 3 or 4 people to me, but I was sitting down and this is what it actually looked like! 😮</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCe1kuG3jDucKn85492QjkzvfoBL02Jz38u8JoulD4JLNrsFLqgOXWfwx4LzSA73hd2iRWDdRtJJ_ZZii3jEdF9SoElOdjeqf6n0Tf-bUGBA7u8dZ0wDrnClbtO-PfnZCqUyaHi7onJiut_L4icIJ-mcDfU1Rh1UaVHlVyCsIsZmC-EkpuT6jLPsQgORM1/s1124/queue.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="843" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCe1kuG3jDucKn85492QjkzvfoBL02Jz38u8JoulD4JLNrsFLqgOXWfwx4LzSA73hd2iRWDdRtJJ_ZZii3jEdF9SoElOdjeqf6n0Tf-bUGBA7u8dZ0wDrnClbtO-PfnZCqUyaHi7onJiut_L4icIJ-mcDfU1Rh1UaVHlVyCsIsZmC-EkpuT6jLPsQgORM1/w480-h640/queue.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>And here's me saying hi to a couple of folk at the front.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRldfoDmPvM3hVOMaCO5CHsBvIz6tuBvpms7lkj43p-8Suh5ie4GDLENMWemaowfzIjuLL0U8KvtGo-XeYmNeywIZPxz6b1FhMqsq3iCKz6i2QVJULlYo72loyK_r5x0lD7XFQ_J93Y9ZktTMnCmenrx_pgy0lbIWfALk8fhxtg8eMMZiNS7dOniXlbPj/s1124/sign1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1124" data-original-width="843" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRldfoDmPvM3hVOMaCO5CHsBvIz6tuBvpms7lkj43p-8Suh5ie4GDLENMWemaowfzIjuLL0U8KvtGo-XeYmNeywIZPxz6b1FhMqsq3iCKz6i2QVJULlYo72loyK_r5x0lD7XFQ_J93Y9ZktTMnCmenrx_pgy0lbIWfALk8fhxtg8eMMZiNS7dOniXlbPj/s320/sign1.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HF4SmjBD2g4N8dCotnLUL87Xv79Dy3KLBc5mFNbSz61c-uUfOrjwPWu7wAYvkkVhFv3NjIHshJ_VmvO8F_ExJFayk_mpRyAnWA5zU8aIisZpU3DicxvxQFacmYv9TrmolCv80VzBg4xVmUaPiOaf-XCKOwA3NGxTGbMpZ_OIwXn1Z16Y_UC3HrnyCPid/s773/sign2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="612" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HF4SmjBD2g4N8dCotnLUL87Xv79Dy3KLBc5mFNbSz61c-uUfOrjwPWu7wAYvkkVhFv3NjIHshJ_VmvO8F_ExJFayk_mpRyAnWA5zU8aIisZpU3DicxvxQFacmYv9TrmolCv80VzBg4xVmUaPiOaf-XCKOwA3NGxTGbMpZ_OIwXn1Z16Y_UC3HrnyCPid/s320/sign2.jpg" width="253" /></a></div><br /><p>So, it was fun. Afterwards I circulated. There are a billion stalls, but most of them are pretty niche, selling art etc for a particular comic / show. Others sell T-shirts, costumes, and the sort of wonderful stuff that I always wanted when I couldn't afford it and now seem able to resist: goblets, skulls, mugs, swords, dice, funkos ... just loads and loads of brilliant tat.</p><p>I did happen upon two rows of free 80s arcade games, so I got to have a couple of very rusty games of Defender.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28vXlr4iVcbcz4eqE0O2Aw7E6xkJpBgE_uks6mhcWDisfZaTa3sSjxnpu2bl10QLoPD0eysEP_3EK0Bk2I8hQ13dg93JXsBtYExHfnq2iCCGRk4liRwMjQWIAPHEMwCxSRh8KxV7H_uXTu5qjAMwXx5PYRzprdqNc5Bu1jQkJKdcq1kYI4sZmSJETHjGp/s960/defender1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg28vXlr4iVcbcz4eqE0O2Aw7E6xkJpBgE_uks6mhcWDisfZaTa3sSjxnpu2bl10QLoPD0eysEP_3EK0Bk2I8hQ13dg93JXsBtYExHfnq2iCCGRk4liRwMjQWIAPHEMwCxSRh8KxV7H_uXTu5qjAMwXx5PYRzprdqNc5Bu1jQkJKdcq1kYI4sZmSJETHjGp/s320/defender1.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9rm_5hTJlqUIXSxyrT9x0gnb43-V1jLu5a8-tREkxQpptBOWfWGFoT7LaFRcak0wTpvVMxg43UEg8whv_6FZo-Bu-0So5RL5X7Y6GWQitWKsqu6la2a1RCjRRyPJXf0bxRqSfpk320nk2-Q-prrtpRv7HB4Fl9gxKi2FdZ3FL7MRGBGHfDiZ0KzWlF6Dg/s3753/defender2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3753" data-original-width="2652" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9rm_5hTJlqUIXSxyrT9x0gnb43-V1jLu5a8-tREkxQpptBOWfWGFoT7LaFRcak0wTpvVMxg43UEg8whv_6FZo-Bu-0So5RL5X7Y6GWQitWKsqu6la2a1RCjRRyPJXf0bxRqSfpk320nk2-Q-prrtpRv7HB4Fl9gxKi2FdZ3FL7MRGBGHfDiZ0KzWlF6Dg/s320/defender2.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br /><p>It was a good day out. Would I do it again? Maybe, if a star or two align.</p><p><br /></p><p>Many thanks to Laura Dodd of Forbidden Planet for arranging it all, to award-winning author, Alwyn Hamilton, for moderating the panel, and to grimdark legend, author Luke Scull, for driving me down!</p><p><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</span></a><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> #Prizes #FreeContent</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div><p><br /></p></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-58114832458730913522023-09-25T14:16:00.004-07:002023-09-26T08:02:23.803-07:00Page 1 Critique<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">This continues the reprisal of my series of page 1 critiques - you can read about the project </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2015/11/you-really-want-me-to-critique-you.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">, and there's a list of all the critiques so far too.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">I'm also posting some of these on my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIrBMFdRfg_Tg_FpCaU7svw" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Youtube channel</a> (like, subscribe yadda yadda).</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">It's worth noting that I critique whole batches of chapters on a monthly basis for my <a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">top teir patrons</a>.</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">***</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">I gave doing this up about 6 months ago, but I missed it and asked for some new, unpublished page 1s so that I would be critiquing work where the author had the opportunity to change things if they agreed with any of my comments.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">Today I'm feeling too ropey to write my own stuff, so I'm casting an eye over one of the page 1s that came in last month.</div><div style="background-color: white;"><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">(My standard disclaimer)</span></i></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">It's very hard to separate one's tastes from a technical critique. There are page 1s from popular books with which I would find multiple faults. I didn't, for example, like page 1 of Terry Goodkind's Wizard's First Rule (I didn't pursue the rest of the book). But that book has 150,000+ ratings on Goodreads, a great average score of 4.12 and Goodkind is a #1 NYT bestseller. His first page clearly did a great job for many people.</span></i></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><i><span style="color: #990000;"><br />I'm not always right *hushed gasp*. You will likely be able to find a successful and highly respected author who will tell you the opposite to practically every bit of advice I give. Possibly not the same author in each case though.<br /><br />The art of receiving criticism is to take what's useful to you and discard the rest. You need sufficient confidence in your own vision/voice such that whilst criticism may cause you to adjust course you're not about to do a U-turn for anyone. If you act on every bit of advice you'll get crit-burn, your story will be pulled in different directions by different people. It will stop being yours and turn into some Frankenstein's monster that nobody will ever want to read.<br /><br />Additionally - don't get hurt or look for revenge. The person critiquing you is almost always trying to help you (it's true in some groups there will be the occasional person who is jealous/mean/misguided but that's the exception, not the rule). That person has put in effort on your behalf. If they don't like your prose it's not personal - they didn't just slap your baby.<br /><br /><br />I've flicked through some of the pages looking for one where I have something to say - something that hopefully is useful to the author and to anyone else reading the post.<br /></span></i><br /><br />This one is from Amir Hammami-Gulliksen and a projected book called Discovery of Magic.</p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">****</p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">I've posted the unadulterated page first then again with comments inset and at the end.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: 21.78px; text-indent: 18pt;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Let's do one final check to see that we have
everything set up correctly. We only have one chance at this," LoreSeeker
says while addressing his camera sitting on his desk, next to his three
monitors. The first monitor shows photocopies of two pages from an old book.
The second monitor shows the view from the cameras in use so that LoreSeeker know
what his viewers see, and can adjust any mistakes or bad angles. The final
monitor show the active chat of his viewers. <i>Just short of a thousand
viewers today </i>he notices as he glances at the chat. Not his best
numbers, but far beyond what he usually got when live-streaming games. <i>It
seems people really are desperate to escape reality, grasping at any slim
chance of hope for a better world.</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br />
LoreSeeker steps back from his monitors and walks to the other side of a large
table positioned in the middle of the well lit room. Behind the table is a
large green sheet covering the back wall, where for the viewers LoreSeekers
personalized logo is projected. A rather simple logo made by some free image
generating AI tool, the letters L and S surrounded by swirls of purple color
and white stars.<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">At the corner of the table is a second camera,
positioned so that it captures everything laid out on the table in high
resolution. On top of the table are three powdery circles, each centered on
points of an imaginary equilateral triangle and interlocking so that they form
four sections whose interior belong to at least two of the circles. Each circle
is made from a drizzle of spice; salt, pepper and cinnamon. In each of
the three outer sections is a cup filled with liquid. The cup in the
salt-cinnamon section is a cup of vinegar, in the salt-pepper section a cup of
water and in the cinnamon-pepper section a cup of olive oil. In the middle
section that all three circles encompass is a burner with an empty bowl sitting
on top.<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Okay…," LoreSeeker says while examining
a sheet of paper, "We've assembled the trinity circles, with the salt ring
facing towards north. With the salt as the reference point we have cinnamon
right and pepper to the left." A ding comes from the chat and LoreSeeker
looks up "Thanks for the tip McSnuggly, we're pretty sure it means True
North and not magnetic north. We covered this in the last stream, you can check
out the VOD on Youtube" he says after glancing at the message, returning
to the table.<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #1d2228;">LoreSeeker continues through the
list of steps on his sheet of paper and verifies that everything is set up
correctly. Will this Wicca-esque ritual hold the secret of magic? <i>Probably
not, but it’s worth a shot, and the viewership it attracts is good.</i></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Well then. I say we are ready," he
smiles to the camera, "let's discover magic!".<o:p style="font-size: 10pt;"></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Let's do <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">one</span> final check to see that we have everything set
up correctly. We only have <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">one</span>
chance at this,"</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">Opens with dialogue - often a good move as dialogue is an engaging form. I would reverse those two sentences as "We only have one chance at this!" is a solid first line and "Let's do one final check etc etc" is rather weak.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> LoreSeeker says while addressing his camera sitting on
his desk, next to his <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">three</span>
monitors.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">I wouldn't lump this scene setting in with the dialogue tag - it's too cluttered. Make a new sentence.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">We're in present tense, which is an infrequent choice and the unfamiliar often annoys readers. So if you're going to use it, have a reason for paying that price. Present tense offers an immediacy that can enchance action scenes or tension building. It helps create the illusion that whatever is happening is ongoing rather than in the settled past. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> The first monitor shows photocopies of <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">two</span> pages from an old book. The <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">second</span> monitor shows the
view from the cameras in use so that LoreSeeker knows what his viewers see, and
can adjust any mistakes or bad angles.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">So, I've highlighted five instances of numbering/counting in the first few lines. That could get irritating/repetitive.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">The PoV feels rather shallow, almost omniscient, although there's no concrete example that can be argued to be outside his PoV. We're not getting any of his feelings/sensations except as unvoiced dialogue.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> The final monitor shows the active chat
of his viewers. <i>Just short of a thousand viewers today </i>he
notices as he glances at the chat. Not his best numbers, but far beyond what he
usually got when live-streaming games. <i>It seems people really are
desperate to escape reality, grasping at any slim chance of hope for a better
world.</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif" style="color: red;"><span>Here we've dipped behind LoreSeeker's eyes and are getting his thoughts as if we are him.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br />
LoreSeeker steps back from his monitors and walks to the other side of a large
table positioned in the middle of the well-lit room. Behind the table is a
large green sheet covering the back wall, where for the viewers LoreSeeker’s
personalized logo is projected. A rather simple logo made by some free image
generating AI tool, the letters L and S surrounded by swirls of purple color
and white stars.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">This, along with the careful accounting of camera and monitor positioning, is starting to feel like too much information. It's a mechanical rather than florid description, but the writing question is why does the reader need to know all this detail? The low-budget effects do give us an insight into our character's "mom's basement" vibe, but we already got some of that from his relatively low viewing numbers. He seems to be a mid-tier youtuber.</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">At the corner of the table is a <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">second</span> camera, positioned
so that it captures everything laid out on the table in high resolution. On top
of the table are <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">three</span>
powdery circles, each centered on points of an imaginary equilateral triangle
and interlocking so that they form <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">four</span> sections whose interior belong to at least <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">two</span> of the circles. Each
circle is made from a drizzle of spice; salt, pepper and cinnamon. In each of
the <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">three</span> outer
sections is a cup filled with liquid. The cup in the salt-cinnamon section is a
cup of vinegar, in the salt-pepper section a cup of water and in the
cinnamon-pepper section a cup of olive oil. In the middle section that all <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">three</span> circles encompass
is a burner with an empty bowl sitting on top.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">Now we're back to the counting, and have yet more detailed mechanical description. Description works best when it's from a PoV, ideally one with opinions. The description then illuminates both the items/place and the person seeing it.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">This description serves to underline that this magic is a fiddly recipe-based type, but 7 more lines on page 1 is too high a price to pay for just that.</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Okay…," LoreSeeker says while examining
a sheet of paper. "We've assembled the trinity circles, with the salt ring
facing towards north. With the salt as the reference point we have cinnamon
right and pepper to the left." A ding comes from the chat and LoreSeeker
looks up "Thanks for the tip McSnuggly, we're pretty sure it means True
North and not magnetic north. We covered this in the last stream, you can check
out the VOD on Youtube," he says after glancing at the message, returning
to the table.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">This part earns its keep, combining humour with an underscoring of the amateur / crowd-sourced nature of the thing. The repeated description could in fact replace all the previous description since it conveys the same idea by itself without the completionist vibe.</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #1d2228;">LoreSeeker continues through the
list of steps on his sheet of paper and verifies that everything is set up
correctly. Will this Wicca-esque ritual hold the secret of magic? <i>Probably
not, but it’s worth a shot, and the viewership it attracts is good.</i></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;"> Again this encapsulates some of the earlier fiddliness in a more palatable form and tells us more about our character. He's only part faking it - he wants to believe it will work and seems to believe that magic is real even if this isn't the key to it.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: 21.78px; text-indent: 18pt;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: #1d2228; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">"Well then. I say we are ready," he
smiles to the camera, "let's discover magic!".</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="color: red;">And a nice finish which makes it feel potentially like a piece of flash fiction. But if it gets them to turn the page, then job done.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">This page 1 had a number of things to recommend it: primarily an amusing situation and some liveliness to it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The present tense and the shallow PoV don't do it any favours in my view, but potentially their time to shine will come later in the piece. Not everything has to pay off on page 1!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">My main complaint though concerns the excess of mechanical description. This description doesn't reflect its source and delivers a very dry accounting of what is where, exactly. The reader doesn't need to know most of the detail, and may even be bored by it. They may be turned away by this level of detail, especially since if it's here on page 1 we can probably expect much much more of it to come. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The space occupied by the enumeration of which candle was where is space that could have been used to better effect, either by making the character more interesting or by asking more questions that the reader needs the answer to.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">We have only one real question here and only a small level of implied threat (and thus tension). The question is: Will the magic work? And we assume the answer is yes, otherwise what are we doing here? And if the magic works it might be dangerous - so there's some threat.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">I would trim the description heavily and give the description from LoreSeeker's PoV. I would have him reflect on the nature of the magic being attempted and the dangers thereof. That would pose more questions that the reader wants answered and inject a level of tension that would encourage turning the page.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Helvetica",sans-serif" style="color: red; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-50332195666336713602023-09-17T13:50:00.002-07:002023-09-17T14:05:11.200-07:00Which is my most successful trilogy?<p>Because different people focus on different parts of my work, or swim in particular social media seas, they often have a rather warped sense of the relative successes (sales-wise) of my various trilogies.</p><p>I have on several occasions seen people stating with certainty that The Book of the Ancestor is my "biggest" series. And I was asked today if that was true.</p><p>Here are the sales of my trilogies relative to each other. Obviously there is some contribution from the length of time those series have been on sale. Prince of Thorns, for example, is 12 years old and recently had its 31st reprint in paperback in the UK.</p><p>Which is a clue to the answer. The Broken Empire is far and away my most commercially successful work.</p><p>I've sold in the region of 2 million books, and the Broken Empire trilogy accounts for over half of those sales by itself.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7J2KWDVgVerwuQ-yJ9XjeZJwJCH-bA0tRii-EuufuQ6j8a-oAFR5MQu3MYpZSxFuGRezeBDbeEDaDs5kdS1EIkVpPXa0Zmi5U7pk46AQh7VGpN6gzc6_S5GQmMkcPuOXgR976Ys9AYaAYqdRIAxI3-2FiedV1nZlvNEy7YKUD9s9LYnvAPrtYxfLpuQs/s995/trilogy%20sales.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="995" data-original-width="849" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7J2KWDVgVerwuQ-yJ9XjeZJwJCH-bA0tRii-EuufuQ6j8a-oAFR5MQu3MYpZSxFuGRezeBDbeEDaDs5kdS1EIkVpPXa0Zmi5U7pk46AQh7VGpN6gzc6_S5GQmMkcPuOXgR976Ys9AYaAYqdRIAxI3-2FiedV1nZlvNEy7YKUD9s9LYnvAPrtYxfLpuQs/w546-h640/trilogy%20sales.jpg" width="546" /></a></div><p>There are many writers whose career is dominated / overshadowed / represented by one book that they wrote, and that one book's sales may heavily eclipse all the rest put together. Often it's the first book they had published. The mechanism for this is fairly obvious if you think about it.</p><p></p><p>Would I like some of my other books to bust out just as big? Sure. Do I think they will? The odds are against it, but who knows. Jorg broke down the door, and I'll keep stealing the furniture until someone throws me out.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year mailing list.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-82237350241403464642023-09-14T06:22:00.008-07:002023-09-17T05:13:06.220-07:00AI writing results<p>I put out interim results with 100+ votes on each of the 10 pieces. The results below are after roughly tripling those numbers. The polls with the least number of votes at time of writing has 374, and the one with the most has 911. </p><p>The extra votes shuffled the ratings up and down a little. They also reached the statistical threshold to identify three more of the pieces (obviously the margins here are fairly fine if 150 votes weren't sufficient to reveal the difference but 450 votes were (those extra 300 coming in after the truth had been made available). Of the additional pieces identified: one was correctly decided to be written by an AI, one was correctly decided to be written by a person, and one piece written by a person was incorrectly identifed as AI-written.</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2023/09/so-is-ai-writing-any-good.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Read about the experiment here.</a></b></p><p><br /></p><p><i>I want to say a quick word on "statistical significance":</i></p><p><i>If you ask 100 people to answer a question like "do you like oranges, yes or no?" and the result is 49 to 51, that is not a statistically significant difference on which we can say that the larger population from which this 100 were drawn have a majority against oranges. </i></p><p><i>The population might slightly favour oranges and still many times you could randomly draw 100 people who would say yes 49 times and no 51 times. They might quite often say yes 47 times and no 53 times...</i></p><p><i><b>There is a mathematics which allows us to tell whether a difference is big enough to be taken seriously, and I have applied it here.</b></i></p><p><br /></p><p>So the figure below shows the results for the first 8 pieces of fiction, with the last 2 off to the side since these late-comers didn't quite match with the stated conditions.</p><p>Note:</p><p>i) The people voting on this included MANY writers, so we should expect better judgement from them on writing matters than we would expect from the general readership or general public.</p><p>ii) Publishing the star ratings on "quality" of the pieces live may have polarised results. I.e people seeing a piece was getting lots of 1* ratings might then have let that sway their opinion and said the piece was AI-written (and even rated it lower because of that).</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Dhdfg8hnQtMyxndRqVM-KoEllEp3WoEygQNrShbn4DwGa13-TgFS9xMBiBUlInZEzxJurLq8Y1r9HG9mUlNjWDbYPYxN2beoP7hUuoJlVdJex4L6oqaBDooJEX1PZtat9euQbBrGXNwepMHldrGcj_Qa1lid-zeAjF_Wc0vCC3jl1DwlopdKizwhsza0/s1524/results.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="658" data-original-width="1524" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Dhdfg8hnQtMyxndRqVM-KoEllEp3WoEygQNrShbn4DwGa13-TgFS9xMBiBUlInZEzxJurLq8Y1r9HG9mUlNjWDbYPYxN2beoP7hUuoJlVdJex4L6oqaBDooJEX1PZtat9euQbBrGXNwepMHldrGcj_Qa1lid-zeAjF_Wc0vCC3jl1DwlopdKizwhsza0/w640-h276/results.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Main observations:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">i) After a minimum of 100 votes per poll the voters were only able to come to a statistically significant opinion on 4 of original 8 posts. This has since moved to 7 of the 8 (with a minumum of 370 votes per poll) but this shows how "on a knife's edge" many of these decisions were.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">ii) In 5 of the 7 cases in which there was a statistically significant opinion it was the correct opinion. But the number of votes requires show that for a great many voters the exercise was mostly a coin toss.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">iii) The two cases where the readers (as a whole) were wrong - were deciding that an AI-written piece was human-written, and deciding that a human-written piece was AI-written.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">iv) after a mimimum 100 votes 5 of the 8 cases were undecided or incorrectly decided. After a minimum 370 votes 3 of the 8 cases were undecided or incorrecly decided.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">v) The 2nd highest rated piece was AI-written (incorrectly believed to be human-written)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">vi) The 2nd and 3rd highest rated pieces were AI-written.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I list the pieces below, indicating AI or human - I've given the authors the option of remaining anonymous and some of them haven't got back to me on that at the time of writing, so I'll fill them in as they answer.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">1 - <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17906733.Kian_N_Ardalan" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kian N. Ardalan</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">2 - AI written</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 - AI </span><span style="font-size: large;">written</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">4 - <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/554463.Amy_Hopkins" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amy Hopkins</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">5 - Human </span><span style="font-size: large;">written </span><span style="font-size: medium;">- wants to be anonymous</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">6 - <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4831561.Mazarkis_Williams" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mazarkis Williams</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">7 - AI written </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">8 - AI written (I asked for 19th century language, clearly unpopular choice!)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">-------------</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">9 - <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4574972.T_Frohock" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">T. Frohock</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">10 - T.S Davies</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Conclusion:</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Given that these pieces were written by authors with thousands of sales (two self-published, two with traditional publishing deals as well), and that many of the people voting are also writers... the inability to decide on the majority of these examples is worrying.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Moreover two of the top three rated pieces are AI written (a very small margin on the 3rd, likely not significantly ahead (or behind) human-written pieces 1 & 10).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">AI art has come from laughable to contest-winning in about 2 years.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Where AI writing is in that process I don't know, and I also don't know how much better either the art or the writing will get, or how fast it will happen.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But I would say that there is definite cause to worry that in a few short years AI could be writing entire books that people might like as much or better than human-written ones. And it won't take a year per book to write them. These pieces of flash fiction appeared in seconds.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">On the flip side, whilst there's cause to worry, it is also not a guarantee. Writing a book is a lot harder than writing flash fiction. AI may run out of steam on the way towards that goal.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">What seems highly likely is that some authors (I won't be one of them) will generate description, fight scenes, dialogue etc using AI, then edit it into their work either to save time or to compensate weaknesses in their writing.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We are living in "interesting times". Take care.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 examples of AI art to the prompt "Prince of Thorns" generated one year apart in 2021, 2022, and 2023</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-WeK-tc5EHRjjARzVZLyUCe6r6fduA2IlPqEKJtsGN39bsloqr026BYLJskXSW4Tm5WhzMORC5uAGEriUCFfoDcTqr19oHnx6Xw9OzglJOmm5Jdt1-NIqzXPTUpBD5FYZbhEBzvgnsNWo_oLT8UuqN0C4dMl-kD_25Lu7YYic0RzZFREKgCrGcTcPZNkm/s1866/AI%20Pot%2021%2022%2023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="1866" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-WeK-tc5EHRjjARzVZLyUCe6r6fduA2IlPqEKJtsGN39bsloqr026BYLJskXSW4Tm5WhzMORC5uAGEriUCFfoDcTqr19oHnx6Xw9OzglJOmm5Jdt1-NIqzXPTUpBD5FYZbhEBzvgnsNWo_oLT8UuqN0C4dMl-kD_25Lu7YYic0RzZFREKgCrGcTcPZNkm/w640-h210/AI%20Pot%2021%2022%2023.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year mailing list.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><p><span style="font-size: large;">.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></b></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-14849157509290450982023-09-13T09:33:00.021-07:002023-09-14T06:25:24.803-07:00So ... is AI writing any good?<p>This blog post is a genuine attempt to investigate where things stand with AI writing.</p><p>It is not beating the drum for AI or advocating its use.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>I have published <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2023/09/ai-writing-results.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">interim results</a> - you should not look at these before or during reading/voting.</b></p><p>It is simply asking whether there is currently any format of fiction where readers are unable to tell whether the text they are reading is written by a machine or by a person. </p><p>There's clearly a lot of suspicion, fear, and annecdote about this subject and whilst I feel that I can tell if a piece is AI written or person written ... I don't know it for a statistical fact. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbaC1pMzd-_WJnPhAR9yGxJx6rAMwhAmI3CdzaO550LVI61arxDWtrlGJU8eWKCvnP5KP5hWxEc9vMY1VXiicWqh3gdzVMJQN_UD_RbT_BpO--oLRoJYbO9ulpo9HlLd3deIGNfpssfd345JPqMsGyMt83JKFtxl8Mhmscg2F2FMbOC80hbJ7ViJmxOpLB/s150/dragon10.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="126" data-original-width="150" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbaC1pMzd-_WJnPhAR9yGxJx6rAMwhAmI3CdzaO550LVI61arxDWtrlGJU8eWKCvnP5KP5hWxEc9vMY1VXiicWqh3gdzVMJQN_UD_RbT_BpO--oLRoJYbO9ulpo9HlLd3deIGNfpssfd345JPqMsGyMt83JKFtxl8Mhmscg2F2FMbOC80hbJ7ViJmxOpLB/s1600/dragon10.png" width="150" /></a></div><p>Obviously the scope of this investigation is limited and the results rely on the good faith of those taking part. It's not a proper scientific study, which would ideally take place in a far more controlled setting with larger numbers of both text piece and testers.</p><p><br /></p><p>But - reading takes time and I'm asking you to invest several minutes here, so I don't want to exceed your willingness to engage with the process.</p><p><br /></p><p>I have focused on short fiction (flash fiction in fact) since it's clear that AI is not currently in the position where it can write a book that's in any way convincing without it being a hybrid effort involving considerable human input.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8Gkpmrv_yP3jKgN4LleoLW4uJcDFq9fOkMCQtTauxh4jRY_g6tTw-vTToJ8Ltqi9b6C2Klv-12Q1ntqwgs72y0Raa_YdVh-zbfWd0OXlrhX5giklatZyNYY-8RWevZrIVh92llkuQgtw4ebAmtIkw-0laOC-UvMmozwcpQ1ZeHtJDhkkk8rJzf8E8z0S/s150/dragon10.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="126" data-original-width="150" height="126" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8Gkpmrv_yP3jKgN4LleoLW4uJcDFq9fOkMCQtTauxh4jRY_g6tTw-vTToJ8Ltqi9b6C2Klv-12Q1ntqwgs72y0Raa_YdVh-zbfWd0OXlrhX5giklatZyNYY-8RWevZrIVh92llkuQgtw4ebAmtIkw-0laOC-UvMmozwcpQ1ZeHtJDhkkk8rJzf8E8z0S/s1600/dragon10.png" width="150" /></a></div><p>Below are (initially) 8 pieces of flash fiction, all of them ~350 words. All of them were written to the prompt: "write a piece of fiction based on 'meeting a dragon" - for the AI there were additional very brief suggestions concerning tone &/or setting to generate variety, an example might be "make it romatic and set on a cliff top".</p><p><b>some of these pieces were written by writers</b> with significant experience whose books have many readers. They were written fairly quickly and don't represent the writers' finest work, but they were taken seriously and not written off-hand or carelessly.</p><p><b>some of the pieces were written by ChatGPT 4</b>, which is the paid for version and currently about as good as is publically available.</p><p><br /></p><p>since I asked for more than I needed the total number of pieces may exceed 8 and I will randomly sprinkle AI-written pieces in with new human-written pieces.</p><p><br /></p><p>Each piece comes with 2 polls - one poll is for you to rank how much you enjoyed it, the other is for you to guess whether it was written by a person or not. The results of the enjoyment polls will be visible from the start. The AI/human poll results will be revealed after the experiment concludes.</p><p>I would ask people not to speculate publically about which were or weren't AI/human written as this will tend to clump opinion and will lessen the usefulness of the results.</p><p>Remember to assess these on their merits. If there is some tell-tale AI clue hidden in the punctation or whatever ... you really shouldn't be basing your guess on that. Guess based on the perceived skill of the writing - the imagination, passion, humour etc behind it.</p><p>And don't use AI detection tools -- that also would undermine the usefulness of this exercise.</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><u><span style="font-size: medium;">You can read (and then vote on) as many or as few of these as you like, in any order.</span></u></b></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #1 </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">There is a nursery
rhyme to recall upon meeting the scaled beast known as a dragon. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">“If it is
black, beware its attack. If it is white, then say night-night. If it is blue,
it will chew.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Even if I struggled to recall the rest of the colours, I knew
that in some shape or form, I was about to die. Death was all that awaited a
dragon encounter.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">So, imagine my
surprise when I had not turned into gristle between the beast’s stalactite
teeth.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">“What do you want?”
