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VOICE IN THE DARK
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Mystery Fiction Monthly Ezine -- The Voice in the DarkIssue No. 48, July 2008
Co-Editor: Anne K. Edwards
marbob00@earthlink.net
MGCalvani@hotmail.com
http://www.Mayracalvani.com
Slippery Book Review Blog
Reviews and Other Stuff (Blog) http://authorsandreviews.blogspot.com
Publisher: Eva Almeida
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Voice in the Dark will continue to be open to well written, interesting submissions having to do with writing, publishing and promotion of books. In addition to a subscription list, Voice in the Dark is posted each month on http://www.Mysteryfiction.net. If interested contact Mayra Calvani at mgcalvani@hotmail.com with "Voice Submission" in your subject line.
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Multi-genre author Mayra Calvani is pleased to announce the release of her 2nd children's picture book, CRASH!
Mayra will be donating 50% of her royalties from CRASH! to Almost Heaven Golden Retriever Rescue and Sanctuary, a non-profit organization.
To learn more about Mayra's book visit: http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/crash.htm
NOTE
Ebook readers, keep your eyes out for a new reader. It is called the Readius by Polymer Vision. It has a flexible screen you can fold or roll and is about the size of a cell phone according to advance publicity. It will be sold in Europe first and the US the following year.
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Something to think about. Should POD publishers and authors set up a communal site to sell their products to keep their profit margin and freedom of selecting the printer of their choice? This is a project that could take years but competition is good for keeping prices down.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Editor's Note
Featured Interviews
--James Cox, Editor, The Midwest Book Review
--Marta Stephens, Author
--Christopher Conlon, Author
--Safari Sue Thurman, TV producer and Author
--Mathias B. Freese, Author
--Tony Eldridge, Author
--Tracey Kitts, Author
Gladiator's Arena--by Mayra Calvani
Short Fiction
--Veldt of the Father's Sin by Lad Moore
Articles
--What Comes First - Characters or Plot? by Marg McAlister
Sanctuary -- Columnist Mayra Calvani
Whodunit? -- Columnist Billie A. Williams
Pam's Pen -- Columnist Pamela James
Seedlings -- Columnist Aaron Paul Lazar
This & That -- Columnist Dana Reed
The Writing Life -- Quarterly and Guest Column
Reviews
Notes
Events
Resources
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Editor's Note
Do you have strong opinions about what is wrong with the world or some people or just things in general? How do you handle this problem? And, yes, it is a problem. We can bore our friends and family silly with repeated offerings of what we think, whether it is sensible or downright silly. Writers have an outlet--their pen--if they choose to use it. Some of our craziest notions make absolutely riveting stories, yet some are so dull even we can't stand to read them. There are many sites online where we can post our gripes, new ideas for improvement of our world, and so forth. But don't offer a complaint without a remedy or you'll be considered a complainer with nothing to offer. Ideas are like ripples in a still pond--they spread and can affect all things in and around that pond. Just remember to write clearly and be concise. You never know when you might have the answer to a huge problem.
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Interviews
Meet James Cox, Editor of The Midwest Book Review
Interview by Mayra Calvani
Started in 1976, The Midwest Book Review is an online monthly publication aimed at librarians, booksellers, as well as the general reading public. Its mission is to promote literacy, library usage, and small press publishing, which is why this publication is so popular among small publishers, self-published authors, and academic presses. In this fascinating interview, Editor-in-Chief James A. Cox talks about the history and policies of the Midwest Book Review, and he also answers some important questions about the craft and ethics of book reviewing.
Q. Thanks for this interview, Jim. How long have you been reviewing?
A. I began reviewing books in September, 1976. That means I've been doing this for the past 32 years. During that time the forums utilized by the Midwest Book Review have included AM Radio; Shortwave Radio; Television; Library Newsletters; Amazon.com; Internet Databases; and the Midwest Book Review website.
Q. Please tell us about your book review site. How and when did it get started?
A. My daughter Bethany went off to college and got her degree in Computer Science. She came back home and drug me out onto something called the Internet in the early 1980s. With her help the Midwest Book Review website was created. Bethany is the Midwest Book Review's managing editor and webmaster.
Q. What makes Midwest Book Review stand out among so many other online review sites?
A. The Midwest Book Review began with the mission of promoting literacy, library usage, and small press publishing. As an educational organization we developed our web site at http://www.midwestbookreview.com as a multipurpose resource with the goal of helping writers to write better, publishers to publish more successfully, bookseller and librarians to stock their shelves more effectively, and readers to read with greater satisfaction. By making our web site as content heavy as possible, constantly updating and expanding it monthly, and enlisting the support of our volunteers, staff, and web site visitors, the Midwest Book Review web site has become the invaluable and comprehensive resource to authors, publishers, librarians, booksellers, and readers that it is today.
Q. What is the most challenging aspect of running a review site?
A. Properly organizing the steadily increasing numbers of information and resource links, as well as 'how to' articles that comprise the contents of our web site. As the web site gets larger and larger with more and more content, the struggle is to keep it as 'user friendly' as possible.
Q. How many books do you review a month?
A. I personally review between 30 and 40 books a month. I'm also responsible as the editor-in-chief of supervising the more than 600 reviews a month contributed by staff, volunteer, and freelance reviewers.
>br?Q. How many staff reviewers do you have?
A. We have nine staff members. They include a Managing Editor (who doubles as our webmaster), a West-Coast Editor, a Literary Editor, four Assistant Editors, and the Mail Room worker.
Q. Are you currently recruiting more reviewers? If so, what are your guidelines?
A. New reviewers are always welcome. When someone inquires into utilizing the Midwest Book Review as a forum for their reviews we send them the following "Reviewer Guidelines":
REVIEWER GUIDELINES:
Thank you for your inquiry. All of our reviewers are volunteers who retain all rights to their reviews. Reviews are submitted by email (just type it, or "copy & paste" it, into the body of an email message. Hard cover printouts are mailed to the reviewers for their records. Reviewers submitting one review in a given month are clustered together in the column "Reviewer's Choice". Reviewers submitting two or more reviews in a given month are provided their own bylined column (e.g. "Klausner's Bookshelf", "Cindy's Bookshelf", "Taylor's Bookshelf", etc.)
The following should be a part of every review submitted:
Title
Author
Publisher
Publisher Address
Publisher Phone Number (especially an 800 or 888 if they have one)
Publisher Website Address (if they have one)
ISBN
Price
Page Count
Your Name
Reviewer
Here are some guidelines that may be of help in creating an engaging review:
1. Why did you select this particular book for review? Perhaps it relates to your work, hobby, avocation, a particular area of interest, your expertise, or just for fun.
2. How well does the author write, use language, illustrate his/her points, develops characters, clarity of instruction, aptness of examples? Use brief quotations from the book itself to illustrate your observations, opinions, and comments. When doing poetry reviews include a poem, with cookbooks include a recipe.
3. Who is the book intended for? Scholarly reference, non-specialist general reader, devotees of the genre, wide ranging readership, specialized audience, age range, economic or political orientation, etc.
4. Does the book succeed in what the author is trying to accomplish? Entertain, instruct, persuade, inform, train, teach, alarm, etc. Are there suggestions you'd offer the author for his/her next time around in print?
5. What is the author's background or credentials? What other titles does the author have?
6. Are their related or relevant titles that a reader might be interested in?
7. Type your reviews in single spaced paragraphs with double spacing between the paragraphs. The review can be a few paragraphs or a few pages -- take as much space as you feel is necessary to say whatever you want to say.
8. Above all else, have a good time putting your thoughts and opinions down. The best reviews are those that you yourself would like to listen to while driving along in your car or chatting with friends over lunch. If a book is badly written or not worth while -- don't bother with it. Select another one that you think deserves the publicity that your review as showcased by the Midwest Book Review would afford it.
James A. Cox
Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com
Q. How should an author contact you about a review request? Do you review e-books as well?
A. Authors and freelance publicists can submit books for review. Some of our volunteer reviewers (but not many) do review e-books. When e-book review requests come in I route them to those particular reviewers and leave it up to them as to whether they will accept or reject the request.
Q. How do you select the books you review? How do you determine which reviews to post on your site?
A. Every morning the mailroom worker piles up all the incoming books on my desk. I then sort them into three stacks:
1. Instant Acceptance: The book(s) arrive with the proper accompanying paperwork (a cover letter and some form of publicity release), look good, and I have a reviewer who has requested books in that particular genre, category or subject area.
2. Instant Rejection: The book(s) arrive without the proper paperwork; are galleys, uncorrected proofs, pre-publication manuscripts, or Advanced Reading Copies instead of finished copies; have substandard covers, defaced, or some other physical defect.
3. Provisional Acceptance: The book(s) have the proper accompanying paperwork, look good, and if I can recruit a reviewer for it/them within a 14 to 16 week time frame. This is by far the largest of the three stacks at the conclusion of the screening process.
Every book that achieves a review will run in one or more of our nine monthly book review publications as long as that review meets the criteria laid out in our "Reviewer Guidelines". When the review is run, the reviewer automatically receives an email notification accordingly.
Q. Do you think there’s a lot of ‘facile praise’ among many online review sites? What is your policy when it comes to negative reviews?
A. Whether praise or pan, the key is how well the reviewers justifies their opinion. My own rule of thumb is that if a book is too flawed to be able to recommended it to its intended readership, then it should be rejected for review and another book selected to take its place. But I don't interfere with any reviewer who wishes to give a negative review if that reviewer has given an articulate and justified rationale for that negative review.
Q. There was a lot of controversy last year between print publication reviewers and online bloggers. In your opinion, what defines a ‘legitimate’ reviewer?
A. A legitimate reviewer is someone who has read the book they are expressing an opinion on -- and expressed that opinion rationally with adequate examples or documentation. The legitimacy of a reviewer does not arise from what medium they are using to express their opinion, nor whether they are salaried, freelance, or un-paid volunteers. It is how well, how persuasively, and how fairly they can express their recommendation on what they've read whatever that opinion might be.
Q. What is your stand on paid reviews?
A. I feel there is an inherent conflict of interest issue of paid reviews. That is why the Midwest Book Review does not accept paid advertising; accept payment for reviews; or allow authors, publishers, or publicists to contribute financially to the Midwest Book Review. The only form of support or appreciation for what the Midwest Book Review tries to accomplish in behalf of the small press community is to permit the donation of postage stamps (which we use in sending out tear sheets and notification letters to authors, publishers, and publicists).
Q. Do you think it’s okay for reviewers to resell the books they review? What about ARCs?
A. Reviewers and review publications own the books they are provided with from authors and publishers in the hope of getting them reviewed. They are therefore the property of the reviewer or review publication to dispose of as they deem best -- including selling them -- whether or not the book in question made the cut and got reviewed, and whether the review was positive or negative. This is a publishing industry standard and applies to ARCs as well.
Some authors and publishers fear that the sale of a review copy or an ARC will somehow remove or replace an opportunity for the sale of a non-review copy. I feel that this issue should be viewed as an advertising/marketing expense. Reviewers spend time and expertise on reviewing a book and in the case of volunteers, the sale of that book is their only compensation for their efforts.
