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Spheria, now in Hardcover!

10/27/2016

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Now you can get one of the best books of 2016 in hardcover! A perfect piece for your library bookshelf collection. Also makes an amazing Christmas gift that any reader would enjoy.

Order from Amazon.

Now to work on the Audio Book.

Cody Leet
2016
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False Foreshadowing

10/24/2016

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When I was finalizing the third draft of Spheria, I engaged three fantastic beta readers who gave me invaluable feedback on what worked and what didn’t. I changed a good deal in the book based on their feedback and recommend this step as a best practice for all writers. For detailed information, please see my Novel Creation Process.

It seems I had a little problem with Diet Coke. Let me elaborate.
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Diet Coke

I am a huge Diet Coke fan. I consume way more of this substance than is realistically healthy. I have attempted to wean myself off it many times, but the process is futile. Now I accept it as my vice and compared to other possibilities it’s not so bad. I may not be alone. I worked at a company where we stocked free beverages and Diet Coke was the most popular drink by a wide margin.
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When I wrote my first draft, I made the assumption that since I love Diet Coke, everyone does. So in about five scenes, with five different characters, they were drinking a Diet Coke. One, in particular, chugged and savored it after a flight (this scene was eventually deleted.)
One of my beta readers, Therese, after completing a read through, made the statement, “I was expecting Diet Coke to have some involvement in the climax since it was mentioned so many times.” I guess what I created here was False Foreshadowing.

Red Herring

Isn’t this just a red herring? I think it's not and for a subtle reason. A red herring is defined as “something, especially a clue, that is intended to be misleading or distracting from the real issue.” The key word in the definition is “intended.” In my Diet Coke example, I did not put that foreshadowing in there intentionally, but it would have left the reader feeling gypped, as it did Therese. It was not misleading; it was just irrelevant.
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Fun Fact: the term Red Herring originates with hunting dogs. The salting process that turns a herring red creates such a pungent fish that they were used to throw hunting dogs off a trail.

False Foreshadowing

I googled this term and found only a couple mentions in a different context: to describe foreshadowing that ends up being the opposite of what the reader expected. I think that’s more in line with a red herring, actually. Or if I had to make a term for it, I would call it “Deceptive Foreshadowing.”

So here is my definition of False Foreshadowing:
1: When you unintentionally include clues in your story that makes the reader suspect foreshadowing but which turn out to be irrelevant.
I think this is analogous to another more common writing mistake: word repetition. It is never good to use the same word over and over in a short span of space. Never do this. It is never fun for your readers.

Solution

Once this was pointed out to me, it was simple to fix. I left two scenes in with Diet Coke, changed another to Dr. Pepper, change the fourth to Iced Tea, and removed the fifth altogether.

So there you go – avoid False Foreshadowing!

Cody Leet
2016
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Indie Author Day

10/7/2016

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Want a signed copy of Spheria? Join me at the South Windsor, CT public library this Saturday 10/8 at 12:30 pm. If you don't already have a copy to sign, I will have some available for sale. Hope to see you there.

Cody Leet
2016
Added details:

On Saturday, October 8, we will use our popular Booked for Lunch program format to introduce you and your books to our audience, followed by a viewing of the Indie Author Day webinar. 

The program will begin at 12:30, when everyone is invited to lunch.  Members of the audience bring their lunches; we will provide food for our guest authors.  The Friends of the Library will provide yummy desserts and beverages.

Beginning at least by 1 p.m. (we watch to be sure people have finished eating), we will give each author a chance to introduce his or her book. The audience will probably want to have a glimpse of your background, how you came to write the book, and what the book is about.  I would think this might be done in 5 - 10 minutes.  After the introductions, you will be seated at tables around the room and will be available for questions, book sales, and signing.  At 2 p.m., we'll stop for the webinar.    The room is available to us until the Library closes at 4:30.  We have no "required" end time, but my guess is that people will probably be leaving by 3:15.  If authors wish to stay and visit with one another, that would be fine.

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Cody Leet on Your World Discovered

10/3/2016

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Check out my interview on Your World Discovered with David K. Ewen. I discuss the inspiration for Spheria and drop some hints about the sequel. You can watch it on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBnePjHo3GM

Cody Leet
2016


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