A traumatized victim, witness protection, risky trysts, love triangle, secrets, stalking, murder, kidnapping, bravery, emotional growth, sorrow and joy. These are just a few of the things you’ll find in Ariel’s Cottage, along with a victim who searches for her way out of her inner conflicts and those who attempt to help her. You won’t be disappointed.
http://www.amazon.com/Ariels-Cottage-Judith-Victoria-Douglas-ebook/dp/B00JM31XBG
New Cover. Same Story. On Sale.
From my sister blog — It’s All About the Books! Ariel’s Cottage is on sale through Easter Sunday for only 99 cents.
Neil Gaiman bibliography (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
When my writer friend, Ann Everett, posted her blog about a site where a sample of your writing can be analyzed and matched with famous authors, I was intrigued. Visit it yourself for your example – http://iwl.me/. It’s fun to find out which great author your writing resembles.
My first thought was it couldn’t be valid, just something for fun. I mentioned this in a comment before another reader posted a check by entering a classic children’s story and got H.G. Lovecraft as a match.
To find my resemblance to real talent I checked the prologues (where available) and the text of the first chapter. I matched many writers, depending on the style of the story.
When I immediately clicked on the site I first entered a portion of the novel I am working on at the moment, One Unicorn Wish. When it was matched with the writings of Neil Gaiman I was really shocked, and excited. I am a big fan, but no one writes like Neil Gaiman, do they? Isn’t he a genre unto himself? Well, I admit I thought this particular story might be similar, and was reading it internally with his voice, but I never would have suspected a match. I’m definitely going to finish the novel this year. I’m excited about it anyway, but now…
As for a style of writing Neil is an enigma. All his publications are different, but so are mine or anyone’s, perhaps. Gaiman apparently writes best when he writes short stories, putting them together as a novel. In The Graveyard Book he wrote what is being called a Shnovel. He admitted at his Newbery acceptance that’s how it was put together.
Okay, I did the short story thing with the three separate stories in TREE & SKY: An Introduction to the Secrets of Meshyah’s World, and will follow with two more stories. I’m presently doing it with The Citadel series, beginning with Little Duke and the Rat Princess, but I can’t figure out how the first few pages of One Unicorn Wish could type me with this part of Neil’s style. Besides, with a trilogy where each book borders the 500 page range, all telling the continuing story, short stories are not how all my works are accomplished.
I do agree we both are Sci-Fi/Fantasy authors whose writings are difficult to put into any sub-category of that genre. And while some say Neil aims to become part of the circle of great literature, I know I would like that for myself.
My best example is the trilogy again. An apocalyptic vision of our future, its just different from most. It’s basically a search for the place where the horses have gone in order to be there and safe before the end comes. It predicts a catastrophe through the character’s evaluation of evidence and clues. It focuses on science, ancient pre-history and/or mythology while the fact the horses all vanished in an instant all over the world is more fantasy (unless you consider the decrease in their numbers by 2 million since 2005 and the current attempt to ban horse slaughter).
The characters feel it means something serious and they must get over their lose in order to figure out what it is and what to do. But I’ve had to cut a lot of information due to length. So, while Neil leaves out some information to allow the readers to decide I haven’t done it here. I am doing more of that in more recent works, which may be what the analysis picked up on.
What I find most intriguing about Neil’s work is his rhythm, often almost poetic, but it flows like a melody. It comes out when he reads his own work. I didn’t read The Graveyard Story, I listened to Neil read it. In this sense he is definitely an artful storyteller, as others have said. In a by-gone age he would have been the storyteller for the children, telling a tale even adults would be captivated by.
When I re-read my work I often use another voice, in my head, to hear it. It’s really to test the rhythm. I consider a poetic rhythm, like music, an important essence of the story. And I’m learning from him. I don’t like horror (Stephen King) or much of thrill seeking stuff young people are drawn to, but he writes macabre without it being scary for kids, or me. I’m also learning that disconnected things can be connected in stories. It’s a reminder of a children’s literature course I started but didn’t quite finish. I had to pick three words from a dictionary at random and use them in a story. I vaguely recall something about a light bulb and an elephant, but can’t remember the third word. It’d be interesting to re-read that today.
