May 16, 2008

HOW TO SAY IT: BUSINESS WRITING THAT WORKS by Adina Rishe Gewirtz: “I was writing a book, and didn’t know it…”

James Thurber used to tell a great story about himself. He’d be standing at a party, I guess staring off into space, and his wife would say to him, “Damn it, Thurber, stop writing!”

I can relate. For almost two decades, I was writing a book, and didn’t know it.

It started back in Journalism school at the University of Maryland in the late 1980s, where I had the good fortune to study my craft under some fantastic teachers, one of whom was two-time Pulitzer-prizewinner Jon Franklin. He had pioneered an outlining system that transformed standard news pieces into narrative gold – real stories that people wanted to read. In school, he taught that system to his students as the best way to take advantage of how the brain naturally takes in information – in traditional story form.

I drank those lessons up, because until meeting Jon, I’d relied on inspiration and gut to get me through as a writer. Those are two essential ingredients, but they’re not enough. When you’re dealing with complicated ideas, you need some way to get a grip on them, some way to see the story before writing it.

So I learned. And after graduation, I used Jon’s system in my freelance work. It just made sense. I learned to add to it, too, remolding parts so I could use them better. Then one day a friend asked me if I might help her son, a learning-disabled high schooler, with writing. I said sure, and decided to try showing him how I approached my own writing. I worried that the system wouldn’t work for him. I thought maybe it was meant just for professional writers. But he looked at the steps I laid out for him, and I could almost see the light bulb switch on over his head. He loved it!

Not only that, but it worked. It worked better than I could have imagined, and more quickly, too. In no time, he had the sense of it, and his writing improved dramatically. With this early success, I started teaching writing on a more regular basis, first at a community college, then for the accounting giant Arthur Andersen. The system never failed to work. Whether I was teaching senior citizens, high school students or accountants, they all loved it for its sheer logic. Most of all, the system took the fear out of the writing process.

After a while, I began teaching high school students one-on-one, often in the evenings, sometimes at school. And that’s when the gentle pushing began. A learning specialist overheard my lesson one day and asked to see my system, saying she’d never heard a better way to teach writing. Most of all, my husband launched a campaign with the refrain: “You ought to write a book, you know. Nobody teaches writing that way.”

I worried a book about writing would bore people. But that’s where, after all my years working on the nuts and bolts of craft, inspiration kicked back in. One day, I started to hear the book in my head, and I was amazed to find out it was funny! Even more astonishing, it came fairly quickly, because, in fact, I discovered I’d been writing it in my head for more than fifteen years.

So I wrote it, laughing a lot of the time, found an agent who was interested in it, and watched in sheer wonder as she sold it to Prentice Hall, a division of Penguin. They gave me a great editor who appreciated my sense of humor, and in no time, it was in the bookstore. So that’s the story behind How to Say It: Business Writing That Works!

Adina Rishe Gewirtz is the author of HOW TO SAY IT: BUSINESS WRITING THAT WORKS. You can visit her website at www.writersroadmap.com.

May 15, 2008

EMOTIONLESS SOULS by David S. Grant: “Jerk-offs, ex cons, new cons, pranksters, and one hit wonders…”

Emotionless Souls, my new short story collection published by Brown Paper Publishing, contains twenty stories of troubled characters finding themselves in dark places and fighting to redeem themselves in unconventional ways.

Short stories White Christmas, Gag, Tease, Inc. and Boardroom Romance are a few of many using a corporate environment as a back drop for disturbing predicaments. In White Christmas, Hansel finds himself accusing a co-worker of stealing his cocaine, Gag details an office prankster who gets dealt the final joke, and in Boardroom Romance, the age old question of what happens when you accidentally pop ecstasy prior to a board meeting.

I have spent a lot of time inside offices and find it an interesting place a lot happens in the background we may not be aware of. Naturally, a lot of my ideas are triggered by co-workers and then embellished, or may be the end product of some mundane conversation over office supplies.

Not all of the stories are set in your conventional office environment.

