Apr
29

Review of Socialpunk, by Monica Leonelle

Greetings!

As I mentioned before, I recently read the book, Socialpunk by Monica Leonelle.  I enjoy reading futuristic-type novels.  If you liked, “The Terminator” and “Logan’s Run” (the younger you are, the less likely you will even know about that T.V. show), you must read this book.  As “The Terminator”  is my all-time favorite flick, this book was right up my alley.

Socialpunk, by Monica Leonelle

The heroine in this book, Ima, is an Asian American, which is such a nice change of pace!  I get tired of all the Barbie-type chicks which are the main focus of SO many novels.  She grew up in a post-apocalyptic world, and everything she believes in is a lie…including the year she THINKS she lives in.  Ima, has a feeling that something is, “off” in her world thanks to a healthy dose of skepticism.  Then, one night while attending a concert, her whole world changes, but that is just the beginning!  Soon, she is living in another world, and to blend in, must undergo surgical upgrades.  I wouldn’t mind having some of those upgrades.  It would be amazing to have a computer built into your brain.  Just think, you would never have to look anything up again!  You would have built in GPS, an internal clock, maps, you name it.  I could get used to that!

I must say, the ending was one cliffhanger I was NOT expecting, but it sure did put things into place!

You can find Socialpunk here:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apr
29

Interview with Monica Leonelle, Author of Socialpunk

Monica Leonelle is a well-known digital media strategist and the author of three novels. She blogs at Prose on Fire (http://proseonfire.com) and shares her writing and social media knowledge with other bloggers and authors through her Free Writer Toolkit (http://proseonfire.com/free-writer-toolkit).

Here is the interview I promised on Friday:

Kim: How did you come up with the idea for this book?

Author, Monica Leonelle

Author, Monica Leonelle

Monica:  I was inspired by the city of Chicago, by social media issues in our current world, and by the cyberpunk genre. The book is a bit like the Terminator series and I reference that a couple times just for fun. James Cameron is basically my favorite director ever, and he really inspires me with his world-building and storytelling skills.

Kim:  For those trying to break into the writing world, and not having much success at finding a publisher, would you recommend self-publishing their book digitally?  Why or why not?

Monica:  You know, I would honestly probably recommend an editor, not a publishing decision. Here’s why: There are two types of authors—writers and entrepreneurs. The former flock to traditional publishing and the latter flock to indie publishing. It’s silly to think that traditional publishing will ever be eliminated; that’s like asking if car washes will ever be eliminated. Yeah, you can wash your car in your garage. That doesn’t mean you want to.

 

So I feel like self-publishing is *not* necessarily the answer for people who are having trouble selling their book to traditional publishers. Most people just need to write a better book. As an editor, I can see this with 99% of the books I edit. They are books that, without an editor, would not make it in traditional publishing. But I do believe that, with an editor, many of them have a much better chance of getting picked up by a traditional publisher.

 

Also, writers should inject their marketing directly into their manuscripts. Writers often think of marketing as this separate thing from writing, but it’s not at all. 80-90% of books are sold through word-of-mouth and most of the marketability of a book is right there in the manuscript. So even if you are going the traditional route, if you are serious about getting published you should hire an editor to go through your book and see how marketable it is. Traditional publishers are looking for marketable books. It’s a business and they need to make money.

 

I think that no matter what path you want to take, everything is possible as long as you create an amazing book. For that, you just simply need an editor. If you are a writer, I offer free editing consultations on your novel: http://proseonfire.com/post/20340477218/prose-on-fire-first-1000-free-email-consultation. I invite you to take advantage of this offer to see what’s going on with your novel!

 

Kim:  How did you come up with the names of Ima, Dash, Nahum, and Vaughn?

 

Monica:  I don’t remember, to be honest! They’ve been the names of the characters for so long. I guess Dash made sense to me because of what I wrote in the beginning of the book, Dash for “dashing,” handsome in a Prince Charming way. And Nahum is this guy I had a crush on in 4th grade. So I just borrowed his name, haha. I have always loved that name, and I am happy it make its way into one of my books.

 

Kim:  What one food could you not live without?

 

Monica:   I eat way too many chips and french fries. I have a salt tooth!

 

Kim:   What is your favorite color?

 

Monica:   Pink!

 

Kim:  Do you already have another series in mind after Socialpunk and Seven Halos?

 

Monica:  I’m probably moving into serialized fiction next, just because of my work schedule. I’m working on developing two different ideas at the moment—one, kind of like Game of Thrones meets Waterworld. The other is about superheros in the 1920′s. These are super generic descriptions at the time, but that’s all I have so far! Either way, I’m going to keep experimenting with new ideas. I’ll probably never really leave YA.

 

Kim:  If you could only have three luxury items with you while stranded on an island, what would they be?

 

Monica:  Screw toilet paper. I need my Kindle, my phone, my laptop.

 

LOL!  Couldn’t have said that one better myself, only for me it would have been my tablet, phone, and laptop!

 

Happy early May, folks!

Apr
27

Summer Web Development & Social Media Classes

Greetings to all!

I am putting the schedule together for a new series of classes this summer.  Please contact me if you are interested in web development via Content Management Systems, or intro to social media for business classes.  Let me know what day(s) and time(s) are best for you.

