Daily Archives: September 29, 2015

Humbled by Awards

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I keep my expectations low.

I putter around with my little blog, writing whatever and get the most enjoyment from those who leave comments and likes. That’s it, end of story. I didn’t come up with Blogs so they don’t generally have the same uniqueness as those of a much younger generation.

That being said, when I am nominated for an award, I find myself humbled by the act. It’s not low self-esteem or a lack of valuing what I write. It’s just one of those things that catch me off-guard because I don’t look for them.

I am very appreciative of the opportunity to share my thoughts and stories with all of you. YOU make this worthwhile for me and the time we share together is worth more to me than all the book sales in the Universe.

Someone once said that the “End justifies The Means” and I find that very true where Writing is concerned. I couldn’t quit doing it if I wanted and believe me, there have been times…hehe.

Doing what we love is a great gift. It may not seem like it sometimes, but I have experienced those who have denied their natural gifts and become bitter and miserable individuals. While that may be a fact of Life, it is NOT a fact of mine.

Man, I need longer topics…hehe. 🙂

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Inspirational Quotes to Brighten Your Day

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Well, they might inspire but at least they may make you laugh:

1. Vomiting is your stomach’s way of saying that the meal isn’t right and it’s going back to the Kitchen.

2. Three turns is a Life Decision. Four is just a circle.

3. Egg on plate is good; Egg on Face not so much.

4. If everything good was Right, there would be no need for a Left.

5. A good Conspiracy Theory requires at least two people. One person just means a lot of muttering.

6. Science Fiction becomes Science Fact when one person says they can build it and another person says that they will pay for it.

7. Shouldn’t a Microwave Oven be smaller?

8. Putting Pen to Paper shouldn’t involve thumbs.

9. How come an actual F-Bomb doesn’t exist? After all, we have A and H-Bombs out the Yin-Yang…

10. Being “Nice” is not synonymous to being a doormat. Home Depot, get on this…

11. Idle hands are the Devil’s Work. So are idle minds…

12. Chicken tastes like everything else.

13. By and Large, Humor is subjective. Bad Jokes are subjected upon…

14. Ellipses are your friend…

15. Procrastination is the difference between Now and Never.

16. You will never see a Submarine Sandwich underwater.

17. Sequels are afterthoughts.

18. Plots are like cake batter. They have to thicken before they are any good.

19. Tattoos are for colorful people. Maybe…

20. The Last of anything is usually the First of something.

I never said I was great at inspiring people. In the End, there is just do or do not, with apologies to Yoda. 😉

Siblinghood of the World Bloggers Award

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siblinghood-of-the-world-bloggers-small

This award caught me by surprise so thanks to Alicia at The Cyborg Knight (http://cyborgknights.com) for nominating me. 🙂

The Rules:

They’re pretty straightforward so here they are:

•Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link back to their blog

•Display the award on your blog

•Answer the ten questions sent to you

•Nominate ten bloggers for the award

•Make up ten new questions for your nominees to answer.

The Questions and Answers:

1. When did you really get into reading? Was it at an earlier age or later in life?

My earliest memory was reading a high school science book at Age 6. Back then, I wanted to grow up to be an Astronaut so I read and memorized anything and everything about Space that I could get my paws on. Later, when I discovered that my near-sightedness wasn’t going to get me flying except in Coach, I read Fiction and discovered that Writing was more attainable and infinitely more fun.

2.What do you like to do when you are not reading?

Reading and Writing tend to go hand in hand so if I’m not reading something, I’m most likely writing. When I’m not writing (gasp), I can be found playing music, games, or just being out and about. I like to keep busy.

3.If you had to live in any world in any book, what would it be?

There was a book that I loved in my younger days called The Passing Bells, by Philip Rock, that describes an English family whose lives are changed by WWI. I always loved that early 20th Century world and would have loved to have spent time there.

4.What did you want to be when you grew up? Did you become what your 6 year old self wanted to be?

