Category: How To Write Fiction

A Jarring Misstep in Craft ~~Life Unwritten by T.I. Lowe ~~ Book Review

1 star out of 5          

As a published author, I hold a firm line: fiction should serve the story, not the writer’s personal agenda. In this book, T.I. Lowe—writing in first person—abruptly breaks character to deliver unsolicited religious commentary. It’s not subtle, it’s not earned, and it’s not appropriate.

This kind of narrative hijacking is the literary equivalent of shoehorning in a political rant mid-scene—whether it’s “Trump should be king” or “Trump is a whiny, narcissistic man-child.” Regardless of the viewpoint, it’s a breach of craft and reader trust.

I’ve appreciated some of Lowe’s previous work, but this one felt like a sermon disguised as a story. The Mormon/Baptist insertions weren’t just distracting—they were disruptive. If you want to preach, write nonfiction. If you want to tell a story, stay in character and respect your audience.
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 BOOKS BY TRISHA SUGAREK

If you enjoyed this review, you might love my own stories — full of heart, grit, and unforgettable characters.

The Deep South Trilogy

  • Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us 
  • Mother Mac’s Boarding House
  • Coming Soon: Book Three: Living at Mother Mac’s

 

 

 

Strong Women Battling Life’s Challenges

Reading This Was a Slog…Book Review, The Bucket List

1 out of 5 stars  ~~  Book Review 

My fans and friends know that I’ve always aimed to support fellow writers. Even when my opinion falls short of a rave, I strive to offer constructive critique. But today, I’m taking the gloves off to review The Bucket List by Rachel Hanna—hoping the sting of this critique might serve as a teachable moment… or several.

📚 A Format That Fails the Basics

Let’s start with the basics: formatting. Writing 101 teaches the importance of justified text—it gives the page clean, crisp edges and a polished appearance. This book ignored that entirely. The font size was awkward too: larger than standard, yet not quite “LARGE PRINT.” It felt like  formatting limbo.

🖋️ First-Person Fatigue

Then there’s the choice of tense. First-person narration can work, but here it felt like a shortcut. In my opinion, it’s often a sign of lazy storytelling—used to bypass deeper character development or narrative complexity.

📖 Missing Front Matter

The front matter was surprisingly sparse. No copyright information. No list of other titles by the author. No acknowledgements. These omissions made the book feel unfinished, like a draft rather than a published work.

🧂 Needs More Seasoning

Now, onto the writing itself. Rachel Hanna shows potential, but she needs more seasoning—and a good thesaurus, by her side, wouldn’t hurt.

🙄 Stop Explaining the Joke

Her tendency to “mansplain” her own humor and plot points was frustrating. Rachel, trust your readers. We’re smart. We get it.

😰 Anxiety Overload

Jill’s anxiety, a central theme, was hammered home so relentlessly that it became exhausting.

🔁 Redundant Repetition

Repetition was another issue: the author would describe Jill’s emotion or action, then immediately echo it in the next line, as herself. It felt redundant and clunky.

📉 A Weak Ending Wrapped in Explanation

After slogging through the entire book, the final paragraph delivered yet another dose of “mansplaining”—a summation of the story’s lessons, as if the narrative hadn’t made them clear. That kind of wrap-up suggests the story itself wasn’t strong enough to stand on its own.

🌐 Website Placement Misfire and Typo Trouble 

And finally, as the story closes on the last page, the author tacked on her website address—without ceremony or formatting. Typically, this kind of promotional link belongs on a separate page, ideally paired with a graphic or call-to-action that feels intentional.
To make matters worse, there was a typo: “Visit Rachel’s store at store. Rachelhannaauthor.com.” That stray period and awkward phrasing made it feel rushed and unprofessional—like an afterthought rather than a curated invitation.
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📬 Want more reviews, author interviews, and behind-the-scenes glimpses into the writing life? Sign up on the — just enter your email address and never miss a post.

