Big News - X2

Last night, at approximately 8:00 p.m. (central time zone) I finished my tenth complete manuscript.

Now, if you have ever written a novel - a manuscript is just an unpublished novel - you know how good it feels to wrap one up. No, good is a terrible word here. Let's try - great! Nah, that's still short of the true feeling. How about this:

I have been released from the shackles of creation, allowed to step beyond the page and breathe - as if for the first time bringing air into my tired lungs.

Yeah, over the top. But when you're in my spot, it's really how you feel.

This one was tough

To finish, that is. I don't know what went wrong. A month ago I was within 20,000 words of the end. Wrapping things up, your daily word output can easily be 2,000 a day. But I languished over finishing it. The ending was firm in my mind; I had memorized every scene, every word of dialog.

Yet, I drug my feet.

Then this past weekend I put the petal firmly on the floorboard and finished the beast. The last two full days of writing produced 7,000 and 6,000 words respectively.

And now it's done.

And I'm Happy, Yet Sad

Happy because I have a decent rough draft of a pretty darn good story. The ending has a few twists that worked out perfectly when placed on paper. The final scene is short, yet poignant.

Sad because I'm done creating this particular stand alone novel. And now it's time to let the tale stew and fester, alone on my hard drive for a month or so. And then starts the editing and rewriting process.

Most writers despise the second part of the writing process: create, edit, publish - edit is in the middle of that list. But here your creation, my creation, becomes more than just a rough draft. Here, in this long process, it truly becomes a novel. And by the end of this stage - six months perhaps, maybe longer - you will have a publishable piece of literature.

What's it about, lake?

This novel is a stand alone. There will be no sequels or prequels. It is a dystopian creation, somewhere along the lines of Orwell's 1984. Along those lines. Be sure to note that phrase carefully. I did not rewrite a modern version of Orwell's classic. I wrote my own tale.

This manuscript came in at a little over 100,000 words. Most likely the final version will be somewhere in the low 90s. Remember what Stephen King tells us: 

2nd Draft = 1st Draft minus 10%

Big News - Part II

This past week, visits to my blog passed the 10,000 mark!

I have been blogging since February 13th, 2014. Seventeen months or so. For the first little bit (six months) I posted something twice a week. Fort the last year or so it's been once a week. But still, I couldn't be more thrilled.

Thank You to each and every person who has read my blog. 


Until next week, join me in reading the Games of Thrones (Book One - that's the actual title). It's only 850 some pages long, shouldn't take but a few late nights, right?


e a lake

                       

Clean Drinking Water: Part 2

A few weeks ago I created a post on LinkedIn about drinking water. You can reference that post by clicking here.

The essence of the post focused on two things: 1) We already have a clean drinking water problem throughout this great world of ours, and, 2) In some type of post-apocalyptic future, lack of clean drinking water will kill more of our population than anything else. While I believe both of these tenants to be gospel truth, others will no doubt argue with my assumptions. And that's alright.

Bad Water Can and Will Kill You

As stated in my LinkedIn post, it is widely believed that a human being can exist three days without water. After that time, serious troubles begin. Three days people, THREE SHORT DAYS! 

Now you don't need a world changing event to find yourself in a position where three days passes. Your car could run off the road and down a small embankment on your upcoming 4th of July trip (for those of us in the US - In Britain I believe they refer to this holiday as America's Big Mistake).

Lying in a ditch, after crawling from your wrecked vehicle, you survey your surroundings. No food, no communication, and only a stagnant pool of water within reach. Worse, there's no chance of rain. The clock starts now; you have three days to get some clean water.

Ignore That Stagnant Pool - It's a Trick

You know what's going to happen if your thirst gets the best of you and you take a sip for relief? Dysentery. You know what dysentery does to the human body? It's not very pretty: Click here for details. Your last thought of your life may include, "Did I just fill my drawers, again?" YUCK!

It's a Worldwide Problem

Some sources claim that more than 750 million people around the world lack access to clean water. Lets's see; the US has about 330 million people. So that's more than twice the population of the US alone. To be more precise, more people lack clean drinking water than live in the US and The Euro Zone - COMBINED. 

