K. Patrick Donoghue's Blog, page 3

Music as a source of inspiration

For me, music is a source of inspiration for my writing. As an example, when I started writing Shadows of the Stone Benders in early December 2015, I was flying home from a California business trip late one night and was texting with my 16 y.o. son. via the plane’s wifi service. I asked him if he had any new music to share and he texted me his playlist from his favorite music-sharing app. I started listening to clips of the playlist and – bam – one of the songs really “struck a chord” with me. The song, Something Better, by an artist named Audien, became the inspiration for the relationship dynamic between Anlon and Pebbles in the story. If you have You Tube access and are interested to listen to the song, I’ve included a link to Audien’s official video for the song here. Ironically, the You Tube video has a science fiction feel to it, but I didn’t see the video until I’d already completed writing the book. The song’s lyrics and the pleading tone of the voices in the song are what really sparked for me (lyrics below):

I never met you, but I know you’re out there

If I cross the oceans, would you be there?

A stranger’s eyes that somehow look familiar

I know that when it’s you, I’ll remember

Remember

So wait for me, I swear I’ll find you

Climbing every wall that hides you

I know we were meant for something better

So wait for me, the world is changing

Underneath, the ground is shaking

You and I were meant for something better

Better, oh

I swear I’ll find you

I feel the wind move, we breathe the same air

You’re like the best news that I can’t share

A stranger’s eyes that somehow look familiar (Somehow look familiar)

I know that when it’s you, I’ll remember

Remember

So wait for me, I swear I’ll find you

Climbing every wall that hides you

I know we were meant for something better

So wait for me, the world is changing

Underneath, the ground is shaking

You and I were meant for something better

Better, oh

So wait for me, the world is changing

Underneath, the ground is shaking

You and I were meant for something better

Better, oh

I swear I’ll find you

Meant for something better

Better, oh

 

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Update on Race for the Flash Stone

Greetings readers,

Over the last two weeks, I’ve received several anxious inquiries as to when Race for the Flash Stone will be released. Geez, I haven’t even started promoting Shadows of the Stone Benders yet! Don’t get me wrong, I’m pleased there is so much interest in the next installment of The Anlon Cully Chronicles!

For those of you interested in an update on Race for the Flash Stone, I’m making good progress on the continuation. I’ve completed most of my research, I’ve completed the chapter map/outline and I’ve written the first four chapters. I have a lot more writing to do, but I expect to wrap up in the Fall and release Race for the Flash Stone late this year or early next year. I’m having a blast writing the follow-on…lots more twists and turns, intriguing new revelations about the ancient Munuorian civilization (pronounced Moon-war-E-un), cool science, new villains joining the chase for the mysterious Stones alongside villains from the first story, and of course more of the developing relationships between Anlon, Pebbles and Jennifer! Plus…a new whodunit that will puzzle your mind all the way through

Books that inspired my story – part 1 (Worlds in Collision)

The underlying adventure explored in Shadows of the Stone Benders (and follow-on installments of The Anlon Cully Chronicles) is about the search for evidence to prove the existence of a technologically advanced civilization that thrived long before archaeologists thought possible.

The seeds of inspiration that stimulated my imagination to create this fictional adventure originated in a set of non-fiction books I’ve read (and re-read) over the past decade. In this blog I will occasionally publish posts about the books I found most compelling.

The first of these books, the one that initially opened my mind to the possibilities, was written by Immanuel Velikovsky in the 1950s, and is titled Worlds in Collision. In this amazing analysis, Velikovsky examines the commonalities of the “great flood” myth across cultures and arrives at the conclusion that the stories are not mere fables. Instead, he concludes the stories detail an actual cataclysmic event that occurred thousands of years ago. When originally published, this book was considered extremely provocative and controversial.

If you are intrigued by the adventure described in Shadows of the Stone Benders, I think you will find Worlds in Collision a fascinating read.

 

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Where I wrote the last 100 pages of Shadows of the Stone Benders

Where I wrote the last 100 pages of Shadows of the Stone Benders

Greetings and welcome to my blog!

Greetings and welcome to my blog! It’s an exciting day for me today. My debut novel, Shadows of the Stone Benders, went live on Amazon this morning!!! If you could see me right now, you’d see a big smile and a Happy Happy Joy Joy dance…Ren and Stimpy reference for those of you old enough to remember it