The Elf Gate series by Melody Daggerhart

[Sirtel]

I don't usually give book recommendations, because, well, tastes differ. But Melody Daggerhart is a self-published author whose work I recently discovered and I feel she deserves a word of praise, as she seems not to be well known.

The Elf Gate series (6 books so far, of which the last one came out in December) is epic fantasy. It's available from Amazon, Kobo and Smashwords (perhaps elsewhere too, but I didn't check). While the covers (drawn by the author herself) are, to put it mildly, not very attractive (to put it bluntly, IMHO they're pretty awful), the books themselves are very good. I've read all but the last two. Unlike the covers they're not childish at all, and while there's something resembling romance going on between the two main protagonists, they can't be classified as romance. Certainly the main focus is not on that. And the relationship evolves very slowly over the series, there's no insta-love or insta-sex in those books.

The books are proofread and edited, there are no spelling or grammar mistakes that I could spot. Plus the story, while not entirely free of cliches, is not a carbon copy of other fantasy works. It's also long and pretty convoluted, so suitable for those who like to immerse themselves in another world for a while.

All in all, if you're a fantasy fan, I'd suggest to give those books a try. I happened upon the first book entirely by chance, browsing the Amazon website, and my expectations weren't that high. But I was pleasantly surprised.

(I'm also not connected to the author in any way, nor have I received any books in exchange for a review, or some such stuff).

[JSWolf]

Given that they are self-published and the covers are terrible, I would have passed by these books. I may try the first one.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Given that they are self-published and the covers are terrible, I would not have passed by these books. I may try the first one.

Yep, those covers give a really wrong impression of her books. I wouldn't have bought them based on the covers either. But I read the sample and was interested enough to buy the first book, and all the rest after finishing the first.

[Xanthe]

I'll give it a try.

[svenlind]

A tempting review. I bought the first on

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Yep, those covers give a really wrong impression of her books. I wouldn't have bought them based on the covers either. But I read the sample and was interested enough to buy the first book, and all the rest after finishing the first.

Have you tried to contact Melody to tell her that her covers really need to be changed as they are losing her sales?

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Have you tried to contact Melody to tell her that her covers really need to be changed as they are losing her sales?

No. As the covers are her own work, she would almost certainly take it amiss. I'm not sure I want to deal with that.

(Yes, I'm a coward...)

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I don't usually give book recommendations, because, well, tastes differ. But Melody Daggerhart is a self-published author whose work I recently discovered and I feel she deserves a word of praise, as she seems not to be well known.

The Elf Gate series (6 books so far, of which the last one came out in December) is epic fantasy. It's available from Amazon, Kobo and Smashwords (perhaps elsewhere too, but I didn't check). While the covers (drawn by the author herself) are, to put it mildly, not very attractive (to put it bluntly, IMHO they're pretty awful), the books themselves are very good. I've read all but the last two. Unlike the covers they're not childish at all, and while there's something resembling romance going on between the two main protagonists, they can't be classified as romance. Certainly the main focus is not on that. And the relationship evolves very slowly over the series, there's no insta-love or insta-sex in those books.

The books are proofread and edited, there are no spelling or grammar mistakes that I could spot. Plus the story, while not entirely free of cliches, is not a carbon copy of other fantasy works. It's also long and pretty convoluted, so suitable for those who like to immerse themselves in another world for a while.

All in all, if you're a fantasy fan, I'd suggest to give those books a try. I happened upon the first book entirely by chance, browsing the Amazon website, and my expectations weren't that high. But I was pleasantly surprised.

(I'm also not connected to the author in any way, nor have I received any books in exchange for a review, or some such stuff).

Daggerhart? Yea, that's her real name. Admit it, she's really your girlfriend's best friend!

Seriously, thanks for the recommendation. For $3, why not? I'm always looking for new authors.

Yea, neither the cover nor the blurb would have caused me to give the series a second glance without your recommendation.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

No. As the covers are her own work, she would almost certainly take it amiss. I'm not sure I want to deal with that.

(Yes, I'm a coward...)

The covers are letting her books down. If they are as good as you say, then she really needs to get new covers.

