Feedback for Prisoner 4374

[pinkmoon]

Couldn't help noticing that prisoner 4374 now has 15 reviews on Amazon all off which are 5 stars.

[Amanda]

Second book you've got me all excited now I think "R" was a lovely touch by the way it really added a lot to the book.

Thanks Pinkmoon,

Contrary to some peoples opinion, 'R' was a real person, an acquaintance of Cream. He had to be included to tell the whole story.

Yes, there will be a second book, which I am working on now. I am busy collecting all the documentary evidence that I need & sometimes these steps take longer than the actual writing.
Amanda

[pinkmoon]

Second book you've got me all excited now I think "R" was a lovely touch by the way it really added a lot to the book.

[Amanda]

Hi Amanda,

I just finished it and enjoyed it. I would agree with others that this is historical fiction and not nonfiction, but that is not relevant to the fact that it was a pleasure to read.

I wonder why you felt compelled to make a connection between Cream and the Ripper ("R"). The story of Cream himself is quite interesting by itself and really doesn't require a somewhat forced connection to the Ripper crimes.

Best,

Barnaby

Hi Barnaby,
Glad you enjoyed the book. However it isn't a 'forced connection' between Cream and the Ripper. 'R' is someone whom Cream met during his time at St.Thomas' Hospital. I believe that he may have a significant connection to the Ripper crimes. My second book will explain all.
Amanda

[Barnaby]

Hi Amanda,

I just finished it and enjoyed it. I would agree with others that this is historical fiction and not nonfiction, but that is not relevant to the fact that it was a pleasure to read.

I wonder why you felt compelled to make a connection between Cream and the Ripper ("R"). The story of Cream himself is quite interesting by itself and really doesn't require a somewhat forced connection to the Ripper crimes.

Best,

Barnaby

[Amanda]

Congrats, Amanda. This is quite an accomplishment. I just bought the Kindle version and I'm very excited to read it.

I agree with the other posters that the product itself is not scholarly for the reasons provided. But that is not to say that you yourself did not engage in scholarly pursuits in the course of creating it. There is an old saying that you have to read a library in order to write a book; in my opinion any good novel of historical fiction probably requires hundreds of hours of research.

Good luck and I will be sure to review it on Amazon when I have read it!

Thank you Barnaby.

Eloquently put. I shall look forward to your review with interest.

Amanda

[GUT]

Congrats, Amanda. This is quite an accomplishment. I just bought the Kindle version and I'm very excited to read it.

I agree with the other posters that the product itself is not scholarly for the reasons provided. But that is not to say that you yourself did not engage in scholarly pursuits in the course of creating it. There is an old saying that you have to read a library in order to write a book; in my opinion any good novel of historical fiction probably requires hundreds of hours of research.

Good luck and I will be sure to review it on Amazon when I have read it!

G'day Barnaby

That is a great summation of the distinction between the work of a scholar and a scholarly work.

Many novel writers [and I am not calling this book a novel] put in a great deal of research.

My dear wife has a number of works in production at the moment some are scholarly works designed for use at tertiary education level, some are novels and some fall in between. All are based n the first instance on her research for her PhD Thesis.

They all have the same scholarly research behind them some however are footnoted and referenced others aren't and some fictional license has been used.

[Barnaby]

Congrats, Amanda. This is quite an accomplishment. I just bought the Kindle version and I'm very excited to read it.

I agree with the other posters that the product itself is not scholarly for the reasons provided. But that is not to say that you yourself did not engage in scholarly pursuits in the course of creating it. There is an old saying that you have to read a library in order to write a book; in my opinion any good novel of historical fiction probably requires hundreds of hours of research.

Good luck and I will be sure to review it on Amazon when I have read it!

[Amanda]

Ripper Conference Sales

For those who are interested, 'Prisoner 4374' will be on sale at the a Ripper Conference in Nottingham.

Amanda

[pinkmoon]

I'm really looking forward to the next one.

[Amanda]

Thank you very much for your gracious reply, and good luck with the second book!

Thanks Pat,

Your constructive criticism is much appreciated, it will no doubt help me to improve.
Amanda

[Pcdunn]

Dear Mark/Pat,

I absolutely see what you're getting at, perhaps due to my inexperience I omitted a bibliography as I didn't realise I should.
However, in the acknowledgement page. I do list all of the people and resources that were used to find documents, photos and information.

I wanted to make this a readable book for the general public and not focus too much on the 'Ripper' aspect.
Lesson learned and book number two will enable you to 'retrace my footsteps'.
Amanda

Thank you very much for your gracious reply, and good luck with the second book!

[Amanda]

For the public...

Sorry, posted twice due to being overseas with internet issues.

[Amanda]

Dear Mark/Pat,

I absolutely see what you're getting at, perhaps due to my inexperience I omitted a bibliography as I didn't realise I should.
However, in the acknowledgement page. I do list all of the people and resources that were used to find documents, photos and information.

I wanted to make this a readable book for the general public and not focus too much on the 'Ripper' aspect.
Lesson learned and book number two will enable you to 'retrace my footsteps'.
Amanda

[Pcdunn]

Hi Amanda,

You've misunderstood the term 'scholarly apparatus'. I meant that it doesn't have footnotes, citations, a bibliography, or anything that would enable anybody else to retrace your footsteps (if they wanted to). That's an observation, not an insult.

The presence of scholarly apparatus of this sort is one of the things that characterises non-fiction texts, although it's still the prerogative of the reader to check the accuracy of the details provided.

Regards,

Mark

Amanda,

First, congratulations on your first book! You may well be proud of it.

I am an academic librarian, and Mark is correct. Scholarly biographies will have all of the things listed above, and are one of the very things that makes them scholarly. At the least, it should contain a list of the books (or other sources) which you consulted in writing your book.

I will admit I wondered at your description of it being told in the first person by Cream himself. That could make it seem, at first glance, to be a work of biographical fiction, where the rules are looser. I get the impression, however, that this is more intended to be a popular book, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.