In the story Money Shot redemption is in the form of shock, the main character committing suicide in order to preserve his space in the adult movie industry. For “Open Mic” where a comic gets laughs in a non-conventional way by adding hallucinogen mushrooms to the food the crowd is eating. Each of these story ideas came from pondering other careers, typically between my first and second coffee I dream about other jobs and the wrong turns to be made.

Lucy’s Place, begins in New York City at a roof-top party where Stephan is shooting heroin and overdoses. The next morning he wakes up in Idaho, which just so happens to also be the afterlife. The next few hours is a game of trying to figure out whether Idaho is Heaven or Hell. Haven’t we all been there?

Other stories are more autobiographical, The Dublin Trip and Berets and Bendy Straws are based on trips I have taken with friends. Mostly non-fiction, the story in Dublin reads at break neck speed, capturing a magical trip of sight-seeing mixed with debauchery mixed with a prank for the ages.

Disaffected tourists idle through the streets and bars of Paris and Dublin. Human Resource officers interview the stripper they frequent for a position in the firm. Pickpockets get pick pocketed. Nobodies stage emergencies to save the day. Jerk-offs, ex cons, new cons, pranksters, and one hit wonders are the Emotionless Souls that populate my new collection.

David S. Grant is the author of Corporate Porn. His new short story collection, Emotionless Souls and novella The Last Breakfast are now available from Brown Paper Publishing. His new rock and drug fueled double novel, Bleach|Blackout, is now available from Offense Mechanism, an imprint of Silverthought Press.

David S. Grant is the author of EMOTIONLESS SOULS.  You can visit his website at www.davidgrant.com.

May 13, 2008

JANEOLOGY by Karen Harrington: “…homicide is the leading cause of death for children under four.”

• More than 200 women kill their children in the United States each year.
• Homicide is the leading cause of death for children under four.
• Eleven women are on death row in the United States for killing their children

These statistics, which I learned about through a news article from the American Anthropological Association, stopped me on a dime. They were reported in relation to a Texas news story about a mother who’d just killed her two children. I couldn’t shake those numbers or the inevitable question that follows: What would make a mother turn against her own child?

That question was the start of my journey into the fictional story of Janeology. Originally, the ideas were just a curiosity about what that mother was doing just hours before she committed the act. Did the Cheerios spill all to hell? Did she have a fight with her husband? Was she simply in a psychotic moment, and if so, were there any signs leading up to that moment?

Sometimes when an idea lodges in your psyche, you can’t shake it. So I began making notes for a larger story. I had already been writing about a man whose estranged wife was stalking him. I began to combine these ideas by asking the question, why is he so afraid of her? What does he know about her?

And because everything informs the writers’ life, I brought my own personal passion for genealogy into the story. I never knew my own grandparents. Growing up, I was always looking at the pictures of my maternal grandfather and paternal grandmother (pictured here) and wondering about their personalities and what I might have inherited from them. I wondered what were their childhoods were like and in what ways did that shape the way they parented my mother and father, which might have influenced the way they would parent me – and ultimately, how I might parent my own children.

So I finally landed upon the idea that I could write about a character – about one troubled woman – from the perspective of her genealogy. I could somehow research her nature and nurture and get to know more about her through the people who shared her gene pool. And in doing so, I would unearth some of the answers about how she could go from suburban housewife one day to headline-making criminal the next. Thus, Janeology is a cautionary tale about one man struggling to achieve an understanding about Jane, the wife who murdered his son.

If you’d like to view Jane’s full family tree chart, or see more of those old photographs of my descendants that spurred my curiosity, take a look at my “About Janeology” photo album at www.karenharringtonbooks.com.

Karen Harrington is the author of JANEOLOGY. You can visit her website at www.karenharringtonbooks.com.

May 11, 2008

Happy Mother’s Day!

To my mother who left this realm 35 years ago and to all mothers still sticking it out and trying the best they can to become the most wonderful mothers in the world…

Happy Mother’s Day!

May 7, 2008

THE WINDS OF ASHARRA by R. Leigh: “…the only way to fail is if you give up.”

