Indie Book Review: Between These Pages, by Catherine MacKenzie, Part 1 of 2

My apologies to Catherine MacKenzie for the late review.  I thought I would have it done before now, but I fell behind on my schedule.  The biggest event that slowed me down was the FBI Green Dot Moneypak Virus (mentioned in my last blog).

Between These Pages has been one of the best books that I’ve read by an independent artist, and I want to give it a proper review.  To do the book justice, I plan to give it a two-part review.  I’ll try to avoid spoilers, but I’m going to give my synopses of the individual stories within the book.

1.      Collecting Knocks:  The story is somewhat vague, but sometimes that’s a good thing.  Some of my favorite stories are the ones that leave a little to the imagination.

2.      Doorbells and December:  The story is told at a slow pace, meant to bring the reader into the world of a woman who must take care of her grandson, after the disappearance of her daughter.

3.      Away with the Fairies:  A boy is coping with the divorce of his parents, and has a new life that includes three new sisters.  The boy doesn’t quite fit in, but with some help he learns how to cope with his new situation.

4.      Night Candy:  This story is full of innocence lost.  A little girl sees many things that she doesn’t quite understand.  I read the story thinking, how far is Cathy willing to go?  I wasn’t disappointed.

5.      Island Lovers:  This one stood out the most to me.  The story involves the strange rituals of an island tribe, and how those rituals affect two people who are in love.  I won’t give away the ending.

6.      The Party:  A birth mark results in a woman’s negative self-image.  Despite her feelings about her appearance, a masquerade party allows her to enjoy herself, and gives her a new sense of confidence.

7.      Balloons, Chocolate and Flowers:  This is a story that takes readers on an emotional journey that many people have been on before.  A young woman thinks about giving her boyfriend another chance after he has cheated on her.

8.      Rear View Mirror:  Very cool flash fiction story about a woman who has just committed murder.  The body is stashed away in the car, but... you’ll have to read it for yourself.

9.      Hourglass:  A story about twin brothers that ends with a twist.  One brother is constantly cleaning up after the other, and he’s had enough.

I’m straying a bit from my normal format, but I would like to say… Who would like this book?  I think the majority of the stories in this book were written with women in mind.  The first half (this half), is especially geared toward women.  However, there were a lot of thrills and horror in this half of Between These Pages, making it enjoyable to a wide variety of tastes.

Personally, I think the book is well rounded, but the second half actually contains the majority of my favorite stories.  I think this book is worth buying, and hope that the readers of my blog will support this author.  Cathy MacKenzie is one of my favorite personalities when it comes to writers.  I’ve always thought she had a crazy side, but she’s managed to put her insanity into a bottle, and pour it into a book for us to read.

Which story is my favorite in this half of the book?  Rear View Mirror.  Although it’s probably the shortest story in the book, it’s full of cool imagery.  It comes in fast and hard, and delivers everything a good short story should.

Keep watching for the second half of my review for Between These Pages.  Until then, check it out for yourself…

Check out Catherine MacKenzie’sauthor page on Amazon

Check out her page on Smashwords

Visit Cathy’s blog and website

Email Catherine MacKenzie at writingwicket@gmail.com

Joshua Hicks recently released Flashlight Stories, an anthology of short stories that are meant to terrify.  The book is only 99 cents until after Halloween.  Get the first story free (plus a flash fiction introduction) with any sample download.  Enjoy!

Find Flashlight Stories on Amazon

Find Flashlight Stories onSmashwords

My Experience with the FBI Green Dot Moneypak Virus

So, I haven’t posted a blog in a while… a long while.  I haven’t posted anything about my new book, and I haven’t reviewed Catherine MacKenzie’s book like I said I would, either (my apologies to her).  That leads me to my first post since early August…

The FBI Moneypak virus that infected my computer several weeks ago would be hilarious if it was not so annoying/scary.  It put my independent writing career on hold as it taunted my family from our laptop.  The image:  Large FBI letters, a message that we had been CAUGHT in illegal activities, and a webcam photo of my girlfriend, staring at the computer in confusion.

