Got a Dog? This is the book for you.

As seen on Amazon

Title: Training The City Dog
Author: Katherine Kane
ISBN: 978-0-9828906-0-8
Genre: Guide
Pages: 136
Reviewed By: Brian Knight
Official Premium Promotional Services Rating:


You can teach old dogs new tricks …and puppies too.

You’re moving from your suburban home to the city or perhaps you live in the city and want to get a puppy. In both scenarios you dread how your new friend will react. How will you avoid your dog making a mess everywhere; barking at everything or chasing animals in the park? “Training The City Dog” is a lighthearted guide that will assist you as you train your dog for the unique environment of living in the city. Some of the situations and issues addressed are:

• How to house break a dog while living in a high rise?
• How to banish unnecessary barking?
• What are the critical commands to teach your dog?
• What is proper petiquette?
• What foods are harmful for your best friend to eat and why?
• What items should you always have with you when you are out with your dog?

As we learn in the pages of “Training The City Dog” it is both possible and enjoyable to have a dog in the city. This book takes a concise look at the situations that are present everyday for you and your dog in the city. With recommendations and suggestions, supported by the Humane Society and apartment/condo owners, you can handle these situations and train your dog appropriately. Life will get much easier after that.
Katherine’s experience as an urban dog owner compliments her passion for dogs perfectly. With a smooth, relaxed and honest writing style Katherine shares the tips and examples learned from trainers and veterinarians regarding dogs living in the city.

“Training The City Dog” is a helpful, easy to use resource for dog owners living in or moving to the city. This book will encourage you to learn more about training your dog.

Your dog will thank you as it makes a comfortable and easy adjustment to city living. “Training The City Dog” will provide you the tips that will allow you, as a dog owner, to experience many enjoyable adventures and journeys with your best friend.

Would you like to learn more about author Katherine Kane? Check out her site for all sorts of pet friendly news, tips and information (you can also get a copy of her book there too). http://www.citypetbooks.com/

The Do's and Do Not's of Feedback

I truly enjoyed all the comments my last article received and many of those comments are the main reason why I'm writing this article today. If you did not read my last article I hope that you will but to summarize it was regarding the positive aspects of negative feedback or, more to the point, constructive criticism.

Many agreed that while they liked hearing how wonderful their work is they do appreciate the honest truth found in constructive criticism. However, the point was also made that it is important that negative feedback be taken in context. This is a very valid point. Another valid point came from the perspective of how the feedback is given and that is what we are looking at today.

You see, the big difference between negative feedback and constructive criticism is this - constructive criticism helps in sharpening the skills and abilities of the person receiving it while ensuring that their drive and confidence stays at a good level. Negative feedback does the complete opposite. It can degrade the person, demoralize them and destroy their confidence. This may sound like an extreme example but look around and I bet you can find or know someone that gave up their dream because someone yanked the rug from underneath their feet.

I simply refuse to believe that any of us here, in this community, or anywhere else would want to be the person labeled or known for negative feedback. We are here to help our fellow writers and to do that properly we must understand and utilize constructive criticism. Yes, we support and motivate and that is not only a lot of fun but it brings joy to everyone. Unfortunately in the writing business we must also face the dark side. How do we give constructive criticism without crossing that line into the barren wasteland known as negative feedback? In short we need to be specific and polite.

I have to be honest, I've been asked to review a fair amount of books and provide feedback for multiple projects. I truly enjoy doing both. Don't get me wrong, at times it can be both taxing and difficult but it is worthwhile in my opinion. With that said, when I write my review or feedback I pretend I'm writing it to myself. I always keep in mind the questions - would I like to read this? How would I feel if someone sent this to me? These questions keep me in check. What else should we keep in mind?

I thought it would be fun to list a few examples of Do's and Do Not's when providing feedback. So, let's see what we have.

Do's:

• DO be specific with your feedback; be it something you like or dislike. For example - I like your description of the main character; however, it did distract from the flow of the story.
• DO provide examples from the text. This will assist the writer in knowing exactly what it is you're talking about and they can go right to it.
• DO be polite. Thank them for asking you to provide feedback. They are already nervous because you are reading their work which they spent countless hours on.
• DO provide feedback. If you agree to read their work and give feedback it is imperative that you do. No one likes to wait on something that never arrives.
• DO try to point out an even number. If you observe four things that the author needs to work on make the effort to point out four things that the author did well. This will present a level field in which the writer will not think you are inflating confidence or trashing their work.
• DO keep the feedback you provide private. If the writer decides to share it with others that is alright but you've done your job.
• DO be honest at all times with your feedback.