 BOOKS BY TRISHA SUGAREK

If you enjoyed this review, you might love my own stories — full of heart, grit, and unforgettable characters.

The Deep South Trilogy

  • Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us 
  • Mother Mac’s Boarding House
  • Coming Soon: Book Three: Living at Mother Mac’s

 

 

Book 1 in series of true crime

Tips for Creative Writing * Fiction

Recently, the Professor leading the creative writing department at Pace University wrote to say that she was using one of my true crime stories (Act of Murder) as the sample text in the offered course, “How To Write Mysteries and True Crime”.  Such an honor!

I fired off enough copies to cover the students taking the class with these tips:

TIPS:

1. You can’t have too much dialogue
2. You CAN have too much descriptive
3. SHOW don’t TELL.  For example: Instead of writing:  (telling) Stella walked across the busy street, dodging cars.   (SHOWING) Holding up her hand, her badge tucked in her palm, Stella skipped to the other side, between the parked cars jammed to a standstill on the busy street . “Whad’ya waiting for, Jack?” She taunted her partner. 

4. Be certain your forensics are accurate.
 I once called an ME to ask how long traces of Vanilla Wafers and grape soda would remain in the stomach. (Angel of Murder) I didn’t trust what i found online. He was kind enough to take my call.

5. Your deceased victim is a character in your story. They should be as interesting as the other characters. At the least, they should have a life story.

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A Teachable Moment. Book Review of Just for the Summer

I try to keep my book reviews focused on the positive. I  choose not to tear down another writer.  However, my critique of Just for the Summer by Melody Carlson serves as a teachable moment for other writers, highlighting the perils of writing a story with two protagonists.  
First, the review:
3 out of 5 stars

The plot was charming and had great potential, but…
Ginny was a fine protagonist. This reader quickly felt empathy for this woman. Jacqueline…not so much! 
The chapters bounced back and forth between the two women as they had agreed to ‘trade places’, that is, ‘job swap’ for the summer.   
Sounds interesting….right?  

Unfortunately, I found the second heroine of our story very much a caricature of a shallow villainess.  Jacqueline, her boss Diana, and her boy friend, were all clichés. Overblown characters with no redeeming traits. 
And at the end I found the ‘wrapping up’ of Jacqueline’s story too ‘pat’. 
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Maybe the problem was that the book was top-heavy with Ginny’s life and struggles.  Maybe the problem was the author didn’t give enough ink and paper to Jacqueline.  Hard to say. 

But, if you plan on writing a story with two protagonists and one turns out to be an antagonist….be careful of these pitfalls when mapping out your plot. 
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A Teachable Moment. Book Review ~ Just for the Summer

I try to keep my book reviews focused on the positive. I  choose not to tear down another writer.  However, my critique of Just for the Summer by Melody Carlson serves as a teachable moment for other writers, highlighting the perils of writing a story with two protagonists.  
First, the review:
3 out of 5 stars

The plot was charming and had great potential, but…
Ginny was a fine protagonist. This reader quickly felt empathy for this woman. Jacqueline…not so much! 
The chapters bounced back and forth between the two women as they had agreed to ‘trade places’, that is, ‘job swap’ for the summer.   
Sounds interesting….right?  

Unfortunately, I found the second heroine of our story very much a caricature of a shallow villainess.  Jacqueline, her boss Diana, and her boy friend, were all clichés. Overblown characters with no redeeming traits. 
And at the end I found the ‘wrapping up’ of Jacqueline’s story too ‘pat’. 
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Maybe the problem was that the book was top-heavy with Ginny’s life and struggles.  Maybe the problem was the author didn’t give enough ink and paper to Jacqueline.  Hard to say. 

But, if you plan on writing a story with two protagonists and one turns out to be an antagonist….be careful of these pitfalls when mapping out your plot. 
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Mother Mac’s Receives Stunning Review

Diane Donovan, Sr. Reviewer for Midwest Book Review gave my newest book a stunning review. I am so happy to share it with my readers,

“Mother Mac’s Boarding House is a prequel to Trisha Sugarek’s Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us, and will especially delight readers seeking for more “origin” detail about the Georgia backwoods orphaned siblings.