There has to be a better way. That’s what I thought to myself for years when reading all manner of strange and sundry articles about assorted upheavals, unrest and turmoil around the globe. Isn’t there somewhere where people are naturally in harmony with their environment and with the creatures around them? The concepts of naturalness, balance and harmony are all interwoven into the complicated plot threads of fantasy, romance and adventure, so evident in the 600+ pages of The Winds of Asharra. The book is not just a story of an epic adventure or a otherworldly romance. It is a journey of self discovery not only for the characters but for the author as well (and hopefull for the readers). The creation of Asharran culture, so rich and complete including language, rituals and worldview, enabled me to create my place that indeed has “a better way.” This mystical world of the purple sky, under twin suns, is the backdrop for an exploration of what it means to change one’s way of looking at oneself and the universe. I spent many years studying a variety of diverse cultures ,religions and societies. Frequently, I would rejoice over the discovery of some little “nugget” of wisdom or example that people could really be in harmony with their world and be happy. However, the more tidbits I amassed, the more I felt ultimately unsatisfied, since the result was a crazy patchwork that didn’t quite fit together. Asharra changed all that. This strange and sensual alien world, seen through the eyes of two American teenagers suddenly transported there, was my backdrop. The term “Asharra” to the native Asharrans means “the home around us” and applies to their planet and every living thing on it. They believe you don’t even have to be born there to be Asharran, so long as you are natural and “true” (in their terms). Thus, when one native Asharran tells the two main characters (from Earth), “welcome home”, it is because Asharra is simply the home they have never seen yet. Superimposing an entertaining adventure and romance story upon accounts of semi-utopian philosophy and fantasy alien culture was the proverbial icing on the cake for me. The fact that the story contains fanciful elements like telepathic trees, musical dragons and evolved felines made the creation of The Winds of Asharra a pure joy to write. The combination of the ecologically friendly mystical Asharran philosophy and culture, with the unusual characters and setting is a fusion which pleases me greatly. To me, The Winds of Asharra stealthily addresses many present day concerns while managing to tell an unusual and complex story. For each bit of adventure, humor or sex appeal, there is an integrated “nugget” of my own which I unashamedly share. James Hilton told us in the 1930’s that there was a better way, in his classic work, Lost Horizon. It was something I read several decades ago and which subconsciously influenced me when setting out to chronicle the adventures of the strange creatures of Asharra (and their Earth-Asharran immigrants). For me, The Winds of Asharra is not only an exciting fantasy/romance novel. It represents a new possibility for the readers of today, just as the land of Shangri-la, to Hilton’s audience represented that same half remembered vision to his generation. I wrote not only to entertain but also to reassure the reader and inspire him or her to never give up hope for a better tomorrow. I ask each reader to stretch the line between myth and mundane when they read this book and perhaps, echoing the experiences of Victor and Zoe, the two teenagers from Earth, to discover that there is a better way. Things might actually get better if we look at the world differently. As the Asharrans say, the only way to fail is if you give up. By that definition, since I plan on continuing to write other stories about the world of Asharra, I have already succeeded.

R. Leigh is the author of the fantasy romance novel, THE WINDS OF ASHARRA. You can visit her website at www.thewindsofasharra.com.

BUY THE BOOK

Technorati Tags:
, , , , , , , ,

May 6, 2008

CHECKMATE by Jean Hackensmith: “…a sadistic game of cat and mouse.”

The idea for “Checkmate” was spawned by one of those true crime shows on Court TV. Actually I guess it’s called “True TV” now, but it will always be Court TV to me. The report dealt with a man who had tied up his wife and kids, locked them in a windowless pantry, and set the house on fire. They all died. He’s on Death Row. The story stayed with me for days. I was both horrified and fascinated. Then I began to think about what might have happened if the family had lived.

