Jade Varden Official Blog

Formatting is a big deal in self-publishing, and it's the one thing many indie authors let fall by the wayside. Doesn't every reader have the right to expect the books they read to look like all the other books they've read? If you're going to write, you're going to need to start thinking about your format from the very first word. Otherwise, you're just making more work for yourself to create a story that's ready for publishing. Standard Formats AP, MLA, APA -- there are a lot of different formats out there when it comes to article writing, and book writing is no different. Poems always have a certain format, and so does prose. Unless it truly adds something valuable to your work, you should always conform to the standard formats for the type of work you are producing. To do otherwise may alienate and infuriate readers, which is the very last thing any writer wants. Writing prose is pretty easy, format-wise, because basically there are only two yo...

I wasn't planning to read all of The Trio: A Collection of Completely Unrelated Short Stories in one sitting, but I just couldn't put the Kindle down until I'd read every word. The first story grabbed me right away, and instantly I became a depressed alcoholic with a lifetime of sadness to endure.That's just the beginning of the emotional ride Alyse Bingham creates with her Trio .   Each one of the three stories in the collection is completely different. Each provides insight into the main characters, just briefly enough to leave me wishing for much more. Bingham's Trio is well-written, well formatted and well edited. Technically it's beautiful, but the book is easy and enjoyable to read not simply because the writer knows where to put her commas. The stories are truly heartfelt and filled with emotion, forcing me into having a strong response every time. I can't wait to read more of Bingham's works in the future. One trio of stories just isn...

I admit it: I don't usually read fairy tales, children's books or any of the above. But David L. Dawson's Hansel and Gretel 2: The Reckoning is a quick read, and I've started to become obsessed with fairy tales again thanks to Once Upon a Time . I'm glad I decided to download the Kindle version of this short story, because it turns out you're never too old for a good fairy tale sequel. The sequel to the age-old, well-known story reveals a different side to those sweet-faced, breadcrumb-leaving youths of my youth. If you've ever suspected that there's something weird about a gingerbread house in the woods, or wondered how two little kids managed to overpower a woman fortified on fresh child meat, you'll probably enjoy this short story, too. Dawson's story is refreshing, and somehow it feels both modern and classic at the same time. It's time someone started to reveal the real story behind all those wonderful old tales -- because reall...

 Read an excerpt from Justice at Indie Snippets! One Lie Can Destroy All Truths #YA #Mystery

Character development, plot, point of view, all these things help to create a book...but at the end of the story, they're all supporting players. The backbone of any book, of every book, is the technical aspect -- and this is what many indie authors neglect. Let's Talk Tech Writers are creative types, with big imaginations. They spin stories, weave plots and invent characters that become as real as the people in our own families. The writer is like an artist painting on a canvas. They're thinking about which colors to use, where to draw the lines, how to add shadows and nuances to certain elements of the big picture. And with all that going on, it's probably easy for the painter to shop thinking about the canvas that's being painted upon. But the writer can't ever forget all those technical details that matter so much -- the canvas on which the words are written. Clean it up . All it takes is one misplaced comma for a reader to get taken out of the stor...

What's it like to be a writer? Read my thoughts about it at a recent guest post I did for Aside From Writing .

We Write Worlds: "Justice" by Jade Varden Visit the link to read an excerpt of Justice as published by We Write Worlds!  

Justice is now available at Smashwords in several different formats. Keep checking back for the upcoming coupon event to learn how you can get it for free!