Vapor Trail

I am currently working on my next novel, Vapor Trail, that delves into the harmful and debilitating results of believing too much in a conspiracy theories.

One of my favorite things to do every month is to listen to a talk radio show that sponsors a conspiracy call in day, appropriately on the night of each month's full moon. I love listening to folks call in and explain their particular conspiracy. In most cases the conspiracies don't hold water, most deal with cabal's of bankers running the world in some sort of shadow government. Most people who call in believe in what Popular Mechanics calls "The Myth of Government Hyper Competency." I've worked for the government. We barely made it up to competency, much less "hyper."

The conspiracy I delve into in Vapor Trail is the mystery behind the downing of TWA Flight 800 back in 1996. I know that Nelson Demille has a great book, Sky Fall, that hits on this same subject, but mine doesn't focus on the flight as much as it does on the deterioration of a character's life due to his believe in a conspiracy, a subject I started researching by reading Among the Truther's by Jonathon Kay.

Today I ran across this snippet in the WSJ in an article by Amanda Foreman called Conspiracy Theories: Everybody's Doing It:

It doesn't help that some of the most absurd-sounding conspiracies have turned out to be true: The Central Intelligence Agency really did feed LSD to unsuspecting civilians in the 1950s as part of a mind-control experiment. Or that some of the technically plausible ones have been patently false: The moon landings were not filmed on a sound stage.

It is human nature to look for a linear cause to explain complex events. The worse the tragedy, the greater the need for a narrative that does not involve dumb luck. Eight hundred years after the destruction of Constantinople by the knights of the Fourth Crusade, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches are still unable to agree on who or what tipped the two Christian empires into a ruinous fight against one another.

One aspect of conspiracy theories that I hope to dig down into is the theory of Occam's Razor, that the simplest explanation is usually the correct one. I love the way conspiracy theorist will create an incredibly complex series of event and solutions to a problem that has many more simpler solutions. 9-11 provides 75% of the material during the call in show, and what I like about that is that my character in Vapor Trail visits other "experts" (conspiracy theorists) along his journey to the truth and most of them are focused on 9-11. None are looking at his conspiracy, the one that he finds has the simplest, most plausible explanation that everyone could see if they were just looking at it correctly.

Just as On the Edge was a step up in complexity compared to Toe the Line, Vapor Trail will be a step in the same direction. It's a tough theme to take on, but so far it's exciting to be in the midst of it.

Released!

I always said I wouldn't seriously promote my writing and my novels until I had three under my belt. I don't know why I came up with the magic number of three, I suppose I just felt that was a decent sounding number. I've finally finished my third novel and I've gotten some good reviews, so now would be the time (buy it here!)

Leah, who has reviewed two of my books, wrote:

"Vapor Trail is a fast-paced and interesting mystery with a great lead character," and "I read Dick Hannah’s first book Toe The Line a few years ago and though I generally enjoyed it, I had trouble liking any of the characters. I didn't have that problem with Vapor Trail though since I found it much better and I’m glad I had the chance to read it."

Not too bad if you ask me. I'll take that criticism. Then I read this and was quite happy:

"I happen to love shows/series like NCIS and Strike Back, so it was easy for me to get behind a character like Jeremy Stubbins who is portrayed as analytical and military-minded – very much like the characters in these shows. The novel is written from his perspective so you’re clued in on what he’s thinking in every scene."

I liked hearing that. 

I got a second review from  Jeanne Richardson. Also a 4 out of 5 stars. Jeanne wasn't as verbose but she wrote:

"The storyline was interesting, just not what I was expecting. I had a hard time completing the book, don’t get me wrong it is a good book, it’s just not the type I normally read. If you like stories with conspiracy theories then you’ll truly enjoy the book."

I would love if you read it too and left a review. I've dropped the price for the next week or so. If you'd like to get a complimentary copy for a review let me know and we can see what we can do.