We were accused of viewing and/or downloading child pornography, bestiality, and/or instances of rape.  The virus used our own laptop’s webcam to capture my girlfriend’s image as “proof” that she was indeed the one identified as committing these crimes.  Of course, I knew this was a scam, because my girlfriend had been browsing artist trading cards while me and our little girl were watching Curious George on Netflix.  We were supposed to believe that the picture was taken while the crime was being committed, but my girlfriend’s sleep shirt (which she was still wearing) and ruffled hair (from just waking up) made it clear that the “FBI” had caught her lazily looking for quotes to paste onto artwork.

Not only was the “evidence” far from convincing, but the “FBI” seemed to be willing to clear the accused of all charges for a $300 fee, paid to a Green Dot Moneypak card that can be purchased at Wal-Mart or local convenient stores.  Wow!  No prison!  The FBI was either being considerably generous or we were targets of a huge SCAM.

What’s funny about living during a time when the internet is available on a plethora of devices, is that sometimes people forget about their options.  Usually, when I need to search for answers, I use the computer, but my computer had malware.  It wasn’t until the next day when it dawned on me that I could start my Nintendo Wii, go to Youtube, and search for a way to get the malware scam off the computer.  It was the complete opposite of trying to flip on a light after the electricity goes out.  Instead, I had power when I thought I had none.

I found the answers to my problem on Youtube, and I’m including a link to the video for anyone who might need instruction on how to remove the virus.  You will need a second computer that isn’t infected, an empty flash drive, and possibly a blank CD.  We used my girlfriend’s parents’ computer to go online and download the program to get rid of the virus (put on flash drive), and the program to override the virus before it gets a chance to disable the infected computer (put on CD).  It might have been a time-consuming process, but it was easy to accomplish once my girlfriend had access to her parent’s computer.  We’re not sure what gave our computer the virus, but the guy in the Youtube video claimed to have acquired the virus (after searching for a lot of questionable files in order to make the video) from something as simple as a searching for Danica Patrick.

Sadly, I have heard plenty of stories in which people were scammed into losing money because of this virus.  Sending money won’t get rid of the malware.  The FBI isn’t really locking your computer.  If you get a message that asks you to send money to pay for a crime, don’t bite.  Chances are, you’re being scammed.

Here’s the Youtube video that helped me get rid of the FBIMoneypak Virus


To download my horror story anthology, Flashlight Stories (get the first two stories completely free with sample).  Still only 99 cents for a limited time:
From Smashwords
From Amazon

No School, On Writing, Extra Cash, Next Indie Review, On Blogging

            So, I passed up an opportunity to go back to school.  I think it was for good reasons, and I hope I’m right.  By the time I got my packet of information there were only 18 days left until classes started.  I still didn't have my financial aid figured out, and the school’s website still wasn't working on my computer.  I felt I had to make many very big decisions in a very small amount of time.  This biggest decision was the $20,000+ loan I would have taken out in order to attend the school. No grants, no scholarships, just a huge loan that would accrue interest.  I passed on the loan, and worked things out with the administrators so that all my progress (background check, Praxis I test results, transcripts, application with essay, fees, etc) would be saved in my file for whenever I’m able to attend.  Hopefully, now that I have some more time, I’ll be able to get some grants so I don’t have to take on the entire financial burden when/if I decide to go back to school.

I would have loved to go back to school, and I would love to say that I’ll definitely be going next year, but I can’t.  I’m glad that I tried, and I’m happy about the progress I made.  I still hope that the progress wasn’t just a waste of time, and that I’ll actually pick up where I left off sometime within the next few years.  However, things change, jobs happen, family happens, STUFF happens.  I’m keeping school open as an option, because I’d love to become a teacher, but the situation has to be right.  The situation wasn’t right this time.

