Month: May 2015

A Curve in the Road

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I have missed posting here once again.  We wrapped up our school year and had our end-of-year homeschool evaluations so I was gearing up for more time to write and post here, then I hit a curve in the road.  Yesterday I was admitted to the hospital with pancreatitis and gall stones.  I went to the ER because of severe pain just under my breastbone and into the middle of my back and ended up being admitted.  The rest of the day yesterday and today, and, possibly tomorrow, I may not have anything by mouth except that I may use a little sponge on a stick to dip in water and use it to wet my mouth.  Otherwise, I have an IV in my wrist.  Surgery will happen sometime between Monday and Wednesday.  Some of the gall stones have moved into my bowel duct and I am hoping they will pass because if they do not, the surgeon will have to put a tube down my throat to try to remove them before removing my gall bladder.

Most of the day yesterday, I felt extremely tired because I didn’t get much sleep Friday night, as that is when the pain began.  I was also dehydrated and my mouth and throat were dry and parched until last evening.  This morning I am feeling fairly well.  I have no pain and I actually got a decent amount of sleep last night, and yesterday we found out the hospital has free wifi, so my dear husband was kind enough to bring my laptop for me.  He said, “Now, for the next few days, at least, you will have lots of time to write.”  I love how helpful he is and how he encourages me in my writing, and he tries to help me make time for writing.

The nurses and aids here at the hospital are wonderful.  They treat me so well.  My day nurse brought me a cup of water with ice and mint this morning for me to use with my little sponge on a stick and it’s very refreshing.  My night nurse upon introducing herself to me last night said that she heard that I am a popular patient, as I received many visitors.  She also said that she heard that I am an easy patient, and later in the evening, she said I was “the best patient ever!”  I guess they think that because I never push my call button needlessly.  I’ve only pushed it once since I’ve been here.  I know they have a lot of people to care for and I don’t want to take up their time needlessly.  Also, anyone who knows anything about writers, knows that we are used to, and often prefer, being alone.  Most of us are introverts.  That doesn’t mean we don’t like people or spending time with people.  It just means that we also need time alone, a break from people.  Being alone is where I regain energy and keep my sanity.   🙂

As to all my visitors, I had quite a few yesterday:  my husband and three sons, my mother-in-law and one sister-in-law, a couple and another gentleman from church, my parents, and our newly “unofficially adopted” daughter.  I am blessed with a loving, caring church family, some close family members and a handful of really, good, close friends.  My other sister-in-law, who lives in Massachusetts called me on the phone to see how I was doing last evening, and I called one of my long-time friends to tell her that I was in the hospital, and we talked for an hour.

This is certainly not how I prefer to spend my time, but I am grateful for the wonderful caregivers I have and for all of my loving, caring friends and family.  I am also extremely grateful to God, whose hand is definitely in this situation, for the timing couldn’t be better as my husband is still off of work recuperating from hip replacement surgery, and though he is limited on what he can do, he walks with a cane and can drive and do the basic tasks of day-to-day life, so I am not sitting in this hospital stressing over who is taking care of our children and who is getting them to the places they need to be.  I praise God for His timing and His faithfulness, provision and care.

20 Short Ones by Dan Salerno

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I received an  ecopy of 20 Short Ones by Dan Salerno free from BookLook bloggers to write a review for them.

I haven’t read very many short stories, and I had read that romance stories don’t really work well as short stories.  However, in 20 Short Ones by Dan Salerno, Dan debunks that statement.  The stories in 20 Short Ones are all relationship stories — some friendship and some romance.  His characters are interesting and his plots are sometimes quirky, but between his characters and his plots, he kept me reading.

I loved how in these stories offered so many different aspects of relationships and the problems that can be part of a relationship, whether that problem is caused by both people, an external force, or an internal conflict in one of the two people or even both of the people in the relationship.  These short stories did a good job of exploring many different relationship conflicts and possible resolutions.

There were a couple of stories in this collection that seemed a bit difficult to follow either because the author bounced from one character’s point of view to the other’s quickly and without warning or offering a page break or something to alert the reader.  Also, sometimes long passages of dialogues caused me to have to go back and figure out which character said which part of the dialogue because there were no tags or beats to help clarify who was speaking.  I understand too many tags take away from a story, but beats can actually add to the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed nine of the stories and felt that nine of the stories were good.  There were only two stories in the collection that I found I didn’t really care for and two that I absolutely loved.  I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading stories about relationships with characters and situations that may remind them of relationships in their past or present, or maybe one that they hope will be part of their future.  I will definitely hold on to this collection and read most, if not all, of these stories again.  I found that short stories can satisfy me and can be a pleasure to read.