The story opens with a literal bang: Martha ‘Marty’ McBride never would have believed that a man would have gotten past her defenses and knocked her silly. Spunky, determined Marty MacKenzie is planning an escape from her abusive husband Hank, despite the major challenges of money and locating a safe haven. In 1949, there were few resources for women who wanted to flee such circumstances.

As in her previous book, Sugarek is adept at capturing the thoughts and lingo of the South to bring these Mississippi characters to life: One more meal in this house. One more night with that summa’bitch. Hopefully, this heavy meal will put him to sleep early. Then, tomorrow, if Ah’m lucky̶̶̶̶ and as Mama used to say˗˗’the creek don’t rise’, Ah’ll be gone for good.

When Marty stumbles across an abandoned once-grand house for sale, her new life begins to take shape. Again, Sugarek’s talent for capturing atmosphere, dreams, and realities springs to life through descriptions and reflections which impart a “you are here” feel to her story, where Marty: “…didn’t see the peeling paint, the knee-high weeds choking the grass out, the broken windows, or the hole in the front porch floor. Oh no, all she saw was her future home, and the home of the boarders she would rent rooms to. The meals Ah will make for the lonely traveler. The vase of wildflowers on Mah kitchen table. Marty’s heart skipped a beat as she gazed at the house. She could almost hear the laughter of the boarders, smell the aroma of home-cooked meals, and feel the warmth of a home filled with people and purpose.

How Marty confronts the “old world and its rules” with her own special brand of determination makes for an uplifting, evocative story of transformation that brings the Old South alive. Marty’s chance encounter with Hannah Mae and her brother Jerry thus becomes fuller-bodied with the backdrop of events that come full circle for previous readers while welcoming newcomers to the extraordinary coincidences and self-determined life of a woman whose dreams reach out to embrace everyone around her.

Teens, young adults, and many an adult will relish these strong female characters, which expand from Marty’s world to embrace the circumstances of Elenora Parks, an Army nurse veteran newly returned from the war who finds a new life as a teacher and a home that offers an unexpected sanctuary for a pregnant, grieving woman.

Mother Mac’s Boarding House is an exquisite read not only for its realistic Southern setting and characters, but for its uplifting display of female characters whose actions inject positivity and new options into the world around them.

In stark contrast to the “me first” sentiments that seem to permeate modern times, Marty’s desire to escape results in a creation that offers safe harbors to others, as well.

Additionally, the political and social milieu of the times, which passed many restrictive rules on African Americans, comes to life in the light of personal experience. This is a far more intimate, compelling manner of absorbing civil rights and American history than any nonfiction text could achieve, immersing readers in the life of Marty’s journey.

Marty’s confrontations with social and personal repressive elements, and how she rises above them to influence others’ lives, results in a thoroughly compelling story that is hard to put down.

Libraries choosing Mother Mac’s Boarding House will find its impeccable historical research and equally powerful mix of dialogue and atmosphere makes it a top recommendation for book clubs and reading groups interested in women’s and African American experiences in the 1950s Deep South.

It stands nicely on its own but also serves as an important prequel to the events of Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us, merging history and social inspection in an uplifting, revealing manner that circles around questions of safety, home, connections, and self-determination.” Midwest Book Review
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When Writing is HOT!

Dear Readers/Writers,
Since my last posting on Jan. 4th, I’ve rarely left my keyboard, each day, from 9 a.m. to sometimes as late as 6 p.m. I’ve rounded the bend with 62,000 words to date and still writing. It would be more accurate to say I am taking dictation from all the characters in my new story. 
A Senior reviewer, D. Donovan, at Midwest Book Review, whom I’ve known for years, was willing to review the new book in a raw, very rough first draft so that I could glean a couple of ‘blurbs’ for the book’s cover. 
 I’m certainly happy I asked. Well, all I can say is Wow!

