Jade Varden Official Blog

I imagine that being a writer was a much more romantic occupation centuries ago. Once upon a time, wealthy nobles gave writers and other artists food, clothing, shelter and even money to help them master their craft. So it got me to wondering...is there anybody willing to do that today? A Wealthy Patron Storytelling bards used to travel between castles and keeps, sharing their tales for a warm meal, a nice bed and much welcome. The good ones even got to visit Kings and Queens. Pretty good stuff, right? Like, who wouldn't want to travel around just telling stories and visiting fabulous places? 

Success is not an easy thing to define or measure. So how can you tell when you've "made it" as an author?  Being Successful By conventional standards, success equals money. People who are known for wealth are considered to be very successful, even elite, and they're admired and envied for all that spare cash. Television shows like Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous and (much newer) Cribs prove that people are fascinated by wealth.  But the truth is, the majority of authors don't make a lot of money. Being an author is often equated with being an artist, and that profession is synonymous with starving. So all the beach houses and big mansions and Bentleys are, sadly, probably well out of your reach.  However, you can make some money with writing . And if you write a lot for lots of different companies, it's even possible to make a living as a writer. If you're living the dream of writing full-time, maybe that means you've made it......

Punctuation. Grammar. Sentence structure. Prepositions. Proper spellings. It's overwhelming to write a book, and frankly that's far too mild a word. But don't get lost in the writing while you're writing...because you may forget about the storytelling. Technical Difficulties I'm the first person to point to a misplaced comma or improperly capitalized word when it comes to published books. In fact, I've been known to go on full-scale rants when it comes to the mechanics of writing. I'm very interested in putting articles in the right place and avoiding the abuse of adverbs. I've gone 20 rounds with my very own employers about the existence of the word " alot " and I'll fixate on even the smallest mistakes when I find them. But I don't allow myself to get too bogged down in all that when I'm actually writing my own books. If I did, I wouldn't ever get past the first page. The mechanics of writing are very important....

One of the best ways to create a book that readers will like is to start with a character that readers will like. So now you've got to know how to create a likeable character. It's really not as easy as it seems.  Manufacturing Like What I've just asked you to do is actually insane . You're supposed to invent an entire person, out of nothing but your own imagination mind you, and now you have to figure out how to make me like that person. Only you and I have never met, and you don't really know that much about me. Oh, and it will help if I believe that your character is a real person...not just a character on a page.  This is why so many authors turn to drink to calm their nerves. Creating a likeable character is actually a really hard thing to do, and lots of writers just can't figure out the secret formula. But never fear, because I know it.  Lots of authors who offer tips will tell you lots of different things about character creation....

The first Amazon review for my newest novel, Hope's Rebellion , unexpectedly appeared last night and I couldn't be more pleased...though some might think that reaction is strange.  Not YA? In a review that immediately calls the book violent , the reader said that the inclusion of "rapes, murders and beatings" make the novel seem a little less than YA. It's a fair criticism, and not unexpected (coming from someone who isn't familiar with my usual murder-soaked styled of writing), but happily he does laud the book as a "page-turner," and said he "raced through it in a couple of days."  So apparently it's "unexpectedly bloody," but not unpalatable. In my eyes, it's totally a rave review (because the reviewer didn't say it was the worst book he's ever read). Get your own copy of the book to see if you agree with the assessment. And if you're not sure you want to buy it, get a free sample of the ...

As a self-published author, you're going to have to do all sorts of things to get readers to notice you. It's necessary to join Twitter, to participate in forums, to find potential fans and engage with them. Social media is great, but at the end of the day you want people to be interested in your writing. So give them stuff to be interested in .  Free Articles Okay, so the goal of publishing is to get your words read .  You're an artist, you have a voice and a viewpoint and something to share with the world. But you also live in the real world, and that costs money. So clearly, it's ideal to make money from your writing. Creating free articles seems to be at odds with this goal.  But you're wrong for thinking that, and I'm about to tell you why: publicity is invaluable. Getting your name out there with a byline is so worthwhile, you should be paying the Internet for allowing you to do it. But you don't have to pay. In fact, there may be a wa...

The copyright. The cover. The Facebook ads. The paid reviews. The trailer, the proof print copies. All those marketing materials. When you self-publish, expenses add up quickly. Have you got a marketing budget yet?  Being Businesslike    You're creative, and if you're like me then you're also shite with numbers. When you become an indie author, you're no longer just a writer. Now you're a promoter, and an accountant. Don't become your own worst enemy as well. Establish a book budget...before you start writing the book.

