Holly Jacobs ~Above The Cut ~ Chat

Holly Jacobs  has a bubbly personality and her glee is infectious.It is a joy to see her postings on Facebook be it her cooking, her decorating, her 'road trips' with fellow author, Susan Mallery or her pottery...


Hollyworld 

Holly Jacob's Blog Spot


http://www.hollyjacobs.com/
Place to find bio and books and contests

 
Facebook The place to catch up on what is going on and links to all her out links.

Holly has been involved with learning pottery and then being the person she is, she got involved in a charity ~ " I just signed on to make 50 more bowls for that fundraiser! LOL," Holly said. Here is the link ~ "It's called Empty Bowls and it's a National Fundraiser that calls attention to hunger and art." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empty_Bowls 

Check out her interview at Paul and Paula's Books

Bill Craig ~Above the Cut Chat~

Bill Craig has been my friend on Facebook for several years. It is only recently I realized he is one of my more prolific author friends. He has written 103 books and is presently writing number 104.

His publisher, Whiz Bang, LLC, 926 Truman Avenue, Key West, Florida 33040, USA has partnered with B&N to publish through KOBO and his books are featured in Walmart.

Bill Craig, in his Amazon author profile, says, "While my mysteries seem to sell the best I still enjoy writing pulp adventure and science fiction and westerns."  I am enjoying

Here is the link to B&N 

Link to publishing on Kobo/B&N


Paul and Paula's Books Interview with Bill Craig

Graham Whittaker ~ Above the Cut ~ Chat

I was talking with Graham Whittaker regarding The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level readability test and I feel it is nothing short of the dumbing down of the masses by saying comprehension is low, therefore propagating the furtherance of lowering understanding by having authors lowering their standards. Diabolical

I was reading Tolstoy in grade 5 and it wasn't unusual. It was just schoolwork.         

Publishers now run Mss through the test and grade for a reading age level in a fiction of between 5 and 7.

                                                                                                                                                    Sadly, many if not most Trad publishers are using the test for 'readability.'  Consequently, I now use the Hemingway App to 'test' before sending to the editor. http://www.techtoolsforwriters.com/hemingway-app-a-proofreading-tool-for-writers/

Here is the new Hemingway app for desktops: http://www.hemingwayapp.com/

My last large novel, The Girl From Kosovo had a reading grade of 11.  By the time it was edited it was grade 7, still regarded as 'not universal enough'.  I told my editor to let me do it instead. I eventually ended up the Hemingway grade of 4!  Now it sells well.

The Kincaid Flesch test is the one used by publishers. Here is some text. Magazine publishers care. After the Flesch Reading Ease formula was created in 1943, leading publishers discovered that adhering to the formula could raise their readership by 40 to 60 percent. Predictably, many other publishers immediately jumped on board. Later, in a project sponsored by the U.S. Navy, the Flesch Reading Ease formula was adapted into a score based on U.S. school grade level, called the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level formula. The U.S. Department of Defense found the formula so useful, it now uses it as the standard test of readability for its documents and forms.
First off, what does readability mean?

https://medium.com/@stevemetivier_81863/does-readability-matter-fe92e6e27f28

Does Readability Matter? – Steve Meritivi – Medium

Are you marketing to adults?                                                                                                                                                      Yes, I only write children's stuff on contract, but my own books are adult/literary.  I also put pages of The Old Man and The Sea through the Hemmingway app and while it is a classic with massive observations on humanity, it still only rates a 4.5 Grade!   
I have some very strong views on it.  Especially on the Kincaid Fleischer reading tests.  I ran one of my books through it... just a few chapters and it said that I had a level of 12 and needed a level of 5 to make it readable.  Insane!

Is this for Australia or all over?

                                                                                                                                                          No, it is international.  Here is the link:  https://yoast.com/flesch-reading-ease-score/

I think a lot of folks have stopped reading books per se. They read on tablets or phones, and in short bursts. These are the people who have created a form of shorthand writing that has made its way into creative writing. Books must be shorter, less demanding and have the action beginning instantly. A murder, a shock, lots of hard action and then The End. My mother wrote Mills & Boones and she would laugh at the formula for them then.

Here is a really interesting link. It shows how old words can become new words again. Different meanings.

https://www.inc.com/business-insider/words-changed-meaning-2017-they-unicorn-snowflake-fake-news.html

Although Graham Whittaker has been writing for almost sixty years, started very early in life, he tends to talk about other people he has known and feels are great writers and some newer people he finds worthy of pushing into the spotlight.  We spoke of many things but this blog is not big enough to contain all. More snippets will appear on the review blog in a week. Must finish reading the book first.

We will leave you with a poem Graham Whittaker found after his mum's death at the age of 96 when he was settling her affairs.  She wrote for Mills & Boones under many pseudonyms, Pauline Taylor was one, but he lovingly remembers her for her poems.

YOU NEVER LOST ME.

