Jade Varden Official Blog

Ever literally read a book cover to cover? If you have, and maybe even if you haven't, you've found that there are extra pages at the start of any book. You flip through them to get to the good parts, barely giving them a glance. But if you think you can skip that extra stuff now that you're self-publishing, you're wrong. You need a title page...period. In the Beginning, There Was Junk Honestly, the title page is a rather worthless waste of ink in books -- or so I've always thought. It usually consists of just a few elements, some of which are really redundant. The title: Obviously. The title page is used to repeat the title again. That's in case you missed it on the cover while you were buying the book, transporting the book or selecting the book to read. The author's name is usually placed here as well, because it's very likely you did miss that. The publisher: Often, the title page will contain some information about the publis...

 "I enjoyed reading this book." "Well written and will leave you wondering just what will happen next." Justice (Deck of Lies, #1) has been reviewed at Hope, Love and Happy Endings. Read the whole review to find out why the book got four ducks! 

The F word is considered, in American society, to be the worst of the worst of words. It's so salty, movies and TV shows that contain it come with special warnings. Books don't come with warnings...so when is it okay to drop the f-bomb on the page? For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge The letters FUCK were once scrawled on prison cells of those who were incarcerated for sexual misconduct. Adulterers, fornicators, anyone who maybe showed too much ankle -- don't laugh, it used to be a serious crime. And so, the F bomb was born. For centuries, it would continue to be associated with sex and with the unspeakable. It continues to be provocative, so much so that saying it just twice in any movie will guarantee an R rating. Authors might use it way more than that on just one page of a book. And some readers are always going to hate it. So when is it okay to use? And beyond that, when should you be using it? At the top of the post, I specifically referenced Americ...

How long should chapters be? It's a question that indie authors ask over and over, and one I've asked myself many times. So what's the answer? Five Hundred Twenty-Five Thousand Six Hundred Letters It would be nice if there were certain rules about chapters. For YA, write chapters that are 2,000 words long. Adult romance? Try 5,000. Historical epic? You're going to be skirting 10,000. I'm just making those numbers up out of thin air, of course. There is no standard when it comes to chapter length...maybe that's why authors are asking about it all the time. Every writer does it differently, and maybe that's another reason it's so confusing. But when it comes to chapters, there's really just one answer: there are no rules. I mean it -- none. Lewis Carroll wrote chapters that were one word in length, or a handful of words. He ended chapters in the middle of sentences , nevermind in the middle of scenes. If he can get away with that, y...

Steampunk has gone from being sub-culture to being much  more mainstream, and it's inspired many authors to write lots more books. But before you rush to label your work, make sure you understand the genre. Make sure you can answer this question: what's steampunk?  The Sum of Its Parts To get technical about it, steampunk is a sub-genre of the larger science fiction genre (which isn't at all a bad place to be). All steampunk must have a single element in order to be steampunk: steam-powered engines. If you don't have this, you don't have steampunk.  However, the umbrella could be much wider than you think. The genre does not limit you to the industrialized American or European culture of the 1800s. A steampunk story can be set anywhere in any time -- on a distant moon or in a distant future -- so long as it features the steam-powered machines that marked the early Industrial period. Because the genre harkens back to the Victorian era, it often...

The term character development can be a little confusing. It sounds like character invention; you're developing a character to fit into your story. But that's not what it means. And if a reviewer or agent is telling you that you lack it, you've got a problem.  Every good story needs character development. How do you know you've got it in yours? It's Alive With any book, you want to create characters with whom the readers can relate. Without that, they won't connect with your book and they probably won't like it. So as a writer you spend a lot of time thinking about the main characters in your stories, who they are and what they look like and how they talk.  Here's the trouble: your characters can't be the same at the end of the book as they were in the beginning. You've got to show character development. Without it, the audience isn't going to relate.  Human beings (and I'm referring to the ones who live off th...

"The lies. The twists. The phenomenal writing that is Jade Varden. It kept me completely engrossed and hanging on until the very end." "As Rain begins her own search for the killer, she soon discovers that NOTHING is what is seems. Once you think you know a character or what’s really going on, something else happens and it makes you question EVERYTHING." The Tower (Deck of Lies, #2) has been reviewed at Lily Bloom Books. Read the mostly spoiler-free review to see why the reviewer is second-guessing everything!

