Fear Justice by C.C. Bolick (VBT, guest post, excerpt, and GIVEAWAY) GFT

I am happy to share words of wisdom from author C.C. Bolick (especially since chocolate is one of my go-to solutions when I am stressed, lol)

How to Handle Negative Criticism

by

C.C. Bolick

1)     Take a trip to Antarctica so that only the penguins can hear you scream in utter disdain.

2)     Eat chocolate (my personal favorite).

3)     As gracefully as possible.

No one wants negative criticism. Why do you think there’s so much to go around? Everyone willing to put their work on display should be prepared and accept their fair share. It’s part of being a writer. It’s part of being human. “Ask and you shall receive,” my grandmother always said.

Books are subjective. People are subjective. Put the two together and there’s no telling what will happen next.

Remember:

1)     You haven’t found true success until you’ve ruffled a feather or two.

2)     You’re in good company.

3)     There’s a lot to learn from hearing why someone isn’t gushing over your work.

If an author says they never read reviews, my question is… why not? A review means someone read my work and took the time to give their opinion. A bad review means they didn’t like it for some reason. Could be as simple as they thought the end should have been different. Or maybe it’s a series and there’s more reading required to find the end. Can’t say I’ve never been guilty of that. Could be this wasn’t their kind of story, or they didn’t connect with the characters.

Don’t forget the part where someone actually read my story. I’m always thrilled when anyone not only takes the time to read my books, but also leaves a review. Even the bad reviews, as hard as they are to swallow.

Keep in mind, if not for negative criticism, as a writer you’d always wonder if people really like your work. Do they connect? Would they recommend your stories to a friend? I’ve always believed if it wasn’t for the bad times, the good times wouldn’t look so good.

Yes, fret a bit like the rest of us. Have a drink if necessary, but keep writing. Use any juicy tidbits people offer to help improve your story, as long as the suggestions make sense. If the review feels like a personal attack and not about your writing, there’s not much you can do except go on with life and try to offer hope to the next author.

I waited tables for several years in college. Early on, I learned some customers couldn’t be satisfied if my life depended on it. I once dropped an entire plate of blueberry pancakes in a woman’s lap and still received a nice tip after helping her clean up. Embarrassing yes, but probably more for me than her. Some people are at their best in a raw situation, and I’ve never forgotten her kind words.

Whatever happens, don’t forget why you started writing.

And never, never, never tell someone their opinion is wrong. 

-->

***********************

Fear Justice

by C.C. Bolick

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE: YA Urban Fantasy

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB:

Seventeen-year-old Rena Mason counts the days until she can leave for college. Every night her father drinks himself to sleep, leaving her to care for her younger brother. When her father is kidnapped by terrorists, her dreams of freedom become a nightmare.

Stunned that her father has a history with these terrorists, Rena knows she must run or be their next victim. She learns the tough guy at school has a reason to look after her - he's working for a government agency with the same goal as the terrorists: find a woman who disappeared eighteen years ago. Time is running out since only this woman's special gift can save the world from a looming nuclear attack.

Rena can't trust anyone, especially not the stone-cold agent she's falling for. Can they save the world before Rena's feelings trap her in an agent's fight for justice?

Fear Justice contains elements of fantasy, sci-fi, and paranormal, with a clean romance. It's the first book in an exciting new series called The Fear Chronicles.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT

Tony cleared his throat. “You said your dad was kidnapped?”

“Last night. Coach and my dad were friends. They joined the Army together.” Why was I babbling? Tony didn’t need to know my life story. “I showed up this morning because I thought he might know why these people were after my dad.”

“Did either of them tell you?”

I shook my head and looked at Tony. “The man who beat up Coach Andrews—he said he’d give me a head start before hunting me down.”

Again, Tony glanced in the mirror. “He didn’t happen to say he drives a black Lincoln, did he?”

As I spun in the seat and leaned over the headrest to see, the belt cut into my neck. Behind us, a black car crept closer with every second. Someone in the passenger seat leaned out of the window with a gun. “There’s a man with a gun following us and I’m not freaking out. At least, I don’t think I am.”

“No, you’re cool.”

With a bitter laugh, I turned back around and dropped down on the red vinyl seat. “Cool? When are you going to ask why I’m not afraid?”

Tony hit the brakes and made a turn that left me choking from the belt’s grip. “Right after you ask why I picked you up.”

Buy link:

 The Book is on sale for $0.99 during the tour.

 (please check price before buying)

Amazon link

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

C.C. Bolick grew up in south Alabama, where she’s happy to still reside. She’s an engineer by day and a writer by night—too bad she could never do one without the other.

Camping, fishing… she loves the outdoors and the warm Alabama weather. For years she thought up stories to write and finally started putting them on paper back in 2006. If you hear her talking with no one to answer, don’t think she’s crazy. Since talking through her stories works best, a library is her worst place to write… even though it’s her favorite!

C.C. loves to mix sci-fi and paranormal—throw in a little romance and adventure and you’ve got her kind of story. She’s written nine books including the LeftoverGirl series, The Agency series, and The Fear Chronicles.

Author Links:

Website

Facebook

Goodreads

Instagram

Twitter

-->

***********************


GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway




The tour dates can be found here