O' about that... Orlando Ramos

All work and no play?

2011-09-02T12:33:00.000-07:00

We work hard not only to gratify our desire of accomplishments, but also to provide for our families. If you obtain all that you desire but have no one to share it with, what would the point be? If you disagree with me and feel that life alone is the best life that is fine. Please explain that to me because I don't understand it.

Share the best moments of your life with your loved ones. If all you do is work, and you never have a moment to share with your loved ones, or a memory to create, then it's just another reason to feel sad and lonely.

Don't continue to wait for the perfect time in your life when you will have all the money you need and the time to contribute to your family. That is a trap. You will never have the perfect time or enough money. The time is now before you lose it. The bills will always be there they will never go away.

Sacrifice a little every pay period to put away for your vacation time. If possible, pay it upfront with your tax returns. Don't let situations in life stop you from taking that time away with your family. This time away from stress will clear your mind, relax your body, and allow happiness in your life. When you have these things, it will clear your mind for fresh ideas to write about. In fact, I've used my vacation photos as inspiration for fresh new ideas to write about. People I met as characters in my stories.

Give yourself a break. Go have a love affair with your spouse. I know I am. We started a four-day getaway for the two of us. I will return Tuesday. The memories of my last vacation are sparking incredibly good emotions right now as I'm writing this. Take a vacation.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Skill or Spill

2011-08-30T15:58:00.000-07:00

Do you write with skill or with crayons from once upon a time?

I'm sorry that I've been away for a bit, and that even now I'm late with my blog. Life has a tendency to distract us from our regularly schedule programs. Please don't think I'm out of commission. I'm simply a bit late this week, but eager to move forward with my thoughts.

I've heard that necessity is the mother of invention, and I wondered if that is also true in writing. Do you find that writing about pain and suffering is easier when you're dealing with your own pain? How about laughter, do you find it comfortable to write of a comedy scene while you're in the midst of happiness?

If you actually wait for these emotions your writing will take forever to be completed. However, if you tap into your painful past when writing that might help. To some that would awaken feelings you want to keep stashed away, in which case you can borrow the emotions from someone else. Use the pain from one of your favorite authors to feel the emotions you need and then project them on your page. Please keep in mind you are not plagiarizing someone else's writing, but rather the emotion you felt when you read it.

You don't have to be a tortured soul to write about pain. But, you do have to understand its force, its complexity, and most of all how it affects everyone around the person who is in pain. I don't have to go out and kill someone to write about murder, but I do have to understand the reason why someone would murder. If your writing does not come from a real place, everyone who reads it will know it's fake.

A picture of a beautiful meadow is nice, but a painting of a beautiful meadow is more inspiring. The picture is more exact than the painting, but the painting takes a great level of skill with your hands. A pictured takes a great level of skill with understanding light, camera equipment, and the position from which the picture was taken. Is one a greater piece of art than the other? No, I don't believe that to be true. Nonetheless, you can't compare my ability to connect the dots with a crayon to either a skillfully done painting or picture.

On the other hand, I don't have to go to college to learn how to paint. College is another tool I can use. Leonardo Da Vinci became a genius in more than one field. He mastered subjects as diverse as surgical anatomy, cartography, archaeology and engineering to botany. College will only permit you to study one subject at a time with possibly a minor in another subject. In our current society, if you have not obtained a college degree majoring in one subject, you are still in limbo. I have several friends who have been in college for six years or more and have no major degree. This is because they only take the classes they desire to study rather than required classes for a degree.

I understand that everyone should be well rounded, but don't dictate to me what I should be studying, what courses I have to take, and which I must turn away. Do whatever it takes to acquire the necessary skills you need.

Write with skill and passion, if you desire people to read it. After all it is art you're creating. However, if you feel differently, please let me know. I can take it.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Does Sex Sell?

2011-08-26T08:16:00.000-07:00

Have you noticed how often sex is used to sell a product? Consider the sexy book covers. Comic books are riddled with huge muscular men and fall to your knees sexy females. What about movies and TV shows? Some people consider it sexist, but it's not just females anymore. Now they use male as well as females sex symbols. Gyms are capitalizing from the new idealism. Everyone is now lifting weights, dieting, and joining all types of aerobics classes.

Don't get me wrong I believe in healthy living. I also think everyone should look as good as they desire. However, I do know there are limits we all should live by. Once we abuse those limits, in any direction, we damage our own bodies and break the laws of nature. Too much is still too much. But that is not what my blog is about.

Yesterday, I randomly asked this question on twitter and got a very good response. Actually, my question was; does sex sell, or does quality? The first response I got back said quality sex sells. The second explained saying sex sells but quality keeps them coming back. I want to thank all my twitter friends for a great laugh while having this conversation yesterday. For those of you who did not get in on that conversation, you have the opportunity to convey your thoughts on the subject here.

Is it going to far when you use sex to sell your books, comic books, movie scripts, or any other media? Now I'm not talking about erotica, although I entertained the idea for a few seconds. Those that write erotic novels do so not because they are an easy sell. They do so because they feel a passion for that type of writing. And correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't feel that erotic books are easier to sell than any other genre.

I write science fiction and let's face it; this genre does not make the best sellers list very often. But it's what I love to read, and therefore, write about. Here lies the question. Would a picture of planets, stars, or spaceships sell more than a beautiful female and muscular male on the cover? It may even capture the attention of people who like other genres. Ah… but would they be happy after reading it if they found no love scenes in the book? Okay… then put a love scene or two in the book. The fact is any story regardless if it's a thriller, adventure, sci-fi, family drama, murder mystery, or any other, will still need a love connection in it. I've seen movies where even androids or robots fall in love, or someone falls in love with them.

Should you use sex to sell your book? Give us your opinion.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

2011-08-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

Announcing the In Leah’s Wake Social Media Whirlwind Tour—WooHoo!

As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of the In Leah’s Wake Kindle edition has dropped to just 99 cents this week.

What’s more, by purchasing this fantastic book at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes, including a Kindle, 5 autographed copies of the book, and multiple Amazon gift cards (1 for $100, 3 for $25, 5 for $10, and 10 for $5 – 19 in all)! Be sure to enter before the end of the day on Friday, August 26^th, so you don’t miss out.

To win the prizes:

Purchase your copy of In Leah’s Wake for just 99 cents
Fill-out the form on the author’s site to enter for prizes
Visit today’s featured event; you may win an autographed copy of the book!

And I can win $100 too if you vote for my blog over on the author’s website. The blog host that gets the most votes in this traffic-breaker polls wins, so please cast yours right after purchasing In Leah’s Wake and entering the contests!

The featured events include:

Monday, Blogaganza on Novel Publicity! We’re kicking-off on the Novel Publicity Free Advice blog. We’ll ask the writer 5 fun and random questions to get everyone talking. Leave a comment or question in response to the post, and you may win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to visit the author’s blog to enter for the other prizes!

Tuesday, Twitter chat with the author! Tweet with us between 4 and 5 PM Eastern Time, using the hashtag #emlyn. We’ll be talking with the author about her favorite books and best writing advice. Bring your questions about In Leah’s Wake and don’t forget to use #emlyn or to follow Terri @tglong. By joining in the tweet chat at the designated time, you may win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to visit the author’s blog to enter for the other prizes!

Wednesday, Google+ video chat with the author! Join our hangout between 12 and 3 PM Eastern Time to talk with the author and us via video chat. We’ll be gabbing about great books including In Leah’s Wake and about writing. Did you know that Terri is a creative writing instructor at Boston College? She’s got tons of good advice for aspiring writers. By joining in the Google+ video chat at the designated time, you may win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to visit the author’s blog to enter for the other prizes!

Thursday, Facebook interview with the author! Stop by Novel Publicity’s Facebook page and ask Terri questions. She’s chosen three of her favorite topics to talk about: writing, parenting, and gourmet cooking. Of course, you’re welcome to ask about In Leah’s Wake too. Leave a comment or question as part of the thread, and you may win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget tolike Terri’s Facebook page or to visit her blog to enter for the other prizes!

Friday, Fun & games based on the book! We want to close this whirlwind social media tour with a gigantic bang, which is why we've set-up two interactive book-themed features on the author’s blog. You can take the official Facebook quiz to find out which In Leah's Wake character is most like you and learn how that character ties into the story. Then try out our crossroads story game. Throughout the course of the narrative, you'll have several decisions to make. What you choose will affect the outcome of the story. Play as either rebellious teenager Leah or the trampled peacemaker and mother Zoe. Leave a comment or question on any of Terri’s blog entries, and you may win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to check out the other give-away contests while you’re on Terri’s blog!

About In Leah’s Wake: The Tyler family had the perfect life – until sixteen-year-old Leah decided she didn’t want to be perfect anymore. While Zoe and Will fight to save their daughter from destroying her brilliant future, Leah’s younger sister, Justine, must cope with the damage her out-of-control sibling leaves in her wake. Will this family survive? What happens when love just isn’t enough? Jodi Picoult fans will love this beautifully written and absorbing novel.

An excerpt from In Leah's Wake

The prologue and first chapter

". . . little heart of mine, believe me, everyone is really responsible to all men for all men and for everything. I don't know how to explain it to you, but I feel it is so, painfully even. And how is it we went on living, getting angry and not knowing?"

Fyodor Dostoevsky

The Grand Inquisitor

Prologue

March

Justine strikes a pose before the full-length mirror hanging on her closet door. Chin up, hands by her sides. She draws a breath. “My dear. . .” she begins, and stops mid-sentence. Wrinkles her nose. She’s got it all wrong. She’s too—Too stiff. Too grownup. Toosomething.

She rakes her fingers over her short dark hair, sweeping the bangs out of her eyes, tugs at the hem of her pink baby-doll pajamas. She’s scheduled to deliver the candidates’ address at her Confirmation Mass this afternoon. When she learned, six months ago, that she had been selected speaker, Justine was ecstatic. Now, the very idea of standing in front of the whole congregation, telling hundreds, maybe thousands, of people how she’s learned from her own family what it means to be part of God’s larger family makes her sick to her stomach.

She has no choice. She made a commitment.

She folds her hands primly, setting them at chest height on her imaginary podium, glances at her cheat sheet, rolls her lower face into a smile, and begins again. “My fellow Confirmation candidates,” she says this time. Justine crumples the paper, tosses it onto her bed. My fellow Confirmation candidates. What a dork. She sounds about twenty, instead of thirteen.

She screws up her face. “I can’t do this,” she says, wagging a finger at the girl watching her from the mirror. She would feel like a hypocrite.

Justine plods to the bathroom, pees, pads back to her bedroom. The forecasters are predicting snow, starting later today. A dismal gray stratus hangs over her skylight. Her room is dark, the air raw. Her sister’s blue and gold Cortland High sweatshirt lies in a heap at the foot of her bed. Justine pulls the sweatshirt over her head, retrieves the balled-up paper. With the back of her hand, she flattens it out, and returns to the mirror to practice.

As always, on first glance, the girl in the mirror takes Justine by surprise. She’s grown two inches since Christmas, isn’t chubby anymore, her belly flat, the clavicle bones visible now at the base of her throat. She pushes her bangs out of her pale, darkly fringed eyes. With her fingertips, she touches her cheeks. Her features have matured, her nose long and straight, like her mother’s, her cheekbones defined. She curls and uncurls her toes. She wears a size six shoe, a size and a half smaller than Leah. Her toes are long and slim, the nails painted blue.

Justine crushes the sheet of paper, tosses it in the trash, strolls to her window, raises the honeycomb shade. Spring feels a long way away, the yard empty, the trees bare. A rush of cold air streams in, under the sash. The air smells of snow. Justine presses her hand against the cool glass, the way she and her sister used to do on the windshield of their father’s car, when they were small. Stop, their father would scold. You’re making a mess. She smiles, remembering how Leah loved egging him on. She pulls her hand away from the glass, watches her prints disappear.

Justine wishes, sometimes, that she could disappear, too. Poof, just like the handprint.

Poof, just like her sister.

Chapter One: Just Do It

September

Zoe and Will Tyler sat at the dining room table, playing poker. The table, a nineteenth-century, hand-carved mahogany, faced the bay window overlooking their sprawling front yard. Husband and wife sat facing one another, a bowl of Tostitos and a half-empty bottle of port positioned between them. Their favorite Van Morrison disc—Tupelo Honey—spun on the player in the family room, the music drifting out of speakers built into the dining room walls.

Dog, their old yellow Lab, lay on a ratty pink baby blanket, under the window.

Zoe plucked the Queen of Hearts from the outside of her hand, and tucked it center. She was holding a straight. If she laid it down, she would win the hand, third in a row, and her husband would quit. If she didn’t, she would be cheating herself.

The moon was full tonight, its light casting a ghostly shadow across the yard. The full moon made Zoe anxious. For one of her internships in grad school, she’d worked on the psych ward at City Hospital, in Boston. On nights when the moon was full, the floor erupted, the patients noisy, agitated. Zoe’s superiors had pooh-poohed the lunar effect, chalked it up to irrationality, superstition. But Zoe had witnessed the flaring tempers, seen the commotion with her own two eyes, and found the effect impossible to deny—and nearly all the nurses concurred.

“Full moon,” she said. “I hadn’t noticed. No wonder I had trouble sleeping last night.”

Will set his empty glass on the table. With his fingers, he drummed an impatient tattoo. “You planning to take your turn any time soon? Be nice if we ended this game before midnight.”

“For Pete’s sake, Will.” Her husband had the attention span of a titmouse. He reminded her of Mick, a six year-old ADD patient she counseled—sweet kid, when he wasn’t ransacking her office, tossing the sand out of the turtle-shaped box, tweaking her African violets.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, sulking.

She shook her head—nothing, Mick—and forced a straight face.

“You’re laughing at me.”

“Don’t be silly. Why would I be laughing at you?”

He peered at his reflection in the window. Smirking, he finger-combed his baby-fine hair, pale, graying at the temples, carving a mini-pyramid at his crown.

“Nice do. Could use a little more gel,” she said, feeling mean-spirited the instant the words slipped out of her mouth. The poor guy was exhausted. He’d spent the week in California, on business, had flown into Logan this morning, on the red-eye. Though he had yet to fill her in on the details, it was obvious to her that his trip had not gone well. “Sorry,” she said. “Just kidding.” She fanned out her cards, hesitated for an instant, and laid down the straight.

“Congratulations.” Scowling, he pushed away from the table. “You win again.”

“Way to go, grumpy. Quit.”

“I’m getting water,” he said, tamping his hair. “Want some?”

Dog lifted her head, her gaze following Will to the door, yawned, and settled back down.

Her husband stomped across the kitchen, his footfall moving in the direction of the family room. The music stopped abruptly, and the opening chords of a Robbie Robertson tune belted out of the speakers. Zoe loved Robbie Robertson, “Showdown at Big Sky” one of her favorite songs. That didn’t mean that the entire state of Massachusetts wanted to hear it.

“Will,” she said, gesturing from the kitchen. “Turn it down. You’ll wake Justine.”

She waited a few seconds, caught his eye, gestured again. The third time was the charm.

Exasperated, she returned to the dining room, bundled the cards, put them away in the sideboard, and gathered the dishes. The toilet flushed in the half-bath off the back hall. Seconds later, she heard her husband rattling around the kitchen, slamming the cabinet doors. Last spring, Will had won a major contract for his company, North American Construction. Since then, he’d been back and forth nonstop to the West Coast, spending two weeks a month in San Francisco, servicing the client. Zoe hadn’t minded his traveling, at first. Over the past two years, with the glut of office and manufacturing space in the northeast, construction starts had dropped, and his sales had taken a serious hit, his commissions steadily dwindling. To compensate, initially they’d relied on their savings. In January, they’d remortgaged the house. When the California job arose, Will had jumped on the opportunity. He had no choice, especially with Leah headed to college next year. But the situation, lately, was brutal. Will hated traveling, hated flying, hated living out of a suitcase. And he resented missing Leah’s soccer games. Last November, as a sophomore, their daughter had been named Player of the Year on theBoston Globe All-Scholastic team. A week later, in his year-end summary, the sports reporter from the Cortland Gazette had called Leah the “best soccer player in the state.” The head coaches from the top colleges in the area—Harvard, Dartmouth, Boston College, BU—had sent congratulatory letters, expressing their interest. Will wanted to be home to guide her, meet the prospective coaches, help her sort through her options. Zoe didn’t blame her husband a bit. But it didn’t seem to occur to Will that his traveling disrupted her life, too. Last year, she’d developed a motivational seminar, called “Success Skills for Women on the Move.” Now that the girls were practically grown, the workshops were her babies. The extra workload at home, added to the demands of her fulltime job at the counseling center, left her with no time for marketing or promotion, and the workshops had stagnated. Zoe understood her husband’s frustration. It irked her when he minimized hers.

Will appeared in the doorway, a few minutes later, empty-handed. Will was tall, a hair shy of six-one. He’d played football in college, and, at forty-five, still had the broad shoulders and narrow waist of an athlete. Amazing, really: after eighteen years of marriage, she still found him achingly sexy. Crow’s feet creased the corners of his intelligent blue eyes and fine lines etched his cheekbones, giving his boyish features a look of intensity and purpose, qualities Zoe had recognized from the start but that only now, as he was aging, showed on his face.

After work, he’d changed into a pair of stonewashed jeans and a gray sweatshirt, worn soft, the words “Harvard Soccer Camp” screened in maroon lettering across the chest. Absently, he pushed up his sleeves, and peered around the room as though looking for something. “Zoe—” Normally, he called her Honey or Zo.

“I put the cards away.” She thumbed the sideboard. “You quit, remember?”

“Do you have any idea what time it is?”