Regular readers know that I'm not the biggest fan of writer forums. I think would-be authors ask too many questions instead of doing their own research. But recently I realized it isn't their fault they're so lost. It's mine, because I haven't yet explained how to write a book. It's time to fix that. Turning the Page So you want to write a book. Learn the process, and this very ambitious plan wont seem so overwhelming. In order to write a book, all you have to do is break it down to its most basic parts and plot points. For this example, we're going to write a book about two best friends who fall in love. But the template is solid, and you can use it for any story. When you write a book, always keep the big picture in mind. Every word should drive the plot further. Allow me to illustrate: Introduction: Start with the scenes that introduce your main character . Show the reader what this person is like. Maybe she's a free spir...

"The life of a girl that is more than a mystery series, with amazing ingredients such as power, money and love." "Jade Varden does an excellent job maintaining the suspense and surprises until the last page. You never know what is coming next." Death (Deck of Lies, #3) has been reviewed at Reading...Dreaming by Ruty, longtime friend of the blog. There are spoilers in the review if you haven't read the first two books (and if you haven't, get caught up !). Read the whole review to find out why the book got 5 out of 5 stars!

I look at writing tips and advice every once in a while. My reason is twofold: for one, I need fodder for this blog. But like any writer, I want to become a better writer -- so it follows that I should seek advice. And I keep finding one piece of advice that greatly disturbs me. So today I have to ask: why are you writing? Be careful of your answer. You don't know it, but other authors are judging you. For Love of the Game In scouring interviews, articles and blog posts, I've noticed a particular piece of advice that successful authors trot out whenever they're feeling superior...and trite. Many of them tell writers that they must think about why they are writing...and that if they are doing it for financial gain they will never succeed and never become "real" writers. I'm calling bullshit on that misguided notion, and I'm prepared to explain why.  Many writers don't wake up at age 25 and decide to become writers. You don...

If you've somehow managed to avoid all writer forums, self-published authors, Twitter and the news, I've got some rather shocking news: Amazon owns Goodreads. You haven't noticed any changes yet, but you will soon. It's a big merger that begs a big question: what's it all mean for self-published authors...like me?  The World That Amazon Bought If it's on the Internet, there's a darned good chance that it's owned by Google, or Amazon, or both. Amazon pioneered online shopping. Then it revolutionized the book industry. Now, it's got some other plan that's either exciting, or terrifying...or both. Goodreads is well-known to indie authors because it is the self-published author's best friend. Countless forums allow indies to use the site to market their work, find reviewers and connect with promotional opportunities on other book blogs. The site allows authors to acquire fans, share blog posts and keep all of their book reviews...

I'm terribly behind on my book requests (literally months and months out). I'm over a month behind my own publication schedule for my books. I'm typing this post at 2 am, and I'm going to get less than 5 hours of sleep tonight. I have trouble saying no to stuff...and that's why I'm always drowning in work to do. Brace yourself. You're about to hear a cautionary tale. I Am Not Leading By Example It's me. I'm the cautionary tale. I've managed to get myself into a mess, and I'm going to do what I do best by telling other people how to avoid my mistakes. Just say no .  Read this book! You don't even have to hang up a shingle, so to speak, to receive review requests from authors. You just have to have a blog. You'll get requests through your email, Twitter, Goodreads, Facebook, whatever the heck you've got. Some pitches are great. Some books look amazing. Sometimes, it's really hard to say no. But if yo...

I see new indie books literally every day. Because I move fast, I'm usually looking at one piece of information only: the title. I won't even look at the cover, I'm not worried about your name. I don't even care about  the blurb. I make my decision after I read the title.  What will I be thinking when I read yours? By Any Other Title... They say that names aren't important...and they're wrong. When it comes to books, the title is everything. And lately, I've been seeing all sorts of weird stuff in all kinds of titles. I think it's time we set a few guidelines for writing good ones.  Length: Too long is just too long. I've noticed all sorts of epic book titles lately, one or two that were just about as long as one of my opening chapters. If you're having trouble squeezing all the words onto a book cover, take that as a sign that your title is just too long . By the same token, you may want to re-consider all those reall...