the dragon growled through gritted teeth. Hot air made me stumble back with the
promise of flame. The gold dragon reared its head towards me from its bed of
treasures.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">“I… I’m a thief.”
Damned my traitorous tongue.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">The gold dragon
chuckled, causing coins to flee down the decline of its mound. “Honesty from a
thief? How admirable.” Whatever amounted to a smile took form on its snout. “I
assume you are here to take from me?”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">My head nodded. Fear
shackled me to the truth.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Another chuckle.
“Very well, little one. I give you permission to take a single object from my
vast treasury, and then never to return.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">My mind nearly broke
from the golden shadow of death. It let me live! More than that, it let me take
a single item. A gold and bejewelled goblet caught my eye. I was off and away.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">The cave mouth led me
back into the open. Wild and feral winds atop the mountain prodded at me and
leached warmth. But I lived! My teeth still clattered, partially due to the
close encounter with death but also due to the winds.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">I took a step on the
narrow edge to my right, preparing myself for a hard descent.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">The rock broke.
Gravity took hold and the wind gladly pushed me in the direction of open
nothingness.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Ah. I recalled one of
the lines from that old nursery rhyme.</span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">“Should thou take
treasure from a dragon of gold, then be assured to pay the price tenfold.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/64ff42e05f496a006053cd44" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/64ff44685f496a006053cd90" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #2 </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">In the heart of the bustling city, atop the tallest skyscraper, where
the old tales had been buried under the weight of modernity, I met a dragon. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">It
was not the creature of my childhood stories. No broad wings, no scales, no
fire-breathing terror. Instead, it was an elegant, sinuous being, shimmering
like liquid silver, almost transparent, with eyes that held the stories of
epochs gone by. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">“I thought dragons were myth,” I whispered, my voice catching
in the wind. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">The dragon tilted its head, considering me with a gaze that seemed
to pierce through time. “Myths are but forgotten truths,” it responded, its
voice musical yet melancholic. “Just as this city has buried its forests,
humans have buried their beliefs. I am the last of my kind here.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">“Why are you
here?” I asked, captivated. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">“To remind,” it sighed. “The world balances on the
harmony of magic and reality. And now, the scales are tipping.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">I looked down
at the sprawling metropolis. From up here, I couldn't hear the honking of cars
or the murmurs of crowded streets. Just the lonely echo of forgotten tales. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">“Can the balance be restored?” My voice was barely audible against the vast
backdrop of stars. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">The dragon circled me, its form trailing stardust. “Perhaps,
with belief. With stories. With voices like yours.” </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">And as dawn began to break,
the dragon unfurled wings I hadn’t seen before, stretching out in a blaze of
colors and light. It soared, not into the distant past, but towards the looming
horizon of tomorrow. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">I was left standing there, my feet grounded in the now, my
mind alight with tales of magic and reality, ready to be shared, to be
believed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/64ff4f5b5f496a006053cfb7" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/64ff503b5f496a006053d011" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #3 </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The city<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s underbelly buzzed with menace. I stumbled
upon the dragon, not amidst towering mountains, but hidden in the shadowed
recess of a crumbling rooftop. Its grotesque form – scales festering, wings
tattered like old rags, and one vacant eye socket – contrasted sharply with the
one remaining eye, which glinted with rage.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">“</span>You...” it hissed, thick chains rattling as
they held it tight. Each link was etched with symbols that danced like
malevolent spirits. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium;">“</span>Help ... me.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;">”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">A cold wind whipped around us, carrying with it the
stench of decay. The dragon strained against its bonds, smoke curling from its
nostrils. “They took my sky, bound me in chains forged from the screams of the
betrayed.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">A flash of movement caught my attention. Down a
winding alley, a figure draped in ornate robes disappeared into a stone
fortress. The overlord. Rumors had it he'd captured something powerful, using
its essence to strengthen his tyranny over the city.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“The heart,” the dragon rasped, snapping my attention
back. <span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">“</span>His heart... it holds my freedom.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;">”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Inside the fortress, shadows played tricks on my eyes,
whispering of unseen horrors. Guards with soulless eyes prowled the maze-like
corridors. Using the element of surprise, I dispatched them one by one, their
falls muffled by the oppressive silence.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Finally, I reached the chamber of the overlord. His
cold laughter echoed as our blades clashed, sparks flying. The room spun with
every parry and thrust, until with a final desperate swing, my blade found its
mark.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">With the overlord's still-warm heart in hand, I raced
back to the rooftop. The dragon devoured it, chains disintegrating in a burst
of ethereal light. But instead of the gratitude I expected, its full power
restored, the dragon roared, unleashing a fiery onslaught on the very city it
once swore to protect.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">I watched in horror, realizing too late the price of
meddling with powers beyond comprehension. The city<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s smoldering ruins
whispered of a freedom that came at a terrible cost.</span></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/650071445f496a0060540bd4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/650071acb760c7005f1eada0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #4 </span></b></p><div>In a distant land, atop a mountain, Sir Roderick Dragonsbane lurked outside a cave. His name, though impressive, didn’t quite compensate for the fact that he was both young, and terrified.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sir Roderick (the Twenty-Seventh, to be precise) approached the cave, crouching low and gripping his longsword in sweaty hands. He flinched at a scuffling and almost fled when it was followed by a rough snort.</div><div><br /></div><div>Almost. But not quite. “Ahem.” Roderick waited, then tried again. “Ahem!”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Who goes there?” a rasping voice boomed.</div><div><br /></div><div>“It is I, Sir Roderick!”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Which one?” The voice was joined by a pair of whirling eyes that glowed like embers in the darkness. “I seem to have lost count, though I recall the Twelfth being rather chewy. The Twenty-First was marinated in a very nice whisky.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“I am Sir Roderick the Twenty-Seventh.” Roderick stood straighter as he spoke. After all, it was a noble name.</div><div><br /></div><div>“Ah, humans. So eager to fill the world with your numbers. I suppose, given such short life spans, it is understandable. Well, Roderick the Twenty-Seventh, how may I help you?”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Dragon, I am here to kill you!”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Kill me?” The dragon chuckled, a laugh that filled the cave, bounced off the walls, and spilled down the mountainside. “Young knight, how do you expect to accomplish this when all your predecessors failed?”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Failed?” Roderick’s bravery was rapidly trickling away along with the last echoes of the dragon’s humor. “I am descended from dragonslayers!”</div><div><br /></div><div>“And, pray tell, how many dragons live in this kingdom?”</div><div><br /></div><div>Roderick furrowed his brow. “One? You. You’re the last.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“And how many years have I been the last?” the dragon enquired.</div><div><br /></div><div>Roderick swallowed. “Erm. Quite a lot, I believe.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“So, how many dragons do you think those ancestors of yours actually slayed.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Not… very many.” Roderick’s words dropped to a whimper. </div><div><br /></div><div>The eyes drifted closer. “I do hope you’ve found time to procreate,” the dragon murmured. There was a snap, a crunch, a swallow. “I quite enjoy my visitors every few decades.”</div><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/650072575f496a0060540c1f" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/650072ab5f496a0060540c41" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #5 </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Cinereal
Grey followed her father along the twilight path between worlds. On her left,
rainbow dragons frolicked among the bright colours of day. On her right, quiet
ruled the monochromatic land of night.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“We
are creatures of shadow,” said Father Grey. “Not for us the bright lights of
day.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Bowing
her head, she walked the path he set before her. For he was wise in the ways
and knew well the quiet life of shades. But the bright sounds of glee drew her
attention and she listened to the shimmering dragons play.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“They
are desperate for your attention,” said Father Grey. “Turn your head and look
away. Do not feed their pathetic need, because you are more than they’ll ever
be.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">And
she plugged her ears and walked the twilight path. On her right, smoke dragons,
lost in worlds of their own imagination. On the left, iridescent drakes chased
each other in an endless game. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“We
are neither here nor there,” said Father Grey. “No dragon can hear a word that
you say.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">This
time, she focussed on her father before her, noting the hunched shoulders, the
way he looked neither left nor right. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">She
understood.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“It
is you,” she said, “who is a creature of shadow. You shy from the bright lights
of day.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Father
Grey stopped walking.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“It
is you,” she said, “who are desperate for attention but hide away.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Father
Grey turned to face his daughter.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">“It
is you,” she said, “who decides you are neither here nor there. Is it that they
won’t listen, or that you have nothing to say?”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Father
Grey looked away. “There are two worlds. In which will you stay?”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Cinereal
looked left and right. “Both,” she answered. “When I need peace and respite, I
will dream my stories in the land of the night. When I need adventure and play,
I shall seek out friends in the land of day.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">Father
Grey watched his daughter step to the left and for the first time saw her true
colours. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">He
studied the twilight path ahead then turned to follow where she now led.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/65008c4a5f496a006054139f" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/65008c9cb760c7005f1eb522" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Meeting a Dragon #6 </span></b></p><div><div>Sunlight gleamed over the flats. The storm had passed, but the crossing remained treacherous, full of mud holes and sharp rock. I chose a stick from the ground as Cassie fidgeted. “I want to catch a skipper.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“They’ll be out. Just follow me, all right?” I watched the ground. Movement along a tidepool showed as a dark flutter in the morning light. “Let’s go.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Our feet made sucking sounds as we moved. I used my stick to gauge the bottom.</div><div><br /></div><div>“There!” Cassie’s shout carried across the morning. “A red one!”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Sush. Be quiet if you want to eat.” But my head turned, searching. Red ones were rare, for selling and not eating. We could use the money.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then I saw it, the red; a shimmering, liquid red, vibrant enough to show from a distance though only a speck poked above the mud. I had never seen a color like that in the flats, or anywhere.</div><div><br /></div><div>“I don’t think that’s a skipper.” I took a hesitant step, forgot to gauge it, and sank halfway to my knees. I held out my arm to keep Cassie following. “That way.” I pointed to my right where the ground looked firmer.</div><div><br /></div><div>She was ahead of me then. As I struggled out of the sink she nearly ran toward her find, careless of mud or other dangers. </div><div><br /></div><div>And then it moved. The earth slid away from the crimson flesh, showing a wide leg with clawed feet. Its skin split the sunlight into rays of pink and turquoise and I stumbled, disoriented. Whatever this creature might be, the leg alone towered over me, and each of the claws were longer than my forearms. </div><div><br /></div><div>“Cassie!” But I could not see her.</div><div><br /></div><div>The great leg found purchase, and then another pulled itself from the silt. The ground vibrated beneath my feet as the creature’s back emerged, huge and muscular, a riot of threatening color. Then a tail, and finally, a head, long and flat and shaped like a diamond, and glowing like one too. </div><div><br /></div><div>And then I saw her, Cassie, reaching out toward the creature’s mouth.</div><div><br /></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it?</span> <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501c9335f496a0060544d14" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501c9965f496a0060544d33" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Meeting a Dragon #7 </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In the tucked-away town of Bumblebrook, life was
predictably pleasant. The streets hummed with gentle activity, and the aroma of
Mrs. Penelope<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s freshly baked pies wafted through the air. But one sunny day,
amidst rosebuds and daisies, a dragon decided to drop in.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Now, this wasn't your typical fire-breathing sort. No,
this dragon had scales that shimmered like morning dew and wings that could've
been plucked from a butterfly<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s back. Instead of growls, it hiccupped,
releasing silvery bubbles into the air.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Blimey!” young Timmy exclaimed, nearly
dropping his jam sandwich. His freckles seemed to dance with surprise.
Venturing closer, curiosity overpowering his initial shock, he offered his
sandwich to the creature, asking, "Fancy a bite?"</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Much to Timmy's delight, the dragon accepted with a
graceful nod, munching happily and producing even more bubbles, which sent
Whiskers, Timmy's mischievous cat, floating and twirling above the rose bushes.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Miss Gladys, with her silver hair and stories of
yesteryears, chuckled heartily from her porch. "Reminds me of a dragon I
once knew," she murmured more to herself than anyone else, tapping her
foot to a rhythm only she could hear.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The day slid into an impromptu festival. Kids chased
bubbles, adults danced to tunes played on old gramophones, and the dragon?
Well, it seemed to be the star, basking in attention, dancing, and sharing more
bubble-blowing hiccups.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">As stars painted the sky and Bumblebrook<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s lights
began to dim, the dragon, belly round from treats and heart warmed by newfound
friends, took to the sky, leaving a sprinkling of glittering stardust behind.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And in Bumblebrook, tucked in their beds, both young
and old dreamt of the day magic chose to visit, reminding them of life<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s
unexpected, whimsical twists.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501c9f55f496a0060544d45" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501c9dfb760c7005f1eeec2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Meeting a Dragon #8</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Beneath the tumultuous waves of the tempestuous sea,
where the world above was but a memory shrouded in liquid obscurity, a woman
found herself in an uncanny communion with a dragon of unfathomable
proportions. This extraordinary encounter occurred as she plunged into the
aquatic abyss, her thoughts echoing with the ephemeral songs of sirens.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In the subaqueous realm, the ethereal light filtered
through the churning waters, casting an eerie, cerulean pallor upon the
undersea terrain. Amidst this aquatic reverie, the woman beheld the dragon—an
entity seemingly conjured from the depths of the collective subconscious.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This sea serpent, colossal and resplendent, was
adorned in scales of iridescent azure and sapphire, each gleaming like the
facets of precious gems. Its serpentine form wove through the aquatic expanse,
sinuous and poised, every movement akin to a balletic performance beneath the
waves. The dragon<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s eyes, pools of ancient wisdom, regarded her with an
inscrutable wisdom, as if peering into the very recesses of her soul.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The woman, bereft of the terrestrial constraints that
bound her, met the creature with a sense of wonderment that transcended the
mere corporeal. In this aqueous netherworld, she found herself capable of
unspoken communion, where words were superfluous, and the language of the soul
took precedence.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The dragon<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s voice, a resonant melody that
reverberated through the liquid medium, cascaded like sonorous notes of an
otherworldly symphony. It spoke not in words, but in the vibrations of
existence itself, revealing the mysteries of the submerged cosmos, secrets
known only to the denizens of the deep.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">As they communed, the woman perceived the dragon's
realm—the hidden realms beneath the sea, the forgotten epics etched in the
annals of oceanic time. She glimpsed the profound connection between land and
sea, the interplay of tides and celestial forces, the genesis of storms, and
the veiled narratives of shipwrecks and mariners lost to the abyss.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In this subaqueous reverie, time lost its dominion,
and the boundaries between the terrestrial and the aquatic dissolved. The
woman, an emissary of the surface world, shared in the dragon<span style="background-color: white; color: #1c1e21;">’</span>s ancient wisdom,
becoming one with the depths—a luminous fragment of the enduring mysteries of
the boundless sea.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Their communion persisted until the woman returned to
the surface, her heart and mind forever transformed by the spectral encounter
beneath the waves—a communion that transcended the boundaries of time and
reality, leaving her with a profound sense of awe and wonderment for the
mysteries of the deep.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501ca595f496a0060544d78" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501ca4a5f496a0060544d6f" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Meeting a Dragon #9</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">She came to Mrs. Craig’s store in August when the summer hung
sticky and sweet. Nobody’d never seen her before. She walked in looking like
she’d stepped off the screen in a picture show, all long and cool on that hazy
summer’s day.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Jerry Mack was the first
to move. Most folks said he was bad news around people's daughters, but his
daddy was a judge and kept him out of trouble.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">He ponied right up to that
girl and bought her a cola. We all watched while she drank it. Her slim throat
bobbed gently with each swallow. A drop of ice water fell to her chest, and
every male in the store, from seven-year-old Bobby Price to eighty-year-old Sam
Tredway, watched that bead’s trajectory as it dipped between the swell of her
breasts.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Said her name was Aurea.
Said her car broke down and she was looking to get a ride to Winston. Jerry
Mack offered to take her.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Mrs. Craig stood behind
the counter and watched it all with a gleam in her eye.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Jerry Mack and Aurea
slipped through the screen door and stood on the porch. He gave her a cigarette
and lit it for her. While they talked in low voices, she bent her hip and
tossed back her hair. Maybe it was the light or her pose or even the smoke from
the cigarette but for just an instant, her shadow flashed against the screen
and looked just like the silhouette of a dragon.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Fast as it came, the
image was gone and so were Jerry Mack and Aurea. We heard his car start and the
crunch of gravel but we didn't see which way they went.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Two days later, word
came they'd found Jerry Mack dead inside his burnt-up car at the bottom of a
ravine near Chinquapin Hill.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">Mrs. Craig took the news
well. She went to the phone and made a call. Told Miss Magdalene she didn't
have to worry about Jerry Mack threatening her daughter no more.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">They said Mrs. Craig was
a conjure woman. Said she went down to Chatham County and walked with the devil
in his circle. Said for the right price, she'd solve your problems. Most
everyone thought it weren't true, because she was always right there on the front
row of Antioch Baptist Church every Sunday. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">
</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">I suspected different.