She glanced at the cuckoo clock on the far wall. “Ten past eleven. So?”

“Where’s Leah?”

At the football game, with Cissy. “They’ve been going every week. Did you forget?”

“She ought to be home by now.”

“She’s only ten minutes late.” Their daughter was a junior in high school. They’d agreed, before school started this year, to extend her weekend curfew to eleven. “She’ll be here soon.”

Will stalked to the window, grumbling. Dog rose, and pressed her nose to the glass.

Their driveway, half the length of a soccer field, sloped down from the cul-de-sac, arced around the lawn, and straightened, ending in a turnaround at the foot of their three-car garage. In summer, the oak and birch trees bordering the property obscured their view. Now that most of the leaves had fallen, the headlights were visible as vehicles entered the circle.

“She has a game in the morning.” Will stretched his neck . His upper back had been bothering him lately, residual pain from an old football injury he’d suffered in college.

Zoe came up behind him, pushing Dog’s blanket aside with her foot, and squeezed his shoulders. “You’re tight.”

He dropped his chin. “From sleeping on the plane. Got to get one of those donut pillows.”

“You know Leah. She has no sense of time. I’ll bet they stopped for something to eat.”

“I can’t see why Hillary won’t set a curfew. Every other coach has one.”

“Relax, Will. It’s not that late. You’re blowing this out of proportion. Don’t you think?”

A flash of headlights caught their attention. An SUV entered the cul-de-sac, rounded the circle, its lights sweeping over the drive and across their lawn, and headed down the street.

Bending, Will ruffled Dog’s ears. “Reardon’s coming tomorrow, specifically to watch her. She plays like crap when she’s tired.”

The Harvard coach. She should have known. “So she doesn’t go to Harvard,” she said, a tired remark, fully aware of the comeback her words would elicit, “she’ll go someplace else.”

“There is no place else.”

No place that would give her the opportunities, the connections… blah, blah, blah. They’d been over this a million times. If their daughter had the slightest aspiration of going to Harvard, Zoe would do everything in her power to support her. As far as she could tell, the name Harvard had never graced Leah’s wish-list. It was a moot point, anyway. For the last two terms, Leah’s grades had been dropping. If she did apply for admission, she would probably be denied.

“Reardon has pull,” he offered, a weak rebuttal in Zoe’s opinion. “He’s been talking to Hillary about her. She can’t afford to blow this opportunity.”

Opportunity? What opportunity? “Face it, Will. She doesn’t want to go to Harvard.”

“If she plays her cards right, she can probably get a boat.”

Zoe opened her mouth, ready to blast him. He’d received a full football scholarship from Penn State, and dropped out of college. Was that what he wanted? A college drop-out in a couple years? Noticing the purple rings under his eyes, she held back. “You’re exhausted.” His plane had barely touched ground at Logan Airport when he was ordered to NAC’s corporate office in Waltham, for a marketing meeting. He hadn’t had time to stop home to change his clothes, never mind take a short nap. “Why don’t you go to bed? I’ll wait up.”

The look he returned implied that she’d lost it. “You think I could sleep?”

“For all we know, they had a flat.”

“She would have called.”

“So call her.” Duh.

“I did. I got voice mail.”

Shoot. “You know Leah. Her battery probably died.” She was grasping at straws. Leah was sixteen years old. That phone was her lifeline. Still, it could be true. It was possible. Right?

Leah had totally lost track of time. She and Todd had been hanging out at the water tower for hours, perched on the hood of Todd’s Jeep, drinking Vodka and OJ, admiring the beautiful night. This place was perfect, the most perfect place in the universe, maybe. Big sky, lots of trees. From here, they could see the whole town, just about—the river, the railroad tracks. An orchard. In the valley, lights began to blink out. Leaning back on her elbows, she gazed up at the heavens. “Look,” she said, mesmerized by the inky black sky, the billions and billions of stars. “The Big Dipper.” As she stared into space, time fell away, the past merging seamlessly with the future, this moment, up here, with Todd, the only reality there ever was or ever could be.

Todd took her hand, drawing her close, so close she could smell the spicy deodorant under his armpits. Just being with Todd Corbett made her feel dizzy all over. Todd was, by far, the most beautiful boy she had ever laid eyes on. His hair was long on top, short on the sides. He had full lips, and the most fabulous blue eyes, like, like crystals or something. A Romanesque nose, the exact nose she’d once told Cissy she’d die for, only now that she’d seen it on Todd, she realized that that particular nose was meant for a boy. Best of all, he had this incredible aura, all purple and blue, like James Dean or Curt Cobain.

She curled her legs under her, laid her head on Todd’s chest.

They met at a party, the Friday before school started. Todd had been on tour for the past two years, working as a roadie for a heavy metal band called “Cobra.” Leah knew he was back—that was all anybody was talking about—had recognized him instantly, from all the descriptions.

She couldn’t believe her luck. Todd Corbett! And alone! She’d heard he was hot. He was even better looking in person. Looking back, she couldn’t believe she’d been so brazen. She left Cissy in the lurch, sashayed right over to him, took a seat beside him, on the living room floor.

The movie he was watching was stupid. People clopping across a field like zombies, their arms outstretched. They reminded her of herself and Justine when they were little, playing blind. Even the makeup looked phony.

“What are you watching?” she asked.

“Night of the Living Dead. Flick’s a classic. Hey, haven’t I seen you someplace before?”

Maybe, though she couldn’t imagine where. Todd couldn’t possibly have remembered her from high school. She was only a freshman when he dropped out.

“Leah Tyler, right? You’re that soccer chick.”

The wind swished through the trees. Leah shivered and Todd shrugged out of his worn leather bomber, draped his jacket over her shoulders. He reached into the pocket of his jeans, retrieved a small plastic bag half-full of weed, began rolling a joint. He licked the edge of the paper, lit the joint, inhaling deeply, and handed it to her, the smell rich and exotic and sweet.

Leah had never smoked marijuana until she met Todd. She used to be scared, which was dumb: weed was totally harmless. (The first few times she smoked, she had to admit, she’d been disappointed.) She pulled, her chest searing, struggled to hold the ice-hot smoke in her lungs.

Suddenly, she was coughing, waving her arms.

“You OK, babe?” Todd rescued the joint. With the other hand, he patted her back.

Once she was breathing easily again, he laughed, a sweet laugh that left her feeling dignified, rather than cheesy or stupid. He pinched the joint between his index finger and thumb, took a hit to demonstrate, and brought it to her lips, holding it for her. “That’s it, babe. Good.”

They smoked the joint to its stub, and he showed her how to fashion a roach clip from twigs. Afterward, he offered to drive her home. “Don’t want you getting in trouble or nothing.”

“That’s OK,” Leah said dreamily. “I don’t have to go yet.”

Todd hopped off the hood of the Jeep, pulled a flannel blanket from the back of the truck, and spread the blanket on the grass, under a giant oak tree. Leah watched him smooth it out, his hands dancing, the whole world intensely colored, brilliantly alive. She heard the lonely trill of a cricket, calling from deep in the valley, smelled the damp autumn earth, felt the cool blue breeze on her face. Todd was gliding toward her now, floating on air. He scooped her into his arms, lifting her from the hood of his Jeep, and laid her on the blanket. And kissed her.

At eleven thirty, Zoe dialed Leah’s cell phone again. When Leah didn’t pick up, she tried Cissy, both times reaching voice mail. “I don’t believe those two,” Zoe said, infuriated. “I’ll bet they changed their ringers. The little devils probably know it’s us.”

“That’s your daughter for you,” Will huffed.

“She’s my daughter now?”

By eleven forty-five, Zoe was chewing her cuticles. And Will was pacing.

“This is it,” Will announced. “I’m calling the cops.”

“You can’t be serious. What do you plan to tell them?”

He opened his cell phone. “I can’t sit here, doing nothing.” He glared at the screen.

“You can’t call the cops. She’s forty-five minutes late. They’ll think we’re crazy.”

He clicked his cell shut, dug his keys out of his pocket. “Fine. I’ll find her myself.”

Find her? Where on earth did he plan to look?

“I’ll start at the high school.”

“The game was over hours ago.”

“I’ll drive by the Hanson’s.” He headed for the garage, Dog at his heels.

“And do what?” Cissy’s mom, a nurse, worked the early shift at St. John’s. Judi was probably in bed by now. He would frighten her if he knocked on the door. “Will? Answer me.”

He swiveled to face her. “Look for the car,” he snapped, and ushered Dog out the door.

Zoe stood in the mudroom, at a loss, staring blankly at the door her husband had closed. The house, she realized when she came to, was an icebox. She rooted through the hall closet, found a fleece jacket of Will’s, and pulled it on, kicked off her shoes, the ceramic tile cool under her bare feet, went to the bathroom, crossed the hall to the laundry, tossed a load of clean clothes into the dryer, and wandered back to the kitchen. She poured a glass of water, gathered the dishes they’d left on the dining room table, and emptied the uneaten chips into the compactor. She loaded the dishwasher. After she finished washing the counter, she flung the rag into the sink, and grabbed the cordless phone, so she would have a phone handy if Will or Leah tried to call.

A family portrait, commissioned last year, hung over the stone fireplace in the family room. For the photograph, the four of them had dressed in blue; their blue period, they’d joked when the photographer showed them the proofs. In the photo, Zoe is sitting on a stool, leaning toward the camera, Will standing behind her, flanked by the girls. Looking at the portrait, you’d never guess how hard it had been for the photographer to capture the shot, the kids squabbling, Will impatient, Zoe frustrated, both parents clenching their teeth. Restless, Zoe stepped down into the family room, sank into the oversized chair next to the fireplace, and curled her legs under her, clutching the phone.

Waiting, she tried to think positive thoughts. Leah’s responsible. She can handle herself. If the girls had been in a car accident, the police would have contacted them by now. As usual, her effort to avoid negative thoughts conjured them up. Something wasn’t right. Leah had been late a few times before, never like this. A half hour was one thing. Zoe often lost track of time herself. She would be at her office, transcribing her notes, look up, notice the clock, and realize she was supposed to have picked up one of the girls—at school, at the mall, at a friend’s—fifteen, twenty minutes before. She would rush around her office in a tizzy, collecting her folders and purse, cursing herself for being a neglectful mother, and drive like a madwoman to her destination. But an hour? She checked her watch. And fifteen minutes? This wasn’t like Leah.

She wondered if she had missed something. A signal. A hint. This morning, Leah, out of bed by seven, had moseyed into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. Spotting the sauce pan on the front burner, she’d whined about having to eat oatmeal again. But she always whined when Zoe made oatmeal, which on certain days she found “revolting,” on others “disgusting” or “gross.” Zoe set the bowl in front of her. “Quit bellyaching,” she said. “Oatmeal is good for you.”

They were running late. So the girls wouldn’t have to rush to catch the bus, Zoe offered to drive them to school. Justine rode shotgun, while Leah dozed in the backseat. At two, Leah called Zoe at work to remind her that she and Cissy planned to go to the game. She was headed directly home after practice, Leah had said; she would fix dinner. At six thirty, when Zoe opened the back door, she smelled Leah’s spicy, cumin-laced chili. On the island counter, Zoe found place settings for her, for Will, for Justine, three glasses filled with ice water and lemon. Justine was upstairs in her room, doing her geometry homework. Leah had already left for the game.

Zoe closed her eyes, breathing deeply, attempting to center herself, and, counting backward from ten. . . eight, seven, six. . . summoned an image of her daughter. Leah’s face materialized, and her body slowly came into focus. Directing her energy outward, Zoe enclosed her daughter in a protective circle of light. Be safe, baby, she whispered. Be safe.

Will drove along country roads canopied by the boughs of towering oak trees, the winding streets bordered by stone walls erected in the late 1700’s, by the farmers who’d settled the town. In those days, the stone walls served as boundary markers, the average farm occupying fifty acres of land, most of it orchards. It was a hard life, Will thought, working eighteen hours a day, building walls, cultivating the land. He reached for Dog, on the passenger seat, ruffled her ears. “What do you say, Girl?” Dog cocked her head. “Was life harder then? Or harder today?”

The Hansons lived a mile outside the center, on a corner lot in a modest sub-division, built in the late-eighties, a neighborhood of center-entry colonials, garrisons, expanded Capes, set on cramped one-acre lots. Will slowed as they approached the Hanson’s newly remodeled Salt Box, he and Dog rubber-necking together. Onion lamps flanked the entrance and the garage doors; matching pole lights lined the drive. The house was dark, the driveway empty. Will turned left, onto the adjacent street, hoping to find a light on in the back of the house, in which case he would knock on the door. Nothing, not even a porch lamp. Frustrated, he rounded the block, passed by the front of the property again, in case he had somehow managed to miss Cissy’s car the first time, and headed for the high school, on the off-chance that the girls were still there.

The parking lot was dark when Will pulled in, the lights extinguished hours ago. He pulled down the sloping driveway behind the school, passing the rubberized track, where the soccer players practiced their sprints. He swung by the service entrance, then by the gym, doubled back, and circled the deserted lot, scanning the playing fields. At the ticket booth by football stadium, he parked, and just sat, thinking, Dog curled beside him on the passenger seat.

They’d had no idea, he and Zoe, how easy they’d had it when the girls were young. In their eyes, every little thing seemed like a crisis. They would glance at the window, catch three- year-old Leah zooming down the drive on her Big-Wheel, her legs outstretched, little hands reaching for the sky. In a panic, they would tear out of the house, always an instant too late, too far from their daughter to do anything except cross their fingers and watch. “Leah—” Will would holler, his stomach churning, “hold on.” And Zoe would cover her eyes, both parents envisioning the worst, the Big-Wheel rocketing off course, crashing into a tree. Later, the rope swing he’d hung by their deck replaced the Big-Wheel as the most obvious threat. They’d worried about random accidents, obsessed over tragedies they watched on News Center 5 or read about in the Globe: that the girls would fall into the hidden shaft of a well or drown in a neighbor’s backyard pool, that a stranger would kidnap one of their daughters when she was outside playing or taking a walk. It was tough being a parent, the welfare of their children utterly dependent on them, yet as long as they were vigilant, as long as they did their job, kept a trained eye on their daughters, their children would be safe. Now that she was older, they had no way of keeping tabs on their daughter. Once the car she was riding in rolled out of the drive, her fate was out of their hands. She could be anywhere, doing anything, with anyone. They had no way to protect her.

“What do you say, girl?” he said finally. “Doesn’t look like she’s here, does it?”

In a last ditch effort, he took another run by the Hanson’s place.

Zoe had fallen asleep clutching the portable phone, her head resting on the wing of her chair. He brushed a curl out of her face, touched her shoulder gently, so he wouldn’t startle her.

His wife blinked up at him. “Did you find her?”

He shook his head, dejected.

Dog nuzzled Zoe’s leg. Yawning, she scratched the dog’s head. “What time is it?”

“Close to one.”

“My God.” She pulled herself to an upright position. “What do you think is going on?”

Hard to say at this point, he told her. “She didn’t call, did she?”

Zoe shook her head in alarm. “You don’t think anything’s happened, do you?”

“We’d have heard by now.”

“I’m worried, Will. This isn’t like her.”

Will rubbed his neck, squeezing the trapezius muscles, hoping to release some of the tension. “I don’t know where else to look. Figured it’d be stupid to keep driving in circles.”

His wife attempted to stifle a yawn.

“You look beat,” he said. “Why don’t you go to bed? I’ll wait up.”

“You’re as tired as I am.”

“Go. I can sleep in. You’ve got to get up in the morning.”

“Maybe I should,” she said, shifting position. “Have to be up at six. Had to—” She paused, her glazed eyes fixed on the palladium window at the far end of the room. “Sorry.” She blinked. “I had to shift my schedule around. Workshop Sunday. Wake me when she comes in? You won’t forget?”

“I won’t forget.”

Will helped his wife out of her chair, walked her to the front staircase, kissed her, and told her to sleep well. From the foot of the staircase, he watched her climb the stairs and wander down the hall to their bedroom. When she closed the door, he went to the kitchen, filled a glass with spring water, brought the glass to the living room, sat on his leather recliner by the window, adjusted the back, and put up his feet. Dog lay on the floor, next to his chair. In ten minutes, she was snoring. He plucked an old issue of Sports Illustrated out of the pleated leather pocket on the side of his chair, flipped through. Unable to focus, he tossed it on the floor.

On the windowsill, in front of an eight-by-ten studio portrait of the girls, taken when Justine was a toddler, sat a framed snapshot of Leah. He picked up the photo. They’d been in Cortland for about a year when he snapped the shot. Leah was not quite seven, the youngest child on the under-ten team. Her uniform was two sizes too big, her baggie blue T-shirt skimming the hem of her shorts. The team was in the midst of a game, Leah racing to the net, blond ponytail flying, the ball jouncing in front of her, her tiny face focused, intense.

His daughter was an exceptional player, fast, agile, fiercely competitive, the best player from Massachusetts ever, some coaches said. Since she was a child, Will had been grooming her, encouraging her, fostering her talent. Youth soccer, traveling teams. Scholarship to Harvard—that was their plan. They’d practiced, strategized, prepared. Through the rain, the snow, he’d been right there with her. All in service to the crimson uniform she would one day wear. That was her dream, wasn’t it? She hoped to play pro. But Harvard first. Time and again, they’d discussed the importance of a good education, the one thing in life that can never be taken away.

