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June 20, 2017

Dead on Ice by Lauren Carr - Review, Guest Post and Giveaway


I received this book free from the publisher

Book details:
Audible Audio Edition
Listening Length: 6 hours and 9 minutes
Program Type: Audiobook
Version: Unabridged
Publisher: Acorn Book Services
Audible.com Release Date: November 23, 2016
Whispersync for Voice: Ready
Language: English
ASIN: B01N782VZ0
Series: Lovers in Crime #1
ISBN-13: 978-0985726737

About this book:
Dead on Ice is the first installment of Lauren Carr’s new series (Lovers in Crime) featuring Hancock County Prosecuting Attorney Joshua Thornton and Pennsylvania State Police homicide detective Cameron Gates. Spunky Cameron Gates is tasked with solving the murder of Cherry Pickens, a legendary star of pornographic films, whose body turns up in an abandoned freezer. The case has a personal connection to her lover, Joshua Thornton, because the freezer was located in his cousin’s basement. It doesn’t take long for their investigation to reveal that the risqué star’s roots were buried in their rural Ohio Valley community, something that Cherry had kept off her show business bio. She should have kept her hometown off her road map, too—because when this starlet came running home from the mob, it proved to be a fatal homecoming.

Meet the author - Lauren Carr
Lauren Carr is the international best-selling author of the Mac Faraday, Lovers in Crime, and Thorny Rose Mysteries—over twenty titles across three fast-paced mystery series filled with twists and turns!

Book reviewers and readers alike rave about how Lauren Carr’s seamlessly crosses genres to include mystery, suspense, romance, and humor.

Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She lives with her husband and three dogs (including the real Gnarly’s klutzy nephew Sterling) on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.

Connect with Lauren: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

My thoughts:
I thought this was an interesting book to listen to. The mystery part had me trying to guess what would happen next. In fact there were multiple murders that you had to try and piece together as the story went along. I really enjoyed Irving and his interactions with the characters. It is kind of funny that he is Cameron's ride along. There were just enough twists to keep me guessing. A good start to a new to me series.

Guest Post:
Ten Tips for New Writers
By Lauren Carr

So you want to be a writer?

Maybe you have “write a book” on your bucket list. Or maybe you’ve had a story idea floating around in your head. Or maybe, just maybe, you have a personal story that you just need to tell the world about.

Whatever the case, you want to give this writing thing a crack, but other than sitting down at a laptop or keyboard and typing out words to form sentences, you aren’t quite sure what to do to complete not just a book, but a book that someone will want to read from beginning to “the end.”

Okay, here’s ten tips to get you started. Granted, these tips aren’t all you need to know. So don’t just read these and think that’s it. There’s still more that you need to learn in order to become a professional writer. But, these tips are enough to get you started and hopefully help you to finish your book.

1) Become a Reader. Some writers, especially those who don’t have much time, can easily slip into the routine of writing, but not reading other writers’ works. This is a mistake. Just like how athletes watch others to study routines and techniques, you can learn from reading other writers’ books—even bad ones.

I had a friend who had an issue with how she handled backstory. I had explained the issue to her more than once, but she didn’t get it until she read a book by a writer who had the exact same issue. As soon as she saw another writer do it, she realized exactly what I had been telling her. That fixed it.

2) Commit Yourself. No, I don’t mean check yourself into a mental hospital because you’re crazy for even thinking of being a writer (though I do have some relatives who might disagree with me on that). I mean, commit yourself to not just starting to write a book, but finishing it.

I’m telling you right up front that if you want to write a book, there is going to be a point (usually around page 40) where it’s not going to be fun anymore. If you are serious, then you need to make a commitment of working on it even when it is not fun anymore.

3) Make Time for Writing. If your lifestyle is like most of ours, you have a busy life with a real job, family and friends. Part of making a commitment to being a writer is making time to actually write. You are not going to be able to write a whole book by typing out a sentence here and there during commercials while watching television. You need to carve out at least a couple of hours of time to devote to it. There are a ton of articles on the Internet about how to make time for writing. Check them out.

4) Write Every Day. Even when the words aren’t coming easily. You’ll be surprised how much good stuff you will end up keeping, even though they did not seem that great when you composed them. Writing is a skill. As with any skill, it improves with practice.

5) Set Deadlines. I find that I write more and better when I have a deadline. But make your deadline realistic. Unrealistic deadlines (like to write your whole book during your one week vacation) will only frustrate you. A good deadline is 500 words a day. There are many writer websites and communities where you can join other writers to hold each other accountable to write every day.

6) Make Your Readers Care About Your Characters. Have you ever read a book and gotten up to page twenty or so and thought, “I don’t care what happens to any of these characters?” At which point, you stop reading. You need to make your readers care about what happens to your characters from the very beginning. You do that by giving them some redeeming qualities.