It feels good to have three books in the personal library. What's best is what Leah said in her review. She liked Vapor Trail more. I think each successive book has shown improvement as a writer. Toe the Line read like a first time novel. On the Edge was more polished. Vapor Trail is my best work yet. Still there is room to grow and I'm already writing number 4, (to order any of these novels, see here).

I would love to know what you think of my novels if you get a chance. Feel free to drop me a line when you buy it and then again once you are done.

Happy Reading!

Word Wars Work

Due to circumstances beyond my control I'm having to miss my first "write in" this week. So as much as Kristy is trying to keep the writing group going, I am, apparently doing my darndest to undermine her work. That being said, I have written 2500 more words than I otherwise would have thanks to Kristy's and her sister's motivation.

Word wars work. I heard about them over the course of the last few NaNo's but never joined in. But in this case, it works. A quick couple of "hello's" via chat, someone sets a timer then says "Go" and fifteen minutes later you stop to see where you are. I have been hitting over 600 words in 15 minutes pretty faithfully. Sadly, it's not in the arena that I want.

I want to go back and re-write my Vapor Trail manuscript. I started using Scrivener to write my 10 key scenes for Vapor Trail, and I'd like to see where I am with that sucker, but these word wars hardly offer the opportunity for deep thought and re-writing.

They are more like brainstorming sessions where you are forced to throw stuff up against the wall and see what sticks. What's sticking now is a short story, so my resolution will be proud.

That being said, the positive note to glom onto is that I'm two word wars in and I'm 2500 words ahead. If I focus on bailing on the write-in (where I hoped to work on Vapor Trail) and the lack of a coherent story in my novel, well . . . who wants to hear about that!

Give Me a Reason to Care

I'm in the middle of working out some of the finer points of my novel Vapor Trail. One of those "points" is trying to find a way to make the reader care about the main character. That might seem a bit simple, but it is of vital importance to the novel and here's why.

Over the past two days I've read several reviews of the new Lone Ranger film that stars Johnny Depp. I read a review in the local paper that mentioned that the audience has a hard time caring about why they two protagonists, Tonto and the Lone Ranger, are chasing the bad guy (I would link to it but the paper's website is atrocious and I can't locate the article). Then today I read this in the WSJ by Joe Morgenstern:

Nor is there any reason to care about the masked rider on the white stallion; he's mainly Tonto's foil, a handsome boob played blandly by Armie Hammer.

"Nor is there any reason to care," that's what I'm trying to avoid in Vapor Trail. I've been focusing on plot and on story, but not on character. It's tough all the time making sure that the reader cares about the character, cares so much that they want to read on.

Right now I'm reading Les Miserables. Victor Hugo makes the reader care so much about what will happen to Jean Valjean that he can write chapters and chapters about houses and people in the Parisian suburbs, and about Waterloo, and about all sorts of other things and I'll keep on reading since I want to know what will happen to the hero.

It's my goal for the next few months . . . to give the reader a reason to care about Vapor Trail.

Covers, Covers and More Covers

So there was one thing that came out of that last review that I felt compelled to address. Romantic wrote:

To the author, please consider getting a professional cover done. The current one really doesn't do justice to the level of writing in this book.

Although this is a wonderful compliment about my writing, it's not the best compliment about my skills in terms of cover design. When I first started this journey, I tried making my own covers. That came to a screeching end very quickly (see here, here and here). 

In my defense, as a huge fan of Dick Francis, I was trying to mimick his style. They do look rudimentary and cheap though, so I'm glad I decided against using them long term.

It took me a while, but I found an online but when I found the ones I thought were professional, sophisticated and worthwhile, I invested in them, bought them, worked with the designer and rolled them out (see here).

These were far better, but they still lacked something. They looked too blank I realize now. Truthfully, even though Vapor Trail looks homemade, it was actually the most expensive one I bought. I never liked it though. It never truly represented the story. Romantic was correct.

Thanks to this comment by "Romantic" I went back and found a better cover for Vapor Trail (it's not easy by the way) and updated both the other two. I uploaded tag lines, provided some more flare. Now I'm far happier with them. I can live with these. Let's hope "Romantic," thinks the update is worthwhile.

