awww... I've got haters heh heh heh...
From one of 3 reviews of my book from amazon.com:
"There are several eyebrow-raising issues with this book.
The first is that the author's title, Esquire, implies that he is a lawyer. Since the author is clearly not a lawyer, and this book is a supposed autobiographical experience of "the darker times in his 20 something year old life," it immediately loses creditable. My suspicion is that he simply did not realize what the title implied.
I also think the book would've been better had the author considered his target demographic. A book about war appeals to the Right, yet the author's bias is very clearly Left.
Another simple but worrisome contradiction is the book's length. It doesn't make it to the triple digits yet the description makes the book seem to be all things to all people. At 90 pages, I don't think an author can do anything other than stick to their core competencies.
My last issue is the book's apparent lack of a copy editor. It reads like a first draft. I fully intend to return a marked-up version to the publisher for correction.
Verdict: Stay home and read Tim O'Brien again, unless you enjoy self-indulgent poetry. The Things They Carried "
wow... someone doesn't seem to like me, or my writing much. That is, of course, assuming they read it. Because I see no evidence that they did.
As far as why I'm Skitz M. Jones Esq. for the history and uses of the title Esquire- look here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esquire
"Though commonly misunderstood to be the right solely of lawyers, the title "esquire" after the name may actually be used by anyone in many states. However, in some states, the use of the term is limited solely to attorneys licensed to practice law in that state if such usage implies that the person is a licensed attorney.[1] It has been used historically, and still is seen occasionally, as merely a more formal honorific than "mister"."
So that knocks that out. Does no one remember "Bill S. Preston Esq." From Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure? :-P
I thought it sounded good with the rest of the name, and according to all I've read, I've every right to use it if I so choose. Hell, I recommend everyone I know add Esq. to the end of their name. It just gives ya the warm fuzzies.
As for the book length arguements- it's poetry, which I'm not completely sure the person understood. I'm not writing the next great war novel- like the book the person recommended instead of mine. Never claimed to be. Hell, wasn't even at war when I wrote it. War came after. There is nothing in the book about war, the only mention of war is in my author bio. Which seems to be the only thing this person read.
Ah well. I felt like venting, seeing as it's my first hater. My favorite part is that they've never reviewed another book on amazon ever- so they came looking for mine. Thanks, I feel so honored! Next time someone wants to say something about my writing- at least point out specifics, that way I know you've at least read the damned thing. And maybe next time, if your critique makes sense, I'll think about it for my next book.
Oh, and for anyone who wants to reply here- remember, I don't like anon posters, and all anon replies will be deleted, so make sure I can attribute the dialogue to you, and we can converse. Otherwise- fuck off. :-P k? thnx.