I don’t know why I’m surprised that poorly written books get published. Every time I finish a book that I considered a lousy read, I ask myself, How did that get published? That was my reaction to my most recent read, Francesca Segal’s The Innocents. It’s not a terrible book–it’s actually quite well written–but I found it as tedious as doing laundry or washing a car. I compared notes with other reviewers on Goodreads, and many shared my opinion. I realize that often it’s simply a matter of m.o.o. (matter of opinion). What one reader finds dull another might find moving or meaningful. Nevertheless, as an indie author, it’s frustrating to read something that I feel is inferior, yet it has been issued by a traditional publisher. But it’s the same situation with movies. A film needs financial backing from a studio or individual investors, so there has to be more than a few people who think the movie is a good idea, even though the end product might be lousy.

I make it a point to read my fellow indie authors, to support their efforts. Some of these reads I have found moving, meaningful, and even delightfully funny. But I have found that though an indie book is good, it might be poorly edited. This occurs too often. A poorly edited book can alienate the reader. Books issued by a traditional publisher are less inclined to contain errors, but occasionally I’ll come across one with gross mistakes. For example, The Bookseller, by Cynthia Swanson, has just been nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award. I liked the book but was appalled by the errors in the Spanish dialogue scattered throughout it. Of course most readers wouldn’t catch these errors, unless they read Spanish. Yet, though the book was obviously poorly edited, it is receiving a positive response.

Whether a book gets published traditionally is a subjective decision. But once a book has been accepted, the publisher should place an emphasis on issuing the best product. As an indie author, I know that my books are not perfect, but I have made a sincere effort to issue the best product I can. I have it edited and proofread numerous times.

I would love to have one of my books accepted by a traditional publishing house. I know that my work is good, as good as many of the traditionally published novels I’ve read. Being accepted by a publisher would have meaning for me and perhaps attract the wider readership that my books deserve. Many readers will not touch indie publications because of the rampant occurrences of poor editing. As indie authors, we need to make our product as free of errors as possible. It can make the difference between being read and enjoyed or being read and tossed aside.

It’s not often that I see a film version of a book and think it’s better than the original source. Just this week I finished watching the seventeen episode mini-series, The Time In Between, based on the book of the same name by Maria Duenas. I liked the series so much, even more than I enjoyed the book, which I read a couple of years ago. It’s set in Spain following its civil war and during the early days of World War II. Sira, the protagonist, is a young seamstress who is betrayed by her lover and finds herself penniless, pregnant, and alone in a foreign country. She pulls herself out of this pit of misery and becomes a successful dressmaker. She is later recruited to spy upon the Germans in Madrid, to learn their secrets, and pass this information on to the British. This is where the story becomes intriguing and suspenseful.

Like I said, I enjoyed the novel, but the mini-series is superb. The characters come to life, especially Sira, as played by the lovely Spanish actress Adriana Ugarte. Ugarte brings emotional depth to a character who seemed somewhat cold and remote as written for the book. The music, the scenery, and the costumes, serve to create a credible vision of Spain, Portugal, and Morocco in the late 1930s and early 1940s. I loved it!

Last week I participated in ArtNite, an annual event in the city of Pasadena, California, which highlights art, music, and local authors. It was a wonderful event attended by many families. I enjoyed the opportunity to market my book, and just as importantly, to network with other authors, share ideas and talk about our writing experiences. The authors I spoke with agreed that marketing is a challenge but a necessary evil (not sure if that’s the right phrase, but using it anyway) if one is to succeed as an indie author. Ideally, I’d like to write novels, post the titles on Amazon, let the books sell themselves, and move onto the next project. Of course, that’s an unrealistic expectation. But if marketing is a journey I must take, I might as well enjoy it, and ArtNite was fun.

Not only was ArtNite fun, it was special because the author fair was held at Pasadena’s central library, where I learned to read as a five-year-old child. I’ve blogged before about my learning-to-read experience, so I won’t go into the details again. Suffice to say that it was sort of a magical feel to return to the place where I was introduced to reading, and to return there as a writer. My love of books and reading partly springs from the childhood days that I spent in that library.

I look forward to participating in other book fairs in the future, but, for me, probably none will have the special significance of ArtNite.

When I review a book I try to assess its good and not-so-good qualities. I try, but don’t always succeed, to avoid giving an opinion as to how the story should have been written. For example, I recently read How to Start a Fire by Lisa Lutz. It is written in a unique style that could be offputting to some readers. The story bounces back and forth from the past to the present to the past to the far past, and so on and on. I almost quit after fifty pages but am glad I didn’t. After one-hundred pages, I gave up trying to keep tabs on the chronological order of events and surrendered to the story. In the end, the author ties it all up skillfully. As a reviewer, I could have said that the book should have been written in a chronological style, but that would go against the author’s vision for her story. I’m sure she had her reasons for writing in the style she chose. I shouldn’t come along and say she should have used a more traditional writing style. As a reviewer I can say that I don’t like her style, that it confused me, that I lost interest, blah, blah. But I feel it’s inappropriate to suggest that the book would have worked better had it been written in a style I prefer. In fact, though I gave the book only three stars, there were many other readers who gave it four and five stars. What I did write in my review is that the style confused me and kept me from enjoying the book as much as I might have otherwise.