After I read the first book and if I like it, I'll tell her about her covers. I'll tell the truth that if if it wasn't for your recommendation, that after seeing the covers, I would have passed on them without having read the descriptions. If nobody tells her, then she'll lose sales

The rule that a lot go by is that if the book is self-published and the cover is not good, bypass the book.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

Daggerhart? Yea, that's her real name. Admit it, she's really your girlfriend's best friend!

Actually that is her real name, according to the author bio at the back of her books.

[Dr. Drib]

I'm of the opinion that if an author has enough guts to put his or her name on a piece of writing, then it's a favor to the author to let her/him know - in a way that is constructive and helpful - and that, in this instance, these covers just don't work for [whatever] reasons. And my philosophy goes for an author's book, as well.

An author can ignore the critic. Or an author can see if there is any basis for the criticism.


KEY: Constructive criticism.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I'm of the opinion that if an author has enough guts to put his or her name on a piece of writing, then it's a favor to the author to let her/him know - in a way that is constructive and helpful - and that, in this instance, these covers just don't work for [whatever] reasons. And my philosophy goes for an author's book, as well.

An author can ignore the critic. Or an author can see if there is any basis for the criticism.


KEY: Constructive criticism.

I'll have to say that I rarely interact with authors that I read, and never from the stand point of giving feedback - constructive or otherwise. On the other hand, as a software writer, I was fine getting feedback from my customers. They were the customers, the point was to provide software they like.

[hildea]

From everything I've read, the majority of authors don't want to have negative feedback sent directly to them - and yes, that goes even if it's meant as constructive criticism. Here's one take on this, from Chuck Wendig: Hi, Definitely Don’t Tag Authors In Your Negative Reviews Of Their Books .

Originally Posted by Chuck Wendig

And here you might say, “But I have a right to write a negative review.” You do! And you should! Mildly dislike a book! Totally despise it! I just don’t want to hear about it. If I want to hear about it, I’ll seek it out. I do think there’s real value in leaving authors with a sense of agency in this
...
It’s on us to find the reviews. If we wanna roll around in the bad ones or pickle ourselves in the good ones, we can consent to that and seek the reviews out.
...
Is it the end of the world if you tag us in a negative review? No. Will I mute or block you or make a frowny face at you if you do? Almost certainly. In the same way I don’t tweet at you to tell you that your shoes are ugly or your child’s haircut is shitty. I think we can shore up this social contract a little and realize that some things just don’t need to be told directly to a person.

And here's another article, with links to some Twitter discussions: Don't @ me.

Criticising the cover isn't quite the same a criticising the novel, of course, but especially since it's drawn by the author I would assume the same rule for politeness applies there. If you want to comment on it, I suggest writing it in a review at Goodreads or Amazon, that way the author can seek it out when/if she's in a mood to read negative feedback.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I'm of the opinion that if an author has enough guts to put his or her name on a piece of writing, then it's a favor to the author to let her/him know - in a way that is constructive and helpful - and that, in this instance, these covers just don't work for [whatever] reasons. And my philosophy goes for an author's book, as well.

An author can ignore the critic. Or an author can see if there is any basis for the criticism.


KEY: Constructive criticism.

How does this sound...

I've read the first book in the Elf Gate series because of a recommendation I read by a MobileRead forum regular. If I had seen your eBooks on Amazon before the recommendation, I would have passed them by because the cover isn't very good. I don't take a second look at self-published eBook from an unknown author where the cover is not all that good. The story was good, but the cover is letting it down. I suggest that you have the covers redone so they catch the eye and get people to stop and take a look.

If you have a better suggestion, feel free to say. Thanks.

[hildea]

It's well written and gets your point across, but as I said, I suggest posting it as a review on Amazon or Goodreads -- that way the author can look it up when/if she's in a mood to appreciate constructive criticism.

Sending negative feedback -- even if it's done with the best of intentions, and is politely and constructively phrased -- directly to an author can be very unkind. I've seen even very successful authors writing about struggling with impostor syndrome and low self confidence, and how reading reviews (even mostly positive ones) can be hugely stressful at times, so it's something they need to be in the right mood for.