“Mother Mac’s Boarding House is an exquisite read....”  and

“Additionally, the political and social milieu of the times, which passed many restrictive rules on African Americans, comes to life in the light of personal experience. This is a far more intimate, compelling manner of absorbing civil rights and American history than any nonfiction text could achieve, immersing readers in the life of Marty’s journey….”

You’ve often ‘heard’ me describe the event where I write in my head ’till it needs to spill out (no more room) and that my characters take over their own stories and I become merely the typist. 

No, it doesn’t happen every time but when it does happen, I consider it the proverbial, “gift horse” and I’m not about to ignore it. 

As this is a prequel to Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us, I’ve had to work backwards weaving the dates of that book with this one while being true to the dates of documented American history. I’ve found it to be a challenge.

Just remember, your emerging characters can tell the story far better than you, the Author, can. 
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Writing a prequel: Mother Mac’s Boarding House

I don’t know how an idea comes to other writers, but for this writer a prequel fell into my lap (brain) and I have been typing as fast as I can to get it all down. After friends and fans read Ain’t Nuthin’ Gonna Separate Us, most of them demanded a sequel, NOW!  

But, Marty’s (Mother Mac) ‘back story’ came rushing into my head, down through my fingers, and onto the keyboard. 
What drove her out of her home in Alabama?
Why Laurel, Mississippi?
How did she become a landlady and owner of a
boarding house.
Who are all these characters that have appeared to rent a room from Marty?
How do the Jim Crow laws impact her life every day?
Will the children return?

The research has been particularly fascinating.
Where did colored truck drivers eat? 
Could they get mail from home on the road?
What happens when Marty is up against two white building/health inspectors?
How can she care for a war veteran with PTSD? 
Back in 1950s we certainly didn’t have a name for PTSD. We just thought our brothers, sons and husbands came back home crazy and violent. 

I’ve never written a prequel before and it soon became apparent that I had to tie up threads hanging from the first book. So much fun!
Gotta go! My new book calls! 
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Interview with Tracy Sumner (part 2)

Q. Do you enjoy writing in other forms (playwriting, poetry, short stories, etc.)?  If yes, tell us about it.

TS. I enjoy writing shorter romance (novellas) a lot! I think I’m pretty good at capturing a full story in shorter form.

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

TS. The only time I’ve had any success in this business was when I just pushed aside everything else and WROTE. Write, keep writing, network with other writers or at least, subscribe to their newsletter and see what they’re doing. Reach out to readers. Be accessible. Enjoy the process! And don’t try to do someone’s else process – yours is great!

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters?

TS. I have the hero in mind, always, before I start. But characters surprise you on the page. I truly find them while writing.

Tudor Dress up

Q. What first inspired you to write?

TS. Reading “The Outsiders” was a big inspiration for me. Stephen King for sure, although I don’t write in that genre. Then, I stumbled upon Vows, by LyVyrle Spencer, and I was done!

Q. What comes first to you? The Characters or the Situation?

TS. CHARACTERS!

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing?

TS. Yes, I think I do, if things are really rolling. But some days, it’s hard. Generally, writing is hard work. I love my pages, I hate my pages. LOL

Q. What compelled you to choose and settle on the genre you now write in?

TS. That first romance I read in college, that was it for me. I ended up reading about 1,000 romances, then figured, I can write one of these. I was a journalism major, and I started writing in high school, so…

Q. Are you working on something now or have a new release coming up? If so tell us about it.

TS. I have a new release coming in May, THREE SINS AND A SCOUNDREL. It’s the final (#6 full length book) in the Duchess Society series. It’s been a really great series for me and readers seem to love the heroes!

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

TS. I was first published in 2002 with Kensington Publishing. But I also had a career in marketing, so I dallied. Then, in 2017 following a breast cancer diagnosis, I figured I should start writing in earnest. And here we are!