So, except for a few superficial similarities I can only be flattered by the comparison without really understanding it.
As far as other works and other matches, only the third of my trilogy, Where the Horses Run, is matched with Dan Brown. I mention that because of the above description of using pre-history and/or mythology to blend with the plot, which is something he does. But it also matched me with him for the first chapter entry of Ariel’s Cottage and the prologue for The Furies of Orestes, another yet unfinished.
According to: http://nickmomrik.com/2004/06/11/dan-brown-writing-style/ Dan’s style also includes short chapters and his story takes place in a short amount of time. I’m not sure what constitutes a short chapter for me ~ three pages? In one of Brown’s books I read a chapter of one sentence. Now that’s short. That my trilogy and most works take place over two weeks may be long by Dan’s standard. Dan has good character development which is something reviewers have said about my stories. And he has a lot of suspense. I know Ariel’s Cottage does, so I’ll agree with this match.
I will leave the other matches for Part 2. Let me know who you match with on one of your stories or great works of literature.
The same suspense-filled romance will be reposted on Amazon and other sites with new covers this week ~ Ariel’s Cottage, the book, and A Price for Love, the Large Print book and Kindle editions.
While I loved the other cover I found too many covers made from the same CreateSpace template and thought a change would help show more clearly what the story contains. I wanted Ariel’s Cottage to reflect the romance, the beautiful setting where all the trouble in Ariel’s life occurred around her cottage. For A Price for Love I wanted the investigative side of the story to show.
Each title has its own cover because of the particulars in the order of their publication. They are original designs not initially used, but after all the work they do represent the story much better. I tried a couple in a field, standing together or holding hands, but it just didn’t do it for me. I tried more provocative poses, but couldn’t make them work either.
If you like them or hate them, I’d really like to know. This is a big step, but I’d love fans’ opinions. I have one other choice for Ariel’s Cottage similar to the one used but with the magnifying glass showing something of interest under the lean-to of her single garage, changing the landscape a bit. If I thought you’d vote, I’d post it. Give me a clue to your interest (or not).
Read a synopsis at the site for Ask David HERE. The Amazon sites are: www.amazon.com/dp/147764671X for Ariel’s Cottage and www.amazon.com/dp/1470048884 for A Price for Love where the Kindle is also posted. Click on the picture to see it enlarged and read the back covers (which say the same thing (same story).
http://mainemuse.wordpress.com/2012/11/30/a-price-for-love-ariels-cottage/ (won’t find)
http://mainemuse.wordpress.com GO HERE, it’s the second review listed.
Here is the newest review for Ariel’s Cottage. I’m very excited about it because someone who normally doesn’t read this type of story really liked it. That alone says a lot about how good a read it is. I wish more would consider it.
Also available in Kindle as A Price for Love: Ariel’s Cottage.
http://megancashmanbooks.wordpress.com/2012/11/08/wedneday-interview-judith-victoria-douglas/
I have to add that Megan has focused on A Price of Love: Ariel’s Cottage, which is the large print and ebook edition of the book Ariel’s Cottage. So, the book is available in three formats to fit your taste.
Megan says it’s a New Adult story, which is true, but the genre is not well know yet, so think of it as Young Adult – 16 years and up, but be aware it contains adult situations.
I published it again.
The first time it was A Price for Love: Ariel’s Cottage. I left that one the large print and kindle editions, adding the copyright I finally got for the reprint. Now it’s Ariel’s Cottage: A Price for Love.
It was my second book, written in forty day, edited in 60 more. Wish I could do that again. I’ve learned more about editing as I go so that won’t take as long in the future. Yes, I’ve become an editing freak and still miss stuff. It sends me to those ballistic zones. I try to fix it, but if I can’t I try to block it out and hope others are more forgiving of my errors than I am. Mostly, I hope they can understand what I meant in spite of the error.