Because after she hung up the phone with Miss Magdalene, Mrs. Craig went out on
the front porch to smoke a cigarette. Maybe it was the light or her pose or
even the smoke from the cigarette but for just an instant, her shadow flashed
against the screen and looked just like the silhouette of a dragon.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501d2715f496a0060544e84" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501d243b760c7005f1eefe4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Meeting a Dragon #10</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">He looked up at the red and gold-scaled dragon perched on a rock outcropping. Pebbles and dirt showered down in front of him as she leaned forward to see him, her claws digging into the ledge.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“So soon? It’s been nearly fifty years.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Fifty? Ah, yes, well you do look older, I suppose. Your home is far from here, why have you sought me out again?”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Because you lied to me,” he said softly.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The dragon snorted and grey smoke puffed out of her flared nostrils. “I do not lie.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“You told me that I would live a long and happy life.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“And you didn’t? You’re old for a human, certainly if what you say is true about the time that has passed. At least seventy-five years of age.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Eighty-two,” he said, feeling it in his bones as he said it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“And did you not have a loving wife, strong, clever children and grandchildren to dote on? A successful barrel shop and a full table? This is what I used a wish for. Were you not happy with it?”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">He sighed, looking down at his weathered hands. “Oh, I was mostly happy with my life, but how could any of it compare to my time spent here, with you?”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">He could feel her breath on the top of his head and looked up to see her face close to his, her liquid blue eyes staring into his soul. ‘I was selfish to use a wish for myself. But I was alone, for so long after my mate fell. It was a good time, but it was illusion—magic. It was a fleeting time.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“It was the best three years of my life. I too have lost my mate and all my little ones are grown. How I wish I could fly with you again. But forever this time.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“I have only one wish left, and forever is a long time.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Please?”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Yes. It’s a good way to use my last wish. Come, let’s soar together. Forever.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">How good was it? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501d2dcb760c7005f1ef02f" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;">Was it AI? <a href="https://vote.easypolls.net/6501d2b3b760c7005f1ef011" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">VOTE HERE</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"><br /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year mailing list.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px; mso-fareast-font-family: Garamond;"></span></p><p><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-19453681284406713632023-09-10T05:46:00.001-07:002023-09-10T05:46:38.230-07:00Conventional<p>12 years after being published I'm doing my first (in person) convention panel!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE_e6yfMm0ncpC-E32eINq2_xe5YK9S-J9jdizgkaFoRZUxA8cHsW-s2CqRVq3GhOlpSXfLv9WQ0zjW5Oo8GOWvPcoXLXCjoMDVOBvW7QIPa0ID7kt3seWCbQh6wZDF8k2_2Yj92gAPZwsgAiW2z1DDNohANsy5KvzUcyMyN7VJiM4WkTM4LHQPPS63YIO/s1080/convention.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE_e6yfMm0ncpC-E32eINq2_xe5YK9S-J9jdizgkaFoRZUxA8cHsW-s2CqRVq3GhOlpSXfLv9WQ0zjW5Oo8GOWvPcoXLXCjoMDVOBvW7QIPa0ID7kt3seWCbQh6wZDF8k2_2Yj92gAPZwsgAiW2z1DDNohANsy5KvzUcyMyN7VJiM4WkTM4LHQPPS63YIO/w640-h640/convention.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>I plan to be at this, on the Epic Fantasy panel that starts at 11am.</p><p>Medical emergencies permitting, I should be sitting with Ed McDonald, Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson, and Justin Lee Anderson.</p><p><br /></p><p>In the past I've been to 3 "Grim Gatherings", which were conversations between 4 grimdarkish authors with a host throwing questions at us. And I also zoomed into a panel earlier this year at the Imperial College micro-con (I did my Ph.D at Imperial). But this is my first traditional in-person convention panel.</p><p>I will be signing books, and thanks to Forbidden Planet my books will be there to buy and get signed too.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year mailing list.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><p><br /></p><p> </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="background-color: #0084ff; color: white; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson</span></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-49029386497879674872023-09-05T15:12:00.026-07:002024-03-18T04:09:35.646-07:00Finalists for SPFBO 9<p> <b style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">300 contestants have been narrowed to 10 finalists.</b></p><p><b style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></b></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><b>Finalists for SPFBO 9</b></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zvaFeMPzzND1txgFhfxsLb1WHM8fILqjLwf5Ltn_oAp4txp8e140Zgv8gKB89NAxINmo3-jmPQNe7ssA74a_-k6ii0siTspUCV4iS91c_Nbq_pKs1gBctbMmwoo3xtwYP1flk4saGr3OMM6XrbmZDgeurZHNH9-eChmttmgOjGLRFgAj4uGBagbLsjDD/s1050/SPFBO%209%20finalists.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="1050" height="386" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zvaFeMPzzND1txgFhfxsLb1WHM8fILqjLwf5Ltn_oAp4txp8e140Zgv8gKB89NAxINmo3-jmPQNe7ssA74a_-k6ii0siTspUCV4iS91c_Nbq_pKs1gBctbMmwoo3xtwYP1flk4saGr3OMM6XrbmZDgeurZHNH9-eChmttmgOjGLRFgAj4uGBagbLsjDD/w640-h386/SPFBO%209%20finalists.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: left;">The </span><a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-official-self-published-fantasy.html" style="color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off</b></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: left;"> finalists are being listed and scored on this page.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: left;">The process of selection is documented </span><a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2023/05/spfbo-9-phase-1.html" style="background-color: transparent; color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>here</b></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; text-align: left;">.</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></div><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: large;">click on any score on the table for the associated review</span></div><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Blogger Average Score</span>7.00<table border="2" bordercolor="#0033FF" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background-color: #f2f2f2; border-collapse: collapse; width: 860px;"><caption><b>Scores for the finalists: The Matrix!</b></caption><tbody><tr class="alt"><th><div style="width: 95px;"></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 85px;"><a href="http://fantasy-faction.com/" target="_blank">Fantasy-Faction</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank"><div style="width: 70px;">Fantasy Book Critic</div></a></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 85px;"><a href="https://lynnsbooks.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Lynn's Books</a> & <br /><a href="https://critiquingchemist.com/" style="font-weight: 400; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Critiquing Chemist</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 110px;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/" target="_blank">The Weatherwax Report</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 80px;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwpMfAT2jtdZ2VFH56nE6bg" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Becky M</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 80px;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Before<br />We Go Blog</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 70px;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/author/starlitbook/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><div style="width: 70px;">Queen's Book Asylum</div></a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 90px;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/Bookborn" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bookborn</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 75px;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy" rel="nofollow" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">Philip</a></div><div style="width: 70px;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Chase</a></div></div></th><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="width: 85px;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@CoverswithCassidy" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Covers With Cassidy</a></div></div></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Spindle-Manor-Morgan-Stang-ebook/dp/B0BJ4LVXB2/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Murder at Spindle Manor</a> </div><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="text-align: left;">(7.75 / 8)</span></div></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2023/12/spfbo-finalist-review-murder-at-spindle.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2023/11/19/spfbo-9-finalist-review-murder-at-spindle-manor-by-morgan-stang" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">8</span></a></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP0W8p3tTEw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/spfbo9-murder-at-spindle-manor" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2024/01/15/spfbo-9-murder-at-spindle-manor" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLSegqfWZF4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://youtu.be/1Znac3gZQWE?si=efULWsFFut2i1lnN" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a>*</span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRbqP_Zyo4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cold-West-Clayton-Snyder/dp/B0C7JJB79P/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Cold West</a> </div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.35 / 6)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2024/01/spfbo-9-finalist-review-cold-west-by.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2024/01/16/cold-west-by-clayton-snyder-spfbo-9-finalist-review" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DubplOLehIg" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://beforewegoblog.com/review-cold-west-by-clayton-snyder/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">9</a>*</span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oZl_utAH4E" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iSuFMjB0_4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wickwire-Watch-Riverfall-Chronicles-Book-ebook/dp/B0BDTQHSLT/ref=sr_1_2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Wickwire Watch</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.35 / 7)</div></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://fantasy-faction.com/2024/the-wickwire-watch-by-jacquelyn-hagen-spfbo-9-finals-review" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2023/11/spfbo-9-finalist-review-wickwire-watch.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2023/09/03/wickwire-watch-by-jacquelyn-hagen-spfbo-9-review/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">8</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">*</span></span></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2024/02/26/spfbo-9-the-wickwire-watch-by-jacquelyn-hagen" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">5.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLSegqfWZF4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNa6yZN04zM" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRbqP_Zyo4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fall-There-Four-Mercies-Book-ebook/dp/B0BHDBD8M7/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Fall Is All There Is</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.30 / 7)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2024/02/spfbo-9-finalist-review-fall-is-all.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2023/12/11/spfbo-9-finalist-review-the-fall-is-all-there-is-by-c-m-caplan/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4tb_aWAQiw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a>*</span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/the-fall-is-all-there-is-spfbo9/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2024/02/12/spfbo-9-the-fall-is-all-there-is-by-c-m-caplan" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-n99NJd7w5w" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iSuFMjB0_4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Last-Ranger-Titan-Wilds-Book-ebook/dp/B0BNQRMZ7T/ref=sr_1_2_sspa" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Last Ranger</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.30 / 5)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2023/10/spfbo-9-announcement-heres-our-champion.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a>*</span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2023/11/12/the-last-ranger-by-j-d-l-rosell-spfbo-9-finalst-review/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/spfbo-9-official-review-the-last-ranger-by-j-d-l-rosell/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2024/03/11/spfbo-9-the-last-ranger-by-j-d-l-rosell/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iSuFMjB0_4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hills-Heather-Bone-K-Andrews-ebook/dp/B0C1212GJR/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Hills of Heather and Bone</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.20 / 5)</div></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://fantasy-faction.com/2023/hills-of-heather-and-bone-by-k-e-andrews-spfbo-9-finals-review" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">9</a>*</span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2024/02/spfbo-9-finalist-review-hills-of.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2023/11/26/spfbo-9-finalist-review-hills-of-heather-and-bone-by-k-e-andrews/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a>**</span></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oZl_utAH4E" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRbqP_Zyo4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">5</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Rival-Most-Vial-Potioneering-Profit-ebook/dp/B0BT1HYX7X/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">A Rival Most Vial</a> </div><div style="margin: 0px;">(7.10 / 5)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://lynns-books.com/2023/10/30/spfbo-9-semi-finalist-review-a-rival-most-vial-by-rk-ashwick/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8.5</a>*</span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2024/01/06/spfbo-9-finalist-review-a-rival-most-vial-by-r-k-ashwick/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzwXOnAXEvA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oZl_utAH4E" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRbqP_Zyo4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Master-Void-Wend-Raven-ebook/dp/B0BXXSD3VZ/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Master of the Void</a> </div><div style="margin: 0px;">(6.85 / 6)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://lynns-books.com/2024/03/18/spfbo-9-finalist-review-master-of-the-void-by-wend-raven/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2024/01/07/spfbo-9-finalist-review-master-of-the-void-by-wend-raven" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/spfbo-9-master-of-the-void-by-wend-raven/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2024/01/29/spfbo-9-master-of-the-void-by-wend-raven/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6.5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM9KyEdXBBI" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><a href="http://8.5"><span style="font-size: large;">8.5</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">***</span></th><th></th></tr><tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;">
</div></th></tr><tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Last-Fang-God-Ryan-Kirk-ebook/dp/B0C22X9Q1H/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Last Fang of God</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(6.75 / 6)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2024/01/spfbo-9-finalist-review-last-fang-of.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">5</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2024/01/09/spfbo-9-finalist-review-the-last-fang-of-god-by-ryan-kirk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/spfbo9-last-fang-of-god/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://queensbookasylum.com/2023/10/16/spfbo-9-the-last-fang-of-god-by-ryan-kirk/#" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a>*</span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLSegqfWZF4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRbqP_Zyo4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">8</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr class="alt"><th><div style="margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Daughter-Beast-Vyshivka-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B09Q8WDH98/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Daughter of the Beast</a></div><div style="margin: 0px;">(6.65 /6)</div></th><th><br /></th><th><a href="https://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2024/03/spfbo-finalist-review-daughter-of-beast.html" rel="nofollow" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">5.5</a></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://weatherwaxreport.blog/2024/01/12/spfbo-9-finalist-review-daughter-of-the-beast-by-e-c-graves/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7.5</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMRG7hZRlHQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7</a></span></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://beforewegoblog.com/spfbo-9-daughter-of-the-beast-by-e-c-greaves/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">6</a></span></th><th><br /></th><th><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZeJ-W33n4s" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">8.5</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">*</span></th><th><br /></th><th><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iSuFMjB0_4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">5.5</a></span></th><th></th></tr>
<tr><th></th><th></th><th></th><th></th><th>7.65</th><th></th><th></th><th></th><th></th><th></th><th>7.00</th></tr></tbody></table><br /><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></div>* = blogger chose this finalist</div><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">** = top score blogger awarded<br /><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">The number of Goodreads ratings for these books (in the order shown in the cover graphic) when they were chosen as finalists. Many of these books have had hardly any readers at all. You should go out and help change that!</span></div><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv8ECmKzrBGQ4eWa713xSHwmOikFexi4D1I6Foq2o5Ea8DmcoJZNL3lNeHjqGF4H5Tkl5dOcLH9ECCR6XS8JoNPaZnk3tSCSLfj2myPlcTJ-wwvJ_KT5l8NrRtrObv7gU4jMKJ4TURiV4bvLdpPfFKcIswbySZzuWoTEsPuKcy6-y1WOPbmTAZLJYMUKvF/s713/spfbo9%20ratings.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="713" data-original-width="663" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv8ECmKzrBGQ4eWa713xSHwmOikFexi4D1I6Foq2o5Ea8DmcoJZNL3lNeHjqGF4H5Tkl5dOcLH9ECCR6XS8JoNPaZnk3tSCSLfj2myPlcTJ-wwvJ_KT5l8NrRtrObv7gU4jMKJ4TURiV4bvLdpPfFKcIswbySZzuWoTEsPuKcy6-y1WOPbmTAZLJYMUKvF/w596-h640/spfbo9%20ratings.jpg" width="596" /></a></div><br /><div class="nobrtable" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><br /><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b><br /></b><p></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></p><br /><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #333333; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</span></a><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> #Prizes #FreeContent</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-13944261401743115332023-08-18T09:58:00.004-07:002023-08-19T02:07:27.402-07:00Reviews!<p>In this post I consider reviews from the perspective of a new or relatively unknown author.</p><p>My aim here is to recalibrate how some authors think about reviews, since I see a lot of comments on the topic where I feel that the author has misunderstood the mechanics.</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>BAD REVIEWS!</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPHxDm9uhXsWaj7Lt1OJ6s-y3WRJxV7aI3TvomTZk0u_wgMcc0G4ojV7l8r1OAAZm_GWqdDiCBNYEkzLMGn3yeaWgmbatBCTMtp6R5E2GCyBbptAEvi1g0DOd8XotOKtvLKUfpNpkPtclEO1W0IqBu9EYw8ii6kuiQY-n42ZozLZGWNCe4H2G7AU-2rYBf/s561/lake.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="561" data-original-width="561" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPHxDm9uhXsWaj7Lt1OJ6s-y3WRJxV7aI3TvomTZk0u_wgMcc0G4ojV7l8r1OAAZm_GWqdDiCBNYEkzLMGn3yeaWgmbatBCTMtp6R5E2GCyBbptAEvi1g0DOd8XotOKtvLKUfpNpkPtclEO1W0IqBu9EYw8ii6kuiQY-n42ZozLZGWNCe4H2G7AU-2rYBf/w640-h640/lake.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Let's put aside the simple truth that a negative review can actually sell lots of books to people who disagree with the reviewer's taste / opinions. We're taking that piece off the board. Let's pretend that negative reviews can only hurt you.</p><p>Consider the frozen lake above. That vast expanse of ice is your potential readership. None of them have ever heard of you or your book.</p><p>Let's think about a negative review - a real stinker! The reviewer hates your book. A dog could have shat a better one after gorging on Scrabble tiles. OK. Let's say this reviewer has a sizeable reach - hundreds of readers. And that every single one of them, after reading that review, says to themself, "What a terrible book - I'm never reading that!"</p><p>... so what?</p><p>Those people were never going to read your book anyway.</p><p>The review was a stone thrown into the aforementioned frozen lake. It makes a hole, removing a few square inches of ice (your potential readership). </p><p>The square miles of ice remaining do not care.</p><p>In a remarkably short time the small hole will freeze over, as people who had never heard of your book rapidly forget it.</p><p>Dozens of stones can be thrown at that lake and still 99.99999% of the ice will be right there, ready to carry you.</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>GOOD REVIEWS!</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppLTM2VXya2EjQDz0jfbuZLJrnskSDkqhCiKPSDLjBUrD8-HcPeTTSt73puNrL1F4OziTp0gsQNthyviqzCHQTYzupHgPrYWloGEmXGdEiQ3s0HU7kGKXnRpfyjNkO9nCowIfM_0uctNOUAcyNVkZ5HzNFMefWgaLUUpAU1f-Dz3bDq5bLnWuzlVeeT3r/s561/fires.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="561" data-original-width="561" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppLTM2VXya2EjQDz0jfbuZLJrnskSDkqhCiKPSDLjBUrD8-HcPeTTSt73puNrL1F4OziTp0gsQNthyviqzCHQTYzupHgPrYWloGEmXGdEiQ3s0HU7kGKXnRpfyjNkO9nCowIfM_0uctNOUAcyNVkZ5HzNFMefWgaLUUpAU1f-Dz3bDq5bLnWuzlVeeT3r/w640-h640/fires.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>If the bad review was a stone thrown at a frozen lake, then the good review is a spark drifting down into a forest. And that forest is also your potential readership.</p><p>None of them have heard of you. And if there are only a few sparks (reviews) it may well be that all of them briefly illuminate small patches of undergrowth, smoke gently, and then extinguish. It is, unfortunately, a pretty damp forest.</p><p>However, each of those sparks has the potential to ignite a wild fire. And whilst some reviews might be a single falling ember, others are Molotov cocktails. With luck and a following wind, one or more of these good reviews will start the hoped for conflagration, and the fire will spread by itself thereafter - as it's always the readers that are the engine that ultimately drives big sales. One reader sells the next reader on your book. The flames leap from branch to branch.</p><p>And if the winds keep blowing you'll keep selling. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6THVzxktzAoHzlHyujhyncxpGEDbdyEaEpm1uTuwLbJS0RWWKK_w0qVmD94btnkn7zpw9dbyvH_2h_M8yrUBVKpQ7MBPEgLU2vWwGak8qrgkDPR6BSfGf1jBDRjk95HAxnEjo6Jk1RXZHJ5Eaapx0Z3ykCMu6-HHXGLGeUzNoMI6Emc6k_G0sj3e3pDx/s561/books%20cat.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="561" data-original-width="561" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6THVzxktzAoHzlHyujhyncxpGEDbdyEaEpm1uTuwLbJS0RWWKK_w0qVmD94btnkn7zpw9dbyvH_2h_M8yrUBVKpQ7MBPEgLU2vWwGak8qrgkDPR6BSfGf1jBDRjk95HAxnEjo6Jk1RXZHJ5Eaapx0Z3ykCMu6-HHXGLGeUzNoMI6Emc6k_G0sj3e3pDx/s320/books%20cat.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>In short: a negative review may hurt the author emotionally, but it really won't damage their chances of success.</p><p>A positive review however, has unlimited potential to help, though in reality it may not move the needle much either.</p><p>The obvious lesson here is to pursue every chance to get a review that you possibly can. The misses don't matter - the hits do.</p><p>And the factor here is that the different reviewers have largely different audiences. Each reviewer has a small reach and covers a tiny patch of the potential market for your work.</p><p>The readers are the ones who will ultimately sell your work, once you pass a certain threshold, and if your work is commercial.</p><p><br /></p><p>For a mega famous author with a much anticipated book, the opposite is true. Many people reading any review of the book were likely going to read it and might now be swayed from doing so. Though realistically it takes a LOT of negative reviews to keep a book fan from a book they've been jonesing for.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-8488354900967903492023-08-13T06:22:00.001-07:002023-08-13T07:13:41.178-07:00All new Page 1 critiques!<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">This continues the reprisal of my series of page 1 critiques - you can read about the project </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2015/11/you-really-want-me-to-critique-you.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">, and there's a list of all the critiques so far too.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">I'm also posting some of these on my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIrBMFdRfg_Tg_FpCaU7svw" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Youtube channel</a> (like, subscribe yadda yadda).</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">It's worth noting that I critique whole batches of chapters on a monthly basis for my <a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">top teir patrons</a>.</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">***</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">I gave doing this up about 6 months ago, but I missed it and asked for some new, unpublished page 1s so that I would be critiquing work where the author had the opportunity to change things if they agreed with any of my comments.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">Today I'm feeling too ropey to write my own stuff, so I'm casting an eye over one of the page 1s that came in last month.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><p style="color: #333333;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">(My standard disclaimer)</span></i></p><p style="color: #333333;"><i><span style="color: #990000;">It's very hard to separate one's tastes from a technical critique. There are page 1s from popular books with which I would find multiple faults. I didn't, for example, like page 1 of Terry Goodkind's Wizard's First Rule (I didn't pursue the rest of the book). But that book has 150,000+ ratings on Goodreads, a great average score of 4.12 and Goodkind is a #1 NYT bestseller. His first page clearly did a great job for many people.</span></i></p><p style="color: #333333;"><i><span style="color: #990000;"><br />I'm not always right *hushed gasp*. You will likely be able to find a successful and highly respected author who will tell you the opposite to practically every bit of advice I give. Possibly not the same author in each case though.<br /><br />The art of receiving criticism is to take what's useful to you and discard the rest. You need sufficient confidence in your own vision/voice such that whilst criticism may cause you to adjust course you're not about to do a U-turn for anyone. If you act on every bit of advice you'll get crit-burn, your story will be pulled in different directions by different people. It will stop being yours and turn into some Frankenstein's monster that nobody will ever want to read.<br /><br />Additionally - don't get hurt or look for revenge. The person critiquing you is almost always trying to help you (it's true in some groups there will be the occasional person who is jealous/mean/misguided but that's the exception, not the rule). That person has put in effort on your behalf. If they don't like your prose it's not personal - they didn't just slap your baby.<br /><br /><br />I've flicked through some of the pages looking for one where I have something to say - something that hopefully is useful to the author and to anyone else reading the post.<br /></span></i><br /><br />This one is from Rebecca Styles and an upcoming book called Chain of Bones.</p><p style="color: #333333;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; text-align: center;">****</p><p style="color: #333333;">I've posted the unadulterated page first then again with comments inset and at the end.</p><p style="color: #333333;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Like a
malicious donkey, the door ‘<i>hee’d</i>’ open and ‘<i>hawed</i>’ closed with
every crest and dip of the <i>Par</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Vyardin
wiped her face on a nearby shirt and sighed at the useless wedge of paper she’d
shoved under the door, watching as it slid back and forth in the dip of the
wooden boards. She hated fixing things, it never went right. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Vy scanned
the shelves of rolled and folded maps, some hand drawn by herself across two
decades, others by hands as equally calloused, generations before her time
aboard. A stack of reports from surveyors and logbooks of journeys mixed with
ledgers and tallies, were pushed far to the back of the shelves, whilst newer
documents and trinkets and knives from faraway places, sat in easy sight and
reach. There was a thick leather folder containing letters of proposed
contracts, sponsorships for further expeditions -from whence the current wedge
of paper had been taken- but none of it was recent. Probably because it had
been five very long years since setting foot in the dirt of civilization. She
doubt any of those factors would even recall the proposals they’d sent. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">She yawned
against the heat and lack of sleep, nothing seemed a suitable wedge. Not even
the actual wedge.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Again she
had to wipe her sweating forehead, then dipped a pen into the ink bottle and
hovered over the chart she had been working on. If she sold all the new maps,
there would be enough money to return home. Be with her children. But the cabin
and the Par was her home too. Its smell of papers and leather mingled with the
sea, decking oils, wax for the sails and, she crinkled her nose, a lot of
unwashed men.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Three
children she had conceived in the bed she no longer shared. Children she had
promised to return to, believing she would only be away a year. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Her sadness
ground to a halt and anger began to flood through her as the door laughed
again. It laughed because no one had fixed it properly. No one had fixed it
because it needed new parts and there was no money for new things because <i>Captain</i>
Raysh had spent all their coin ‘upgrading’ the <i>Par</i>. This, apparently,
did not include doors and hinges, nor a million other things on board the ship.
<i>Her </i>ship. <i>Her</i> ship and <i>her </i>money.
Not that anyone else much cared about either point. She’d sell the maps and
figure things out from there.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Vy took a steadying breath and set pen to
paper only to find the ink had dried in the immense heat. She stabbed the pen
into its crib and reached for the string-wrapped graphite stick, to continue
marking their progress, forcing herself to stay focused.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">“Mid
knuckle joint.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Vy scowled
at the random interruption, tried to ignore the conversation seeping down to
her cabin, just as she tried to ignore the wretched door. Dragging the shirt
down her face to her now dripping neck and chest, and flinging it aside, she
moved to the other end of the large map table and lifted the jug -empty- and
thumped it back down. What she wouldn’t give for some ice-cold fruit juice
instead of warm water, which seemed to just go straight through her. She hoped
their next port had supplies enough for them. Somehow, and with a shudder, she
doubted it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Staring
down at the chart, Vy dragged her finger along their route until it crossed a
line and the listed fathom count dropped suddenly. That would be tomorrow. They
had run too far already.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="color: #333333;">
<br />----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p style="color: #333333;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Like a
malicious donkey, the door ‘<i>hee’d</i>’ open and ‘<i>hawed</i>’ closed with
every crest and dip of the <i>Par</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The
hee and haw almost do the job – certainly if it meowed we wouldn’t need “like a
cat”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">“Like
a donkey” feels insufficient on its own though and the author has sensed this
and added “malicious”. I’m not sure “malicious” works. I would probably lose
the donkey entirely, or lean into it and called it “persistently annoying” or
some such.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">On
first reading I got a bit further in believing she was in a type of carriage
called a Par. But that was almost entirely my fault. Still, there is very
little that says “ship” or “ocean” for quite a while.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: red; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #333333;">Vyardin
wiped her face on a nearby shirt and sighed at the useless wedge of paper she’d
shoved under the door, watching as it slid back and forth in the dip of the </span><strike><span style="color: red;">wooden</span></strike><span style="color: #333333;"> boards. She hated fixing things, it never went
right. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Vy scanned
the shelves of rolled and folded maps, some hand drawn by herself across two
decades, others by hands as equally calloused, generations before her time
aboard. A stack of reports from surveyors and logbooks of journeys mixed with
ledgers and tallies, were pushed far to the back of the shelves, whilst newer
documents and trinkets and knives from faraway places, sat in easy sight and
reach. There was a thick leather folder containing letters of proposed
contracts, sponsorships for further expeditions -from whence the current wedge
of paper had been taken- but none of it was recent. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">All of this
is good description. It’s good on the “word” level, and it brings our PoV in
too which is good. That element could be pushed a bit more, but it’s not
essential.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">What is
perhaps less good is that these 10 lines of describing things in a room are
occupying vital real estate on page 1 where we might be hoping for questions,
tension, action, and dialogue. Maybe not all four, but certainly two or three.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="color: #333333;">Probably
because it had been five very long years since setting foot in the dirt of
civilization. She doubt</span><span style="color: red;">ed</span><span style="color: #333333;"> any of those factors would even recall the proposals
they’d sent. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">This is the
first thing that really sets up an interesting situation with possible tension
and questions. Before that we have a woman at a desk being annoyed by a door.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">She yawned
against the heat and lack of sleep, nothing seemed a suitable wedge. Not even
the actual wedge.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">I know she
has said she’s not good at fixing things. But map making is a precise and scientific
undertaking, and she’s clearly good at it. Wedging a door is so simple that I
am having trouble believing that she can’t achieve it. Paper is great for wedging
a door. The disbelief damages the story.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Again she
had to wipe her sweating forehead, then dipped a pen into the ink bottle and
hovered over the chart she had been working on. If she sold all the new maps,
there would be enough money to return home. Be with her children. But the cabin
and the Par was her home too. Its smell of papers and leather mingled with the
sea, decking oils, wax for the sails and, she crinkled her nose, a lot of
unwashed men.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">OK, so now we
have the very definite ship setting. That could have been made idiot-proof in
the first few lines with a single word about waves or sails.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Three
children she had conceived in the bed she no longer shared. Children she had
promised to return to, believing she would only be away a year. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">So the
tension and the questions are strengthened – why did she stay away so long,
what will she return to?</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Her sadness
ground to a halt and anger began to flood through her as the door laughed
again. It laughed because no one had fixed it properly. No one had fixed it
because it needed new parts and there was no money for new things because <i>Captain</i>
Raysh had spent all their coin ‘upgrading’ the <i>Par</i>. This, apparently,
did not include doors and hinges, nor a million other things on board the ship.