Fannie Flagg was a Match Game regular, an actress and a colorful personality, so it makes sense that she would write a book that managed to shine and stand out. She's the mind behind Fried Green Tomatoes , the novel that inspired one of my favorite chick flicks (and I've seen an embarrassing amount of them). But if you pick up the novel expecting to find the Idgie you loved from the film, you're in for a bit of a surprise. The Book Flagg published Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe , which is the actual title of the book, in 1987. Like the movie, it focuses on two different time periods in one woman's life. In the novel's present, an elderly woman in a nursing home named Ninny Threadgoode becomes friends with a middle-aged stranger named Evelyn Couch. During their once-weekly visits, Ninny tells Evelyn a story that happened many years ago. Her story revolves around the Whistle Stop Cafe, which is found in Whistle Stop, Alabama. Idgie ...

I tend to over-research my books. I once spent an entire afternoon learing the history of plumbing in order to double-check a chamber pot reference (once upon a time I wrote historical novels). I pursue perfection...and sometimes it's a real problem.   The Perfect Novel Every writer wants their work to be error-free, engaging, important. Thar's not the kind of perfection I'm talking about. I get so caught up un perfecting the details, it might take me years just to finish a single story. I take perfection to such a dark place, it nearly set me back to the beginning of my newest book. It all started with a discussion about global warming. That might sound random, but it's relevant to the book in question in a roundabout way, and therefore to this story. As the discussion carried on, I realized that I had estimated the future projected water table incorrectly. I'm terrible with math, anything involving numbers really, so this is not shocking. But ...

When I'm afraid of trying something new, I play a little game with myself. I imagine the worst possible outcome and I create an entire plan for how I would deal with it. I figure that if I have a plan for the worst thing, I can handle anything .  It doesn't always work. Recently, I was blind sighted by a worst-case scenario I never saw coming. There is something worse than a one-star review from a reader...and it happened to me.  The Worst of the Worst Say what you will about Amazon, but at least it makes you write something if you're going to rate a book. Such is not the case with Goodreads , which allows readers to rate books all day without so much as a by-your-leave. This, my fellow authors, is the worst-case scenario. You know the reader didn't like the book, and that's it. You don't know what they didn't like, or why, or even if they read the whole thing. Doesn't give you much room to improve, does it?  This is why i...

"Rain Ramey's search for herself in the midst of all the chaos drew me in until the very last page." "Quick and entertaining read, with an interesting set of characters." Justice (Deck of Lies, #1) has been reviewed by the Intrepid Book Moth! Read the whole thing to find out what the reviewer didn't like about the book.

I watched a movie on Sunday. It felt like a big deal because it's one I've been waiting to see since last Christmas. So I watched it...and I hated it. It wasn't necessary the amateurish singing, the casting choices I thought were bad, the inattention to wardrobe or even the lack of dialogue (which is my favorite part of any story). It was the characters. About halfway through, I realized that none of them were likable. I felt really unhappy with every moment of it after that. Making your readers fall in like is essential if you want them to keep being your readers. The Middle of the Road Notice I didn't say that readers should fall passionately in love with your characters. That's hard to do for even the most brilliant of writers, and it's polarizing anyway. Think Twilight and Gone With the Wind . Both stories have very strong male leads that make female readers swoon, but the female leads are not well-liked by their reading counterparts. Scarlett ...

"I LOVEDDDDDDD the courtroom scenes!!! Oh my freakinggggg goodness, it was gooodddddddddddddddd!" "I am pleased to give not only this book, but the WHOLE series a 5 OUT OF 5 STARS!" Nourin, friend of the blog and the blogger behind BookAThonFreak, has reviewed Justice (Deck of Lies, #4). Read the spoiler-free review to see how she felt about the conclusion of the series!

Some of the most memorable stories end told end with tears. Romeo and Juliet is designed to produce tears, and I became hysterical after I watched Terms of Endearment for the first time. Sadness certainly has its place in storytelling. But please, remember to lighten up sometimes. I should crack a smile, at the very least, during the course of your book...but I'd really like to laugh out loud. Everybody Loves a Clown Jokes have always had a way of bringing people together. Certain body muscle relax when you laugh, and sharing laughter with another will put you at ease. Ever sat in a crowded movie theater and heard everyone laugh along with you at the same joke? Laughter inspires camraderie. It's the basis for many friendships and even romantic relationships.  It's great stuff, and that's why you've got to make an attempt to add some humor somewhere to your book. What if you're writing a gritty drama, a serious tragedy, a tear-soaked epic?  T...