It's 2015 people - that number should floor you. Yet, I know from personal experience, most - especially where I live - never give it a second thought. It, of course, being clean water.

Enter the Apocalypse

In my WWIV series the same fate of the 750 million will extend to all Nine (plus) Billion inhabitants of the earth. Well, it will be nine billion at first, but not for long.

  

We will have no power, no communications, almost no form of mass transportation. No pumping stations for your city water; no power to run the well for your private water source. What's at the store is all that's left - forever. 

Riots will ensue - hey, once your family members become ill - or die - all hell really will be unleashed in our world. There are solutions. Not for nine million people mind you, but some of us will make it.

All that's left to ponder is this: Are you one of the lucky ones who survives the first round of trouble? Or are you one of the lucky ones that leave this earthly plain as World War 4 unleashes its fury upon the world?

Now that I've left you with fun questions to ponder -- have a great three day weekend you American citizens. Pray the apocalypse gives you fair warning.

e a lake

                       

New Book Blog Tour Announcement

Please share this with as many of your friends as you dare.

There will be special pricing on this book during the tour.







Thank you!


e a lake

                       

Happy Birthday George!

Tomorrow, June 25, 2015, marks the 112th celebration of the birth of Eric Blair. Blair was a simple man who went on to become a famous author - known to the world as George Orwell.

Orwell wrote a number of pieces of literature. However, he is most famous for two - the satirical tale entitled Animal Farm, and one of the greatest Dystopian novels ever written - 1984.

Oh George, we hardly knew you

It should be noted up front that Orwell died in 1950, at the ripe old age of 46. Heck, 46? That was almost ten years ago in my age continuum. Suddenly I feel old, almost useless. But I'm sure that will pass.

Had he lived another ten years there is no telling of what he may have written next. Was he good for another two, maybe three books? If he would have lived to, say, 66 - what could he have accomplished with an additional 20 years?

Many of us read Orwell in School

One of my neighbors groaned when I told her I was writing a new novel; something similar to 1984 I mentioned. "Oh dear God," she moaned. "I had to read that one in high school." I could describe her face to you, recalling the novel from her younger days. But we all remember the expression of our classmates, assigned some obscure piece of literature our teachers assured us was Classic. "Yeah, right, we all answered. "Classically boring."

In my school, back in the mid-70s, it was Alexsandr Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago. As a side note, some of us read 1984 for fun. I still recall starting Solzhenitsyn's dark classic. I was just sure I was going to hate every word of it. And at first, I did. But only because I told myself it was a terrible book.

And then something odd happened

I must be honest; seventeen-year-old me loved the dark dystopian (and very real) world of the mid to late 50s Soviet penal system. At least I loved the author's engrossing, gripping description of it - and his life inside the Gulag (Russian for prison). It takes a special talent to describe to a person a sunny day in a dull and oppressive gray world. While the novel ebbs and flows your spirits sink, knowing our protagonist is always in peril.

Orwell created a whole new world for 1984. Most of my reading friends marvel at how people like George RR Martin did this with Game of Thrones. Let me fill you in on a little secret, brother (or sister): authors, great authors, have been doing this for centuries.

Dickens, and Tolkien, and Lewis - oh my!

Many of us toil nowadays, attempting to create something as magnificent as 1984, Tale of Two Cities, The Hobbitt, or even The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. Most of us, almost a guaranteed 100% of us, will fall short. But that shouldn't stop us from trying.

Orwell (Blair) wrote under a pen name because he was sure no one would buy anything written by Eric Blair. Legend has it that the first title to his classic was 1980 - because he planned on finishing it in 1940. From there it changed to 1982, finally settling on 1984. None of this deterred the man from his goal of writing this new form of literature. And I thank God for that. To this day it is one of my all-time favorite reads.

So Happy Birthday - George Orwell. May your unique brand of writing live on for centuries to come. Always available to torture poor school children, those lucky kids.


