What We're Writing: Jenn is Blurbing

 Jenn McKinlay: Okay, so when I originally wrote this post I was officially out of contract, waiting to see if they publisher was interested in any more books from me. After fifty-plus manuscripts, you never know. I could have worn out my welcome. 

Well, I'm happy to say that yesterday I signed a contract (for something new that I can't talk about yet) so I remain employed, which I'm sure the Hooligans' colleges appreciate. So, what am I writing? Since I've been in the upside-down/in-between for a couple of months, I've been working on proposals, blurbs for other authors' books - so many blurbs! - articles, blog posts, you know, all of the things we authors write in addition to our books.

I could talk about any of the above for they all take huge amounts of time, but I want to focus on author endorsements. These are not easy for me. I tend to write long and I think blurbs need to be short (no one has time to read these things) but they also need to be accurate. Describe the book enthusiastically but don't give the plot away. Very, very, tricky. 

So here are a few of my recent book blurbs, and I want your honest opinion. Would any of these get you to buy the book? Or at the very least peak your interest? And do author endorsements matter to you at all or no?

Not for nothing, but there's a lot of pressure to gather endorsements and if y'all don't actually notice them or if they don't influence you to buy a book, well, that would be a relief actually. 

Ali Brady's UNTIL NEXT SUMMER beautifully captures everything that's magical and marvelous about long summer days, away camp, best friends, first kisses, finding your people and the place of your heart. When the Chickawah camp is placed in jeopardy, our protagonists try everything they can think of to save it. Rarely have I been so completely invested in the outcome of a story. In a word, it's Chicka-wonderful! Hey, if you know, you know and if you don't know you need to read UNTIL NEXT SUMMER! --Jenn McKinlay

"Ellen Byron's newest mystery series is a laugh out loud, make you snort, tale chock full of oddball characters in the delightfully rustic setting of an old motel. Come for the laughs, stay for the puzzler of a mystery that will keep you up entirely too late, trying to solve it." --Jenn McKinlay

Star Struck is a delightful addition to McCown's Hollywood Mystery series! With her years of experience in the industry, McCown crafts a zinger of a whodunit with all the glitz and glam a reader could want, along with a twisty turny mystery that readers will devour." --Jenn McKinlay

Confession: I have only bought one book because of an author endorsement and I hated it. I've never given them so much as a glance ever since. Shocking, I know.