Category: Blog

So what is on your mind? I’ve been sharing pieces of my life and journey to being an author with you for some time now. How do you like my blog posts? Anything you want more of? Less of? Think I have no talent and I’m wasting valuable Internet space? Think I’m better than George R.R. Martin, Steven King, James Patterson, J.K. Rowling and Joan Collins combined? I’d appreciate knowing your thoughts.

Writing can be a great joy. It can also be a pain in the butt. It also gives you dilemmas and deadlines. My current dilemma is the Ozark Creative Writer’s conference. You’ll recall I went to it last October in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and pitched my manuscript to my publisher, Oghma Creative Media, and others. This year, the conference is the same weekend as the thirtieth (30^th) annual 52 Plus Joker Playing Card Collector convention in Erlanger, Kentucky, just south of Cincinnati, Ohio, and home to the US Playing Card Company factory. I was leaning toward going to northern Kentucky that weekend. This week, I found out two of my favorite authors, Kathleen O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear, will be the keynote speakers at the writer’s conference. Decisions, decisions. What to do now? Where will I go?

I do know one thing. History doesn’t write itself. And no matter what I end up doing, it’ll be a great time wherever I go. Come see me at the Farmington Public Library in Farmington, Arkansas on May 6. Get the first scoop on next summer’s beach read; it’s a romp in the swamp.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I’m still reading Pope Francis’ Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love).  I should finish it this week. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

What a fabulous month I had. I pray yours was awesome. As you recall, thirty-one days ago I emailed my manuscript to my publisher. I’m still waiting for an editor to be assigned to my manuscript. Hopefully, that will happen soon, and I can share with you the journey my manuscript takes to become a book you want to buy. As soon as there is movement, I’ll let you know.

Also, as you recall, I spent spring break with my girlfriend in Texas. We visited Palo Duro Canyon State Park and Caprock Canyon State Park. As our time in the canyons wrapped up, the official buffalo herd of Texas meandered to the watering hole just thirty feet from the parking. It was amazing to watch the buffalo drink, fight and scratch themselves in the dirt. What a blessing to share with my girlfriend. We spent the rest of the week in the Fort Worth area where we danced, walked, attended Mass and did other things. A great week indeed.

I judged a writing contest at my local library this month as well. I wasn’t the sole judge. The winners are scheduled to read their entries tomorrow at 2:00. Come listen to them at the Springdale Public Library in Springdale, Arkansas. The Boone County writer’s roundtable at the library in Harrison was canceled. I hope that disappoint a great many of you. I am scheduled to be at the Farmington, Arkansas, library on May 6. I hope to see you there.

I have a great life right now. I thank God for all his blessings. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I finished reading  An Unwelcome Quest. My review is on Good Reads. I’m now reading Pope Francis’ Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love). I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

My week was awesome! I’m still on the road in a northern suburb of Fort Worth, Texas visiting my girlfriend. We drove northwest earlier in the week and hiked at Palo Duro Canyon and Caprock Canyon State Parks in the Panhandle. What amazing views nature gives when you respect its beauty. Caprock Canyon is home to the official buffalo herd of Texas. When we returned to the visitor center after an early afternoon of hiking, the herd crossed the street and entered the watering hole, just ten yards away. It was great seeing these wild animals up close.

Thursday evening we ate supper with her father, stepmother, and step-grandparents. Her step-grandfather was in the Army Air Corps in WWII. For those who don’t know, this was the predecessor to the US Air Force. Sitting next to him and helping him eat was a great honor and pleasure. It is a memory I’ll cherish for a very long time.

Throughout this week, being far from home, I encountered different people and new things. All of which can be used as character traits in future stories. Just because you go on vacation, doesn’t mean you stop looking and researching for unique character traits. You never know what you’ll find where. Be alert and make note of your findings. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

 

Reminder – come see me at the Boone County Library Writer’s Round Table on April 1 in Harrison, Arkansas from 1:00 to 3:00.

 

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I’m still reading  An Unwelcome Quest. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

Greetings from the road! I drove 360 miles today and through north Dallas Friday afternoon rush hour traffic to hand deliver a get well card to my girlfriend. Not trying to brag on myself, or anything like that, just wanted to set the scene. Our plans for tonight changed, but I’m still excited to be here with her. I feel great that we are together and get to share this wonderful week in each other’s company.