I kind of answered this question in #1, but I’ll add on that while I never became an Astronaut, I do write about them today. 🙂

5.What is your favorite Christmas or Holiday tradition?

My favorite Christmas Tradition is to sit and watch It’s A Wonderful Life, no matter where I happen to find myself.

6.What TV shows are you ridiculously obsessed with?

Sadly, I don’t watch much TV because I am usually deep into one of my books but I was a big Firefly fan once upon a time.

7.If you could have lunch with any author or actor or mentor/hero, who would it be?

Ernest Hemingway or Robert Heinlein. Hell, I’d ever pick up the check.

8.How long does it usually take you to finish a book?

If the Story really grabs my attention, I can power through a typical novel is about an hour or two. I once read War and Peace in six hours.

9.Do you have any pets? What pets would you like to someday bring into your home?

My current living situation doesn’t allow pets but I did have four house rabbits at one time which were a joy. If I were to have pets again, I’d probably get a Maine Coon Cat.

10.If I told you I didn’t like to read, but I was hoping to find a book that would change my opinion of reading, what book would you recommend to me?

This is a difficult question to answer because someone who doesn’t like to read will be a tough sell. First I would have to find out what their interests were before making a recommendation. One book that stands out for me is A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. It was the first Sci-Fi book that I read as a kid and it’s still a cute story today.

My Nominations:

1. Alex @ Glitchy Artist (https://glitchyartist.wordpress.com)

2. Fred @ Fred Colton (http://fredcolton.com)

3. Emma @ Blu Chicken Ninja (http://bluchickenninja.com)

4. Jess @ JessCombs.com (http://jesscombs.com)

5. The Tunnel of Thoughts (https://jeanixangel01.wordpress.com)

6. Kent @ Dirty Sci-Fi Buddha (http://dirtyscifibuddha.com)

7. Askyermom (http://blog.askyermom.com)

8. Isa-Lee @ A Bit to Read (http://bit2read.com)

9. Jnana @ Jnana’s Red Barn (http://jnanahodson.net)

10. Eve @ Eve Messenger’s OtherWORDly Endeavors (http://evemessenger.com)

My Questions for You:

1. When you started out with your Blog, where did you envision it going?

2. When you write, are you a Plotter or a Pantser?

3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you go?

4. What Genre do you most like to read?

5. If you could change one thing in Society with no repercussions, what would it be?

6. Chicken or Fish? (There’s no wrong answer…hehe)

7. What do you like to do when you take a day off?

8. Humor is a subjective thing. What do you find funny?

9. What do you consider the greatest benefit to The Internet?

10. If you could solve one mystery, what would it be?

 

 

 

 

Promoting My Books

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Allow me to be the first one to say that I am a Publicist’s Nightmare.

I often post things on social media that tend to occasionally raise eyebrows, involve spew warnings, and very rarely involve promoting my books.

Yes, I currently have four books on Amazon in both Print and Kindle Versions:

Corona

The Three Safeties

Vessel

Parallax

That’s usually the extent of how I put the word out and I’m basically fine with that. The Truth that I’ve found is that there are tons of people out there who engage in relentless campaigns to push their books and I can understand why. They spend exorbitant sums of money on “professional” editors, cover designers, book trailer producers, etc and they want to recoup some of their investment with book sales. I don’t have a problem with that.

When I am on social media, blogging, and whatnot, I am only promoting one thing: Me. I am the Brand, Platform, Product, whatever you want to call it. I’m a guy with a lot of ideas, a slightly twisted sense of humor, and a passionate love of words and wordplay. I don’t have the kind of money (yet) to invest in flashy book covers and promotions so I do the next best thing. I make friends. I share ideas, thoughts, and jokes to get people to recognize me and by extension, the work that I’m putting out there. My books aren’t the prettiest girls at the dance, but they’ll get the job done and in the end, isn’t that the point?

I’m a Writer, not a Salesman. 🙂