Okay, so the guy would go to prison. That’s a given. Realistically, though, the system couldn’t keep him locked up forever. So, I asked myself, what would this maniac do when he got out? He had tried to kill his wife and kids in the most horrible of all ways. Would he harbor a grudge or just let bygones be bygones? He was the typical abusive husband: overbearing, controlling, possessive, sadistic. Oh, yes. He would definitely harbor a grudge—even after eighteen years. He wanted his family dead the day he put them in the bathroom, and he wants them dead now. The kids are grown, though. They don’t even live in the area. The ex-wife does, though—and she’s got a boyfriend. Unacceptable. She has to die, and so does her lover. Of course, she has to suffer first. She deserves it, after all. She and she alone was responsible for him spending eighteen years of his life behind bars—eighteen years that he’ll never be able to get back. But how to do it? What to do. He comes up with a plan; thirteen moves in a sadistic game of cat and mouse that will end when the game reaches Checkmate.

Jean Hackensmith is the author of CHECKMATE. You can visit her website at www.jeanhackensmith.com.

May 5, 2008

THE HERETIC by Andrew Feder: “…like an artist sketching his rendering on canvas.”

First having been personally regressed so I wanted to create a story connecting past lives. I also have been intrigued with history since my youth. I chose the Alexander the Great period, because Alexander fascinated me with his military and political strategies which were so far ahead of his time. But during my research, I realized that his personality has lightly been dealt with—so I furthered my research of Alexander about his personal life’s events and his own idiosyncrasies. During my research I found him still a teenager emotionally but a prodigy like I said well ahead of his time. So that became the start but only the start. I researched Greece & Crete along with Alexander for about a year before I finally sat down and wrote “The Heretic.” And when I began to write like watching a movie, it was drawn from my images into paper like an artist sketching his rendering on canvas.

Alexander the Great was a truly unique conqueror and leader, because he utilized political beneficiary as one of his main tactics to gain control of a country. He would allow the people to retain their satraps (leaders) in place as governors while also allowing the people to maintain their customs and religious beliefs and yet maintained control by virtue of his benevolence. This strategic political method was certainly well ahead of his time. Alexander was not ethnocentric and also believed that all people were the same without any ethnic or racist or religious superiority beliefs—something that even the Romans felt—Romans were superior to all others and so on. Also Alexander’s aspiration to unite people as one without any fascist or racist policy such as a belief that the Greeks would be above all other people including those he conquered was certainly a unique philosophy well ahead of his time. And notwithstanding, his military accomplishments in so little time at such a young age is beyond anyone’s accomplishments in world history. And his historical accomplishments certainly affected every single subsequent event in Man’s history including today’s culture and speech, so I was quite fascinated by Alexander the Great and what he created in such a short time.

I wanted to show a cultural reversal of what would be considered norm or okay in a society; here Aias is the minority—a heterosexual in a society that is more homosexual or more correctly bisexual. I tried to display how what a society considers morally bad might be morally good or okay in another culture. I also tried to show that how people tend to show their prejudices based upon what they conceive is culturally okay, but in reality have no basis in what is really morally good. We tend to judge upon our own misleading concepts of what we devise as moral but in reality are just cultural differences. Thus Aias is placed as The Heretic of his society not just for his religious concepts but for his cultural as well.

And finally it is the Heretic who challenges us with our own belief system no matter what place, culture or time he/she might be found. The Heretic allows us the opportunity to grow and progress. Aias is that individual. He went against the grain of his countrymen both religiously and culturally, and by his very actions and demeanor he challenged the belief systems of his day.

Andrew Feder is the author of THE HERETIC.  You can visit his website at www.andrewtheheretic.com.

May 2, 2008

WHY WE LEFT ISLAM by Joel Richardson: “People ask if we had an agenda. Absolutely.”