I am working on my second novel, which is currently in the final editing phase. Two beta readers told me that they would like the book more if I placed greater emphasis on the political angle of the story. I gave that suggestion a lot of thought. Ultimately I decided against it. Though my book has a political theme, it’s not where I want the reader to focus. I want the spotlight to shine on the main characters as they struggle with personal problems, some caused by the political upheaval that surrounds them. To emphasize the politics over the characters would alter my vision for the story. As a writer, I have to listen to my beta readers’ suggestions because often they are correct in their assessments. But sometimes it’s only a matter of opinion, and that is when I need to go with my gut. Recently a friend on Facebook posted a quote (which I will paraphrase): “No two people read the same book the same way.” That is so true.

Joanna Trollope is a popular author who has been called a modern Jane Austen. Intrigued by the blurb on the back cover, I recently read Trollope’s Marrying the Mistress. It describes the mistress as a character the reader can’t help but like. Well, I didn’t like her, didn’t like the cheating husband, and didn’t like the abandoned wife. But, I liked the book. This got me thinking about character-driven fiction, and if a likable protagonist is necessary to draw readers. Apparently not. Though I didn’t like any of the main players in this novel, the author’s analysis of the characters’ behavior, motives, and actions was enough to keep me riveted. Characters are important to me, and though I didn’t like the protagonists in this book, they are full-blooded, flawed human beings. In fact, the abandoned wife is so unlikable that it’s kind of fun to hate her. The popular phrase “the character is one you love to hate” rings true.

Still, if it’s not the protagonists I find interesting, there have to be other elements to a novel that keep me glued to the page. These can be interesting settings, an action-packed plot, or . . . supporting characters that add substance to the book. There are such characters in Marrying the Mistress. They are the suffering sons of the cheater, and some of his extended family. Perhaps Trollope is compared to Austen because she presents her characters in social settings where they exhibit questionable, humorous, sympathetic, or abominable behavior.

As a writer, of course characters are important to me. The fiction I write is character-driven. But, as a writer, I have to like my protagonist. Otherwise, I will not be motivated to tell her story.

Usually when I finish reading a book, I’ll go to Goodreads to review it, and then compare my thoughts with those of other readers. Invariably, it seems a book will receive at least one one-star review (lowest) and at least one five-star (highest). It’s odd that the same book can draw such variant reactions from readers, but not uncommon. We each bring our personal baggage, background, preferences, etc., to the books we read, and this affects our overall opinion of the material.

Recently I read Take This Man by Brando Skyhorse, and rated it five stars. I love this memoir written by a man who experienced a dysfunctional upbringing and to this day still suffers the consequences, despite his successful career as a novelist. Why did I rate this book so highly? I certainly didn’t suffer a dysfunctional childhood like he did, but I’m able to relate to his feelings of being the outcast in school (I was the only Mexican-American child in my classes, first through third grades), and being the kid who gets bullied (as I was in junior high). To a degree, I can also identify with the cultural identity crisis he experiences (he is Mexican-American also).

There is a movement, We Need Diverse Books, that I first heard about on Twitter. Its purpose is to address the lack of diversity in children’s books. The group’s definition of diversity encompasses people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities, and ethnic, cultural, and religious differences. Of course it’s crucial to have more books to which children of diverse groups can relate. We all can more readily relate to stories that appeal to our interests, our ways of thinking, our experiences. For example, it stands to reason that people of color would more easily relate to a story about people of their same ethnicity and culture. I grew up in a time where people of my ethnicity were rarely seen on TV or in movies, and never written about. As an adult, most of the novels I read focus on the lives of white people. I read as much fiction as I can get my hands on that is written by Latinos, but there isn’t enough available. We definitely need diverse books for children, and we need them for adults too.

On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I took my iPad in case there would be time to read a few pages of the novel I was half into. As luck would have it (Yes! I was lucky in Vegas!), there was no time to read. I was fine with that because there was a lot to keep me busy.

I recall trips where I had plenty of time to read, even whole books. One of my favorites was The Other by Thomas Tryon, a horror novel. I read it during a camping trip that involved a lot of travel by car and sitting around the campsite. When I finished the book, I narrated the tale over the campfire. That night my brother had a nightmare brought about by that story. It was the perfect revenge on a big brother who used to like to scare me when were kids.

During another long road trip, I discovered Victoria Holt, the popular, highly prolific author of gothic and historical romances. I gobbled up On the Night of the Seventh Moon while sitting in the cramped back seat, ignoring the sites as we entered the city of Boston, a place I’d never visited. I preferred Victoria Holt to Boston, and over the next years read all of her novels.

On yet another road trip, I read Paint it Black by Janet Fitch, a well written but gloomy story. I should have left it behind on my bedroom nightstand.

Beach reads make the best vacation companions. The books don’t require too much intellectual investment to enjoy. Leave the tough stuff at home. It’ll be there when you return.