Reviews Keep Coming

Whenever I need a bit of a lift, I go and check some of the reviews for my novels. Always give me a bit of a pick me up, unless there are negatives. Thank goodness those are few and far between. 

So, if Norm wants to say Vapor Trail (HERE) "unputdownable"  and that it "keeps you on the edge of your seat". . . who am I to argue with him? He seems very intelligent!

Why Writer's Write

So this is why people write! I should get reviews more often. A few months ago I wrote about a review that I got online for one of my novels (see here) and then before that another one (see here). Those two were nothing compared to the two I just got over the winter holidays. I've updated my author page with all of my novels now, and it's fun to see the reviews coming in (see here).

The first one I got was for On the Edge (see here) from Michael Best:

The aspect that really hit me was two things he wrote. The first was about the ability to add depth and richness to the story. 

The author skillfully creates a clash of characters, though adding to the depth and richness of the story, it requires the reader to remain exceptionally engaged without missing a beat. Given the nature of the story, that is not hard to do.

The second quote discusses the allegorical quality applied to the story. Was I trying to do that? Yep. What's funny is that Vapor Trail has a far more sophisticated touch of that than On the Edge. 

Dick Hannah’s book has an allegorical quality to it, in that, Joe Malone is symbolic of today’s war vet and emblematic of the struggles to adapt to civilian life. Leaving the cruelty of war, expecting to find peace and acceptance, becomes an illusion upon return to civilian life for the MC, as is the case in the real world.

The second review was for Vapor Trail (see here) and it's just as fun to read, this one from someone named "Romantic:"

I have to say, it feels good to say that character development was so good. Thanks so much!

Mechanically well done, dialogue exceptional, plot believable and tense (in just the right places)...but for me, it was the character development that really shot this one through the roof.

It feels so good to be recognized for your craft. This must be why writers strive to keep producing. I can tell you this much, reviews like these make me want to write more!

Psycho Love

I had a chance to re-read a post from several months ago (see here) where I wrote about "better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all." 

I've been giving that some thought lately and I'm still not sure where I come down on it.

Great Reviews

I hope you won't mind a bit of egotism. I've been getting some wonderful reviews (here) and would love to share them with someone. These are all for Vapor Trail (here).

5.0 out of 5 stars Conspiracy theories and murder
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2020
A former soldier finds himself dealing with conspiracies while investigating his boss's death. This is another Jack Reacher style thriller and it's done very well! I like a good thriller and this one is very well-written. The pacing is consistent and the characters are great. Hannah has a great writing style that's easy to follow and he wastes no time in throwing readers into the action. It's definitely a book that I'd recommend checking out if you're into this type of story. I'd also recommend it to those who are curious or looking for something different.

I don't mind hearing "Jack Reacher style thriller." I'll take that all day.

5.0 out of 5 stars Military thriller
Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2020
A well written military thriller with interesting characters (the protagonist took a little while for me to wrap my mind around, truth be told), and a good dose of real-world conspiracy for good measure.  Death, murder, and conspiracy are intertwined and complicated by family ties and friends past and present that keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat.

I enjoyed the intensity of this story and would recommend this book to anyone who tends to read in this genre!  

"Interesting characters" and "good dose of real world conspiracy" . . . those are things I can accept.

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice page turner
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2020
This military thriller was quite a page turner. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The book was laced with conspiracy theories yet the plot was well done and easy for me to follow.

"Page turner". . . . thanks! Glad to hear it.

5.0 out of 5 stars Different in a really great way
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2020
I have a love/hate relationship with this book. The writing's impeccable while the story just kept on growing and growing on me until I couldn't put it down. It just took me some time to get into the character's head but that's probably me. All in all, I love this story and highly recommend it.

WOW! Impeccable writing! I'll take that all day every day!

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll love this mystery that must be solved.
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2020
Vapor Trail by Dick Hannah has well-developed characters and is full of unexpected twists. It provides a unique look into security and military and fitness buffs will enjoy the exercise and running. If you're into Dick Francis or Lawrence Sanders then this is the book for you.