On Writing:  First of all, the biggest of the changes concerning writing is that I plan to start writing on a more serious level again.  I’m no longer concerned about passing tests, getting letters of recommendation, or any of the other activities that I was putting at the top of my priorities.  I could be upset about that, but I’m not; it was my choice, after all.  Instead, I’m excited about trying to get SOMETHING published.  I’m not going to say how soon, because I tried that with The Dream Machine, my unpublished science fiction novel that is sitting on the back-burners, waiting for me to finish it.  For the same reason that I haven’t tried to finish The Dream Machine (unreliable computer, that might possibly die at any time), I’m going to have to be careful when writing.

Some readers of this blog might wonder what the difference is… I write blogs, so why not continue writing my novel?  You might be right, but it’s a personal preference.  The novel is longer, more complex than a blog, and would be worse to lose than a blog.  I suppose I could use Google Drive, but I’m also a technophobe (“Great thing to be when you’re a writer,” he said, with a hint of sarcasm).

The point is, I would feel safer writing short stories now.  Personally, I can manage short stories easier.  I get more words out per day when I’m writing a short story, compared to when I’m working on a longer story.  I’m able to wrap my head around the stories easier, and I don’t run into the dreaded Writer’s Block as often.  Short stories might actually be more FUN for me to write.  It’s possible that I’m just not ready for the challenge of a full-length novel yet, although I was so close to being done.  All I needed was a good ending and some heavy editing.  I’ll go back to focusing on short stories for now, and see how that works for me.

Slice The Pie:  I want to share a link with you.  It’s an interesting site that I ran across a couple weeks ago, and thought some of you might enjoy it.  Apparently, I can earn a few cents for referrals, and well as reviewing.  I don’t want to spam, because nobody likes a spammer, but I genuinely thing that most of you would enjoy this site, too.  You won’t earn a lot of money (about 10 cents per song review, depending on quality), but it IS possible to earn some spare cash just for writing short reviews for songs.

You will have to create an account, but after that, just listen to (at least) 90 seconds of the song, and fill the text box with your thoughts.  You can find other helpful sites that discuss popular keywords that the Slice the Pie system looks for (vocalist, instrumental accompaniment, intro, solo, commercial potential, creative, original, etc), but it’s basically intuitive, especially for writers and fans of music.

I’ve earned close to $8, and I’ll get to cash out when I reach $10.  I've searched online to see how legitimate this site is, and apparently a lot of people are big fans.  They say they get their money whenever they ask for it after reaching the payout amount, and one of my friends recently received his first payment.  I’ll keep everyone posted about my own experiences with this website, but until then, use this link to help me earn some extra referral cash.  You won’t lose any money, but I’ll earn 10% of whatever you make, just for getting you to participate.  Here’s the link.  Let me know what you think.

THE NEXT INDIE BOOK REVIEW:  It’s going to be a book by Cathy MacKenzie, called Between the Pages.  It’s an anthology of very interesting stories, and it’s probably one of the best independent books I’ve read in a long time.  Independent doesn’t mean I put it on a lower scale than commercially popular books, but I’ve been reading a lot of Stephen King lately, and he’s one of my favorites.  Regardless, Between the Pages is going to get a two-part review, because I think it deserves it.  I see great quality, and I see a quantity as well.  Cathy MacKenzie put in a lot of work with this one.  I’m going to try to review the first half of the book two weeks from now (two weeks, not one).

On Blogging:  I’m going to stop posting new blogs every week.  Now, I’m only going to write a blog every OTHER week.  I enjoy writing them, but it’s not what I set out to do.  I set out to write fiction.  This blog is my way of discussing the events in my life, my journey as a writer, and a medium for me to discuss other writers and my own thoughts.  Writing a blog once every two weeks should still give me the opportunity to stay connected, as well as allow me time in between blogs to work on other projects, as well as accumulate content for the blog posts.