Q. Do you think we will see, in our lifetime, the total demise of paper books?

TS. No, I really don’t. I still love reading print. However, one great thing about Kindle is the backlighting. When your vision gets wonky after 40, backlighting is awesome! But I still love holding a book in my hand #1 above everything. And I still sell print copies – of course, nothing compared to ebooks.

Q. What makes a writer great?

TS. Be courageous enough to be themselves – which allows their voice to shine.

Q. and the all-important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like for you?

TS. The daily grind. Butt to chair. It’s not sexy and it’s not easy. As I said before, some days I hate the pages. Then the next day, they seem not so bad. Day after day, then somewhere along the way, we have a book!

Q. What’s your downtime look like?

TS. I like to read (of course!) and I love yoga. My son is 16, so my days are filled with mom things, too. I walk a lot in the city, too. I love museums and movies, although since Covid, I haven’t been to the theatre as much.

Q. Have you or do you want to write in another genre?

TS. I have written a contemporary series and someday soon may publish those. I’m really all about the characters, not the time period. (I think.)

Q. Note to Self: (a life lesson you’ve learned.)

TS. I asked Nora Roberts this once at a conference and she said: PATIENCE. I didn’t get what she meant then, but I do now. Take your time, exhale, breath in love, breath out love. And write. Or read! I think reading is the best, actually.

Did you miss Part 1?
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Interview with Author, Tracy Sumner

USA Today Bestselling author Tracy Sumner’s storytelling career began when she picked up a historical romance on a college beach trip, and she fondly blames LaVyrle Spencer for her obsession with the genre. When she’s not writing sizzling love stories about feisty heroines and their temperamental-but-entirely-lovable heroes, Tracy enjoys reading, snowboarding, college football (Go Tigers!), yoga, and travel.

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, or special space for your writing? (please provide a photo of you at work in your shed, room, closet, barn, or houseboat….) Or tell us about your ‘dream’ workspace.

TS. I write wherever I can. In Stephen King’s book On Writing, he has thoughts about not setting yourself into a habit where you can only write in one, perfect place. Or when you feel like the muse is sitting on your shoulder. 🙂 That said, I have a writing area in my bedroom. LOL, I live in NYC and we don’t have extra space to give for offices typically. It’s cute, though, and has my writing awards and personal thing, books and swag! My dream would, of course, be to have a room that looked like a Regency library! With shelves and shelves of books!

Q. Do you have any special rituals or quirks when you sit down to write? (a neat workspace, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, a glass of brandy, favorite pajamas, etc.)

TS. I like to write with gentle music on, no lyrics. I can’t have television or anything distracting on. I usually read the first two pages (or so) of the previous day’s work to get into the rhythm. I also edit these pages at this time, so in the end, working this way, my manuscripts are fairly clean.

Q. Could you tell us something about yourself that we might not already know?

TS. I’ve lived in Europe and Asia – and my son is adopted from Vietnam! I live in NYC, but I’m a native South Carolinian and still have a place in Beaufort, SC, too that I’ll retire to.

Q. What tools do you begin with? Legal pad, spiral notebook, pencils, fountain pen, or do you go right to your keyboard?

TS. I’m a right to keyboard writer! 😉

Q. Do you have pets? Tell us about them and their names. 

TS. Before Covid, I fostered kittens a lot (harder to do in NYC due to space limitations) and I adopted one of my fosters, Banksy. He’s about 8 now and is a love bug! You’ll see he has one eye. He was spray-painted as a kitten by a homeless man and rescued by the police. It damaged his eye, which was removed, and I named him Banksy, after the graffiti artist!

Q. Do you enjoy writing in other forms (playwriting, poetry, short stories, etc.)?
If yes, tell us about it.

Join us next Friday for part 2 of this Interview
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A few BOOKS BY TRISHA SUGAREK