An amazing thing happened to me. I believe I posted on this very blog about a year ago that I re-read my first book, The Treasure of St. Paul, and still enjoyed it even after all these years. Maybe I should rephrase that to say I still enjoyed the story . . .
With the migration to e-books, I took a more critical look at St. Paul and was, quite frankly, horrified at some of the poor writing technique. Chalk it up to being a freshman novel, but I was quite embarrassed. AND SO, instead of pushing it immediately into e-book (for your Kindling or Nook pleasure), I will be taking another pass at it to correct some of the glaring errors in the writing and most likely to answer some of the frequently asked questions about the story. Get ready for the tenth anniversary edition!
It is gratifying to see how far my writing has progressed since that time, and yet disturbing to me to know that something so sloppy actually got published. In the meantime, I'm also still working on Living Canvas.
It has been a busy summer - summer is prime time for my writing endeavors. I'm not going to finish the edits I'd hoped for, but I've got a strong hold of what I'm doing, so I'm confident progress will be made (if a bit slower than I'd anticipated).
Next time I post, I'll give you an excerpt from Living Canvas. In the meantime, for those of you that have read St. Paul, feel free to drop me a line if there's something you think I missed on the first go-round (most-asked question - "What happened to Franco?").
Tchuss . . . A bientot . . . Hasta luego . . .fino a quando ci incontreremo di nuovo
Monday, August 29, 2011
Sunday, August 14, 2011
The Circle of Life
It has been an eventful week in my world. I'd like to dedicate my blog space today to those people who need extra thoughts and prayers.
Last weekend, I lost one of my aunts. I didn't know her well, but the few times I did meet her, she was gracious and kind and loving. I know my uncle will miss her greatly, and I extend my deepest sympathies to him and to the rest of her family.
I also found out that a friend of the family was taken to the emergency room and had surgery from which he is now recovering. Thoughts go out to Author, Mary Doria Russell, and her family while her brother recovers in the hospital.
Adding one more to the list, I learned this week that someone I knew in high school has brain cancer from which she is not expected to recover. She was a fun person when I knew her, and although we didn't stay close, the testimonies of her friends and family speak to a life well-lived. It was a privilege to say I knew her "when."
Needless to say, it draws into focus the value of the relationships in our lives, and that life is too short to hold grudges or shut out the people that we love.
Today, I am celebrating some of my most valued relationships - spending time with my sisters (and thinking of another sister who isn't able to join us).
Celebrate the lives of the people you care about - you never know how much time you'll have with them. Today, I celebrate the lives of Audrey Borchardt and Chris Pomahac, and for Rich Doria, I send you wishes for a full recovery so that you can toss another caber and string another bow.
Peace.
Last weekend, I lost one of my aunts. I didn't know her well, but the few times I did meet her, she was gracious and kind and loving. I know my uncle will miss her greatly, and I extend my deepest sympathies to him and to the rest of her family.
I also found out that a friend of the family was taken to the emergency room and had surgery from which he is now recovering. Thoughts go out to Author, Mary Doria Russell, and her family while her brother recovers in the hospital.
Adding one more to the list, I learned this week that someone I knew in high school has brain cancer from which she is not expected to recover. She was a fun person when I knew her, and although we didn't stay close, the testimonies of her friends and family speak to a life well-lived. It was a privilege to say I knew her "when."
Needless to say, it draws into focus the value of the relationships in our lives, and that life is too short to hold grudges or shut out the people that we love.
Today, I am celebrating some of my most valued relationships - spending time with my sisters (and thinking of another sister who isn't able to join us).
Celebrate the lives of the people you care about - you never know how much time you'll have with them. Today, I celebrate the lives of Audrey Borchardt and Chris Pomahac, and for Rich Doria, I send you wishes for a full recovery so that you can toss another caber and string another bow.
Peace.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Storms
I'm behind again. Trying to weather the storms, both literal and figurative.