The key is for authors and publishers to insure that their review copies (for which they have incurred a capital expenditure to publish and mail out) are sent out to thematically appropriate and legitimate reviewers and review publications -- and that the submission meets all the requirements of that particular reviewer or review publication.
Q. What are the most common mistakes amateur reviewers make?
A. Merely summarizing a book and not providing any articulated or detailed analysis as to whether or not the book is to be recommended to its intended readership.
The second most common mistake is to not include all the publisher's contact information in the 'info block' that should be a part of every review. An 'info block' consists of the following:
Title
Author
Publisher
Publisher address
Publisher phone number, email, website
ISBN, price, page count, publication date
This 'info block' is important because if the review inspires the reader of that review to want to acquire the book it gives them the information necessary to acquire a copy from a bookstore, a library, or directly from the publisher.
Q. With so many major newspapers getting rid of their book review sections, how do you see the future of online review sites?
A. The drastic cutbacks in newspaper and magazine space for reviews has redounded to the benefit of the Midwest Book Review and other online review sites. These displaced reviewers have turned to us as an outlet for their reviews previously published in print sources. Over the past few years we have gained at least ten reviewers this way.
Q. Do you keep the author’s feelings in mind when you review?
A. I do. It is possible, preferable, and more effective to correct an author's flaws as a writer through civil, reasoned discourse than through mere name calling or ridicule. This is in keeping with our mission statement of helping writers to write better, to improve their craft, to gain a wider readership for their work.
Q. Have you received aggressive responses from authors or publishers because of a negative review? If yes, how do you handle it?
A. I have indeed. If their criticism is justified on the basis of fact I will remove the flawed review from our website. If the criticism is merely a matter of ego or a difference of opinion, then I will invite the author (or publisher if that is who is making the objection) to submit another copy of their book which I will try to assign to a different reviewer. As to the emotional content of an objection (which can be quite hostile to begin with) I've found that a soft, reasoned, non-confrontational response will usually work to calm the conversation down and to replace heated argument with reasonable discourse.
A. An archive of tens of thousands of reviews; a 'Book Lover Resources' database of Internet resources of special interest to people who read books for pleasure or for a purpose; contact information for thousands of publishers -- including antiquarian booksellers; web site search engines; and basic information on the processes of writing and publishing.
Q. What promotional opportunities does your site offer authors?
A. An archive called 'Advice for Writers & Publishers" containing 'how to' articles on every aspect of writing, publishing, and book marketing; an archive called 'The Writer's Bookshelf' containing reviews on hundreds of 'how-to' books covering every aspect of writing; contact information on both traditional, POD, and self-publishing resources; and 'Other Reviewers' which is a database of freelance reviewers, book review magazines and publications, book review websites, etc.
Q. What is the most rewarding aspect of being a reviewer? the most challenging?
A. The most rewarding aspect of being a reviewer is having an genuine impact and influence on writers, publishers, and the reading public. The most challenging aspect of being a reviewer is trying to earn and maintain that impact and influence.
Q. Is there anything else you would like to say about you or Midwest Book Review?
A. I've been the editor-in-chief of the Midwest Book Review since its founding and have yet to have a day when I didn't look forward with considerable enthusiasm to going to work. For a dedicated bookworm like me it has got to be one of the best jobs on earth!
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Meet Marta Stephens, Author
Interview by Anne K. Edwards
Q. What do you find most rewarding about having written a story, article or book?
A. Completing my first novel gave me a true sense of accomplishment. There’s nothing like getting a spark of an idea - no more than a three-second scene that flashes through your mind and then watch it grow into a complex storyline. I find that amazing, but the best part is the readers’ reactions to my work. I appreciate the glowing critical reviews, but the true reward for the months/years of work is when someone takes the time to buy one of my books, read it, and is moved enough to send me an e-mail or post a comment. Their reactions are priceless and I don’t think I’ll ever really get over the awe of it.
Q. How did you happen to become an author?
A. Although I always loved mysteries, writing fiction was the farthest thing from my mind as I was growing up. In fact, I was in my late 40’s before I decided to try my hand at it. The writing bug bit me after reading about an event that took place during WWII. It sparked my imagination and I felt compelled to put my thoughts to paper. Before I knew it, I had written about 50,000 words. Although I have a degree in journalism, it still didn’t have a clue on how to write fiction. I studied the craft, became involved with several author groups and like many other writers taught myself to write.
Q. What is your favorite way to begin a project? Do you do an outline? Or start with a plot or characters first?
A. Since I write crime fiction, I start with the crime. What happened, who did it, how, when, and why? Understanding the crime helps me to develop the plot. I then consider the cast of characters. Several of the characters such as Homicide Detective Sam Harper and his partner Dave Mann appear in all of the books, however, the villains change and I usually introduce two or three other protagonists. I write back stories on each new character to understand their motivation. Once that’s done, I write a synopsis and start to plot out the order of the events with the understanding that nothing is written in stone. What may seem like a logical next step in the plot may become obsolete once I begin to develop the chapters. I find that making a list of the chapters along with a brief 1-2 line description of what happens in each is helpful and assures me the timeline is accurate. Once I have these things in place, I consider each of the characters and decide how their paths will cross and begin to develop sub plots.
Q. What impels or inspires you to write?
A. I like to consider the "What if’s" of situations. In doing so I can usually find a good way to wring a mystery out of it. Let’s say there’s a car parked along the side of the highway. Curiosity makes me wonder what happened to it. Did it break down or is it stolen? Where is the driver? Any number of reasons for it being there pop into my mind, from a broken air hose to a car jacking. Characters also help drive the story and often complicate matters when they do the unexpected.
Q. How do you set about developing characters?
A. I find the quickest way to develop a character is by writing a back story on him/her. I focus in on a pivotal point in their life-what event altered their lives to make them behave in the manner I need for them to behave? Often I discover amazing things about their personalities that while they may not be the focus of the story, but those traits could possibly affect the way that character react to a situation or how they "choose" to treat another character. I write in third person limited and although the majority of the book is written from my protagonist’s point of view, I write chapters from the POV of a select few other characters which forces me to get into the other characters’ heads. Another interesting and fun exercise is to interview the character. It always produces a surprise or two.
Q. Are you currently working on a project?
A. Yes, several. Promoting my first book in the Sam Harper Crime Mystery series is an on-going process. I’m also an avid blogger and continue to participate in events and other signings that will introduce my book to new readers. Soon I’ll be gearing up to promote the second book which is scheduled to be released in late 2008. In the meantime, I’m working on the third book. I’ve developed story plots for 3-4 other non-Harper books as well. My most recent project has been the launch of our authors’ group blog, Murder BY 4. I and three other authors launched it in February 2008 and to our surprise, it’s drawn a lot of attention which keeps me busy.
Q. Where is your work available?
A. SILENCED CRY is available online at familiar shops such as all the Amazons, Barns & Noble, Borders, Books-a-Million, and Powells, Other locations include but are not limited to those listed on my website,
Q. Have you favorite authors who have influenced your work?
A. I’ve enjoy the works of several well-known authors like Patricia Cornwell, Harlen Coben, Joe Finder, and of course, Steven King to name a few. Have they influenced me as an author? I’m sure they have.
Q. Do you have a website for readers to visit?
A. Readers will find me at http://www.martastephens-author.comhttp://mstephens-musings.blogspot.com>
A. I still work full-time outside the home. At some point I will want to dedicate my full attention to my writing but with two children in college, retirement is still a few years away. Aside from that, I keep pretty loose plans. I never know where the road will lead and I’d certainly hate to miss out on anything.
Q. How did you happen to develop your blog? Do you recommend them to writers for reaching readers?
A.http://mstephens-musings.blogspot.com. I’m and avid believer in developing and maintaining an Internet presence because you never know who you’re going to meet, and where those connections will lead. Those interested will find a set of six articles I’ve written on developing an Internet presence on my website http://www.martastephens-author.com/Author_to_Author.htm.
With respect to reaching readers, a perfect example is the MURDER BY 4 blog that I launched with authors, Aaron Lazar, S. W. Vaughn, and Kim Smith in February 2008. We receive an average of just over 1,000 visitors a month with a readership of varying backgrounds. We feature two guest bloggers a week and have been contacted by virtual book tour companies as well as publishers to request a feature spot for their authors. So yes, blogging will absolutely reach readers. The key to successful blogging though is consistency.
A. Time is so precious these days. When I’m not writing, you might find me working out in my flowerbeds or walking our dogs. I also enjoy oil painting but writing has taken up most of my spare time. What free time there is, I spend with my family.
Q. Would you like to tell the readers anything about yourself?
A. I’ve lived in Indiana since the age of four, returned to college to complete my degree in journalism when I was in my forties and didn’t even think to start writing until a few years ago. Now, I can’t imagine a day without writing. I don’t regret any part of my life, but I’ve often wondered how much more I could have accomplished had I started my writing career at an early age. The fact of the matter is, when I was younger, I had neither the desire, dedication, nor the stamina that it takes to become a published author. I think you need a good dose of life experience to toughen and prepare you for the long, and sometimes uncertain road ahead. So no regrets here and the cup is always half full. I believe all things happen for a reason. I’m just happy that I’ve finally found my passion. Better late than never, right?
Thank you so much for allowing me to share my thoughts with you and your readers.
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Meet Christopher Conlon, Author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
Novelist, poet and short story writer Christopher Conlon is the author of the debut psychological thriller, Midnight On Mourn Street, just released by Earthling Publications and described as a "masterfully moving tale" by Booklist. Conlon's work has appeared on numerous publications such as Poets & Writers, America, Filmfax, Poet Lore, The Long Story, and Tennessee Williams Annual Review, as well as in such anthologies as Masques V and September 11, 2001: American Writers Respond. I recently had the pleasure of reviewing his novel for Blogcritics, and found it a haunting, beautifully written work.
Q. Thanks for being here today, Christopher. When did you decide you wanted to become an author?
A. I never decided I wanted to be an author—to be honest, I’m not sure what an “author” is. It sounds stuffy and pedantic to me—I picture someone wearing a smoking jacket, pipe in hand, looking a bit like Somerset Maugham. No, I never wanted to be an author—I wanted to write. There’s a difference.
Q. Were you an avid reader as a child? What type of books did you enjoy reading?
A. Oh my God, yes. And I still am. I started with the usual people kids find first—Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, Jack London. Mystery and adventure classics. Poetry, too, started for me then, with Poe—“Annabel Lee” was my first favorite poem. Eventually I found my way to science fiction and horror with people like Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Ray Bradbury, Clifford D. Simak. Oh, and I must have read every Alfred Hitchcock anthology ever published. I loved those kinds of stories. Still do.
Q. Tell us a bit about your latest book.
A. Midnight on Mourn Street is a short novel, what might be called “psychological suspense,” focusing on the relationship of a middle-aged man and the teenaged runaway he meets one rainy night. They seem to be strangers to each other, but in fact the young girl knows exactly who he is, and she pushes her way into his life with a very specific, destructive agenda. The slow revealing of the secrets of these people—and how they are connected to each other—is what drives the story forward. I’m happy to be able to say that the early reviews have been mostly excellent—Booklist has called the book a “masterfully moving tale” and a “top-drawer first novel.” That’s a little embarrassing for me to quote, but there it is.
