Jean's Writing

Do you want a creepy and disturbing book?

Published on July 8, 2016July 7, 2016 by Jean M. Cogdell3 Comments

If you are squeamish,

don’t read:

The Butterfly Garden

The book is written in two different POV’s, the FBI investigating the crimes and one of a surviving victim. The author hooked me from the beginning. Changing point of views made perfect sense as the story unfolds. I had no problem following what was happening. It is a dark, disturbing, methodical and well-written story. I usually can’t finish a book that deals with sexual violence because I find the subject distasteful and hard to stomach but I couldn’t put down The Butterfly Garden. I finished this book in one day, not because I didn’t know how it was going to end, but because I wanted to hear the rest of the victim’s story. So, if you are the least bit squeamish about the treatment of women, you may want to take a pass. However, if you can handle the subject, the writing is worth the journey. This is one book that will keep you up all night.

Dot Hutchinson kept me turning the pages late into the night and the story haunted me long after I turned out the light. The Butterfly Garden gets 5 Stars from me. It is available now, for FREE through KindleUnlimited.

Read any good books lately? Do share…

Have you read this book? What did you think?

I’d love to hear from you! Click the “write me” tab above or contact me on Twitter @jeancogdell, Facebook at jean.cogdell and Amazon.com, stop by and say hey! The lights are on and I’m waiting.

Please remember to share this post with your Twitter peeps and Facebook fans.

Looking for Political Intrigue to take to the beach?

Published on July 7, 2016 by Jean M. Cogdell

Try His Revenge

John Howell writes an entertaining thriller about an American hero, John Cannon who arch-enemy is a terrorist bent on destroying the US. I enjoyed the easy pace and outcome of the story. The good guys win. I’m not much of a shoot-em-up political kind of gal but if you like political thrillers this will be a book to read.

Available now for Free through Kindleunlimited.

Do you know how to give away your book for FREE?

Published on July 7, 2016July 6, 2016 by Jean M. Cogdell7 Comments

Well, I didn’t either until today.

Kindle Edition : “free kindle books”

But a big thanks goes out to fellow bloggers the big Ape and Nicholas C. Rossis for sending out much-needed information. A post – Molly Greene’s Advice on Going Permafree on Amazon.

Most of us have a WIP and one day may want to make it FREE for a day. But if you’re like me the process has baffled me.

A short while back, my friend Charles E. Yallowitz decided to make the first book of his fantasy Legends of Windemere series permafree. This is something I’ve been considering myself, but I&#… Continue reading–

Source: Molly Greene’s Advice on Going Permafree on Amazon

Molly discovered the process when she wanted to make Mark of the Loon free.

Here is a breakdown of the steps:

Log into Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP).
Click the “Help” tab in the upper right-hand corner.
On the left menu, scroll to the bottom and click “Contact us.”
Again, left menu, click “Getting Started.”
Then click “Pricing Your Book.” (One of the “Answers to common questions” options under this category is “what is price matching.” That link will take you to Amazon’s policy page.)
Under “ask your question here,” use the subject line: Price Matching. In the body of the message, include the title and ASIN of the book, plus links to retail sites where it is currently free: iTunes, Kobo, Smashwords, whatever. Tell them you’re running a free promo and you need Amazon to price match.

The NEW Easy Way To Go FREE On Amazon by Molly Greene @mollygreene

Now I don’t know about you but this seems all a bit convoluted. Before long I expect a few more hurdles will be added, such as:

Use starter pistol at “Starting Point”
Hop on one foot as you log on
Scream bloody murder when clicking on “help” key

So what do y’all think?

Have you succeeded in offering a book for FREE?

Will you in the future?

I’d love to hear from you! Click the “write me” tab or contact me on Twitter @jeancogdell, Facebook at jean.cogdell and Amazon.com, stop by and say hey! The lights are on and I’m waiting.

Please remember to share this post with your Twitter peeps and Facebook fans.

Should you write a fancy outline for your novel?

Published on July 6, 2016July 5, 2016 by Jean M. Cogdell23 Comments

Maybe- Maybe not.

chart 1

It’s your book, you make the rules.

Different strokes for different folks. Me, I’m trying to be more organized in my writing this year. Only time will tell if I’m successful. LOL

However, I find outlining is a bit of a mystery. spirit-1272923_640

Outlining an unwritten book is weird because you don’t know what will happen. It’s not the same as outlining a book read for a class assignment. No the formal process of outlining a book idea is as foreign to me as Spanish or French. I know just enough to embarrass myself.

Last week I announced to my friend, with much excitement, I’d finished outlining my first novel. I was stumped for a second when she asked me how many levels I used. Huh? Levels? Like in… I, A, 1, a, ii….

None. Nada, zip. I didn’t use any. Instead, I let the story unfold in my head and then put it to paper one scene at a time. 1-30.

Late at night, I lay in bed and the characters drove me nuts until I added another scene to the list. That’s how I outlined. Nothing fancy. Just one paragraph at a time. Also known as the headlight method.

Today, outlines are much more fluid than the rigid things we studied in school many moons ago. In fact, if you Google how to outline a novel you’ll find just about as many ideas on outlines as stories on the latest TV personality.

Writing is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as the headlights, but you make the whole trip that way.

E.L. Doctrow

Take your pick. Old school (traditional), Synopsis, Scrivener, Snowflake, Headlight method (yeah some weird names), Mind mapping, Sticky notes, Scratch pads, 3 acts, and the list goes on. Don’t let the idea of making an outline intimidate you. If you want to try just pick what works for you and run with it.

However if you just want a guideline to keep you from driving off in a ditch you might try my idea.

First: Open up your program, whichever you choose to use. Scrivener or Word, list your chapters, and then let the story begin to play in your head.
Next: Begin to write brief notes about what will happen.
Then: Step through each numbered chapter until you reach the end.
Now you’re ready to let your freak fly!
Go to the beginning and start writing. Use the numbered paragraphs as a map for when you get lost or veer too far off the path.

Do you outline?

What type of outlines do you use?

Or are you a pantster?

Keep reading – Great articles at the bottom of the post!

I’d love to hear from you! Click the write me tab or contact me onTwitter @jeancogdell, Facebook at jean.cogdell and Amazon.com, stop by and say hey! The lights are on and I’m waiting.

Please remember to share this post with your Twitter peeps and Facebook Facebook fans.

How to Outline a Novel- The Headlight Method

Outline Your Novel in Thiry Minutes

PLANNING TO OUTLINE YOUR NOVEL? DON’T

How to Outline a Novel (Even If You’re Not an Outliner)

Plot outline creation: 7 smart methods