Life is grand when you share it others. The whole range of good emotions opens up when you have a girlfriend in your life. Food tastes better when she cooks it. Beautiful pictures at state parks tremendously improve when she is the focus of them. Conversations with her in person are way better than over the phone. I feel blessed to have her in my life.

Speaking of the road, I’ll be on the road on April 1^st, no fooling!, at the Boone County Library in Harrison, Arkansas from 1-3 for an author’s roundtable.  Visit me, and others, to see how setting becomes character. Just think how different events would be if the setting changed.  I believe several of them would change. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I finished Spell or High Water by Scott Meyer. My review is on Goodreads.com. I’m currently reading the third book in the series: An Unwelcome Quest. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

I turned my manuscript over to my publisher on Wednesday. I have the Grammarly add-on, and it helped me tremendously in writing a better story. I’m looking forward to working with my editor and producing a great book for you to enjoy as your summer beach read for 2018. One step closer to being a published author.

I’ve learned a lot during this journey, and there is still more to learn. It is a lot of hard work, which I hope you will enjoy tremendously next summer. I hope you have enjoyed this journey as well. History doesn’t write itself, but it is so much fun to intertwine fiction with historical events. Remember Forrest Gump?

Next month I’ll be traveling to Harrison, Arkansas for a talk about setting. My story takes place in a bordello in the swamps of Louisiana. I really could have set my story anywhere, but by putting it where I did, a vast amount of data opened up to me. No matter my setting, the data opportunities would still be there. However, I hope you agree with me, the swamps of Louisiana are a great setting for a bordello. It’s a romp in the swamp. What more could you ask for?

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I finished Off to Be the Wizard by Scott Meyer. My review is on Goodreads.com. I’m currently reading, and almost finished with, the second book in the series: Spell or High Water. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

History doesn’t write itself. You’ve read that before from me. Visionary people create history so that others can write about it. Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Jesus Christ, Charlemagne, King Henry VIII, Christopher Columbus, King Louis XVI, Napolean Bonaparte, Queen Elizabeth I, George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Czar Nicholas II, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, General Patton, Franklin Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandi, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Boris Yeltsin, and countless unknown NASA engineers and workers. They all had a vision of how the world should look. Not every action take by these, and others, were positive, but they worked hard to achieve their vision.

What vision of the world do you have? How would you change this planet? It’s possible. It’s been done before. It comes down to how much passion do you have in your vision. An old Cherokee proverb comes to mind. Inside each of us are two wolves. One good, one evil. Both are fighting for control of our actions, thoughts, and speech. Which one wins? The one you feed the most. Are you feeding your vision or is the random thought buried among other thoughts.

Are you living the life you envisioned? What is feeding your passion? How are you changing the world? And don’t worry about writing it down. That’s for others. After all, history doesn’t write itself.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I’m still reading Off to Be the Wizard by Scott Meyer. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

Readers love great characters. And they don’t have to be great by the definition of the word. They can be flawed, comical, abusive, sheltered, submissive, crazy or the hero. That’s why it’s always sad when the great characters dies at the hand of the author. We bring life to our characters. We give them back stories and flaws. We put them in bizarre situations and watch them triumphantly claw their way out of danger. And then we kill them. Remember the Red Wedding from Game of Thrones?

Sadly, death happens in real life. 151,600 people die each day according to ecology.com. When it happens to someone you love, you only care about the one. When the loved one of a friend dies, you need to be there for your friend, regardless of how serious the friendship is. Many years ago I did not follow my advice and missed a chance to show how much the friendship meant to me. It’s a regret I’ll have for a very long time.

I’ve heard the hardest thing for a parent to do is to bury one of their children. I have no children of my own, and there is no way I can relate to the experience. Going off the observation of a recent rosary for a 19-year-old man from my church, I would have to agree it is the hardest thing a parent has to do.

History doesn’t write itself. It leaves behind the raw emotions a talented artist could use to create a masterpiece. It opens the door to faith in a merciful God, ready to comfort a grieving family. What could be more historical than that?