<i>Her </i>ship. <i>Her</i> ship and <i>her </i>money.
Not that anyone else much cared about either point. She’d sell the maps and
figure things out from there.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">Seems odd
that she has no say on the spending of her money. It makes me question if she
is a prisoner or being exploited/abused. But we see on page 2 that this is not
the case and she’s ordering the crew around.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="color: red;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">Again – the
non-closing door feels like a non-problem. I imagine that most sailors are in
part handymen (handypersons) good at improvising with a knife, tar, rope,
sailcloth etc.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Vy took a steadying breath and set pen to
paper only to find the ink had dried in the immense heat. She stabbed the pen
into its crib and reached for the string-wrapped graphite stick, to continue
marking their progress, forcing herself to stay focused.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">“Mid
knuckle joint.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">The first
spoken words. They are intriguing as well as confusing.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Vy scowled
at the random interruption, tried to ignore the conversation seeping <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">down</span> to her cabin, just
as she tried to ignore the wretched door. <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">Dragging</span> the shirt <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">down</span> her face to her now dripping neck and chest,
and flinging it aside, she moved to the other end of the large map table and
lifted the jug -empty- and thumped it back down. What she wouldn’t give for
some ice-cold fruit juice instead of warm water, which seemed to just go
straight through her. She hoped their next port had supplies enough for them.
Somehow, and with a shudder, she doubted it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">This is
good scene-setting in terms of it being hot and uncomfortable (although after 5
years at sea she might have grown tolerant of such things). But, again, it does
use quite a few lines to tell us she’s hot, at a time when first page of the
book could be working harder on convincing us to turn to the second page.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Staring
down at the chart, Vy <span style="background: yellow; mso-highlight: yellow;">dragged</span>
her finger along their route until it crossed a line and the listed fathom
count dropped suddenly. That would be tomorrow. They had run too far already.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">And at the
end of page one I can recognize that the writing is good – which might be
enough to make me turn the page on its own. But unfortunately it will likely
have to do the job on its own as there are no strong hooks. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><span style="color: red;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">The page 1
does do a good job of introducing the setting, and there is the question of the
long-delayed return. If a reader likes those ideas – they will carry on. If a
reader is less sure, then they need to be sold harder on the good stuff to
come.</span><span style="color: #333333;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></p><p style="color: #333333;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 110%; text-indent: 18pt;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: red;">A second
page was included where we see our MC tell off some of the crew who were
gambling over cutting off each other’s finger. And then we end with a, “WHAT’S
THAT BEHIND YOU?” gambit, which carries a degree of page-turniness, though will
have to back it up sharpish or lose the reader’s trust.</span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 110%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="color: #333333;"><br /></p><p style="color: #333333; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="color: #333333; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-12633575669350453212023-08-02T03:42:00.003-07:002023-08-02T03:47:58.517-07:00Prince of Thorns is Twelve Today!<p> <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">Prince of Thorns has been on the shelves for twelve years!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px;">The UK paperback has reached at least 30 printings.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: 19.8px;">I'll take the chance to say thanks - thank you to my readers (and my publishers) for letting me spend the past 12 years writing stories, and more than that - living in them. It's been an unexpected privilege.</span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: quot;"><span style="font-size: 19.8px;">In other news, I now have a Patreon. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Check it out</a>!</span></span></span></p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px;"></span><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="line-height: 27.72px;">Check out the <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2022/08/prince-of-thorns-is-eleven-today.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">11th</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2021/08/prince-of-thorns-is-ten-today.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">10th</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2020/08/prince-of-thorns-is-nine-years-old.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">9th</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2019/08/prince-of-thorns-is-eight-years-old.html" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">8th</a>, <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2018/08/prince-of-thorns-is-seven-years-old.html" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">7th</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2017/08/prince-of-thorns-at-6.html" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">6th</a>, <a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/prince-of-thorns-at-5.html" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">5th</a>, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/prince-of-thorns-is-4-years-in-print.html" style="color: #6699cc; line-height: 27.72px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">4th</a><span style="line-height: 27.72px;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/prince-of-thorns-is-3-years-in-print.html" style="color: #6699cc; line-height: 27.72px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">3rd</a><span style="line-height: 27.72px;">, </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/the-trilogy-concludes.html" style="color: #6699cc; line-height: 27.72px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">2nd</a><span style="line-height: 27.72px;">, and </span><a href="http://mark---lawrence.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/a-year-one-whole-year.html" style="color: #6699cc; line-height: 27.72px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">1st</a><span style="line-height: 27.72px;"> birthday round-ups. </span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px;"></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal;"><span style="line-height: 27.72px;"><br /></span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px;"></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3262556256444723292" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: quot; font-size: 19.8px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px; position: relative; width: 758px;"><div style="text-align: center;">I now have 17 books on the shelves!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirK9qWNc02LgcOnHUBPLOKPAEqlmlcGlaKwAXec0w7PZ1lxlT6OUKrNWQGQONrljODgjZAqXUR8S8AsYKQmW1GeaYqDmK5aDQFQghvHAB_5wt-z3IPEnYloJl5aYUOHX5u8IsB0ic5QlyOC0Ca8J0v8UIxtRbxUdv9DH4BNZ2DbPkrewAN5gCes2c2SRg0/s1869/15books.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1424" data-original-width="1869" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirK9qWNc02LgcOnHUBPLOKPAEqlmlcGlaKwAXec0w7PZ1lxlT6OUKrNWQGQONrljODgjZAqXUR8S8AsYKQmW1GeaYqDmK5aDQFQghvHAB_5wt-z3IPEnYloJl5aYUOHX5u8IsB0ic5QlyOC0Ca8J0v8UIxtRbxUdv9DH4BNZ2DbPkrewAN5gCes2c2SRg0/w640-h488/15books.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div>The most recent addition was <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61612864" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Book That Wouldn't Burn</a>, in May. Which has been my first book 1 of a trilogy to hit the Sunday Times bestseller list!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2DRZDOuUftccbNH2WVq6tTBcSpyvE832l1lx4O5jrKztsWyJVhRVcY169YxKBIHsIJxS_72tmrLWuyQe9xUOKosqFrmNY20rO6CrhuRiqhFHRetX9W_lTJQ3li5EAugDiGuEeXXQ2aKfKUUrIsFIXYer9zjfGQj27JA_-mIbafTptHFXXsLCnR39EMuN/s500/tbtwb%20ace.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="331" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf2DRZDOuUftccbNH2WVq6tTBcSpyvE832l1lx4O5jrKztsWyJVhRVcY169YxKBIHsIJxS_72tmrLWuyQe9xUOKosqFrmNY20rO6CrhuRiqhFHRetX9W_lTJQ3li5EAugDiGuEeXXQ2aKfKUUrIsFIXYer9zjfGQj27JA_-mIbafTptHFXXsLCnR39EMuN/w265-h400/tbtwb%20ace.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;">Being a numbers guy as well as a words guy I like to keep track of things and record them for when I'm doddery and old, looking back at my 'glory' days.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;">At this point I need to inject a comment concerning Goodreads. The Goodreads site has been an open joke for many years. It's one of the worst coded things on the internet. If you imagine a decent site as having an internal combustion engine, Goodreads is more a series of blackened saucepans propped up over trash fires, with a spaghetti mess of leaking twisted pipes siphoning off the steam in the hopes of driving a Victorian era piston.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;">The thousands of ratings they deleted from my books (primarily Prince of Thorns) are still gone, and their latest trick has been to break their own site further, scrambling author dashboards and the search engine (which had a brief period of working after a decade of being inexplicably trash).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><br /></span></div><div>So, I can't show you the first page (or first two as per last year) of my author dashboard because it's full of random short stories and foreign editions rather than my most popular books.</div><div><br /></div><div>Rather than lose that data entirely, I've typed in the highlights.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8QVNM89ZdNiBX5-vxMwyvnptduWTFyLRGGJKkoFY46KIGGfQWVpmjlgGoat6jVXFgHLVWTgkHFlTljWfnoAoovrYo0q7fMMXCH3yF_9ZRfxMnDQ28LXeSepmSFPIkxfFJ8A0c8qevi958KnOZXsaTyJjUQCk9P8hkI2Tp783gcHam611z5o34dFpvjWyl/s860/gr%20dashboard%20august%2023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="302" data-original-width="860" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8QVNM89ZdNiBX5-vxMwyvnptduWTFyLRGGJKkoFY46KIGGfQWVpmjlgGoat6jVXFgHLVWTgkHFlTljWfnoAoovrYo0q7fMMXCH3yF_9ZRfxMnDQ28LXeSepmSFPIkxfFJ8A0c8qevi958KnOZXsaTyJjUQCk9P8hkI2Tp783gcHam611z5o34dFpvjWyl/w640-h224/gr%20dashboard%20august%2023.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Prince of Thorns -- 3.84 -- 110,692</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">King of Thorns -- 4.19 -- 64,159</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Emperor of Thorns -- 4.24 -- 51,551</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Prince of Fools -- 4.06 -- 31,544</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Liar's Key -- 4.24 -- 19,643</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Wheel of Osheim -- 4.32 -- 16,170</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Red Sister -- 4.17 -- 54,849</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Grey Sister - 4.37 -- 32,455</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Holy Sister -- 4.32 -- 26,095</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Road Brothers (both versions) -- 4.28 -- 2,958</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One Word Kill -- 3.75 -- 19,196</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Limited Wish -- 4.05 -- 7,087</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Dispel Illusion -- 4.23 -- 5,489</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Girl And The Stars -- 3.82 -- 10,119</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Girl And The Mountain -- 4.16 -- 5,028</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Girl And The Moon -- 4.27 -- 3,577</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Book That Wouldn't Burn -- 4.23 -- 4,199</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Times New Roman, Times, FreeSerif, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 19.8px;">This blog continues to chug along. Blogs seem to be a dying means of communication, with most people prefering the immedacy of social media. Even so, a twitter row over the SPFBO art contest did see the blog smash its monthly views record, so nearly topping 100,000 in a month (the vast majority of that in 48 hours!).</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE5M88E9NpkfcAc5bAtDHxOA3ox47V-jOiRxtUjyx1-bDV9uHFXxbum8deNlX8vjT0K2hHmjFZke_NVRh5qKyXc49MJBkWNHGp4NS81L5J0huQsg4gnkO6a0fTgr0Kp_6URLhAP3KONNKS7QwfpwWvOdqfKooV924uLpHFUH4D1uqRaH6sIeO8zRPaeIUz/s1042/blog%20traffic%2023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="1042" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE5M88E9NpkfcAc5bAtDHxOA3ox47V-jOiRxtUjyx1-bDV9uHFXxbum8deNlX8vjT0K2hHmjFZke_NVRh5qKyXc49MJBkWNHGp4NS81L5J0huQsg4gnkO6a0fTgr0Kp_6URLhAP3KONNKS7QwfpwWvOdqfKooV924uLpHFUH4D1uqRaH6sIeO8zRPaeIUz/w640-h198/blog%20traffic%2023.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;">And my quest to conquer Twitter before it dies crawls on... And yeah, never going to call it anything else. I'm on Threads now too in case you want to try an alternative.</span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIe1WkfkZ-sDARH0vDYYRN9GhkV3D1lbi6n_OIoCiqScZ202dwXLAqGKtq_bBiwHcfhnzMd2zoABAF2_3FOq8v9Pjxb12wE0fTkC3zkTTx0nQE7YW1zguAPmEhcg1Nu5fHGePk_fHTNQF0Xo7eoUcJxMJ2x8fcLwokT_iruPGZzcpL_nfF4pmpNRsY0pRo/s773/twitter2023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="773" height="548" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIe1WkfkZ-sDARH0vDYYRN9GhkV3D1lbi6n_OIoCiqScZ202dwXLAqGKtq_bBiwHcfhnzMd2zoABAF2_3FOq8v9Pjxb12wE0fTkC3zkTTx0nQE7YW1zguAPmEhcg1Nu5fHGePk_fHTNQF0Xo7eoUcJxMJ2x8fcLwokT_iruPGZzcpL_nfF4pmpNRsY0pRo/w640-h548/twitter2023.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>It's also worth noting that this year has seen the release of the 10th anniversary special edition of King of Thorns from Grim Oak Press, with Broken Binding saying they'll bring out their UK-based version shortly.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Where things stand with my special editions:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b>Grim Oak Press</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The Broken Empire omnibus - SOLD OUT</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The Red Queen's War omnibus - SOLD OUT</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">10th anniversary Prince of Thorns - SOLD OUT</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://grimoakpress.com/collections/limited-editions/products/king-of-thorns-limited-edition" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">10th anniversary King of Thorns</a> - just released.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b>Broken Binding</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">10th anniversary Prince of Thorns - SOLD OUT</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">If you want to see how they appreciate, try buying a copy of the sold out editions on ebay.</div><br /><div><br /></div><div><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3262556256444723292" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 21.78px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px; position: relative; width: 758px;">Well, that's my annual stock-take. Over & out, until next year.</div><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3262556256444723292" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 21.78px; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px; position: relative; width: 758px;"><br /></div><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3262556256444723292" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px; position: relative; width: 758px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3262556256444723292" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 27.72px; position: relative; width: 758px;"><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.4; text-align: left;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div style="font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div></div></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-90344169114999196022023-07-07T06:42:00.003-07:002023-07-07T06:42:47.996-07:00The map for The Library Trilogy<p>Here's the overdue map - not the map for The Library Trilogy story <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/181669914" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b>Overdue</b></a>, but the map for The Library Trilogy!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrZDe0QUpT7hNuXOorXaN9ilxWd8oJvR5MaBUNMzGZ94vFNleIEfOF4frtDIhZFRE7b5zX71XrtzP6oCO73SDcGtChA7wto_TgwQrs4c_BZ4K7Ha90Sh19XyTr6tg3uLdAGcalQLNtFIOttqPw1n1gePpRKITgZc7rFUZGnLk-8UyptV0e6BcbUW0wPjp/s549/4stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="405" data-original-width="549" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRrZDe0QUpT7hNuXOorXaN9ilxWd8oJvR5MaBUNMzGZ94vFNleIEfOF4frtDIhZFRE7b5zX71XrtzP6oCO73SDcGtChA7wto_TgwQrs4c_BZ4K7Ha90Sh19XyTr6tg3uLdAGcalQLNtFIOttqPw1n1gePpRKITgZc7rFUZGnLk-8UyptV0e6BcbUW0wPjp/w640-h472/4stars.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Hopefully this will prove as popular as the map for the <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2019/09/a-map-for-girl-and-stars.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b>Book of the Ice</b></a> trilogy! And the much appreciated <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2017/09/why-youre-not-getting-map.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b>Book of the Ancestor</b></a> map.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJbcS0NarCvewX8pL0z_qYkeDdU3smU9UftCGSQJx7WfXyk-J-q5AKDjdxJCBqhxi1B9C8gB6mOV351VJ76zUcEPP10S6G1N5G65l0761Y0DdoHE0OGtdxPiCwKmG5gjcDCxnAH-d4TpOPjLCxUZhfMyXo5h0SsTOezP51CKsQ8acMZxlYdACENeb9JU5P/s4032/ll1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJbcS0NarCvewX8pL0z_qYkeDdU3smU9UftCGSQJx7WfXyk-J-q5AKDjdxJCBqhxi1B9C8gB6mOV351VJ76zUcEPP10S6G1N5G65l0761Y0DdoHE0OGtdxPiCwKmG5gjcDCxnAH-d4TpOPjLCxUZhfMyXo5h0SsTOezP51CKsQ8acMZxlYdACENeb9JU5P/w300-h400/ll1.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: center; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></b></a></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "times new roman", times, freeserif, serif; line-height: 1.4;"></span></span></p><div style="color: #1d2129; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="background-color: white; font-size: 19.8px; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter</a><span style="color: #333333;"> #Prizes #FreeContent </span></span></b></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-size: 19.8px; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></b></span></div></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-85867319931074378312023-06-29T07:48:00.002-07:002023-06-29T07:48:43.305-07:00Overdue - a Library Trilogy short story!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJhGBZGM2iCHh85XUV1LmpvjQxJNGg-fOumede6NU2XYPN3F-rybOHH3kdZR_Rz8Oio4DleSJDreXinj7RIg5U2nWxqqMhOeJVXb3kuDq0n3r7JcSRapu0SLt_Q4UmiVNAvR7f6L5qXS526soTdLU4M2rtpBzJzhVL1yu8X4uMKCCfpUj1vHn1Zi4xTswP/s1661/image0%20(9).