Jaws became one of the most famous big screen villains, a predator so frightening he has his own theme music. But before he swam onscreen, Jaws lived on the page. The Book Peter Benchley wrote Jaws in 1974, and changed horror. He was inspired by real shark attacks to write the book, though it sure didn't hurt that Doubleday asked him to pen the story. It was so good, it was destined to become a film even before it was finished. Two producers read it before the book was even published, and quickly purchased the film rights. They helped the book become a bestseller. The very next year, in 1975, it became a hit movie.  Jaws is set in fictional resort town Amity in New York. A young girl is attacked and killed by a shark while on vacation, but its buried by the Mayor and a local newsman so as not to disturb the town's appeal as a tourist destination. But the killing doesn't stop. A local fisherman disappears after being asked to go kill the sh...

What are you willing to do to get exposure for your book? There are people out there who hope you'll do just about anything. Give them a chance, and they'll use you for their own ends. But maybe that's only fair...because aren't you using them? Quid Pro Quo I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine. This is a well-known expression, so common in fact it's hardly even considered. But let's consider it, shall we? By definition, a favor is given freely without promise of recompense. Yet many indie authors are asked to give something in return for receiving book reviews. This takes many forms -- some more overt than others. Tying to get book reviews? Be careful. Sometimes there are strings attached. Exchange The review exchange is a common thing between indies. Review my book and I'll review yours. Some authors openly solicit this arrangement, while others use book blogs. It's no secret that I dislike exchange agreement...

Every writer wrestles with themselves. Does that sentence make sense? Is this character relatable? Should I add that cliffhanger? Authors struggle with questions. Now, I'm going to dissect the one that's always on my mind. Wait...Can I Write That? I write YA books that feature teenage main characters. As such, I often ask myself what sort of responsibilities I have to my audience. Sex: Personally, I'm extremely uncomfortable writing about it. But the reality is, teens do have sex. If you write about it in your YA books, I encourage you to write about safe sex. Drugs: Teens also do drugs, sometimes. Many fine books look at this frankly, and there's nothing wrong with that. However, you do a disservice to your readers if you don't show the real consequences of drug abuse. It can be life-threatening. Do not make light of it. School: I read this great YA blog, and lately they've been running an ongoing feature about the many cliches in YA books. One ...

I spent all of last week maniacally checking my sales and re-thinking every line I ever wrote...because I had two book returns on Monday. Book returns make me crazy.  Blame It's been a week since those two book returns sent me into a tailspin, and I can now identify all 9 stages of a condition known as Insanity Due to Incomplete Ereading -- otherwise known as INDIE.  Denial: Clearly this is a computer error. My books are amazing. Like anyone would return them on purpose. By tomorrow all of this will be sorted out. Obsession: Any day now. All I have to do is watch my sales. Those returns are going to disappear. It's been five minutes -- I better check again. Anger: Who needs readers, anyway? You want to return my books? Obviously you're the one with the problem, not me. Criticism: Did I use too many metaphors? Is this because of that weird sentence in chapter 4? I knew I shouldn't have used the F word. Doubt: I'm a terrible writer. Maybe all t...

April 1 is a day for fools, and that makes it a great day for all writers everywhere. It was Shakespeare who said that all the world's a stage, and the people in it are only players (unless you believe in the Shakespeare authorship controversy, but let's not get into that debate just now). As a writer, you're pretty much always doing one of three things: fooling yourself, fooling the world or playing the fool. So today is really a day for you. Everybody Plays the Fool I don't mean that offensively. Remember, I am also a writer -- and a fool. It takes a fool to believe that your own words are so very important, millions will want to read them. Read them, hell. They'll want to own them, to memorize them, to study and repeat them and love them. It takes a fool to scoff at rejection letters , to daydream brand-new worlds into existence...to make oneself vulnerable on the page. So today, be foolish when it comes to your writing. Foolery can be even stronger than...