And I'll take "unexpected twists" . . . this is a review I love.

5.0 out of 5 stars A mystery to follow
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2020
Very intense with interesting plots. it took a while for me to guess around but very engaging. Great dose for my sunday coffee!

How did they know that I like coffee, and especially sunday coffee so much!

Does an ego good to hear so many good reviews in the past month or so.

"Think Dashiell Hammett meets Lee Child meets John Locke" for FREE

I have just made my latest book, Vapor Trail, free for the next week on Kindle (see here). I've gotten some great reviews. One of the best reads:

This is hard-boiled crime with a military twist. Think Dashiell Hammett meets Lee Child meets John Locke. The protagonist's almost clinical lack of empathy is shocking at first, then the speed at which characters are dispatched becomes a rhythm that draws the reader in, carries you through the plot twists, and dumps you out at the end of the book, determined never to join a military style workout group, ever. A great, quick read, especially if you are a fan of grindhouse movies.

If you have been looking for a free book with some decent reviews, may I suggest Vapor Trail (here). And may I also suggest you let me know what you think? I promise to return the favor.

Touching and Relatable is Good

I know there are many who get fed up with these, but the truth is, they’re one of the reasons that I love to keep writing and producing novels. They motivate me like few other things. It’s like a spike of adrenaline to an otherwise staid and steady job. 

This first one, where the reviewer says that my writing is “touching and relatable”, is short, quick, and yet still quite inspiring. 

Greatness of NaNo

So I finished the 2017 NaNoWriMo successfully and it's a great feeling to have accomplished that. Is it a complete novel? Far from it. In fact I remember it was Vapor Trail (here) that made me realize that writing isn't "writing" . . . writing is "re-writing."

I wrote Vapor Trail as a NaNo submission back in 2013 or 2014. I only published it last year. It takes a lot of re-writing to get a NaNo submission into a publishable book . . . and even what I think is publishable is still a long way from perfect.

Still, it's nice to have a draft. Am I working on Sunset Perfect now? Nope. Not even considering it. I have a great 50,000 word draft, but it will be another year or two before I work on it and want to try and publish it.

What am I working on now?

I'm working on my 2015 NaNo submission. I wrote a thriller about an orphanage in Kenya, and a team of mercenaries who are hired to protect it. The great thing about NaNo is that I have absolutely no recollection of ever writing that draft. None whatsoever. It's like picking up a completely foreign manuscript and being able to work on it. It's a great feeling to be so far into writing a novel and already be so far along.

Coming Back for More

I am fairly certain I know who Kim is, but it’s nice to see that she likes my writing (see more HERE). If she is who I think, this is not a “friend” review. Not only that…. She liked the writing so much she wanted more! I’ll be happy for the rest of the day!

The review above is of On the Edge (see HERE). 

Continuing Apace

Yep, things are still going well for this year's NaNo entry. I had a bit of a struggle a few days ago, but the outline helped get me back on track, just as I mentioned earlier.

Looking at this graph, and seeing the overall progress, and more importantly comparing it to last year's effort and the entry previous to that, I'm surprised (and a tad worried) by how well this is going. First, last years graph. I had trouble keeping up obviously. This was the novel regarding the murder mystery that I ran into while touring a refinery (see more here).

The year before that, where I kept up quite well, I wrote like a fiend! This was the moment when I wrote the rough draft of the novel I'm currently revising called Vapor Trail. The problem . . . I'm re-writing that novel right now with my critique group, and I would guess that 75% of what I wrote will not be re-written but instead will just be trashed. I blame the lack of an outline.

So how will this year's effort flesh out? Next year will I see it as I see 2012's entry? As a compendium of nonsense and a waste of a month's writing? Or like Vapor Trail, a grain of a good idea but a lot that needs to be redone.

I believe that this year's work is far more polished than the previous entries. I think not having to worry about where the story and the plot are going (or coming from), by doing just a bit of outlining and planning, I've allowed the story to stay on track naturally, the story has taken far fewer blind alleys, and I think by having that road map it has allowed me to focus on the writing just that wee bit more, and hopefully that will pay off in the re-writing.

