Thomas Grant Bruso's Discussions
The Reality of a Bestseller
Replied 22 hours ago
The Extra Padding
Replied Nov 16
The Extra Padding
Replied Nov 14
Thomas Grant Bruso's Page
Latest Activity
I wouldn't say that, Jon. Your Frank Coffin series brings great pleasure to many readers, myself included. I hope you write and publish many more books.
Where this jumps out at me is not so much in fiction, because if the writing's good, I'll go with it. And usually it is. But in non-fiction works that are expanded magazine articles, it's really pathetic (and pathological) these days. Even the bes...
Donna,
I am not looking for golden rules. As authors, it is our job to entertain the reader and get to the point of what we write. Our taste in books is different, obviously. As a reader, I do not want to wade through a 300-400 page novel chockfu...
There are some, but I have a feeling the situation is similar to short story collections: no dice until you've proven very good sales.
So, based on your market experience, is there a market books comprised of two very different stories - though both mysteries - of the aforementioned length? It was my impression that it was more difficult to sell a "collection" if indeed two are c...
Bu you know, the thing about padding is this: there are some writers out there I'll read anything they've got to say. Even if all they are doing is just stringing words together. It's how they string the words together that makes the difference.
...
The two can be combined in one volume. like novellas and may write one myself some day.
While I may or may not agree with you on ideal length, the novella presents quite a unique problem.
My personal opinion is that my two very best pieces of fiction are novellas. One hitting the 25K mark, and the other is about 35K. I can't see how...
Hi, Jon. Setting, character, plot and a unique POV are all the hallmarks of good writing. Actually page count, not so much. When I received your book from Amazon, I didn't think it was too long or too short. It just had a fabulous cover and what l...
I.J. Having read your style, I'm certain there is no 'fluff' in your work, just beautifully crafted story-telling.
As to the ideal page count for a mystery, we need to stop looking for golden rules. We're artists, for goodness sakes. Write what f...
Yeah, that would be kind of like Hemingway writing a mystery.
Right on. I'm with you on that.
I share this complaint. The reason there are padded books several of the contributors here have already stated in the same or similar words: publishers want more pages so they can justify that $25. (American) price tag.
Another thing to consider ...
I, too, want more than a bare-bones story. But I've read slim books from wonderful writers who get to the point. Ross MacDonald and Georges Simenon immediately spring to mind. Their books are short and they succeed in entertaining me without long-...
I think maybe it's the literary reader, as opposed to the genre reader, who expects more of a journey with the story. The murder up front might be too startling, too quick. It's like the way some folks look differently at food; some like a dining ...
I doubt that many writers ask themselves, "Where can I insert some meaningless passages that don't move the story or illuminate character?" What's in a book is usually what the writer believes is necessary. Readers may, and often do, have differen...
Profile Information
- Hometown:
- Upstate New York
- About Me:
- I enjoy writing poetry, mysteries, police procedurals and suspense. I also like reading gay fiction, M/M romance/literature, mysteries, police procedurals, suspense, memoirs, poetry, novellas, and short fiction.
- I Am A:
- Reader, Writer
- Books And Authors I Like:
- I love writers. Without us, there would be no books, TV shows, film or theater. Unless, of course, you like "reality" TV and impromptu theatrics which do not require much a script, if any. I have listed a slew of favorite authors and their work(s) that have me coming back for seconds (sometimes thirds):
Jim Grimsley: "Comfort and Joy," "Dream Boy"; Josh Lanyon: "The Adrien English" series; Gillian Roberts: "The Amanda Pepper" series; Donald Bain/"Jessica Fletcher": "The Murder She Wrote" series; Mark T. Sullivan: "Ghost Dance," "The Serpent's Kiss," "Hard News," "Triple Cross"; Karin Fossum: "Inspector Sejer and Jacob Skarre" series; Colin Dexter: "The Inspector Morse" series; Ray Bradbury: "The October Country," "Fahrenheit 451"; Anthony Tognazzini: "I Carry A Hammer in my Pocket For Occasions Such as These"; Brian C. Lull: "Fratricide"; Stephen King/Richard Bachman: "Tommyknockers," "Nightmares and Dreamscapes," "The Long Walk," "Skeleton Crew," "Night Shift"; Ann B. Tracy: "What Do Cowboys Like," "I Am Ahab," "Winter Hunger"; Michael Nava: "Henry Rios' series; Ernest Hemingway: "The Complete Short Stories"; Agatha Christie: "Hercule Poirot" and "Miss Marple" mysteries; Jon Loomis: "Vanitas Motel" and "The Frank Coffin" series; Georges Simenon: "The Inspector Maigret" series; Ross MacDonald: "The Galton Case," "Black Money," "The Chill," "Zebra-striped Hearse"; Christopher Fowler: "The Bryant and May" series; Mark Doty: "Heaven's Coast," "Dog Years," "School of the Arts."