Why We Left Islam, a collection of 23 personal testimonies of former Muslims and why they decided to leave Islam behind, was birthed when Susan Crimp and myself decided that these stories simply needed to be shared with the world. People ask if we had an agenda. Absolutely. For those who regularly follow the news, it is apparent that within most Western nations, there is a rapidly increasing occurrence of human rights violations that come as a direct result of the influx of Islam into the West. For those of us in the West who still value human rights and human freedoms, a very important decision is now confronting us all: Which principles takes priority over the others; human rights and freedoms or openness and tolerance. Unfortunately, many today seem to be choosing tolerance over human rights and human freedoms. This book was compiled with the hope that many in the West will begin to wake up and realize that as valuable as the principles of tolerance and openness are, they must be limited. When we as a tolerant and open society begin to tolerate human rights violations and efforts to exalt a regressive culture over our own, then we have not only begun to commit cultural suicide, we have also failed as human beings. The West stands at a crucial juncture in its history. At the beginning of the 21st Century, the decisions that we make in the immediate days to come will determine whether or not we survive on into the next century, of if become history—to be replaced by a globalized Islam.

I distinctly remember learning about slavery for the first time when I was about nine or ten years old. Even as a small child, I remember asking myself how people could have allowed such a brazen evil to take place on their watch. I asked myself why more people didn’t stand up against this obviously evil practice. Later, when I learned about the Holocaust, these thoughts were again stirred up in me. How can so many remain so passive in the face of such an indescribable evil? I remember vowing then that if any such evil ever manifested itself while I was alive, that I would be among those who stand up and stand firmly against the darkness, despite popular opinion or popular passivity. I have come to believe that turning the other way and ignoring even the most horrendous atrocities is a far more common practice among the human race than we would like to admit. People are often more concerned with their public image and comfort than they are with the suffering, abuse or even the full-fledged murder of others. There are certain very crucial times in history when the need to stand firm in the midst of tremendous evils, despite the pressures is essential. This is true regardless as to which side of the political spectrum one stands on. We cannot say that it is allowable or acceptable for a Muslim family to commit an honor killing or to murder someone for “apostasy” on our soil simply because that is “part of their culture”. If we believe that human rights are universal, then we need to stand up against such practices and support those who wish to leave Islam behind. We cannot take they “its good for me but not for thee” attitude. What is good for me is also good for Ali. Multiculturalism be damned in these cases. The West is increasingly becoming a place where the freedom to express ones opinions are being stunted through intimidation and an oppressive atmosphere of political correctness gone mad. Sound familiar: You are at a dinner party or at work and you feel the yourself unable to speak what you feel because of the atmosphere of intimidation and fear that is increasingly becoming part of the Western world. Or how about this: You read the news and feel a certain sense of foreboding and dread as you perceive the storm clouds gathering on the horizon. You wonder what the future will hold. I received my first copy of Why We Left Islam in the mail just the other day. When you hold this book in your hands, a revelation hits you. It is in the simple acts such as supporting a few brave individuals who chose to leave Islam that you can change the future. When enough ordinary individuals choose to make simple stands and refuse to allow intimidation to affect them then the future begins to become more hopeful. Rather than darkness, light begins to shine. It is in the simple acts of standing up and standing firm that the world is changed. It is possible to love Muslims and yet lovingly and firmly say no to many of the sold-crushing aspects of its theology and practice that is spreading throughout the earth. As the co-editor of Why We Left Islam, I challenge everyone who loves human rights and human freedoms to stand in solidarity with these brave individuals. I challenge you to stand with these and stand up for universal human rights. I promise you that if you do, you will not look back with regret. You will know that in the small ways, at the crucial times, you did not choose the way of silent majority, the popular path of cowardice and selfishness, but instead you chose to be part of the solution that promises hope for the future for all people. For that is exactly what Why We Left Islam is about.

Joel Richardson is the co-author of WHY WE LEFT ISLAM. You can visit his publisher’s website at www.wnd.com.

May 1, 2008

WEST ACROSS THE BOARD by Andrew Jalbert: “As far back as I can remember I wanted to write and be near the ocean.”

I’ve always been a bit smitten by the tropics. As far back as I can remember I wanted to write and be near the ocean. I should expand on that a bit: I wanted to be near, in, or beneath the ocean’s surface. By the time I was in my early thirties, I had a decade of working on dive boats, jumping around the Caribbean and writing for scuba and travel magazines under my belt. Those years were priceless, not only in terms of the environments and cultures I was lucky enough to experience, but for the opportunity to write about them. My writing teeth were cut on sailboats, beaches, and port town taverns and for that I consider myself fortunate.