As I was saying a little earlier, I’m going to try to review the first half of Between the Pages two weeks from now.  That will give me enough time to finish the anthology (that contains over 60,000 words), and write the review.  I’ll make sure to tweet and post updates on Facebook when I publish new posts.  Until then, go check out Cathy’s book.  Enjoy.

Getting Reviews From Me: How I decide what to review

I love to read and review stories by independent writers.  I want to support writers, especially since I’m still trying to write stories of my own.  I know how appreciative independent writers can be when they earn a good review.  That said, this blog entry is to let writers (and readers) know a little bit more about how, and what, I choose to review.  Also, I will let you know the best ways to work with me to get a review.  My indie reviews seem to bring the most traffic to my blog, so I’d love to keep doing them.

I’ve reviewed independent books, independent games, and I’ve even reviewed a non-independent game as part of a nostalgic blog entry, because it was something that inspired me.  My focus, however, is on independent stories.

Since my art of choice is writing, I like to support other independent writers.  The biggest issue with writing reviews for independent writers is time.  It takes time to read a story, and it takes time to write the review.  If I want to keep my personal standard of writing at least one new blog entry every week, I’m not going to be able to make each entry a book review.  Sometimes, I might be able to write a review based on something I’ve already read, watched, or played, but I couldn’t possibly keep up with reading/writing reviews, and still continue with my own projects.

Therefore, I try to be picky when it comes to writing reviews.  You might be saying, “Gee, you sure don’t seem very picky.  You review some of the same writers over and over again.”  That’s true; one reason, is simply because I know these writers have good content.  I network with them, know their potential, and choose to support them.  Another reason is financial availability.  I will not choose to review a book that I think might be overpriced.  People go to independent writers because they want value, and good content.  If I spend more money reviewing books than I make selling them, I’m not making a smart financial decision.  More often, I only choose to review independent books that are given to me free.

This is where something should be made clear:  I do not give good reviews in exchange for free reads.  I have read books full of errors, and that’s a deal-breaker for me.  Did I write a bad review of that book?  No, I didn’t.  Although I don’t exchange reviews for free books, I don’t choose to write bad reviews, either.  It’s a choice I made early on.  I write reviews to help independent writers, so for me, writing negative reviews is a waste of time.  On the other hand, I believe there is a potential reader for every book.  If your book makes sense, doesn’t contain tons of grammatical mistakes, spelling errors, isn't confusing, and is interesting enough to hold my attention, I'll probably give it a review.

There is a reason why I always write, “Who will like this book.”  It’s because certain books aren’t for everyone.  Instead of bashing the story because it doesn’t fall into the category of my normal reading material, I let readers know who would enjoy the book.  It’s safe to say that, if a book has kept me entertained enough to finish reading it, and I write a review for it, it was worth the time I spent with it.

I’m also fond of saying, “Personally,” and then following that up with why I was entertained enough to finish the book and write a review.  With this section, I usually try to shed some insight on why I chose to review a particular book, and what personally kept me entertained.  It’s about my personal taste in stories, and what I think other people might also enjoy.

Have a story that you want reviewed?  Get in touch with me.  I’ll let you know if your book is something I might like, and I’ll make sure to let you know if I can review it.  If there are numerous errors in your book, I’ll let you know.  You have the option of fixing the mistakes, and I have the option of reviewing something else.  It’s that simple.

Also, I can’t promise to write a review by a certain day, but I’m willing to discuss postponing a review if it helps your marketing strategy.  I’d like to have some reviews stored away just in case I get too busy to write one.  It feels good to have a backlog, just in case.

To get in touch with me through email, please use jdh112683@yahoo.com

You can visit my Yahoo! Contributor Network profile by clicking, here.

If you’re interested in downloading free samples of my two short stories (more to come soon, hopefully), please check out Disclosure, and The Journal of the Missing Day.

To follow me on Twitter, click here.

