Okay, I have to admit I have had a monumental mommy-brain moment! For some reason I had Ms. Stewart's feature on my calendar for August instead of July, so with much embarrassment, I am trying to make up for my goof!! A.F. has kindly provided us with a wonderful guest blog today, and I am furiously reading Killers & Demons to have a review ready for you all tomorrow!! Stay tuned...
Guest Blog by A.F. Stewart, author of Killers & Demons
Readers and Writers
The aim of writing a book is to get people to read it. Writers want people to be entranced with our efforts, and we love to hear what readers think about what we write. I was no different, eagerly awaiting the insights from the purveyors of my prose. And I was surprised by what they had to say.
Now don’t get me wrong, they weren’t spouting vitriol or scribbling bad reviews, quite the opposite, my books have been well received. What surprised me was what they liked and the things that weren’t mentioned.
Some of my books have been the subject of online discussion groups, a back and forth with me, the author. The chat about Chronicles of the Undead, my vampire horror novel, generated an interest in what happened to my character, Edmund, something unexpected for me, since this character gave me no end of trouble when I was writing him. (I did know what happened to him though, so I could answer their questions). And when I published Chronicles I thought I would get feedback regarding a pivotal and, I thought, rather controversial death, but it barely made a ripple with readers.
Another book where I got surprising comments was Passing Fancies, one of my short story collections. A story from the book, Love is Murder, seemed to be a favourite, where I thought it was one of my weaker efforts. And the story I loved, Conversation in the Country Club hardly got a mention. With my latest story collection, Killers and Demons, it’s the tale, Victorian Shadows, which has sparked the fancy of readers, with the plucky heroine Sally, holding her own against the nasty and charismatic villain Balthazar, who was my favourite.
It just goes to show that no matter the vision of the author a reader will find their own interpretation and enjoyment from the story. And that’s the most wonderful thing about being a writer.
Author Bio:
A. F. Stewart was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada, and still calls it home. She has always had an overly creative mind, and an active imagination. She is fond of good books (especially science fiction/fantasy), action movies, and oil painting as a hobby.
Ms. Stewart has been writing for several years, her main focus being in the fantasy genre. She also has a great interest in history and mythology, often working those themes into her books and stories. She has authored and published several books, including Killers and Demons, Chronicles of the Undead, Shadows of Poetry, Passing Fancies and Once Upon a Dark and Eerie...
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