I'm the Maggot in the Metaphor

Last week, for the first in this series, I wrote about how writing a novel is alot like a long hard road march (see here). Then I followed that up by discussing how it's not glamorous or fun (see here). And although both of these things are true, today I'm going to write about how all of that leads to the finished product.

I bought a composter a year or so ago to replace my homemade composter that I built years ago. The model shown in the pciture above is the very type that I have. I bought it (and borrowed the above picture) from The Gardener's Supply Company. (Best place on the web to go get gardening gear). Nevertheless, although I use the hell outta that sucker I never use a shiny new pail, nor wear my gardening clogs, nor smile quite so heartily as the fellow in the image above.

Instead, I fill that sucker up regularly. Banana peels galore, coffee grounds almost everyday, used G&T lemon wedges, cilantro stems from the night before's dinner, pumpkins that turned into jack-o-lantern's then turned into moldy, stumpy, rotted messes that sit on the porch too long after Halloween (these are actually the coolest things to throw into that sucker).

Over and over, for weeks and weeks, months and months I keep cramming stuff into that left side of the composter and I tumble it around. Then after about six months I switch to the right side and leave the left alone except for the occasional tumble. All the while the bugs are inside and making babies and turning that kitchen waste into fertile soil. After 6 months or more of sitting alone and steaming, that compost is ready to be put into my garden, now rich and ready to grow things.

Here's the simile so pay attention.

First, writing is a lot like using that composter. I write a ton of stuff and most of it is trash. It's not till I've tumbled it around in my brain and written a bit more and revised and edited and rewritten that it becomes at all worthwhile. When I'm putting it in it's like that rotting pumpkin. Usually, hopefully, when I put it into book form it comes out as something worthwhile.

Simile number two . . . I leave lots of my stuff on the shelve to age. Just like my composter allows me to leave my garbage alone just to tumble and age, I leave my writing to the same. I leave it alone and write on something else then I come back to it and fine tune it.

I'm working on my third novel now. Tentatively titled Vapor Trail, it is a follow up to On the Edge (see here and below cover image) and I'm hoping to release it this fall. I'm rewriting it for the final time right now and I'm stunned by how different it is from that first trash I put in. Characters names and types are changes. The plot is different. The setting has changed twice. It's a completely different story than the one I started. This is what got me thinking about that composter. I used that composted soil in my herb garden the other day and it was completely broken down. That's the way this story is now that I've tumbled it around and lead it age.

It used to bother me how much writing and rewriting was necessary to produce a finished work, but now I see that it's just a necessary part of the process. If I just threw the trash I wrote out on the web it would be exactly that (and truthfully, there's already a bit too much trash out on the Internets right now). It takes time to get it just right. Vapor Trail is in the tumble phase and the maggots are squirming around in it now turning it into something epic. The only problem as I see it is that I'm the maggot in that metaphor.

Surprising Friends

Last night I had the opportunity for one of my irregular guy's night out poker nights. Last time I won almost five hundred dollars. This time I lost three hundred. Win some, lose some right? But I found something out that was surprising and my mind was worth the three hundred dollars I lost.

I am in the midst of writing my fourth novel. No name yet, but I have several themes that I'm exploring. I think what I liked most about my third novel, Vapor Trail (see here) was that I had far more and more complex themes than I did in my first and second novels. Among the themes I wrote about in Vapor Trail was the idea of the ends justifying the means. That's an obvious one. Another was the nature of conspiracies to overwhelm a person's life for the negative. There was a return to civilian life theme as well as a nine circles of Hell. Lots more depth than either Toe the Line (here) or On the Edge (here).

Some of the themes I hope to write about in this fourth book include writing about Anthony (see here) and writing about a guy at the end of his life who realizes he's not leaving much behind. There will be more, but that leaving something behind will probably be a major theme.

