Month: December 2017

Merry Christmas fans!! I pray you have a blessed holiday with your family and friends. All I ask is you pause and reflect on the less fortunate. Numerous families around the world will spend Christmas in a hospital. Many will spend it visiting their loved ones at cemeteries. Countless others will be separated from the families because of job responsibilities. Some will celebrate this joyful holiday in prison.

History doesn’t write itself. And sometimes the story it does write isn’t a happy one. Give thanks for your joyous celebrations this week. And say a prayer for those aren’t as lucky. Merry Christmas!!

In the Star Wars franchise, I believe the Empire / First Order really doesn’t learn from their past mistakes. Using small, one-man fighters, the Rebels destroy the Death Star, not once but twice. They take out the Executor, Darth Vader’s super star destroyer. They tip over AT-ATs with a simple cable wrapped around the legs. The Rebels blow up the Starkiller Base by exploiting a design flaw. Two more massive First Order ships are destroyed in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

The Empire / First Order continually make bigger and bigger weapons of mass destruction, only to have them destroyed by small, one-man fighter craft of the Rebels. Does anybody else see the comparison to David vs. Goliath? Bigger and more destructive doesn’t always win the day. More often than not, a farm boy from Tatooine in an X-wing fighter succeeds. Be the one to take down your enemies, even if they are bigger and better equipped than you.

History doesn’t write itself. If it did, the Empire / First Order would design better battle stations and ships. At the very least, it would give some recruits pause and say, “You know, the Rebels destroyed the Death Star twice, they know how to take down our AT-ATs, they blew up our Starkiller Base, maybe I’m signing up for the wrong team.” Hopefully, the Empire / First Order will learn smaller is better. Even that, is something all of us need to learn from time to time.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what book I have my nose in. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I’m currently reading Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions by Amy Stewart. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

Minor characters can make or break your story. Remember Jar-Jar Binks from Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace? Lots of fans didn’t like him. Compare him against Radagast from The Hobbit trilogy. Although he wasn’t in the book, his screen time enhanced the movie. I hope two of my minor characters fall into the latter category and not the previous. Alphonse and Dewey are two regular guys who spend some time at Bill’s Cajun House of Pleasure, usually when he is listening to / watching the news on WFUX.

Alphonse is a pock-marked skin walnut farm worker. He didn’t finish high school. The simple man is your regular Louisianan, loves LSU football and is always ready to eat gumbo. Even though he doesn’t have a high school education, he has more common sense than his fellow coworker and pal Dewey.

Dewey has pale skin. He works indoors and sorts the walnuts that Alphonse picks while outside. He’s not too muscular. By sheer chance or mistake depending on your point of view, he christened the swing in Peggy’s room, much to her delight. Alphonse believed he would be the one, but Peggy grabbed Dewey instead.

Both men understand Bill’s demeanor and stay out of his way when he’s angry. His establishment is their favorite watering hole. The fact that it’s the only in town is not relevant. So here’s a toast to two minor characters who bring good laughs and a great time to my manuscript.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what book I have my nose in. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I finished reading Lady Copy Makes Trouble. My review is on Goodreads. I’m currently reading the final book in the trilogy, Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions by Amy Stewart. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.

 

National Novel Writing Month is over. Although I did not participate, I did adjust my schedule so I could write more on my second novel during the past month. I’m sticking to the plan this month to continue writing at a good pace. Congratulations to all authors who participated in NaNoWriMo. Now that you’re done writing, hope your editing goes smoothly.

Production on my book cover and interior layout should start soon. I’m waiting on the email from my publisher saying, “Let’s go over ideas and get started.” Also, the second video on my book trailer should be coming my way this week. The trailer consists of two separate videos and then a CGI whirlwind of the book. I can’t wait to work on both projects and to see them to completion.

Finally, after reading George R.R. Martin’s Q and A page, I purchased a few medieval research books this week. These will help me on my current novel and the future ones I set in this new world. George said as an author, we can never do too much research. I agree. Even though my novel does not take place on Earth, the time period is the Middle Ages. There’s a lot of details to review and ensure they are historically accurate. History doesn’t write itself, but with enough research, you can get pretty close.

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What I’m Reading – Many readers I know like to inquire what their favorite author is reading. At the end of each blog post, I’ll let you know what book I have my nose in. I may not be a published author yet, but I hope my choice of reading material inspires you to read. I’m currently reading Lady Copy Makes Trouble by Amy Stewart. I encourage you to read a variety of topics.