Will pushed her, he knew. He wanted the best for his kids. He would do whatever it took to help them succeed, prevent them from repeating the mistakes he’d made. In the spring of his junior year, he’d left Penn State, surrendering a full scholarship, trading his education for a long shot at a music career. In one hour, the time it took to inform his dean he was quitting, walk to the registrar’s office and sign a couple of forms, he’d managed to screw up his life. Look at him: forty-five-years-old, stuck in a dead-end job, kissing the asses of people who ought to be working for him. He refused to sit back, watch Leah throw her life away. Kids needed guidance, a motivational coach to push them, keep them focused, drive them when they didn’t feel like practicing, pump them up when they lost confidence, spur them on when they wanted to quit.

Will closed his eyes. God help him. Tell him he hadn’t pushed her away.

Writing comedy…

2011-08-15T12:34:00.000-07:00

Friends used to be one of America's most favorite TV shows. Many people believed it was the funniest show on television. For us guys my first question is simple. Who is the hottest looking girl on the show? I think Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow is the best looking of the three. Monica Geller (Courteney Cox) has a very sexy face, but she's entirely too thin for me. Although many considered Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) to be the hottie of the show, I only liked her hair.

As far as show characters, I enjoyed Phoebe the most. Although she could be ditzy at times she showed great insight catching you totally off guard. However, I related more with Monica because of her eccentricities. It's not that I'm a great cleaner around the house, but I can't be comfortable when there is a mess around the house. That will drive me crazy. The other thing I can relate with is her competitive spirit. I can't stand losing at anything. I'm a good sport about it, but I'm not happy thinking I lost. All three of the women are beautiful. Let's face it sex sells. Attractive characters are a must. Sexist? Totally.

Now let's talk comedy. Take a look at these clips from a writer's point of view. What makes the comedy truly funny, in my view, is the misunderstanding. The clips are very short.

In this scene all the Friends characters are discussing what they would do if they were omnipotent. When Joey walks in Monica asked him the same question.

Omnipotent/impotent - You have to put the character together with the misunderstanding. Joey's character is a cool guy, well built, and attractive to women. On the other hand, he is also ditzy, childish, womanizing, and although he's a warm and kind friend, he's not very smart. Not the kind of person you can have an intelligent conversation with. You see he has his strong points and his weaknesses. The writers capitalize on both points to make good comedy. My favorite part is, "You are? Ross, I'm sorry."

In this scene Rachel and Phoebe are in ugly naked guys apartment which Ross is thinking of renting. Looking through the window Phoebe sees Monica and Chandler having sex.

Phoebe demonstrates her devotion for the others in the group. She cares greatly for the environment, and she's fun to be with. She can contribute to a conversation, but at times she's totally lost. Remember strengths and weaknesses. Again, the misunderstanding of not knowing what was going on causes Phoebe to freak out. My favorite part is, "Oh, my eyes, my eyes."

To create good comedy take strong characters, expose their flaws, and add misunderstanding. It works every time. Tell me about your favorite episode, scene, person, and why.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

A Deprived Life..

2011-08-12T05:00:00.000-07:00

This post is about my upbringing and how it deprived me of regular everyday things. Please understand that I am in no way coming against any religious believes. In fact, I strongly believe in God. What I have issues with are some people's interpretation of those believes. Back in my youth most religious people judged in the manner in which they were taught. Therefore I understand it was not entirely their fault.

Also understand that I in no way hate my parents. On the contrary, when my father died, I felt like a little something died inside of me. My mother, who is still alive, is the kindest individual I know. Nonetheless, that is what they learned. Their upbringing made it extremely difficult for them to see life any other way.

My friend Amelia James and I are sharing our thoughts on the similarity of our upbringing. She is an extraordinary writer so please click here to read her blog after you've read mine.

Now here are some rules. Do not leave a comment slamming religion or your parents. You may explain what happened in your life without slandering anyone.

As a child they did not permit me to play in a park or go to the beach. They prohibited me from wearing certain clothing for reasons unknown to me to this day. The first time I attended a baseball game at a stadium it turned into one of the largest altercations in our home. My brothers married at seventeen to get out of the house and escape these rules. Later, they became angry with me because to them, my parents granted me more freedom than they had. So they must have had it even more difficult than I did.

I always felt sorry for the girls in our church. They had not been allowed to wear pants and had to freeze their legs in the winter snow with only nylons to cover them. Kids in school ridiculed me for wearing geeky clothes. I could never wear jeans or sneakers. They never permitted me to spend the night at a friend's house, and I could only play outside within ear range. If they called me and I didn't hear them, there went my outdoor privileges.

You'll love this one. My parents only allowed me to date Hispanic girls. I remember the first time I brought home a blond haired, blue eyed, white girl - Okay I like blonds and redheads with fair skin - Anyway. All hell broke loose in the house that day. I had to wear my hair the way they wanted me too. I could not wear jewelry of any kind. And I could only play with the friends they picked out for me.

It was pounded into my mind that anything bad that happened was punishment from God, and anything good was his blessings. I lived in constant fear that if I did anything wrong, I would be punished. The problem was I could never live up to the standard of being good. In my first marriage, I continued to be judge by the same rules by my ex-wife. I live by everything I was taught, loved her, and my children unconditionally, and hid my unhappiness by giving myself to her completely. Only she didn't see it that way. As with God, apparently I couldn't live up to her standards either, and she asked for a divorce.

After trying to be good all my life, I decided to pitch a fit, and have a tantrum. So I got drunk. For two years. After which I had to learn how to live. I learned to forgive and understand the reasons why these people pushed this life on me against my will. In this process of learning to live, I created a bucket list. A bucket list is a list of things you want to do before you hit the bucket (die).

I was introduced to a different God than the one from my youth. I met a woman who does not judge me. I got my ear pierced, bought necklaces and rings. I got me some shorts to go to the beach, and watched the sun come up, and go back down. I drank fruity alcoholic drinks to enjoy the scenes around me, and went jet skiing. I took lessons and learned how to dance. I laughed and rejected every thought that tried to convince me of punishment for these things. I understand the generations before us, but shouldn't we be teaching our children differently?

I'm not drunk anymore because I don't want to be. I drink a glass of wine with dinner at times. But most importantly, I'm living, and not just existing.

Have you gone through anything like this? I find it therapeutic to share.

And always remember… Stay in your write mind.

Dancing around your writing…

2011-08-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

Those of you who know me know that I love dancing Salsa. I don't know what you dance when you go to the club, but this is what we do. Salsa takes technique in your feet, your hands, and your hips. The dance moves are intoxicating and addictive. The more you learn the more you want to dance.

Listen to the struggle in the music, the pain, and joy. You can feel the anger of lost love, and you burn it out on the dance floor. The passion of new love flows through you like a mighty river; it ignites a flame that will explode on the dance floor like a volcano. The more I dance the stronger I feel as all the exhilaration sparks as if struck by lightning. I want her to know the pain I felt when she left, but more importantly I want her to know that there was one who came and cared after she left. I want the world to know the freedom of love from knowing that someone found me broken and loved me that way. I need to tell my new love that her voice, the sweet smell of her perfume, and the soft touch of her hand moves me to laughter and tears.

All of it is in the music and the dance. It just so happens that my friends and I are old musicians from back in a day. We experience it from both sides of the spectrum. Give me four hours on the dance floor and I'll tell you stories of passion that will make you cry. I made a friend of our's cry so badly with one of those stories everyone thought I ruined the party. I saved it again, calm down. I gave it a quick happy ending, asked everyone to toast with me to love, and we cranked up the music continuing the party. Oh use a tape recorder because you won't remember the whole story the next morning. That's the only draw back. But that's mainly due to the drinking involved. You see you can dance around your story.

We also dance for power. In my younger days, we used to break dance similar to what you see on the following video.

This type of dancing was a power trip for me. It was about competition, being stronger, better, more capable than the other guy. If you're wondering if I can still do it let just say this. Last month I went to a party at a friend's house. He's a DJ at a local Latin club. I didn't really know him I only knew his wife from back in a day when we used to hang out. But when he began to play some old school, we started rapping, yeah we do a little of that too. Someone dared me to break dance like I used to. Yeah, it's stupid but I don't like backing out of a dare. I couldn't believe I could still do it, but I did. I felt unbeatable, ten feet tall, like a super hero just demonstrating I could still move like that. Okay it wasn't the best I could do from my younger years, but I still can do it.

You see writing is about emotion, lots and lots of emotion. You want to bring those desires, that passion, the anger, frustration, and so much more into your writing. The reader wants to feel, smell, and remember what it was like as they read, all the while experiencing something new.

We're very eclectic. My wife sings country music, dance's Salsa, hip hop, and she's amazing at it.

Dancing is just another stimulation that does it for me. Can dancing help you express those emotions you need in your writing? If not tell me what does and how it helps you.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Technology or science fiction...

2011-08-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

Should we freeze future technology to make a profit with what we have? Most people believe technology is brought to the public at the time it is developed. Others, like me, believe that our scientists are much more advanced than what we know. That technology is kept quiet until the market makes the desired profit, and then the next level is introduced to the public. This is why you see a new upgrade each year.

Before I continue I'd like to say that last week I came down with a horrible cold or flu. But, I was amazed at how many twitter friends reached out sending me get well wishes on twitter. I can't thank you all enough. You have no idea how good it feels to know someone is thinking of you when you're ill. Well needless to say I have begun to feel better. However, before I continue, I wanted to thank all those who made twitter more than just a social media for marketing and demonstrated kindness. It has inspired me greatly. Thank you!

And now I will continue with my thought for today. I have a question for everyone.

Have you ever noticed that technology is sometimes advertised one year before it is available in the market? Consider the cell phones we use at this time. Right now we have cell phones on which you can view movies, listen to music, text messages, and make calls. But that's not all they can do. They can be used as a low jack to know the whereabouts of your children or significant other. They can be used as a camera and a video recorder with sound. Okay, I'm going out on a limb here, but when I was a teen, we considered technology like this to be space age, science fiction. Today, it's a reality.

But that's not all, as they say on television. Now you can write, import, and export Word files and documents on your cell phone. They are used as GPS with maps of where you are. You can even get on the internet, tweet, and look up your Facebook. The PC shrunk down to laptops, and now we have iPads that can do the same things. Pretty soon your computer will be as small as your cell phone. It may even probably be in your cell phone.

Now with all this technology you would think someone would be able to invent a source of fuel other than gasoline for automobiles. Why have we not been able to do that? Here is my conspiracy theory. The multi-million dollar gasoline companies will not allow it. If an automobile that does not need gas to run is introduced to the world, it will put them out of business. Considering they are the riches' people in the world, they would rather buy out any invention and bury it than give up their cash cow.

If you were an inventor and came up with an alternative to gas or an automobile which does not need gas to run, would you sell it for several million or attempt to make something out of it and fail? It's a no brainer. A bird in the hand, and all that. I, therefore, pose the question once again. Should we freeze future technology for profit?

Please give me your thoughts. Do you think my theory is science fiction or not? If you think, it's science fiction, why? If not, what should or can we do about it?

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

To remove or not to remove...

2011-07-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

In writing less is more. Therefore, take out what you don't need. Let's talk unnecessary phrases or clauses. Many people get very confused with this type of sentence. They're unsure if a comma should be use or not. The question is what the comma will do to the sentence. I don't know if you're aware of this or not but the comma will change the meaning entirely. That will take your readers down the wrong path.

I usually write without worrying about my grammar, word choice, or sentence structure. After I've allowed my creative juices to run wild then I go back and begin editing. If I edit while I'm writing my creative ideas are replaced by my analytical thinking to make the proper corrections. You may write differently. You may edit as you go, and that is perfectly fine. If that is your style always stick to what's comfortable for you.

Now when I begin editing, I may see that some of my sentence structures need to be changed. My biggest fear is that in my effort to write correctly I may over edit and make the story sound more like a report. This is why you'll need someone to look over your manuscript after you edit. Nonetheless, you need to ensure yourself that your sentences are conveying the correct story.

Let's take a look at some sentences.

1. "My wife, Joanne, will put gas in the car tomorrow."

2. "My wife Joanne will put gas in the car tomorrow."

Which one of these two sentences is correct? Well, that depends on what you're trying to say. The problem with sentence #1 is that it's talking about my wife Joanne, but there may be other wives. That may tick off my wife. In sentence #2 without the commas Joanne is my one and only wife.

1. "The letter is about Cindy who loves singing in the lounge and me."

2. "The letter is about Cindy, who loves singing in the lounge, and me."

The first sentence tells us that Cindy loves both singing in the lounge and me. Sentence #2 with the commas clearly explains that the letter is about Cindy and me. You know which Cindy I mean, the one who loves singing in the lounge. The first sentence talks about a love affair between two people. The second only mentions that the letter's about Cindy and me.

Only use commas to encompass trivial information. The data may add some details but the main idea can be understood without it.

"William, who arrived late, had to wait in a long line."

If you remove the words encompassed in the commas the sentence would read:

"William had to wait in a long line."

As you can see the main concept remained the same.

Do not use commas to encompass clauses essential to the meaning of the sentence.

"The individuals who arrived early did not have to wait in line."

If you remove the subordinate clause, you will lose the main idea of the sentence.

"The individuals did not have to wait in line."

You need the clause to identify the individuals who did not have to wait in line.

I hope this helps clear up something in your writing. Please, let me know if it has. If you feel I've missed anything let me know that too.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Friends with Benefits...

2011-07-21T08:36:00.000-07:00

I obtained tickets to see the preview this past Tuesday and thought my wife would like to see it. Chick flicks, I've seen tons of them, and any guy out there that's laughing at me right now is either in an unhappy relationship or alone. Because if you have a girl friend or are happily married you too, my friend, watch chick flicks in abundance.

It's not that I hate them. Some are actually pretty good. The thing is you always know what the ending is going to be. You see these films are not about the ending, but more about how they get there. Women understand this. Men, we just need to grasp the concept, and everything will be alright. I, myself love surprise endings, twists that make you think. With romantic films, it's the in-between that captures your attention.

For instance, the concept of friends with benefits should be of interest to you men right off the bat. That's not to say that women aren't interested in the concept either. I mean let's face it, having you always wanted a friend with benefits? Maybe you've even had one. Don't raise your hand, I'm not asking you to admit to anything here. But the title and idea of the movie are enticing.

Most chick flicks have a couple good jokes and at least one good line that will make it memorable. That is if it's a good movie otherwise it's like bingo, it's a good way to pass the time, but there's somewhere else you'd rather be. This was not that kind of movie. I was truly surprised that right from the beginning I was laughing. I know some of you women are thinking Justin Timberlake brought sexy back, but Mila Kunis brought funny back. Well actually Patricia Clarkson and Woody Harrelson were hilarious as well.

You will laugh, but take it easy because this movie is packed with one liners, and if you're laughing too hard you just might miss the next punch line. Oh and you will laugh. You want to make your significant other happy and enjoy it yourself, take them to see this movie. Oh but please, don't take your children with you. I never understand why people take their children to see movies like these. Get a babysitter. Take her out to dinner, and go all out. Biggie size it, tell her money is no object. Then, go watch this movie. You'll enjoy it.

But don't take my word for it. It opens tomorrow, July 22, which is a Friday night. Go see it, come back, and tell me what you thought.

And remember... Always stay in your write mind.

O about that… dream, or fantasy…

2011-07-19T09:38:00.000-07:00

What is your fantasy, your dream? What make you smile from ear to ear every time you see? Is it that new car? You know that dream car you've been fantasizing about. The one that makes you smile every time you see one drive. When something goes wrong you pull up that picture you have of it to calm yourself down. You can just smell that new car smell in it. The sleek design, the seats, dash, even the steering wheel looks good on it.

Is your dream a new baby? Maybe your time biological clock is ticking. Whenever you walk passed the baby section at the store you have to stop and look at clothes just to see what it feels like. When you visit friends you want to hold their baby and look at the little fingers and toes, and pudgy cheeks.

Do you dream of freedom… a vacation in one of the most exotic places on earth, with palm trees swaying in the breeze, beaches, and tropical drinks? Maybe your idea of vacation is not in the tropics, but rather in the big city - Dining in elegant restaurants, dressed in the finest clothes. Men in their Brioni or Kiton suites, or maybe a less expensive but more familiar Giorgio Armani or Ralph Lauren will call your attention. If you’re a woman you may enjoy wearing a Gucci outfit, or possibly Prada. Maybe you would like to enjoy one of the hottest fashions from Fendi to demonstrate your glamour and glitz?

If you're among the very young your idea of a vacation includes night clubs, dumb men with muscle that know no bounds, and lots of alcohol. And let's face it that will bring us to where we wake up in a strange place, or with a strange person in our bed. Maybe what you enjoy is the thrill of the hunt. It may be that you enjoy knowing you can capture anyone of the opposite sex at any given time. And like any good hunter, you like to have your trophies.

Maybe your dream is a home - With a husband or wife - Having the life with a white picket fence and that good job. You know the dream, the one where you know all the neighbors, and everyone says hello as you're getting into your car in the morning. But, maybe I'm getting ahead of myself here. Your dream could be finding that special person to make that home with.

Do you write about it? Do you write about the struggle of achieving those dreams, of having your wildest fantasies come true? Who is the evil that keeps you from accomplishing your dreams? You need to dream bigger, with larger than life enemies that live only to keep you from your dreams, and to destroy your fantasies. Then dream of their defeat and your victory.

Photo by Benil Sibel Özyürük

After you dream, write. Write about the beginning of that fantasy. Write about the emotions of seeing it taken away. Write about the pain of losing your hopes and dreams. Write about the spark that lit up and caused you not to give in to defeat. Write about the struggle to get your dream back. Write about almost dying in the process. But, most of all write about the joy of victory, and the tears of joy. Write about the laughter, and the peace of knowing you've won. Write…

Write your comments and tell me a little about it. Tell me a little, just a little, of your dreams and fantasies. Just a little, because a dream or a fantasy take an entire book.

But remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Grilling a novel...