We've had some interesting weather in the Midwest through the month of July. I've been blessed not to have suffered any damage through it all, although I know plenty of people who have, and the storms continue.
Have to admit that I'm also struggling with my rewrite, but this is a complicated matter. Part of it is my own state of mind these days which prompts writer's angst, and part of it is being overwhelmed by the state of the market these days. While it is nice that writer's have an outlet now that they didn't have before, the quality control disappears with everyone doing their own thing in a publishing free-for-all. Writing has always been a very competitive field, and now it is even more so with so many new authors muddying the waters (no disrespect intended).
Consider the fate of Borders Books. Like record stores. It's a little overwhelming to realize how much technology has taken over our lives. While self-publishing gives you an audience that you feel you might have been denied previously, for some people, it also opens up the door to public embarrassment - like watching American Idol without judges. Some of those people actually think they can sing and are highly incensed when they are told they are off key and offensive to the eardrums.
In a world where parents give their children participation trophies, these children have missed the lesson of learning from their mistakes and striving to correct their errors. These children have entered the age of entitlement, and those same children are the out-of-tune singers and the unconstructed writers.
I really don't mean to stand on my soap box today, but I am discouraged to struggle in an already difficult market, so for another day, probably another week, I'm going to rest my weary brain, take some deep breaths and regroup. Maybe I'll take some singing lessons (but don't expect me to try out for American Idol - I know my limitations!) Then I'll concentrate on the things I do best. I'm still perfecting my craft. I've been at this long enough to know when my writing isn't good enough to share with the general population - when it needs more fine-tuning - and I'm not afraid to seek out a professional opinion. If a pro tells me my story isn't up to snuff, I believe them. That's what they get paid to do - judge the quality of work. In an already competitive field of their own, I hope they don't disappear the way Borders did. Otherwise we're doomed to humor more of the William Hung's of the world.
Disclaimer - am I saying all the self-published authors are poor quality? No! What I'm saying is with no rules in place, it's more of a crap shoot, and I'm not much of a gambler.
Anon
We've had some interesting weather in the Midwest through the month of July. I've been blessed not to have suffered any damage through it all, although I know plenty of people who have, and the storms continue.
Have to admit that I'm also struggling with my rewrite, but this is a complicated matter. Part of it is my own state of mind these days which prompts writer's angst, and part of it is being overwhelmed by the state of the market these days. While it is nice that writer's have an outlet now that they didn't have before, the quality control disappears with everyone doing their own thing in a publishing free-for-all. Writing has always been a very competitive field, and now it is even more so with so many new authors muddying the waters (no disrespect intended).
Consider the fate of Borders Books. Like record stores. It's a little overwhelming to realize how much technology has taken over our lives. While self-publishing gives you an audience that you feel you might have been denied previously, for some people, it also opens up the door to public embarrassment - like watching American Idol without judges. Some of those people actually think they can sing and are highly incensed when they are told they are off key and offensive to the eardrums.
In a world where parents give their children participation trophies, these children have missed the lesson of learning from their mistakes and striving to correct their errors. These children have entered the age of entitlement, and those same children are the out-of-tune singers and the unconstructed writers.
I really don't mean to stand on my soap box today, but I am discouraged to struggle in an already difficult market, so for another day, probably another week, I'm going to rest my weary brain, take some deep breaths and regroup. Maybe I'll take some singing lessons (but don't expect me to try out for American Idol - I know my limitations!) Then I'll concentrate on the things I do best. I'm still perfecting my craft. I've been at this long enough to know when my writing isn't good enough to share with the general population - when it needs more fine-tuning - and I'm not afraid to seek out a professional opinion. If a pro tells me my story isn't up to snuff, I believe them. That's what they get paid to do - judge the quality of work. In an already competitive field of their own, I hope they don't disappear the way Borders did. Otherwise we're doomed to humor more of the William Hung's of the world.
Disclaimer - am I saying all the self-published authors are poor quality? No! What I'm saying is with no rules in place, it's more of a crap shoot, and I'm not much of a gambler.
Anon
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