Q. From the moment you conceived the idea for the story, to the published book, how long did it take?
A. That’s a good question. Hmmmm. I believe that the answer is about ten years. You see, I wrote an earlier version of the manuscript back in about 1997, 1998. It wasn’t bad. It had an agent for a while, and there were a couple of nibbles from publishers, but in the end nobody bought it. I eventually retired the thing to a desk drawer, and ultimately to my basement—that final stop of all failed projects! For years I thought nothing about the novel; I all but forgot I ever wrote it. But a couple of years ago I began to have some success in dark fiction—an anthology I edited, Poe’s Lighthouse, came out in 2006, along with a little collection of my gothic stories, Thundershowers at Dusk. I wanted to capitalize on the little bit of attention I was getting as a result of these projects, and I knew that the thing to do was to get a novel out—but I had no novel, especially not one in the suspense or horror genres, which was where my reputation was growing. But then I remembered that failed manuscript from the 1990s and realized that, though I hadn’t written it as a “genre” novel, it certainly had the elements of a suspense story.
Well, I dug it up and read it straight through—which was both a gratifying and a humbling experience. Gratifying because, you know, it was pretty good, really. But humbling because I could see obvious mistakes I’d made—mistakes I was unable to recognize back then. The language was wrong—the book was overwritten. The structure was sometimes wonky. Parts were repetitive. So I took most of a summer and completely overhauled the book, using the original manuscript as a template but rewriting it completely, from first word to last.
Q. When writing, what themes do you feel passionate about?
A. I don’t feel passionate about themes, which arise organically from the subject matter and which a writer is better off not thinking about at all. What I feel passionate about are characters. I get terribly wrapped up in them, in their lives, their troubles, their aspirations. I suspect all writers do. Flaubert claimed to do all his novel-writing in a state of cold objectivity, but I’ve never believed him. “I am Madame Bovary,” he said—well, he must have cared quite a lot about her to identify himself with her in that way. No, I’m emotionally invested as I write. Very much so. Revision, now, that’s another story—in revision it really is best to be objective.
Q. Do you have an agent? How was your experience in searching for one?
A.
Q. Have you ever suffered from writer’s block?
A. No. Never. I don’t even know what that is, really. Now, I go long periods—many months, in fact—when I write nothing at all, but that’s not writer’s block; that simply my natural rhythm. I’m not a crank-it-out kind of writer. I only write when I feel that I have something that’s ready to write. It’s perfectly okay with me if I don’t write a word for half a year. It always comes back. And when the story or novel or poem is ready for me, well, I’m ready for it too.
Q. Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work?
A. That would be http://www.christopherconlon.com Cruise on by!
Q. Do you have another book on the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects?
A. Well, I have another editing project forthcoming—another fiction anthology. Titled He Is Legend: An Anthology Celebrating Richard Matheson, it features original stories by some of the biggest names in horror, mystery, and suspense, including Stephen King. (Yes, that Stephen King.) The book is due out from Gauntlet Press in February 2009. As for my own writing, I’ve finished another short novel, A Matrix of Angels—I have no idea who, if anyone, will publish it. I’m shopping around my fourth poetry collection, Starkweather Dreams, as well. And I’m beginning work on a stage adaptation of Midnight on Mourn Street—a small professional theater in the Washington, D.C., area, where I live, has agreed to give the script a staged reading. Beyond that, who knows?
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Meet Safari Sue Thurman, TV producer and author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
Safari Sue Thurman is a TV producer and author of Maybe We Are Flamingos, the first of a new series of children's picture books about animals. This delightful book, which offers a timely message for young minds, was richly illustrated by Kevin Scott Collier, a well-known artist with over 70 books to his credit. Currently Thurman is producing and directing a television pilot based on igniting children's imaginations with the best key there is--books. Watch the book trailer for Maybe We Are Flamingos here.
Q. Thanks for being here today, Safari. Do you consider yourself to be a born writer?
A. Absolutely. A favorite movie of mine is Christmas Story. When the teacher tells the class they are going to write a theme, most of the students groan, but Ralphie sees it as the ultimate opportunity.
This scene is special to me since these words were music to my ears in third grade, where the magic of writing began. My pen became a magic wand in creating stories and the love has continued. The only major difference today is that the creations come to life through my keyboard.
From my earliest memory my imagination was extremely active. I was always making up stories to share with my mother or playmates. In fact, my house became the most popular place to play due to the creative games that flowed from my thoughts. One of my favorite activities was drawing with chalk on the concrete floor in our garage. It was a giant blueprint brought to life. Once I learned to write that colorful chalk was replaced with words and I’ve been hooked since childhood.
Q. Tell us about your recent release. What was your inspiration for it?
A. My current book, Maybe We Are Flamingos, was inspired by working at the Phoenix zoo, where I produced programs for children and their families. One day I noticed a bird that looked like a flamingo, only it was gray with some black feathers. When I asked a keeper what the bird was, she explained how flamingos are first white, then turn gray/black, then finally pink. They stay pink due to the foods they eat.
My imagination and sense of humor kicked in immediately. After explaining to a group why flamingos were pink, children were asked what they thought the birds would look like if they ate only blueberries. Amid lots of giggles, the idea for Flora and Fernando was born. Tell us about your children's books. The Safari Series of books include lots of animal stories and has started with my current release, Maybe We Are Flamingos. Others completed include, Monet The Smallest Ant, Sam The Tallest Giraffe, and the adventures of Dr. Zelda Zoolander Zocks, from the land down under. I also have a longer work in progress, Starshine, based on a character from live theatrical productions.
Starshine has appeared in a variety of venues and is from the planet Etheria, home to the largest library in the universe, where reading is magic. This galactic adventurer has many colorful friends, including a musical scientist named Logandy, her robot companion TC, and Palo, a silver weeper tree that teaches the forest of silver weepers their songs. My ultimate dream is to bring Starshine to life in a screenplay through Pixar.
Q. Do you like to outline and plot ahead, or are you more of a stream-of-consciousness writer?
A. In writing fiction, stream-of-consciousness writing works well for me. Once the glimmer of an idea gets my attention, it lurks in my mind for a time before I write anything down. I’m a very visual person so after looking at the idea as the production comes to life, I play with a variety of ways things could go. It unfolds as images on a giant movie screen and I observe how the characters might act with each other.
Q. What are you working on now?
A. Along with promoting Maybe We Are Flamingos, I’m developing a script for a television pilot, Emerald City Imagineers. The planned series will promote the magic of reading with humor, animals, children, and highlight some of the best children’s books currently available. We plan to shoot this summer and books from Guardian Angel Publishing will be featured in the pilot.
I’m also going to have a rhyming contest in July, to celebrate the release of Maybe We Are Flamingos. It would be wonderful to announce the rules here, and there will be a prize for the winner.
Q. What was your favorite book as a child?
A. There were several, but if I had to select one, it would be Mother Goose. It was like reading hundreds of mini stories. The illustrations were great and it was also fun to imagine what happened in Mother Goose Land outside the rhymes. I wanted to have rings on my fingers and bells on my toes while riding a white horse. I wondered if Little Jack Horner ever got sick of eating pie, and if four and twenty black birds might one day attack a neighbor while they put clothes on the line to dry. Trying to figure out what was in the curds and whey of little Miss Muffet drove me nuts until in my version it became cottage cheese and the spider made Miss M flee, so it would rhyme. Due to the influence of Mother G, I love to make up rhymes.
Q. Is there anything else you’d like to say to our readers?
A. It’s been amazing to me when I’ve met many adults who were not read stories as children. This was a wonderful ritual with my mother when I was a child and more recently one my husband and I shared with our twin boys. Reading to a child is a special experience and time well spent. I loved story time at the zoo, and watching children's faces as they were pulled into the magic of a story is priceless. Watching an adult’s face when they are captured by a story is incredible. You can build warm memories with this special gift and nurture a lifetime love of reading. Please read to your child today and when they are old enough, have them read to you.
Remember the lyrics to our song:
Reading is magic, all you need is a really good book, it’s the key.
Thanks for the great interview, Sue!
Thank you, Mayra, for this interview opportunity. Your generosity is sincerely appreciated and the questions were great. Also a big thanks to Lynda at Guardian Angel Publishing, a wonderful and supportive publisher, and my friend and a wonderful author, Kim McDougall, for introducing us.
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Meet Mathias B. Freese, Author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
A teacher, writer and psychotherapist, Mathias B. Freese is the author of two books, The i Tetralogy and Down to a Sunless Sea. His fiction has appeared on numerous prestigious publications. His short story, "Herbie," was listed in The Best American Short Stories of 1974 along with the works of I.B. Singer, Joyce Carol Oates and Norman Mailer. Readers may read my review of Down to a Sunless Sea on my blog, The Dark Phantom Review. In this insightful, fascinating interview, Freese talks about his writing and the force behind it.
Q, It's nice to have you here today, Mathias. Why don’t you begin by telling us a little about yourself?
A. Teacher, writer and psychotherapist, I have written for forty years. Struggled for years to shed being a teacher and to regain my humanity, I have succeeded. Underestimated my self and my intelligence — benign neglect by parents and all that sob story — I have worked real hard on deconditioning myself – read Krishnamurti – so that, combined with being a therapist, has helped me to see. I am a stranger in a strange land. I thrive in that wintry landscape.
Q. When did you decide you wanted to become an author?
A. I suppose there are those who do that. I bumped into writing by my first effort, a poem, published in the high school yearbook, gutted by an English teacher who grossly misread it. Editors! What I suggest to people who ask about writing is that they purchase Mazola oil, go into the woods, and self-anoint themselves. It works.
Q. Were you an avid reader as a child? What type of books did you enjoy reading?
A. I read because I was an introspective child, an observer. Early books were romantic such as Harold Lamb’s take on Robin Hood and Jewish Legends. The books mottled my mind, romanticized me, a la Don Quixote, a false reading of the real world. I read junk, good junk and superior junk. The key to this interview, dear reader, is to realize, as you do, if over 40, that we are the last to know ourselves. And the aggravating thing is, if we meet a good person or a gifted shrink, that others may grasp ourselves better than we do. And what is to be made of that?
Q. Tell us a bit about Down to a Sunless Sea.
A. In my middle age, frustrated, depressed, I wrote to understand who I was. I am an autodidact with all the defects of that. Stories were more therapy for myself than fodder for the reader. I never was really concerned about the reader. That has helped me serendipitously to this day. It is my assumption, given credence over the years, that I write for me, not you, in the expectation that you will pick up on it. And people do. In short, I made a pact with myself. I’d publish my book of short stories if all of them were published, as a testament to my craft. It took more than twenty years for that to happen, although not all stories were published. I’m constructed in this way, for the long haul, impatient in the present, patient for the years to come, although I now near my end, boo hoo.
The stories in Down to a Sunless Sea deal with the “deviant and damaged,” well, not exactly. They are epiphanies.I write about a cousin who had cerebral palsy and died driving a cab because he couldn’t handle the wheel with skill; about my daughter who had CFIDS; a macabre story about Juan Peron who had his hands cut off in his crypt –yummy – in fact, a story appeared in the Times about that and I was intrigued. And bingo! In 1974 Martha Foley listed me in The Best American Short Stories of 1974 for “Herbie.” I was listed with I.B. Singer, Joyce Carol Oates and dear Norman Mailer. I only recognized Mailer. I was so new at it.