2011-07-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

I have several friends who consider themselves grill masters. I use specific spices when I grill, and of course, that changes depending on the type of meat I will be grilling. For this example, I will be using chicken as my meat of choice since it is very popular for grilling. First I season the meat with Adobo all purpose seasoning. I use this condiment on almost everything I grill or cook. It is very versatile. Next I sprinkle Black Pepper on the chicken breast or wings. Third I like to use Garlic. Usually I prefer the Garlic spice without salt, but if you have garlic salt that's fine too.

Here is where it changes for many people. Lastly, I put Mrs. Dash original blend over my chicken. I have a friend who instead marinates the chicken in Italian Dressing Marinate. Yes, it's usually for salads. However, it can be used for marinating meat as well. Do I use it? No. Does it taste good? Oh yeah. When he grills at his home, we have a good time. Then why don't I use it? Good question.

When he grills you can eat the chicken with any side, and it tastes great. When I grill you can eat the chicken any way you want. I can slice it into strips and place it over my salad. Sliced the same way, I can place it over my favorite pasta, be it Marinara or Alfredo Sauce. I can serve it with rice on the side or potatoes covered with Tomato Sauce or gravy. I can slice it for sandwich meat. And the list goes on.

Many people will tell you how to write and how not to. I have learned throughout life, to take the good and leave what is not helpful out. Should a writer stick to one genre only? Let me explain this. My novel is Science Fiction because it deals with aliens from another planet. It is also a murder mystery because no one knows the identity of the killer. I also consider it an Action Adventure Thriller because it contains several war scenes, several individual fight scenes, and several shootouts within the novel. It can also be placed in the Horror genre because ghosts haunt the military base in search of revenge. And like any good book, there is romance, sex, and lust lurking about.

Is this wise? I don't know but that's how it all came together. Will it work? Well, here's my take on that. You may not like science fiction, but you like romance and sex stories. It could be, you only like horror, blood and guts, or just the thrill of the action. Regardless of your preference, you may buy my book simply because it has a little, if not enough, of what you like in it. You may not like the horror, the killings, or the aliens, but you're a sucker for hot steamy romance. It's in there, just like the Prego sauce.

Does this mean you should do the same? I never tell my friend how to grill his chicken or how to prepare it. I enjoy it just the way he makes it. I won't tell you how to write your story. I'm sure I'll like just the way you write it. Does this make mine's better? Not-at-all. I've read many books and thought, "Man I wish I could write like that." My father always used to tell me, "Son, colors were made for the different tastes." You can write differently than I. This is just the way I grill my novel.

But, by all means tell me if you think it's a mistake or not. You can even tell me why, and where you learned to do it that way, and from whom. Or, you can simply tell what your preferred style of writing is, and why.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Guest blogger Lisa Skone...

2011-07-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

Many people use Twitter to meet others with similar objectivity. We now have #WW and #FF to introduce others to our list of friends. It is a great way to meet new people, and increase your circle of friends. Still, you are limited as to how much you actually get to learn about them.

To become better acquainted with people, and find out about their projects your best bet would be to visit their blog - or in this case visit a blog which features them. A twitter introduction is not sufficient for some people who you should get to know. This is why I have invited Lisa Skone to be my guest speaking and tell you more about herself and her work.

Take it away Lisa.

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I am told forty two is the new thirty two. I like it! It’s like saying that red is the new black. You know it blatantly isn’t, but when your mind adjusts to the idea, wraps itself around the lie and snuffs it out, it becomes a welcomed reality.

I never imagined by the time I reached forty two that I would have two grown up children, a four year old granddaughter, and two dogs.

I remember being in my room at twelve years old, miming to Abba songs with a yellow towel on my head (I wished I had long blonde hair like Agnetha.) My only worry I had was keeping my room tidy. Along with dreaming of being Agnetha, I dreamt of meeting prince charming, having a big fairytale wedding, and having four children, two boys and two girls. Oh, the innocence of a young girl. If only you could bottle it! But it was only to be a dream. I had my first child at sixteen; my second at eighteen, and my illusions of living happily ever after were shattered! The father of my two children, Danny and Lianne, was only two years older than me, but unfortunately for both of us (I say that loosely) he became a heroine addict. We didn’t live together, so I was oblivious to what was going on. I found myself alone in a two bedroom flat with a toddler and a baby, but I was tough. I was strong, I could cope, and I did. I had the support of my mum and dad, so things weren’t so bad. I met someone else, whom I married, and along came my third child Nicky. Not wanting to go into too much detail, we survived for eleven years. I say survived because that was tough. Our relationship was a volatile one, and violence occurred many a time, but in the end we had to call it a day. Now at thirty years old, I had three children to bring up, but still I coped. My faith in men was practically zero, and then I went to Skiathos, one of the Greek islands, and my faith went from zero to ten in a matter of days. Then In The Blink of An Eye, my first novel was born. My book is based on my experience, and how a young woman, with no self esteem, met a man who made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. But there is more to this story than just romance. It also delves into the world of addiction, as you follow the storyline of Mick, an alcoholic in denial, who is oblivious that his marriage breakdown is the result of his heavy drinking. Love, loss and heartbreak are some of the ingredients that have gone into my story. It is the first of a trilogy, and I am currently working on the sequel, Paving The Way. The three books are based on the last ten years of my life, and over those ten years I have faced all three situations that I just spoke about. Loves shattered dreams restored, dealing with a loss that nearly destroyed me, and my heart broken into so many pieces that I thought it was beyond repair. You might be wondering why at the beginning of my post I said I had two children, when later on it is clear that I have three. Unfortunately seven years ago, my eldest son, who was eighteen, died in an accident. His death nearly killed me, but here I am, better and stronger than ever, fulfilling a dream that seemed impossible. I fought the biggest fight of my life, and the battle isn’t over yet, but I am getting there. I persevered, I held on to life by my little finger nail at times, but I held on. I pushed through, and looked through, and now I can see a future on my horizon. My stories are powerful, and book three (especially) is about survival and how through the challenges life throws at you, you can grow, and become the person you were destined to be.

So here I am, forty two years old, starting a journey that is both exciting and slightly daunting…. but here I am!!!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Orlando for asking me to share my story. It has been a pleasure working with you my friend!

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It has been a pleasure working with you as well Lisa.

You can find Lisa on twitter under @beauty4ashezz, or you can click here for her blog. Please look her up and say hello.

And remember... Always stay in your write mind.

Guest blogger L. Carroll

2011-07-06T12:56:00.000-07:00

As promised here is the cover for the new book.

Once in a while you read a book in which you can delight in. Lor Mandela Destruction from Twins by L. Carroll is such a book. I can't contain the excitement to introduce to you L. Carroll as my guest blogger today. As you very well know authors get better with every book and now she has book 2 of this series coming out on July 15, 2011 for your enjoyment. If you have not read the first book I recommend it. I don't always recommend books as openly as I'm doing with this series. However, I believe in the quality of the writing and the story line. Therefore, without further ado here is L. Carroll…

Indie Author Jones and the Journey of Doom

Episode One in the Self-Publishing Saga - Friends in the Book Biz

By L. Carroll

"Jonesy," the persistent little voice in her head urged. "Jonesy, let's write a book!"

"A book? What a sensational idea," Jonesy exclaimed, "Oh, yes! It'll be a fantastic tale of far away lands, epic battles and two people who, against all odds, find love. It's sure to be a bestseller and make me millions! If I start today, it should be ready for publishing in about six months, or so."

(Six years later…) "Stupid voice in my head! What were you thinking? A book! Ha! Well, I finished that book, sent out a query letter to the agent I hand-picked, and look!" Jonesy thrust the crumpled piece of paper in her hand toward her face and growled. "Says he's chosen to pass at this time! I don't even think he took the trouble of writing me personally! It's a form letter -- I'm sure!" And so continued Jonesy's quest for several months, (and roughly thirty more form letters, a giant six ton marble, and a pit of pythons).

But Jonesy was never one to quit when the going got rough! She began to explore other ways to get her book into the hands of those desperate souls who were unknowingly begging for it; she decided to publish it herself.

Skilled at wrestling alligators and constructing explosive devices from paperclips, but knowing nothing of book publishing, Jonesy needed a mentor…someone who had fought the self-publishing battle, and won.

Have you ever felt like Jonesy…out of your element, or disillusioned by the game of book authoring and/or publishing? Fear not, freaked out author! There is help available, and it comes from a source, that traditionally, we choose to avoid. It comes from our competition.

Yep, fellow writers are a wonderful resource for those aspiring to become published. As I've gone down this self-publishing road, it's never ceased to amaze me how helpful and supportive other authors have been. Many amazing authors have offered advice, critiqued portions of my work, referred me to other professionals, assisted in promotion (thanks everyone who's part of the current "Four Hundred Hours to Four Hundred Days Blog Party), and even bought and read my work.

So, as a (now) published author who knew nothing about publishing in the beginning, I encourage aspiring writers to tap into this valuable resource. Join author groups (either in your area or online), make friends with other authors, and build a BIG social network full of authors. The knowledge you gain will be invaluable. The friendships you build will buoy you up through the hard times, and who knows? You might even find a connection that will ultimately land you your spot on that "bestseller" list! If there's one thing I've learned along my "Journey of Doom" (er, I mean "Journey of

Triumph"), it's that there are lots of great friends to be had in the book biz!

L. Carroll is the author of "The Lor Mandela Series". Her first book "Destruction from Twins" maintains a five-star rating, (Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Goodreads). Book #2 in the series will release on July 15, 2011. You can learn more about the mystical fantasy world of Lor Mandela at http://www.lormandela.com, or email the author directly at lormandela@ (at) yahoo. (dot) com.

"Destruction from Twins" is currently available in paperback at: http://www.amazon.com/Lor-Mandela-Destruction-Twins-Book/dp/0615481752/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1309238407&sr=8-3 or https://www.createspace.com/3602036

Or in ebook formats at: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/55880 or http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lor-mandela-destruction-from-twins-l-carroll/1031162349?ean=2940011287046&itm=1&usri=lor%2bmandela

My Synopsis...

2011-07-05T07:50:00.000-07:00

Okay friends, I have put together an official synopsis. I have read many blogs, books, and other material to put this together, but after reading so much on the subject, it seems to confuse me more. Am I alone in this? Nonetheless, I am seeking your assistance once again to guide me, more or less, towards editing my work.

Like everyone else I am seeking to put my best foot forward. I know I have a great story, but I need to convey that idea to the agents. And a great query followed by a good synopsis is the only way to do this. Therefore, please provide me with your honest and help suggestions. Your critiques are greatly appreciated. I carefully take all that you guys suggest under consideration. I think you have helped me put together a great query. Now let's see if we can do the same with the synopsis. Here goes:

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Orlando Ramos/Spirits of The Unknown/Synopsis

Spirits of The Unknown

Synopsis

Tilva's family governs three quarters of the planet Suvino. Hilvax, the current leader of the East Lands, has threatened war. The Family Government has come up with a plan to kill Hilvax to prevent a full scale war, but they have been betrayed. A bomb in his father's jet went off killing Aniuval his father along with his entire crew. Shortly after, they found his youngest brother shot to death in a hotel room with his wife Nishta.

His second brother Sanaido attempts to escape, with his wife and children, in a ship. The murderer hides inside the ship hacking his wife and two children with a sword. Prior to his death, Sanaido sets a course for the nearest livable planet to seek help. This planet is Earth. However, the hidden assassin escapes planet-side.

The American government has possession of the ship, but is contacted by Tilva, and a dictator called the New Sun from the alien planet. They must make an alliance to capitalize from the scientific knowledge the ship contains. Not knowing who to trust, they realize the wrong choice can begin an interplanetary war involving them.

Hilvax, who Tilva thought started this war, is announced dead. Tilva must face a brutal civil war which is devastating his planet, brought on by the NS trying to conquer the planet. There is conspiracy around every corner, as his government crumbles.

Tilva realizes someone from within has betrayed the Family, but he can't figure out who. The torment of losing his family is clouding his judgment. His paranoid behavior is causing everyone to believe he has killed his own family to gain control of the entire planet. Treak, the woman he loves warned them of the possibility of such an attack. The murders happened almost exactly as she described them making Tilva wonder if she has committed treason. Distraught with rage, distrust, and fear for his own life, Tilva struggles to uncover the assassin and stop the New Sun.

The U.S. betrays Tilva handing him over to the New Sun. When the NS arrives, she finds a hoax to ensnare her. Tilva faces this NS for the first time, but tormented by the deaths in his family, he is unable to take her life, and the ghosts must step in.

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Please let me know if it is too long. I'm not sure how many words there should be on a synopsis. Double spaced as it is, it is just a bit over one page at 385 words. And of course, anything else you see that needs changing.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Freedom...

2011-07-02T10:48:00.000-07:00

Young mothers don't want to hear you telling them how to do things. Regardless, of how much they know your instructions must be subtle and unnoticed if you want to them to adhere. A mechanic doesn't want to hear what you think it is or how to fix it. Otherwise you can do it yourself, is their thinking. Young couples don't want to know if you agree or not with their lifestyle or how they need to save money.

My life is paved with good intension, but in the end, have my words been received that way? That is the question you must ask yourself. You want your child to go to college. What if he or she doesn't want to go? Can you force them? Not really. Even if you can force them, you should ask yourself what it will cost you. Good intensions often cause good friendships to end. They cause your children to hate you and not want to call you or invite you to their parties.

If you don't mind living without your children then fine, give them a piece of your mind. The same goes with friends. Otherwise, you may want to keep your opinions to yourself. Think before you say those words.

But, what if someone asked for your opinion? Should you tell them straight out what you think? Oh yeah, I believe you should. However, there are exceptions. If your child asks, "should I marry this person?" and you dislike them greatly, please take heed. That is a loaded question. They have already decided what they will do, they only what someone to agree with them - In which case you should ask, "Do you love him/her?"

If your friend should ask, should I divorce my spouse, again, take heed. That is a loaded question. Later they might get back together and remember your remark feeling you don't care for their spouse. Don't put yourself in that situation.

"Honey, do I look fat in this dress?" That is a loaded question. Warning, warning, Will Robinson, proceed with caution.

Do I want to live beyond my means? That's my business. Why don't I get a better job? That's my business. If I want to be a freak, that's my business. If I want to go to church, it's my business. The clothes I wear, the place I live, the car I drive, and on what I spend my money, it's all my business. Where I vacation and how I got the money, is my business.

Men fought and died for that freedom. And I will not allow anyone to mock them by telling me how to live - You too Mom. I love you, but it's my life.

You can't change people. God won't change people. God will lead us into thinking positive, and living productively, but he won't change your personality.

In the end - Everybody wants to live, how they want to live.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

My Query Letter Part 2...

2011-06-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

After listening to your advice, I decided to give it another try. I know many of you said you liked the first query letter I drafted. However, a few made suggestions that I thought were very good. In view of the suggestions made, I put together this new query. Please go over it and see if there is anything I've missed. I want to know which you think is better the first one or this new draft. The details I mentioned in the previous query will be in the synopsis which I will share once I nail down the query. So here goes:

Tilva is now alone. His father has been bombed in his jet. His youngest brother shot to death in a hotel room with his wife. And Sanaido, the second brother, escapes in a ship. They later found the ship with his brother's wife and children hacked with a sword, bludgeoned to death, and Sanaido shot.

Tilva is next and he knows it. He must disclose the murderer to prevent being killed. Suspicion has ensnared his advisors into believing Tilva killed his own family to become the sole ruler of the planet. The woman he loves warned him of the attack, but he questions how she knew. Being the secretary of state makes her next in line to seize power.

Tilva now faces a brutal world war. If he doesn't learn to trust someone, his fears and insecurities will be the cause of his own demise. In a final quest of trust, he may end this trauma, solidify his love, and reunite his planet - or betrayed by the one person he never dreamed possible step right into his killer's trap.

Please, leave me your comments telling me which you think is better and why.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Birth…

2011-06-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

These are my four grandchildren. Jaiden is ten days old now and I'm a happy grandfather again.

I found there is nothing more mysterious than the birth of a child. Let me explain to you why this is such a baffling event to me. First of all, I see the human body as a machine. Just like a car it can be moved, and directed to accomplish our needs. Our eyes are the windows to the outside world. We live inside moving the machine at will. Like any other machine, it starts out shiny and new, but with time it will slowly deteriorate. When the machine ceases to function, we leave. This is the only way we can function in this material world of energy and atoms.

Before that though, I am curious about where we come from. Can someone explain the birth of a soul? Although science can explain the conception and growing process of a fetus they cannot explain the soul. It's easier to deny what you can't explain. That has been the catalyst of science research throughout history. That's what I liked about the movie "Contact." Don't give up on the unseen.

What is life? I don't mean your surrounding, or the meaning of which. I mean breath, knowledge of existence. What is the point of knowing, learning, or growing if it's all going to disappear one day? Where did consciousness come from, and where in the universe are we?

Many things can be explained. A doctor can measure the electrical activity of a human heart using an electrocardiograph (EKG). Here's an easy one for you. If a needle was to stab you in the foot the message would be electrically transmitted to your brain immediately along the nerves in your body. These are samples of the energy in the human body.

The basic building blocks of all matter are atoms. An automobile, the air, and the human body are all made up of atoms. Atoms are held together by two things, strong force and electric force. An atom is 99% empty space. In the center of the atom, you'll find the congregation of particles called the nucleus. If you looked at the image above you will see an atom. Doesn't that look like planets circling a sun? Is the universe one enormous atom?

How do atoms and energy relate to love and the birth of a child? Are we simply programmed computers embedded with the data our parents input inside us? If it were that simple my children would be perfect after my programming. My programming did not work. Sure they're wonderful, but not exactly what I wanted them to be. See how everyone wants to live their own life without the intrusion from parents or friends? So I look at my grandchildren, and I wonder who they will grow up to be.