Until next week, here is the link to the Amazon page for Animal Farm. Give it a try!



e a lake

                       

Cover that Book?

Copyrights: Literature vs. Music

Okay, I got a bone to pick this week with the music industry. And I think I make a good case - perhaps a great case. Or, maybe, it will just come off as whining. Let's get to it.

You will recall that last week I told you about my great idea for rewriting Hemingway's Old Man and The Sea. I'm going to change a few names, move it from Cuba to Bayfield, Wisconsin and let it roll. Mine will be titled, The Old Fart and the Lake. If you didn't read that post, click here.

But wait, that makes me a thief (or at least a hack)


If I don't change it enough, I violate Copyright Laws. At best, people will yawn and laugh at me. And that's not the reputation I am seeking.

And this is where my problem begins...

First off - I LOVE music covers. I love song covers, I love cover groups - I just love it all. Hey, I stopped and listened to Neil Dynamite at the MN State Fair several years ago. He was actually pretty darn good.

And who among us doesn't love a good (or even bad) Elvis impersonator? "Honeymoon in Vegas" style.

Here's OneRepublic with their hit Counting Stars:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hT_nvWreIhg

I really like the song. I like the music, the lyrics, and even the video. (Though can someone tell me what the crocodile represents...please?)

Now while you are on YouTube, go ahead and search for covers on Counting Stars. Go on, do it now; I'll wait for you right here.

Results? About 100,000+. And some are quite impressive.

Alex Goot, Kurt Schneider, and Chrissy Costanza - 39 million+ views
Cimorelli - 10 million+
Christina Grimmie - 8 million+
Gardiner Sisters - 2.5 million+
MattyB - 8 million+

And the list goes on

My point: None of these cover groups wrote this music, or the lyrics. Each puts their own small spin on it (Cimorelli cleans up the lyrics, and Gardiner Sisters slow it down), but none are overly original.

AND THAT'S JUST FINE...

With both me and the music industry. Fine with me because I love covers. Fine for the industry because OneRepublic gets more exposure (and is monetized from YouTube). By the way, the original version of the song by the group has more than 829 million views on YouTube.

Cimorelli, for instance, has more than 3 million subscribers on their YouTube channel - built almost exclusively on covers. They have a number of original songs now, they do tour North America and Europe, but their original popularity comes from covering other hit songs. Written and recorded by someone else first. 

And just to be clear - I have NO problem with that.

Let's return to the world of the written word

Old Fart and the Lake will most likely never see the light of day (and that's a good thing in soooooo many ways). Primarily, I will never get permission to "cover" the classic tale in the way I'd like to. Honestly I don't even know where to start. Maybe I'll look up Hemingway in the local phone book and see if anyone is related.

Let's say, in a different vein, that I want to do a knock off of Hugh Howey's smash Wool. Now, there is some fan-fiction already out there in this series, and some of it is even fairly decent. But that's not what I want to do as an author. I want to be original.

In music, one can use covers to get their name out to the public. It's worked many times for many people (Christina Grimmie springs to mind). 

The same does not hold true when it comes to literature. Here, the Copyright Laws are more strictly enforced. Plus, there's no YouTube for writers. 

If you want to make it big in the writing business (and please feel free to define "big" however you would like) you need to be original. Even if there are only seven plot lines running around out there, as some claim.

Others will tell you, "It's all already been written. Anything you do from this point forward is merely cheap imitations." BullCrap! Double BullCrap!!

Get out there, write something. Dream of something wild and crazy to create. You can, as the saying goes, JUST DO IT!

As for me, I am almost finished with a new manuscript entitled 2085. If you can't see the parallel yet, it's okay: (Hint - I am a Dystopian author). I'll have more to say about it in the coming months. Look for it sometime either later this year or early 2016.

Until next week, beat the summer heat with a great read!

e a lake

                       

The Old Fart and the Lake

I've just come across a brilliant book idea. I'm dying to share it with you.