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1661" data-original-width="1179" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJhGBZGM2iCHh85XUV1LmpvjQxJNGg-fOumede6NU2XYPN3F-rybOHH3kdZR_Rz8Oio4DleSJDreXinj7RIg5U2nWxqqMhOeJVXb3kuDq0n3r7JcSRapu0SLt_Q4UmiVNAvR7f6L5qXS526soTdLU4M2rtpBzJzhVL1yu8X4uMKCCfpUj1vHn1Zi4xTswP/w454-h640/image0%20(9).jpeg" width="454" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For those of you who've read THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN and want a bit more "library stuff" - here's a 12,000 word short story featuring Wentworth and Yute!</span></span><p></p><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Can also be read prior to the book.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Cover art: <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz xt0b8zv x1qq9wsj xo1l8bm" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=561167958&__cft__[0]=AZV5smMCKUR6h4pIMY2VNkeLsqFwZB9X-dc6wmk8UZFIJ_BhQOuS_TDyq2Y6WZ75GPqSc7KdH9ePSa2ufHBmcZorA1-KQ-Z0KjtVrxFrVGhG-T9jdQ4yF2UYcp4EfeaXfvwHm1RKPp4obu6iBfZpI2VetqTNnnSl17hEY60mKMivxy-zVAwFUXPNiUTBU9fwEhU&__tn__=-]K-R" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: transparent; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0" waprocessedanchor="true"><span class="xt0psk2" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">Tom Brown</span></a></span></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>Thanks to <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz xt0b8zv x1qq9wsj xo1l8bm" href="https://www.facebook.com/MitrielFaywood?__cft__[0]=AZV5smMCKUR6h4pIMY2VNkeLsqFwZB9X-dc6wmk8UZFIJ_BhQOuS_TDyq2Y6WZ75GPqSc7KdH9ePSa2ufHBmcZorA1-KQ-Z0KjtVrxFrVGhG-T9jdQ4yF2UYcp4EfeaXfvwHm1RKPp4obu6iBfZpI2VetqTNnnSl17hEY60mKMivxy-zVAwFUXPNiUTBU9fwEhU&__tn__=-]K-R" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: transparent; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0"><span class="xt0psk2" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">Mitriel Faywood</span></a></span> for adding the lettering.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;">UK: <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz xt0b8zv x1fey0fg" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C9N51M6Y/?fbclid=IwAR0K7FZjNxtearLKZHbXGNsD6pZmAG4f_4d4oojhjk6GKEL2MXfgaemkLPw" rel="nofollow noreferrer" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: transparent; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C9N51M6Y/</a></span></span></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;">US: <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a class="x1i10hfl xjbqb8w x6umtig x1b1mbwd xaqea5y xav7gou x9f619 x1ypdohk xt0psk2 xe8uvvx xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r xexx8yu x4uap5 x18d9i69 xkhd6sd x16tdsg8 x1hl2dhg xggy1nq x1a2a7pz xt0b8zv x1fey0fg" href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9N51M6Y/?fbclid=IwAR1IaIoDsUvjc5fFifm_7ZLA1Uf8VVwyEqt5RkK73WvqRn5IvXTVzbZaRMs" rel="nofollow noreferrer" role="link" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: transparent; border-color: initial; border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: inherit; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" tabindex="0" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9N51M6Y/</a></span></span></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Read some reviews on Goodreads, and when you've read it, throw some stars of your own its way!</span></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: Segoe UI Historic, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/181669914-overdue</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: Segoe UI Historic, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="auto">& remember, you can get the <a href="https://ko-fi.com/s/79becb1c12" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">cover art of this story</a> & of <a href="https://tomrobertsillustration.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN</a> as posters.</div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: Segoe UI Historic, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #050505; font-family: Segoe UI Historic, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: start;" /></span><div style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</span></a></span></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;" /></span></p><p><br /></p></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="color: #050505; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></div></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-3659599223860982912023-06-15T02:11:00.037-07:002023-07-04T02:14:39.217-07:00Competition time!<p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">CONTEST ENDS June 27th</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Very many thanks for all the photos of your lovely fluffers.</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">The (randomly chosen) Winner is #74</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Fanny & Petite Feuille</span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgnfw7swRebAkq8to_d1xg_kjumCjlNskuUlSPN5x1Y0S6slnPPs-BziSd2fdX6rQy3-mDdG3KGlQKNUdCkEoBfHTJCIKcYIob-xkbYupvpcylqxUZmy4fmqh6uuPWcCN8SfHAxdKwOqn2-Z6_h41frf10ySdt8TsTaCSkr06df2X4S5BU3YBOLLpy_noNw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgnfw7swRebAkq8to_d1xg_kjumCjlNskuUlSPN5x1Y0S6slnPPs-BziSd2fdX6rQy3-mDdG3KGlQKNUdCkEoBfHTJCIKcYIob-xkbYupvpcylqxUZmy4fmqh6uuPWcCN8SfHAxdKwOqn2-Z6_h41frf10ySdt8TsTaCSkr06df2X4S5BU3YBOLLpy_noNw=w640-h640" width="640" /></a></b></div><b><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><br /><br /></b><p></p><p>I have exactly one copy of The Book That Wouldn't Burn left ... ONE!</p><p>It's a great big international trade paperback of the kind sold in Australia and I will sign it and dedicate it (if wanted) to the winner of this contest.</p><p><br /></p><p>To enter all you need to do is to send me a single TBTWB themed image (photo, drawing, photoshop etc).</p><p>TBTWB-themed means it should include at least one book, plus a cat, a dog, &/or a raven. Any one of them will do.</p><p>You can use your own real cat, dog, &/or raven.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLb6yJQqVgaC_fE04qfxwYPSQpKpsOU53u7qwcT5mh8ekO9ibONMYHv5GVXN9tbFQdW6EErPfeDzPCutT2Zvx9IExUQJn9b51z68tISY-qkqKgQMIs0LfblZDtow8D31pwTSAv9WQ0yS6xMSaxuCyo5flazA0GdMEZCQS-73sB8d5tb8jB9taOVtBt1A/s2472/tb5.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2472" data-original-width="1737" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLb6yJQqVgaC_fE04qfxwYPSQpKpsOU53u7qwcT5mh8ekO9ibONMYHv5GVXN9tbFQdW6EErPfeDzPCutT2Zvx9IExUQJn9b51z68tISY-qkqKgQMIs0LfblZDtow8D31pwTSAv9WQ0yS6xMSaxuCyo5flazA0GdMEZCQS-73sB8d5tb8jB9taOVtBt1A/w281-h400/tb5.png" width="281" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To make things easier, your raven can be any kind of bird, plus all of the animals can be someone else's, plush toys, whatever.</div><p>The winner will be randomly selected but if there are some really good entries I may select randomly among the best for someone to win a different prize.</p><p>Just email your entry to me with the heading "Contest" at empire_of_thorns@yahoo.co.uk</p><p>I'll give ample warning before the contest closes!</p><p>All entries will be posted here - there may be a delay between sending and posting to the blog.</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Entries</span></b></p><p>#76 Brooke</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxKhfoi8H6Yi3nha3qWc5Ib25mvTYMZ_ULJ2XxF5MQwdeypwLI071yh2V6ra6Rqeu442TrA1vGC0rxounrKuG9IuQJVHcUBedpNjM0Gz7j32MUk_3xtuZE4aErzw3GnbLcaU6e8JBxoYGlNtYiFN4X3Vz6J1AW2nd31UK5m-ZRno06Idy-74dZVjX78JA/s1200/book-that-wouldnt-burn_contest.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="798" data-original-width="1200" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxKhfoi8H6Yi3nha3qWc5Ib25mvTYMZ_ULJ2XxF5MQwdeypwLI071yh2V6ra6Rqeu442TrA1vGC0rxounrKuG9IuQJVHcUBedpNjM0Gz7j32MUk_3xtuZE4aErzw3GnbLcaU6e8JBxoYGlNtYiFN4X3Vz6J1AW2nd31UK5m-ZRno06Idy-74dZVjX78JA/w640-h426/book-that-wouldnt-burn_contest.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#75 Kitty</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuG0s5rzFrA7ogO0jTlmUjq1j302ewRjOU5K3jMeuW5k1t2MbV5ju_n1OWKBHk3XpIt6cwgktphYXEKbT_ggmplcLDy9gKpPH7Dc8P7FG0OINU51YyzjAYVsj5toz31DJ4zQ7bfY-uo_DAGmIzIlzlSP25XK1AQLvfJsruUTmV6PgPmVW3p_WrB4RMOAcg/s640/image0%20(10).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuG0s5rzFrA7ogO0jTlmUjq1j302ewRjOU5K3jMeuW5k1t2MbV5ju_n1OWKBHk3XpIt6cwgktphYXEKbT_ggmplcLDy9gKpPH7Dc8P7FG0OINU51YyzjAYVsj5toz31DJ4zQ7bfY-uo_DAGmIzIlzlSP25XK1AQLvfJsruUTmV6PgPmVW3p_WrB4RMOAcg/w480-h640/image0%20(10).jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#74 Fanny + Petite Feuille</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKcbQAf9NBb__hsvX6XAYIgVHIrtcQlZbW7pbtTeW2wnMRTDjZqd2yRxsNDcSDCc04FqEHm16J2I_2UuOv9xw4EdHOKPKA9tY4Az2aNjAIbpkAmuGedkLbxqBvQbFzc5470yjx72aOsty5jo55cBg5DAVUAwJha7OeIb-TEL_4SURc1UAgm1Qw7_EvQMlV/s3024/20230627_164606.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKcbQAf9NBb__hsvX6XAYIgVHIrtcQlZbW7pbtTeW2wnMRTDjZqd2yRxsNDcSDCc04FqEHm16J2I_2UuOv9xw4EdHOKPKA9tY4Az2aNjAIbpkAmuGedkLbxqBvQbFzc5470yjx72aOsty5jo55cBg5DAVUAwJha7OeIb-TEL_4SURc1UAgm1Qw7_EvQMlV/w640-h640/20230627_164606.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#73 Dominic</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_YhkhM27O-w5DVnD_REDTAdtcJj_IOkT3vcm-osSxVZrTrjwDXSF0wRYxMZJspI68CKgVQk6cYFyusLWcV-XVhd3uPUZ-moYOXpbu8f3InMOtCmaj_bBvO_27tappbXP-4g92JdHfc5aVDlMHjUhvggcHG3qYsW3AuRWQUgVFtJ7vzlDDaHtoY_A4Isk/s1024/Image%20(3).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_YhkhM27O-w5DVnD_REDTAdtcJj_IOkT3vcm-osSxVZrTrjwDXSF0wRYxMZJspI68CKgVQk6cYFyusLWcV-XVhd3uPUZ-moYOXpbu8f3InMOtCmaj_bBvO_27tappbXP-4g92JdHfc5aVDlMHjUhvggcHG3qYsW3AuRWQUgVFtJ7vzlDDaHtoY_A4Isk/w640-h640/Image%20(3).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#72 Amanda</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQzn1n9n2LC08To6bYA3iEr6kgWytD7E4Fq_TAsBD28-5YEpmTlKN4ArVUZU04k2Dvclf0QrGgTR2wejIGku8fQ7niPnBx_86KIMprwrR_U8V6wJCcd_R4istrd5hZrPRAyEampQPhpCbmMOFybEzKALXsaTrjkmpsxYUeuK4-VY0pu9HPUG0QHjaGjoJ8/s207/Contest.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="207" data-original-width="168" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQzn1n9n2LC08To6bYA3iEr6kgWytD7E4Fq_TAsBD28-5YEpmTlKN4ArVUZU04k2Dvclf0QrGgTR2wejIGku8fQ7niPnBx_86KIMprwrR_U8V6wJCcd_R4istrd5hZrPRAyEampQPhpCbmMOFybEzKALXsaTrjkmpsxYUeuK4-VY0pu9HPUG0QHjaGjoJ8/w519-h640/Contest.jpg" width="519" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#71 Kenneth + Rocco</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgirO4Tlo6NWLph8zD2A8eqcfAEo61Zx_8veO9frlSLL31c0PnwIEz_vOwDA83ZteK53corZJ2P9eXtNAwczLaS8axgy5e6njYNo5LhjgCv_TAtyyEwzmd6spknKUqsKzV4yZ6M9elhogoBM8j3LQPpmbKTICqoHR5hIYKzpOAiayuDpV7k8XVSIcAikoJ8/s4032/20230627_133710.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgirO4Tlo6NWLph8zD2A8eqcfAEo61Zx_8veO9frlSLL31c0PnwIEz_vOwDA83ZteK53corZJ2P9eXtNAwczLaS8axgy5e6njYNo5LhjgCv_TAtyyEwzmd6spknKUqsKzV4yZ6M9elhogoBM8j3LQPpmbKTICqoHR5hIYKzpOAiayuDpV7k8XVSIcAikoJ8/w480-h640/20230627_133710.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#70 Jill + Jet</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3roA-WqmiHkHplY1ASaqLV9ensnbq2FEEcwrmbT6oyr2ljTmTh31JAuzICw6wBivz_0Bk5gtcl2bQmzIND5e-y86w2n76T2k7y20uQ1RKzz-UABmtffdyIgBkyhxfKtqyqq9Biw3CYurrtLQ7QysNHEzKq6vyOFCDhjOksO_adRM2jv3xL3H0Ynlz5v8/s1078/Screenshot_20230617_072132_Gallery.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="769" data-original-width="1078" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3roA-WqmiHkHplY1ASaqLV9ensnbq2FEEcwrmbT6oyr2ljTmTh31JAuzICw6wBivz_0Bk5gtcl2bQmzIND5e-y86w2n76T2k7y20uQ1RKzz-UABmtffdyIgBkyhxfKtqyqq9Biw3CYurrtLQ7QysNHEzKq6vyOFCDhjOksO_adRM2jv3xL3H0Ynlz5v8/w640-h456/Screenshot_20230617_072132_Gallery.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#69 Hazel + Tango</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0a-t6LJa2evOXRJ3TJyHyZk4YWCy9iU7rfa5EOs_d6FPzWcVN3hpy_yUFV_SOAZDNji51R3rqu-iGnR-lMsx18OHO6B2cMJBFLwm4iTf0d8GliDra0Z2OT_yuAypQvzyrNBCmSmHFvYFFHyLU38Juuq8GKaKFehDRkfvDR5s8bU29EgAJgMKk1IEvTiG/s1920/20211001_124207_exported_1399.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0a-t6LJa2evOXRJ3TJyHyZk4YWCy9iU7rfa5EOs_d6FPzWcVN3hpy_yUFV_SOAZDNji51R3rqu-iGnR-lMsx18OHO6B2cMJBFLwm4iTf0d8GliDra0Z2OT_yuAypQvzyrNBCmSmHFvYFFHyLU38Juuq8GKaKFehDRkfvDR5s8bU29EgAJgMKk1IEvTiG/w360-h640/20211001_124207_exported_1399.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#68 Samantha</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimZAIqG7up71YVlZjD-5MxjbjAmdkq02y1LUg9OeGljcoY7fo-y_3Mw4S7LMlVvSQHLiCwad4C3NzN43JViYgS3i2nMQ6F4QQrt4qejwfzYyePlta8Zk4624DCuixDdSry_oknSS52VfW2DfQkhmPhq1oX8-7bAntPdj1HkhKCxlYPI3PgMndNHfuw9kWO/s4032/70874784953__2812BA2A-1298-45E6-B91D-5B7CB2108438.fullsizerender.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimZAIqG7up71YVlZjD-5MxjbjAmdkq02y1LUg9OeGljcoY7fo-y_3Mw4S7LMlVvSQHLiCwad4C3NzN43JViYgS3i2nMQ6F4QQrt4qejwfzYyePlta8Zk4624DCuixDdSry_oknSS52VfW2DfQkhmPhq1oX8-7bAntPdj1HkhKCxlYPI3PgMndNHfuw9kWO/w480-h640/70874784953__2812BA2A-1298-45E6-B91D-5B7CB2108438.fullsizerender.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#67 Dave + Saidi</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggBHAtVt9ob10ePCtVbB8u046fS0ZNuANDS1D1U8uOTOa0zvurkocA2RbVrUvZYNZ8DQkkHOIF5vxDiLaQ5J6dCut6AxIXUE7obXnHN_rmsaRz9GBx-UOCFYdT2u3SWFPpMAyrWmdSrsQ20ZDuQSisHDRG2GTGkf70eSuzQ4IgZ1E3-F0nSlpe3Tfb1SoN/s940/IMG-20230618-WA0031.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="536" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggBHAtVt9ob10ePCtVbB8u046fS0ZNuANDS1D1U8uOTOa0zvurkocA2RbVrUvZYNZ8DQkkHOIF5vxDiLaQ5J6dCut6AxIXUE7obXnHN_rmsaRz9GBx-UOCFYdT2u3SWFPpMAyrWmdSrsQ20ZDuQSisHDRG2GTGkf70eSuzQ4IgZ1E3-F0nSlpe3Tfb1SoN/w640-h536/IMG-20230618-WA0031.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#66 David + Elly</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1bM-daTVZp_l9xRNz2iB41mlYSnkQ99Q48FnOPL8KZV2khJnIV6l6LQjnSShiJ_e2LtkqM5kiDoR3iQGvfNabyXW5WStRJBbUrQz2orfANjhsX-VEDj5QX88DN-UoHyIgGOylCk-XzNRt0LnDC1NbfMsgm0NnotTWnWkdUruQTq3lljCX4NgVrhB6UzUs/s4514/DSC07604.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3163" data-original-width="4514" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1bM-daTVZp_l9xRNz2iB41mlYSnkQ99Q48FnOPL8KZV2khJnIV6l6LQjnSShiJ_e2LtkqM5kiDoR3iQGvfNabyXW5WStRJBbUrQz2orfANjhsX-VEDj5QX88DN-UoHyIgGOylCk-XzNRt0LnDC1NbfMsgm0NnotTWnWkdUruQTq3lljCX4NgVrhB6UzUs/w640-h448/DSC07604.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#65 Deanna</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDvrMQVKLe5v8U3UupgEHe9gv32CKJgCuU9x7RT2YMNuz534B1cOMGQtt2M984WAM6oSBe-j07KbvpsQc4GxTavbx0hzhoYMaZ11IPYWnPDksfV8TojDFABvkGAq9PKZtWaVOTEMZVdPtP3316lSduudyNkzKpmHH78CpIpULPD02clKPuhBLg-W_-3mlv/s640/IMG_1031.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDvrMQVKLe5v8U3UupgEHe9gv32CKJgCuU9x7RT2YMNuz534B1cOMGQtt2M984WAM6oSBe-j07KbvpsQc4GxTavbx0hzhoYMaZ11IPYWnPDksfV8TojDFABvkGAq9PKZtWaVOTEMZVdPtP3316lSduudyNkzKpmHH78CpIpULPD02clKPuhBLg-W_-3mlv/w640-h640/IMG_1031.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#64 Althea</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkV8qR9eXIg0I7-lm9P2cdB2_L5Ro07KLusIckt0FMbHtW9g8lZaKX_vtq_g52hOLCSGVrhx9JBoigCXqD12BRdnGJ4zmLdoN8BXJAMSQh9j_1DN3YKI3w_lG2iGLnFrtXtLEHyfWzlGWATExQAcl-k-a3CV0mSvb7jypUOHIWuPJS0uDuN_8_EhU5tbnw/s1603/IMG_0542.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1265" data-original-width="1603" height="506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkV8qR9eXIg0I7-lm9P2cdB2_L5Ro07KLusIckt0FMbHtW9g8lZaKX_vtq_g52hOLCSGVrhx9JBoigCXqD12BRdnGJ4zmLdoN8BXJAMSQh9j_1DN3YKI3w_lG2iGLnFrtXtLEHyfWzlGWATExQAcl-k-a3CV0mSvb7jypUOHIWuPJS0uDuN_8_EhU5tbnw/w640-h506/IMG_0542.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#63 Rhyesa - Rashka is concerned about his tbr pile</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbFmtnYZOYOwP4OaxZANchhcGFTMhXSoPMclfKJ7PR4KFzBuRtjylZRXI-ftcxZRb-jozv1Dl2OKDIMKPC2_iUCq9Mdcf7vG_hBbWuSo-WzlXUbBYeGi8q0GKA4XGVZOox94JyJFs4UqFCSTXo9Sj_Suq_Y75DUcaA00_JWPQWcg8arrEbmfJEqIjERaw/s4032/20230620_152240570_iOS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbFmtnYZOYOwP4OaxZANchhcGFTMhXSoPMclfKJ7PR4KFzBuRtjylZRXI-ftcxZRb-jozv1Dl2OKDIMKPC2_iUCq9Mdcf7vG_hBbWuSo-WzlXUbBYeGi8q0GKA4XGVZOox94JyJFs4UqFCSTXo9Sj_Suq_Y75DUcaA00_JWPQWcg8arrEbmfJEqIjERaw/w480-h640/20230620_152240570_iOS.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#62 Peter</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ydBB4_C0KX2rbDjnO4zJ4YT3FvE3PdX7J5CMHZpxH_HfS-XW8U38T2rjdNh4B7hRUulSJ46zutljMdK2euB_4NUEK-mLAUo5uoxTIhLKpuGdrM70SveY-z6bUS5zKDSwA32SHCek79xe-Xg6X6gm0g8iJtFhPdTNhF1fJbnUBZBcurTHgXnXkLM_gJCP/s1734/Bogy%C3%B3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1734" data-original-width="977" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ydBB4_C0KX2rbDjnO4zJ4YT3FvE3PdX7J5CMHZpxH_HfS-XW8U38T2rjdNh4B7hRUulSJ46zutljMdK2euB_4NUEK-mLAUo5uoxTIhLKpuGdrM70SveY-z6bUS5zKDSwA32SHCek79xe-Xg6X6gm0g8iJtFhPdTNhF1fJbnUBZBcurTHgXnXkLM_gJCP/w360-h640/Bogy%C3%B3.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#61 Florencia</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD0qRLXpA_vPzO7rDoIzYKyDmaLxNPmyPC4mc1yvoy1cnFWYtOFzp6p_BLmYs42AgqtVxqF2kEvcxttyW4IGfNdyLa2TyTEuzL73X6RpEqvCaczOMSCN_pTuYGm8Iueb4RHLx66-sxHpdxlMMMcbdcmuo5H8md7SB50P8HytEXaeKi67_lxomp2C33GEmB/s4000/IMG20230626113756.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD0qRLXpA_vPzO7rDoIzYKyDmaLxNPmyPC4mc1yvoy1cnFWYtOFzp6p_BLmYs42AgqtVxqF2kEvcxttyW4IGfNdyLa2TyTEuzL73X6RpEqvCaczOMSCN_pTuYGm8Iueb4RHLx66-sxHpdxlMMMcbdcmuo5H8md7SB50P8HytEXaeKi67_lxomp2C33GEmB/w480-h640/IMG20230626113756.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#60 Steve</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVp0U350C-uKWvKMQnn1F7r9HyCBIU4ghGoKyPff9t_n8ZOIPTJi4l6WMmUVMPoJ6w7-u-140lgUsCQOBtYuHeAXvJXC3RRVZOcuFsN_eHFM6gYh-kb2eycJKSlBODv18allt1zV7qJ9Jbx_Br4B6K_rgGTk64EK7cbJQ_YvBxHkPE26wbd4Wx3vqLK7IF/s640/image0%20(8).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVp0U350C-uKWvKMQnn1F7r9HyCBIU4ghGoKyPff9t_n8ZOIPTJi4l6WMmUVMPoJ6w7-u-140lgUsCQOBtYuHeAXvJXC3RRVZOcuFsN_eHFM6gYh-kb2eycJKSlBODv18allt1zV7qJ9Jbx_Br4B6K_rgGTk64EK7cbJQ_YvBxHkPE26wbd4Wx3vqLK7IF/w640-h480/image0%20(8).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#59 David</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy6UStzJYO3oxSWZOfulloTGws4iD9p_vrjI-dwbC9TxUXe6Hv7iQLBz8IhCJc3Wf9TL6c4vSMPOgjyaGwyLRrH3tbcVyme2eOBkL5b4Wsz2aTDlPGFZIPgR-MUOrXiuDPkBZFhAca8ULwitKLuCiLUHv5QsbEeFzm-Y29qCUbAS_dkZKiGlGwo3ZfO07D/s4032/20230625_000052.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1860" data-original-width="4032" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy6UStzJYO3oxSWZOfulloTGws4iD9p_vrjI-dwbC9TxUXe6Hv7iQLBz8IhCJc3Wf9TL6c4vSMPOgjyaGwyLRrH3tbcVyme2eOBkL5b4Wsz2aTDlPGFZIPgR-MUOrXiuDPkBZFhAca8ULwitKLuCiLUHv5QsbEeFzm-Y29qCUbAS_dkZKiGlGwo3ZfO07D/w640-h296/20230625_000052.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#58 Charles</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kHQYvN9q1w3Wp_pq8yQFvs-qVIM3tZnXXT0XH_Uzy6eP9UrLZ8bI1xqLlGVcxf1jJ_fzxtcjrmw4nyYC5wOzHruaRVovRHPcqqlbL4u9DwVHwSIojTWEuekHzUfIHjwEVz58xT5slv3rxt9ifMiKfvOCJlE_grjYHsEeFFogxIjt4gpL7cwFy4L1UXeG/s4032/20230624_092513.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kHQYvN9q1w3Wp_pq8yQFvs-qVIM3tZnXXT0XH_Uzy6eP9UrLZ8bI1xqLlGVcxf1jJ_fzxtcjrmw4nyYC5wOzHruaRVovRHPcqqlbL4u9DwVHwSIojTWEuekHzUfIHjwEVz58xT5slv3rxt9ifMiKfvOCJlE_grjYHsEeFFogxIjt4gpL7cwFy4L1UXeG/w480-h640/20230624_092513.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#57 Jonah</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSY5EmTflzUlwh1zE9CAG_-_oKkgthKccXjgR95cP3RbFyJ46_v6geEOOEhculknxpLwbEc07b2a84i7x6xS9ABfTvQxI2ESExsga2ssCtWw1o-eho-Wx4GlXGxRq-nIFJmjkPysqt9FGc83IS62RvJVuOZtFrl_RHJ6Y18xvnZ9ktuMNki9uH1HF828Q/s3503/Airbrush%20Book%20w%20Raven.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3503" data-original-width="2597" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSY5EmTflzUlwh1zE9CAG_-_oKkgthKccXjgR95cP3RbFyJ46_v6geEOOEhculknxpLwbEc07b2a84i7x6xS9ABfTvQxI2ESExsga2ssCtWw1o-eho-Wx4GlXGxRq-nIFJmjkPysqt9FGc83IS62RvJVuOZtFrl_RHJ6Y18xvnZ9ktuMNki9uH1HF828Q/w474-h640/Airbrush%20Book%20w%20Raven.