Timewaster's Guide Archive

Local Authors => Writing Group => Topic started by: stridera on August 08, 2009, 07:00:48 AM

Title: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: stridera on August 08, 2009, 07:00:48 AM: Worried that you'll never get published? Well, have a look at what you're competing against, and you should feel better.

Check out Moon People by Dale M. Courtney. Amazon Link (http://www.amazon.com/Moon-People-Dale-M-Courtney/dp/1436372135/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top)

Feel free to read the first page and see what you think. (http://www2.xlibris.com/book_excerpt.asp?bookid=49194)

Or read the Authors synopsis of his work (http://www2.xlibris.com/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=49194)

Finally, you can Amazon Reviews (http://www.amazon.com/Moon-People-Dale-M-Courtney/product-reviews/1436372135/ref=cm_cr_dp_all_summary?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending) about the book.

Enjoy!

_{Note: There is discussion that the publisher ruined this book, but if so, it's just a great example of how the author needs to ensure he knows what his publisher is releasing.}
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: ryos on August 13, 2009, 02:06:58 AM: What's astonishing to me is that an editor picked up that book and actually read past the first paragraph. I know I couldn't. If the whole book is written in that rambling forum-post-by-a-semi-literate style, I'm shocked anyone ever finishes it.

Yet, the amazon reviews are stuffed full of 5-star ratings. Forget cheering up; this is depressing. (The top-rated critical review (http://www.amazon.com/review/RMGGUWEN7I9E6/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt#RMGGUWEN7I9E6) did make me smile, though. Very clever.)

Edit: I see I'm not alone (http://www.amazon.com/review/RAN1YO46F8T80/ref=cm_cr_pr_cmt?ie=UTF8&ASIN=1436372135&nodeID=#wasThisHelpful).
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Peter Ahlstrom on August 13, 2009, 04:27:53 AM: Xlibris isn't a publisher per se. It's a place you go to get your own book printed on demand. The author pays setup fees and then books are only printed when someone orders one.

Though it does look from a review there like Xlibris is a bad POD service to use. Lulu has a much better reputation. And there's Amazon's own POD printer, createspace.com
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: stridera on August 13, 2009, 04:48:20 AM: Yea, the reviews make it look like they mangled his work after-the-fact... but still... the fact that it got as far as it did with such atrocious language is bad enough...
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Silk on August 13, 2009, 06:15:42 AM: Xlibris? Yeah, that explains a lot. I read the first paragraph and already figured that it must have been self-pubbed.

How much do you wanna bet at least some of those reviews were written by the author?
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Chaos on August 13, 2009, 07:22:58 AM: A lot of the reviews, at least the misspelled ones, seem ironically written.
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: The Jade Knight on August 19, 2009, 06:34:25 PM: Quote from: Chaos2651 on August 13, 2009, 07:22:58 AM
A lot of the reviews, at least the misspelled ones, seem ironically written.

Indeed. Some are quite hilarious.
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Jexral on October 15, 2009, 01:19:00 AM: If it was cheaper, I would totally pick a copy up, simply because it makes me laugh so hard. It's almost more funny than Terry Pratchett. As it is, however, it would be too big of a waste to justify it.
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Patriotic Kaz on October 15, 2009, 04:54:08 AM: I laughed at the opening line but was contemplating destroying my computer about 10 sentences in....
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Bravesamwise84 on October 16, 2009, 07:13:38 PM: Ha Ha... just made my day. ;D
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: little wilson on October 17, 2009, 12:45:12 AM: I doubt the book was mangled before publishing. The author's bio was written by the author too, and it reads the same way.

As for being cheered up...If anything, I'm doubting my sanity. Reading just that first page almost made me grateful for Stephenie Meyer... :o
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Patriotic Kaz on October 18, 2009, 01:13:53 PM: You finished the page? Wow!
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: Shi on October 18, 2009, 09:52:15 PM: Quote
You finished the page? Wow!

Oh, oh! I finished a page, too! Because on the second page you find out all you have to be is a high-school astronomy teacher, then NASA will want you, because you know a lot about stars!
Title: Re: If you feel your work is bad, here is something to cheer you up.
Post by: little wilson on October 18, 2009, 11:01:02 PM: Quote from: Shi on October 18, 2009, 09:52:15 PM
Oh, oh! I finished a page, too! Because on the second page you find out all you have to be is a high-school astronomy teacher, then NASA will want you, because you know a lot about stars!

Oh. My. Gosh. You have got to be kidding....A little tiny part of me almost wants to read that page, and that whole chapter, just to see what else there is. But the rest of me would rather keep my brain cells, which I would undoubtedly lose by reading any more of that....thing.