It involves and old man - more of an old fart really - who lives as a fisherman. He fishes daily on, let's say, Lake Superior. His only friend is a young boy, no change that, a young girl. The old fart is hapless, thus the young girl watches after him. Let's call the old man San Diego, and the young girl Marolin. 

One day San Diego goes out fishing and catches a large...fish. Some kind of fish you find in the Great Lakes. Perhaps a salmon or a lake trout. The fish drags him around for days in Superior. And in doing so the old fart discovers the true meaning of his life - perhaps all life.

The other fish, of course, chomp away at his catch after he hauls its corpse to the side of his boat. By the time he gets back to his home port, most of the fish is gone. Marolin finds the remnants of the fish - skeletal mostly - attached to the port side of his small boat, and goes in search of the old man. She finds him at his small dingy home, asleep. Sitting near him, she smiles and allows his slumber to continue unabated.

I tell you: This is going to be a HIT, a true CLASSIC!

Copyright Offender, Plagiarist, or Hack

You decide. Which one am I. No doubt you recognize my story, a whale of a tale of fishing adventure. All due regards to Mr. Hemingway, mine might be better. But - and this is important - it's not mine, literally or figuratively.

Copyright
Old Man and the Sea was written by Hemingway in 1951. According to the Copyright Laws of that time, his work is protected for 95 years from publication date. As such, I am in violation of the law for publishing something he wrote under my name. 

But, if I'm clever and adapt it enough I'm not really republishing his creation; I'm enhancing it, making it better - Right?

Plagiarist
To be a plagiarist, according to the Dictionary, I would have to do the following:

• to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own
• to use (another's production) without crediting the source
• to commit literary theft
• to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source

Okay, maybe that's what I'll be - a plagiarist. But can you really steal an idea? I mean hundreds, thousands have written cheesy romance novels throughout the years. And most of them revolve around two or three different plots. Are they, everyone but the originals, plagiarists?

A Hack
Most likely this is the one that all people would default to - a least their opinions would center around this fact. I'd be called unoriginal, dull, dimwitted. And for the most part they would be correct. I mean am I that lazy that I can't think up a decent plot on my own? 

If it was my first novel, it would no doubt be my last (at least under that pen name). Even if it was my fifteenth novel, who would dare purchase anything from me again? I'd be finished in the writing world.

A However
But there are those who take classics and give them new twists. To do this they painstakingly rewrite the base plot and insert their own ideas. Seth Grahame-Smith has done a wonderful job with this. Consider some of his works: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. Seth has created a whole new genre almost, combining the classics (which we've all read - right?) and some current popular ideas.

So it can be done. All throughout the art (creation) world it can work. Maybe...

Next week I'll do a little contrasting and comparing with other areas of art: Movies, Paintings, and my personal favorite - Song covers.


Until next time, perhaps give one of Seth's many titles a try...you might enjoy it.



e a lake

                       

Something New, Finally

I've been tied up writing a new novel most of this month. So I apologize for no posting at all.

The good news is that the novel is more than half complete. In excess of 50,000 words have poured out of my brain and onto the pages of my writing program. In the next few weeks, I will complete the manuscript. And it should come in somewhere around 85,000 words (if not a little longer).

And there's a surprise with this one; it is not part of the WWIV series. It is a true Dystopian novel, taking place here in America - at least what once was America - some seventy years from now.

This writing is very Orwellesque, if I do say so myself. And once again, it came to me at night, in a dream. Read more about that dream (actually a group of dreams) here:  Click here!

Also, book three of the longer tales in the WWIV series is all written and just going through some rewrites before being sent off to the editors. I truly believe it is the star of the series. I love everything about it: the cast of characters, the setting, the triangulated story-line. Proud is how I describe the feeling when I think of it. Look for that book, WWIV - Basin of Secrets, later this summer.

Be sure to check out the above-mentioned post before you leave. Again, here is the link:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/new-dystopia-e-lake/edit
It's all about how my dreams turn into novels.


Have a great Memorial Day weekend to all my US readers. Grab a new read for the extended holiday!


e a lake