If your business or group is interested, I am available to teach classes at your location as well.  Let me know how many are in your group, and what topics you need taught, and I can give you a quote.

Thanks!

Kim

Apr
27

Socialpunk (Socialpunk #1)

I just finished Socialpunk (Socialpunk #1) by Monica Leonelle.  This is the first in the trilogy.  I will be back to post a review of the book, as well as my interview with Monica.

For now, I leave you with this excerpt.  Enjoy!

After playing God for six years with the world he created, he couldn’t control any of his subjects, none at all. Over the years, he had watched them evolve and become the sum of their own choices rather than the sum of his; and for that, he regretted ever giving them life.

A small, blinking red light from just inside his eyelid reminded him of the news they sent him earlier that morning. The company had cancelled his funding and would shut down his project within three months. According to them, the project cost too much and took up too much space, and the inconclusive results couldn’t be published reputably, now or in the future.

Six years of his work, tens of thousands of lives at stake—and he could do nothing to save any of it. He bowed his head, letting his chin rest on the rim of his breakfast smoothie. The smoothie reeked of powder—crushed pills—but he supposed he had better get used to it. He wouldn’t be able to afford the luxury of real food after they canned him.

He closed his eyes and called up the camera view of one of his favorites, number 3281. She fascinated him; he couldn’t deny it. When he had designed her, her pre-teen rebelliousness lit fire in her eyes. A survivor, he’d thought. He’d meant for her to have it all—to grow up, to get married to the love of her life, and to have a beautiful family of her own someday.

But he had only given her sadness so far. Instead of creating a strict father, he had given her an abusive one. Instead of creating a loving boyfriend, he had given her a friend who could never love her. And instead of creating a strong, proud mother, he had given her a meek one, who watched the whole thing unfold and did nothing about it.

He looked at his last and final creation sitting in the chair across from him—his own son, not awakened yet. The law forbade him to have any children of his own, so this boy would substitute.

But he had done the unthinkable with this creation—he had bestowed on it his own thoughts, emotions, and decision-making processes. He’d given the boy his own mind, his own physical characteristics, his own wants and desires.

He had never done so with any of the others because of the dangers of investing too heavily in any one of his subjects. But who could he kid? He had not stayed objective thus far, watching some of his subjects more closely than others, wishing for the happiness of some at the expense of others. He had become an abomination, a monster of his own doing, who had created subjects only to watch them suffer.

He couldn’t forgive himself; not now, not ever. His eyes lingered on the vial that sat next to his breakfast smoothie, that he’d stowed away for the day when they destroyed all his work, his entire world. He would save it, tuck it away for now, for as long as he could protect them. When things spun out of his control, he would drink it and end himself the way he had ended them.

In the ancient stories, gods frequently gave their sons as gifts. Now, he would give his son as a gift to her, number 3281. So she could be happy in her last months on earth, before they destroyed her with the rest of them.

You can buy Socialpunk here:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

 

 

Read the rest of this entry »

Apr
20

Hey Tweeters!! Who do YOU follow?

Greetings!

If you’re new to Twitter, you may be wondering who to follow?  One way to get started is to simply browse the categories.   Click on the #Discover tab in the black menu bar at the top, then, “Browse categories.”   See below:

As you can see, you have several categories to choose from, and the list is MUCH longer than what is shown here.  Simply pick a category and it will unleash a plethora of Twitter accounts related to that category.

Still looking for more accounts to follow?  Click on the, “Who to follow” link and you will find accounts suggested to you by Twitter.  This works best if you are already following several accounts so that Twitter knows what you’re interested in.

If you’re looking for more followers, post your Twitter handle here.   My handle is @KimMayrose.

Happy Tweeting!

 

Apr
03

WordPress Website Course Participants

Hello!

Please feel free to post questions/comments here.  Also, let us know when your sites are done so we can check them out.

Thanks for attending!

Sincerely,

Kim Mayrose

Feb
27

Great Class Tonight!

Greetings!

I would like to thank all of my class participants for staying late (again!) tonight so that we could learn more about you.  I had a great time learning about all of you.   Such a small world, eh?

Please post here if you would like to list your Facebook Page, Twitter handle, LinkedIn profile, or YouTube channel.

Have a great night!

Kim

Feb
20

WordPress Website Design at South Middle School

Greetings!

I will be teaching WordPress Website Design on Tuesday,  March 27th from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at South Middle School.  This is a two night course which will conclude on Tuesday, April 3rd.

For more information, click on the image below.  The class is listed under the category of Computers and Technology.

Winter/Spring 2012

 

Feb
20

A Message for my Social Media Class Participants:

Greetings!

I hope that you will all bring your business cards and/or brochures to class tonight for a little social networking.

See you tonight!

Kim

 

Jan
15

Creating a Website on a Shoestring Budget

In this economy, every penny counts. If your budget doesn’t include a professional web developer or even web design software, this is the class for you! You will learn how to add or delete pages, create links, and upload images. Best of all, we’ll be using online software that is free! Students must have access to a web-based email account during class.  Course takes place on Thursdays (01/26 and 02/02) from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the Learning Resource Center

Click here to go to registration page.  (See the Five Ways to Register near the bottom of the page)

Click here to view catalog.

 

 

 

 

 

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