It goes without saying that when I decided to cross over into publishing fiction, the stories would take place someplace tropical. West Across the Board is set in one of my favorite locations: The Florida Keys. I fell in love with the island chain years ago, not only for its stunning scenery, collage of cultures, and pristine waters, but for its fascinating history. Closer to Cuba than the U.S. mainland, Key West was more accessible by boat than car until the mid 1930s. It was during the 1930s that I chose to set my novel. This gave me a great opportunity to research an era in the southern keys that I’ve always been interested in and an excuse to spend more time on Key West.

West Across the Board begins in 1999 with 86 year old Lázaro driving from Boston to the Florida Keys to see his dying friend Dominic before time runs out. As he drives, he remembers not only his younger years in Key West, but his reasons for fleeing his island home and his friend over half a century before. Lázaro, a gifted Cuban mariner and fisherman in his youth first met Dominic at Sloppy Joe’s Saloon in 1934. The two young men bond instantly over a game of chess played in the smoky tavern. The games continue and after every one, each man’s win is scratched into the back of the board. As the game tally grows, so does their friendship. The games are a constant during an era that saw devastating hurricanes, shipwrecks, and even war.

Prior to his journey back to the keys, Lázaro retrieves the old chessboard and makes a startling discovery. The number of scratches, first marked in the saloon over sixty years before and uncounted until now, has the two men evenly tied. As he drives towards the keys, Lázaro is forced to confront a past he has struggled to forget while anticipating the reunion with his old friend and what could be their final game.

Much like the tropics, the game of chess is endearing to me. Not because I’m any good at it, but because (much like my characters) I still play chess with my childhood friend–a tradition that has continued for nearly 30 years. Across the board from each other, we have enjoyed and talked about happy times and supported each other while weathering loss.

West Across the Board is a story about friendship, hope, loss and reconciliation set against a colorful, historically accurate backdrop. Perhaps the most consistent comment I receive from readers is that after finishing the novel, they wanted to visit Key West. I hope of each of them does.

Andrew Jalbert is the author of WEST ACROSS THE BOARD. You can visit his website at www.jalbertproductions.com.


Technorati Tags:
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

April 28, 2008

BIKINI SEASON by Sheila Roberts: “…writing a book about this subject was like writing about myself.”

When my editor suggested writing a book about women supporting each other through the fat wars, little did she know that she was asking me to write about my life. Only a few months before two good friends and I had joined together and formed what we called a diet triage, e-mailing our weekly goals, walking together, yanking firmly when one of us wandered too close to a candy shop. So writing a book about this subject was like writing about myself. Well, to some extent. I’m not worried about my husband cheating. But a lot of the other adventures in my book – sneaking into the cookies, mixing diet pills and diet pop and winding up at the emergency room strapped to a bunch of equipment – those are mine. I think most of us women have, at one time or other, grappled with that four letter word, diet. I also think the best way to overcome bad eating and exercise habits and forge new ones is with the support of friends. In fact, the best way to do anything is with friends.

And that’s what I enjoyed most about writing this book. Each woman in it has her own battle to fight. Erin needs to lose weight to fit into her wedding gown – not an easy feat with an old childhood crush distracting her. Angela has let herself go and now she’s got to shed those extra pounds before she loses her husband to the office hottie. Megan wants to lose weight but she needs to find her self-esteem. Then there’s Kizzy, who has to lose her bad eating habits if she’s going to keep her health, and whose misguided husband is sabotaging her diet efforts at every turn. Obviously, each woman has a different diet destination, but they make the journey together. No one turns in her ticket and turns back, and that’s because these women have each other. I think it’s the same in real life. We may not have the strength to battle something alone, but with our girlfriends walking alongside us we’ve got power. Chick power. Friendship is one of God’s greatest gifts, and I’m thankful for every one of mine. So, what better thing to celebrate in a book!

Sheila Roberts is the author of BIKINI SEASON. You can visit her website at www.sheilasplace.com.
Technorati Tags:
, , , , ,

Next Page »