Also, I invite you to join me on facebook, and my writer's profile.

Thanks for reading, and I hope to hear from you soon.

Nostalgic review: Dragon Warrior and Turn-Based RPGs

When I was growing up, video games were played on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).  When I try to think back to the first games I ever played, I remember Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Duck Hunt, Adventure Island, and… Dragon Warrior.

Dragon Warrior didn’t go straight to the top on my list of great games.  That achievement went to Super Mario Bros.  Adventure Island was pretty cool too, but I wasn’t very good at it.  I wasn’t very good at most games, actually.  The Legend of Zelda made me feel downright incompetent, and I had to stand right next to the television to accomplish anything on Duck Hunt… Despite my love of video games, I’m obviously not a gamer.

So imagine my surprise when I started playing Dragon Warrior, my first turn-based RPG experience, which allowed me to train my character, and to get more powerful after every victory.  Well, honestly, I didn’t know what the hell I was supposed to do.  The character couldn’t jump, and I couldn’t even see the bad guys until the screen suddenly transported me into battle.  Then, I couldn’t even swing a sword; I had to choose an option to swing a sword (actually, it was a club to start off with… Actually, I’m pretty sure I went into battle without buying any weapons at all when I first played the game.  It never occurred to me that I would be responsible to purchasing my own gear).  All that I knew, was that my dad’s character was completely awesome, and mine could be killed by slime balls.

It wasn’t until later, in my teens, that I realized how great Dragon Warrior really was.  The memory of the game had stayed with me; how I had to win battles to make my character stronger, and how the focus of the game was on role-playing, instead of the actual gameplay.  Dragon Warrior was like being involved in a book.  I had to pay attention to the non-playable characters, and use critical thinking to figure out what I was supposed to do.  My character would gain experience whenever I won in battle, and occasionally, would level up.  Leveling up is a great feeling of accomplishment.  It’s accompanied by a grandiose melody, and a list of improved stats.  Buying better weapons and armor is also a satisfying part of playing the game.

I’ve used Dragon Warrior as an example, simply because it’s one of my turn-based RPGs.  It really is the most basic example of the things I enjoy about these kinds of games.  It’s a simple back-and-forth between fighting battles, resting your character, buying new weapons and armor, and pushing forward into harder areas of the game once you think you can handle the challenge.

So… Who would like Dragon Warrior?  Even though this isn’t my usual template for reviews, I wanted to give some background for this specific genre of game.  My blog is mainly about writing, but I think it should also focus on storytelling.  Playing a turn-based RPG is like taking part of a story.  If you would like to play a game where you can take your time, experience a story, and aren’t necessarily looking for a big challenge, this game might be for you.  There will be times when you have to spend a lot of your time raising your character’s level in order to get strong enough to progress.

Personally, I enjoy leveling up.  Like I said previously, I’m not a hardcore gamer.  When a game gives me the opportunity to make my character(s) stronger, I take it.  I want my character to overpower the competition, or at least give me an advantage.  Games like Dragon Warrior, and other turn-based RPGs give me the opportunity to fight weaker enemies to gain experience, and the time to save up money in order to buy the best weapons and armor.

Of course, there is always the story.  Stories have made a lot of progress since Dragon Warrior, but the game is still immersive enough to keep players involved.  You have to talk to the other non-playable characters in the game, and actually pay attention to what’s going on.  Games, like books, put participants inside of an imagined world, and hope the delusion is strong enough, vivid enough, and well-constructed enough to be entertaining.  Books offer very specific paths for taking a journey.  Games drop you into the world where the adventure takes place, and offer a variety of different paths to completion (sometimes, to different results).

Stories can be found almost anywhere:  Books, video games, movies, comic books, and even music.  When we can enjoy a world so full of stories, it would be a shame to limit ourselves to just one specific interest.  I have many interests, and they all influence my writing, because they all influence my personality.

Thanks for reading.

