Kester James Finley's Blog, page 13
January 6, 2018
January 5, 2018
Haiku Friday – Singe & Deep
Another creepy offering from our friend Vashti Quiroz-Vega. Give it a read and enjoy the devilish side of this awesome writer!
January 3, 2018
Random Image Wednesday!-#17
Cold weather is coming to Florida, well, cold for us anyway. We don’t normally get snow, but when temperatures drop down to the 40s and 30s during the day, we feel it. The thin-blooded flip-flop wearing sun bunnies we normally are have never fared well in this type of environment. It’s bitter cold out, to us anyway. To many a Northerner, today would be perfect but for many down south, we simply want to hide under a mound of blankets and sweatpants. Today is no exception. As I write, it’s currently almost 9am and 40 degrees out. Add to the mix is driving rain and 20mph wind gusts making it feel like we’re sitting someplace far to the north, someplace shorts and open-toed shoes would dare not tread.
Weather in Florida, anywhere really, is a crap shoot and is bound to change at a moment’s notice. It brings change, it whispers a shift and is something every writer should include, or at least think about, in their work. It may seem like something you could easily gloss over, but the weather should always play a part in the bigger picture. Weather sets the stage, the mood, provides ambiance to the scene and can also be used to interact with our characters. Case in point, it ain’t called Singing in the Fog or Afternoon of the Living Dead.
These posts will be about showcasing a random picture I find in the hopes of inspiring others to create ideas for their writing. I have found that generating a quick 1-3 sentence scenario, a blurb, a scene, or a full novel concept based on a random picture has worked wonders in opening up the floodgates to new ideas and enjoyment in the world of fiction. It is my hope that others will find these images and possibly be inspired to jump into the wild world of writing and become the author they always wanted to be.
Without further ado, our 17th entry!-
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Don’t forget to provide your readers with clues to the environment. Weather should play a part in your work, utilize it! Make us sad and depressed with rain and fog, romantic and hopeful with sunny days, warm and filled with melancholy with a light snow, or simply scare us beyond belief with crashing waves brought in by hurricanes, just be mindful of the weather and the rest falls into place!
Like, hate, love? Feel free to comment below with any tips, ideas, or head nods. 
December 30, 2017
Once Upon a Time Slip — LITERARY TITAN
Once Upon a Time Slip, written by Lisa Nicell Treanor, is about a nineteen-year-old woman by the name of China Winter. China must escape the rise of the supernatural and the demands of a potential war by travelling with her grandfather to Liverpool to start a new life. But there are new dangers that lurk […]
via Once Upon a Time Slip — LITERARY TITAN
December 28, 2017
Random Book Review! “Making of an Empress” by Frank David
This time around I had the pleasure of reading Frank David’s first part of his Realm of Hulsteria series titled, “Making of an Empress” Following is my review that was posted on Amazon.com and Goodreads detailing this medieval fantasy royal drama fun fest! Listed after are both links, check it out!
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4 out of 5 stars!
Love in the time of, “Oh no she better don’t!”
Frank David’s first book of his, Realm of Hulsteria series- “Making of an Empress” takes readers on a journey to a fictional world dripping in medieval imagery and the life and times of a royal family spread out in every direction across the lands. One part fantasy, one part fictional history lesson and two parts family drama make this read a go-to on how families interacted in the past amid turbulent forces both self-created and nature-made while drawing readers into the world of Hulsteria and all its many delights.
David’s first book introduces readers to Stelaphina(Stela), an heiress to the Imperial throne of Hulsteria who, at the start, draws readers into her world with her innocent and loving approach to life and the ability to navigate the politics and emotional landmines created in her large world of royal family members. Power comes with a price, as Stelaphina quickly realizes as she finds out the hard way that the actions of today have a ripple effect throughout time.
David expertly details the royal lineage of Hulsteria giving readers a history lesson that throughout reads like the back story to some of daytime’s greatest soap operas of key players all the while maintaining the integrity of his fantasy world. His created cast of characters feel real and come with their own issues that intertwine with Stela’s attempt to corral everyone back to her side as she navigates the turbulent sea of her own actions and the outcome of her political decisions. Everything in Hulsteria is not as it seems, and as Stela soon discovers, being a mother, a leader, a friend, and a lover requires more balancing then she could ever have imagined and that every choice, every path, every thought not only affects her but also her entire kingdom and extended family across the lands.
Every player has a part, every decision has an equal repercussion in the world of Hulsteria. Emotions run high, greed even higher, and as David plays up to the real issues that everyone deals with throughout his or her lives in glorious detail, minus the corset and exceedingly long station names, we are drawn deeper into Stela’s inevitable crash course in running a realm while praying for salvation, hoping for a positive outcome. David’s ability to showcase what life is like for someone thrust into power, when friends become enemies, when everything gets turned on its ear, and how people can change with the slightest nudge or swift kick, beckons us to continue the book and makes us crave future additions of Stela’s life, her extended cast, and the realm of Hulsteria.
Mixing up the medieval with magic, sprinkling the drama with the political, David takes us all on a journey to a created land filled with people that represent the good and bad in life, especially when it comes to family. The use of enormously long station names when people are addressed made sense for the time period in which “Making of an Empress” takes place, but it did tend to become reading heavy, royalty or not, in some sections. Some chapters follow different characters that run tandem with others and, although enjoyable and delved deeper into their own personal driving forces, it muddled up some sections creating a little bit of confusion when reading through the material. The ending did seem to bring you to the edge of the cliff then simply shut down, but after reading a few pages into David’s second addition to the Realm of Hulsteria with, “Making of a Warrior,” it makes perfect sense and follows almost immediately along where Book 1 left off.