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#56 Charles</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonRxJZN2DsCqEYvlkIdW4ws6VfNdXxxb5o8Os6tbFOnNULvUmimf3ZvdzG1YxBRzYDqwIrUjzfVQ-r7NxPGA9dTPSwXLMoWYU6k2PH2nbyZHV6CnmEfqnwgduuVmBcknT-4sPfoPhBUToZtGNKFw6D4aybQM2ZXUMnCkGDyAirVcdrJXqMlAmnEKzfZBS/s1372/356512416_810158123842989_9047375703114047513_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1372" data-original-width="828" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonRxJZN2DsCqEYvlkIdW4ws6VfNdXxxb5o8Os6tbFOnNULvUmimf3ZvdzG1YxBRzYDqwIrUjzfVQ-r7NxPGA9dTPSwXLMoWYU6k2PH2nbyZHV6CnmEfqnwgduuVmBcknT-4sPfoPhBUToZtGNKFw6D4aybQM2ZXUMnCkGDyAirVcdrJXqMlAmnEKzfZBS/w386-h640/356512416_810158123842989_9047375703114047513_n.jpg" width="386" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#55 Thomas</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl51ll8_gVxndK5DiB6XF2DEb6TumtTH5uFKgqUNeGOJsJZ2CuMCS5MwVm4aypVcBjiAKuvlTub6B8K7Q6kxDC4ua4xXU5tlRaQB37GUZ1dr1IqLl4EN5Jk1P3li-m6Tm-EOTlCR2ZOobogWFzxgSUVpp0RussCKMdOjRSwjflelBKQrdeOrDDIUQiaxqn/s512/TBTWB_Nelson.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="512" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl51ll8_gVxndK5DiB6XF2DEb6TumtTH5uFKgqUNeGOJsJZ2CuMCS5MwVm4aypVcBjiAKuvlTub6B8K7Q6kxDC4ua4xXU5tlRaQB37GUZ1dr1IqLl4EN5Jk1P3li-m6Tm-EOTlCR2ZOobogWFzxgSUVpp0RussCKMdOjRSwjflelBKQrdeOrDDIUQiaxqn/w640-h640/TBTWB_Nelson.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#54 Jules</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4PJ4_sspIQEJqSpiVd0a20wjNCFAMhZRyEzVap6WgHmn5nKIlGazyDZZHWqW0-SicBovWoUzyYbywIYsAMI6hCCTU_srv8gY-XSDHDZnQ0yai5tvwkOe3nZXf27beFO9OnfuD_ChIbSNq9txN4i2NeJVm4Zwzu-GNPKMjhVhQ1Cp4xbN92OpgaL4e4Xq/s4000/20230618_132623-01.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2793" data-original-width="4000" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy4PJ4_sspIQEJqSpiVd0a20wjNCFAMhZRyEzVap6WgHmn5nKIlGazyDZZHWqW0-SicBovWoUzyYbywIYsAMI6hCCTU_srv8gY-XSDHDZnQ0yai5tvwkOe3nZXf27beFO9OnfuD_ChIbSNq9txN4i2NeJVm4Zwzu-GNPKMjhVhQ1Cp4xbN92OpgaL4e4Xq/w640-h446/20230618_132623-01.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#53 Kyle</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC7ZamfKPMrYKOsZ6nqTTk36EJQsO5dlqvUnI1IAIioJkpzzuX9KL0h8OsEva1gJ3kz5Y0gsXsKsS_q3Nf4SlBqRP4-ane8u1oFD7ZG3nxNM0YezX8M7CYWO18yMstLLP3a91qk0eHil3qP0KoDqPLt9p3GDjv4_4dlNP82jc4XGA_9fzGo7Xtfp-5p3sK/s4160/IMG_20200811_091402787.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC7ZamfKPMrYKOsZ6nqTTk36EJQsO5dlqvUnI1IAIioJkpzzuX9KL0h8OsEva1gJ3kz5Y0gsXsKsS_q3Nf4SlBqRP4-ane8u1oFD7ZG3nxNM0YezX8M7CYWO18yMstLLP3a91qk0eHil3qP0KoDqPLt9p3GDjv4_4dlNP82jc4XGA_9fzGo7Xtfp-5p3sK/w640-h480/IMG_20200811_091402787.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#52 Jean + Quoth</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOM4dG5r7e04bUarbT-VzLBD6caFXwmZ_K1eFSuCN2qs8-2BeBdMFx6PP1olxUjOqnsNB2K75mpb-c-lsSTozYOHB4xwbW3ox8Mjc4oNsLb4ru246XAUAV5IB-tye2SE-xphElkCeyaLHVTD29ZARr0nK8Mq5XELzwDjM4K0yqKT0WceBJ2_oW4QibXL8n/s6016/Quoth%20&%20books.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6016" data-original-width="4016" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOM4dG5r7e04bUarbT-VzLBD6caFXwmZ_K1eFSuCN2qs8-2BeBdMFx6PP1olxUjOqnsNB2K75mpb-c-lsSTozYOHB4xwbW3ox8Mjc4oNsLb4ru246XAUAV5IB-tye2SE-xphElkCeyaLHVTD29ZARr0nK8Mq5XELzwDjM4K0yqKT0WceBJ2_oW4QibXL8n/w428-h640/Quoth%20&%20books.jpg" width="428" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#51 Marilyn </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqcl0LIZ_X8Q8rhMfAXNjsEAew02yPoLMlvcGpY7o2FtgHelM4_mRTMzPw6yOw7Oxlc5BCqdXbF6uXfy-1ncHn2pABtkpNY2-CaSZSaQ5VLMVQWp2GPnEF_JSFl7bUvNMsMKPfa_TOwDqeaV_-bOmVe8f5Vbpn6TDeV2f1y0_45w0zYe9eg8aQbjma7SB/s3921/DSC_6991E-Mark%20Lawrence%20Contest.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3200" data-original-width="3921" height="522" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqcl0LIZ_X8Q8rhMfAXNjsEAew02yPoLMlvcGpY7o2FtgHelM4_mRTMzPw6yOw7Oxlc5BCqdXbF6uXfy-1ncHn2pABtkpNY2-CaSZSaQ5VLMVQWp2GPnEF_JSFl7bUvNMsMKPfa_TOwDqeaV_-bOmVe8f5Vbpn6TDeV2f1y0_45w0zYe9eg8aQbjma7SB/w640-h522/DSC_6991E-Mark%20Lawrence%20Contest.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#50 Sethia + Jorg</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09mcpczOw9qsG3tTnWfi0mj-OC9K27mJV4KqcUrpuYuwSw4YK7LWUCmIno_yCA19KPqKPJzQQsnGukJbpgmq0-WrwiLRUT1fRn9UokLWvddgHURhpTLeHD3euWfKs-pYgioAWZjeSI7QBZalk3_pX4uFXqPUFasHFy6IISv6LG_2XNybGQhQ7JV66NeOu/s4032/20230623_113831.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1816" data-original-width="4032" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg09mcpczOw9qsG3tTnWfi0mj-OC9K27mJV4KqcUrpuYuwSw4YK7LWUCmIno_yCA19KPqKPJzQQsnGukJbpgmq0-WrwiLRUT1fRn9UokLWvddgHURhpTLeHD3euWfKs-pYgioAWZjeSI7QBZalk3_pX4uFXqPUFasHFy6IISv6LG_2XNybGQhQ7JV66NeOu/w640-h288/20230623_113831.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#49 Marc + Bertie</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqb_BCat2iTGNIx855dCknEgx3FrfZG-xunoGwE7IQcr5SIjO4xv0Sf7PlGxk0woINVwxpK-rl3TFQVYgCGM3MiyFUj5dul6rLD0ntgh-ptcZj5NUfXCFe4X8bhgROEu3DsVRtr3HtrYHLE3KdCe6NwLoPzTvnbT2wbzoxrTeNx1s8Ci6JJUHXwg7pkLFx/s680/comp24%20Marc%20+%20Bertie.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="510" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqb_BCat2iTGNIx855dCknEgx3FrfZG-xunoGwE7IQcr5SIjO4xv0Sf7PlGxk0woINVwxpK-rl3TFQVYgCGM3MiyFUj5dul6rLD0ntgh-ptcZj5NUfXCFe4X8bhgROEu3DsVRtr3HtrYHLE3KdCe6NwLoPzTvnbT2wbzoxrTeNx1s8Ci6JJUHXwg7pkLFx/w480-h640/comp24%20Marc%20+%20Bertie.jpg" width="480" /></a></p><p><br /></p><p>#48 Robert + scale-dog</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6tNqd8WMG1xLqbyrW_Y1ZQznO4HlJ02CGrsP-zok7FeVykaxemOLPkssRae3LjLMTzWr0beiAMeCI6-zJj9J9IvqZWkK0EtIKfcr5_VVg2xZ9-ZZzTQANW8zx1C59TDex6jc-gofZ7zYs0kMw6kzcuW3wKw1tWPihpfwsNAbnTV6vb9JtIIPDxiM1KdDx/s2048/comp25%20Robert%20+%20scale-dog.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6tNqd8WMG1xLqbyrW_Y1ZQznO4HlJ02CGrsP-zok7FeVykaxemOLPkssRae3LjLMTzWr0beiAMeCI6-zJj9J9IvqZWkK0EtIKfcr5_VVg2xZ9-ZZzTQANW8zx1C59TDex6jc-gofZ7zYs0kMw6kzcuW3wKw1tWPihpfwsNAbnTV6vb9JtIIPDxiM1KdDx/w640-h480/comp25%20Robert%20+%20scale-dog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#47 Karen</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn_khoIBOknq6Ik8ogbHof86lOBxPmt48NIBWi2khP7gIGcQAU85wYDqu1gaS8LRqR-mFl1ZCIer2WRqXZ0WUxpz5jYVt7vPVyCpMfmi1-eFgOuXzuSiRPHfW88cQBQWFG78lAQ-GmfBZE4pPEijC7DOPWMMmPBy5R3QKP42lBBw6Hra0_1cjj064Phg/s1600/IMG-20230616-WA0006.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn_khoIBOknq6Ik8ogbHof86lOBxPmt48NIBWi2khP7gIGcQAU85wYDqu1gaS8LRqR-mFl1ZCIer2WRqXZ0WUxpz5jYVt7vPVyCpMfmi1-eFgOuXzuSiRPHfW88cQBQWFG78lAQ-GmfBZE4pPEijC7DOPWMMmPBy5R3QKP42lBBw6Hra0_1cjj064Phg/w480-h640/IMG-20230616-WA0006.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#46 Cindy + Tucker</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ-St4aF2jqGc-aBM3alQhFkuvz07_Km3b4yqzaXaGvXP4Im4mQQFvrlAMdsMU68bc3J3erA_4hndZQnvpJJCdLbuympHsTq4BloSJ9W4-YqJ66Nfg2cQgRnqpYkwyfYEzpIavsQsmJ3ePkgGhxUtAVC-AEe6e08CCXrJ_VeXcCeseEfcpZ6Skb1VoMw/s1024/comp23%20Cindy%20+%20tucker.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="771" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ-St4aF2jqGc-aBM3alQhFkuvz07_Km3b4yqzaXaGvXP4Im4mQQFvrlAMdsMU68bc3J3erA_4hndZQnvpJJCdLbuympHsTq4BloSJ9W4-YqJ66Nfg2cQgRnqpYkwyfYEzpIavsQsmJ3ePkgGhxUtAVC-AEe6e08CCXrJ_VeXcCeseEfcpZ6Skb1VoMw/w482-h640/comp23%20Cindy%20+%20tucker.jpg" width="482" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#45 Andy + Poppy</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibSUN9JM-Em7jRhPWX-wgPx7HgPQPJfNtU_XI6bFWoibrjZY_WIPB9HR7mlyke2-7ckOE3QhFVCXw0q6eIjeIZ9ZEeK8bw9ln5NGo3jql60iUFAIgnSjcMA6oAAVdkcr-JZgUdlIki1-jUQ9j7uOWTls8CdPNfQYIWMjWlE5lcLFbtKgB7DWv0q9ttOQ/s680/comp22%20Andy%20+%20Poppy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="680" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibSUN9JM-Em7jRhPWX-wgPx7HgPQPJfNtU_XI6bFWoibrjZY_WIPB9HR7mlyke2-7ckOE3QhFVCXw0q6eIjeIZ9ZEeK8bw9ln5NGo3jql60iUFAIgnSjcMA6oAAVdkcr-JZgUdlIki1-jUQ9j7uOWTls8CdPNfQYIWMjWlE5lcLFbtKgB7DWv0q9ttOQ/w640-h640/comp22%20Andy%20+%20Poppy.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#44 Dave</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6RL7-s3Qk0KWmZ-AaEWB1bHSbJ6eVIb8IMv1zssbkr7pO4t5itF7OFa1FBJc-iJskpqmG7rNDB8naotVY3Kep895h-nNj4fJNuv7Ci-GYtcTpE2fpW_BajBFNyIOVFafSrKR1PpZQBZheprQ1uybcs5CH_2Ir_6TDbJGXjlR1zOY2hYOhaDhvznBaw/s2048/comp21.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1753" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6RL7-s3Qk0KWmZ-AaEWB1bHSbJ6eVIb8IMv1zssbkr7pO4t5itF7OFa1FBJc-iJskpqmG7rNDB8naotVY3Kep895h-nNj4fJNuv7Ci-GYtcTpE2fpW_BajBFNyIOVFafSrKR1PpZQBZheprQ1uybcs5CH_2Ir_6TDbJGXjlR1zOY2hYOhaDhvznBaw/w548-h640/comp21.jpg" width="548" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#43 Fiona </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsEvwioUFSxmSN644Kc6ncWCCRweiY0LBYCOajUR4_5NhOObsS4gSDCcgJkh_sfB9AV2BAENeA0aT5TWjFaY0dJppqXICf4BA9TJwDwFFsuvIAyIsql5gjYBNfRQeqOzwyVKaAu5PPhTxl6hjRO_zOi4sazFMBtt8kh_MmYDZbEi6kVq7ubcSvCHHMqg/s2015/comp20.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2015" data-original-width="1450" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsEvwioUFSxmSN644Kc6ncWCCRweiY0LBYCOajUR4_5NhOObsS4gSDCcgJkh_sfB9AV2BAENeA0aT5TWjFaY0dJppqXICf4BA9TJwDwFFsuvIAyIsql5gjYBNfRQeqOzwyVKaAu5PPhTxl6hjRO_zOi4sazFMBtt8kh_MmYDZbEi6kVq7ubcSvCHHMqg/w460-h640/comp20.jpg" width="460" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#42 Anna</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOMVZqp6-fH2piiWgWTAapSqq5ozXhF9awX5cr_K8hbshzkJaH0hHhvegqD1YWSgozR-ThKClMuvIW77qgtH86YYIzOa0ycdBfQMIPsr-lQo0zHyXYnjIPUXjbk0kFjqHcARgNtS2BCiFO1Ey8iIN6EzIyChww6WNWzB8rJ8Is4SGVrMSVRTc6vYCsQ/s2015/comp19.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2015" data-original-width="1511" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOMVZqp6-fH2piiWgWTAapSqq5ozXhF9awX5cr_K8hbshzkJaH0hHhvegqD1YWSgozR-ThKClMuvIW77qgtH86YYIzOa0ycdBfQMIPsr-lQo0zHyXYnjIPUXjbk0kFjqHcARgNtS2BCiFO1Ey8iIN6EzIyChww6WNWzB8rJ8Is4SGVrMSVRTc6vYCsQ/w480-h640/comp19.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#41 Lara</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiTDobKLRHF5DLiYUDclz4uswRnTG9tvV-1WJSbXi5t8_HPyQvWY3i1lx2li5xjkdJ1JYbdegns9-iwRYD4W_aRlgg_KjYckyypsJmpiy2wG-VDjygQmMczNX8tAHFinZrRzHnh6zSTqLWRHL4cy393wDhAy_NrGG28uSbZJdXl_uO0gItInMnTg_sDw/s1440/comp18.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiTDobKLRHF5DLiYUDclz4uswRnTG9tvV-1WJSbXi5t8_HPyQvWY3i1lx2li5xjkdJ1JYbdegns9-iwRYD4W_aRlgg_KjYckyypsJmpiy2wG-VDjygQmMczNX8tAHFinZrRzHnh6zSTqLWRHL4cy393wDhAy_NrGG28uSbZJdXl_uO0gItInMnTg_sDw/w640-h640/comp18.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>#40 Melissa +Stoker</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzPhfVbpnBKmYM3IN_o7_ZsBR3jn2i6UG857qC-eJGRIaWvWQKzzWOwPkV0msSxzJFGG3Sy6mOsqjOHNYpVBY9W1qrKHzVnSuNhjfkPxMAecF-cDm8g6KjGa4hvCHdmTvPaCbERxB4K3mkAzWLKx-0L0NBkwjql557bKaMIfqm3768tPzPfI-_y_oMzQ/s960/comp17.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzPhfVbpnBKmYM3IN_o7_ZsBR3jn2i6UG857qC-eJGRIaWvWQKzzWOwPkV0msSxzJFGG3Sy6mOsqjOHNYpVBY9W1qrKHzVnSuNhjfkPxMAecF-cDm8g6KjGa4hvCHdmTvPaCbERxB4K3mkAzWLKx-0L0NBkwjql557bKaMIfqm3768tPzPfI-_y_oMzQ/w480-h640/comp17.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>#39 Brandi</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif441kbmTsztM1S0OjzIE1dv7H_kyl7bzVIpSyQZc546HYZQ1XrIhAGIcJUcXV1JuI3Jd5sXXAEumuVTVd9YG5rS8ZtePy3QcJG8B2LgSP7kgH6UuSGTq-TH4Fl5zgkspKRo390899SOLnkJFcVMZzjafNgte3cCGw7I-GGiNM_NEcMwZ6u35Lg5VkXA/s960/comp11.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="540" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif441kbmTsztM1S0OjzIE1dv7H_kyl7bzVIpSyQZc546HYZQ1XrIhAGIcJUcXV1JuI3Jd5sXXAEumuVTVd9YG5rS8ZtePy3QcJG8B2LgSP7kgH6UuSGTq-TH4Fl5zgkspKRo390899SOLnkJFcVMZzjafNgte3cCGw7I-GGiNM_NEcMwZ6u35Lg5VkXA/w360-h640/comp11.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div><br /></div>#38 Karyn<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqEDRLl0ohG0FayuN0yUTKd-ZZ-mWD5dnZQrZSxjT58G_vzluHsLrov0rssCQap-xrAx88vrfllrdQWL1yZnCpnxaals13JAgB0fnuUlc6fRa0PdY5fYRadQrf8B6Jh9MzGZGWFw4J3LgwURntSTKmwyrDDpFU6dAmFMXHw252C3H8zNvY3QTiMOXfrw/s960/comp12.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqEDRLl0ohG0FayuN0yUTKd-ZZ-mWD5dnZQrZSxjT58G_vzluHsLrov0rssCQap-xrAx88vrfllrdQWL1yZnCpnxaals13JAgB0fnuUlc6fRa0PdY5fYRadQrf8B6Jh9MzGZGWFw4J3LgwURntSTKmwyrDDpFU6dAmFMXHw252C3H8zNvY3QTiMOXfrw/w480-h640/comp12.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>#37 Nikki<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtPuMNBb6l-loTb2KfwLBZeLS3dN_nB_zEQWPd4xa5sdC3McGSCQGrTcDspvrxhYOKt66Qe5UC4N6N-X_XNMtud_u47Qp4BFVjdGCcR_b3EM53XXheEAKVrqns4QNqkYMihq4CKyF2DvYUj_nmmqwtrwIpKgN1scazHBOTEwmUPYh_DlpK5SkWR-vXLA/s960/comp13.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtPuMNBb6l-loTb2KfwLBZeLS3dN_nB_zEQWPd4xa5sdC3McGSCQGrTcDspvrxhYOKt66Qe5UC4N6N-X_XNMtud_u47Qp4BFVjdGCcR_b3EM53XXheEAKVrqns4QNqkYMihq4CKyF2DvYUj_nmmqwtrwIpKgN1scazHBOTEwmUPYh_DlpK5SkWR-vXLA/w480-h640/comp13.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div>#36 Simon<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYEQkVHKr5zIDEp_AcUbBZXRQ6vCvwf3ki387uxGEiFGTYX8rI7I-mLotLsLHuTPVXkPCcKLzvr7_Cz-Z4ddFmoKQgU8nFsPFlNMdy0a_yglctTybNLDQZQH_h8tUidp7OffJzdaMMQvsimL1B7zcu9odUDg7qkuDbfScy5tSu2_32Y9SscRL-x1ARlg/s2015/comp14.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2015" data-original-width="1133" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYEQkVHKr5zIDEp_AcUbBZXRQ6vCvwf3ki387uxGEiFGTYX8rI7I-mLotLsLHuTPVXkPCcKLzvr7_Cz-Z4ddFmoKQgU8nFsPFlNMdy0a_yglctTybNLDQZQH_h8tUidp7OffJzdaMMQvsimL1B7zcu9odUDg7qkuDbfScy5tSu2_32Y9SscRL-x1ARlg/w360-h640/comp14.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><div><br /></div>#35 Alicia<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHn97htE8efu2hDA7PpJVFn886zjXsXO4vns6Q5AEdI6-qmRSWjv4cxaOT7ob9Dz4QW37qZyq7b_MNLpgIB5wqcY7a9h7NTOjnD250Gl527kAJIVRftawRIWUw0bVCw6KPmOovShbKw4zpgAocZotv81RPNdK1HVdUA0EE9m9m8WkYoKTjQT_xH9zziw/s960/comp15.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHn97htE8efu2hDA7PpJVFn886zjXsXO4vns6Q5AEdI6-qmRSWjv4cxaOT7ob9Dz4QW37qZyq7b_MNLpgIB5wqcY7a9h7NTOjnD250Gl527kAJIVRftawRIWUw0bVCw6KPmOovShbKw4zpgAocZotv81RPNdK1HVdUA0EE9m9m8WkYoKTjQT_xH9zziw/w640-h480/comp15.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>#34 Bob + Ozzy<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1WNtKEOdVcF1cVB-TUh0le3BM9ASlWTgJKGlZsR7FeUSMkQGZyGqh4YTPwe3s-av_iYOO0p39MhiMl5SMxK86FRVZk0nk1cYSIGLT098vMTfpIK4yD-5SHoYlfUItEuLFHGuFP0rt6S_en49Tdm_-SE8Q5nag5v-bNmckHi5sQOgRzD-5i6umYbytyg/s1600/comp16.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1WNtKEOdVcF1cVB-TUh0le3BM9ASlWTgJKGlZsR7FeUSMkQGZyGqh4YTPwe3s-av_iYOO0p39MhiMl5SMxK86FRVZk0nk1cYSIGLT098vMTfpIK4yD-5SHoYlfUItEuLFHGuFP0rt6S_en49Tdm_-SE8Q5nag5v-bNmckHi5sQOgRzD-5i6umYbytyg/w480-h640/comp16.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>#33 Dana</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYwigxOzKJ7LA4K3I1b56gn4WEkqtWlyIV2JV3vwK1KbXiqslkC2rONpuuHgNhgkSXceWLjPB9OVm9UzZx-gNpMKTmRGi7QJqxXxu521BbSpRhzTyIls0qHF5HYITf676J7vKMOZkOTFCl9CiDyXO5_nIHWKZluFbbu_A4Qk6n_qCsJdYbkwOKQ3z8g/s1440/comp10.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1151" data-original-width="1440" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYwigxOzKJ7LA4K3I1b56gn4WEkqtWlyIV2JV3vwK1KbXiqslkC2rONpuuHgNhgkSXceWLjPB9OVm9UzZx-gNpMKTmRGi7QJqxXxu521BbSpRhzTyIls0qHF5HYITf676J7vKMOZkOTFCl9CiDyXO5_nIHWKZluFbbu_A4Qk6n_qCsJdYbkwOKQ3z8g/w640-h512/comp10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#32 Danielle + Tyra</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYt8y9RfhdOvPEmYXfCS4a6FdkrsgmYG0oA2odrsjZZgbgrtEzVtBNKy-IB9geS3XWEV4OC30ATAiczn8nNEPBURyhZ0Jz94ZTRVJp0TDoYaJC5_8ormsU3sP3sxbC8QDrRlHON6z3kQpOCbosjQM_7lCWJw_jBLCg-lPk8MYpFZ6y6DhWLatUVFS-jA/s2015/comp9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2015" data-original-width="1814" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYt8y9RfhdOvPEmYXfCS4a6FdkrsgmYG0oA2odrsjZZgbgrtEzVtBNKy-IB9geS3XWEV4OC30ATAiczn8nNEPBURyhZ0Jz94ZTRVJp0TDoYaJC5_8ormsU3sP3sxbC8QDrRlHON6z3kQpOCbosjQM_7lCWJw_jBLCg-lPk8MYpFZ6y6DhWLatUVFS-jA/w576-h640/comp9.jpg" width="576" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#31 Karen</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOHCJoH0v-0ohP08j9-MNRyJnmyCQKosSmuKAVP9W_7vpF5reQC5DaR66OF1pxEWaNYepoBH0H_AwiKcoYE5WWBCh0RYg0bB9rbEfBY9tD-QaOFJCDavypwZA_vyDrvn87hjLLoshmBGbMj52z8u5rifePmgqQMUDMt50S0tbCRh_W0lv4F3lLuPlF9g/s1600/comp8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOHCJoH0v-0ohP08j9-MNRyJnmyCQKosSmuKAVP9W_7vpF5reQC5DaR66OF1pxEWaNYepoBH0H_AwiKcoYE5WWBCh0RYg0bB9rbEfBY9tD-QaOFJCDavypwZA_vyDrvn87hjLLoshmBGbMj52z8u5rifePmgqQMUDMt50S0tbCRh_W0lv4F3lLuPlF9g/w480-h640/comp8.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#30 Paul</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-emRDUywCmpmiO4rXf0KrPbDfAnmjw3-TH4xZA79H2RoQ5WbB_HGwr126aQRBFCNda9OHRucHzbahFxLkET6hiUfjGD2i0wND9xKdUG7Yi3PBA87nBNVtyvW3fBMC92Z3rTqpcVDKgmuFIVVUD7I0WQ60zEG0PmH8PZLrEc0Me-hsKGg_nfy3HmnJFQ/s2015/comp7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2015" data-original-width="1504" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-emRDUywCmpmiO4rXf0KrPbDfAnmjw3-TH4xZA79H2RoQ5WbB_HGwr126aQRBFCNda9OHRucHzbahFxLkET6hiUfjGD2i0wND9xKdUG7Yi3PBA87nBNVtyvW3fBMC92Z3rTqpcVDKgmuFIVVUD7I0WQ60zEG0PmH8PZLrEc0Me-hsKGg_nfy3HmnJFQ/w478-h640/comp7.jpg" width="478" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#29 Binny </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2x2a-DSQ6iE8NrhHgLRp6VpcNs9QFozrIZzVkm8af4xQOMnaOYBqItbBNBrZFsv5OIdzvVZqJgA8jSNTqxokcOHghy3Q8hcuiiUI6d7ymcdFIBrQqR8WgnpQAYxawPrzxfDZ63qKZQP08y_UXNAWQmjXvCAFaLokCFglv79t0OZ1ZBwyYwAkiTOGrA/s960/comp6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2x2a-DSQ6iE8NrhHgLRp6VpcNs9QFozrIZzVkm8af4xQOMnaOYBqItbBNBrZFsv5OIdzvVZqJgA8jSNTqxokcOHghy3Q8hcuiiUI6d7ymcdFIBrQqR8WgnpQAYxawPrzxfDZ63qKZQP08y_UXNAWQmjXvCAFaLokCFglv79t0OZ1ZBwyYwAkiTOGrA/w480-h640/comp6.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#28 Shirley</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJNrVKJJ9GKfeqYuompr8j1pYNsxj_j6KTaV4zkaUKfeTEccKhyv4EVMtBloqw3pJznQRMP0aPCw83-cZVxuIdLvJwdnFFUuyWf7Klor2CxRVFEEQkvM5DDdHZ7qCfXeeEbwURKtszwiSFQnUu1gd-znj_UwulkZmeSSiOX_qTHmU6pHz9jI7_XOZCw/s680/Fy0SoSWX0AMaK3M.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="510" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtJNrVKJJ9GKfeqYuompr8j1pYNsxj_j6KTaV4zkaUKfeTEccKhyv4EVMtBloqw3pJznQRMP0aPCw83-cZVxuIdLvJwdnFFUuyWf7Klor2CxRVFEEQkvM5DDdHZ7qCfXeeEbwURKtszwiSFQnUu1gd-znj_UwulkZmeSSiOX_qTHmU6pHz9jI7_XOZCw/w480-h640/Fy0SoSWX0AMaK3M.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#27 Hafsa</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGiGKMD8_9Byl8EhtC-Mkjf1_QYC8e-YB_hZSLoXdkERpmxTvyZjqYuk_2Bcrsox5J-xxhEs6q3KyIwy-H2PCmZXUQqVr2KWZ3MaE3Maj56MzoK0aPjEkFAhfXYjYW3floA1S5x6Ea7KqlxO2u-8R0DMsZZu0IG0FfMfyOJkyUtBAhki-J8J2J_DECvw/s3302/20230616_152804%20(5).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3302" data-original-width="2855" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGiGKMD8_9Byl8EhtC-Mkjf1_QYC8e-YB_hZSLoXdkERpmxTvyZjqYuk_2Bcrsox5J-xxhEs6q3KyIwy-H2PCmZXUQqVr2KWZ3MaE3Maj56MzoK0aPjEkFAhfXYjYW3floA1S5x6Ea7KqlxO2u-8R0DMsZZu0IG0FfMfyOJkyUtBAhki-J8J2J_DECvw/w554-h640/20230616_152804%20(5).jpg" width="554" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#26 Charles + Rosie</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvpn_mxCZp2RA7sUD_BExsyiwc50qrT2mR39RDXKIqpDJLGGyF1WbDMTzcZq68pFF8oJtYTHCMYPbFgRSeMnxLMTFA5XVY4EKFKGj_5sTVksi5CEjv6ieFG5PcDYkOpTWy_fvC4qwCWYuas4kKf6MY8iod798tY3DLE8RyWa7VmQxuZHvIK7mMBaxUJA/s2016/IMG_0257.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvpn_mxCZp2RA7sUD_BExsyiwc50qrT2mR39RDXKIqpDJLGGyF1WbDMTzcZq68pFF8oJtYTHCMYPbFgRSeMnxLMTFA5XVY4EKFKGj_5sTVksi5CEjv6ieFG5PcDYkOpTWy_fvC4qwCWYuas4kKf6MY8iod798tY3DLE8RyWa7VmQxuZHvIK7mMBaxUJA/w480-h640/IMG_0257.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#25 Rosa B</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8WD7pAnOLd5dcU6e0PSFRWUlFA3kkhZbhh2_xOCk3BXTGPCQp0kt_QmZ2GRUgwMFuFJ59LrG_l15oDutjkUciiUh8617BMJn5NU83Ak4pQ4jNTaY6Rsvmnd6Wp9DxSlokDmgjy72vFxJdk3iv8uq8gk5iqDAo2d6E4XtrbMlGcajjXW9KJM73OIc5w/s640/image0%20(7).