"A Darling Secret Is A Darling Finale" - Fantasia Reviews The Final Book in the Strange Luck Series

"Winters has always had a knack for setting a convincing stage, and this work is no exception. Then she takes it a step further, twisting the whole thing about and giving us something of a surprise, demonstrating more than just her world building, but her ability to tell a darn good story."

"Holding nothing back, Miss Winters has become more imaginative and daring in her storytelling, building a world, slowly disarming us and allowing us to appreciate the boldness of the world that she has built. This marks the darkest entry in the series, though it is no less fantastic."

"A Darling Secret Is A Darling Finale." 

Read what else Fantasia Reviews had to say about A Darling Secret in their lovely review.

The Art of the Review: What Makes a Book Good? - Guest Post by Fantasia Reviews

Have you ever wondered what specifics a book reviewer looks for in a book? Or, what makes the difference between a one-star review and a five-star review? You're in luck! Fantasia Reviews has graciously written a guest post for The Golden Cricket about what makes a good book.

The Art of the Review: What Makes a Book Good?

Three components go into writing a work of fiction: creativity, skill, and a message. Creativity comes from the mind of the author, in a work of fiction, particularly speculative fiction, this is where the world is built, characters are born, and a story is made. The skill of the author comes into play as they construct their prose, it is those words, those lines, which breathe life into a work; they give the author’s thoughts form. Finally, there is the message; the intent and the worldview of the author that inevitably and indelibly mark any work that they create. These forces together give us a work of fiction, but rating such a work can be tricky, as mastery of all of these elements is difficult, but credit should always be given when it is due.

The story is the narrative of a book, and of all three components, is the easiest to assess. When looking at any story, we look at originality, plausibility within the bounds of the world, and cohesion. Originality is easy to judge. We ask ourselves, have we seen anything like this before, and if so, where? If the answer is yes, and it often is as there is little new under the sun, we try to see how the author made the story their own. What did they add? What did they remove? How do the characters grow and change? The more original ideas the author puts into a story, the better it will be. Multiple plotlines can add depth and complexity, combining old and worn-out stories into something new and exciting. A good story is original and interconnected. It does not rely on tired tropes and instead forges boldly forward, unapologetically, giving us something to enjoy and love over and over again.

An author’s writing style can be a matter of taste, but certain fundamentals can be followed. Now, this is not a tutorial on how to write, so we will not delve too deeply into good writing practices, but we can tell you what we look for in a well-written book. It should be spelling and grammar error free. Nothing breaks immersion like a misspelled or misused word. That being said, nobody is perfect. The occasional error is expected, but repeated mistakes will annoy readers. You should have a developed vocabulary that is appropriate for the target audience. Juxtaposition is a great word but probably does not belong in middle-grade reading. Of course, simple and repetitive language can and will bore readers. If you frequently find yourself repeating words or using the word ‘thing,' you may want to consider breaking out the thesaurus. Readers want to be entertained not frustrated or anesthetized.

The most subjective of all of the components is the message, i.e. what does the book say to the reader? Whether the author means for it or not, a bit of their worldview makes it into their work. There is nothing wrong with that, so long as it does not come across as if the work was meant to proselytize. Themes will also often come through, whether intentional or unintentional. Now, some of this will be lost on some readers, because not everyone reads books for the same reasons. As reviewers, though, we love robust themes, compelling conflicts, and the ability to relate aspects of a book to our lives and world events. When properly executed, you can expose readers to ideas that they had never considered before, or make them see an issue from a new perspective. Now, this does not need to be a goal for the author; it is up to the reader to make these interpretations, but inspiration can be added with a deft hand. Interpretations may even vary from reader to reader, and that is fine too. What matters the most is that the author is bold enough to inject this kind of material into their narrative. Often, the strongest messages can be controversial or even upsetting to some. Examples of issues worthy of exploration are racism, misogyny, and the dichotomy (or lack thereof) of good and evil. Now, not all authors set out to send a message, and that is fine too, but a well-crafted message can only serve to enhance the experience of a strong narrative.

 

When we write reviews, we take all of this into consideration. To rate a work on one metric would be disingenuous since so much goes into writing a book. Authors have different strengths and weaknesses. Some are great storytellers, but their writing skills are lacking. Others may have degrees in literature, but lack the creativity to make something great. We should congratulate these people on their strengths, but their weaknesses should be exposed, as reviews are as much for the author as they are the reader. In the end, we all just want to read a good book.

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Thank you for sharing this informative article. I've had my books reviewed by various book bloggers and it's always surprising when they don't list what/how they are evaluating your work. This can be incredibly frustrating, especially if you're trying to determine if they would even like your book in the first place. That said, I really think that other authors out there will greatly benefit from your post. I know I certainly did!

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Fantasia Reviews is comprised of a group of fantasy authors, and readers who love to give reviews to works they find are undiscovered, underappreciated or just the books they love. If you think your work is appropriate, you can contact them here.

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Science And Other Scary Words: On Writing Science Fiction - Guest Post By Belinda Crawford

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by YA sci-fi author Belinda Crawford. Coincidentally, I just started reading my first sci-fi book (yes, of all time) and am really enjoying it, so when I connected with Belinda, I wanted to know more. The thought of writing sci-fi had always seemed really intriguing...and kinda scary, so, I asked Belinda if she would share some tips on how to write science fiction. Enjoy!