Meet Author, Mike Dellosso

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I met Mike a little over a year ago at a one day writers’ conference.  I had the pleasure of having fifteen minutes one-on-one with him to pick his brain about writing.  I found him very kind, helpful and encouraging.  I purchased every book that he had written and for sale in the bookstore that day.  I have to confess that I haven’t read them all, yet, but I love what I have read, and definitely look forward to reading the rest.
Mike has a new book coming out on June 1, 2015 — Centralia.  I suggest that you don’t miss it.
I recently had the privilege of interviewing him for this post, so sit back, relax,  and get to know author, Mike Dellosso.

Me:  What inspired you to become a writer?

Mike:  My brother-in-law’s motorcycle accident. I’d always hated writing. All through school, writing just wasn’t my thing. When Darrell wound up in a coma and near death I turned to the only outlet I could think of: I grabbed a pad of paper and pen and began to write my feelings and emotions, what I was struggling with, fears, doubts, anger. I fell in love with writing then and haven’t stopped since. That was 1998. Darrell is fine now and he and my sister have four kids.

Me:  How did you decide what genre to write?

Mike:  I’ve always enjoyed thrillers, especially with a supernatural twist. Alfred Hitchcock, Twilight Zone, X-files . . . fan of it all. So when I started writing it was a natural genre for me to fall into. Also, I kind of cut my Christian fiction teeth on Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker.

Me:  How did you learn to write books?

Mike:  I’m mostly self-taught. I didn’t go to school for writing or anything like that. Once I got into writing I began reading A LOT and reading to learn. I studied the way novelists created characters, wrote dialogue, handled action scenes and pacing and plotting. I read “how-to” books as well, did research online. Anything I could do to learn the craft. And I also wrote A LOT. Practice, practice, practice. I have whole novels that will never see the light of day. They were practice for the real deal.

Me:  How many books have you had published so far?

Mike:  Counting my newest, CENTRALIA, I’ve published eight full-length novels and one novella. I’m working on number nine. My other full-length novels are THE HUNTED, SCREAM, DARLINGTON WOODS, DARKNESS FOLLOWS, FRANTIC, FEARLESS, and A THOUSAND SLEEPLESS NIGHTS (written as Michael King). The novella is REARVIEW, a part of the 7 HOURS series.

Me:  How long does it take you to complete a book?

Mike:  Generally speaking, the first draft takes me about four to five months, then there’s a month or so of subsequent drafts. All in all, it’s a good six to seven months. And when I’m really going I write seven days a week.

Me:  Do you write everyday, and if so, for how many hours or do you set a word quota to reach each day?

Mike:  When I’m working on the first draft and life isn’t all that crazy, yes, I write everyday, usually about an hour a day. If I can get a day where I can get more than an hour I jump at the opportunity.

Me:  Are you a plotter or a pantser?

Mike:  Both, I guess. I begin with a basic plot in my mind and I know where I’m going to start and where I’m going to finish. Then, I work one to two chapters ahead in my mind so I can keep the plotting going that way. I don’t outline,  though, and don’t do extensive plotting. It’s basically whatever I can think about and remember from day to day.

Me:  Have you ever had writer’s block, and if you have, how did you get through it?

Mike:  Yes. Some say there’s no such thing as writer’s block but it is real. I know that beast firsthand. When life is hectic and you have a full-time job and family stuff and church stuff and “other” stuff going on it’s tough sometimes to focus on the book. Distractions work their way in and you lose touch with the story, you lose your groove or inspiration. Usually, I let things rest. I release the pressure of having to write, of having to keep up with my schedule and just separate myself some from the story. That usually does the job.

Me:  Have your ever participated in NaNoWriMo?  Why or why not?  If you have, what did you think of the experience?

Mike:  I haven’t. I don’t need that kind of pressure. I have enough pressure as it is and need to write with as little as possible. I really don’t want to invite more pressure.

Me:  Where did you get the idea to create the Darlington Society where you connect with your readers and allow them to be participants in your work?  Do you find this effective?

Mike:  First, yes, it’s very effective. For them and me. The Society has become an entity in and of itself, so much more than I’d ever envisioned.The folks in it are great, they’re interactive, they care about each other. They’ve blessed me in so many ways I can’t even count them all. I came up with the idea as a way of getting a core group of readers to support my efforts and lift me up in prayer. They’ve done so much more than that. They’re really incredible.

Me:  Have you ever done book signings and, if so, has it been a positive experience?

Mike:  For me, not a very positive experience. I’ve found that multi-author signings work a lot better than solo ones. And I’ve also learned to take my wife and one or more of my daughters. Family relaxes things and my wife is very outgoing and extroverted. She helps draw people in. Solo signings are lessons in humility. I don’t have a household name so people usually steer clear of my table and try their best to avoid eye contact. I spend a lot of time counting passersby.

Me:  What do you consider the most important writing resource?