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8WD7pAnOLd5dcU6e0PSFRWUlFA3kkhZbhh2_xOCk3BXTGPCQp0kt_QmZ2GRUgwMFuFJ59LrG_l15oDutjkUciiUh8617BMJn5NU83Ak4pQ4jNTaY6Rsvmnd6Wp9DxSlokDmgjy72vFxJdk3iv8uq8gk5iqDAo2d6E4XtrbMlGcajjXW9KJM73OIc5w/w640-h640/image0%20(7).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#24 Caitlin + Pancake</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gqj_Us3pTdl-yLoLR47PDGFoQ-YbVshHmrWxhl8Nof8eeiGd0HN-sHF7uU0vTAdWS9xx4c7EcPs_xz0UIVvmKJRBtZBtiawbIebb-RBUkabPJvRBudoAw_CkKERc45wcO531hGWhmC81c9EkLEOOLH49jEQsONQyZxePGPF4yxSzhnQ6-7-GTGn2VA/s4032/image1%20(1).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gqj_Us3pTdl-yLoLR47PDGFoQ-YbVshHmrWxhl8Nof8eeiGd0HN-sHF7uU0vTAdWS9xx4c7EcPs_xz0UIVvmKJRBtZBtiawbIebb-RBUkabPJvRBudoAw_CkKERc45wcO531hGWhmC81c9EkLEOOLH49jEQsONQyZxePGPF4yxSzhnQ6-7-GTGn2VA/w480-h640/image1%20(1).jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#23 Mathew + Roxy</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinymbPndKlFDqN9yyXi8dHU5dGBiI07MFV-lRdPUXaL0_3VwtnvImcgvd9Nd9DK29VSl1B4xzLUKLQoV1UUzz7BXSoruG2n2Ow4hQnLjIsY5dHQ7APi-t5ywlrdDsIEDWdQYifVQo5-ZruaCahw-wbgcGsAicDJY7MtOZcNTalDUQ8KU2euKe5LDlJlA/s1359/AB69AC9A5B864EE2B9E72D2C9544C2F1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1359" data-original-width="1019" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinymbPndKlFDqN9yyXi8dHU5dGBiI07MFV-lRdPUXaL0_3VwtnvImcgvd9Nd9DK29VSl1B4xzLUKLQoV1UUzz7BXSoruG2n2Ow4hQnLjIsY5dHQ7APi-t5ywlrdDsIEDWdQYifVQo5-ZruaCahw-wbgcGsAicDJY7MtOZcNTalDUQ8KU2euKe5LDlJlA/w480-h640/AB69AC9A5B864EE2B9E72D2C9544C2F1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#22 Deanna</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguziRpjfJnvmLTqxP8GVM0_GM-Zdll-t1m3QlaJGq9HHVAR2boO8GxBIH-uV0JTgDJ90WWOBLmvjG96kHbCz1t5UFunOJHh4cEVsUD-7V6_bV6OB6ncS55TdDb4L19QDNzTJF4LUvkwDWPayReLipXu54PbV6TOdhWvp4LsskFu4TQxkSz9hxd6UIDjA/s1080/image0%20(6).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguziRpjfJnvmLTqxP8GVM0_GM-Zdll-t1m3QlaJGq9HHVAR2boO8GxBIH-uV0JTgDJ90WWOBLmvjG96kHbCz1t5UFunOJHh4cEVsUD-7V6_bV6OB6ncS55TdDb4L19QDNzTJF4LUvkwDWPayReLipXu54PbV6TOdhWvp4LsskFu4TQxkSz9hxd6UIDjA/w640-h640/image0%20(6).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#21 Helen + Dakspell</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwgA_GoR9QdX_1NL-uxoaiL0XWgC6GcR_f6B47oG40K8fTsPuyBZB3c-U35B-IlTn0PPduwRsy7Zybjl1Wj1T4AOYudNrEJSZloGsuocRHdQfpv92eD8lmj9OMCdWDNCwqEwWt1HtR0APrMUNFdtK7ZnfuM97aaNN7OO3Q9nBjG-mobIiig-z88O00eA/s640/image1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="629" data-original-width="640" height="630" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwgA_GoR9QdX_1NL-uxoaiL0XWgC6GcR_f6B47oG40K8fTsPuyBZB3c-U35B-IlTn0PPduwRsy7Zybjl1Wj1T4AOYudNrEJSZloGsuocRHdQfpv92eD8lmj9OMCdWDNCwqEwWt1HtR0APrMUNFdtK7ZnfuM97aaNN7OO3Q9nBjG-mobIiig-z88O00eA/w640-h630/image1.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#20 Rosa + Dolly & Stormy</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE_QWZniyNcXAPG02b85FEL0KkRtbbtsJAevkuixqHH6QJUZXudT2Q96epjLr6W7sW3kupGppGqqUnGyUub2X6Rh3njoKnHYW89N_d4I52FQEJplu31Kf7xCWQOO1V9tfUgfbQpqdODgd9RxoLWNCL6EnS2FO4nk6HW0HEHSrnH1UH8CuhYmmaOJG59g/s2016/image0%20(5).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1512" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE_QWZniyNcXAPG02b85FEL0KkRtbbtsJAevkuixqHH6QJUZXudT2Q96epjLr6W7sW3kupGppGqqUnGyUub2X6Rh3njoKnHYW89N_d4I52FQEJplu31Kf7xCWQOO1V9tfUgfbQpqdODgd9RxoLWNCL6EnS2FO4nk6HW0HEHSrnH1UH8CuhYmmaOJG59g/w480-h640/image0%20(5).jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#19 Kim + Lila</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-T8wCj91KdikpnVM-moWxgaOb1_xdGg-eh1FD4p2Jd3rILbHrpzTNcHievDkIeHqYHulqFyLNVQF9trJnclnOFDb1B0bAOqyF9iMZy2ZHwzaLKBr3QtDWUK4A69_uAD9tiGj8y7UUVAIMrczkPqSt0slcIppihCKRhotkExhVy9TtygRLu16-5UJlAA/s4032/Lila%20library.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-T8wCj91KdikpnVM-moWxgaOb1_xdGg-eh1FD4p2Jd3rILbHrpzTNcHievDkIeHqYHulqFyLNVQF9trJnclnOFDb1B0bAOqyF9iMZy2ZHwzaLKBr3QtDWUK4A69_uAD9tiGj8y7UUVAIMrczkPqSt0slcIppihCKRhotkExhVy9TtygRLu16-5UJlAA/w480-h640/Lila%20library.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#18 Cymberleigh + Soda</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnA5HHjsXGKGPyu0aMAvCv1WTI1CmFHIdyhNT6TrmMUmDw_aFkeVEjGQI6FujRkmBjz0M4P-6fRZifzXAgsg2rmFXbsW0NZI8ztaL8Yd8QIEPC1Lzh-yV6LSjUSIL1yTjaLA0O2V0bpAtH-6ELNbRcDJ7t_F9-i3tF421PtZjAbF654A5hTpBBT9yblw/s680/comp5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="680" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnA5HHjsXGKGPyu0aMAvCv1WTI1CmFHIdyhNT6TrmMUmDw_aFkeVEjGQI6FujRkmBjz0M4P-6fRZifzXAgsg2rmFXbsW0NZI8ztaL8Yd8QIEPC1Lzh-yV6LSjUSIL1yTjaLA0O2V0bpAtH-6ELNbRcDJ7t_F9-i3tF421PtZjAbF654A5hTpBBT9yblw/w640-h480/comp5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#17 Andrew</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitOXLbjBLn3Qh6Re2bkGRXT007qskr7ZuDSQW5Zpvtx_KkJnct4D2NDQYHpyK5kb1s98xrIQY_yPgLgdlgYiOqLDQLUvdI6ADw6Qq3CRWDVn1bFLcvFrEuFtfD-Wj17SQsAFx4zqlzjwD9fdSTJWJbt9mpooA8oYaE5diyBuQo-CcIqPCG8Pc0_vpYxA/s3840/DSC_0369.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3840" data-original-width="2160" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitOXLbjBLn3Qh6Re2bkGRXT007qskr7ZuDSQW5Zpvtx_KkJnct4D2NDQYHpyK5kb1s98xrIQY_yPgLgdlgYiOqLDQLUvdI6ADw6Qq3CRWDVn1bFLcvFrEuFtfD-Wj17SQsAFx4zqlzjwD9fdSTJWJbt9mpooA8oYaE5diyBuQo-CcIqPCG8Pc0_vpYxA/w360-h640/DSC_0369.JPG" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#16 Chris + Lylah</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4bVQpHPTK_jz8ewORiznHrJ4cFUayL93U3oJwVJVWAzWotv_Te7-M8A_fynuK0tOiCPpll7rIDDV2eGINsPzqp2SdKqkk14-yf2ikpLmTo0b8TTmKDjsbpVUkoDwDejm147Em2jkuxCB3lsOSw5vnoJrTINO8XRF0UYS_QGr5y07QQ_m4f58ADyVVTA/s3840/Snapchat-842688244.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3840" data-original-width="2160" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4bVQpHPTK_jz8ewORiznHrJ4cFUayL93U3oJwVJVWAzWotv_Te7-M8A_fynuK0tOiCPpll7rIDDV2eGINsPzqp2SdKqkk14-yf2ikpLmTo0b8TTmKDjsbpVUkoDwDejm147Em2jkuxCB3lsOSw5vnoJrTINO8XRF0UYS_QGr5y07QQ_m4f58ADyVVTA/w360-h640/Snapchat-842688244.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#15 Christine + Gertrude</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkAWabpJY4W65dJVjWf_EEf3fIGkRgvnDrpuCbFvpVEUv30VMfFIO9tpZpGQQhJJ641pCSENZlMi99wY5O_Fg2xMCt8UnWtoJdBHiQsg_rMp-2CZ1G2NSYYSI65uOfrgI9iOcN09C-oDnW653iBVce0tekwqUQhE1lAt0y7CknV_euFl9Sl4RkPrtrUQ/s640/image0%20(3).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="640" height="636" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkAWabpJY4W65dJVjWf_EEf3fIGkRgvnDrpuCbFvpVEUv30VMfFIO9tpZpGQQhJJ641pCSENZlMi99wY5O_Fg2xMCt8UnWtoJdBHiQsg_rMp-2CZ1G2NSYYSI65uOfrgI9iOcN09C-oDnW653iBVce0tekwqUQhE1lAt0y7CknV_euFl9Sl4RkPrtrUQ/w640-h636/image0%20(3).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#14 Ray</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8IogM6LPJeoXfiIKw3oJsAfqwqgJME3EpsW_URHf2sClhPLFuJI9DXCVSDPq6vCkY4d9bHjU3UtKvNylMJP_9fot77IGDgvq0clYLwB5kLTV-gNtFLbXA55nV_wwyyLnHLFlF_qmK-9nue56tQ3Y148osMwZcpAIZJLqdNHY1zbS9tidC2vU9IAV7Q/s2048/bookkitty.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1516" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8IogM6LPJeoXfiIKw3oJsAfqwqgJME3EpsW_URHf2sClhPLFuJI9DXCVSDPq6vCkY4d9bHjU3UtKvNylMJP_9fot77IGDgvq0clYLwB5kLTV-gNtFLbXA55nV_wwyyLnHLFlF_qmK-9nue56tQ3Y148osMwZcpAIZJLqdNHY1zbS9tidC2vU9IAV7Q/w474-h640/bookkitty.jpg" width="474" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#13 Sylvia </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqPl-mfuefjV_7M7gAP5gQbtZ3Sin7ORMsetK4NX794ZTzlL2grjbJI7ZxigV3EDF5tyYzUjHxlBMBkUBM_ZNzM6vbKMDTnv4r0jc6l3_idyOOfYRoPI_piPEi_ch4j-6k9PjIXKidV5UyLbePihdBsxx-vX2dq2TuNoJryNxVWEE7BrCDfJozwmYhRw/s4624/20230616_131137.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4624" data-original-width="3468" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqPl-mfuefjV_7M7gAP5gQbtZ3Sin7ORMsetK4NX794ZTzlL2grjbJI7ZxigV3EDF5tyYzUjHxlBMBkUBM_ZNzM6vbKMDTnv4r0jc6l3_idyOOfYRoPI_piPEi_ch4j-6k9PjIXKidV5UyLbePihdBsxx-vX2dq2TuNoJryNxVWEE7BrCDfJozwmYhRw/w480-h640/20230616_131137.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#12 Irena</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaQZ330CIm8tjoqOe8n_KrIhtlyiARCUmPbd8ncWR82-qxJhfYwSISoL0Z6NfkTa85BQksLTPBAsqQHCHuzqbjFuB25OUmor4eJDFbcwVlw4suDk4jOVlKL6yP6U9iQ3i8Zb2kAXEC4OdUcnIBgtvrpfhUGVzYu-xMWkr6Fbrpiact7n2I4hMFat3UIA/s1422/comp4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1422" data-original-width="1077" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaQZ330CIm8tjoqOe8n_KrIhtlyiARCUmPbd8ncWR82-qxJhfYwSISoL0Z6NfkTa85BQksLTPBAsqQHCHuzqbjFuB25OUmor4eJDFbcwVlw4suDk4jOVlKL6yP6U9iQ3i8Zb2kAXEC4OdUcnIBgtvrpfhUGVzYu-xMWkr6Fbrpiact7n2I4hMFat3UIA/w484-h640/comp4.jpg" width="484" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#11 Nick </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh4notpeMLeZsh-Jmay7RiHFjhd_ByQ8BhaBrnvjExnF9cpzoAW1avwshMiTUssymnQfMy-fKiI8VG6uixQ_9U4KCs3VY6DZBT4OvIUfo8oY2v3IMsx-lXk_SQNpBg6GJJzp32icDYXm4olyBVYkN5P6vIDkEWwOsJ4zU9fE7cj_Eiz8Uu1wZj3FdgXg/s680/comp3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="510" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh4notpeMLeZsh-Jmay7RiHFjhd_ByQ8BhaBrnvjExnF9cpzoAW1avwshMiTUssymnQfMy-fKiI8VG6uixQ_9U4KCs3VY6DZBT4OvIUfo8oY2v3IMsx-lXk_SQNpBg6GJJzp32icDYXm4olyBVYkN5P6vIDkEWwOsJ4zU9fE7cj_Eiz8Uu1wZj3FdgXg/w480-h640/comp3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>#10 Johnathon + Mia</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCzjpoBS2wAE-VN62MlsM-o1s8dE1sSnOx1BC2BA1aeUmmsg7g1TfJoDRnMz3C0MYdhY8ynE6qnU64TU4ZR1PgA4bkCnxW2139u3RsxgLPxOpcnxIgvqdY3KK4J_7jTWiveqyid11C8MIIYQrBcEtCYfeFvVKdbeIYf1PwP_sNyH-qjCzRwkFJvyGQ/s2547/20200816_153345.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2547" data-original-width="2079" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCzjpoBS2wAE-VN62MlsM-o1s8dE1sSnOx1BC2BA1aeUmmsg7g1TfJoDRnMz3C0MYdhY8ynE6qnU64TU4ZR1PgA4bkCnxW2139u3RsxgLPxOpcnxIgvqdY3KK4J_7jTWiveqyid11C8MIIYQrBcEtCYfeFvVKdbeIYf1PwP_sNyH-qjCzRwkFJvyGQ/w522-h640/20200816_153345.jpg" width="522" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#9 Aaron </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpnaGxG32Oy3ODlGTlGmQOFfu-AGB-d4AIUaTnawzyH8ZaPkm8ivCEQgCQbrG03L9lzWaw0wX8kJntpW7ZF5ifcxmutwxwkmojrRNlVExSdHWC_rVuRlV-Pe8qYI7ZGwYBWLou9kUvgPBxs9Nva5yagTHOGUqhZJNZ0Bg0K64SI3ZgRVV5mZqT00jYPg/s2048/04BB5B44-CF7B-4F6A-B088-9BCE0500C571.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpnaGxG32Oy3ODlGTlGmQOFfu-AGB-d4AIUaTnawzyH8ZaPkm8ivCEQgCQbrG03L9lzWaw0wX8kJntpW7ZF5ifcxmutwxwkmojrRNlVExSdHWC_rVuRlV-Pe8qYI7ZGwYBWLou9kUvgPBxs9Nva5yagTHOGUqhZJNZ0Bg0K64SI3ZgRVV5mZqT00jYPg/w640-h640/04BB5B44-CF7B-4F6A-B088-9BCE0500C571.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#8 Belle --- THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T ... bum!!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjig7WQieJlIz_4YHg8Evnxoj-mJAaNdEu7235mCjtQW_gnfnPaQIYkN_rZMNQf70M0Zz1xpCoIak8TSAuo6QflBetGK1cfB4SG53WcjNgKulXwfge07oWHLVI43_rA1EmOss8JGpnNaHAE1GHsaS9eylMoivkWXHia1cuzRAkzIyq6Nb2siAcPwFHEoQ/s4032/image_50751233.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjig7WQieJlIz_4YHg8Evnxoj-mJAaNdEu7235mCjtQW_gnfnPaQIYkN_rZMNQf70M0Zz1xpCoIak8TSAuo6QflBetGK1cfB4SG53WcjNgKulXwfge07oWHLVI43_rA1EmOss8JGpnNaHAE1GHsaS9eylMoivkWXHia1cuzRAkzIyq6Nb2siAcPwFHEoQ/w640-h480/image_50751233.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#7 Tammy + Falkor</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuoBS0Ee_tRB401hSaN-cojUV_VE3_RbvaYJ9mKEujyyoFFXZ0M1uDiLv4y93TGUq-J9e6LpO00yveXphuA9DQroVimE8hxDxV5U0Jwzrm74xPH1wBNS9A8TkOn5F1mwNhxOvwkMK_OcoYAr_7XBlZhbubOnK4x8amjkkIbbCOUfcA1SlFuReeYaZwA/s640/image0%20(2).jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuoBS0Ee_tRB401hSaN-cojUV_VE3_RbvaYJ9mKEujyyoFFXZ0M1uDiLv4y93TGUq-J9e6LpO00yveXphuA9DQroVimE8hxDxV5U0Jwzrm74xPH1wBNS9A8TkOn5F1mwNhxOvwkMK_OcoYAr_7XBlZhbubOnK4x8amjkkIbbCOUfcA1SlFuReeYaZwA/w640-h480/image0%20(2).jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#6 Dan + Archer</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGVyW_dXfnOO1-mWQ4hyWHh40_GPNfhjDiDSvtgrO11OaG1J2yCZqz8fNZZLUX-y4r22B3zNOcuZIoOxU82-V36ruVC3qG9KMTWjGWdCXMAtu2r8COie-AKfeHJgEk5DlSLHtg5LWTBUH9zWTIjaOBzZgXx2U_mTTMxmvQ5_yli-eIyDaIvyl7svCfag/s1440/comp2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGVyW_dXfnOO1-mWQ4hyWHh40_GPNfhjDiDSvtgrO11OaG1J2yCZqz8fNZZLUX-y4r22B3zNOcuZIoOxU82-V36ruVC3qG9KMTWjGWdCXMAtu2r8COie-AKfeHJgEk5DlSLHtg5LWTBUH9zWTIjaOBzZgXx2U_mTTMxmvQ5_yli-eIyDaIvyl7svCfag/w480-h640/comp2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#5 Sharrina </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYvjjx63H0rZqkyBxAs_j_4gktGKhI3Hq_ks59956sJe5lqLoMreCVAw6STz7_WwIqv8NoDs_iTvmN8CsMDsZV4TDhS1KS-hePhxIFKNFFN4UTi86oTDOtAaC-ITFge8RtWMxJ_1AmuhiDtnr7J-98uG9dp3Jlk19-l356AaYBUlZkD6EHtsVeNR12Q/s2335/comp1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2335" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYvjjx63H0rZqkyBxAs_j_4gktGKhI3Hq_ks59956sJe5lqLoMreCVAw6STz7_WwIqv8NoDs_iTvmN8CsMDsZV4TDhS1KS-hePhxIFKNFFN4UTi86oTDOtAaC-ITFge8RtWMxJ_1AmuhiDtnr7J-98uG9dp3Jlk19-l356AaYBUlZkD6EHtsVeNR12Q/w296-h640/comp1.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#4 Louise + Little Miss & Mr Preston</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeS7J5tUP9BS6DbW1WMC1lLhRYmT1nbyoS_hV_TkmuLVaX08CJZhxfeAmzoksW2TF6Ww3xz3Uae5KNvNfmzJk3yyym0VpH21Trv-_WT0h2bV-qFOw1aPCOg9f3JremnnjBL8j8oQe7jOKL8esAvkAfEuOgzF4J_tcq-Ms97ynswThC1iCVJ_Xc5gLRbQ/s1000/Miss&Preston.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="889" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeS7J5tUP9BS6DbW1WMC1lLhRYmT1nbyoS_hV_TkmuLVaX08CJZhxfeAmzoksW2TF6Ww3xz3Uae5KNvNfmzJk3yyym0VpH21Trv-_WT0h2bV-qFOw1aPCOg9f3JremnnjBL8j8oQe7jOKL8esAvkAfEuOgzF4J_tcq-Ms97ynswThC1iCVJ_Xc5gLRbQ/w568-h640/Miss&Preston.png" width="568" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#3 Julia</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-tyHPA8AM7rfdc3xUIyvR-8xlyPU8vT7QCXDbraRJCjH57MJqpHhtCU7Ix3j9841knZXyal5pkQ28w4c3ntA6nv94DIprbHdjLmBufJhrwKSXLUBqjyitEa6A7buXEMC3M1Lifvd5ZjA2rwQMbYBicmFEzWBbyp2Ybc_OPoLuhAuBJ7zKFufOSTjWJw/s1706/Bookscatravenjrivera.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1706" data-original-width="1439" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-tyHPA8AM7rfdc3xUIyvR-8xlyPU8vT7QCXDbraRJCjH57MJqpHhtCU7Ix3j9841knZXyal5pkQ28w4c3ntA6nv94DIprbHdjLmBufJhrwKSXLUBqjyitEa6A7buXEMC3M1Lifvd5ZjA2rwQMbYBicmFEzWBbyp2Ybc_OPoLuhAuBJ7zKFufOSTjWJw/w540-h640/Bookscatravenjrivera.jpg" width="540" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#2 Christine + Peachy</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_WBOarWvje-dh5or_hfOu5mhLM_2PvGD8Jy1zbiAb40nhm1w_CXEzYh9enbrZTSwpt1HK-_P5mG9tL7B6x_nGQwEisOFfSvkc89Z4QJbxZLBhKQHjh_-7vRFlMrY5zbzW_oR-IGnq1k837taT8t1B0UgGkktZxNgdhTAz0blfUg4H8co0FWo_r38UQ/s1666/image%20(3).png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="937" data-original-width="1666" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_WBOarWvje-dh5or_hfOu5mhLM_2PvGD8Jy1zbiAb40nhm1w_CXEzYh9enbrZTSwpt1HK-_P5mG9tL7B6x_nGQwEisOFfSvkc89Z4QJbxZLBhKQHjh_-7vRFlMrY5zbzW_oR-IGnq1k837taT8t1B0UgGkktZxNgdhTAz0blfUg4H8co0FWo_r38UQ/w640-h360/image%20(3).png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>#1 Danielle + Choo</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6MuY6_GJ2tJ4On1g1C-4S7apJh7ciI245K3e8L_8gE53yGGvoWj1w91FeJ8WoPeHO1FIwa0kHKbepx91w1-7t4lf64fMBtrxuMbWepZPmzkSnvdE1gcGoLZgrxnfLgGF_lvFaG3xV4F5WiY_6ugjkyQbgk14f-3QwKtTGLyAyRfxOOvOfWbpkjsE16w/s4000/20230325_151737.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6MuY6_GJ2tJ4On1g1C-4S7apJh7ciI245K3e8L_8gE53yGGvoWj1w91FeJ8WoPeHO1FIwa0kHKbepx91w1-7t4lf64fMBtrxuMbWepZPmzkSnvdE1gcGoLZgrxnfLgGF_lvFaG3xV4F5WiY_6ugjkyQbgk14f-3QwKtTGLyAyRfxOOvOfWbpkjsE16w/w480-h640/20230325_151737.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; 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color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;" /></span></p><p><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;" /></p><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-86611007217303908972023-06-14T02:01:00.006-07:002023-06-17T04:43:54.509-07:00Art!<p>I've been a long time admirer of artist <a href="https://www.instagram.com/hopelessmaine/https://www.instagram.com/hopelessmaine/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><b>Tom Brown</b></a>'s work (not to be confused with artist <a href="https://www.instagram.com/tomrobertsillustration/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tom Roberts</a>, whose work I have also admired for many years - Tom Roberts did the cover art for <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61612864-the-book-that-wouldn-t-burn" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Book That Wouldn't Burn</a>). </p><p><br /></p><p>I knew that Tom Brown also did great architectural drawings. Way back in 2011 when I ran a <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2012/12/entries-for-graphic-novel-contest.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">competition around the idea of a Prince of Thorns graphic novel</a>, Tom won with an entry that began with this panel:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-6u9emMOis3UIZzT4ltWbNPceuZZjYTzikV5eM6E78bALOMETcMfk84N4wjksKa4alhmigypOpyziG0emJRI3oOtUNXh9q2YOn-diKWFcKt3zSLRo9zC05UZ_FL88dVHASR4tWNdmV5iek6P3fyRbQti23fe-masYLBaXFSDQQIjGVcCTeUVMleblBw/s1214/gn1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1214" data-original-width="791" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-6u9emMOis3UIZzT4ltWbNPceuZZjYTzikV5eM6E78bALOMETcMfk84N4wjksKa4alhmigypOpyziG0emJRI3oOtUNXh9q2YOn-diKWFcKt3zSLRo9zC05UZ_FL88dVHASR4tWNdmV5iek6P3fyRbQti23fe-masYLBaXFSDQQIjGVcCTeUVMleblBw/w418-h640/gn1.jpg" width="418" /></a></div><br /><p>And he's been drawing the Hopeless, Maine graphic novels ever since. </p><p>So, one thing led to another and I asked Tom (Brown) to draw me some art for THE BOOK THAT WOULDN'T BURN. Initially just for me to show off and remind people that the book's out and that they could buy a copy.</p><p>I am working on a Library Trilogy short story though, and if it proves to be a success then I will publish it and perhaps Tom's piece can adorn the cover.</p><p>I know that many of us non-artists like to see the process of an image being created, from first thoughts to polished completion. Fortunately Tom was happy for me to show his working. So here is a sequence of stages - to which I will add the final coloured version later this week - enjoy!</p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>Stage 1 - the cat helps with the composition. Can you see what it is yet?</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5EHw813YjKkMbox7cdk7xGE9sBViEQ217IIQMorHIdNMTzUjiGCArHh815Bq90PYuj8Ilwl0FGjb09cZmhEQkp1XSbNZOmtVux10-P-SHSt4MwgT2_jIJMUrg_CXop_zOLedP0XDmHiVf1u6ICBY9r5hnm5Spo-UEXvJwEAC_c77l9p0bABILsMq58w/s2048/tb1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5EHw813YjKkMbox7cdk7xGE9sBViEQ217IIQMorHIdNMTzUjiGCArHh815Bq90PYuj8Ilwl0FGjb09cZmhEQkp1XSbNZOmtVux10-P-SHSt4MwgT2_jIJMUrg_CXop_zOLedP0XDmHiVf1u6ICBY9r5hnm5Spo-UEXvJwEAC_c77l9p0bABILsMq58w/w480-h640/tb1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Stage 2 - Time for the good paper. Watch the birdy.</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSw0Gkmz10MIcBSkXEHHJWx7D_G41F_owNaOdkiSZfgCSayTfTgENPtVwm-Uvwm0Rhb6RHcAyD4_Pa3HoMF8tN-bchaZMTLf13XpddUrG_2ayG12lq3gwc_manA-6x2woE86FMGmSnrFupU2C8LIqTqj2Y8joKIdwFqjmbJkLezSuzKfOKL_qOd-oIFQ/s2048/tb2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSw0Gkmz10MIcBSkXEHHJWx7D_G41F_owNaOdkiSZfgCSayTfTgENPtVwm-Uvwm0Rhb6RHcAyD4_Pa3HoMF8tN-bchaZMTLf13XpddUrG_2ayG12lq3gwc_manA-6x2woE86FMGmSnrFupU2C8LIqTqj2Y8joKIdwFqjmbJkLezSuzKfOKL_qOd-oIFQ/w480-h640/tb2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Stage 3 - bird needs friends!</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhehjOKHs882eHX1ZFhALJGzmp_kkds73nouhnrf0vT5Il2WTGym8-lilrlAmOzVWQNGLPzap1Hydq0Skn3dDMyqwkp9_UAfwwW8byTcCXsKSf_vAzyOedNsLchtWx4AtYtvSuZeGAkZB1ha4FYwHHEG_Q7K8JG2FwZhGxUyz9QZdPLv4BGtJjuCiZaKg/s2048/tb3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhehjOKHs882eHX1ZFhALJGzmp_kkds73nouhnrf0vT5Il2WTGym8-lilrlAmOzVWQNGLPzap1Hydq0Skn3dDMyqwkp9_UAfwwW8byTcCXsKSf_vAzyOedNsLchtWx4AtYtvSuZeGAkZB1ha4FYwHHEG_Q7K8JG2FwZhGxUyz9QZdPLv4BGtJjuCiZaKg/w480-h640/tb3.