Some authors spend a ton of time describing the leaves of trees and the way the grass blows in the wind. That's all well and good, but don't ever forget to include the details that matter. What?! When I was a little girl, I found the plot of Star Wars to be incredibly confusing. This is because I thought they were saying that Luke's father had gone to the dark side of the forest . I was always like "well, maybe he got lost." It took me a long time to really understand the plot of those movies, and it's not even my fault. The storyteller should have made it more clear.  It's your job to make sure no one is thinking that about your books. Sometimes when I'm writing, I get into a zone where the words are just pouring out. I don't even have to think about them, half the time. And I might slip into all sorts of slang and colloquialisms. Then I go back and read what I've written and I realize that I'm the only person who knows ...

Anyone who follows me on Twitter knows that last night marked the world premiere of Flowers in  the Attic on Lifetime. Fans have been waiting 30 years for a decent adaptation of  this powerful book. Is the wait over?  Wilting  FITA became a bestselling book in the 1980s, so naturally a movie adaptation followed. Despite a strong performance from Louise Fletcher, the film was disliked by critics, fans and  anyone else who read the book. It became infamous for being bad.  Fans were thrilled when Lifetime announced their intentions to do their own adaptation, and I was chief among them. So how  does this new film stack up against the old one? More importantly, how does it compare to the book? In the Attic The movie began with the prologue from FITA, much to my delight. This introduction was changed a little. We found Cathy on film at age 12, not 7, and got thrown into the ill-fated birthday party pretty quickly.  The...

V. C. Andrews was one of the first authors I read when I discovered books, and I adored hers. I re-read her early series books more times than I'm willing to admit. Her works inspired me to become an author (or something like one, anyway), and for that I owe her a debt...or maybe I should dislike her? Either way, I was greatly influenced by her work...and I think something rubbed off on me. You Are What You Read If you read a lot of a certain author, and love that author, it's only natural that you'll be influenced by that author. It's sort of like musicians. They always get asked "who influenced you" and they'll rattle off a list of names. Sometimes when they say a name you go "yeah, I can tell." Well, I was influenced by V. C. Andrews...and some of my readers can tell .

 originally published Friday, October 12, 2012 It is the job of all authors to bring their characters to life. Most well-loved characters have a distinct look, noticeable characteristics, great flaws and strengths. Some authors even take things one step further, and create a distinct style for their leading ladies. To honor some of the great fiction fashion icons that I've read over the years, I'm introducing a new feature with one of my most favorite characters: Cathy Dollanganger. Fashionable Femme Fatale  Cathy Dollanganger is the main protagonist of the Dollanganger series, which spanned five books. The series was introduced in a debut novel from V.C. Andrews, Flowers in the Attic . It became an instant hit, though the movie didn't fare quite so well, and launched a career that has, phenomenonally, continued with new novels even beyond the author's death.     It all began with Cathy. Through the series, she goes from age 9 to age ...

post originally published Saturday, August 11, 2012 When a book is very popular among a large group of readers, filmmakers generally like to take special care with the film adaptation. They consult the author of the work, they read the book themselves, they pay homage to the original material. This isn't what happened when Flowers in the Attic was transformed from a YA horror book that struck a strong note with teen girls...into 93 minutes of on-screen swill that you can't ever get back. Cringe if you like, but that description really isn't harsh enough for one of the worst book-to-film adaptations in the known world.   The Book Full disclosure: I'm a little biased. Flowers in the Attic is actually a very special book to me, as it inspired me to become a writer (the jury's still out on whether or not I am). It was written before I was born and published in 1979 by V. C. Andrews, known to friends and famil...

Lifetime's remake of Flowers in the Attic airs this weekend -- so we're going to celebrate here at the blog until it hurts.  Flowers, Not in the Attic Flowers in the Attic was the first book written by V.C. Andrews, and it was published in 1979. It immediately became a hit. The book struck a chord with readers. With it, Andrews forged a career that continues after her death and pioneered a genre. Her writing is marked by its unusual mix of gothic horror, youth-oriented narratives and the recurring theme that sometimes blood is not thicker than water. Flowers was mainstream fiction, yet it explored extremely taboo subjects like rape and incest.  And it inspired yours truly. I became aware of this book at age 9, Thanksgiving Day. I found it on a nightstand and started to read, purely out of boredom (what was I gonna do, watch football?). By the end of Chapter 1, Flowers in the Attic had changed my life. I decided, then and there, that I would write stories...