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  I’m still reading Off to Be the Wizard by Scott Meyer. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

Once again, I searched on Flickr for photos for this week’s blog post. Today’s photo comes from Michael on Flickr. He took the photo November 2, 2013, at Heron Pond, Southern Illinois. I have not modified this photo. I’m not familiar with the swamps of Illinois, but this one photo makes me curious. How many states advertise their treasures of hidden nature? Just think of some of the beautiful things that are out there to see.

My first book, which comes out in May 2018, takes place at a bordello in the swamps of Louisiana. I blogged earlier about researching your local nature areas that are similar to where your story takes place. This photo is a prime example of that.  The bald Cyprus trees rising out of the water, the yellow leaves in the background, the brown leaves at the top. All this makes for a wonderful description of a swamp. Yes, it is not Louisiana, but it’s a swamp. If you live in Springfield, Illinois and cannot journey all the way to the swamps of Lousiana, visit Heron Pond and describe its beauty.

As a writing exercise, write a flash fiction story that takes place in the swamp at Heron Pond. Then write it again, but change the location to the desert southwest. It’ll be a different story.  It’s one of the beauties of writing: moving an existing story into a different environment and exploring all the changes. When the location changes, so does your story. History doesn’t write itself.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read.  It took me just over two months to read Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body by St. Pope John Paul II. I read through the Paladins of Shannara short story trilogy to round out my week.  I reviewed all four books on Good Reads. Today I’m starting a trilogy by Scott Meyer. The first book is Off to Be the Wizard. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

Sorry for not posting this last night, but working twelve hours on your day off doesn’t really get the creative juices flowing. Especially when those twelve hours involve sitting in front of a computer screen. Had to give my eyes a rest. However, I hope you enjoy this post.

I looked on Flickr this afternoon and found a perfect photo of a house of one of my characters. Unfortunately, the photo is copyrighted so I couldn’t use it. However, this one below is not.

This is from Houston in 1890. Think of the stories this building holds. Such beauty and grandeur. Unlike today’s hotels which are fairly square buildings, this hotel has character. At least I believe it is a hotel. In fact, it could be a character in your story. Who knows, I may use it one day for a story myself. In fact, maybe a good writing prompt would be to create a story for this hotel. Then write the same story but use a modern hotel in your hometown instead of this fine specimen. How does your story change?
History doesn’t write itself, but what a wonderful story this hotel has. It has to be told.

 

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I’ve reached chapter three of  Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body by St. Pope John Paul II. 46 more pages to go. Should be able to finish up this week. I’ve previous read Theology of the Body Explained by Christopher West, but now I get to experience the actual words of the great Pope. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

A historical day in the US as we inaugurated our 45^th president. I watched the ceremony, and it is unique. Every four years a peaceful transition of power in one of the most powerful nations on the planet. Although history happens every day, it doesn’t write itself.

In my forthcoming book, I reflect briefly on the Kennedy assassination. It was a sad day in America. My characters explored how his death affected the average working person, who just happens to visit a bordello on a regular basis. This may be a bit of a stretch, but it could be like visiting Walt Disney World on the day of his funeral. Probably not the same level of happiness as the day the park opened. My characters experienced death, unplanned pregnancies, and racial issues with a bit of humor thrown in. I pray you’re eagerly awaiting to read in May 2018 the answers to all these mysteries I’m posting.

There’s more to say about today’s happenings. I’m content to leave things as they currently are. Let those who want to talk, talk. Let those who want to protest, protest peacefully. And let those who want to pray for the fastest four years ever to pass, pray. Wherever you fall, respect the difference of opinions. Be supportive of your opponent, like Hillary Clinton was today. America will change in the next four years. Whether for the good or bad, we don’t know. But one-day it will be recorded that the presidency of Donald J. Trump did __________.  After all, history doesn’t write itself.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what I’m reading. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I’m up to Purity as “Sacrament and Mystery,” section 2 of chapter 1 of part 2 of  Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body by St. Pope John Paul II. 171 more pages to go. I’ll be reading this probably for the next month. I’ve previous read Theology of the Body Explained by Christopher West, but now I get to experience the actual words of the great Pope. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.