I once edited a book which opened with the protagonist raping a woman. The story was about the transformation of this character from a despicable evil man into a born-again Christian. Unfortunately, the main character had no redeeming qualities until that transformation more than halfway through the book. Therefore, the reader wasn’t going to care enough about him to read beyond the opening chapter.

On my suggestion, the writer inserted a prologue of his protagonist on his deathbed, giving the reader a view of him after his transformation, making him more sympathetic to the reader. Then, the rest of the book became a reflection of his life.

7) Do Your Research. I once read a murder mystery, set in present day, in which the detective arrives at a murder scene, takes a deep drag on his cigarette, and then tosses it down next to the dead body. It wasn’t just as mystery writer that I screamed, “No!” Any fourth grader knows nowadays that the detective had contaminated the murder scene.

Failure to do proper research can make writers lose credibility with their readers. Many new writers refrain from research because they fear that it will squelch their imagination. On the contrary, research can open other doors for possibilities that you may never have imagined. For example, in my Thorny Rose Mysteries, I have a “character” named Nigel, the smart house computer who provides security and other services for Jessica Faraday and Murphy Thornton. Every technical service that Nigel performs in the Thorny Rose mysteries is available with today’s technology. My inspiration for Nigel came while researching smart houses and home security for the rich to include in the Faraday-Thornton home. As I learned more, a few simple computerized devices grew into a whole intriguing character who has become a fan favorite.

8) Use Adjectives And Adverbs Sparingly. Writing legend Elmore Leonard said in his Ten Tips for Writing to not use -ly words at all. While I don’t refuse to use them at all, I try to keep away from them. YMost of these descriptive words are cliché and can make your writing seem amateurish. Not only that, but if you think about the passage where you are sticking that word, you will find that the context itself will describe the scene, making the word unnecessary. For example, if your scene is a couple fighting after the wife has discovered that her husband is cheating on her, then you don’t need to tag their statements with the word “angrily.” The reader is going to know that the wife is angry.

9) Kill Your Darlings. The point to this tip is to make sure every section and chapter moves your reader toward the conclusion. Portions of books that fail to do this are called “darlings” because brilliantly written passages are like children to most writers. They become your darlings and unfortunately every good writer has to kill a few to save the whole book. As you become more accomplished at writing, you will come to recognize darlings before you take the time to create them.

The beauty of the digital age is that you can save your darlings and put them in a “cut scenes” file to use in a future project. A large portion of my third Mac Faraday mystery, Shades of Murder, is made up of a subplot that I had cut from an earlier book.

10) Get Out of the House. Now that I have told you to commit to your book and to write every day, I’m telling you to get out into the world and meet people. Writing can become a solitary exercise and it is very easy to get sucked into your literary world to the point that you don’t get out to experience life. I have that problem myself. Sometimes, my husband has to drag me away from the laptop, leave my characters in the middle of a gun fight, and go to lunch.

Walking away from your laptop does make you a better writer. It is a big world out there filled with interesting characters and a planet filled with inspiration. Even if you already have your plotline written in your head, who knows, you may see an intriguing character sitting across from you at the diner who will be the perfect red herring in your plot twist.

So there’s ten writing tips to get you started on that book. The only question now is “What are you waiting for?”

Start writing!

Giveaway:

AUDIOBOOK AND BOOK TOUR SCHEDULE:

May 8 - Library of Clean Reads - tour spotlight / interview with C.J. McAllister
May 8 - Corinne Rodrigues - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
May 8 - Working Mommy Journal - review of Old Loves Die Hard
May 9 - T's Stuff - review of Old Loves Die Hard / author interview / giveaway
May 9 - Amie's Book Reviews - review of Old Loves Die Hard
May 10 - Elizabeth McKenna Romance Author - book spotlight / giveaway
May 10 - TDC Book Reviews - review of Shades of Murder / author interview
May 10 - TDC Book Reviews - book spotlight / giveaway
May 11 - Amie's Book Reviews - review of The Murders at Astaire Castle / interview with Dan Lawson
May 11 - Blätterflüstern - review of Old Loves Die Hard / interview with James Lewis
May 12 - Book Crazy Scrapbook Mama - book spotlight / interview with CJ McAllister / giveaway
May 12 - Books, Dreams, Life - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
May 12 - The Cubicle Escapee - review of The Murders at Astaire Castle
May 15 - Dab of Darkness Book Reviews - review of Old Loves Die Hard
May 15 - Books for Books - review of Blast from the Past
May 16 - Books for Books - review of The Lady Who Cried Murder
May 16 - And the Buck Starts Here - review of Old Loves Die Hard / author interview
May 17 - Books for Books - review of The Murders at Astaire Castle
May 17 - Lovely Loveday - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
May 17 - The Cubicle Escapee - review of The Lady Who Cried Murder
May 18 - Blätterflüstern - review of The Murders at Astaire Castle
May 18 - Writers and Authors - guest post / giveaway
May 18 - The Cubicle Escapee - review of Twelve to Murder
May 19 - T's Stuff - review of Shades of Murder / interview with Mike Alger / giveaway
May 19 - Stylish Brunette - book spotlight / giveaway
May 22 - Mystery Suspense Reviews - review of Old Loves Die Hard
May 23 - And the Buck Starts Here - review of The Murders at Astaire Castle / interview with Dan Lawson
May 23 - Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf - review of Old Loves Die Hard / guest post by James Lewis
May 24 - Nighttime Reading Center - review of Old Loves Die Hard 
May 24 - Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf - review of Dead on Ice
May 25 - Mystery Suspense Reviews - interview with James Lewis / giveaway
May 26 - Bound 4 Escape - review of Old Loves Die Hard / giveaway
May 26 - T's Stuff - review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
May 26 - Book Lover Promo - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
May 29 - Blooming with Books - review of Cancelled Vows / guest post / giveaway
May 30 - Literary Flits - review of Old Loves Die Hard / giveaway
May 30 - Blooming with Books - review of Twelve to Murder / giveaway
May 31 - TDC Book Reviews - review of Blast From the Past / interview with Dan Lawson
June 1 - Working Mommy Journal - review of The Lady Who Cried Murder
June 2 - Jaquo Lifestyle Magazine - review of Real Murder
June 5 - A Mama's Corner of the World - review of Old Loves Die Hard / guest post
June 6 - Dab of Darkness Book Reviews - review of Dead on Ice
June 7 - Jaquo Lifestyle Magazine - guest post by Mike Alger
June 8 - #redhead.with.book - book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
June 9 - Nighttime Reading Center - review of Twelve to Murder
June 9 - Bound 4 Escape - review of Shades of Murder / giveaway
June 9 - Travelling Through Words - book spotlight / interview with C.J. McAllister / giveaway
June 12 - Literary Flits - review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
June 13 - Books for Books - review of Three Days to Forever
June 14 - Laura's Interests - review of Cancelled Vows / interview with James Lewis / giveaway
June 15 - My Reading Journeys - review of Shades of Murder / author interview / giveaway
June 15 - Dab of Darkness Book Reviews - review of Shades of Murder
June 16 - Library of Clean Reads - review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
June 19 - A Mama's Corner of the World - review of The Lady Who Cried Murder
June 19 - By The Book - review of Kill and Run
June 20 - A Holland Reads - review of Dead on Ice / guest post / giveaway
June 21 - Laura's Interests - review of Killer in the Band / guest post by Mike Alger / giveaway
June 22 - Melina's Book Blog - review of The Lady Who Cried Murder
June 23 - Melina's Book Blog - review of Open Season for Murder
June 27 - Library of Clean Reads - review of Real Murder / giveaway
June 28 - Working Mommy Journal - review of Dead on Ice
June 29 - Kristin's Novel Cafe - review of Kill and Run / giveaway
June 29 - Dab of Darkness Book Reviews - review of Blast from the Past
June 30 - Kristin's Novel Cafe - review of A Fine Year for Murder / giveaway
June 30 - Outset - review of A Fine Year for Murder
July 1 - Writers and Authors - review of Dead on Ice
July 3 - A Holland Reads - review of Real Murder / giveaway
July 3 - Cheryl's Book Nook - review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
July 4 - Outset - review of Twelve to Murder 
July 5 - The Journey Back - review of Dead on Ice / interview with Mike Alger / giveaway
July 6 - Jessica Cassidy - review of Old Loves Die Hard / guest post / giveaway
July 7 - JBronder Book Reviews - review of Shades of Murder / guest post
July 7 - Nighttime Reading Center - review of Open Season for Murder
July 10 - Working Mommy Journal - review of Three Days to Forever
July 11 - Rainy Days Reviews - review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
July 11 - Cheryl's Book Nook - review of A Fine Year for Murder / giveaway
July 12 - JBronder Book Reviews - review of Blast from the Past
July 12 - Celticlady's Reviews - book spotlight
July 13 - Rainy Days Reviews - review of Real Murder / giveaway
July 13 - Elsie's Audiobook Digest - review of Old Loves Dies Hard
July 13 - Nighttime Reading Center - review of Dead on Ice
July 14 - Jessica Cassidy - review of Shades of Murder

1 comment:

  1. This is such a fun post! I am so glad you enjoyed Dead on Ice. Here's wishing each of your followers luck in the giveaway for the $100 Amazon Gift Card!

    ReplyDelete