I was now anointed as a writer. Curiously, the story is continually misread; perhaps I was too subtle. It is the mother in the story who is the real shark, killer and manipulator. Many readers omit her toxicity in their reviews. The i Tetralogy, a historical fiction, on the Holocaust is forever my most significant work and it has garnered remarkable reviews around the world. It is a sleeper and it is contaminated, for I take no prisoners and many of us are into denial about the Holocaust itself. In Down to a Sunless Sea, the story about Juan Peron has a parallel theme about Jews in Argentina, again overlooked in reviews; and “Alabaster” is a story about a Holocaust survivor, an unsweetened, non- sanitized look, I hope. Unconsciously I was writing about the Jewish experience, all preparation for my Tetralogy novel later on in life.
Q. How would you describe your creative process while writing this book? Was it stream-of –consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline?
A. To write an outline is to maim my efforts. I write intuitively, from the gut, with passion. I write and write, knowing that it is in revision that I prune the pear tree. What is most emblematic of how I work is in the effort to write about Nazis in the Tetralogy. I sunk into my self. I dwelt east of Eden. I learned that the species is by default a murderous one. So, it came to pass that I wrote Nazi poetry; I pushed myself, I considered that and I did it. I count so very much on the unconscious that it is my belief that all conscious writing is like the penmanship teacher in primary school holding your hand to help you make that cursive letter “p.”
Q. What will the reader learn after reading your book?
A. We really don’t learn much from books except other people’s smarts. Again, I do not write for you. I write for me and for my understanding. I write without expectations of any readership, but I have a world of expectations for myself. What type of writer are you – the one who experiences before writing, like Hemingway, or the one who mostly daydreams and fantasizes? I make no such distinctions. I am. I do not write a certain amount of words each day, having heard that conditional piece of advice for years. Who said so? Why? Did Tolstoy learn that when he took his MFA in Leningrad? I don’t read necessarily to deconstruct the artifice of a novelist. Read Hemingway too much and you’ll end up as a declarative sentence, noun and verb forever glued together. Do you write non-stop until you have a first draft, or do you edit as you move along? I leave anality for the last. I channel my unconscious, let it flow and then I cut back as necessary. I believe that I am a dugout on the vast Amazon River. I go with it.
Q. Do you have any favorite authors or books?
A. I have read a great deal of Krishnamurti. His message is in my own work – the awakening of intelligence. However, Nikos Kazantzakis has always moved me, The Last Temptation of Christ, St. Francis and Report to Greco probably the greatest confessional since St. Augustine. He wrote a sequel in two volumes, in verse, to the Odyssey and by all accounts equaled Homer. I read him because when he writes about grapes I can taste the dew on their skins.
Q. What is the best writing advice you’ve ever received?
A. Marguerite Young, author, said that we should put the kitchen sink into our writings. To wit, in “Mortise and Tenon,” in the short story collection, I give information about Gustav Klimt, citing a few paintings that the characters see in the museum. It enriches the story, I believe.
Q. How was your experience in looking for a publisher? What words of advice would you offer those novice authors who are in search of one?
A. As you have gathered, I go my own way – should I go your way? Publishers fled from the The i Tetralogy. I don’t need someone else — it does help, I am human — to tell me this book is masterful; they ran away because of resistance and denial. America’s great contribution to the world besides Dick Cheney is marketing. I self-publish, draw inspiration from Thoreau, who only published 75 copies of Walden. When you die and I die, does it really matter who published us, except that our efforts are published – the rest is vanity.
Q. Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work?
A. It is http://www.mathiasbfreese.com. Under "Pages" I have short essays or “factions,” published and unpublished, so you can get a sense of my interests – an essay for PMA discussing that the artist is never poor, to wit. I have links to reviews and interviews with me, especially David Herrle (www.subtletea.com), who does a terrific job. Parenthetically, Herrle did a 25 page literary analysis of The I Tetralogy which reflects as much upon his brilliance as it does upon my book. He was the first to state that the Tetralogy was a major literary effort, perhaps a work of art as well. The blog contains short essays as I go along in life and an ongoing memoir.
Q. Do you have another book on the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects?
A. I am into rewriting Sojourner, a historical fiction about a Chinese who ventures to California during the Gold Rush. It is a philosophical quest that he is on. I wrote it about the age of 40, revealing my existential discontent, a need to find purpose and intention in this world. All the while I taught, I wrote, and I went back to school to become a psychotherapist which again was a latent need to understand my self. I practiced as a therapist and felt purposeful. The other book is Gruffworld; the first chapter,“Covenant,” is on my website, published in a major magazine. It combines the analytic insights I metabolized as a writer and therapist and reflects my readings of Krishnamurti, especially dealing with the awakening of intelligence. It takes place in an apocalyptic world as a creature comes into self-awareness.
Q. In your collection, you use various writing styles for the different stories. Was this a conscious decision? It also offers readers a dark glimpse into the troubled mind of the characters. What’s in the mind of the author?
A. I’d like to answer both questions in one amalgam. I always write in order to make sense of my life and situation, and “making sense” is both the writer’s goal and his ultimate folly After four decades I can say that I have made some headway in my craft, but existentially it doesn’t amount to a hill of beans. I write to “soothe” myself and the terror of existence itself. We face two questions: life and death, and they are fierce deities, insatiable, terrific adversaries, I must add. To make sense is to give order, to be rational. “I did this because of that.” Oh, yeah.
After the Holocaust, all is farce. The species is shattered. And if I make sense, at all, it is only for me. The surprise of all my writing is that I don’t take it too seriously. I kiss no ass. I am compelled to write but the folly is in feeling that it does good. It all is in my patrimony, given to my children. I don’t care about readers per se other than the fun it provides when reviewed well or a gracious comment proffered about the book. I am greedy about life while I have it, not greedy about my books, except as an extension of whom I am and that gets awfully murky.
Short stories were written to express emotional states, and often the style was not a conscious choice. I was learning, I’m self taught, I was experimenting. I never went for a MFA (Argh!). I never took a course except one which I quickly left, the lecturer needed to be adored. I was rejected so many times that I developed a defense: arrogance, which, inn effect, said – your loss! Obviously I have been proven right. Even that haughty feeling doesn’t last.
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Meet Tony Eldridge, Author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
I love hearing success stories from non-traditionally published authors, so it's my pleasure to introduce you to Tony Eldridge, whose novel, The Samson Effect, recently caught the eye of a major Hollywood producer. To make a long story short, the Hollywood producer's name also happens to be Tony Eldridge–the factor which made him check out the novel and eventually acquire the film rights.
Q. Congratulations, Tony. That's quite a story. Tell us about The Samson Effect.
A. My current book is the action/adventure novel called, The Samson Effect. New York Times bestselling author Clive Cussler called it a “first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure.” It is about a biblical archeologist and an Israeli biblical linguist who are searching for evidence of the substance that gave Samson his great strength. However, there are a couple of enemies they have to avoid who want to find, and use, the substance for their own sinister purposes. In fact, the arch villain in the story is a Palestinian madman who wants to use the substance to create an army of soldiers with superhuman strength to fight a worldwide battle for Islam in the name of Allah.
Readers can read an excerpt of The Samson Effect at http://www.samsoneffect.com/excerpt.html
I was a minister for ten years and I still fill the pulpit on occasion. One area of study that fascinated me centered on the stories found in the Old Testament, like the story of Samson. To me, neither Hollywood nor the New York Literary empires could churn out stories that are as intense, action filled and entertaining as the ones described in the Old Testament. Since I am an avid reader of thrillers and action/adventure novels, bringing the love of the Old Testament stories together with the modern adventure stories I love was a natural. I wanted to write The Samson Effect in a way that would not be considered Christian literature, but would appeal to the people who liked fast paced action books with a religious tie-in.
Q. How would you describe your creative process while writing this book? Was it stream-of-consciousness writing, or did you first write an outline?
A. I am definitely a stream of consciousness writer. The only planning I do is when I am mowing the yard or exercising. I will often think through the story, the plot or characters. But when I sit and write, I write with free-flow sessions. I did try to outline, but I never stuck with it. Don’t get me wrong. In a sense, there is some outlining that needs to go on. With me, I do a lot of thinking and letting my characters act in my overactive imagination. This is a type of outlining since I will refer back to my imagination and use it as a basis of scenes in the book.
Q. From the moment you conceived the idea for the story, to the published book, how long did it take?
A. It took about three and a half years from the time I wrote the first words of the first draft to the time a perfect bound copy rested in my hands. That included about 3 to 4 months of writing the book, about a year of revisions, and a of couple years to let it sit before I got busy in getting it published.
Q. They say authors have immensely fragile egos… How would you handle negative criticism or a negative review?
A. You know, I came into this knowing that negative criticism was a given for authors. I set my mind to view it as a badge of honor. Fortunately, I have yet to experience a bad review or comments (at the time of writing this). I have been in a couple of major market newspapers, many online review sites and I have a few amazon.com reviews, but, I know the negative comments will come. And when they do, I will pull up my favorite authors like Clive Cussler, James Rollins, or James Patterson. If you look at any great writer today, they all have their critics. And that’s normal I guess. We all deserve a way to express our opinions. And the author who one day appeals to every person will be in a very unique and lonely club.
Q. Do you have any unusual writing quirks?
A. I do have one quirk that is somewhat interesting in this modern age. I have to write my first draft in long-hand. I then either type it into my word processor or I speak it in using voice recognition software. But here’s where it gets quirky: I have to use black ink only. I will use blue ink in a crunch, but it puts me in a foul mood until I get my black ink pen back. I have a box of pens with black in my office so I never have an excuse to be in a foul mood.
Q. Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? What seems to work for unleashing your creativity?
A. I will often get to a point in a scene where I either can’t come up with the conclusion or everything I try sounds contrived or forced. Times like that I have to go on one of my inspirational mowing sessions or jump on the treadmill. Sometimes I just get in the car and drive, letting my creative juices run their own course. You would be surprised at how many times the “Eureka!” moment comes to me when I give my imagination full liberty to do what it wants to do. But for me, it only works when I am totally alone. You don’t know how many times I came home late because of writer’s block. Luckily, I have a very understanding and supporting wife.
Q. Do you have a website/blog where readers may learn more about you and your work?
A. Yes. Readers can learn more about The Samson Effect at http://www.samsoneffect.com. They can also keep up with current news, find out about new reviews, and enter contest. Currently, I have a contest going on where I am naming a character in my next book after the winner of the contest.
Q. Do you have another book on the works? Would you like to tell readers about your current or future projects?
A. I am writing the next book in the series. The Hollywood producer who acquired the film rights to The Samson Effect has asked me for a synopsis of four books in the series, so hopefully I will be busy writing for a while. I want to thank you for the opportunity to let me share information about me and my book with you. If anyone has any questions for me, they can visit my website and click on the contact tab. The e-mail address goes straight to me.