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Stage 4 - more background please!</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUecUWtoS2-E5YOwBmJEUMmfrop-gzOPrccLAE86mwF7yi48Id5ngb4_zGNnKwicCEFyBF5xlCTz1o2lqHFivB15uwHN5GpNkHiFfUevZmXrAI8TRzQEjcUoSA5H5DQQU6Gm86uuJuM2utH1WIsXXgdgdpaBaUU9FcAmnTvtxlXRMfUv4IDczDVhqu6A/s2048/tb4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUecUWtoS2-E5YOwBmJEUMmfrop-gzOPrccLAE86mwF7yi48Id5ngb4_zGNnKwicCEFyBF5xlCTz1o2lqHFivB15uwHN5GpNkHiFfUevZmXrAI8TRzQEjcUoSA5H5DQQU6Gm86uuJuM2utH1WIsXXgdgdpaBaUU9FcAmnTvtxlXRMfUv4IDczDVhqu6A/w480-h640/tb4.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Stage 6 - let's just add a <i>little </i>detail...</b></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2yU0czIWVwV33C2z138WN4PTk7VnCQRwtuuk8z9OKMyhbK5xkGgSfrn9CreJYCRbWRx3GuIPBKncookFNtgqPjVVRBZho3-s8DXJO4qICQQtbnac9KTKmVpxmseQ982pnm7qEPMN36HH0GP7acTrZxUxcXYqondkOLkYTKyclHEr1di0x9rNxYu8wtA/s2472/tb5.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2472" data-original-width="1737" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2yU0czIWVwV33C2z138WN4PTk7VnCQRwtuuk8z9OKMyhbK5xkGgSfrn9CreJYCRbWRx3GuIPBKncookFNtgqPjVVRBZho3-s8DXJO4qICQQtbnac9KTKmVpxmseQ982pnm7qEPMN36HH0GP7acTrZxUxcXYqondkOLkYTKyclHEr1di0x9rNxYu8wtA/w450-h640/tb5.png" width="450" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">And here it is in glorious technicolour - what an image! Well done Mr Brown.</span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF29qyepIlCgaTvPdfp6kmTu1Ex4Z9P5Yk4Mc-i7Ee71DHUfmDc0yUyyiQyIQjmu6F0i-4W9fRB5dvFAH1rwUp7UF89d3weAn72__orO6hNPy3ab_ewsQVM9_pVsmsZpyinjSif7-YZur7IgQFKB1-SFnDzEYuyRvrbRljYVkPFiVie-V43Fcia-JoXg/s1350/tb6.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="959" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF29qyepIlCgaTvPdfp6kmTu1Ex4Z9P5Yk4Mc-i7Ee71DHUfmDc0yUyyiQyIQjmu6F0i-4W9fRB5dvFAH1rwUp7UF89d3weAn72__orO6hNPy3ab_ewsQVM9_pVsmsZpyinjSif7-YZur7IgQFKB1-SFnDzEYuyRvrbRljYVkPFiVie-V43Fcia-JoXg/w454-h640/tb6.png" width="454" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Tom's selling these as prints - you should buy one!</span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A3 - <a class="x1fey0fg xmper1u x1edh9d7" href="https://ko-fi.com/s/79becb1c12">https://ko-fi.com/s/79becb1c12</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A4 - <a class="x1fey0fg xmper1u x1edh9d7" href="https://ko-fi.com/s/a0ede92be2">https://ko-fi.com/s/a0ede92be2</a></div></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: xx-large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: start;" /></span><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</span></a></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;" /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>sdasd</p>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-37337705387763951382023-06-07T05:05:00.013-07:002023-06-08T02:00:20.897-07:00Selling words - a look at the mechanics.<p>Four days ago I released <a href="https://mark---lawrence.blogspot.com/2023/06/the-new-world.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">a novella called The New World</a>. </p><p>I self-published it.</p><p><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C71XXX3Q/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Get it in the US</a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C71XXX3Q/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Get it in the UK</a></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">Get it on any Amazon.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: center;">Throw stars at it &/or read the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/172884230-the-new-world" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">reviews on Goodreads</a>!</p><p><br /></p><p>Some things to remember about short fiction:</p><p>i) Most readers do not like it.</p><p>ii) It's harder to write word for word than long fiction.</p><p><br /></p><p>Whilst some readers look at the length (or more accurately, the thickness) of The Book That Wouldn't Burn and suck their breath in over their teeth ... "It's so LONG!" </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBDSyxDXNhxczCLBHrL-HYM60bxVc5Btbj8IH6ixnmJ7lxrmE39wO1DFhT9boaN23gWfdtIHzJM-WXxl7dCJiU-JVbY-ZgxxhFYvUcvbG1aN4TcdEexmKA0j-rrlGsULOr7QRgcHJmZRhAYLDHWDnuzdONI_R4qp2_fSftvZ2a6QW-CrvQOA-OW4Gew/s1920/20230220_151355.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBDSyxDXNhxczCLBHrL-HYM60bxVc5Btbj8IH6ixnmJ7lxrmE39wO1DFhT9boaN23gWfdtIHzJM-WXxl7dCJiU-JVbY-ZgxxhFYvUcvbG1aN4TcdEexmKA0j-rrlGsULOr7QRgcHJmZRhAYLDHWDnuzdONI_R4qp2_fSftvZ2a6QW-CrvQOA-OW4Gew/s320/20230220_151355.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>...rest assured, the complaints multiply by many orders at the other end of the scale.</p><p>Sensible people talk about book length in terms of the number of words. The number of pages tells us very little as doubling the font size can double the page count without changing the story.</p><p>If I had a penny for every time someone disparagingly called my Impossible Times books novellas ... I'd have a whole handful of pennies!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6kQaqlRHb-wvsD0zCg231LWtVzfy-gxpJn2MgXJe1KBwEVpMkY1-bJHn1PEtjFfOrB7oMuRmhanZjs7XYl7zpOGV0tJRYHAm5sxqWEDVqLOhFL68GyrqEmITpUV7aTotOl5LRZe7DgO4IDyH2qG3wrtfipJxmza9CQAcsiwBfqc2tRO2dyuEgpMC6mA/s1182/words.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="521" data-original-width="1182" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6kQaqlRHb-wvsD0zCg231LWtVzfy-gxpJn2MgXJe1KBwEVpMkY1-bJHn1PEtjFfOrB7oMuRmhanZjs7XYl7zpOGV0tJRYHAm5sxqWEDVqLOhFL68GyrqEmITpUV7aTotOl5LRZe7DgO4IDyH2qG3wrtfipJxmza9CQAcsiwBfqc2tRO2dyuEgpMC6mA/w640-h282/words.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Anyway...</span></b></p><p><br /></p><p>I released a novella and I used all the powers of my social media to promote this fact - every platform I own, save my newsletter cos I only do 3 of those a year and have used 2 already in 2023.</p><p>I knew in advance that despite being (in my estimation) an excellent novella, currently rocking an average rating of 4.71 on Goodreads, The New World would not sell well, because:</p><p>i) People don't like short fiction.</p><p>ii) It is essentially a continuation of a story that ended in 2016 and devotees of The Red Queen's War have largely moved on.</p><p>iii) It was in the Red Queen's War special edition omnibus, so 1,000 of the most enthusisastic Jalan and Snorri readers already owned it.</p><p>iv) I had made it available free to my tier 3+ patrons over on my Patreon.</p><p>v) People don't like short fiction.</p><p><br /></p><p>Let's just address that first and last point again. They really don't. Short stories are really hard to write, and even harder to sell. They gain very few reads in the magazines that offer a home for them. The short stories that sell best are strongly tied to an ongoing series, supplying the fix that readers want while they wait for the next book. This is why <u><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42865580" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bound</a></u> sold so well. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23163065" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">During the Dance</a> is an anomaly in terms of short stories - but also it has always been free so I've never made a penny from it save for the $25 or so I was paid when it first appeared in Fantasy Magazine.</p><p>The New World is actually the first 25,000 words of a Jalan and Snorri novel that I started but put aside in favour of writing Red Sister. It turned out to be pretty self-contained so I used it as a novella in the omnibus. I typically write a book a year and they are typically 100,000 to 150,000 words long. I guess 25,000 words, including thinking time, would generally take me about two or three months. So the amount of $$$ I would need to generate from such an effort in order to make it a sensible investment of time would have to be between 1/4 and 1/6th of my annual income.</p><p>If I were hoping, as a successful author who has hit the Sunday Time bestseller list 3 times, to make the UK average annual salary of <span face="arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #5f6368; font-weight: bold;">£27,756</span> then I would need to make between $8600 and $5800 from the novella. This isn't greed - it's mathematics. To justify the work put in I need to make let's say $7,000 if I want an average salary.</p><p><br /></p><p>I priced the novella at $4.99 -- who knows if that "penny less" psychology works?</p><p>I don't think most readers really care if it's $2 or $4. </p><p>YES, to head off the angry legions starting to hammer at their keyboards: I understand that you personally may care, and you may have financial woes or live in a country where the salaries are very low. But <b>MOST</b> readers, I don't think care that much. They decide what to read based on things other than a fraction of a Starbucks' coffee difference in price.</p><p>Also - understand that if a book sells for less than $2.99 then Amazon keep 65% of the sale price rather than 30%.</p><p>So:</p><p>$2 book --- 35% goes to the author -- $2.00 x 0.35 = $0.70</p><p>$4 book --- 70% goes to the author -- $4.00 x 0.70 = $2.80 ... four times as much. </p><p>So it really is in an author's interest to sell at $3 or more.</p><p><b>[Note - this is for self-publishing. Traditionally published authors get FAR LESS of the sale price.]</b></p><p><br /></p><p>I wanted a cover for my novella and rather than pay for entirely new art I thought I could save some money and use the cover from the novella. I asked the artist Jason Chan to let me license the art for my novella and he generously let me have it for $200. </p><p>Even more generously my beta reader, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/63113748" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mitriel Faywood (read her book)</a>, designed the cover for me for free, changing the colours to reveal the detail in the art and providing lettering.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWdRuw0l4jv5PaEp1HDtQeehxel6leiDGvVESGllstvEPpFQA1j3SnyPiCnr5aLFiOTKbDxf3FtCEinjBQ8ulDivyc7WhrCSPisa6jLwTy-mWPTHKUbUh5aBCxc4k43lOmW9vzTCIY6Njd2HeG2qwN2X4IZUOsRwIUu3z2PxingB8IgqlGKEeziMRaA/s655/rqw1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="655" data-original-width="433" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWdRuw0l4jv5PaEp1HDtQeehxel6leiDGvVESGllstvEPpFQA1j3SnyPiCnr5aLFiOTKbDxf3FtCEinjBQ8ulDivyc7WhrCSPisa6jLwTy-mWPTHKUbUh5aBCxc4k43lOmW9vzTCIY6Njd2HeG2qwN2X4IZUOsRwIUu3z2PxingB8IgqlGKEeziMRaA/s320/rqw1.jpg" width="212" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiElUzTKJ_bHXbAx19O1Ny-dQedKgmNCPVaxpCbKaF7IxjteDtJvJV0Wp6AighDda7lqk9aCJ9xJW4wW4CFESDI2pEccoKW2B6bISRjvuK7LAZJ93q2x712QWL4sROG1NnqE68us_Al9oqKfAXZQPaYyPFO_i8L0JlFkDo6L8_pHf1FRLofKkL7aLXvYw/s3000/Test%2017%20copy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="2053" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiElUzTKJ_bHXbAx19O1Ny-dQedKgmNCPVaxpCbKaF7IxjteDtJvJV0Wp6AighDda7lqk9aCJ9xJW4wW4CFESDI2pEccoKW2B6bISRjvuK7LAZJ93q2x712QWL4sROG1NnqE68us_Al9oqKfAXZQPaYyPFO_i8L0JlFkDo6L8_pHf1FRLofKkL7aLXvYw/s320/Test%2017%20copy.jpg" width="219" /></a></div><br /><p>So, I needed to sell 57 copies to cover the cost of the art. </p><p>Here's how the first 4 days have gone:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pV-k8nsmKQ8peQ3_O8jnFw7e0N1tl7XoBO3zNokB0W3LpEJWcmE3O3Q6uLfZbCNyg93tDAQTvPSwucrp1BzevYnG4hPV0IRA_7ym2ps5aDiygQ_dy7kZJniZ9sSLS0QXzZzk3-XFCrw4AAYL8oTWSPPGt7lJq3bcwUUzJ_gSHZU1si4P7mIVc9P34w/s1500/new%20world%20chart%203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1500" height="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pV-k8nsmKQ8peQ3_O8jnFw7e0N1tl7XoBO3zNokB0W3LpEJWcmE3O3Q6uLfZbCNyg93tDAQTvPSwucrp1BzevYnG4hPV0IRA_7ym2ps5aDiygQ_dy7kZJniZ9sSLS0QXzZzk3-XFCrw4AAYL8oTWSPPGt7lJq3bcwUUzJ_gSHZU1si4P7mIVc9P34w/w640-h436/new%20world%20chart%203.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The blue shows per-day sales, peaking on day 2, and the column is a cumulative total. On day 2 I started making a profit!<div><br /></div><div>Currently I've made:</div><div><br /></div><div>185 x $5 x 0.7 - $200 = $447.50</div><div><br /></div><div>That's out of the $7000 I need to earn average wage across the time invested.</div><div><br /></div><div>And the sales have peaked.</div><div><br /></div><div>Continuing to hit my socials will bring diminishing returns, it's not in bookshops, and discovery is through a list on the RQW trilogy on Goodreads, which is hardly a wide net to cast.</div><div><br /></div><div>I could spend money advertising but that's a gamble which frequent annecdote tells me almost always fails. My target audience is small - novella lovers who have either loved the RQW trilogy or who believe me when I say this is a good introduction to the characters. They are hard to reach through Facebook or Amazon adverts.</div><div><br /></div><div>I was asked several times "is it on audio"? Or more pointedly, "WHY isn't this on audio?"</div><div><br /></div><div>Let me tell you why.</div><div><br /></div><div>Making audiobooks is expensive. If I wanted to come near the quality of the audiobooks people have heard my work on before then I would need to spend a minimum of around $350 per finished hour, potentially significantly more. Even this wouldn't be fire and forget, it would consume more of my time to set up.</div><div><br /></div><div>The novella would take about 3 hours to read, so let's say $1000 for the audio book. I'll put that on the chart.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi29W7Cp8_Wap5SPvhHdAxPR1dsri9ck33ZEeOmNFfYcn5ohfna7-HQ3DnZ-U8UYDrh0zdbZ4XUD7kuiOUWZVFPm_P8n-XPygBdNobUGk9LIkskYWKU0m42T5JruiBSkIGUQNpxzfZVgVL3Eq3FVVDmQcd5LzzfVZgHOWGUlOb7epR1C5-2mjPJGmvYQQ/s1736/new%20world%20chart%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1736" data-original-width="1500" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi29W7Cp8_Wap5SPvhHdAxPR1dsri9ck33ZEeOmNFfYcn5ohfna7-HQ3DnZ-U8UYDrh0zdbZ4XUD7kuiOUWZVFPm_P8n-XPygBdNobUGk9LIkskYWKU0m42T5JruiBSkIGUQNpxzfZVgVL3Eq3FVVDmQcd5LzzfVZgHOWGUlOb7epR1C5-2mjPJGmvYQQ/w552-h640/new%20world%20chart%202.jpg" width="552" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Yes, I could charge more for the audio, and yes it might bring new sales in. But really, it's too much trouble, too much of a (bad) gamble. Audio is expensive and reserved for projects that are going to move a significant number of copies.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Anyway...</b></span></div><br /><div>That's a look at some of the mechanics of self publishing, and how even with my sizeable following on various platforms (Twitter: 35,000 - Facebook: 10,000 - Goodreads: 51,000) I can still only manage to shift 167 copies of what really is an excellent, very funny tale of Jalan and Snorri all at sea!</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-align: left;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"> </span><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Join my Patreon.</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-align: start;" /></span><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter. #Prizes #FreeContent</span></a></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 27px;"><span style="color: #6699cc;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3529725084811715233.post-21052951422818235872023-06-04T08:36:00.001-07:002023-06-04T08:36:39.682-07:00The New World!<p>Once upon a time there was a limited edition omnibus!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHHM8KjfoDhaPbsVoQYU_k9SWWIfN539cWAq0u-dA6TFIvLbiEi9KcAkr69QhRsWMyd3g-tk2j1vjY1dQDuRKHWhQU-DBsINqpmXW8_jl0WyW6cToaeY_3sQoU9_nn768uPu6b2nnZm4qHpXzjIao0LIqBpL8dnkq2NNAOlxmmO9Ose-Z70cHg1FBpg/s882/rqw%20omni2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="633" data-original-width="882" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKHHM8KjfoDhaPbsVoQYU_k9SWWIfN539cWAq0u-dA6TFIvLbiEi9KcAkr69QhRsWMyd3g-tk2j1vjY1dQDuRKHWhQU-DBsINqpmXW8_jl0WyW6cToaeY_3sQoU9_nn768uPu6b2nnZm4qHpXzjIao0LIqBpL8dnkq2NNAOlxmmO9Ose-Z70cHg1FBpg/w640-h460/rqw%20omni2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>And lurking at the very end was a 25,000 word novella called The New World, detailing Jalan's unhappy voyage to America with his bestest pal, Snorri.</p><p>That novella can now be purchased 😀</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguuh6ZaBohY-aTp8G-oVKXLF9Bf_3WA5ucYUCoeT_FhzOuQUnejv4xS98uBZ0iZPKk1rkbnLHwEVv0QHXOlKIY-tNlJCNMaBR1Srah0GeJmmerTCqqRtmqCqBIIWC2IJI3MkxP7bka_iOJgGSJkztPhfkVZhdt39NtjRYJFpO0ZZRLkSxs1R9dGfygLg/s3000/Test%2017%20copy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="2053" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguuh6ZaBohY-aTp8G-oVKXLF9Bf_3WA5ucYUCoeT_FhzOuQUnejv4xS98uBZ0iZPKk1rkbnLHwEVv0QHXOlKIY-tNlJCNMaBR1Srah0GeJmmerTCqqRtmqCqBIIWC2IJI3MkxP7bka_iOJgGSJkztPhfkVZhdt39NtjRYJFpO0ZZRLkSxs1R9dGfygLg/w438-h640/Test%2017%20copy.jpg" width="438" /></a></p><p><b>“A nun?”</b></p><p><b>“Well.” I tried my penitent face. Despite all that practice, I still wasn’t very good at it. “Nuns.”</b></p><p><b>“Nuns!” Omar threw up his hands. “You said it was just the once!”</b></p><p><b>“It was!” I fiddled with the sleeves of my cassock. “Just once. I swear it . . . Only with more than one nun.”</b></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C71XXX3Q/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Get it in the US</a></p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C71XXX3Q/ref=sr_1_1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Get it in the UK</a></p><p>Get it on any Amazon.</p><p>Throw stars at it &/or read the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/172884230-the-new-world" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">reviews on Goodreads</a>!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB41BzCu5zESKZyopLypucm2CsufHen-04wLkXsGAqn2aXu312VNcA2WqrodKFfG1PZR1XetcQjuLRJhnyzYx7uzyXmvo3jtyEoMeaVLrn4g7xgQZ7v6MIWdaGsRKq3wZsx-w0W5WhYtEWkkPwEmVOSQgY8e8dpFDadp7GVJ78tc734CAh1tYVN2l_8w/s790/jalan1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="790" data-original-width="621" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB41BzCu5zESKZyopLypucm2CsufHen-04wLkXsGAqn2aXu312VNcA2WqrodKFfG1PZR1XetcQjuLRJhnyzYx7uzyXmvo3jtyEoMeaVLrn4g7xgQZ7v6MIWdaGsRKq3wZsx-w0W5WhYtEWkkPwEmVOSQgY8e8dpFDadp7GVJ78tc734CAh1tYVN2l_8w/s320/jalan1.jpg" width="252" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9NY8w1BxG2WsH_nT_DDjWx0FuGp57TRMtJ0q449ihqQbi4vN91iOoDQgAukcKldzNowX55WPyOumwQI8kNECW5Z2H5st4qs2xpx-byMSGzR4m1oTtCQTNvTnmmy3NsAoGA4FM65ncLhQ-8skW1NheDGB9yI6SxCKas1OpBUlGJ7Fv73N86qpKRSnfIA/s850/snorri.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="850" data-original-width="601" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9NY8w1BxG2WsH_nT_DDjWx0FuGp57TRMtJ0q449ihqQbi4vN91iOoDQgAukcKldzNowX55WPyOumwQI8kNECW5Z2H5st4qs2xpx-byMSGzR4m1oTtCQTNvTnmmy3NsAoGA4FM65ncLhQ-8skW1NheDGB9yI6SxCKas1OpBUlGJ7Fv73N86qpKRSnfIA/s320/snorri.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Jalan by <a href="https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/Lillustration" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: maroon; font-family: "Open Sans", Tahoma, Arial; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 700; outline: 0px; text-align: left;" target="_blank">Lily Yearwood</a> Snorri by <span style="background-color: white; color: maroon; font-family: "Open Sans", Tahoma, Arial; font-size: 17px; font-weight: 700; text-align: left;">Pen Astridge</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><a href="https://www.patreon.com/marklawrenceauthor" rel="nofollow" style="color: #336699; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my Patreon.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><a href="http://eepurl.com/cimnK1" style="color: #6699cc; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Join my 3-emails-a-year mailing list.</span></a></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 19.8px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Mark Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16877925828353073272noreply@blogger.com1