Karl Drinkwater
Biography
To find out more, please visit my blog http://karldrinkwater.blogspot.com/ or view the biography page there: http://tinyurl.com/aboutkarl
Where to find Karl Drinkwater online
Where to buy in print
videos
Turner promo
Promo video for Turner (1980's style!)
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/109350
My Aberystwyth University Book Festival talk
Video of the talk I gave about Turner - see http://karldrinkwater.blogspot.com/2011/12/talking-about-turner.html
The Runner
A short descriptive piece trying to capture the experience of running.
Books
Karl Drinkwater’s tag cloud
Smashwords book reviews by Karl Drinkwater
- Smashwords Book Marketing Guide
on Dec. 08, 2011
Many thanks, it has given me a number of ideas to try out which I hadn't already thought of for my book. Having read the guide last night I am now going through it a second time and putting the ideas into practice.
- Catharsis
on April 12, 2012
This novel did exactly what I wanted: entertained me on a long train journey to France and back. The novel was well plotted and confidently written.
There are definitely influences from Stephen King. Phrases such as "Sometimes they came back" reminded me of his stories; some of the children scenes resembled Salem's Lot; and the plot setup was reminiscent of Needful Things in the way that characters were manipulated so as to create animosities between them.
One downside of the structure is that there is lots of exposition. This is mostly unavoidable if you are going to introduce a large cast of characters and want each to feel rounded. However, although the downside is that it can slow down the novel slightly, it does lead to a feeling of scale and interconnectedness which compensates. I just mention this so that you don't get disappointed with this novel if you are after something fast-paced from the off. Instead it works best if you let it get under your skin and drift along for the ride.
There were a few typos, no more than inevitably sneaks into a work of this length while editing out other errors. I've therefore not let them affect my rating, and rather than list them have emailed Jonathan directly, so they will probably disappear from future versions and you can ignore this comment.
All in all a satisfying read that doesn't answer every question, but does take us to a mysterious and satisfying conclusion.
- The Best Friend
on April 12, 2012
Concisely written yet only revealing the situation to the reader gradually. I would have been interested to also read it as something longer, to know more details, but perhaps that would destroy its effect.
- Ghosts in a Desert World
on April 24, 2012
Matthew certainly has imagination - this collection includes many surprising elements and setups, whilst still often staying true to the genres they inhabit. Many of the stories are also subtly tied into the 'Ghosts in a Desert World' theme which is a satisfying way of creating a cohesive feel to the sometimes surreal collection.
On the downside, the collection needs a bit more editing/proofreading to catch typos such as:
"On the forth blow it finally gave..."
"He steels the flesh of humanity"
"He spots a large scorpion [...] It arches its tale"
In a few stories I felt that there was a lot of exposition, whilst sometimes missing out information I would have liked. For example, in 'Future Kingdom: The King's Dome' I was impressed by great imagination and an interesting and horrible setting. In this world there is "slave labour and slaughter of all humans under the age of thirteen". However, although there is a long description of how the narrator's friend Teisha managed to survive to adulthood, we are not given any similar detail about the protagonist Aldor, even though it would be a useful element for characterising him. I did also wonder if the society would have died out by then if there are no new generations making it to adulthood.
Overall it feels like a competent first collection where the ideas sometimes lead slightly ahead of execution. It will be interesting to see Matthew's style develop and how he tackles a single unified narrative such as a novel as his experience as a writer grows - we all learn a lot about technique from every piece we write, and constructive criticism received, but it still requires good imagination to create a compelling setting. I think Matthew has that imagination.
- Streets of Red by Kenneth Chirayil & Zechariah Dewitt
on April 28, 2012
An enjoyable and quick read with a Death Wish pulp vibe. It could expand well into a longer story. Tip - don't read it on your smartphone, it benefits from a larger screen!
- The Green Man
on April 28, 2012
This was a satisfying short story that acts as a pleasant diversion. I was able to predict the outcome (which is not a criticism) but was impressed at the paragraph about the long thin arm and brambles, which was spot on in every way. I won't quote it fully or say more in case it risks spoiling the story. There were one or two minor typos, easily missed, but the story is well-written with a good mix of physicality, setting, dialogue and horror.
- Ivory
on June 02, 2012
[Contains spoilers] I had read reviews elsewhere (e.g. Goodreads) which mention the slow pace, that it only picked up towards the end. This is true, but is not necessarily a flaw, more a matter of taste. I was happy to follow events in a slow-burn way, but it won't suit the impatient.
The novel is a strange mix. On the one hand there is some good writing, convincing detail ("shoved it whole into his mouth and gnashed bitterly at it, swallowing with self-loathing"), good use of painting as analogy/theme, professional plotting, and original ideas (the twist at the end caught me by surprise, having fallen for the red herrings as to the truth about Ivory).
The surprising downside for me was something easier to avoid, and therefore all the more frustrating - typos. They are nowhere near as frequent as I have found in other free books, but each one distracts, and the common errors are such an easy thing to avoid with extra proofreading. I’ll list some here but send the full list to the author in case they want to update the novel, so if you read Ivory in future this criticism may not apply any more (add a star to the rating!). Some examples that stood out:
the hiss of the tires thrashing the puddles [UK writer and UK book, so tyres]
Within a few minutes they were into ardent throws / men and women in throws of violence [throes]
he lead the way with a determined step [led]
gradual decent of a jaw [descent]
the compliment of light and detail had to be right / this form of art to compliment my own [complement]
her mop of springy raven and died blonde curls / bangs of starkly died black hair [dyed]
Since she had bumbed into Gloria Denza [bumped]
He couldn’t bare the thought of her knowing [bear]
he knew the voice emenated from her [emanated]
sound in the air was faint and illusive in its direction [elusive]
draped the front’s of the houses / vehicles that the Eastern European’s had used [unnecessary apostrophe - plurals]
There are missed opportunities in places. For example the bit where the protagonist has sex with Ivory is skipped over at first. Although there is no need for anything gratuitous, when we are dealing with a being as alien as Ivory - and after having created desire in the protagonist for so long - it seems to short-change the reader if this is skipped over. (For me this point was proved by a later flashback to the good detail of her facial expression during sex when she doesn’t think she is being watched - the writer missed a trick by not making more of this kind of thing). Another example could be the possessed miniatures at the end. They provided menace that wasn't as fully realised as it could have been. If I was to restructure the novel I would probably bring their part of the story forward and let them add to a rising sense of horror and danger over a period of days - and only then provide the Ivory-delivered coup-de-grace. This would help with the novel's pace, and some work on the first half could enhance that too. There is also some weirdness, such as Ivory leaving a locked house and returning, which the protagonist considers impossible - yet he glosses over this and it passes in a way that seems more convenient for the writer than realistic.
Although not related to the content of the novel, the cover would work better with less blood, and there is no need for the skull in the eye. Subtlety wins in some cases. Though I do like the way Steve uses a single tone for his book covers, it makes them distinctive and attractive.
So, overall, a novel that generally manages to avoid unintentional cliché and create a convincing world, with some excellent elements that show the writer's skill, yet missing greatness due to some basic errors and missed opportunities where the work could be improved. The novel is free, so one can hardly whinge that things aren't perfect, but the promise it shows, and the unique enigma at its heart, should be allowed to have full expression with no distractions. I'm certainly going to have a look at some of Steve's other work.