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Meet Tracey H. Kitts, Author
Interview by Anne K. Edwards
Q. What do you find most rewarding about having written a story, article or book?
A. The most rewarding aspect of being a writer is having the opportunity to share my thoughts and feelings with the world. To know that someone enjoyed my work is just such a great feeling.
A. I have always wanted to be an author. Near the end of 2006 I decided it was time I got started on my dream. By the end of the year I had completed my first two novels and by the first part of 2007 they were both under contract. Things have continued to fall into place from there. I'm really blessed.
Q. Would you like to talk about your career or future plans?
A. I plan to continue writing until I drop dead. LOL Probably with a keyboard in my hand. As far as future plans, I plan to continue my Lilith Mercury: Werewolf Hunter Series as well as some other projects I've got in the works.
Q. Have you favorite authors who have influenced your work?
A. The only things that have really influenced me as far as other authors go is the dark feel of Edgar Allen Poe and the romance of William Shakespeare, as well as his dramatic flare. I haven't read anything in my own genre for years because I didn't want to be influenced. I want what I write (to my knowledge) to be completely original. If it's been done before, then so be it, but I haven't read it.
Q. Do you have a website for readers to visit?
A. Yes, it's http://www.traceyhkitts.com
Q. Where is your work available?
A. My work is currently available at New Concepts Publishing. Here is a direct link to my author page where they can find all my books.http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/traceyhkitts.htm
My books are also available at Fictionwise.http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/traceyhkittseBooks.htm?cache
Plus, Red, book one in my series will be available in bookstores (print) August 6.
Q. Are you currently working on a project?
A. I am currently working on books 4 and 5 in my werewolf hunter series. I also have a new release coming out in August with NCP. It's called Brain Dead and is a bit of a murder mystery/paranormal romance all wrapped up in one. I'm working on promotions for Brain Dead right now too. As soon as it's available, readers can purchase the book through the link on my author page at New Concepts Publishing.http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/traceyhkitts.htm
Q. Would you like to tell the readers anything about yourself?
A. I try to write the kind of books that I would like to read. I don't put anything out for the public that I wouldn't spend my own money on. I also donate 10% off all my royalties to St. Jude Children's Hospital.
Q. Do you have any hobbies unrelated to writing?
A. Sure. I've been kickboxing for eleven years now, so I love martial arts. I also enjoy bellydancing, gardening, and just about any form of art.
Q. What is your favorite way to begin a project? Do you do an outline? Or start with a plot or characters first?
A. I'm not sure I have a favorite way to begin a project. But I always do an outline. Sometimes I come up with a character and just wait for the right plot idea to come along. Other times I have the entire plot worked out before I know who's going to be the "star." It all depends really.
I am fairly organized though when it comes to writing. I always know what I'm going to do before I do it. The only exception thus far is the book I just finished called Eden. I had a general idea and just started writing. I was very pleased with the way the book turned out. So, I can work both ways.
Q. What impels or inspires you to write?
A. Anything and everything. I find inspiration in so many things. Sometimes it's music, or the storm clouds outside ... it really can be anything. Lots of my scenes and in fact entire plots have been inspired by my dreams.
Q. How do you set about developing characters?
A. I don't have any certain way for developing characters. Sometimes I do a character outline, sometimes I don't. There are some characters I know better than myself and others I need to be reminded about. It all depends on the character and how much I can relate to them. Either way, I always make some notes.
Q. How did you happen to develop your blog? Do you recommend them to writers for reaching readers?
A. I developed my blog as another way to reach potential readers and I highly recommend it. I've actually made some good friends that way too and picked up some new fans along the way:)
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THE GLADIATOR'S ARENA
by Mayra Calvani
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Short Fiction
Veldt of the Father's Sin
By Lad Moore
Directly beneath my marble slab lies the laundry chute to Hell.
Maybe the start of it goes back to the last days before Reba checked into the hospital to deliver our first. It was a Friday. The two of us sat on the bed in our apartment, jotting down name options for the big occasion. Ours was a two-column list, because in 1963 it wasn’t a practice to reveal the sex of the fetus before it was born. Knowing the sex beforehand was either not technically possible, or superstitiously risky. In either case, that day we settled on Meg for a girl, and Rick Corbett III if a boy.
We may have rushed the name choice because of events. I was a senior at North Texas University, and home for two hours between morning and afternoon classes. The television in the bedroom was on as Reba and I batted name candidates back and forth. Suddenly there was a terse and clumsy news bulletin interruption. It was CBS’s Walter Cronkite-a commentator I didn’t expect to see before the evening anchor hour. Here he was at midday, uncharacteristically off-balance it seemed, almost tearful. What were those halting words? He was saying that the President had been shot dead. Shot the President? The words were not acceptable; they were too estranged to mingle in the same sentence. Shot President Kennedy? No, not this President-that symbol of all we could become as Americans, that icon of strength with nobility.
The black and white television picture shifted to Parkland Hospital. I knew the hospital well, because it was such a gigantic piece of landscape on the corridor from Denton to Dallas. Equally clumsy words were coming out of the mouth of a hospital spokesman, certifying the time of death, around 1PM Central Time. I saw a Catholic priest at his side. I remember my face literally burned as the doctor repeated the same words I heard Cronkite say. It was the same slow burn that I would feel on my face in my worst times of embarrassment, like the time my English teacher pointed out my fly was unzipped as I stood in front of the class reading my poem.
My redness made it official and irrefutable. My president was dead. I kissed Reba-a deep kiss more solemn than passionate. It was a kiss born of panic, as if a hovering cloud had cast a sudden danger upon us. I grabbed my book bag and hurried back to the campus for my 2PM class. Passing by Griff’s hamburger stand, I saw students standing on the patio in frozen embrace. It seemed that nobody was in motion but me.
My eyes fell to the pavement. Each joint in the sidewalk seemed like part of a countdown to something. My thoughts were scrambled. Kennedy. Dead. Governor wounded. A sniper? Jackie at side. Crumpled roses in her arm. Oh God, I thought-those two little kids. Lyndon Johnson President? What an oxymoron!
Economics class was only half full, and nobody was sitting except the teacher, Dr. Beck. He was listening to a transistor radio on the desk. The reception was poor, fading in and out. It was a news report about a police officer being shot in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas. I thought…why would old Beck tune into that unimportant story in the midst of a national emergency?
"Go home." Beck said. "There’s no class today. Call the bulletin board line tomorrow to see when classes resume." He was crying.
"God," he added. "Dear God help us all."
I rushed back home to be with Reba. Why had I even left her at this desperate time? The half of the class that didn’t show up had gotten it right. It was my damn misjudgment to leave her alone. Throughout life, such misjudgment would visit me again.
The happy day came, and it was a boy. There was one final pause about the name Rick III. Perhaps it would be an error, naming a son after oneself. I’ve done much second-guessing since then, and decided that indeed it is too hard a burden to go through life as a Roman numeral. I know that I wasted a number of years wondering if I lived up to my father’s namesake. So I had made matters worse and named my own son Rick III. Now I can see where he might have believed that he had two legacies to best. At least I could call him Ricky-at least that would mitigate my doubts.
I took a part time job at a printing company to supplement our income the last three months of college. I shared the infant feeding schedule as best I could with the demands of my studies. Early on, Ricky developed allergies and was prescribed a soymilk substitute. It gave him chronic diarrhea, and I grudgingly accepted diaper-pail duty. My job was to wash the diapers, dry and fold them, and repeat the cycle every other day. I remember thinking of myself as the Andy Griffith character, PLO, "Permanent Latrine Orderly." It is true. PLO duty builds character.
Time raced. As a child in the Terrible Two’s, Ricky did not fit the stereotype. He was a quiet and sensitive kid, preoccupied with bugs and critters, ensuring kind treatment for all. As he grew older, he became a champion for early release of any imprisoned fur or fowl, and personal savior of all abandoned and neglected citizens of the animal world. He was disappointed that his best efforts sometimes failed without explanation. Once he found a newly hatched jaybird on the ground below its nest. The shrieking mother bird did not welcome his help and made bombing runs at him with her beak. Then she flew away, not to return.
"You can’t handle baby birds and get your scent on them," I said. "The mama bird will have nothing to do with them."
"He’s helpless. I’ll feed and nurse him," Ricky said. His determination was admirable. He dug earthworms from the yard, and watered the fledgling with an eyedropper. He made it a nest in a shoebox-cardboard walls sufficiently high to thwart the bird from falling out. But in less than a week, the bird died. Its little feathers had just begun to protrude, looking more like cactus than fowl.
Ricky accepted full responsibility and blame. I tried to distract him from guilt.
"I figure the little bird broke something or injured an organ in the fall from the tree," I offered. A funeral followed, complete with Popsicle-stick cross and a scrawled epitaph:
"Little Jay’s Solo"
By the time Ricky’s facial hair was beginning to emerge, I had entered a period in my corporate career that all but consumed me. I traveled extensively, often returning late on Fridays and departing again Sundays. My relationship with Ricky was styled like a checklist. I complained about the housekeeping in his room. I reviewed his grades-all were good, and I tried to monitor his choice of friends.
I didn’t like one of his friends in particular, a longhaired beanpole by the name of Todd. He looked scruffy and unwashed; he was making an effort to grow a moustache with a sadly deficient quantity of hair that resembled more the cobweb than the handlebar. His handshake was weak and unresponsive, like fumbling a moist dishrag. His family had prematurely issued him an automobile, which was likely an incentive to get him out of their house.
I suppose I focused on Todd because of something my neighbor Gene once told me.
Gene was in the midst of a family battle with drugs. The situation had become so out of control that Gene had resorted to bugging his son’s telephone, and recording the calls. In those tapes, he learned that the drug exchanges were at of all places, his church youth group. Gene summed it up:
"Forget everything else. Don’t worry about report cards, athletics, hairstyles, baggy jeans, or ball caps turned backward. Worry only about the friends your son travels with. Ask yourself often: Among the crowd of kids, who are his closest friends? Worry hard and often about where he is with those friends." I appreciated the advice, but I would have failed in that case too. I would have never worried about a youth group.
I enjoyed some stature in the community because of my position as manager of our local factory. For that reason, the news I received one morning was handled unofficially. It was a telephone call from the Chief of Police.
"Hey Rick, this is Hal Cottle. Missed you at Rotary Tuesday."
I chuckled. "I thought of you guys Hal, I was in Jamaica, sipping a drink from a pineapple with an umbrella in it." It was a lie. I had been in Chicago.
"I don’t know how to say this except straight out. Your boy and Todd Weeks got into a little meanness over at First Bank."
"Meanness?" I said. "What happened?"
"Seems as though they went into the bank drive-thru and dumped a cup of ice and cola into the vacuum tube. You know, that little cask you put your checks or cash into and send it inside? Screwed up the mechanism and shorted out the kiosk. Pretty much a mess."
"Who said it was them?
"The lane camera recorded the whole incident. We’ve got a license plate and two grinning faces on film."
Reba took the ‘boys will be boys’ course. I took more resolute action. The rest of that summer, Ricky’s lawn mowing money accrued to me in repayment toward the three hundred dollar cleaning bill at First Bank. And Todd was banished from my home and phone. But I suspected I was less than successful in my sanction of Todd. I saw him cruising our neighborhood more than once, and I figured the boys’ relationship had simply gone underground. My suspicions were confirmed late on a Saturday night. The phone rang and again, it was the voice of Hal Cottle.