When we read we skip so much. Most people don’t notice the errors. Some look for them. If it’s passed on kindly, without a smirk like my brother’s, I appreciate it. I appreciated his, too, but he hasn’t gone back to read. Not a reader, huh?
Well, there are too many of those, apparently. I thought writers were readers. We’re supposed to be. We probably started out that way. But I guess it’s not the failure to read so much as the failure to pick up a book to read.
I have to read a lot on the computer. I have what I learned is blurry eye syndrome. Yeah, it’s got a name. I read anyway, sometimes up close when it’s bad. It’s a little scary when it’s bad and I have to drive somewhere. Eye drops for my glaucoma don’t help. One, in fact, makes it worse, for a while.
I guess if I hadn’t published I’d still be a reader and want one of those electronic gadgets. I was gifted one and still don’t read it much. It’s just not like holding a book and flipping the pages. I would leave all my books to Captain Kirk in the future if I thought he might exist in some real form. He appreciated books way after they went out of style…scary thought. Take a breath. Yeah, I’m okay. He also had an eye problem and had to wear glasses due to being allergic to a miracle eye-adjustment drug. Imagine, a drop to fix vision, but nothing to fix the allergy. Hmmm. Must be real, or damn good fiction. Not everything is perfect.
I digress. Back to the book. It’s a romantic suspense with suggestive adult situations. There is nothing explicit in the telling of those situations, in spite of one reader (obviously not a professional reviewer) calling it erotic after stating she couldn’t tell from the writing if the characters actually had sex or not. Small mind; limited imagination. If you’ve got that syndrome, don’t read any of my books. Mickey Mouse would be more for you. He’s simple, cute, an old-fashioned kind of guy. He’s ears must be grey by now; probably needs a walker.
Again, I digress.
In the novel, a young woman — once a victim; now in WITSEC — has been trying to get her life together for three years, coming more out of her self-protective shell after her regression recovery, and telling all. She’s stymied in her mental and emotional growth, so her crush on the 18-year-old college-bound hunk who cuts her grass on her country secluded acreage brings out desires she missed at seventeen when dealing with her trauma. She begins an experiment to become more enlightened about men and especially Jerry’s affect on her. But her risky trysts are interrupted by a puppy that brings trouble to her quiet setting. It also brings Danny, the deputy investigating the crimes the puppy escaped from.
There is more going on around Ariel’s cottage than she realized until this event brought it out. Her Advocate visits and meets Danny. Risks of exposure of her true identity puts Danny on alert, but Ariel knows her situation risks hurting two men she’s come to trust and love. She’s told her story in a novel which enlightens Danny of her true vulnerability, and strength. He swears to protect her, but even as a law enforcement officer he can’t always be there. Ariel disappears, possibly kidnapped…again.
The FBI becomes involved, further risking her identity becoming known. Her fears overwhelm her and in her haste she’s wounded. And Danny has a confrontation with a derelict agent. But it’s Jerry’s connections putting him in the public eye as the hero who saved her which most frightens Ariel. Her WITSEC agreement wears thin with his continuous television exposure.
Danny proves the hero we all long for, able to step past his own difficulties to stand by this special young woman he’s falling deeply for, even as he learns he could lose her to another. He protects them both, able to control his emotional responses for her sake. His sister tested him and he learned that hard lesson only to lose her. He can’t risk losing Ariel, even if he can only remain her friend forever.
A shooting confrontation exposes the culprits with Danny whisking her away to his safe house. Once the dust settles there’s still the threesome. Ariel wishes she could keep them both, but knows it could never be. A hasty reaction to a situation makes her choice for her when a promise is broken.
Long years pass before all hearts are healed. And a new generation continues with a more hopeful future.
The End
Try it; you might like it. Ariel’s Cottage: A Price for Love. Available now, a free ebook PDF download to your computer for Goodreads.com members. Check out A Price for Love: Ariel’s Cottage.
Please, give me a review comment that makes sense and does justice to this write-up and the story.
Gardening weekly? Really? Try flowers for romance. jvd
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