New Year, New Me? by Debbie Bennett
I hate New Year resolutions. It always seems to me that
you’re setting yourself up to fail. And why January? After the excesses of
Christmas, it’s always kind of nice to clear everything away and start with a
clean and uncluttered approach to life.
So what am I going to do this year? For some reason, I
seem to put a new book out roughly every 12 months and usually towards the end
of the year. I then spend a month or so in a panic, wondering if the muse will
ever return from her Christmas/New Year break, but she generally comes back in
the spring, refreshed and ready to perch on my shoulder again. I hope. I’m
already starting to twitch, but I have faith in her return, though what she
will bring with her in the form of inspiration, I have no idea right now …
This year I need to be more creative in other ways. I’m
hopeful I’ve got my stalled audio projects up and running again, thanks to talented narrator Chris
Barnes, although I don’t think he’s read the book all the way through, so he may
yet change his mind! He’s also doing a short story for me, as part of the
indiegogo project I’ve just bought into.
I intend to review more books too. I don’t review online
very often. This is for a variety of reasons, not least the fact that I don’t
want to spend ages crafting a review only to have Amazon remove it because the
powers-that-be think I’m “biased” if I happen to know the author. And I know a
lot of authors – both traditional and indie. The other reason I don’t review is
because I don’t feel able to be honest. I’m me online – I don’t hide behind
pseudonyms or other identities – and there are books I read that have legions
of devoted fans. I don’t want to become public enemy number one by – horrors –
daring to criticise their favourite
author! I’ve seen too many good authors trashed for less, their books heaped
with 1* reviews by hurt fans …
But my own sales/review rate is way less than 1%, and I
often really wish the people that
tell me they love (or even hate) my books would say so online, so perhaps I
ought to practise what I preach?
Here’s a thought to leave you with: Apparently
(according to the Daily Express), the
“image” of 2015 was the delectable Aidan Turner indulging in a bit of
semi-naked scything; this was closely followed – upstaged, maybe – by the iconic towel scene in And Then There Were None over Christmas. Click the link and I guarantee the New Year blues will be instantly banished!
Comments
And yes, that towel rather stole 'And Then There Were None', didn't it? You couldn't look away. Kept thinking, what's holding it up? Has wardrobe stitched velcro into it? Or devised something with hooks and eyes?