"I’ve got bad news, but first, I assure you the kids are okay. There’s been a wreck at Persimmon Creek. Your son Ricky and that Todd kid were with a couple of girls and their car hit the bridge rail. Ricky was driving Todd’s car. They’re all okay, down at the hospital. You better get over there."
The worst of the injuries was to Todd, a badly broken leg. Everyone else was released. Todd had asked Ricky to drive because they had all been drinking but Ricky. Thank God for that odd piece of luck, I thought.
In another classic misjudgment, I decided that part of Ricky’s punishment would be to go to the hospital every day after school and visit Todd. He came home each time expressing his discomfort.
"Dad, Todd’s parents are talking some trash. They are saying how I caused all of this, and how it’s my fault. They also said that Todd’s broken leg will end up shorter than his other one and he will have a lifetime limp."
I should have been more perceptive. My insurance company soon notified me of the lawsuit by Todd’s family. The agent said the worst possible thing was for my son to be at that hospital every day.
"Demonstrates responsibility and culpability," he said.
The suit was settled out of court, and I never knew the exact amount. They did tell me that I should be glad I purchased the additional umbrella coverage. The fact that I was right about Todd all along was lost in the stress of the litigation. I got no comfort from it.
Barely into his first college semester, Ricky announced that he was dropping out and entering the Marines. Despite all the years I spent planning Ricky’s future for him, I actually thought this decision might be good. Although I did not serve in the military, I had brushes with it in military school and later in college ROTC. The slogan that hung in bronze over my military school came to mind:
"Send us the boy and we will return you the man"
It was another lapse in parenthood. I actually wanted to be rid of Ricky-a kind of subletting of his raising. I believed the military would put him on a disciplined course. It was a mistake.
Military service was paradoxical. At first, Ricky amassed a host of Meritorious Masts-celebrations of achievements in walking the walk. His letters from Rota, Spain were All- Marine. He was immersed in the hype of a Few Good Men, led by a ruthless off-the-wall commander they called "Mad Dog.". His talk of field training under Mad Dog was way out of character for the childhood Ricky.
"We went out into drill today," he wrote. We tied ropes to the front and rear legs of a rabbit. Then we had a tug of war until the rabbit came apart. Mad Dog and all us guys painted our faces with the blood. It was totally cool."
Another letter: "Dad, today we held maneuvers in a Spanish military cemetery. There were lots of old graves that were above ground. Some of them had caved in, and in one I found bones and a helmet. I took them and hid them in my laundry bag at the barracks. Dad, I WAS that soldier. I was him before I was me."
My alarm over the macabre in his writings had not fully settled in when I received a call from him. He was in Norfolk, Virginia.
"Dad, I’m mustered out. Pick me up at the base. I’ll explain when I see you."
Ricky’s homecoming was tense because I knew that a shortened military career was never good news. But his discharge was honorable, and the reason was cited only as "For convenience of the government." Ricky didn’t share much more than that with me, just saying that service under Mad Dog had turned sour.
I read his military records and was appalled at some of the content, but decided I didn’t want to know more. It was a chance to close that chapter and begin again. Ricky could return to the path I had selected for him, and get into college. Then I overlooked a further opportunity for understanding. I did not sense the urgency or the oddity of his behavior when he showed me the bag containing the Spanish soldier’s bones.
* * *
Ricky moved to New York City to pursue his creativity. The experience was marked by odd incidents and surprises. Once I had to send him several hundred dollars to pay jaywalking fines. I chalked them up to Ricky’s indifference. He spent his first year working for a caterer. He was mugged three times-the storied ‘Bronx Welcome Wagon.’ Just when I thought he was settling in the city, he called to say he had moved in with a singer he had met, and a Labrador retriever named "Rags." It turned out that Rags was an orphan dog he had rescued from the NYC subway. He needed money for vet bills and I wired it to him.
It was clear to me that Ricky had settled into a life of his own choosing. I realized for the first time that Ricky would never walk the path I created for him. What’s odd is that the experiencing of his difficulties and failings only made me feel sorry for myself.
In our brief and sporadic conversations, he kept me befuddled. I was ill-equipped to understand the forces that were within him. He routinely apologized for failing me, despite my insistence that he had not. He regularly cited my father’s success as the renowned aviator he was, and envied my career as a corporate executive. He seemed centered on a degradation of his of his self-worth.
"I’ve checked into changing my name maybe to Ricardo, and dropping the Roman numerals. I’m forever going to be the black sheep, and we all know it."
No amount of reassurance to the contrary seemed to give him encouragement. But now I realize I didn’t try hard enough, and I failed to find the right words to give him confidence.
Loving New York City now, Ricky was writing and performing his own songs, some of which I found captivating. He talked of his fascination for the musical group The Doors, and of having visited Jim Morrison’s tomb while in Europe. He styled his guitar playing after those sounds, and his lyrics had a similar dark thread. But as to his musical future, he was also a realist. He knew that his goals were barred by doors of another kind. He believed that talent was more marketing than creative juice, and that performing arts was a connected, closed society.
"The stars of today were not discovered softly singing their compositions while washing beer mugs in a tavern," he said. "They are manufactured-just like widgets."
* * *
I can see clearly now. I spent all Ricky’s formative years stepping out of the way, or trying to place him back on my path, not his. Then regrettably, the depth of my relationship with the adult Rick III can be summed up as a treatise in late night telephone calls. To this day, any telephone call after 10pm sends my heart racing and floods my face with the same redness I felt the day Kennedy died.
I trembled as I picked up the midnight phone that had rocked my deep sleep. My worst fear swelled up within me. It was a NYC detective. Ricky had been found dead. He was discovered in the seedy Cheers Residence Hotel, brought to the desk clerk’s attention only by the odor emitting from Ricky’s locked room. He had been dead two or three days. The autopsy suggested chronic alcohol and drug abuse, followed by the predictable overdose. The girl he was living with was by his side, still alive, but comatose.
In robotic fashion I mechanically went through the process of physically burying my son. Reba and I selected a verse from one of Ricky’s songs to be inscribed on his gravestone. Friends visited and said the right things. We grieved together and alone, and the physical conclusion of Ricky’s life was over. But swiftly came the spiritual reckoning-the haunting, the guilt, the regret, and the horde of unanswered "what-ifs."
I knew Reba needed me to talk about it, but selfishly, I was not there for her. I used all my energy to house and clothe the family of demons that had moved inside me, always whispering their accusations. They are still there today. They parade across my mind’s screen, glaring at me with twisted smiles-a suggestion of the pleasure they derive from my misery.
I will always believe I missed the signals. I failed my son in his need. My lot is well defined in these lines:
"The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in time of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality."-Dante Alighiere, 1321
* * *
Story © Copyright 2008 by the author, Lad Moore. All rights reserved.
Image © Copyright by the photographer, Iribo, Dreamstime, compensated under license.
~~~
The author’s two books of short stories, "Tailwind" and "Odie Dodie" are available at Amazon.Com and Barnes and Noble. Copies personally signed by the author may be obtained by contacting him directly at mailto:pogo@shreve.net
Watch for the author’s third short story collection, "Red Clay, Blue Denim" scheduled or publication in 2009.
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Articles
What Comes First - Characters or Plot?
by Marg McAlister
How do you actually begin a novel - by working out the plot, or starting with a character? And which is best?
The answer is probably pretty much what you expected: no one method is "best". In fact, many authors have begun their first novel by working from a plot idea, then switched to starting with a character for their second. Here, we'll look at the pros and cons of both methods.
Starting With Plot
FOR: You know where the story is going and what all characters have to do next. You don't have to sit there wondering how on earth your character is going to get out of the pickle you've put him in - because you planned all that in Week 1. Even if you have to make some changes, you know your story well enough to compensate.
AGAINST: A highly structured plot can become sterile and flat. Characters are too 'locked in' and fail to excite the author, let alone the reader. Because 'plot is all', your characters never really come to life. They go through the motions - but you're all too conscious that you're a puppet master. Pinocchio ain't got nuthin' on YOUR wooden characters. Gloom, gloom.
Starting With A Character
FOR: You know your character so well that motivation is never an issue. The plot is never implausible. All action is driven by the character's needs, wants and responses. Conflict works well because you know the secondary characters well too.
AGAINST: Your character never realizes his/her potential because the plot is too slight. The stakes aren't high enough; the outcome is predictable; the storyline worn.
What To Do?
Either method can work - or either method can be a disaster. Start with whatever gets your creative juices flowing, then weave plot and character together as you write.
How to Weave Plot and Character
Not many aspiring novelists start a novel by sitting down at the computer with absolutely NO idea of where to start. ("Oh, I think I'll write a novel today! Now let's see... what can I write about?")
Most writers have at least a vague sense of where they're going. They may
have a vivid image of a character in mind
be able to imagine a character in a certain situation that requires decisions and action have a general theme in mind
have a definite beginning, middle and end planned
have a vague idea based on a movie plot or an actor or a news item or a current affairs guest
... and so it goes on! Very, very few people start with a completely blank slate. So, given that you have either some idea of the plot, or some idea of the character, where do you go next?
3 Tips for Developing Plot Out of Character
a. What does your character DO?
You can build a plot from where your character is now, in his/her life or career. Some examples:
If your character is a mother: what could threaten to turn her life upside down? What is her strongest drive? What does she want from life? What is important to her? What would make her risk everything she holds dear?
If your character is a corporate high flyer: What is important to her? What could bring her down? Who might go down with her? What does she have to lose? How could you raise the stakes?
If your character is a doctor: What might he see or do in the course of his work that could have an impact on his life? What kind of doctor is he? Who might be plotting against him? Who might he want to save, and how?
b. What is your character's secret?
Does she have a secret life - e.g. teacher by day, psychic hotline contact by night?
Does she have a secret baby in her past... or a secret lover?
Does he have a serious crime in his past that is about to catch up with him? What is it? Could it mean doing time? Was the character framed? Did he let someone else take the rap? Might someone be looking for revenge?
Does she have a secret yearning? Has she always wanted to be someone else or do something else? What happens if she shocks everyone by acting on her secret yearning?
c. Who does your character know?
Some examples:
An old school friend - once a 'best friend', now on a slippery slope in life - in trouble, and involving our lead character.
A workmate who asks the character to cover for him. A lie grows out of all proportion and leads to serious repercussions. The character is caught up by events and can't stop them.
A corrupt politician or police officer who mistakenly sees the character as powerless and a good 'fall guy'. What happens?
3 Tips for Developing Character Out of Plot
a. Choose a character with traits that are necessary for the kind of growth you need
If your plot requires a character who will develop 'courage under fire', and show great character growth - then choose that character carefully. Think about the *qualities* your character needs rather than worrying about looks. What particular skills/traits will he or she need to have?
b. Choose a character that will surprise the reader
If you have a screwball character in mind - or perhaps a mild-mannered desk jockey - think about how their lives are about to change, and how their reactions might surprise the reader. Perhaps link their actions to a secret in their past, a secret threat, or a secret yearning.
c. Choose a character with a fatal flaw
Your plot demands swift and decisive action. The stakes are high; many lives will be lost or a country/city faces ruin. You need a character with a fatal flaw so that near the climax of the story, all appears lost. What is that flaw? At what stage of the story will the revelation of this flaw have the most impact?