Do Not's:

• DO NOT give general statements. They tend to leave the writer feeling like you really didn't read their work or took the time to think about it. This pretty much leaves the writer right where they started...with nothing.
• DO NOT use abusive, degrading or hurtful words to explain why you feel the way you do about something.
• DO NOT make comments about the writer as a person or refer to their skills. For example - I may have liked your story if you managed to correct some of these grammatical errors. Do you mind if I send this to my friend? She is a twelve grade English teacher and I think this would be a helpful tool to teach her kids on what not to do.
• DO NOT allow your voice to say providing feedback was an aggravation or a bother to you (even if it was). Remember, you agreed to read it and provide feedback. 
• DO NOT and I mean DO NOT use profanity in your feedback. The best kind of feedback is the sort that is presented in a professional manner.
• DO NOT be too flowery or apologetic with your feedback. The writer should not question whether your feedback is honest, solid information. Actually, the straight forward approach is probably the best in this regard.

I think you can see from these tips and examples what will help and what will hurt regarding feedback. Some of these I'm sure you know while others are common sense but you would be surprised at the number of times the 'Do Not's' show up in feedback.

Did you notice any of these in your feedback (given or received)? What other tips would you include in these?

The Positive In Negative

Let me begin by asking a question. Do you prefer positive feedback more than negative feedback? I know, that's a pretty general question but think about it for a moment. Perhaps we need to know what the words 'positive' and 'negative' mean in this situation.

You've worked hard on your project and you're proud of it but you want to be sure it is solid and something others would want to read. In order to find out this information you round up a few of your trusted peers and send them your work. They, as your beta readers, in turn provide you with feedback. This brings us to the question above. What would you rather hear from your betas - "oh, this is a wonderful book and you should get this published" or "I liked the characters but the pace was a little slow at times"?

As I journey down this road and gain more experience with every turn I'm starting to see that feedback takes many forms but can be placed in three categories. Don't get me wrong, I believe two categories serve a purpose while one is....well, we will get to that. Which of the two is more valuable to the author? Well, in order to answer that question we need to look at the two categories.

Category One: The Feel Good Feedback
I consider this to be positive feedback. We've all seen it and I would guess that many of us have received it. Examples of feedback that would fit in this category would be:

• I loved the way you described each character. They really jumped off the page.
• The settings were so real in my mind.
• I truly enjoyed reading your book.
• Wow, I didn't see that ending coming at all.

Positive feedback, such as the above examples, provide us with a little insight to the story but mostly it helps to build our confidence and can possible answer some questions we may have. For instance, you wonder if your characters are to plain; maybe they seem flat to you. If you were to get feedback stating that your characters jumped off the page than you would have a little reassurance about your writing when it comes to character development.

The feedback for this category is very helpful when it comes to building up the self confidence and the willingness of an author to push the limits and explore more. I believe we tend to restrain our abilities until we either feel that we have grasped the basics or we have confirmation from others that what we are doing is good. When you receive feedback like this be grateful for it; take it for what it’s worth and continue moving forward.

Category Two: That Stings a Little Feedback
This is the category that many would consider negative feedback or constructive criticism. Just like positive feedback, I'm sure we have seen and/or received negative feedback. Examples that would fit in this category are:

• The hook was good but I don't think it was strong enough to carry me through the story.
• The pace was to slow in some scenes and to fast in others.
• I liked character 'A' but character 'B' seemed plain.
• The dialog didn't match the time period.
• The ending was good but I think there were some holes remaining.

Feedback like this can leave us feeling deflated and shaken. Sometimes we can even get angry because we know that at a minimum we need to go through our project and see if the feedback is correct. Granted we could discard all of it and say the manuscript is fine as is but many of us will look into the problem areas. If we agree with the feedback then we frustrated because of the added work we just picked up. This, in essence, is way we call this negative feedback...we don't like it.

There is one thing we need to keep in mind regarding negative feedback; it is a more critical examination of the story when compared to positive feedback. Granted all feedback is based on opinion but we can investigate the points of negative feedback. We should want this type of feedback because, even though we don't like it, it provides us with the most information about our skill and the story we have developed. It helps us identify the areas we need to work on.

Category Three: Bad Feedback
This is the category where we find all the feedback that is just not helpful at all. Yes, unfortunately we do receive feedback that fits perfectly in this category. Some examples are:

• The beginning sucks.
• What's up with that ending?
• Uuuummmm, I didn't get it.
• You haven't quit your day job yet have you?

The majority of the time very general comments or hurtful comments end up in this category. They simply don't provide any substance in which we can work with. It is safe to assume that we will, at some point in time, receive feedback like this. Should this happen don't let it bring you down. Keep going and disregard it; focus on the feedback that helps you.

Which is more helpful?

We know that category three is not the most helpful so it comes down to category one or two. Category one has an important place in the life of an author but I'm not so sure it is the most helpful. Negative feedback, in my opinion, is the most helpful because it provides us with the most to work with and the most insight. The key words to remember is 'constructive criticism;' meaning it is not bad, just pointing out something we may need to work on. If you think about it, negative feedback could very well provide the most positive return.

What kind of feedback have you received? Did it fit one of the categories above?

