Hosted by YA Bound - Check out the rest of the blog tour stops!

Today I'm part of the blog tour for The Game, mystery/thriller with paranormal twist, written by Shane Scollins. Except the usual (basic info about the book and author), you can also read an interesting little article about most common mistake in fiction today (written by Shane Scollins) and of course there is a giveaway... ;)

The Game by Shane Scollins

Genre: Mystery, Paranormal

Format: Ebook, 231 pages
Published On: March 13, 2013 by Limitless Publishing

Goodreads • Shelfari • LibraryThing
Amazon

Summary (from Goodreads):

No matter where you are, they’ll find you, and put you in “The GAME”.

Candice Laguna’s life is being systematically dismantled, by an unknown force, for a reason she can’t imagine. But she is about to become the unwilling star of a reality game competition the likes of which has never been broadcast to the world.

Just when things get darkest, a mysterious man snatches her from the grips of doom. He is a man who is not what he appears, and not who he says. He has no name and his motivation to help Candice is not what it seems to be.

THE GAME is a mystery/thriller with an unpredictable paranormal twist. It has action and adventure and plays up the everyday exploitation of reality television obsession gone wrong.

The most common mistakes I see in books today is a lack of authenticity and original feel. I think that stems from the hurried approach some writers are taking to publication. They want to get "out there" so bad that they rush the story and don't learn who they are as writers before they feel the pressing need to join the party. They see some trend in the market that is hot, and they quickly copy it and hope to capitalize. Self-publishing has made this more pervasive than ever because the waiting time from concept to creation is very short. I think the originality is suffering.

Now, I know it’s all but impossible to be totally original. Everything has been done before at this point. You don't necessarily have to be original to be great. But you do have to be authentic, which means you have to know yourself as a writer. I’ve read a lot of books lately that seem to be almost chapter-for-chapter the same as something else I just read. I've actually confused books lately and that’s never really happened before in the past. I’m not sure what to make of that.

When I wrote THE GAME, I expected it to catch people by surprise. In fact, I thought about turning it into a much more linear story. But I didn't, and for a very good reason. I wanted it to make people wonder what I was thinking. I wanted that unexpected twist to kick people in the teeth. I wanted to buck the system a little bit and toss the expected formula out the window. For the most part people are loving it, but some people can't wrap their heads around the sudden turns in the book. Which is fine, in my heart, I felt that the book was meant to be that way for a reason.

When I go into a book, I never quite know what I'm going to come out with. But that's not the only working formula. Some plotters and planners write great original stories. It’s really about what works for you and knowing yourself as a writer. I think some writers are failing to put themselves into their work no matter how they create it. They have a good idea and write well enough, but instead of just using their imaginations and what's inside their hearts and heads, they just follow the formula that others have used to achieve success.

Let's face it, there are a hundreds of vampire love stories out there, and some of them are very well crafted and authentic. It doesn't matter if you copy something that's already been done, as long as the story comes from within you. Readers won't be fooled, they know the difference, and those books lacking authenticity won't sell. We are all individuals and no two of us will tell the exact same story the exact same way, which is what makes similar books different. I've read a lot of very static books lately and I find myself wondering, where the writer is in the pages.

Giveaway:

As part of The Game blog tour, Shane Scollins and YA Bound are hosting a giveaway:

• FIVE e-book copies of The Game
• Open Internationally!!!
• Fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter.

Good luck!!