Which particular fatal flaw will work best with the kind of plot you've created? A gambling addiction? An inability to admit he's wrong? A weakness for beautiful women?
These are just a few tips. A couple of hours brainstorming will give you pages of ideas and fend off the dreaded writer's block.
Whether you start with a character or start with a plot, you need to have vivid, strong characters or all your hard work will be for nothing. I'll leave you with a few words from New York literary agent Don Maass about the importance of strong characters (from his book Writing the Breakout Novel):
"What do folks remember most about a novel? I have asked this question many times, of all different kinds of people. Your answer is probably the same as that of most readers: the characters. Great characters are the key to great fiction. A high-octane plot is nothing without credible, larger-than-life, highly developed enactors to make it meaningful.... Hot plot devices may propel a protagonist into action, even danger, but how involving is that when the action taken is what anybody would do?
"Indeed, it is a common fault of beginning thriller writers to slam an Everyman, your average Joe, into the middle of something big and terrible. Such stories usually feel lackluster because the main character is lackluster. A plot is just a plot. It is the actions of a person that makes it memorable or not. Great characters rise to the challenge of great events."
*Want to download 5 - yes, FIVE - e-books full of good advice on technique and career-building for writers? You can have instant access to The Writing4Success Tipsheet Library here: http://www.writing4success.com
Marg McAlister has published magazine articles, short stories, books for children, ezines, promotional material, sales letters and web content. She has written 5 distance education courses on writing, and her online help for writers is popular all over the world. Sign up for her regular writers' tipsheet at http://www.writing4success.com
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SANCTUARY -- By Mayra Calvani
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WHODUNIT? -- By Billie A. Williams
The Wrong Side of the Law: Irony and Mystery
Whodunit? By Billie A. Williams (c) 2008
In Writing the Modern Mystery, author Barbara Norville offers one final plot device that could serve your mystery well. Letting your character get away with murder. Getting away with murder has been done, the murderer actually gets away with committing murder and the reader is still satisfied with the outcome.
"The devil," you say. "That cannot be allowed in a civilized society."
But I agree with Ms. Norville. It can, and it has worked very well with the proper motivation, opportunity and rationale.
Let's examine the reason behind this theory. First of all, we know the mystery is a morality tale. No one gets away with any crime--nor should they. Now comes the what if. What if the victim is deserving of a fate worse than death? What if his public persona, for instance, portrays him as philanthropist, all round hero sort of guy, but throughout the story the author shows the Jekyll side of Ms. or Mr. Hyde to the reader?
As an example: Have you ever found yourself cheering for the one armed fugitive, Ben Gazara in the television series, or movie, The Fugitive? Why did you want him to escape?
If your hero or heroine has been given a huge cross to bear that should not be theirs, if they stop a nasty from winning--the reader will cheer, and hope he/she gets off scott free.
If you doubt my theory here read Beyond a Reasonable Doubt by C. W. Grafton. A lawyer kills his evil brother-in-law--not on purpose--but accidentally. The brother-in-law had it coming and the readers cheer for the young lawyer. Eventually, he turns himself in, and then defends his own case and wins. He is acquitted. The author does not let him ride off into the sunset with the wife of the brother-in-law as his bride however, the bride finds out that he did indeed kill her husband and she drops him like a hot potato. Even though her husband was brutally abusing her, she refuses to love and live with the man who killed him. So while this story doesn't let the lawyer get away without penalty, he still gets away with murder. In a way he got his due, however--a lie is never rewarded--your morality issue solved.
Satisfy your reader that the murder was justifiable, and your murderer may walk away with a new fan for you. Remember though that the reader is the final judge. Your character and his situation must fit all the criteria--or you risk the wrath of a reader disappointed--and that could murder your career.
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PAM'S PEN -- By Pamela James
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SEEDLINGS -- Aaron Paul Lazar
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THIS & THAT - Dana Reed
Getting Tired of the Wrong Things in My Life
by Dana Reed
http://authorsden.com/DanaReed
http://danar96.com
Funny thing happened about six months ago. I became so tired of writing novels, dealing with publishers, and the whole mess, I decided I needed a change. I decided to pursue a career that was my life's dream: I signed up for a two-year Associates Degree in web and design technology. So far I've learned how to paint portraits, how to draw using a POV, how to use Photoshop and Dreamweaver on a semi-professional basis, how to program a web site, and there's more to come. I've received 5 A's and 2 B's in my courses and I'm happy. However, not happy enough because suddenly, and without warning, the writing bug in me stirred to new heights.
It was as if someone shot me in the head with a bullet, and I recovered because at some point I became aware of the unfinished novels I failed to complete. I also became aware of the unedited novels I had no time for. It was as though the 'writer' in me rose up to take precedence in my life. Now I find myself juggling homework along with working on novels.
My point is: You can never give up on writing. For me, writing was an escape; a place I ran to when things in my life became overwhelming. I was in charge in my novels. I decided what roles my characters would play, and how they'd play--good vs. evil. This was the only time I had control. After trying and failing to use my academic programs as a diversion, I realized it wasn't working, at least not for me. While writing I was involved in the mysteries that complicated my characters' lives. It was complete escape, better than a shrink. I found answers in writing that I could not find by just being alone and thinking.
So here I am with a heavy study schedule, trying to juggle enough time for writing. Once the passion strikes, it never leaves no matter how hard you try. Even writing blogs is a carryover from the past. I worked for many years as an investigative reporter and won awards for my articles. I even had my own column. Writing blogs takes me back to my newspaper years.
Some old timers have used the expression 'Ink in Your Blood', and I guess they're right. At least for me the expression is right on the money.
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THE WRITING LIFE
(Quarterly and Guest Column)
They're at it again! It's an election year. We supposedly get to pick the best person for the job of President. But do we? We hear a lot of speeches by the candidates, but they don't write those speeches. They practice delivering them. They are coached like actors chosen not for their potential, but on appearance, expression, speaking, friends, and all aspects that have to do with impressing the voter. But, who is behind the practiced smile, that compassionate expression, those hopefully twinkling eyes--what is that real person like?
I ask these questions because it is the same with creating a character for your book. You must make the decisions that will impress the reader, but your quest must go deeper than choosing a cardboard cutout for president--your characters must seem alive, to let the reader see their flaws, their real selves. They must not hide their true selves as the candidates do and must reveal their motives or intentions gradually or they will seem flat and their hold over the reader will be short-lived.
Like candidates for any office, a book or its characters or author are competing for recognition for the grand job of being your book, of gaining a hold in your memory so you will revisit them again and perhaps choose other books by this author.
There are some delightful books published by small presses on the internet, be sure to cast your votes wisely. You will open new worlds for yourself under their leadership.
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Reviews
Rainbow Sheep
by Kim Chatel
Illustrated by Kim Chatel
Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc
www.guardianangelpublising.com
ISBN-10: 1933090847
ISBN-13: 978-1933090849
Copyright April 2008
Picture Book, fantasy fiction/arts & crafts nonfiction
Paperback: 24
Retail Price $10.95
Reading age: 4 (read to by adult) to 10 (read alone)
Rainbow Sheep is an original, sweet story about a little shepherdess called Genevieve and her flock of sheep.
Genevieve is troubled because it has rained so much lately that the sky is always grey. When she tries to get the attention of the rainbow, she sees that its colors have faded and that it is sad. It has lost its will to live and love, its passion for beauty and life. Only by regaining hapiness will the rainbow shine again in all its glory. But how will Geneive bring joy back into the rainbow's life? You'll have to read the story to find out, and also to find out how the little sheep end up being as brightly colored as the rainbow.
I found this to be an unusual story with surrealist elements. Chatel's language is lyrical at times, blending beautifully with the soft fantasy elements of the tale. The story also has the tone and cadence of a legend. Another aspect I found most original is that instead of illustrations, Chatel uses sculpted wool to create the artwork. This technique is known as needle felting.
I found myself engaged all through the book not only with the story, but also with the interesting wool figures. The colorful little sheep will be loved by children and the underwater scenes are especially bright and lovely.
Rainbow Sheep is a great way to introduce kids to this new craft. At the end of the book, you'll find descriptions, demostrations, and a glossary on needle felting. This is a children's picture book that will be enjoyed by adults and children alike, and one that will make a valuable addition to any library or school bookshelf.
Reviewed by Mayra Calvani
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Midnight on Mourn Street
By Christopher Conlon
Earthling Publications
Copyright 2008
ISBN: 0-9795054-3-7
Midnight on Mourn Street is a haunting, exquisitely written novel of secret guilt, regret, and revenge.
Reed Walters is a lonely, quiet, middle-aged man who leads a lonely, quiet life. He has a secret, and everything he does in life is geared toward keeping that secret safe. Though he’s well off thanks to an inheritance from his father, he lives in a rundown apartment in a seedy part of town. His only friend is a young black student who dreams of education and culture. Together they spend many enjoyable hours talking about classical music, art, and literature.
Then one day Reed meets a teenaged runaway named Mauri. Mauri is everything Reed is not—flashy, volatile, impetuous and unpredictable. Since she’s in pretty bad shape when they meet—ill, dirty, pale and hungry—Reeds invites her to stay with him for a few days. His intentions, however, are totally innocent. Mauri, having nowhere else to go, accepts. From the bizarre chemistry that develops between Reed and Mauri, we know something more sinister is at work in their relationship. On the surface, Mauri seems happy and warm around him and he in turn appears delighted with her company, especially when Reed’s student friend joins them for lively discussions. However, there’s always that underlying cold edge to Mauri.
Who is she? Why did she suddenly ‘appear’ on Reed’s life? Does she have a hidden agenda? What are Mauri’s and Reed’s secrets?
I found this book to be a compelling psychological thriller, but the best part is, the prose isn’t written like a regular commercial novel but like a literary novel instead. The dialogue is darkly engaging, with just the right amount of delicately suggested menace, and Conlon does a great job creating an atmosphere of threat and anticipation. We know there’s something odd going on, but what? I found Reed to be a very sympathetic character. Mauri, on the other hand, is hard to come to terms with—that is, until the shocking conclusion, when we find out the reason for her mean and explosive behavior. The pace is a bit slow at times, but I don’t see this as a weakness; some novels are meant to be savored slowly, and, as I mentioned before, this isn’t your regular commercial thriller. The story slowly ascends until the terrible, heart-wrenching climax. Also, this is one of those novels that only have a couple of characters. Apart from Reed, Mauri, and Reed’s friend, there are practically no other characters in the novel. Conlon’s writing style is evocative and elegant, and his prose flows with a lot of personality and pulse. In sum, this is an engrossing, gripping novel that will satisfy the most sophisticated readers.
Reviewed by Mayra Calvani
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Lost in the Mist
by W. C. Keesey
Publisher: Wings ePress
Reviewed by John Lindermuth
I’ll admit, romance isn’t my usual reading fare. But Wanda Keesey’s first novel had me hooked from the beginning.
Connie Hart is a freelance writer specializing in the Civil War era. She’s just broken up with a deceitful boyfriend and has suffered the loss of her mother to cancer. She’s surprised when her mother’s attorney hands over a letter and family heirlooms which present a mystery.
