In an exciting turn of events, Alex has made the Quarter Finalists cut for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards. Only 250 folks make it out of 10,000 – top 2.5%, baby.
In a crazy twist of fate I was chosen and one of the ladies in my writer’s group was not. Since she made the Semis in a previous year, that really made us all wonder. But I’m one round away from that loftly goal – only 100 folks make it to the Semi-Finals, my goal from the beginning.
Even more exciting than the news itself was the feedback I received for the round, which I shamelessly print again below. Thanks for being excited with me guys.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
The main character is amazing. Flawed yet trying, and all so human for someone who has such a special skill like mind reading.
What aspect needs the most work?
I wasn’t clear on if Mindspace was a state of being for his mind reading skills or an organization. A little clarity on that would have been good.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
This was engaging, enjoyable, and easy to get lost in the story. No needless repetitions, very smooth!
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
The narrator’s voice is a strong one, I like his dry wit and sense of understatement. He’s reminiscent of the best fictional detectives, like Sam Spade and Harry Bosch, but he doesn’t seem to take himself that seriously. If the mystery is a good one, I could see myself enjoying spending time with him.
What aspect needs the most work?
I’m not sure what value the author gets in setting the piece in the future. Particularly as it doesn’t seem that he/she has fully committed to the choice. Sure, there are air cruisers and allusions to the Tech Wars, and the main character is a telepath and everyone seems to be cool with it…but there’s some much that’s 21st century normal (pencils, cigarettes, PDFs) one wonders why the author bothered. The excerpt would be just as good set in the present.
What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
I like this piece, the ease with which the author writes, his/her sense of humor, the relationship between Cherabino and the narrator. It follows a formula, but it’s a tough formula to get right, and this author does, very nicely.
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