At poker last night one of the guys wished me a happy father's day. Keep in mind these are guys I see maybe once every three months. They play at least once a month, I just don't get there as much as I'd like. So, although I know them well by now, we aren't "friends" in the classic sense of the word. Secondly, even tough I like to think I break even, I probably lose more than most of the core group of players, so I suspect they only invite me cause I'm an easy mark. Still, the point is I know them, but only in a poker sense.

What stunned me was that this "poker friend" stopped himself when he said he hoped I had a nice Father's Day and said, "Oh, sorry man. Forgot about your Dad."

You see he remembered that I had to miss a poker night because of my father's funeral this past year. This is a guy who I had thought was just a passing acquaintance, in the life then out again, someone who might be tone deaf about that aspect of my life, and instead he was more in tune than most others in my life. I look forward to using this as a theme in my next novel. Perhaps the main character will be surprised by the end of the book that he has more friends than he previously realized.

When my father passed away I wrote a little blog post and in it I talked about this same surprisingly aspect of friendship and how friends will pop up in places that you didn't expect. I planned on making it a theme back then as well. I suppose I should be happy that I'm thematically consistent.

First Lines? Just How Important are They?

I love my first line series (see here). I started it years ago because I read a book about the importance of first lines (see here) and since then there have been some doozies in the list. In preparing for this post I went back and read a bunch and there are some good ones out there in the past of this blog, and there are some real disappointments too.

Plus as a new writer, you hear so much about the need to hook the reader, to get them involved immediately in the story. But you know what I've found. It's not so much the first line, it's that first scene. It's like I said in my last post on the subject (see here), it's not so much that first line, it's the first scene, the writer's library and stock pile of good will with the reader, and the overall writing in general. A well written book will overcome a shotty first line. A back ground of great books will provide a lot of credibility to overcome a boring first line.

In terms of my own first lines, I have mixed reviews (see here). I'm happier with On the Edge in general than I am with Toe the Line, but I think the first line for On the Edge, and the opening scene is weaker than Toe the Line.

There is a specific fear, a state of panic really, that takes root within most people, parents particularly when they first discover that they've lost track of their child. It's the moment when a father loses sight of his son in a crowded food court, the second or two when a mother realizes that the little hand that belongs to her daughter that was holding her hand is no longer there. A flush of extreme anxiety with undertones of foreboding follow that first moment and are quickly replaced by hope. Hope that as the crowd parts he will see his son, or she will feel the little fingers reach up and wrap around her hand again. When that doesn't happen the panic becomes terror. My terror began half way into my Monday, six mile run. It was Georgia I missed first. 

The rest of the chapter is dedicated to the protagonist finding what happened to Georgia.

In Toe the Line, the first line is reminiscent of Max Shulman and his "Bang bang bang bang" opening (see here). 

"Go to hell, Wheeler." As last words go they were hardly what one would call poignant.

Sadly, I don't think that either first line would land on any lists of "Great First Lines" nor even on "Good First Lines." More sadly is the fact that I don't have a library of goodwill built up with my "fan club." All I have, I hope, is decent writing in one of the books and passable writing in the other. To say it precisely I have the following reviews. For On the Edge I received a review that stated:

Dick Hannah has created one fantastic novel. Simply put- I love it. There were a lot of plates spinning & he didn't drop any. What I'd thought would be a simple mystery novel became multiple novels in one: family drama, thriller, a little romance, inspirational- you name it! Fingers are crossed for a sequel. Five stars straight through- brilliant!

For Toe the Line the most scathing review stated:

When I read the synopsis this sounded like my kind of book, intriguing plot with a mystery to be solved. While the book did have these characteristics, at times I felt like I was reading an assignment in a high school English class. The scenery that Mr. Hannah created with his use of imagery was amazing. I felt as though I was in the Pacific Northwest as I read the book. His character development was scattered, at best. I agree with the other reviewer, in that Wynn drove me crazy! His character had much potential but his obsession with triathlons became quite old quickly. He lacked depth and was flat, whereas his ex-fiancee's character was fiery. The extreme personalities frustrated me several times throughout the story. Also, a few of the secondary characters could have been developed more. It would have provided the insight needed for the conclusion. I felt the premise of the story was good; I wish Mr. Hannah had expanded his storyline. He only touched the surface of what could have been a 5 star novel.