Seeking to cope with her grief, Connie heads for Fredericksburg, Virginia, to work on a story assignment. Odd things begin to happen shortly after her arrival but she discounts it as imagination. At the bed and breakfast she again experiences déjà vu and fears she may be having a breakdown.
She meets Brian, a handsome photographer, and is attracted to him but is leery of a relationship because of her previous unsuccessful love affair. Soon, though, as paranormal episodes have her going back and forth in time and interacting with Victoria Brentwell, a young girl who lived in the B&B a century earlier, she comes to depend on Brian and another couple they’ve become friends with and who seem to understand what she’s going through. Somehow Victoria seems familiar to her and neither girl can understand how or why their worlds are connecting.
The developing relationship with Brian is realistically handled and important as Connie’s time travel becomes more and more pressing. The final revelation of her and Victoria’s connection is not really a surprise but that does not distract from enjoyment of the story.
Keesey is a student of the Civil War and her depictions of that tragic period are poignant and accurate.
An intriguing plot, believable characters and a good dose of conflict—what’s not to like?
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Copyright (c) 2005 Mary Emmons All Rights Reserved
Mystery Fiction Monthly Ezine -- The Voice in the DarkIssue No. 42, June 2008
Co-Editor: Anne K. Edwards
marbob00@earthlink.net
http://www.Mysteryfiction.net
Co-Editor: Mayra Calvani
MGCalvani@hotmail.com
http://www.Mayracalvani.com
Slippery Book Review Blog http://slipperybookreview.wordpress.com (blog)
Reviews and Other Stuff (Blog) http://authorsandreviews.blogspot.com
Publisher: Eva Almeida
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Voice in the Dark will continue to be open to well written, interesting submissions having to do with writing and publishing and promotion of books. In addition to a subscription list, Voice in the Dark is posted each month on http://www.Mysteryfiction.net where it receives over a thousand hits a month. If interested contact Mayra Calvani at mgcalvani@hotmail.com with "Voice Submission" in your subject line.
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The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing Book Launch
(Go to http://slipperybookreview.wordpress.com for more information.
June is 'Book Reviewing' month at 'Blogcritics Magazine!
To promote the release of The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing, author Mayra Calvani will be interviewing 15+ reviewers and review editors during the month of June. Learn all about the business of book reviewing and what's in the mind of some of the most popular reviewers on the internet today.
Here's the lineup:
June 1 - James A. Cox, Midwest Book Review
June 3 - Irene Watson, Reader Views
June 5 - Magdalena Ball, The Compulsive Reader
June 7 - Carolyn Howard-Johnson, The New Book Review
June 9 - Rachel Durfor, Rebecca's Reads
June 11 - Beverly Walton Porter, Scribe & Quill
June 13 - Alex Moore, ForeWord Magazine
June 15 - Stephanie Padilla, New Mystery Reader
June 17 - Sharyn McGinty, In The Library Reviews
June 19 - Cheryl Malandrinos, The Book Connection
June 21 - Eveline Soors, Euro-reviews
June 23 - Andrea Sisco, Armchair Interviews
June 25 - Lea Schizas, Muse Book Reviews
June 27 - Linda Baldwin, Road to Romance
June 29 - Hilary Williamson, Book Loons
June 30 - Judy Clark, Mostly Fiction
Between June 1st and June 30th, stop by Blogcritics and leave a comment under the reviewer interviews for a chance to win a Pump Up Your Book Promotion Virtual Book Tour (coordinated by book publicity guru Dorothy Thompson), OR, as an alternative to a non-author winner, a $50 B&N gift certificate! The second prize will be a one-year subscription to Foreword Magazine. The third prize will be a T-shirt with the cover art of The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing on the front.
The three winners will be drawn from the people who leave comments under the interviews during the month of June. The deadline to comment is June 30th, midnight, eastern time. The winners will be announced on The Slippery Book Review http://slipperybookreview.wordpress.com blog on July 3rd. I hope you enjoy the interviews! Good luck!
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Multi-genre author Mayra Calvani is pleased to announce the release of her 2nd children's picture book, CRASH!
Mayra will be donating 50% of her royalties from CRASH! to Almost Heaven Golden Retriever Rescue and Sanctuary, a non-profit organization.
To learn more about Mayra's book visit:
http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/crash.htm
The virtual book tour for this book includes stops at:
June 2 -- http://writerswhoblog.blogspot.com --spotlight
June 3 -- http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2008/04/crash-by-mayra-calvani-book-review.html-- Review
June 4 -- http://thewritingjungle.blogspot.com -- Review
June 5 -- http://beverlyjean.livejournal.com -- Spotlight and Review
June 6 -- http://dogsrulecatsdrool.wordpress.com/ - Guest Post
June 11 - http://itsrainingcatsanddogsglixman.blogspot.com -- Guest Post
June 16 - http://www.readingmama.blogspot.com/ - Review
June 17 - http://treehousejukebox.wordpress.com/ – Review
June 18 - http://bookwormsballroom.blogspot.com/ - Review
June 20 - http://www.elysabethsstories.blogspot.com/ – Guest Post
June 24 - http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/ReviewsbyHeidi - Review
June 25 - http://www.fictionscribe.com/ – Guest Post
June 27 - http://www.thebookstacks.com/ – Review
Be sure to leave a comment at the end of one of my tour stops. I'll be giving away a $20 gift certificate from the Almost Heaven Golden Retriever Rescue and Sanctuary gift shop to one lucky winner! The winner will be announced on this blog on July 1st. Thanks for your support!
My virtual book tour is brought to you by Pump Up Your Book
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Editor's Note
Fictional Character Interview
Featured Interviews
--Meet Rhonda Parrish, Author
--Meet A. F. Stewart, Author
--Meet Dan Ronco, Author
--Meet John E. Bailor, Author
--Meet Aaron Paul Lazar, Author
Book Excerpt --
Gladiator's Arena--by Mayra Calvani
Short Fiction
--Exiting the Plan (Part II) by Lad Moore--Creating Leading Characters in a Novel by Lucy Costigan
--Book Authors: How to Sell More Books and Get your Publisher
Active by Bill Platt
Sanctuary -- Columnist Mayra Calvani
Whodunit? -- Columnist Billie A. Williams
Pam's Pen -- Columnist Pamela James
Seedlings -- Aaron Paul Lazar
This & That -- Columnist Dana Reed
The Writing Life -- Quarterly and Guest Column
Reviews
Notes
Events
Resources
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Editor's Note
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nterviews
Meet Rhonda Parrish, Author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
Q. Tell us a bit about Niteblade. When and how did it get started?
A. Niteblade is quite new, the June issue will be the fourth one out. I started Niteblade in May of 2007. I'd heard people claim that fantasy and horror were dying genres and I wanted to prove that wrong--I also wanted to see what it felt like to be on the other side of the submission process. Boy, it's been eye-opening.
Q. What type of horror fiction do you consider? Are you open to submissions?
A. I am open to submissions year round except the months of November and May which I take off to catch up on my slush pile and participate in writing challenges and I consider any type of horror stories.
Q. If you could narrow down to three the elements that make a great horror story, what would those be?
A. I think characters are key. You need to have engaging characters that feel real, or it doesn't matter what happens. I, as a reader, am not going to care because I'm not going to believe it. That's the second key thing, I think, suspending disbelief. It's vital that the story flow and not have typos or anything else that will jar me out of it. Once my attention is lost, for even a second, the story has to work to get me re-engaged. Sad but true. I think the third element needed for a horror story is, of course, horror. It doesn't need to be of the blood and guts variety, but there needs to be something horrific in the story...or else why would it be called a horror story?
Q. What are the most common flaws you encounter when reading submissions?
A. The most common, and most irritating flaw I find when reading submissions is that people have obviously not read the submissions guidelines. Things like addressing me as 'sir' or misspelling the name of the magazine just done put me in a happy-bunny mood, which doesn't really work in the submitter's favor, oddly enough. Other than that I see quite a few typos in submissions, which doesn't irritate me, but does make me wonder if I'm reading a first draft or a polished copy.
Q. Do you review horror books? If yes, how may authors interested in a review by Niteblade submit their books?
A. Niteblade reviews two books per issue--one fantasy and one horror. If an author would like a review of their book by a Niteblade reviewer, they need only drop me an email at Rhonda at jofigure dot com and I'll get back to them. Because we only have two slots, it can sometimes take more than four months for a review to appear in the magazine, so it's best to contact me sooner rather than later.
Q. There are so many horror sub-genres--cutting edge, dark fantasy, extreme, supernatural, quiet, psychological, etc. Do you think some have higher literary value than others? Which one do you think is more popular at the moment?
A. Phrases like 'higher literary value' tend to irritate me. I don't think it's up to anyone to judge the merit of one genre (or sub-genre) over another. My sincere and honest opinion is that anything which encourages people to read is a good thing. I volunteer in a grade two classroom one day a week and I see enough reluctant readers that I can't possibly imagine telling someone what they are reading is inferior or has 'lesser literary value' than something else whether they are an adult or a child.
As for what is popular, it seems to me that gross-out horror has peaked recently, though that seems to be slightly less popular than it was a couple of years ago. It will be interesting to see what sub-genre moves in to fill its place for the next couple of years.
Q. Do you think the horror fiction market has declined, reached a plateau, or is still climbing?
A. Honestly? I have no idea. I know Niteblade gets enough traffic and has enough readers to convince me that the horror fiction market is not declining, but whether it's hit a plateau or is still climbing is beyond my ability to answer intelligibly.
Q. How hard is it to market and promote a small horror publication like Niteblade when faced with the competition?
A. I've found that my "competition" is one of the greatest resources Niteblade has when it comes to marketing and promotion. I've made friends with several small press editors and we exchange links, ideas and traffic with one another. It's wonderful.
Q. Could you tell us about the advertising and promotional opportunities Niteblade offers authors?
A. Right now I'm primarily using Project Wonderful to host ads on Niteblade. Through them advertisers can buy ad space for as little as one cent a day, or, if you're lucky, you can even get free advertisements. Of course, the links aren't hard-coded and they aren't permanent so it's not great for search engine optimization, so I also offer hard-coded permanent ad slots for sale at http://www.niteblade.com/advrtise.htm
Q, What is the scariest book you've ever read?
A. Truthfully, I find non-fiction far scarier than any fictional story I've ever read.
Q. Which authors, in your opinion, will be remembered as the best horror writers of the 20th Century?
A. This is an impossible question for me to answer. I respect and admire so many writers work--big name and small. If I were to start listing people I thought would be the best horror writers of the 20th century, the list would be immense, or else I'd forget someone and feel horribly about it forever after. Guessing who history might remember as the best horror writers is even more difficult. I'm scared to even guess. Truly.
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Meet A. F. Stewart, Author
Interview by Mayra Calvani
Q. Why don't you begin by telling us a little about yourself?
A. I'm from Nova Scotia, Canada. I'm a woman (I mention this as I use my initials as a pen name and lately I've been mistaken for a man), and I'm fairly new to being a published author. I've been writing for most of my life, but only recently decided to get serious about pur |