Science And Other Scary Words: On Writing Science Fiction

Here’s a little secret, there’s not a lot of difference between writing science fiction and writing any other genre. Sure, there are some new words (wormhole, nanotech, mecha, thingy-ma-bob, dohickey) and a proliferation of acronyms to learn (AI, FTL, OMG, WTF) but that whole bit where you write a great story with interesting characters…That doesn't change.

It’s all about the worldbuilding

What makes a story sci-fi is not the narrative, but the world it’s set in. In general, sci-fi is any story where science enables extraordinary things to happen, much the same as magic does in fantasy. Usually it’s set in the future (or at the very least, the author’s future—A Princess of Mars was set in 1912 and written prior) and features advanced technology, such as spaceships, robots and lightsabers. There are some notable exceptions, such as the steampunk and superhero subgenres, but for the most part, the above remains true.

The key to creating a great world is making it believable, which can be daunting if you’re just getting started in sci-fi and/or aren't the kind of person who reads Scientific American.

The Science in Science Fiction

A lot of people have the misconception sci-fi must be scientifically accurate, which can be a barrier for readers and writers alike. The truth is, just because the genre has science in the name, doesn’t mean you have to include any in the narrative.

There’s a spectrum to the scientific accuracy of sci-fi, often referred to as its ‘hardness’. It starts with science fantasy, which doesn’t worry about the scientific details (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), progresses to soft sci-fi, which worries just a little (Dune), and makes its way to hard sci-fi, which worries a lot (2001: A Space Odyssey).

The ‘hardness’ of a work of sci-fi is directly proportional to it’s scientific accuracy, and one of the first things you need to consider when writing sci-fi is where you want to fit on that scale.

What Sort of Sci-fi Should You Write?

First decide what sort of story you want to tell. If you want to tell a story about space knights who roam the galaxy kicking butt and dispensing justice with glowy swords and mental powers (The Lost King), science fantasy is probably your gig. If you want to explore how planets could be terraformed for human habitation (Red Mars) then hard sci-fi might be for you.

Second, look at your bookshelf. What sort of books do you like to read? What is it about those books that you enjoy? Is it powered armour (Armored), living spaceships (Warhorse), ecological apocalypse (The Windup Girl) or alien invasion (Battlefield Earth)? Is it none of them or several of them? Whatever it is, that's what you should write.

Third, ask yourself how much you like science and research. If you really, really want to write a detailed, realistic story about a man stranded on a hostile alien planet (The Martian), but the thought of cracking open a book or seeking advice from experts makes you want to throw up, you have a problem. That’s not to say that the softer end of the spectrum doesn’t also require research, but it (and when I say ‘it’, I mean the readership) is more forgiving.

You don’t need to be a science buff, professor or nerd to write sci-fi, even hard sci-fi, but you do need to be prepared to get your hands dirty and ask for help when you need it.

Research

So, how do you research things like faster-than-light travel, honking-big robots and astrophysics?

Google and Wikipedia are excellent first steps. Depending upon how close to the ‘soft’ end of science scale your story is, it may be all you need. If you want something more in-depth you’ll need to hunt down academic websites, books, journals or an actual expert.

Your local library, or an online one, should be your next step, and don't forget to ask the librarian if you need help. Often, if you need the advice of an expert, you can email the author of a particular book or journal article. You’ll be surprised how often people are willing to help, and quite flattered to be asked. You can also try talking to your local doctor, vet, car mechanic or any other professional whose expertise fits with what you’re trying to research.

For topics you're unlikely to find in a research book, such as cyborgs or Godzilla-sized monsters, consider TV Tropes–a website that categorises and discusses all sorts of weird and wonderful things–read other sci-fi books to see how they deal with it, or delve deep into Internet discussion boards.

Do It Your Way

Writing sci-fi is just like writing any other genre. There is no right or wrong way to do it and you don't need to be a super-duper library person, nerd or PhD of Future Sh— err, Stuff. All you need are a few characters, an interesting story and a little bit of the future, sprinkled with just as much research as you need to write a great book. How you go about doing that is up to you.

A Few More Resources

• Curiosity.com isn’t that good for in-depth research, but it’s full of fun little facts to expand your mind and inspire you.
• If you have a specific question (like ‘Could superpowers be scientifically possible?’) Quora is the place to find an answer, or at least a discussion.
• The Worldbuilding Stackexchange is great for discussions about worldbuilding topics, like ‘Would the human body support living on planets with a greater gravity than Earth?’. 
• Listopia on Goodreads is your resource for finding books in specific genres or about certain topics.
• The Tools section on this site has a handy-dandy faster-than-light travel calculator, among other things.

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Wow! These are great resources and book recommendations, Belinda, especially for someone like me who doesn't know a thing about the sci-fi literary world. That faster-than-light travel calculator is quite nifty by the way. Maybe writing sci-fi isn't so scary after all. :) Thanks so much for sharing.

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Bio:
Physics makes Belinda’s brain hurt, while quadratics cause her eyes to cross and any mention of probability equations will have her running for the door. Nonetheless, she loves watching documentaries about the natural world, biology, space, history and technology (Megafactories is one of her favourite TV shows). Oh, and she writes science fiction.

Hero is the first book in The Hero Rebellion, a science fiction trilogy about a girl with a plan to get a life. There are alien steeds, AIs, illegal street racing and a conspiracy to change the world. The second book, Riven, will hit shelves on September 25 this year.

You can keep in touch with Belinda, or just pick her brains about sci-fi, via her website, Facebook or by sending her an email (she loves email).