Sam and Diane. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. And my personal favorite, Scarlett and Rhett. The love-hate relationship is a strong literary device...and incredibly difficult for writers to pull off.  Opposites Attract Some say that hate is the other side of love, and the two are closely linked. Many married people will tell you that's the truth. If you haven't really hated someone, maybe you haven't really loved them. So it's only natural to depict love-hate relationships in fiction. When it's done well, it can be very engaging and moving. Done badly, and it's just unbelievably annoying. 

Can you effectively write a thrilling sword fight? Show me a round of fisticuffs with full blow-by-blow? Make me gasp my way through a frightening chase? Action sequences can appear in any book, and they should. Otherwise, you've just got a bunch of sit-down dialogue. Show Me the Blood When a character walks across the room to pull a book of the shelf, it's action. But this is probably easier to write than an entire jousting scene replete with horses and squires and the whole show. In either case, at some point in every book it becomes necessary to make characters move around. It's your job to do that convincingly.

Various studies and focus groups and research (and by research, I mean Twitter) show that many authors and would-be authors hope to one day write books full-time to earn 100 percent of their income. And maybe that's a flawed plan...because most novels don't make that much money.  Dead...and Hating It I don't want to get too gothic, or anything, but there's a long list of authors you've heard of who died penniless. Poe, Oscar Wilde,  Herman Melville (author of Moby Dick )...I could go on. Writing novels isn't likely to net you a lot of money, unless you write a lot of them or you write at least a few of them that hit really, really, really big.  If you sell 1 million copies of anything, you're a huge success. But you're probably not ready for retirement. In order to be a best-selling, full-time novelist, you're going to have to sell in the neighborhood of 100 million copies...of more than one book. That's the reality, because yo...

I've Noticed a Disturbing Trend Among Authors, and I Can Stay Silent No More. Title case, which I just demonstrated in my last sentence, is being used way too much...and incorrectly, at that.  It's Not a Title! Writing perfectly in your novels isn't enough. If I get one more title case quote recommendation on Goodreads, my wrath will no know bounds. I've pointed out many, many times that you must always conduct yourself like an author. And if you're using title case incorrectly -- anywhere -- I'm going to see it. And I'm putting you on my Do Not Read list.

A new survey shows that the majority of authors, even indies, still prefer traditionally publishing to taking the indie route.  The Road More Traveled Digital Book World and Writer's Digest partnered for the Author Survey , which shows exactly where writers stand when it comes to choosing their path. Among traditionally-published authors, only 7.5 percent said they wanted to self-publish. Among authors still aspiring to be published, 10.1 percent said they would take self-publishing over being more traditionally published. Only 35.1 percent of self-published authors said they preferred taking the indie route, and only 29.8 percent of hybrid authors preferred to self-publish alone. More than 9,000 writers participated in the 2014 Author's Survey, with the majority of participants stating they had not yet published any work. The vast majority of authors who took the survey are fiction writers (to the tune of over 80 percent).

Unless you've come here from the planet Twilar, you've at least heard of The Princess Bride . And if you're like most people, you've seen the movie at least 10 times. After all, doesn't it come on cable like every day? But before it was a movie that everyone can quote, it was a book...though its origins still remain a mystery to many. The Book William Goldman wrote The Princess Bride in 1973, and the world was for ever changed. Now, the origins of the book are shrouded in mystery because Goldman is quite the jokester. At the top of the book he explains that it's an abridgment of The Princess Bride by S. Morgenstern, which does not exist. Morgenstern did not exist, either, until Goldman himself wrote a novel under this pseudonym (presumably to further his joke).

Depending on who you ask, cheap ebooks are either a scourge upon society and the potential death of all literature...or an amazing way to affordably spread the written word. I got pulled into the great cheap book debate rather unexpectedly recently. Much of the argument has since taken place between me...and me.  Why Cheap Books Are Bad I search for myself quite regularly on Google -- not because I'm vain (though for the record, I am) but because I advise all indie authors to do this. I stumbled across some of my own blog posts being plagiarized one day, and I've since appointed myself as my own watchdog. So imagine my surprise when I found my name appearing in a debate about cheap books...and how evil they are. I was introduced into the topic in the comments section, after I'd already read through an impassioned blog post and a very persuasive argument that nearly inspired me to run right to my Amazon page and lift the price on all my novels.