Ah… the excitement of new life, new dreams, new possibilities, and new worlds. If you have children in your life you can see how they develop their very own personalities. Don't those little personalities change and affect your life? Leave a comment telling me how.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Beauty...

2011-06-24T12:21:00.000-07:00

Things of beauty stir every emotion inside of us. A painting can be beautiful, a flower, a song, a meal, even a lover's touch. You see beauty engages all your senses. Your sense will bring your emotions with them as a friend. To believe that beauty is only in the eye of the beholder is to limit the experience of a life changing event.

When beauty truly becomes intense is when you can begin to involve all your sense to the one experience. You have found great beauty when the sight of something gives you pleasure and its fragrance entices you. When the sound of it calls out to you and its touch exhilarates your mind while the taste of it satisfies you to your core.

Without thinking it twice, what have I just described to you? It's different for everyone. It can also be many things in your life, should you be so lucky. We concentrate on what is not appealing to us. We think more about what went wrong, or how unattractive some things may be. The more we think of something bad, the more it engulfs our thoughts, strangling our pleasure in life.

Lately, I have seen so much good although bad continues to fights against me. My life is not perfect, and I have several serious issues at hand. If I concentrated on these, I would feel totally defeated and distraught. However, that is not how I've decided to live my life. Several months back I decided to change my way of thinking. I must experience pleasure and satisfaction before I've moved on from this life. I narrowed down the one thing that needed to be removed in order for me to accomplish this goal.

For you, it could be more than one. In fact, it could be possible that you have no need to remove anything in your life. You can find beauty in the most unattractive things, people, animals, or nature. You can experience if you can get past the fact that it is not determined only by your sight.

I have applied all my energy on finding the good in all things that now all my desires from my bucket list are coming to me. Oh, a bucket list? That's a list of things you want to accomplish before you die. Things you've always dreamed of doing. Before I only dreamed of them. Now I'm actually seeing them come true without me going out looking for them.

Look around you. What in your life is providing you with the most pleasure right now? Can you see it, hear it, smell it, taste it, and touch it? How many of these senses can you apply to it? Don't be afraid of what others may think or say. It's your life not theirs. Let them find their own. You only have one life. Are you living it, or enduring it?

Tell me your dreams, your pleasures, and your desires, and I'll tell you mine.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

A sample of my query letter...

2011-06-22T08:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry but blogger has done it again. It seems I can't attach a picture to my blog now. No matter life goes on. Today I wanted to let you see my query letter in the hopes that you will assist me by giving my your critique. This will be a great help for me in putting my best foot forward. In my last blog I had everyone vote as to the title of the book. I listened and changed everything accordingly. Please let me know what you think.

KEYS TO POWER

When his father and brother are assassinated, it leaves Tilva the contested ruler of the planet Suvino. Four Keys to Power control the four countries on the planet and his Family government had all four until the day of betrayal. He holds one of the four Keys to Power. Unfortunately, many suspect Tilva to be a murderer, and the upstart dictator is using their anger to destabilize Tilva's government.

When Tilva's remaining brother is also assassinated, it turns the conflict interplanetary. The brother's ship arrives at Earth with its occupants slaughtered, but Earth's authorities are hungrier to exploit the ship's technology than to find the killer. The problem is, they can't unlock that technology without the help of Suvino's government-and there are two governments. Siding with the wrong one, will bring the conflict to Earth.

Obtaining the other three keys is the only way Tilva can stop the bloodshed and avenge his family. But as conspiracies ensnare his advisors, Tilva is forced to place most of his trust in the woman next in line to seize his power. When coerced to follow his brother's ship to Earth, Tilva knows he will either find the answers he needs-or walk right into an assassin's trap.

Please let me know your thoughts, comments, and critiques.

And remember... Always stay in your write mind.

An idea for a new name...

2011-06-20T07:54:00.000-07:00

I have thought of another possible name for my book and decided to ask you guys what you think of it. In order to emphasize the title, I needed to justify it and change the synopsis. This is not a complete synopsis just a quick idea for one, but you get the general idea. So, here goes, tell me what you think.

Tilva is the only son of the Family government still alive. 1,938 years ago the first world leader of the planet Suvino created four keys. He called them the Keys to Power. Each key controlled a quarter of the planet's militarized and governmental computer's systems. Without a KTP, everything would have to be worked manually. Some weapons were manual, as some machines, and vehicles, but to bring an entire country from an advanced computer age back to an age with no modern technology was unfathomable.

The KTPs controlled the planet's computers, weapon's systems, and all other technology, but it could not control prejudice, anger, hate, greed, or betrayal. These deep rooted emotions like a cancer destroyed the people, and no one knew. Not until the murders occurred. Now everyone wondered what their friends and neighbors were thinking and feeling.

The current leader and two of his son's have been murdered. Only Tilva remains and he still holds his key. A new dictator has stepped in to claim the planet hers. She calls herself the New Sun and claims to have all the KTPs. Tilva knows this is not true, since he still holds his. She must be lying about the others as well. He now fights to save his people while constantly looking over his shoulder in fear of the murderer who killed his family. It had to have been someone close to them that betrayed their trust.

A war now rages; a war that threatens to destroy the planet bringing it back to the cave days. Whoever holds all three KTPs controls the planet. If it's true the New Sun holds three of them, he is fighting a losing battle. Nonetheless, Tilva must make a stand and try to regain control of the planet and reestablish the Family government.

The Keys to Power is the name.

Please let me know what you think. I need feed back.

And remember… Always stay in your write mind.

Super 8 On -- Father's Day

2011-06-19T13:07:00.000-07:00

The movie has a few funny moments. You have to love a kid who wants to blow everything up. I'm just glad he doesn't live in my neighborhood. Every now and then, we all make mistakes and its hard finding your way back home again. How to deal with the situation at hand is what this movie is all about.

The movie is not about the creature. It's about the kids. The creature just adds excitement to the movie. The kids need to find their way around their own issue, and this creature gets in the middle of it all. Now they have to deal with the creature, and in so doing, they learn to deal with their situations.

The adults are no different. Because let's face it, we older people get everything wrong at times, and then we find others to blame it on. If we could just learn to face our own issues and deal with them, life would get simpler for us.

Considering this is Father's Day, I'll take advantage and go over a few things about fatherhood. I have three children with my ex-wife and three with my current. I think that qualifies me to speak a bit about fatherhood. Just one thing I want to say on the subject. If your child wants to say something, let them talk. Allow your child to explain before you make a decision. Sure kids play the game and try to get over on you, but they can surprise you sometimes if you give them the chance.

Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there. Super 8 is worth watching. I give it 3 1/2 stars.

And remember… always stay in your write mind.

The name of my book is...

2011-06-15T12:57:00.000-07:00

I am so sorry that I've been out of commission for a couple of days here. I've been working on interviews for regular employment, and desperately trying to finish editing my book before I become employed. I'm not sure if any of you have been in my situation, but it gets too much to keep up with at times like these. If you commiserate let me know your situation, and we can compare notes, maybe help each other out.

On July 3rd, I said I would put out the name of my book. I hope you didn't give up on me thinking I forgot or changed my mind. Let me explain a little more about the book and then tell you the name in the hopes you'll see the connection. Now to catch up, if you haven't read the previous post, read the synopsis first and then read this portion. It will make a little more sense doing so.

Tilva stands alone after his father, and three brothers have been murdered. His brother Sanaido tried to escape in a ship with his wife and two children. Everyone aboard the ship died at the hands of the murderer who hid inside. Before Sanaido dies, he locks all systems so only his KTP can unlock them. He also set a course for the nearest livable planet, earth. The year is 1955 on earth, and the alien ship has landed right in their back yard. Now men dressed in black keep it concealed in the dessert.

Sanaido's ghost along with his wife and children now haunt the base. They attempt to reveal the murderer, but the humans cannot understand the language. Tilva does not believe in ghost and rejects the possibility. In the end, the ghosts get their big break. I can't get into those details because it would take away from the surprise ending of the book.

I named my book SPIRITS OF THE UNKNOWN because they aliens were not known to earthlings.

Please leave your comments and tell me what you think of the name.

And remember... Always stay in your write mind.

Super 8

2011-06-08T08:08:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard yet, Super 8, written ad directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg is coming out this week. Being a huge Sci-Fi thriller fan I decided to get all over it. The movie is not out, and it's already stirring up a bit of controversy. Some people are criticizing it for its ads,

which do not show images to determine if it’s a monster or what. The ads withhold the plot details as well. When commercials fail to provide sufficient information about the movie, my first instinct is, there is nothing to tell. The movie is not that good, and they withhold it to get you in the theaters.

Paramount Vice Chairman Rob Moore says the movie will be a word-of-mouth hit. Paramount Pictures and Twitter are partnering to present a sneak peek of the Sci-Fi adventure this Thursday June 9, one day prior to its release to the general public. The idea is to have everyone Tweeting about it and promoting the movie.

Do we have a whole new E.T. and The Goonies here? Despite my first instinct, as stated previously, if the trailer says "It has escaped." My question is, from where? Is this a military experiment, or are the military now transporting aliens by train? Then it says, "It has a plan." If it has a plan then it can't be a monster. It's not killing for the sake of killing. I'm intrigued either way. If you see the movie, drop by here and tell us all about it in my comments, well, at least the high lights.

Will it be hot or a flop? Tell me what you think.

Keep watching, and remember… Stay in your write mind.

Interview with Michelle Brooks

2011-06-07T07:34:00.000-07:00

Bone Dressing

By: Michelle Brooks

Time is running out… the dark that’s been chasing Syd for many lifetimes has finally caught up with her…

Michelle, the author of Bone Dressing is a wonderful person to speak with. She is witty and has an extraordinary history of her own. Her book is now available in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and The Independent Author Network. Please pick up your copy today. Now let's go into our interview.

Question:

Tell us the amazing story of your birth, the different names you were given at birth.

Answer:

I was born in the pre-dawn hours of a crisp February morning in 1966 in a little one-bedroom apartment behind the Alabama Theater in Montrose in the heart of Houston. I first saw the world as Brian Westworth Brooks until my grandmother informed my mother that the number of protruding body parts had been drastically miscalculated, that her grandchild was a she, not a he. As it turned out, my mother had been much too busy counting fingers and toes to bother with other jiggly bits. So Brian Westworth became Wendy Lynn, another fine name which served me well for all of two days. Upon signing the birth certificate my father surreptitiously changed my name one last time, ultimately introducing the world to Michelle Irene Brooks, one little girl big enough to have already lived the lives of three. While being totally Texan and living in or near Montrose the majority of my life, I have traveled the world and lived a life rich with love, laughter, heartache and adventure. I came into the world seeing it through different eyes and carry with me to this day a rich, unique perspective of the life breathing all around me and within me.

Question:

You've traveled the world. Please tell a little about that.

Answer:

Well, I was, as I said in the previous question, born and raised in Montrose, where you pretty much need a passport to get in and out of … at least when I was a kid. My summers were spent visiting family in West Texas and my favorite Granddaddy down in Fal (Falfurrias), fifty miles north of the border. I can remember driving down to Reynosa in his great big Cadillac with the windows rolled down. We’d be going at 110 miles per hour and I’d be handing out warm glazed donuts to my aunt and uncle from a box of Shipley’s sitting in my lap. There was a bar he loved there (Fal was dry) – one time Frank Beard, the lead from ZZ Top, was there with his girlfriend. Well, my aunt was seventeen, on her period and a huge fan. Needless to say, she had a complete meltdown in the girl’s bathroom and we came back to find my granddaddy and Frank sitting together drinking Hurricanes. It was a great way to spend the afternoon, I still have a silver ring with a rose on a vine that Granddaddy got for me at the local market.

Funny how things turn out, when I was seventeen, my mom moved in with my stepdad and I was delegated to the garage apartment. Guess who lived right around the corner - none other than one Mr. Beard, who would pass by for walks with his black leather biker jacket on and his fluffy white Bichon Frise puppy in his arms.

Also spent a lot of time in Louisiana, loved Bourbon Street, and Colorado, loved the snow. But, when I was twelve, I got my first taste of what, for me, was other world-ness. I went to France for six weeks on my own to visit my best friend, Juliette. After I got over being homesick, it was absolutely amazing.

Since then I’ve traveled through much of the U.S. – have to say I adore New Orleans and San Francisco. But, in 2004 my children and I had to make a huge decision … whether or not to stay here and throw my three years of research down the tubes, or follow my professor abroad and finish my PhD there. We decided on the latter, and boy, what a time to move to Belgium of all places! The U.S. had just declared war on Iraq with President Bush, a Texan no less, at the helm, and of any country in Europe, Belgium had absolutely no qualms about expressing their displeasure with that decision. We had the most amazing time though, Belgium is a beautiful country with a rich history and we made friends I hope will last a lifetime. It was amazing being able to visit different countries within 30 minutes to an hour and we took full advantage of that. France and Ireland would have to be among our favorites, but too many stories, too many breath-takingly exquisite, heart-stoppingly beautiful moments, to tell here. We finally made our way back home (yearly visits not withstanding) in 2007 on the QE2. We drove to Southampton via the ferry, sailed to New York, then took our time driving back down to Houston. It was perfect.

Question:

Did you use any of the experiences in your life and travels as a catalyst for your book?

Answer:

Of course I did. How could I not? My experiences color my view of the world, and my view of the world then colors my experiences. It all feeds together, and hopefully I make good choices on my visionary diet.

Question:

Where did you gather inspiration for your characters, their personalities, and the intriguing scenes in your book?

Answer:

Oh my. The characters, good and bad, and the scenes, come primarily from my own feelings, thoughts and desires, events that transpired, and others I’m really terribly glad didn’t. Then, of course, I throw in tidbits here and there from friends and family that moved me one way or another …

Question:

What was the writing process like?

Answer:

Wonderful … can’t get enough of it really. Just started a full-time job and it’s only just hitting me now how wonderful it was being able to write whenever and wherever the mood struck … provided the kids were all fed, bathed, dressed and happy!

Question:

How did the decision to become a writer formulate in your mind?

Answer:

I’d honestly have to say it didn’t. I just write. I love it, and hopefully what I write will mean something to someone else.

Question:

Do you find that there is a world of difference between writing and marketing your book?

Answer:

God, yes. Good thing is though, that I love to write and my husband loves to market. So, together we’ve married the two and that makes us both happy.

Question:

Tell us about the cover and trailers. What was that experience like?

Answer:

Positively amazing. Emlyn, at Novel Publicity, who I’m now fully convinced is a certified mind reader, handled the book cover. We spoke over the phone several times, then she turned it over to Lee, her graphics person, who designed the cover ... on vacation, no less. They are wonderful. The cover is exactly what I’d also seen in my dream. Couldn’t be more perfect if they spent another ten years on it.

As for the trailer, that was me. I felt what I wanted in it … what it needed to be. Then I figured out how to do that, how to give my feeling meat and bones. It took about three weeks, but I did have to learn absolutely everything to do it, Photoshop, picture websites, Windows Live Movie Maker, how to edit and add in music, and finally how to create a YouTube version of the trailer and post it on my blog. Thank God, William, my husband, was there to help and hug and push and laugh, at all the right times … just don’t tell him, or I’m afraid the pushing may ramp up a bit!

Question:

For our readers, please explain what Bone Dressing is.

Answer:

If I did that, I’d have to kill you. Just keep reading and figure it out for yourself. Welcome to the world of Bone Dressing ...

Question:

Bone Dressing is the first in a series of seven books. When you first had the idea of this book, as a writer, how did you know it would come to seven books?

Answer:

I saw the entire series in my head before I put a single word on paper. That’s how. Before it had breath, it had seven lives. And now, I’d better get back to writing the second one …

Bone Dressing. Please make sure you go out and buy her book today.

And remember... Always stay in your write mind.

Book Review of Bridges...

2011-06-05T11:11:00.000-07:00

BRIDGES

A local restaurant in my home town has pictures on the wall from when the tobacco industry first came to Florida. I look at these pictures and wonder what life was like in those days. I walked into a shop a couple of months ago to drop off two treadmill motors for repair. On the walls, they had pictures from when they first opened shop, which was in the 40's. There were women in dresses and men with nice shirts repairing small motors on their benches. When they took us to the back the scene was completely different from what I saw in the pictures in the front office.

I told my friend who was with me, "Boy, what a difference from the pictures on the wall." He laughed and said it was another era. That statement made me think even more about the people in those pictures.

If you're anything like me your curiosity takes the best of you, but you don't have any real idea what it was like. Bridges will close that gap providing a historical view into the past and mixes it with fiction to take you away to that other era. I visited Niagara Falls when I was a young man. No, I don't want to mention what year that was. Suffice it to say it was many years ago. I pulled out those old pictures and looked at them feeling the same wonder. I've never seen it in the winter time, after reading this book I would like to go see the ice.

Now all though I've visited Niagara, I have never heard of the old hermit. I have not heard of the story when people used to walk on the frozen falls called the ice bridge. If you're like me, you'll want to hear about the gorge and its incredible frightening beauty. With delicate details LeVick describes the deadly whirlpool. You'll feel as if you're at the falls as the cold winds punish you, and the currents rumble under your feet.

In this adventurous book, you will learn the connection between Niagara Falls and bootleggers. LeVick does a wonderful job of connecting the past with the current through an emotional depiction of events. Like the Underground Railroad, and the massacre of English soldiers by the Iroquois braves.

