Blog Hop: Jane Isaac!

Welcome, welcome! Here's Jane Isaac for you to enjoy with a guest post:

What’s Your Style?

“...writing so good, I didn’t notice it.” When I first read this line in a book review, some years back, my initial thoughts were – the poor author.

As writers, we agonise over words to convey just the right message, layer our descriptions to build a certain atmosphere, craft phrases to achieve the correct imagery in readers’ minds.

There are those inspired sentences: ones that come to you into the night, those that spring into your mind in the supermarket queue. Lines that need to be scribbled down on the back of old receipts, scraps of paper, backs of hands; caught quickly before they slip away into the deep, dark abyss within our heads.

When my writing tutor cast her red pen across these precious lines, I wanted to wrap my arms around them, my babies to protect. As she whipped them out, I wanted to run to the waste paper basket, uncurl the crumpled pieces, and insert them back into my work.

Instead, I thought about books I have read. It’s no secret that I have a penchant for crime thrillers. I’m a sucker for a good page turner. It got me thinking – how many times do you see ‘spare’ words and phrases in a thriller? The simple answer is never. Why? Because they distract the reader and detract from the story. In point, they can be the difference between a reader loving or hating your book.

As those inspired lines were prised from me, I realised that in the early days I was being self indulgent. I used some prose because I really liked it, not because it either added to, or drove, the story forward. And that is what it is all about – the story. We are here to spin a good yarn.

So, when writing my own crime thriller, An Unfamiliar Murder, I aspired towards “writing so good, I didn’t notice it.” If I achieve this, I’ll know I’ve done my job.

Contact details: 

You can read an excerpt from An Unfamiliar Murder and contact me on my website at www.janeisaac.co.uk. I love to hear from readers and writers. Sign up to my newsletter for updates on An Unfamiliar Murder and its sequel which should be out by the end of 2012. Alternatively, follow me on Twitter: @JaneIsaacAuthor or on Face Book: Jane Isaac Author.

What readers are saying:

"The characters are brilliantly crafted.... I can't wait for the sequel!"

"...as fast paced as it is full of twists and turns... "

"...compulsive reading. Brilliantly written, gripping plot."

Buy An Unfamiliar Murder here:

 Paperback US:
 http://www.amazon.com/Unfamiliar-Murder-Jane-Isaac/dp/1937758060/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326864285&sr=8-1
Paperback UK:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Unfamiliar-Murder-Jane-Isaac/dp/1937758060/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1328031646&sr=8-2
 Kindle US:
 http://www.amazon.com/An-Unfamiliar-Murder-ebook/dp/B006YK6U18/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1326864285&sr=8-3
 Kindle UK:
 http://www.amazon.co.uk/An-Unfamiliar-Murder-ebook/dp/B006YK6U18/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326868728&sr=8-1