Update: 07/12/2013

I wanted to fill everyone in on what’s going on with me right now.  One of the managers where I’m employed was impressed enough with my work to offer me a job in his department.  It’s not a huge promotion, but it gets me out of the rain and heat and gives me a small raise and a set schedule.  I’ve already worked two days in the new department.  It’s like having an entirely different job.

I had some trouble getting my transcripts from the college I graduated from to college I’m trying to attend, but finally got them there.  Now, the new school is going to process my application, and I hope to hear something from them very soon.  I can’t even explain how much I want to go back to school.  This time, I have a clear understanding of what I want to be:  A teacher.  Like many first-time students, I went through college not really knowing what I wanted out of life.  By the time I was done, I had a degree that I didn’t know what to do with, and a pile of student loans to pay off.  I want to do it right this time.

I received the final test results of my Praxis I test, and writing was actually my lowest score… lower than my math score… lower than my reading score… Hmm, I figured math would have been my lowest, but at least I still had a score high enough to meet the requirements.  The only thing I’m not sure about is financial aid.  I applied for financial aid before I did anything else, but my understanding is that have to be accepted to a school before I’ll know exactly how much to expect.  I guess I’ll find out soon, one way or the other.

I hope everyone had a good Fourth of July.  We took our two-year-old daughter to see fireworks.  She was in awe of them.  She wouldn’t look away from them, but she wouldn’t let me put her down, either.  She was afraid of them, because she didn’t understand them, but she kept talking about them in that excited way toddlers use to express their interests.

I finished reading Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry last week.  I’ve always enjoyed the TV miniseries, and found the book at a thrift shop for a few bucks.  Took forever to read, but I enjoyed every bit of it.  I think it might be the first western-genre book I’ve ever finished reading, and I definitely recommend it to fans of the genre.  Currently, I’m reading Roadwork, by Stephen King.  I’ve read plenty by him.

Thanks for reading.  I’ll be back next week with something new.  Make sure to check back frequently for new reviews and discussions.

Indie Review: Pirates, Pirates! (A Rogue's Tale Part III), by Saoirse O'Mara

A Rogues Tale Part III is probably my favorite of the series.  Saoirse O’Mara continues to deliver enjoyable fantasy-fiction for young adults, in Pirates, Pirates!

Who will like this book?  Fans of the first two books will enjoy the continuation of this series.  As I was reading this third installment, I realized that it took me back to a time when I used to read The Hardy Boys.  A Rogue’s Tale takes place in a world of fantasy, but each story involves solving a mystery, and saving the day.  If you enjoy mystery, you should download a free sample of this book, as well as the previous two.

Personally, I enjoyed the focus on the female character of the series, Tayla.  She’s been my favorite character since the first book, and this book devotes at least 80% of its time to her.  Tayla is a young girl who has made drastic changes in her in life since the first book of the series.  Watching this character develop, prosper, and struggle is a pleasure to witness.

Pirates, Pirates! is the third book in the A Rogues Tale trilogy, but hopefully we haven’t seen the last of these characters.  Saoirse O’Mara has created a world with plenty of potential for new characters, locations, and stories.  Like its predecessors, Pirates, Pirates! is geared toward young adults.  It’s easy for kids to read, and still entertaining enough for adults.  As always, free samples of all the stories are available.  Check out the links below to learn more about the A Rogue’s Tale series, and Saoirse O’Mara.

Download a free sample of:  Pirates, Pirates! (A Rogue's Tale Part III)

Download a free sample of:  Trouble in the Mage Guild (A Rogue's Tale Part II)

Download a free sample of:  The Lost Diadem (A Rogue's Tale Part I)

Learn more about A Rouge's Tale and Saoirse O'Mara, here

Follow A Rogues Tale on Facebook

You can find Saoirse O'Mara's contact information, here

For information about reviews, stories, and various other activities by Joshua Hicks, follow me on Twitter.