You can travel the whole world over Over land and lake and sea-
Lose your house and your car and your family
But- you never lost me

On the ship, as we left England
Never seen such an enormous sea
Lost your breakfast, your lunch and your glass of wine
But- you never lost me.

On your travels across New Zealand
With such beautiful scenery
Lost your heart on Waiheke Island
But- you never lost me.

And remember when you went fishing? Caught the biggest fish in the sea
Lost your fish, and your line and your tackle.
But- you never lost me.

And the day you lost your temper- And the car you were driving hit a tree.
Lost your no claims bonus, and lots of blood-
But- you never lost me.

And now we are old, in our eighties Pensioners for all to see.
Lost your hair, and your teeth, and your urge to work
But- you never lost me.

P.M. Whittaker 1992


Graham Whittaker Facebook page

Graham Whittaker Amazon Author page

Interview with Graham Whittaker at Paul & Paula's Books

Stephen Drake ~ Above the Cut continued

I am almost finished with Stephen Drake's first book - Displaced and I like it so much, I immediately went and purchased book number two in the series and that one is Civilization.  Displaced will be reviewed the third week in August 2018.  And if number two is as fast reading as is book number one, there will be two reviews. (links will be added when posted)

In the formal interview, Stephen Drake's first answer startled me because a lot of authors that start later in life with writing is due to injuries or disabilities and when I asked him if he would share the injury I was more startled because my initial inner answer had been "well, it is not his brain."

But it is.  And, truly I know from having three strokes that neurons after head injuries if exercised will divert from the original avenue and build a bridge and reconnect.  It has happened to me and most assuredly it has with Stephen Drake as well.  The limitations of an injury can aptly be overcome especially when one gets bored and new ventures are attempted and conquered.

He loves dogs and raised them.  Pugs are his favorite but Rottweilers and Dobermans while getting a bad rap are fantastic dogs.  I've not really met a dog I did not like.

A fact in one of his answers gives hope to people who started and stopped.  His first book was started when he was 22 back in the 1970s but put aside from lack of interest by his family.  I know too in those days, it was impossible to be published unless you knew someone in the business.  But his injury caused by undiagnosed sleep apnea is a blessing to his readers. He became bored and picked up the story started many years ago, dusted it off, and it is a good fast reading hybrid of a story.  More on that when I do the review.

If you want to see what Stephen Drake reads and reviews AND a sneak peek into his books, here is a link to his brand new blog:   https://planetoomah.com/

Check out his interview at  https://paulandpaulasbooks.wordpress.com/2018/08/16/stephen-drake-above-the-cut/

Paul and Paula's Place: Rick Johnson ~ Above the Cut continued.

Paul and Paula's Place: Rick Johnson ~ Above the Cut continued.: Rick Johnson has been writing for five years. In those years, I've been buried in day to day survival and missed out on his books - th...

Rick Johnson ~ Above the Cut ~ Chat

Rick Johnson has been writing for five years.

In those years, I've been buried in day to day survival and missed out on his books - this has been good for me because now I have a 'new' author to blitz. I have sampled two of his books and am in the middle of reading one, Trailor Trash which has a sequel in the wings.

Check out my sister site for a full interview with a 'new to me' author with a sense of humor - Rick Johnson ~ Above the Cut

The reasoning behind why I accepted his friendship lurks in the depths of our love for our dogs. And he is an author, but that comes second.

His first book, A Dog's Best Goober was

written, again with humor, and featured his dog Mentos.

I asked, "Is Connor the dog in your A Dog's Best Goober book?"

Rick replied, "No. That was Methos.

He died 2 years ago today (July 10, 2016) in his sleep beside me. He was 18 years old. I went to the local animal shelter a couple of weeks later without any intentions of going through that pain again. Just wanted to make a donation. Then I saw Connor in a cage. Took him to a bonding room. The rest is history."

I've gotten to know Connor in my mind as the Sonic dog on Rick Johnson's page where you can ask for friendship if you want to follow Connor and his best friend on their day to day forays into the wilds of their local Walmart and Sonic! Connor is Rick Johnson's Amazon author stand-in

Rick's thoughts on Connor - "I got lucky. Not many people find a Connor. He stepped in when I needed him the most. After Methos died, I took a long trip and went to every place we went together. Thought about taking Connor to those same places. Decided against it. We have our own roads to travel."

Rick's other animals - "I miss all my fur babies. Still, take the time to tell them I love them every day. That includes Ceasar who has been gone 27 years now."

I asked if he had a picture of Ceasar?

His reply, "I don't have one of Ceasar, but let me get one of Bear for you.

There's Bird Bird!

Here's Bear. Protective of me up until the day he passed."

"Besides Bear, Connor, and Methos there was also Ceasar and Tex. There was also Bird Bird whose nickname was Girl Girl. She was a dove I had for 20 plus years.

Here's the link to more Rick Johnson

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