If you enjoy high medieval fantasy with a touch of family drama that almost screams the “Real Housewives of Hulsteria,” you cannot go wrong with Frank David’s work. If you enjoy a strong female lead with a wide mix of orbiting supporting characters all struggling to deal with life and leadership, “Making of an Empress” will not disappoint and will satisfy many an hour reading about how the other half lives.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R32D7I5MLNSCL8/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B01MYCRG2N
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2229921064?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
December 27, 2017
Make 2018 YOUR year to DREAM. Are your dreams EMOTIONALLY MALNOURISHED? Then FEED them!
Such a powerful message on motivation and daring to dream! Never stop believing, never stop dreaming and becoming the you that was always meant to be!
Welcome to the World of Suzanne Burke.
Make 2018 YOUR year to DREAM! Are your dreams emotionally malnourished?
How did 2017 treat you? Are you pumping your fist in the air with Jubilation and excitedly waiting for 2018 to begin? I hope so.
Or are you weary, depleted and ready to capitulate? Exhausted by the battle to simply survive?
We all dream. Not all of us live to see our dreams come to fruition. Those of us that do don’t cease our dreaming because we have succeeded in having one dream being activated and lived.
Dreaming is as necessary to our well being as breathing. Many things live outside our control, that’s a given. We accept that the circumstances of simply living each day in our turbulent world will confront us. It’s what to DO with those circumstances that is important.
We can choose to become angry, venting our frustration and rage on anyone in our…
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Random Image Wednesday!-#16
You survived, for the most part. You navigated through another holiday season of chaos, family, warm wishes, overeating, debt causing, fuzzy moments, and anything else you can throw into weeks of preparation that inevitably ends and disappears quicker than a fart in a tornado. Congratulations are in order, right after the leftovers are reheated for the 6th time and those 600lbs. of trash stuffed into two bags is taken to the curb, or recycled.
Now, comes the quiet, the silence, the eerie whispers of a job well done, of a family satisfied, of spirits returning to the afterlife having visited or haunted whomever they needed to tend to during Santa’s speed run over our planet. You finally have a chance to breathe, to take it all in, to wipe your brow. After all is said and done, it’s take for you brave warrior of the Xmas army, it’s your time to read and write with reckless abandon!
This week’s image comes from the captainkimo.com website and represents that morning glow of serene beauty that comes after the build up and subsequent release of holiday madness. I really enjoy it because to me, it’s like the last scene of a horror film, the final few seconds where we see the heroine, the victor finally stand up from the fight and make their way to safety. You all know exactly what I’m referring to, in movies it’s that last few frames of hauntingly romantic music with glowy screen edges and the sense of “yes, I survived” seeping into every inch of screen space. In some films, of course, this is where the villain/monster/mother-in-law makes one final grab for the lone survivor, but we’ll just ignore all that, this time. In books, it’s the wrap-up, the conclusion, the “happy ending” or just the “happy ending for now” minus the visuals.
Take a moment over the next few days and see for yourself in your hometown, city, or route to work. That feeling, that sense of magic leaving, spirits continuing on, the collective sigh of Christmas finally being over as everyone gears up to kick 2017 in the ass as they welcome 2018 with open arms. If writing, add those moments of beautiful silence or release into your work. They not only mark the moment when the book is drawing to a close, but it can also represent your characters’ epiphany moment or that moment when your heroine finally understands everything, what everything was for, why, the who, the how, and the what next. Remember what it feels like for you the next morning after Xmas has finally clicked onto the 26th, utilize it, love it, feel it!
These posts will be about showcasing a random picture I find in the hopes of inspiring others to create ideas for their writing. I have found that generating a quick 1-3 sentence scenario, a blurb, a scene, or a full novel concept based on a random picture has worked wonders in opening up the floodgates to new ideas and enjoyment in the world of fiction. It is my hope that others will find these images and possibly be inspired to jump into the wild world of writing and become the author they always wanted to be.
Without further ado, our 16th entry!-
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Photo Credit: https://captainkimo.com/
Like it or hate it? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think! Write, Love, Read, and Share!
-Kester Finley
December 23, 2017
Richard J. Dobson – A Tribute — Writing and Music
Once in a great while, in life, someone walks into it that leaves such a large footprint you are forever touched. And so it was with Richard J. Dobson (aka Don Ricardo). Roxy Gordon was an American Indian activist, a poet, and storyteller. And, he was a friend and spirit brother to Rick and myself. […]
via Richard J. Dobson – A Tribute — Writing and Music
The “Urban Explorer” Subculture — LITERARY TITAN
Follow Me Down is a thrilling novel that follows Lucas as he seeks justice for his family while uncovering corruption in the city’s largest real estate development company. What was your inspiration for this novel and the setup to the story? The never-used subway beneath Cincinnati is real—built during the Depression but abandoned and sealed […]
via The “Urban Explorer” Subculture — LITERARY TITAN
December 22, 2017
Keeping Up With The Quiroz-es — The Writer Next Door|Vashti Q
Hi everyone! A warm welcome to my blog. I know December is a very busy month for many people but for me and my family it is downright cray-cray! We have lots of out-of-town guests. My niece Vanessa and her husband Luigi are here all the way from the island of Japan, my youngest sister, […]
via Keeping Up With The Quiroz-es — The Writer Next Door|Vashti Q