However, the action, the real adventure takes place when five young men decide to experience Niagara Falls for themselves. After seeing the pictures on the wall of Ol' Gordy's general store, they agree it's their turn to see it first hand. It doesn't matter that it's dangerous, or that it's even against the law they need to do this. At first they are exposed to the wonder and majesty of the falls. Then the colorful demons, curses, and dangers come out to greet them. Now they must face the reality of their worst fears come to life.

What I'm working on now...

2011-06-03T10:06:00.000-07:00

Please excuse the long breaks in my blog. I am attempting to finish my book and blogging as well as Twittering consumes much of my time. You guys are awesome and I love you all for following.

Let me give you a small synopsis of what my book is about. I also want to get your opinion on the name. Let's start with the synopsis:

After an assassin kills his father and youngest brother, Tilva -- oldest son of his planet's ruling family -- faces a brutal civil war. Amid rumors that he killed his own kin to gain sole control of the government, and the rise of a powerful new dictator in the west, Tilva gets a grim reminder the assassin is still out there.

Tilva's second brother attempts to flee with his family, but the assassin hidden inside their ship kills everyone aboard, escaping planet-side. Meanwhile, the ship, haunted by the ghosts of the murdered family, jumps to its programmed destination: Earth.

The American government has possession of the ship, and is contacted by Tilva, and the new dictator. They must make an alliance to capitalize from the scientific knowledge the ship contains. Not knowing who to trust, they realize the wrong choice can begin an interplanetary war involving Earth. The ghosts of his family attempt to disclose the killer, to no avail. Now they want revenge.

With conspiracies around every corner as the government crumbles, there's only one person Tilva might be able to trust to help: the secretary of state, who also happens to be the woman he loves. But she's now next in line to take command. Has she become a scorned woman wanting his death? She warned him of such an attack, frustrated she was excluded from secret meetings. She could well be his greatest enemy or his greatest ally.

Discovering the assassin's identity has become of paramount importance -- finding the killer may be the key to suppressing the civil war, and uniting the planet. He follows his brother's ship to Earth where he'll either find the answers he needs -- or walk right into the assassin's trap.

Next time I'll tell you the title and you can tell me if you like it or not. Right, if you could give me an honest opinion about the story line, that would be great. Do you like it or not? What did you like and what did you dislike. Help me out blogger friends; I need your feed back.

Above all, remember… Stay in your write mind.

Avoid writers block...

2011-05-31T12:56:00.000-07:00

A love you never thought of...

I have talked about music being a great source of inspiration. I have also pointed out how different scenery can influence your desire to write. If you were to couple these two it would enhance the vision of your character and the story line even greater. I would go as far as to suggest taking pictures of your vacation, or any other time you visited a beautiful place, and create your own video. You can also place the pictures on your wall to look at while the music plays.

Although these work well for me, I will admit there is another step that surpasses these. In fact, I would say the previous are merely for setting the mood. Nonetheless, you need to know where the story line is going to take you. If you don't have that you have nothing to write about. The story line could also be called the plot. Now, of course there is much, much more needed than just a plot. I have said this before, but it bears repeating. It's not just plot development. It's also the characters, voice, back story, beginning and ending, the conflict building, action scenes, love scenes, realistic dialog, antagonist, protagonist, avoiding clichés, word count, title… and the list goes on.

However, today we're going to deal with what I call an outline. I have heard and read many people say that is not how you write. What works for me may not work for you but don't discard something because of what someone else has said. You don't have to tell anyone how you wrote it. Therefore, write it in whatever way makes you feel comfortable. This is my way to keep me from getting writers block.

Let me give you an example: Click the video and read on;

1. Billy wants to walk on the sidewalk across the street. That's where Sally walks and he must meet her.

2. The school crossing guard will tell his mother if he crosses the street near the school without his assistance.

3. The cars are moving too fast outside the school zone. He must learn what causes the cars to stop in order to cross unharmed.

4. He will also need to make an alliance with his sister to prevent her from snitching to Mom.

5. His best friend Joanne helps him come up with many ideas all of which fail.

6. After many failures he seeks the help of his father to drop him off across the street one block from his home.

7. However, after meeting Sally he finds she has a horrible personality.

8. Seeing things in a better light he realizes it's his best friend Joanne who he should be with. Joanne does not want to be his second choice.

9. Billy must now convince her she was his first choice he just didn't realize it. There will broken hearts, tears, and many lessons learned, but in the end...

You now have the epic story of an eight year old who only wanted to hold a girls hand.

It's as simple as that. You will continue to add more issues in between as you go through it. A bully might step into the picture. Another boy in a bike gets hit by a car in front of Billy, creating a fear he must learn to overcome. One obstacle to overcome leads to another issue you can place on your list.

My first outline consisted of about four pages. Did I do everything on it religiously? No way, that's not how you use it. That outline changed many times as the need would arise. Let me tell you what it did for me. That outline kept me on track showing me what to expect next. That, coupled with inspirational items state above, kept me writing. Here's another hint. At the end I had to put together another outline for the ending. The right ending is as important as the beginning or the middle.

Above all remember to… Stay in your write mind.

The Versatile Blogger Award...

2011-05-27T10:14:00.000-07:00

I have been awarded the Versatile Blogger Award by my good friend Nomar Knight. Please check out his blog Knight Chills for some frightful good fun. Now the award comes with several rules and in accepting this award I will honor the rules as well.

The rules:

1. Thank and link to the person who nominated you.

2. Share 7 random facts about yourself.

3. Pass the award on to 5 new-found blogging buddies.

4. Contact the winners to congratulate them.

The 7 random facts about myself:

1. My father was a minister, the best friend I ever had, and a wonderful man. He died too young due to diabetes.

2. As teenager I worked and lived with mom and dad. Therefore I made a lot of money. My friends and I used to have our clothes custom fit for us. Now I have to get fit to wear my clothes.

3. I love horse back riding, writing music, dancing Salsa, and art.

4. As a teenager I had an accident on my ten speed bicycle. I scraped the skin of the back of my shoulder. I didn't feel anything until my friend told me I was bleeding.

5. I believe the Chupa Cabra is a vampire like animal left behind by aliens from another planet. Okay I don't believe it but I'm going to write about it anyway.

6. I love dancing and I love singing but I suck at both. Except for Salsa, I took lessons.

7. I'm a metro sexual and my daughters think it's scary that I know about what shoes go with what dress, beauty tips, and other things I don't care to mention.

My 5 blog recommendation:

1. Allie Burke is a wonderful writer with the Enchanters series. Please look them up.

2. Lyn Midnight is witty, fun, and a great writer. Look up her blog and see what she's up to.

3. Katie Salidas has four books out and an immortal series. She will be releasing the third book in the immortal series in July. Don't miss it.

4. Jacquelyn Smith has a debut fantasy novel, Soul Seeker, available soon.

5. M. Pax, her debut, Beacons, placed 4th in the 6th Annual Literary Harvest and was published in the 2009 chapbook available at independent booksellers in Bend, Redmond and Sisters.

These people are awesome writers that you can support and learn from. Please look them all up and enjoy.

Thank you everyone and remember… Stay in your write mind.

A picture says a thousand words…

2011-05-23T11:03:00.000-07:00

Are you trying to write something in the same room you've been writing in for many years? It's no wonder sometimes we get writers block. It's our mind's way of saying, get me out of here.

Any scenario your mind sees can trigger a story. That can be your vacation, honeymoon, picnic in the park, a night out on the town, or a drive through the countryside. Go through all your pictures and see what inspires a story in there. Even better go take new pictures in anyone of these scenarios I just described.

Let your mind take flight as you embark in a new adventure.

That is where they first met. She didn't know who he really was or what she was getting herself into, but it was too late. She had reached the point of no return and refused to let go.

He brought her to a hotel by the beach, and that's when everything starting going wrong. The mysterious people, meetings, phone calls, were invisible to her at first. The wondrous life and beauty he placed in front of her served as her distraction.

She remembers seeing him at the pool bar by the pool with the man that had been found dead. He denied ever knowing him, but she never forgot a face. Therefore, she knew better.

They found the man's body in the park where they first picnicked. That was also the place he asked her to meet him after the picnic, and he never showed. Was there some connection?

The struggle, the mystery, behind the dead man leads right to her. Now she's the murder suspect. No one knows who this man she's fallen in love with is or where to find him. He has disappeared and she is left behind with no alibi. During the entire episode, she kept popping up in the wrong place at the wrong time. How can she find him now?

There is a happy ending that sails away on this yacht. However, you need to write it, and if you haven't noticed all the intriguing parts are all missing. What you have here is the beginning of a plot template. My sole purpose is to show you how to look at things with a writer's eye. Take your vacation pictures and see if you can find a story like no other. Take a friend or neighbor's gossip and see if you can build an intriguing story. Just leave out the name and don't make it too obvious it's them. Become inspired by all that's around you and don't let it go to waste.

Oh, and that mysterious stranger in the pictures... Yeah that's me. So now you have a handsome stranger and all you need is a beautiful mistress. Ha,ha,ha...

Above all stay in your write mind.

Oh this is too sweet and kind

2011-05-18T08:53:00.000-07:00

I have won an award from the wonderful and sweet S.B. Poscente. Please check out her blog. She talks straight from her heart good thought provoking subjects.

I live in Florida and drive by the strawberry fields often. I love to attend the Strawberry Festival close by as well. This pie or cake whichever the case may be, reminds me of these wonderful times I've had there. So, thank you very much S.B. I greatly appreciate it.

Here are the rules:
1) Thank and link to the person that nominated you.
2) Share 7 random facts about yourself.
3) Pass the award to 15 of your blogging buddies.
4) Notify the recipients.

7 random facts:

1) I was born at home and then taken to the hospital.

2) All my childhood I was fascinated with mobsters and how they did business.

3) I was also fascinated by how organized Captain Kirk was I became a huge fan of Star Trek.

4) I wrote a science fiction story at the age of ten and presented it to my older brother as fact saying it happened to me.

5) I learned from mobster never to sit with my back towards the door in restaurants and now it's a bad habit.

6) I had a rock jazz band and we wrote our own music. Everyone loved us but being more interested in girls I could never organize them to do anything serious.

7) I wrote some of the music for my wedding and friends with a professional band played.

And here are the winners I've chosen who truly deserve the award.

Rachel Thompson, she is a funny open minded individual with a new book out getting great reviews.

Darrell Pitt, has amazing tips and insight for writers.

L. Carroll, I love going to her blog. You are immediately in the story when you enter her blog. A must read.

Amelia James, is a romance novelist. If you want to get hot and bothered you must visit her blog. She is sweet, kind, and very witty.

Alli Sinclair, blogs on Tuesdays and is extremely interesting.

Supriya Savkoor, blogs on Wednesdays with tips and amazing stories you will never find elsewhere.

James Austin, has very intelligent ideas and concepts you need to read.

Dianne K. Salerni, you will also find her blog there with great information.

K.M. Weiland, has the best information for writers you can find. If you're tired of reading sometimes she'll just tell you. Yes she has videos of her blog post.

Marvin D Wilson, this professor has the class you need for your writing. Please stop by for a course or two, maybe more.

Rachel Giesel, awesome tips and great information you don't want to miss.

Elena Solodow, is a very good writer. The kind you want to follow and learn from.

Patrick Hatt, has the amazing ability to rhyme everything he says. You've got to see this.

Sonia G Medeiros, she's dong the write thing and I'm keeping people in their write mind. She will challenge you.

Carissa Elg,

a smart intelligent sci-fi writer such as myself. Please stop by to see her progress and be a follower of a soon to be great author.

Thank you all and congratulations I love you all.

What moves me to write

2011-05-16T13:46:00.000-07:00

Writing is all about mood. If you are not in the mood to write chances are your characters will take a wrong turn. They might rebel against you, or do something rash. Now you may have a different way of getting in the mood. For instance, one of the things that get me in the mood to write is a good rain mixed in with a little lightening. Rain always makes me feel melancholy, which brings back old memories flooding my mind with day dreams of I should have, and could have's which I use in my writing. Another thing which moves me to write is sitting under a shady tree on a breezy day listening to nature while I eat a sandwich and drink wine.

However, the one I use the most is music. Music will come down with you when you're feeling low it will celebrate with you when you're happy. There is attack music, war music, and conquering music. I even have angry music to help me with my dialog. It all sounds negative, right? Not really, you see there is always some conflict to over come before you arrive at happily ever after. Okay so now you're curious, what type of music am I talking about? Sit back, relax and let me DJ for you.

Your protagonist will most likely be trying to save someone. In my arms - Plump. My chest is stirring with emotion just listening to it now.

Changes in life, the horror of death and the beauty of birth are both depicted here on: Lighting crashes - Live

Put these together and you come up with: I'm feeling good - Michael Buble. You can remove that comment on the top left so you can see the entire video.

There is only one person I know that can: Set fire to the rain - Adele

If your emotions are running wild by now, let me take you back in time. What about us - Michael Jackson.

Did you notice the emotions in lyrics, the music, and the singers? They stir up all kinds of emotions in me. That places me in my write mind.

Do you have other ways of putting yourself in the writing mood? Or maybe you'd like to add to this list of songs. Let me know what moves you, stirs your anger, your despair, your perturbation, your pride, your rage, your remorse, your passion, love… Ah… whoa…

You ever feel stuck?

2011-05-12T08:47:00.000-07:00

Frustration begins to take over when you're starting out. Or if you've been working hard at putting together a platform to let everyone know about your writing, but it doesn't seem to be enough. I can't tell you how many times I've wished someone would have just told me how I needed to do things. Instead I had to endure the trial and error method. I don't know about you, but I hate doing things that way.

Every time I make mistakes like that I wonder how much time and potential clients I lost. Then you have those who do things perfect but will not share with you how they do it. Can you blame them? It's not easy out there. Everyone is trying to get their own dreams going.

Nonetheless, you will find a few who will help. But now let's face it nothing is free in this world. I know of people who are paying thousand to have their blog professionally done. By this I mean designed. I don't think there is such a thing as blog writers who write for you, although that's not a bad idea. If I had the money, I would pay someone to write my blogs and Tweets, so I could devote my full attention to my manuscripts. I think I just created a new job opportunity for someone out there.

When I began my blog, I did everything wrong, and I learned because some very good people helped me out. Yes, I had to repay the favor. Nothing is free. If you're like me who can't afford a professional but still needs help, here is what you need. Kristen Lamb has a post on her blog that can get you started. If you click here it will take you to her blog, which offers some suggestions for your social media. Her book We Are Not Alone would greatly assist you with your endeavors.

Don't sit around complaining. Get up and do something about it. Make your dreams come true by learning from the right people. And through it all, stay in your write mind.

The Mystic Comma

2011-05-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

Oh my God is that comma ever going to end? Entire books have been written on the comma alone. The comma has that many uses and is misused even more. If you're asking yourself, do I really need to know this, the answer is no. You don't need to publish a book either. You don't need to sell more than five eBooks because someone gave it a dreadful review for its bad grammar. If you want to continue being a mediocre writer with little to no recognition for your work go right ahead. For those of you who want people to enjoy reading your novel you need to write correctly.

The comma may seem mystical and confusing but doesn't have to be. I remember asking a librarian once for a specific grammar book and a lady standing next to her asked why I needed it when Word would do that for me. Really, are we so reliant on computers that we trust them to take care of every aspect of our lives?

If you want to argue the issue with me let's try this test. Type the following sentence on your Word software: Rob Billy and Joe will come to the dance.

Now click on your spelling and grammar button. Nothing happened, right? It didn't suggest placing a comma after Rob and Bill, did it? If your next question is, do I need a comma after Rob and Bill? I thought you'd never ask. Let's find out if we need commas there.

The comma is used to separate items in a series of three or more as in the sentence above. They can be single words, phrases, or clauses. Let's look at some examples.

Cindy is taking lessons in piano, vocal, and dancing this semester. (Words)

I took the dog for a walk, did some exercise, and got dressed before eight in the morning. (Phrases)

Billy picked up the cake, Stacey decorated the house, and Danny cooked the burgers. (Clauses)

You don't need a comma if the sentence only has two items in the series.

Burgers and fries are his favorite foods.

Most people will agree with that. What we find an issue with is usually with final conjunction.

I bequest the amount of $4 million to my children: Ralph, Robert, Cindy and Rose.

Do Cindy and Rose get a million each? Or do they get one-third of the inheritance to split between them? It's up for debate without the comma, and for Cindy and Rose it will be a big debate, I assure you. If the issue isn't detrimental, then you can go without the final comma. Just know that it changes the message.

Review

2011-05-04T08:40:00.000-07:00

BRIDGES

a tale of Niagara

Coming June 4th

The day we decided to go down into the gorge of Niagara Falls—to walk on the ice bridge—had started out normal enough but quickly showed itself as anything but normal …

Contest Winner

2011-05-03T07:54:00.000-07:00

I want to thank everyone who participated in the contest and those who came in to take a look. This contest was mainly to promote what I believe to be a truly great book.

A Walk in the Snark is too funny for words. You'll feel like she's been watching you and your significant other. You'll find you're not alone in your relationship's everyday issues, and how humorous they really are. This is not a book for women only, you men will laugh even more I think. What makes the book so entertaining is the reality of what she writes.

Aside from the comedy, you will also find some touching moments that deal with the loss, and love. You'll laugh and you'll cry. If you're not afraid to see yourself in the mirror and get in touch with yourself, this book is for you.

The writing is clever and well put together. She brings to life the truth of our worlds between men and women. The book has a five star rating from which tells says you will not be disappointed in purchasing this book. Click here if you are interested in purchasing this book, which I greatly recommend. But, don't just take my word for it. You can also read the reviews posted on Amazon.

Now back to the actual contest which you've all been waiting for. Everyone did a great job with the contest. In fact, I enjoyed how you all got very creative. However, only one person can win.