- Movies And TV Shows I Like:
- When I'm not curled up with a book or writing five hours every other day on a manuscript, I like to escape into the world of TV. Today's TV progamming, however, is swamped with so many "reality shows" and badly written series. However, we all have our guilty pleasures. Mine are:
Six Feet Under; Queer As Folk; Noah's Arc; Murder She Wrote; Desperate Housewives; The Golden Girls; The Rockford Files; Donald Strachey series (TV and books) by Richard Stevenson; Samantha Brown's Passport to Europe, Latin America; Passport to Great Weekends; X-files; Supernatural; Gossip Girl; Barney Miller; The Twilight Zone; The Dick Van Dyke Show; The Wire; Diagnosis Murder; Alfred Hitchcock Presents; Eureka; The Dresden Files; Eli Stone.
Comment Wall (18 comments)
- At 6:54pm on September 8, 2009,
Eric Beetner said… - Sorry for taking so long to reply. No restrictions! Let your imagination run wild. Only the word count and the inclusion of a fist are the rules to follow. Other than that - any genre, any style. nice and cozy or down and dirty. We like it all. You can't offend us, just don't bore us. Good luck. Looking forward to your submission.
Eric
- At 4:08pm on August 8, 2009,
John Morgan Wilson said… - Thanks, Thomas. As long as readers continue to buy our books used on the Internet, cannibalizing our legitimate and credited sales, more and more of us will disappear from the publishing ranks. I had a good run with the Benjamin Justice series, and wrote the final novel, number eight, knowing that it might be the last.
- At 9:36am on August 4, 2009,
Donna Carrick said…
- Thanks for "friending", Thomas! Best of luck in progressing with the ms -- never lose heart! Donna
- At 8:45am on August 2, 2009,
John Morgan Wilson said…
- Thanks, Thomas. Alas, my publisher is not renewing my contract, so Spider Season is likely the end of the series. I saw this coming and wrote the final novel accordingly, as I think you'll see if you read it. Glad you liked it while it lasted. Thanks again for letting me know.
- At 8:24pm on June 26, 2009,
Preetham Grandhi said… - Hi Thomas, I wanted to introduce to you my debut novel "A Circle of souls" which is a paranormal, murder, mystery thriller and a tale of justice and hope. Do visit www.acircleofsouls.com to read more about the book. Make sure you sign up to win an autographed copy of the book. Thanks for your time in advance.
Best regards
Preetham Grandhi
Early Endorsements for “A Circle of Souls”
Linda Fairstein, NYT Bestselling Author: "A fascinating debut - this novel takes the reader to the darkest places in the human soul, from a writer with the authenticity to lead us there. A stunning thriller and an important read."
Judge Judy Sheindlin, star of the Judge Judy Show: "The seminal work of this fine author kept me glued to my chair until the adventure was over and the mystery solved. A great read!"
Book Synopsis:
The sleepy town of Newbury, Connecticut, is shocked when a little girl is found brutally murdered. The town s top detective, perplexed by a complete lack of leads, calls in FBI agent Leia Bines, an expert in cases involving children.
Meanwhile, Dr. Peter Gram, a psychiatrist at Newbury s hospital, searches desperately for the cause of seven-year-old Naya Hastings devastating nightmares. Afraid that she might hurt herself in the midst of a torturous episode, Naya s parents have turned to the bright young doctor as their only hope.
The situations confronting Leia and Peter converge when Naya begins drawing chilling images of murder after being bombarded by the disturbing images in her dreams. Amazingly, her sketches are the only clues to the crime that has panicked Newbury residents. Against her better judgment, Leia explores the clues in Naya s crude drawings, only to set off an alarming chain of events.
- At 5:07am on May 12, 2009,
Jon Loomis said… - Hi Thomas--yes, got it, and in fact just found it again under the huge pile of crap on my desk. Will sign and return this week. I'm also sending a signed ARC of Mating Season, just for fun.
- At 12:55pm on April 17, 2009,
Brian Abbott said…
- Sorry for the late reply. I'm not sure about Murder, She Wrote continuing for another season, but I had hoped they would have 2 hour movie events. Right now, I'm trying to get into Castle, about writer tagging along with the police to solve crimes.
As for Desperate Housewives, Gaby is always fun for a laugh. I swear they give her the best lines. Bree is generally my favorite. I didn't really like Susan before, but I find I like her better this season. The five year jump forward has really energized this show. It's also a clever way to keep Susan and Mike apart and continue teasing the viewer.
- At 3:55am on April 12, 2009,
Benjamin Sobieck said… - Will do, Thomas. Thanks again!
- At 4:45am on April 11, 2009,
Benjamin Sobieck said…
- Thanks for your interest! Outside of writing for my "real" jobs where I put on my journalism cap, I don't have anything from the creative file for you. I'm still working on selling my first novel. Hopefully this happens sooner rather than later. I'll let you know if anything transpires!
- At 8:53am on April 10, 2009,
I. J. Parker said…
- But of course we can be friends! Thanks for asking.
© 2009 Created by Daniel Hatadi on Ning. Create a Ning Network!