Yikes, right? So again, no credibility provided through Toe the Line. But regarding that first line stuff, see this review:

When I read the first page I was hooked. Usually, if I can't get into a book by the third page then I know I'm not going to get into it at all. 'Toe The Line' was an exceptional read right through to the end. At one point I THOUGHT I had well and truly nabbed the murderer, but then it twisted so I was caught off guard - which stunned me because I can usually catch the killer before the story ends (hence I was a bit cross with myself but pleased for Mr Hannah for making me as the reader think differently).

So, like I said, a great first line isn't the end all beat all by any means. It can help, but mostly it's great writing that's going to get the writer over the hump of readers acceptance and love for the work. What have I learned? First, although the first line and first scene are important for my next work, Vapor Trail, it's not what's going to win the battle. Taking that "writing is a road march" idea from several weeks ago (see here) it reminds me of a thirty-miler that we took in Fort Ord, California. We had a briefing the night before and one of of the more senior squad leaders talked about the importance of keeping your feet dry and clean,  . . . fresh socks, good boots, . . . that sort of thing. Then the next morning, bright and early we start off. We are winding our way through some foot hill trails and there's a ford through a stream that stops us cold just a mile or two into the five hour ordeal. Imagine that. A platoon of Spec Ops, Ranger, Paratrooper Bad-Asses stopped in the midst of our thirty-mile mission by a team leader who took the foot hygiene class so seriously that he stopped at a three inch deep puddle from a small stream. 

Eventually the platoon sergeant came along, yelled at us all for being ridiculous and strode through that puddle making as many big splashes as he could just to show how much he cared about his own foot care and we were back off. Still, bad start but great content. I'd much rather have that the alternative of a great start with a poor finish. So, for Vapor Trail I'm going to focus on that first line, but more of my focus will be on the work as a whole than just on that first few lines. I have a bit of credibility built up with the readers, no need to undercut that now.

As long as we are talking about my reviews, my favorite has to be this one about On the Edge. 

At first I hated Joe and didn't know if I was going to make it through the book. He seemed to be such a douche. But as the story began to unfold, I found that some of the douchery was really his own anxieties taking hold. From that point forward I wanted to learn more about this guy and what makes him tick. The novel is full of twists and turns that keep the reader engaged. The story line is realistic and detailed. I am sure the author's military background made all the difference for me in the flashback scenes. Many times I will gloss over these types of things (military stories just aren't my cup o' tea) but Hannah truly painted a picture with his words that keep me intrigued.

There is a little bit of everything in this book. Suspense. Mystery. A little taste of romance. And pretty deep character development packed into a fairly short novel. It was a really good read and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys "who done it?" mystery/thriller books.

As I said before (here) . . . who can't help but love a positive review that includes the term "douchery."

Back (Again) part 2

Yesterday I ended with the tease that I would write the rest of my reasons for writing here again today. Ergo the rest of the list. 

• The final reason I've decided to start writing here again is that National Writing Month is just around the corner and I want to write a novel again. I've been pecking away at a novel for a while now . . . Sunset Perfect (which I think is an absurdly perfect novel title) . . . and that's going fine, but I need the whirlwind writing of National Novel Writing month again (see here). I don't know what my National Novel Writing Month novel will be this year, but I have two months to figure it out, I bet I can find one. 

• I have several other novels in various states of completion. I pulled Toe the Line (see here), On the Edge (see here) and Vapor Trail (here) all off of Amazon so I can have them professionally edited. I've completed Vapor Trails edit and I'm currently shopping it to agents now that it has been professionally fixed. I can't wait to do the same with the others.

• I've written rough drafts for the Elephant Orphanage thriller and another thriller about Amnesia in LA. There's a couple other works sitting out there in various states of completion. We shall see. 