And the winner is, drum roll please, drrrrrrrrrrr… Phoenix Sullivan.

Don't fear the comma:

2011-05-02T06:15:00.000-07:00

I know that the comma can be a cause of great fear for many. If you don't understand it and use it incorrectly it will bring death and destruction on your writing. However, once you have the necessary knowledge it can no longer terrorize your manuscript or render it unreadable. Therefore, do not be afraid to attack it with fierce intellect after learning its proper usage.

First, I want to thank all those who participated in our contest, which ended on the April 30th. I had a lot of fun with it hope you did as well. Even though the contest is over, I would like to emphasize that if you have not read Rachel's book, please do so soon. It is very funny and entertaining. Most of it is hilarious because they are true in our own relationships. Make a point to look it up, here is a link. I had a crazy fun weekend with lots of emotions flying all over the place. Hope you guys had a great weekend too, if you did please share in your comments.

Now let's get back to the use of the comma.

Punctuating adjectives before a noun:

You should use commas to separate two or more adjectives that modify the same noun if they are not linked by a coordinating connective such as and or but.

1. The irate commander spoke in a loud, indignant voice.

2. The sergeant's harsh and probing questions annoyed the commander. (No comma needed.)

You can use two tests to tell whether or not to put a comma between modifiers before a noun.

1. Use a comma if and can be used to connect the adjectives.

2. Use a comma if you can reverse the order of the adjectives.

William was the most aggressive, skillful sergeant in the Air Force.

Use a comma because you could say:

1. William was the most aggressive and skillful sergeant in the Air Force.

2. William was the most skillful, aggressive sergeant in the Air Force.

Unnecessary commas: Do not put a comma between adjectives if and cannot be placed between them or if you cannot reverse their order.

He was the most aggressive, skillful sergeant in the Air Force.

1. You would not write skillful and sergeant.

2. You cannot reverse the words-sergeant skillful Air Force.

Therefore, do not put a comma between skillful and sergeant.

The adjectives placed before sergeant modify both words. Do not put a comma between the final modifier and the noun.

Rachel in the OC

2011-04-29T07:06:00.000-07:00

If you’re at all familiar with @RachelintheOC via my Twitter feed, my blog, or my new book A Walk In The Snark, you probably know me as that redheaded Queen of Snark in a sea of blondes (OC does stand for Orange County, CA, home of the Tragic – I mean Magic – Kingdom), after all. Essays like Stupid Pants Syndrome, Men are from Seinfeld, Women are From Friends (Mancode), and I’m Fine. Deconstructed. (Chickspeak) certainly cement that fact. But who am I and why should anyone care what I have to say?

Those were questions I asked myself as I wrote my Mancode essays, expanded into Chickspeak, and added in some poignant pieces that dealt with the death by suicide of a past love. As my blog and Twitter feed grew, I realized I had really hit a nerve in deconstructing male/female relationships. My own experiences as a wife of nineteen years combined with some rather unique work experiences (read the book to find out!) helped give me some interesting insights into men.

About the same time my blog became popular, I also cofounded the Indie Book Collective with Carolyn McCray aka @craftycmc and Amber Scott aka @amberscottbooks, both amazing indie authors. We wanted to provide a place where writers could learn both about indie publishing and how to harness social media to sell more books. We have great promotions for authors and I needed and wanted to be published so I could take part! So I added about 25% additional new material and put together this collection of essays.

The reviews have been all positive and I believe that it’s this combination of my own growing social media presence as well as working with the IBC and our promotions that has really helped spark some terrific interest in my book. ( @2morrowknight aka Sean Gardner recently profiled me, A Walk In The Snark, and the IBC in the Huffington Post Books section.)

One lovely unexpected outcome has been all the raw, honest feedback from men. Sure, I write humorous Mancode blogs but it’s really out of the requests I’ve received from my male fans who really wanted to understand chicks better that Chickspeak rose from my brain. When she says “I’m fine,” do I believe her? (no) Is she really tired? (no) What is shoe math? (sigh) Why are all the clocks different in every room? (even my tween girl already knows this one)…

Read the book.

I also feel truly honored by the people who’ve shared their own poignant stories of coping with suicide. This man was someone I once loved deeply, who had recently reconnected with me after many years. Yes, I’m married – it wasn’t like we were going to run off together. But to have him come back into my life and then leave in such a violent way so suddenly after only three months…well, it was definitely a blow. Those are what I call my “D-List” essays, simply because his name started with a “D;” I realized only in editing that they all had a “D” in the title. #subconsciousisafunnything

So that’s me. My eBook is available on Amazon for only $2.99 (no Kindle required). I’ve risen to #3 on the Humor/Parenting & Families list and #11 on Humor/Essays on the IBC’s Bestseller For a Day promo (4/6/11) and even unseated Jenny McCarthy and David Sedaris for a few hours from their cozy perches! That rocked.

Every little bit of support helps an indie author: LIKE our Amazon pages, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, shout us out, and please leave a review after you’ve read us – so important. We don’t have the budget of a house, so we count on you for word-of-mouth advertising. If you want to learn more about how to grow your own social media presence, follow the Indie Book Collective on Twitter or Facebook; and sign up for our FREE Social Media for Writers one-hour webinar (I teach it J). The next one is Tuesday, May 10 at 5:30pm PST.

Thanks to Orlando for having me here today and to all your readers for visiting and participating in your contest! Any questions for me about taking my blog to book or social media, feel free to email me at RachelintheOC@gmail.com or hit me up on my Twitter stream. Peace. I hope you enjoy the book.

Please don't forget to enter the contest which ends April 30. You can find it on this blog, click on Contest on the sidebar and look for the April 15 blog post.

Guest blogger and Contest

2011-04-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

Please make sure you visit us April 29, when Rachel Thompson will be my guest blogger. You don't want to miss getting to know her. She is an Indie author that has gotten great reviews for her book A Walk in the Snark. If you haven't read it yet you do want to go out and get it. It is a wonderful read and very funny.

You do have the opportunity to win a free copy of her book right here by entering the contest. I want to remind you that we are near the end of the contest. Please get you writing juices going. The deadline to enter is April 30, and you can see all the details on the original post for the contest.

Three steps to working with a comma

2011-04-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

Don't let the comma kill your writing.

I consider the comma one of the most important punctuation marks in grammar, and the most misunderstood. Many think they know how to use it, but they really don't. Some writers don't use it enough others toss them around like glitter on a child's poster board painting. Although it can be confusing, I will try to break it down for you starting with the simple sentences.

Simple sentences, sometimes called independent clauses, can be joined to keep similar thoughts together. To join two or more sentences, you have two choices:

1) Connect them with a comma followed by a conjunction, or

2) Connect them with a semicolon and no conjunction.

The two sentences joined should relate to the same thought. That is why you want them to be together not separate by a period.

Being a man I will use this punctuation in terms of driving hoping to give you a better visual aid. The punctuation signifies varying degrees of slow-down or stop for the reader. The comma with the conjunction will be a slow-down, and the semicolon will be a semi stop; the period will be a complete stop.

The two cars crashed at a busy intersection; three witnesses called it a fender-bender. (Two simple sentences put together with a semi-colon [semi stop].) Please notice how the second sentence continues the thought of the first.

Two cars crashed, and both front headlights were broken on one car, and the other car didn't appear scratched. (Three simple sentences connected with comma/and.)

The comma before the conjunction tells the reader that a new sentence is beginning. The subject may change. Sometimes a pronoun is used in place of the former subject. (Without a subject change, the sentence may be a simple sentence with two verbs, not requiring a comma: Two fenders were demolished on one car and had to be replaced.)

3) Step three is using a comma between two main clauses joined together by a coordinating connective.

Place a comma before a coordinating connective (and, but, for, or, nor, so, and yet) when it joins two main clauses.

The outfielder dropped the fly ball, and the runner on third base scored.

The following sentence does not have a comma before the connective. In this sentence, and, connects the two parts of a compound verb, not two main clauses.

The outfielder dropped the ball and committed an error.

Don't just put that comma anywhere. If you want to write do the job right.

Great Contest...

2011-04-15T12:14:00.000-07:00

I am proud to announce this contest showcasing Rachel Thompson. Rachel will be a guest on my blog on Thursday April 29, 2011. I will be giving away a copy of her new book in this very simple Easter contest. Ah…, the holidays, gotta love 'em.

How to enter:

Place your entries in the comments keeping in mind the rules, and deadline.

Deadline:

Have your entry posted in the comments by April 30, 2011 to win.

Prize:

The winner will receive a kindle copy of Rachel Thompson's new book A Walk in the Snark. This book has been getting great reviews, and you will definitely enjoy it.

Rules:

Write anything pertaining to Easter or at least mentioning it, in 200 words or less. It can be a post card, poem, or short story. I'm looking for originality, creativity, comedy, or scary. Please don't write anything preachy, although you can present something religious. You may post only two entries for this contest. Please include your e-mail, so I can contact you. If not make mention that it is located in your blog or website.

Also, please mention it in your blogs or Twitters so that we can get a good participation.

6 steps to develop the right

2011-04-13T10:17:00.000-07:00

1. Must be likable:

The protagonist is the most important figure in your writing. Therefore, if you put forward a protagonist that is not likable, you have just made your story unlikable. And I don't mean we like him a little. We have to find him/her so interesting we want to continue reading more about him/her.

2. Cannot be perfect:

Please don't misunderstand likable with perfect. Your protagonist cannot be perfect. Any character in your story that is, will not be believable. If your character does not seem real, the reader will stop reading, or read on with prejudice towards your character. Your characters must be believable but not hated. Your protagonist cannot be a forty year old cop falling for a sixteen year old girl. That is protagonist death.

3. Good from the start:

Don't wait to place the protagonist in a good light on chapter three. An agent will decide whether they like him from the first five to thirty pages, or chapter one. If they decide they don't like your character, they will not read on. If you're thinking "I will self publish to avoid problems like that," your making a mistake. If the reader doesn't like your character they will probably read less than an agent, and tell their friends they didn't like it, killing your chances to sell more books.

4. Do not tell show us:

Don’t just say he's handsome, you must show it with a clear or even strange analogy of words as long as you capture the reader. Most people are visual, which is why television is popular. With a book, the words must paint that picture clearly in the reader's mind, increasing their desire to read on. You need to be careful not to give away the ending of your book when describing your protagonist. I also must warn you not to go over the top making your character too good to be true.

5. Do not create an average protagonist:

Even if the character is your average, run of mill, next door neighbor, something about him must be engaging and different. If the reader does not become emotionally attached, he/she may not continue reading, or may decide to dislike the character right then and there. Not only should your character be interesting, but their situation as well. If your protagonist is not interesting your story will not be either.

6. Remove slow dialogue:

You can kill the interest to your protagonist with slow dialogue. Keep in mind that just as you judge people after speaking with them, readers will judge your character after reading their dialogue. If your character drones on with unnecessary conversation he/she will appear boring. Describing the action or situation may prove more beneficial than a dialogue.

Who categorizes your book and how?

2011-04-09T13:04:00.000-07:00

Phoenix Sullivan is a great writer and has reflected it in a tale which brings together beauty and horror. The book speaks of the horror of war in all its gory details and the beauty that can sometimes be found in the most unexpected places. However, Amazon has not looked at it this way.They have labeled this way. They categorized it as erotica limiting her ability to reach potential readers.
Click here to read about her attempt tore-categorize her book, and Amazon's response. Yes, we can learn from this. However, we can also assist by searching out her book and reading a great story. Currently, you can find it by its title Spoils of War, or the author.

Boy, did you write the wrong thing.

2011-04-04T07:54:00.000-07:00

You ran you're spell checker for misspelled words and now you think your ready, but is that correct?

Are you there yet? Because they're watching you with their critiquing eyes, and will judge you accordingly.

Whether you want to or not, you have to edit some more, the weather may be bad.

This kind of editing is a pain yes, but don't let your words fly out of your window pane.

Too many words sound alike but have two different meanings, and you have to be sure you're using the right words when you write.

Or the reader will not know if your character went here or went to hear. And that can change the whole meaning putting you in a hole.

I'm sure you couldn't bear the thought of being misunderstood, feeling bare.

It's quite simple really, once you know its meaning. But if you rush it, a typo can truly cost you.

Knowing where to look may be more difficult than knowing what to wear. However, you must do this type of editing.

Your readers want to know if your character just went through something, or just threw something.

Did they lose something or felt loose? Happy fingers sometimes type additional letters you don't want and change what you're saying without you realizing it.

If you're feeling weak at the knees right now, it's going to be a long week. Still, you have to get through this.

I don't know if you knew or if you're new at this, but anyone can make an error like this. Maybe you just missed a key?

When you write your scenes you're looking for a specific effect but it will affect the reader who is unsure of what you meant.

Is your character looking at sea or is he looking to see? Your writing must convey a clear picture for your readers.

Is your character trying to be discrete or is he in a discreet location. I don't know. They are not the same.

You can fix a lot of the errors but you can't have alot.

It's never all right to use alright.

Now then, just lie back… or is it lay back?

In any case, never put out bad writing. Go over your manuscript as many times as you have to but make sure it's right. Have others go over it and see if they find anything. It's never easy to write but it is rewarding.

Funding your self published book

2011-03-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

I had to share this with you friends. It's a blog from Nathan Bransford on Kickstarters to fund your self published work. I have never heard of this until today, but it sounded too interesting not to share with the rest of you. I know for some of you this is just what you need to help
you out. At times it takes money to self publish, but there are ways to accomplish your goal. Click here to see how Kickstarters can help you out. Research it, and please follow all the suggestions to ensure you don't end up with something you didn't want.

Great contest

2011-03-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for a great book to read, you can win "Those That Wake" in a simple contest. Check it out.

O' about editing

2011-03-28T11:21:00.000-07:00

I have heard stories of people who send their writing to an editor and then refuse to make the changes they advised. To me, this makes no sense. To rewrite, edit, change, and cut much of your novel will help you become a better writer. Completing these requests, by their agents or publishing house, has helped many become published.
An agent or publishing house will not consider your book without having it edited first. If you're one of those who believes that your manuscript is perfect the way it is, all I can say to you is; may the force be with you. I have been editing mine for eight months now. Since I'm not an editor, although I have had some editorial assistance, I'm taking it one piece at a time. Is this too long to take? I don't think it is I still have many months of editing ahead. This is my first novel, and I want it to be tight. I'm not in a rush, nor will I allow my first work to get rejected, or come out looking unprofessional, if I decide to self publishing, which I'm still undecided, simply because I would not take the time to edit my work.

I can't force you to do the same nor can I tell you, you're wrong. Everyone has the right to do as they believe, and look as foolish as they'd like. Self publishing is largely unaccepted, mainly because of very bad writing, and unprofessional looking books some people have put forward. This could have been avoided with the assistance of an editor. If you can't afford one, then you have your work cut out for you. Should you stop because you can't afford one? That has not deterred me one bit. I study, read more, do continuous research, but I will not relent. If you've decided to become a writer, it's no easy task to take upon yourself. However, it is emotionally rewarding.

Keep in mind that it does not matter if you intend to seek traditional publishing or self publish, editing, and rewriting are essential to your success. You cannot take editing lightly or do without it. In fact, if you're planning on SP you will need more editing. I believe. Since you don't have a professional editor looking at your book, you have to find a way of making sure your work is ready for publication. My recommendation is to hire a professional to look it over. This is not cheap, but when self publishing, that is one of the main issues to worry about. You may be thinking of querying an agent believing they will edit your work for you. Not so. They will simply reject it without explanation. I know it's not fair.

Please check out some of my grammar notes to assist you, if needed. However, it's not just grammar, its plot development, characters, voice, back story, beginning and ending, conflict building, action scenes, love scenes, realistic dialog, antagonist, protagonist, avoiding clichés, word count, title… and the list goes on. An essay could be written for each one of these points. No easy task to take on. I'm I attempting to deter you from writing, or sway you into traditional publishing as apposed to self publishing or vice versa? No, I'm only providing you with information you will need to accomplish your task. I you want to write, do it right.

Is self publishing the way to go?

2011-03-26T15:29:00.000-07:00

Self publishing is the big question lately. Many authors are debating whether self publishing is the way to go. Traditional publishing houses still look down on SP and agents will not accept it in the bio of your query letter. Still SP is here and taking momentum. The success stories of such authors like Amanda Hocking, who
after selling over a million e-books in less than year's time, and has now taken a four book deal worth $2 million with St Martin Press, has opened a new door for aspiring authors. No longer do we have to wait six months for an answer from an agent, or a year until our book makes print. No longer do we have to break down in tears after the many rejection letters, or the nerve racking silence. A new publisher is in town, and it's got your name on it. However, is SP for you?

For those who have toyed with the idea of self publishing their book, I would like to provide just a little assistance. If your intentions are to produce the work on your own, please consider this. First of all, unless you're a professional who understands the different codes such as HTML, and XML you may be at a disadvantage. Although you can find apps and preview tools to assist you, there are many details to consider. You have to deal with multiple previews. With the fonts, you will need to figure out the face, size, bold/italics, caps, and the list goes on. Phoenix has put together a blog detailing each step for you.

If you are able to accomplish this on your own your cost can be minimal to none. If not, then, there are professionals you can hire to complete some of the work for you. Keep in mind that this will only produce an e-book, and although you can download apps on your Smartphones, iPods, and computers, many still insist on purchasing traditional hard cover books. This will be a group you will not be targeting with your e-book marketing. Some feel that is not an issue. I believe that in the future - possibly near future, but future, nonetheless - it will not be an issue. However, right now that is still a large market.

