Wednesday, November 2, 2011

String Bridge -- A Review

Jessica Bell’s debut novel String Bridge is the story of Melody, an Australian musician who put down her guitar to raise a family with her Greek husband. Four years later and living on his native soil, Melody realizes she’s become the empty, passionless shell of the person she once was. A return to music is the key to her salvation. But her struggle to decipher her dark feelings, to understand when they are surging from a place of honesty and when they are the result of her own fears or selfishness, threatens to turn all their lives upside-down. And when fate flings tragedy her way, she learns some bridges are easier to cross than others.


 I was mesmerized by this book. The narration is raw and unapologetic, from deep inside Melody’s complicated heart and psyche. Her fragileness and her egocentricity were exposed in a way that felt naked and truthful. I loved the way each scene peeled away another of Melody’s layers, allowing me to eventually understand her as well as she could understand herself.


 Melody’s relationships with the people in her life were as important to the story as her relationship with her music. The genius in Bell’s writing lies in her ability to show each character in authentic light and to therefore demonstrate one of life’s truths: no one is 100% right or 100% wrong in his/her convictions. Responsibility and culpability spin in cycles of blame and redemption in String Bridge, which left me with a healthy dose of pathos for every character, by the book’s end.


Bell writes with poetic flourish, her descriptions lush, poignant and intense. At the same time, her main character is quirky, oftentimes ungraceful and unpolished. The combination creates a style that is fresh, unique, and wholly intoxicating. This character-driven story that dives into the abyss of the human condition is a must-read!






I would be horribly remiss if I didn't mention how Jessica Bell set her first published book apart from this year's debut novels.  An incredibly creative and multi-talented woman, Jessica created and recorded a soundtrack of songs she composed and performed, available now through iTunes and Amazon.  I talked with Jessica about both String Bridge projects in an interview I conducted with her, which I will post here next week, on November 8th.  I hope you'll stop in for that!


Until then, here are several links where you can order your own copy of String Bridge and its soundtrack, Melody Hill, On the Other Side, sold separately.


Purchase links:
eBook




Paperback:


Amazon UK: (Coming soon)


Soundtrack:

Jessica's links:
String Bridge Website: http://www.stringbridge.com/

                    
Jessica Bell is a literary women's fiction author, poet and singer/songwriter who grew up in Melbourne, Australia, to two gothic rock musicians who had successful independent careers during the '80s and early '90s. She spent much of her childhood travelling to and from Australia to Europe, experiencing two entirely different worlds, yet feeling equally at home in both environments. She currently lives in Athens, Greece and works as a freelance writer/editor for English Language Teaching publishers worldwide, such as HarperCollins, Pearson Education and Macmillan Education. In addition to String Bridge, Jessica has published a book of poetry called Twisted Velvet Chains. A full list of poems and short stories published in various anthologies and literary magazines can be found under Published Works & Awards, on her website. From September 2012 Jessica will be hosting the Homeric Writers' Retreat & Workshop on the Greek island of Ithaca, home of Odysseus.

                
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Thursday, October 27, 2011

NaNo Gauntlet Throw Down

All right, after walking around with a NaNoWriMo gauntlet in my hand, fingering its tanned texture, putting it to my nose and inhaling its organic, rawhide perfume, and examining the crease points down its palm, I'm throwing it down.  It's no matter that my last NaNo experience produced a 50k+ (though incomplete) manuscript that I was never able to finish.  No matter that I have family flying in from out-of-state to enjoy Thanksgiving at my house.  No matter that I'm training for my second half-marathon.  I'm going for it.  I'm doing NaNo this year!


But won't it be too much for you, silly girl?


Why no, it won't.  Here's my reasoning:


So what that the first NaNo novel was a disaster in word vomit?  I wasn't prepared, last time.  I had an idea for my main plot and for the protag and the antag.  This time, I have a well-organized project with complete character sketches for all the major cast members, a plot (with actual plot points!), that has been broken down into three chunks representing the beginning of the book, the middle, and the end, and 38 scene cards  -- each index card bears a scene goal and notes -- to guide my draft.  At least this time, my word vomit will be organized and revision-able.  (<-- pretty sure that's not a word.  See? I'm embracing the spirit of NaNo all ready!)


So what if I have family coming in for a whole week in November?  Last time I did NaNo, I hit the 50K mark in the third week of the month -- well before Thanksgiving.


So what if I'm running five days a week?  The half-marathon is in March 2012.  I have plenty of wiggle room before my training becomes uber-intense.  P-l-e-n-t-y of time!


So, what about you?  You in?  Or are you still arguing with yourself about whether NaNo 2011 is for you?  Talk to me about your concerns or planning/lack thereof in the comments.  I will be sending return emails this week.  Everyone needs NaNo support!


Also, they're still working to get the Buddies tab back up and running at NaNoWriMo.org.  Once it's operational, let's be buddies! I'm Nicole Ducleroir, over there too :))  (I'm getting my profile together and it'll be filled out and pretty by the day's end.)


Hope to hear from you! :D
                                    
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Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Goals, and a GREAT article on lit. mags

Two writer goals I set for myself in January 2011 were:  Publish a short story in a literary magazine; and, Sell a short story.  I'm working toward other goals too, but this afternoon I want to focus on the two above.

To accomplish the goal of publishing in a literary magazine, I organized myself in a couple areas.  First, I created an account at Duotrope.com.  For those who aren't familiar, Duotrope is "an award-winning, free writers' resource listing over 3550 current Fiction and Poetry publications." (Text borrowed from website.)  This is my Submission Central, where I learn of markets open for query and where I track my submissions.

Using Duotrope's tools, I determined what literary magazines represent my A-List Markets -- in other words, where I'd most like to see my work accepted.  I won't lie; the magazines and reviews on this list are all ranked by Duotrope as the "Most Challenging Fiction Markets," with an average acceptance rate of only 0.51%.  Hey, what can I say?  I aim high.

I also have a B-List and a C-List of literary markets I'm interested in.  I first submit a story to a batch of A-List markets.  As I receive rejections, I submit to markets in the next tier down.  Finding the right market, for the right story, at the right time is an exercise in patience and perseverance.

The second goal ups the stakes for me.  I want to be a paid author.  I'm not interested in making a living on my writing.  But there is, for me personally, a level of prestige that comes along with an editor viewing my fiction as a product that he or she is willing to purchase in order to best achieve his or her marketing objectives.  Selling a story is on my bucket list and this is the year I've decided to cross it off.

Today I came across an excellent article written by literary magazine editor Lynne Barrett, which I found extremely helpful.  I wanted to pass the link on to anyone who, like me, is submitting their work to literary markets.  In fact, I think the advice is pertinent to any writer submitting work of any length, because it covers the importance of following submission guidelines, how to handle rejections of various types and lengths, and the proper protocol when responding to an acceptance.


I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Thanks for stopping by~ 



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