Nevertheless, I hope writing this on a semi-daily basis will help me stay on track with my writing. Won't be just about writing anymore, but more a blog just about my life. A diary. It's always been that, but the theme will be a tad less rigid in the future I think. 

Hope you enjoy!

Resolutions

I have some resolutions that are appropriate for this space. I have many resolutions, among them finishing Rosetta Stone Spanish, more weekend road trips with the kids, church more often, . . . that type of thing but there are a couple that deal with the subject matter of this blog.

First . . . I will finish Vapor Trail. It's not a bad novel, it's just super messy. So as an addendum to this resolution is the resolution of "making a ten key scenes" outline for Vapor Space and getting that sucker back on track.

Second . . . re-enlist in a writing group. As far as I can tell my writing group has defuncted itself. I was a part of an online group once that wasn't too bad. Lot of work, but still not too bad. I'll at the very least try that again.

Third  . . . I will not buy any books that are more than three bucks. This is going to be a doozey. I just thank goodness I've already bought some in the ole library I really want to read. I'll be able to parse them out throughout the year among the 2.99'ers. Jack Higgins Night of the Fox, Forsyth's The Devil's Alternative, Clavell's King Rat and Howey's Dust will keep me reading for a bit. and Morrel's Fraternity of the Stone are all already bought and ready to be read. Am I doing this to see what the competition looks like? Am I doing this to have a better appreciation of new writers? NO! I'm doing it cause I'm cheap.

Wish me luck and check in to see if I keep em all.

Is It Wrong to Say I "Flirt with my Writing?"

I’ve been thinking a lot about reading vs. writing. And not so much “writing” writing, as habits with writing.

When my wife reads she reads in great big chunks of time. She’ll buy a book and start reading and in less than 48 hours she’s done. If it’s the weekend the time to finish is closer to twenty four hours. Years ago she started The Davinci Code on Friday night and was done by Saturday at noon. The only book that was able to break this pattern was Les Miserables, which was her “commitment book” (see here) in that it took her several months to complete.

I’m a bit of speedy reader too . . . well, if not speedy than greedy. I turn off most everything else that is going on and any spare time I find goes to reading. I’m not as fast as my wife, but I’m fairly dedicated.

When I was a part of a local writing club and worked with a local editor, they all proposed that I print out each chapter of my book and read it aloud to hear what it sounded like. This didn’t last long. Firstly, I don’t like reading out loud unless it is too my little sons. Secondly, I don’t read books aloud. Why should I read my own work aloud to see how it sounds when in every case (I feel quite certain) no one who buys my books (insert plug for my books here and here) will read it aloud.

What’s funny is that I read in great big chunks, so I naturally believe that I should write in great big chunks. I don’t. I don’t at all. Except for NaNo (see here), where I write fifty thousand words in a month (all of which seem to get rewritten in the following months and years) I usually barely write a chapter at a time. So my writing style and habit is the exact opposite of my reading styles and habits. I wonder how many other writers find this same disparity exists between their reading and their writing.

Just as I said in previous posts that writing a novel is a lot like road marching (see here), it’s also a lot like eating an elephant . . . the best way to do it is lots of little bites. I’m sure that there are many writers out there who can just churn out chapter after chapter after chapter in one big go, much like my wife reads. I find that I am a tinkerer, a bit of a flirty writer. I start here and work a bit, then I remember that I wanted to add something in that previous chapter so I dash over there for a bit, then I realize that I need to add a clue in chapter thirty-three, so I’m off to do that.

This latest novel that I’m writing, Vapor Trail, is the most flirty yet. I churned it out in NaNo, but since then I’ve thrown out the entire NaNo effort and have completely rewritten the entire novel. There are new characters, new settings, new plot lines. There isn’t a thing about that first draft that could be found in this final draft.

I used to read one book on the craft of writing for every four novels I read (see here). I may need to re-institute that rule. I’m curious if everyone writes in this or a similar manner, and whether this is the way it is if you’re a part time writer as I am or a full time writer. I imagine that those lucky few who are full timers are sitting at their desks just banging away all day. I don’t know if I could do that so for now I stick with flirty.