You are able to self publish hard covered books as well as e-books. If you choose this route to self publish your book then that can cost you anywhere from $500 to several thousand dollars, depending on what services you require. A Print On Demand (POD) company will charge you an upfront fee for individual services, or a complete package. Here again, you will need to shop around to make sure you're getting what you want. The one thing you need to keep in mind is marketing. Marketing is a huge factor when self publishing with one of these companies. You need to make yourself available to market your book, which means time away from writing. You have now changed hats from a writer to a salesperson.

For those who are interested, I have listed below a small list of companies you can call. Please keep in mind that I do not endorse any of these companies, nor do I have any personal experience with any of them. As with anything else I recommend you do your homework.

iUniverse 1-800-authors or 1-800-288-4677

AuthorHouse 1-877-820-5393

Trafford Publishing 1-800-232-4444

Xlibris 1-888-795-4274

If this seems like too much work, then you're probably right, it is. However, anything worth having is worth working for. Writing is not an easy business, but it is rewarding.

Need a really good query letter?

2011-03-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

I just came across a wonderful interview on Sheri Larsen's blog. Please check it out. Taking under consideration from my last blog that some might find themselves a bit overwhelmed I wanted to offer some light at the end of the tunnel for you. It's not all dread and despair for us writers, only challenging. I love the challenge and I hope you do as well. Along with those challenges, there are also some tools to assist us in our quest.

Today I'm focusing on the query letter. I, not being the best query letter writer, will not guide you personally, but rather show you where you can find the help you need. Please look up Elana J Way on her website. She offers a "FREE" e-book, which I have already downloaded, to assist you with the query letter and much more.

If you would like to see query letters from people who have been published, take a look at Guide to literary agents. This site will show you the actual query letters of current authors that have been published. Agent Query will show you how to write the query letter and help you find an agent for your genre.

Some of you, like me, research everything until you know beyond a shadow of a doubt how to do, whatever it is you're researching. If this is the case, please check out Anne Minnie's blog. She will take you through great details in her desire to help you.

Nathan Bransford has some wonderful ideas on writing that much needed query letter. Having been an agent himself, he knows what agents are looking for and how you need to put it together.

If you are more of a, hands on, kind of person you may be ready for the Query Shark. Please mind the name, she does bite. She explains the query letter by critiquing letters right on her blog. You may take a chance and send her your query and see if she bites. You can also try the Evil Editor, who will pick apart your query telling you what's wrong with it.

Don't give up on your novel, just brushed up that query letter and keep trying.

The wonderful world of writing

2011-03-14T11:57:00.001-07:00

Is it enough to write a good story? I'm sure many of you have heard "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." The same can be said about writing a good story, "A good story is in the eye of the beholder." Some may believe a great plot is what makes a good story; however, some people will disagree with that. In fact although you have a great plot, if your story is not written well some will say it's not a good story. Education is paramount for a writer these days. There are many things to consider when you seek to have your book published. A good story is a well written story.

To begin with your writing should avoid using passive voice. Your style of writing should use more active verbs to bring your writing to life. You don't want to rely on your adjectives or adverbs. In fact you should consider eliminating most of them from your writing. Use concrete details to engross the reader into wanting to read on.

Now lets say you have done all this, will you get published now? Probably not. I know that's not what you wanted to hear but you need to know the truth. Now you need a great query letter. This query should be 250 words or less and good enough to entice an agent into requesting more. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. Of course there are websites on the internet to help you understand and write that perfect query letter, yet some people still take months and countless rewrites to get it right, myself included.

Once we get that perfect query letter, now we ready, right? Wrong. Now we need a synopsis. Some may consider a synopsis evil, I agree, none the less, you might as well have one ready because an agent might require it. You see, you're not finished writing yet. You're finding yourself writing more about your writing than writing. I know it doesn't make sense, but you still have to go through it.

But finally you're done, right? Wrong. Now you have to build a platform, which means create a blog or some other media to promote your book. I know you thought the publishing house was going to do that for you. They want to see you already have a platform to build on otherwise they may not be willing to publish you.

By now you're probably thinking, "I'll self publish my book, it's easier." Wrong. Now you have to start all over because there is a different list you have to go through to achieve success with your book. That, however, is a whole different subject.

Welcome to the world of writing.

Eliminate most adjectives and adverbs

2011-03-07T13:03:00.000-08:00

In your writing, you may think "beautiful" fully describes what you have in your mind. However, that word can have different meanings to readers. To say something is "beautiful" is not enough when writing a novel.

To write: "The flowers looked beautiful that time of the year," is frail. You should use your verbs and nouns to do most of the work describing your scenery.

The daisy's opened its smooth white petals each morning like an eye, and the yellow center of disk florets would see a new day. The stems had no leaves and supported only one flower, but each plant had flower stalks of three to four inches.

This is more descriptive and the reader has a greater ability to envision your scenery.

You want to be careful not to overload your writing with descriptions but when you need a description provide all the details so that the reader can see the picture in their minds.

Essentials of writing - Active voice versus passive voice

2011-02-28T11:09:00.000-08:00

In your endeavors to have your novel published, you must take a good look at your writing voice. The use of an active voice as apposed to passive voice in your writing will greatly improve your chances. Let me explain the difference between the two. When you use an active voice in a sentence, the subject is doing the action. We'll use the following sentence as an example, "Jack loves Jill." In this sentence Jack is the subject, love is the action he is doing, and Jill is the object. If this sentence were passive it would read as follows, "Jill is loved by Jack." Hopefully you can see the difference between these two sentences.

If you notice that your writing is in a passive voice, then you realize you must now change it from passive voice to active voice. The easiest way to do this is by locating the subject, the action, and the object of the sentence. Look at the following example;

Extensive training on the new safety procedures was required to be attended by the maintenance staff.

First, identify the subject of the sentence - who is doing the action? The training is not doing an action therefore it cannot be the subject. The only person or thing doing an action here is the maintenance staff. They are attending the training, the action being done. That makes the maintenance staff the subject of the sentence. The object is the safety procedures.

Now you must rewrite the sentence placing the subject before the action and the object. It would then read as follows:

The maintenance staff was required to attend the extensive training on the new safety procedures.

The way it is now written makes it clear to the reader who is doing what.

Now let's take a look at verbs which is perhaps the most important part of the sentence. The verb or compound verb states something about the subject, and the express action. In each of the following sentences the verb or compound verb is bold.

"Dracula bites his victims on the neck." The verb "bites" describes the action.

"In early October, Mary will plant twenty pansies." Here the compound verb "will plant" describes an action that will take place in the future.

After you have located the subject you must now locate the verb which is the action in your sentence. Remember the subject must be placed at the beginning of the sentence and you will also need to drop the preposition "by" if it is present in your sentence. If nothing in your sentence is performing the action expressed in your verb, you will need to add a subject.

If you're thinking, "I have to do all that through out my entire manuscript?" I can only remind you of the hard work it takes to be a writer. Followed by, if you want your manuscript to be picked up by an agent, yes you must complete all that work. Please keep in mind you must also have a good story, but a good story badly written will not get a request for full manuscript, and a bad story well written will not get a request for a full ms. You will need a good story well written. If you have a good story, which I'm sure you do, you don't want it to get rejected simply because it was not written properly. Yes an agent will reject it if not written the way they want it, and no the agent will not edit it for you.

Contest and other news

2011-02-19T17:48:00.000-08:00

Hanna Moskowitz and Suzanne Young are hosting an awesome contest. Please check it out.

Also Kiersten White has a cool Supernaturally contest you should check out.

If you haven't heard Borders has filed chapter 11. If you don't know what chapter 11 is exactly, you want to know how that will affect you as an author, how will publishers react to this, or how will e-books factor into all this Pimp My Novel has some answers for you.

A song you'll remember

2011-02-14T09:40:00.000-08:00

For those of you who love music, and for all musicians you have to check this out.

Polishing your novel

2011-02-12T22:31:00.000-08:00

Gary Corby has a unique and systematic way of editing his novels after he's written them. This could be what you need to make your writing flow. Please check it out right here.

Sweet memories of love

2011-02-12T21:26:00.000-08:00

This scene is rated R for adult themes, nudity, and sexual situations. But adults, please check out this scene which lacks a lover.

As she showered her thoughts went back to when they first laid together. She remembered every ripple in his body, every muscle she had not realized he had previously to that point. Her thoughts became more intense as she slowed down her movements. She placed her hands against the wall while the water hit her skin and her eyes closed shut. Her mind moving faster than the speed of light searched every scenario, which included Tilvanau's naked body. Her stomach quivered; her hands shook, and her heart pounded. She touched herself as her thoughts intoxicate her emotions beyond the ability to possess control. She moaned, with her hand on the wall, and her body curled up in the corner of the shower while the water caressed her backside, and she reached climax. Once she did her hands fell lifeless as every muscle in her body relaxed.

She wanted to lie down in her bed. She shouldn't have done this. She wanted so much to relax, cuddle up with him, doze off for several minutes, or talk about nothing. Wake up while he still slept, to see his face in peaceful recluse dreams. But she needed to wake from this day dream, return to reality, face the ambiguity of her true life as it was. She could not figure out how it all came to this. How did she end up not knowing, how did he end up not showing? She racked her brain trying to understand what she did wrong to make him back off.

Query Contest

2011-02-08T13:41:00.000-08:00

For those of you interested in a query critique, don't wait a minute longer and click here for an ongoing contest at P J Hoover.

Sweet memories of love

2011-02-05T12:38:00.000-08:00

In continuation of this series, please check out my new post. If you are new to my blog you can check out the first in the "Sweet memories of love" series from last weekend. Don't forget to critique what you like or dislike about the writing, also critique grammar. And now on with the show:

Lisa figured since she couldn’t sleep why should Frank. She called him up. Frank was in a deep sleep when she called. He was however thrilled to hear from her. He was also willing to give up sleep in order to spend time with her. He needed to call security to request an escort to her room or he would be taken into custody. He therefore made the call and the escort was granted for his visit. This was all part of the new security in view of all the questionable events lately. They could not make outside calls, but if anyone needed help from within they would be helpful.

Lisa was thrilled to see him. She couldn’t sleep, and didn’t want to be alone with everything that was going on, especially after that strange dream. She hugged him as he entered. He took a deep breath in order to smell the sweet sent of jasmine in her hair. It captivated his senses causing him to drift off to a dream like sensation of tranquility every time she was near. It was a simple hug however feeling her soft warm body in his arms as her breast pressed against his chest aroused him to the extent that he did not want the embrace to end. They sat on the bed across the room and talked until morning. Frank who had a wonderful sense of humor soon had her smiling and laughing at his jokes and witty stories. Soon she had forgotten all about the bad dream, which in his mind was simply the result of the strange occurrences in the last couple days. Yes, they were strange however there was a logical explanation for it all. There had to be, Frank simply refused to believe in the supernatural or ghost especially ghost from outer space. No, Alfred was letting the pressure get to him, that's all.

It seemed like a short time had passed by which was why Lisa and Frank found it strange when they heard the morning call over the monitors. They both looked at each other with a puzzled looks, and a slight scare in there hearts, thinking maybe something else had occurred. Frank looked at his watch, in deed five hours had gone by, it was now seven in the morning which was the usual time for roll call.

“Oh shit! It’s seven. We’ve been talking all night long," Frank blurted out. As he went for his jacket there was a knock at the door. “That would be for me.”

Lisa opened the door and sure enough it was a soldier asking for Frank. Frank kissed Lisa on the lips and told her, “I’ll see you at breakfast.”

“Yes,” she replied.

Contest

2011-02-03T13:26:00.000-08:00

writtenwyrdd is hosting a contest. The winner will receive a free book for writing a short story from one sentence to 200 words. Please check it out here.

Sweet memories of love

2011-01-31T09:02:00.000-08:00

Considering Valentines Day fast approaches I thought you might want to read some of the love scenes I've written. Please read and critique. Let me know what you think about the writing, feeling and so forth. Also critique the grammar. Well, here we go:

Frank spent all night struggling with the notion of asking Lisa to spend the night in his room but couldn't bring himself to ask her. The more he thought about it the more difficult it became to find the right words. She looked so beautiful he did not want to blow the whole thing by asking the wrong question. Certainly she appeared to be enjoying herself with him, but that didn't mean she would be willing to spend the night in his bed. If she would only give him some inclination of what she was expecting. Frank’s idea of an inclination was her saying, Frank take me, take me now!

Lisa on the other hand although having a good time was wondering whether Frank was interested in her enough to get intimate, but didn’t want to merely blur it out. She really wanted him that night, but didn’t want to come across like some easy slut that would sleep around with everyone. That would change the way he looked at her.

These two spent the night having witty, intelligent conversation. Although they both felt slightly frustrated from the sexual tension, they were at the very least enjoying each others company. Frank justified it in his mind as laying down the foundation to a better relationship.

The Sun light shined thru the window the next morning. Frank in his room while Lisa in her room, they both consoled themselves with the romantic notions of the night before.

The heat from the light of the sun bothered Bruce waking him. As he turned to avoid the light of the sun he saw Kim lying next to him in his bed. His mind was flooded with the memories of one of the most exciting nights of his entire life. A night so full of raw passionate sex, that even thinking about it excited his senses, as if it had just happened.

He tenderly brushed her hair away from her face and admired how beautiful she still looked in the morning. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. She smiled and said, “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” replied Bruce with shear delight that Kim remembered him and the whole thing wasn’t some fascinating dream.

Good reasons to read

2011-01-24T14:42:00.001-08:00

Why do people like to read so much? There is the action portion along with the entertainment value. For others the drama depicting the pain and joys of life as seen through other people's eyes leaves us to feel we are not alone in our plights.

I have actually heard many say they want to get lost in that world leaving reality behind. Yet, I have heard many who only read memoirs. They want to know the details of other people's real life events. My life is so boring that would not apply to me.

If you have other impulse which drives you to reading please add them to my list.

Why do authors or aspiring authors write? Do they feel they can do it better than what they've read or seen on TV? Is there a story in their heads dying to get out even if it's fiction? Have they lived through something that needs to be shared? Is there something wrong with the world they live in that they need to bring out, and the use of fiction is the perfect platform to demonstrate a better way or the consequences of what's wrong?

Have we learned all there is to learn? If this were true our lives should have improved by leaps and bounds, which is not the case. If you have ever purchased something that need to be put together, you can understand this. If you're anything like me you tried doing it first without reading the instructions and midway had to take it apart because the screws you now need you used earlier in error. Now you have to start all over and read the instructions. Life is pretty much the same way. There are countless instructions we just don't read them. Even in fantasy, horror, science fiction there are lessons to be learned.

As a child I used to watch movies in my neighborhood which was in or near the bad part of town. As someone in the movie was walking in the wrong direction you would hear the kids in the audience screaming "Don't go in there, he's going to get you." It was hilarious back then, not so much now, but my point is, you can always learn to see when things don't look or feel right.

We can always learn something new, or just be entertained, but whatever the reason, never stop reading.

How to get in your write mind

2011-01-19T18:01:00.001-08:00

My write mind

2011-01-15T20:30:00.000-08:00

Many people go through writers block and struggle with the concept of what they will write about. Everyone writes differently and there is not set way of making it work. Some write without the worry of what the story will turn out to be. Others want to envision what their story will be about.

You don't have to wait for an epiphany to burst into your mind to begin writing. I like to put an outline together of what I'm going to write about. Is that outline written in stone? No. Do I need to worry about it as I'm writing? No.

To me the outline is a map or guideline, if you will. Each point may begin to change as I write. Some may be removed completely, but what the outline does for me is start me off writing. And let's face it, how to start writing is usually your most difficult issue.

Should you do it my way? No. The point is that you develop a way to get yourself to write. If you write that first novel and your agent ask you to write a sequel or new novel. You are now faced with a deadline, and the pressure of knowing that you have to write something. There is nothing like pressure to give you writers block. If you have a system, this will not be an issue for you. Your system could be which days you will write and for how long. It could be where you look for ideas, or an outline, whatever it takes to get your mind thinking and your fingers typing.

Never allow fear, or anything else for that matter, stop you from writing. Come up with a system that will help you along, and always write.

Live as though someone is writing your story

2011-01-09T11:04:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is fast approaching. If you ask any woman she expects flowers, gifts, and a night out on the town. It seems simple enough however this day can make or break your relationship, married or single. If you ask most men, it is not a gift giving day; flowers and candy are the only required tokens of affection.

Guys are great about purchasing gifts and taking a beautiful woman out on the town, but once they are married that ideal seems to go by the way side. Most men feel comfortable in the knowledge that his mate understands how he feels about her and doesn't need any more acknowledgement of his love. While you're single your thoughts go towards conquering all odds to gain the affections of fair maiden. Once this has been accomplished, end of story.

The problem is that reality sets in. It's not the end of the story. You see our lives are never ending stories. At times our deeds, loves, or beliefs continue even after our deaths. What legacy will I leave behind after I'm gone? What are people thinking or even saying about my life even now as I live?

Sometimes the perfect gift is not an object of great expense but an action which will never be forgotten. One Christmas my son receiving all he wanted but being too young to purchase anything for his father felt compelled to show his affection. He ran to his room, brought his favorite stuffed toy, and gave it to me as his gift. Knowing how much that toy meant to him it was the greatest gift I had ever received. It's not how much you spent but what it means to you and the recipient of said gift.

I agree that it is not a gift giving day but a day to demonstrate your deepest love in a way that will be understood and appreciated. Live as though someone is writing your story. After all, that's how this holiday began. In your story, will you appear as a selfish individual, or will you appear as a caring individual. No one is perfect but we can be the best we can be. These amazing moments in our lives should never be limited to Christmas or Valentine's Day, and you should never let them pass you by.