Issue #67
Blog #7-2018
Section: Demons of the Jungle
Blogger: Joseph Clay
I know everyone has heard the cliché “The third time is a charm”. Well I’m hoping in this case it rings true.
We all know that there is a flip side to everything. To help explain I’ll use a sports comparison. Since I love Baseball I’ll use that sport. When at bat you get 3 strikes. You either hit the ball and reach base or you go sit down. You also get three out per inning.
Demons of the Jungle is down to its last swing of the bat in last inning with two outs.. The book when finished will either get on base or the game is over as this will be the third re-write.
Instead of repeating what has already been stated about edition 1 and 2 I’ll furnish you links to those blogs for reference then get into why I think a third and final re-write is needed.
No lets dive into why I think a third revision is needed. We will first start with rating’s.
Goodreads has the book at 3.5 Stars. That is above average but still not where I want the book to be. I understand you can’t please everyone and I’m not after five stars. My goal is four stars.
Below or two reviews, ther’s more, straight from Goodreads and also played a big part in me deciding to re-write Demons of the Jungle.
Review 1
I won this book through Goodreads Giveaways which encourages you to leave an unbiased review, so here goes.
Honestly, I have to say that I wasn’t a fan. There was very little character development, the dialogue wasn’t realistic and neither were the characters. All of the events just seemed to run into each other, with no build up for any of them. The characters bounced around from one catastrophe to the next, hardly phased or taking any time to reflect on what they were going through. The women were also naked way more than necessary. If you want to connect nudity with the sensuality of paranormal, there are far more subtle ways to do it than how it was done here. The whole time I was reading this, I couldn’t help but think it was meant to be a screenplay for a terrible over the top 80’s action movie starring two women with globe shaped fake breasts that couldn’t act to save their lives.
Review 2
I won this in a Goodreads giveaway. My opinion is just that…mine…and completely unbiased.
An interesting story line makes this quick read easy to get through, but I felt that it needed a bit more character insight and polishing to push it to the next level. The ending, although a bit abrupt, definitely tells you that a sequel will be coming. I think that as the author continues to write he will gain more “fine tuning” ability, and that his indirect characterization will improve.
I passed all the reviews on to my editor, Clare Diston owner of Human Voices, along with the manuscript for review. I wanted her take on if we could make the book better or was it best to leave it like it was.
Clare was a set of fresh eyes as she or her company were not involved with edition 1 or 2.
Clare become my Editor of choice after handling the editing and proofing of Witch’s Dilemma, I was pleased with her work on that novel and I trust her instincts.
I knew that if any one could make improvements to Demons of the Jungle it was her. Once the review was done Clare and I discussed it and came to a the same conclusion. We could make Demons of the Jungle better, much better.
I have moved Demons of the Jungle from the back burner to the front and cranked up the heat. The re-write is well under way; I would say it’s close to 40% complete.
Why the urgency?
That is a good question and I do have an answer. I hope to introduce the third revision at a book signing event in Oklahoma City in late October of this year. More to come on that event as it unfolds
A new cover has been designed for Demons of the Jungle to set it apart from the other two editions. I’ll share the cover with y’all in my next post on Demons of the Jungle along with some insight of what to expect from the third edition.
Also be on the look out of how to get your free paperback copy of the third edition of Demons of the Jungle. I’ll also explain that in the next Demons of the Jungle blog.
Till next time,
-JC-
Joseph Clay - Author 