Comments on: 3 Mistakes that Will Make Readers Want to Punch a Book in the Face

By: Quick Link: How to Write Mind-Blowing Plot Twists—Twisting is NOT Twerking | Publetariat

Fri, 08 Jul 2016 05:13:48 +0000

[…] so on Monday I talked about 3 Mistakes that Will Make Readers Want to Punch a Book in the Face. One of the mistakes involved the twist ending. Very often a writer believes she has written a […]

By: Carson Buckingham

Carson Buckingham — Tue, 05 Jul 2016 16:50:36 +0000

Rotten research or total lack thereof, where the author makes things up. Something as trivial as having lilacs blooming in Connecticut in July will make me never buy another book by that author. I get too irritated by things like this.

By: Jacky Dahlhaus

Jacky Dahlhaus — Sun, 19 Jun 2016 20:53:28 +0000

LOL whilst reading this ?. Could name two books I recently read that fit your descriptions perfectly. Don’t put my name in the hat though, I’m re-editing my books still (because of the ‘readers want emotion, not information’ rule I recently learned)…

By: cosistories

cosistories — Mon, 13 Jun 2016 01:35:52 +0000

Just so you know, I love the phrase “Punch a book in the face”. I have totally been there with some books I’ve read. Fortunately, not too many. But I’ve had a couple that made me say, “Huh? But what happened to that other character? And…Huh??” 🙂

By: Julie R

Julie R — Sun, 05 Jun 2016 10:56:37 +0000

As I read the article, I couldn’t help but think of all those authors not traditionally published who enlist the services of an editor to help with setup, plot, etc. Thousands of dollars spent and the book may wind up not much better than if you did it with good advice from bloggers like Kristen. I don’t want to punch novels in the face, but I’ve been disappointed many times and just try to get the best out of what the author was trying to achieve. Some great writers lean heavily on character description and development in life situations, not so much plot development. I have run across the four and five-star reviewed books and shake my head in wonder when I can’t even force myself to slog through them and I don’t. Too much out there is excellent by writers who are gifted, constantly learn and practice their craft, and listen to readers. Great post, Kristen.

By: Ruth Ann Nordin

Ruth Ann Nordin — Sun, 05 Jun 2016 02:51:49 +0000

In reply to Deborah Makarios. I agree! Thr3e has one of the best twists I've ever read.

By: Abbie Sweany

Abbie Sweany — Fri, 03 Jun 2016 01:11:10 +0000

I think I read this after seeing 5.2k reviews on Goodreads. BG by ECD? Protagonist is thick as a brick, Even on Amazon there is only 1 one star review! Total cheat of a story ending. Poirot did this in a couple of the last story lines, but not as bad. Not a fan of Gone Girl or Girl on the Train. Narrator needs to be somewhat trustworthy. Great blog post.

By: Jan S. Gephardt

Jan S. Gephardt — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 22:44:32 +0000

In reply to Jess Mahler. That's why I read back through these comments more closely. I knew someone would have seen it before I did. Thanks, Jess!

By: Eugenie Black

Eugenie Black — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 16:27:32 +0000

In reply to Theophania Elliott. Indeed. In fact, I do that every time I re-read it or see it performed. Damn that actor and opening night!

By: Theophania Elliott

Theophania Elliott — Tue, 31 May 2016 13:06:53 +0000

In reply to Eugenie Black. Just because Shakespeare did it, doesn't mean it's a good idea. :-) One could say, how much better would "Twelfth Night" been, if he hadn't had the senior actor leaning over his shoulder, and could have taken more time over the ending?