And a Book is Born

Ever wonder how a thought from no where can morph into a novel? Author Simon Marshland describes for us how his new novel, "Mr. Christopher," journeyed from thought to novel.Enjoy.

Writing is a strange business. For some, ideas and words flow with the steady reliability of a great river while others struggle for hours or even weeks in search of either. Yet more write in the manner of a small stream, quietly placid one moment then like rippling rapids galvanized into frantic activity the next. But the majority of writers, and I include myself amongst them, fall somewhere in between. We have our moments of writer’s block but know that if we force ourselves to sit down and write, no matter what rubbish results, the block will lift and the way ahead will become clear once more.

In a recent interview I was asked what I thought was the secret of successful writing. Taking the question to be one of financial success I replied that probably one of the most important aims was to find a particular genre that came naturally then stick with it. Build up a following of those who like crime, thrillers, adventure or love stories. One only has to browse down a library shelf to see the truth in this, yet for some reason, probably lack of mental discipline, I have never managed to follow my own advice. Instead finding myself gripped by some new topic, sitting down to scribble my views on the subject only to discover the idea for a book emerging as a result. Which was how Mr Christopher was conceived.

One of the major problems facing the World today is man made Global Warming, at least that’s what we are told by a large part of the scientific community. Personally I tend to doubt the man made part though accept that Global Warming may well be taking place. After all the earth has been cooling and warming for millions of years, a classic example being the Swiss town of Geneva, which would have been covered by ten thousand feet of ice had it been built before the last ice age. Anyway, after a long discussion on the subject I sat down at the computer to put my views on record at which point as often happens the storyteller in me took over. I decided to go with man made global warming because it offered the best scenario for emotions like anger, blame, guilt, fear and love which are so important when constructing a storyline to hold the reader’s attention.

Next came the two principle characters. I decided the girl should be young and attractive yet old enough to have a history. Enter Holly Daffodil, aged 28 an ex advertising executive recently widowed from older professor of entomology husband from the local university. As no one on earth had come up with a global warming solution I had to look elsewhere for the man if the book was to end with a message of hope. At which point a Chrysltot Thought Entity from deep space who had arrived in the solar system in error a million odd years before and funnelled down to earth to relapse into thought mode to review the situation entered the story. As the Chrysltot begins to return from thought mode strange things happen to Holly and her farmhouse, ranging from lawns being miraculously mowed to seeing her dead husband in the sitting room and her cat Mr Magnus starting to talk, but eventually he materializes in human form and they meet. But as Holly finds Chrysltot too difficult to pronounce she calls him Christopher and the story begins.

For a more detailed insight to the book go to Amazon Kindle books where you can download either a free sample or the complete book.

E-book on Amazon.com
E-book on Amazon.co.uk

POV Patrol

I have been doing a great deal of reading lately. I've read my novel, a few other novels, some articles, and a few short stories. It is amazing to me what I notice as I read. In times long past I would read a book and get swept away by the settings and characters but no I seem to be going a little deeper. Don't get me wrong, I still read for the enjoyment of reading and I still love a good book with a great story and strong characters. It just seems like there are two of me when I am reading. One is the fun loving all about the enjoyment of the book and the other is...well, the author in me.

The author in me searches the things I read in an effort to learn something new; a new technique, word or sentence structure. During this search it is of no surprise that I might find a problem or something that just doesn't feel right. Sometimes it is annoying when I'm about to be completely pulled into a book and out of nowhere the author in me will pop up and say - 'you know, I'm not sure I understand what's going on with this paragraph.' No, I don't do this all the time (unless I'm reading my own work) but it does happen.

As of late one of the most glaring things I pick up on is a bust in the POV. To be honest, I never even paid attention to this until a friend sent me his manuscript with the editors notes on it. I really saw what she was talking about and now I am able to see it a little more clearly when I read something.

A bust in point of view happens when we begin writing a section, paragraph or scene from the eyes of one character and then jump to the eyes of another character before the scene is complete. Of course there are times when this needs to happen but as writers we need to make sure the structure of the story is sound. This will make the POV change smooth and easy to follow.

I so an example of this in the book I was reading a short time ago. It started with the character thinking to herself and immediately switched to someone talking to her. The first POV was from the main character as she thought to herself but the switch was to the POV of the person talking to the main character. It took a few paragraphs for me to figure out who was talking and recapture the flow. Mind you, the story is strong but this busted POV really hindered the flow and momentum of the story. Think of it like this, you're watching a movie and all of a sudden the DVD skips or freezes mid frame. When it comes back on you've missed a few minutes. You can go back and watch what you missed but there will be a time when the flow is off and you're not as involved in that movie like you were at the start.

I try to keep this at the fore when I write (or edit) but it is so easy to slip when you find yourself writing like a mad man (or woman).

Have you noticed a bust in POV? How did you fix it or did it hinder your reading?