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Tag: Claremore (Page 112 of 115)

Some change is the same.

April 2, 2011 /

I’m getting to know my youngest grandbaby. I’m memorizing her name and… well, – to be honest – not a lot more. She won’t be born until Friday.

Stork delivery

Things just aren’t the same as they were years ago.

Back then, you couldn’t paint the crib unless you were a gambler with those 50/50 odds of blue or pink.

Names?

You could whittle your list down to two favorites, but there couldn’t be a final decision until, you know – the event. Now, the baby’s identity is already well-known before she is born. If the doctor would just tell us her preference, we could order up and enjoy a piece of her favorite cake, right on her birthday.

Technology has changed some things for us. On the other hand, there are some staples that remain.

My step-son had a hurting tummy on Friday and couldn’t get out of his bed for school. I learned later that a miraculous recovery was affected about three in the afternoon. In fact, his road to recovery was paved with such incredible vim, he was still energetically gaming at his internet-connected ‘Nuke’em to the Stone Age’ at 3am.

In my time, that was diagnosed as ‘school-itus.’

Some things remain the same.

A book. A review. A meltdown.

March 29, 2011 /

A British author was fortunate enough to get her book considered by an online reviewer. She disagreed with his opinion. Well, disagreed is wrong. She went ballistic.

I’m not going to mention her name, because I think she’s had enough publicity for one lifetime. She may have been humbled somewhat by the reaction to her reaction. Countless readers – alerted to the public meltdown that was happening – launched their own comments and the blog went viral.

The author bragged about her five star reviews on Amazon. Ooops. Now, an average 1.5 stars. It would be lower except for the early padding by friends and family.

There is a lesson here. Maybe more than one.

At the top is that, Al – who operates the blog – must be a decent sort. He eventually closed the column to comments when the author was being bludgeoned. It’s one thing to kick in a karate match. When the opponent is on the ground and the pummeling continues, it’s not a match any longer: it is a gang and a victim.

Unfortunately, the author deserved the initial roundhouse, when she came out swinging. Let me tell you, bad reviews hurt. But if you can’t live through them as a writer, you need to stick with reading. Not everyone likes the same books. That is a fact.

Even established authors get bad reviews. The good reviewers can critique without being hateful, and that is what Al, the blogger did. His pilers-on were just as hateful as the author’s crude comments.

The other lessons? Awww, the heck with it. This isn’t a writer’s school, it is a bookseller’s blog.

But if I read your book and give it two stars instead of five, it is only my opinion. Don’t go all ballistic – chill out. Read some books. Take mental notes.

Write some more.

Book bones.

March 22, 2011 /

Okay, so I don’t get out much. At least in the TV universe. Six seasons in, and I finally saw my first episode of Bones.

Bones

Book'em Bones

Noteworthy? In some ways. (One of them: how I could go six years without running across the show…)

The program is based (loosely) on author Kathy Reichs suspense book series featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. In her books, Brennan moonlights as an author writing about a forensic anthropologist named Kathy Reichs. Talk about art imitating life. Reichs, in fact, is a forensic anthropologist.

[Editor’s note: The previous paragraph may contain a record number of occurrances of the word ‘anthropologist.’]

It isn’t the first TV series to have a run based on a book series.

Once upon a time, there was an actor named Robert Ulrich who starred in a show called Spencer: For Hire. He was a detective created by the late Robert Parker, who had several successful crime books in series.

Showtime had a hit with Dexter, a criminal vengeance sort, based on the series written by Jeff Lindsay.

James Patterson hasThe Womens Murder Club, a group of crime solving socialites, which was adapted for a short-lived program in the 2007-2008 season. The books have lasted much longer, and continue to sell.

It’s surprising – given the number of series books out there – that more of them haven’t been adapted to television.

I’ve seen real-life author Michael Connelly making appearances on the ABC dramedy Castle. Why not a series based on Connelly’s character Harry Bosch? TV can always used another police detective show…

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