Mike:  A writer’s mind and the discipline of observation. Seriously. Imagination is lacking these days. We have so much technology at our fingertips that there’s no need for imagination. But imagination is like a muscle, the more you work it the better and stronger it gets. And observation is a discipline every writer needs to hone. We’re so busy, so distracted, so preoccupied we don’t see what’s going on around us. Fiction writers say “tell the truth” and the truth is right there in front of us everyday. We just need to see it.

Me:  Do you continue to study the writing craft?

Mike:  I do by reading and studying how the masters do it, those writers who write what I write and do it well. I also read other genres and study how they do it. Learning from those who do it well is the best way to learn.

Me:  What would you consider the most important advice that you could offer to new writers?

Mike:  Write and don’t give up. Read great writers. Be aware of your surroundings and observe. But mostly, don’t give up. 100% of published authors didn’t give up. That’s a fact.

Me:  Now, changing the focus from writing, to your upcoming new release, Centralia.  Where did you get the idea for Centralia?

Mike:  I read about this town called Centralia in Pennsylvania. It’s about three hours from my home. It was a coal mining town and back in the sixties one of the coal veins ignited. It’s been burning ever since and could continue burning for the next 200 years. The government has spent millions trying to extinguish the fire and finally gave up and evacuated the town. The last holdout residents left just a couple years ago. The ground is cracked in places and spews sulfuric gases. Roads are cracked and split. The town is literally falling apart. Many of the buildings have been razed by a few still stand. The government re-routed the main highway around the town and is pretty much letting nature reclaim it. I thought, what a great setting for a story. I usually begin my story ideas with a character but this one started with a setting.

Me:  Did you have to study a lot of fight scenes with and without weapons in order to accurately portray the fight scenes in Centralia?

Mike:  I love action and military movies and drew  much from them for the choreography of the fight scenes. And research, research, research.

Me:  You included quite a few interesting minor characters in Centralia, some of whom you gave quite a bit of detail about.  One of them was named Ronnie and I was really intrigued by him.  Is there any chance you may include him as a main character in another book?

Mike:  No. My secondary characters are just that, secondary. I like to give them more detail, though, because “a person’s a person no matter how small.” They’re people, too, with lives and stories to tell. In my stories, everyone’s important.

Me:  There’s been a rumor that there may be a sequel?  Would you care to comment on that?

Mike:  Yes, KILL DEVIL, will release in 2016. It’s pretty wild and that’s all I’m saying

9781414390413_p0_v1_s260x420 Centralia

Centralia is available for preorder at Amazon.com.  Order your copy today!

Progress!

/ kellyfbarr / 1 Comment

I am sorry for missing so much the past couple of weeks.  Life around here has been crazy!  We finished our school year and now need to prepare for our annual homeschool evaluation.  This weekend three of the five of us will attend the annual CHAP Homeschool Convention.

In addition, my husband is recovering from hip replacement surgery and was not allowed to drive until today, but, no, he did not drive today.  Therefore I have been the ONLY transportation for all five of us!

We also celebrated our oldest son’s birthday this past Saturday and mine the Sunday before that, and the Friday right before my birthday, our oldest son and I visited the college he wants to attend because he was to be interviewed for their honors program, AND he was accepted into their honors program!  Therefore, next Saturday, I will again be spending the day with him at the college for him to sign up for classes and a few other things.

I have a couple of things I am excited to share with all of you, but first and foremost, I have received notification of acceptance for one of my devotionals!  Yes, that means a devotional that I wrote and submitted will be published in a devotional book in the near future!  This is the first publishing news I’ve had in a little over a year, and it was the third item to come to me as an affirmation from the Lord that I am, indeed, supposed to be writing.

You see, I have been struggling with whether or not I am really supposed to be a writer or if my timing is wrong because as hard as I try and as much as I desire to spend more time writing, it is still a huge struggle for me.  Most writers say, “It’s a job so make the time!”  I get that and I desire that, but, at the same time, which of my other jobs — Mom, Homeschool Teacher, Wife, Daughter and Friend do I neglect or push aside to make time to write?  You see, all of my jobs are important, and right now, until my husband is back on his feet and back at his job, as much as it frustrates me, my writing job will have to wait.

Now, I hope you will excuse me, as I am extremely tired, so I am headed to bed.  I will try to post at least one more time this week, and it may not be on my usual days, like today.  Bear with me, I hope to get back on track with my blog starting next week, but don’t hold your breath.

How about you?  Do you have too many jobs to know which ones should be priorities?

I believe my first three, listed above, are my first priorities, and those are the ones requiring most of my time right now.  I also believe that there is a season for everything, and I am resting in the peace of the affirmations that God has sent me to let me know that I am supposed to write, and I trust that He will help me make the time when the time is right according to His purposes for my life and the life of my family.