Blog #90; Memorial Day Weekend Give Away

 Celebrating Memorial Day is a uniquely American way to honor our service men and women who have given so much for our country.  I remember, during a time in my life when I was visiting the Orlando VA daily, that I often saw on T-shirts the slogan, "All gave some, some gave all," and this saying impressed upon me the sacrifices made, time and again, generation after generation, to keep this country free and to defend the Constitution.  This is a time for cookouts, franks and beans, time with family and friends to remember those lost and those we still are lucky enough to have with us.  It is in the spirit of this celebration that I offer two digital books for the weekend, In Love and War, which takes place during WW II, and is a love story between an American pilot and a German young woman.  I am also giving away a novella, called "Under Old Glory", about two Mormon brothers from Utah who enlist during World War I.  In both of these books I explore the very real costs of war, particularly in suffering from trauma and the persistent guilt that one can never reverse one's destructive actions in combat.

So, please, make the most of this bittersweet holiday, and know that I am working hard on my next project, the sequel to Under Old Glory, entitled A CONTRITE SPIRIT.

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Blog #89; Harlan Coben’s best Novel Yet, I Will Find You

 Harlan Coben has been a Suspense/Thriller writer I have been following for some time now, and with his

latest jaw-dropping, twisting and turning, edge of your seat thriller, he has transcended his chosen

genre. I have always tried to take him at his word: taking seriously the proverbial promise of buckle up

and get ready for the ride of your life! But with this latest novel, we see a new level of philosophical

insight, emotional depth, of humanity, and the very human experience of being a father. And a son. Of

being a member of a family. David, the main character, escapes from prison to find what could be the

boy that he has been convicted of murdering. The drive, the motive of this man’s story makes it a pure

masterpiece. Approaching a genuine work of written art. And Coben has cleaned up his prose in a

major way. Nary a trite expression to be found. Mr. Coben has come into his own both as a story-teller

and a stylist with the written word.

This story has heart, and approaches a purity of motive that skyrockets the character to stop at nothing

until he solves the mystery. And the reader is always along for the ride. The minor characters are drawn

in a more robust, fuller way than in any other previous novel of his as well. I raise a glass of sparkling

cider to you, Harlan Coben, and anxiously await your next masterpiece!

Blog # 88; More thoughts on Writing Fiction; more Aristotle (Character and Motive)

Since ancient Athens, and the book Poetics by the philosopher Aristotle, creative writers have had

access to a number of implements to create interesting, compelling characters. This series of blogs is

designed to give the awareness and skill to create great stories, and we start this series with character

development. The key is having and developing an overpowering motivation for the character,

something he or she vitally wants or wants to avoid. This drives the character’s action, and creates

conflict, or tension, between characters in a story. Handled correctly, such a dynamic drives the plot

forward and propels the narrative, capturing and holding the attention of the audience.

What propels a story is tension, or conflict, where typically characters are in adversarial situations and

compete to gain what they want and avoid what they do not want. The main character is usually, but

not always, a sympathetic character that is likable to the reader on some level. He or she may also be an

anti-hero of sorts, someone who is the main focus of the story but who does things in an unconventional

and individualistic way. The anti-hero is the gunslinger of the old West, the maverick fighter jock, the

arrogant but highly successful surgeon. They do things differently, they buck the system, and by pushing

the edges of the limits, and by doing so develop as unique characters.

Blog #87; Some thoughts about composing a fictional story; Aristotle's Poetics

 Hello, all!

Sending good greetings to my readers and hoping this fine May day finds you well.  I have been praying a lot more often, and trying to watch the news a lot less, to maintain a positive mental balance.  I don't know what you have experienced around prayer, I have experienced its power time and again in my life, a healing power that brings me closer to the Being I call my Heavenly Father. So I know it works, even if I see the daily news and all the evil and horror of our modern world.  In the future, I may be taking on this topic in writing to be published, but for now I will just say that ethical, moral and theocratic issues have been on my mind.

Also, I figured I originally started my blogs as a way to communicate about the process of creative writing.  I have attended conferences and workshops all over the country on this subject, and was a community college creative writing instructor for over seven years during my time in central Florida.  While in Florida, I became an award-winning fiction writer. I think a great place for any young/beginning writer to start would be with Aristotle's Poetics, which is a short and concise treatment of that philosopher's ideas about storytelling.   He focused on creating drama, but I think any creator of story would benefit from reading this work.  I suggest, if you like, to get a copy of Aristotle's Poetics and follow along with me in the coming weeks, as I try to give you a mini-master class on the subject.

Blog #86; Some Thoughts on my 58th birthday; Reflections both spiritual and philosophical

 So I am now 58, as of May 2nd.  It doesn't seem like it, especially in light of working out much more frequently and swimming twice a week.  For my birthday, my wonderful wife Erin gave me four new books to dive into, and I've already acquainted myself with each of their introductions.  The first one is from the Renaissance painter Vasari, called Lives and is a book I have heard touted all my adult life and I'm looking really forward to getting into these biographies of the Masters of Art from that time period and especially how they all gathered to Florence.  Also got a book in Italian, called Il Mistero della Casa in Sicilia, a mystery story.  Also, a friend I have made through the LDS literary community, Gabriel Gonzalez Nunez, and his Book of Mormon Sketches.  He seems an intelligent writer and translator and I would like to learn all I can from him.  Lastly is Rumors of War, from the great LDS writer Dean Hughes a historical novel about LDS in WW II.  I am looking forward to happily reading all these books!  What a birthday present!  Thanks, honey!