R.A. Nelson's Blog, page 3

“Um, So . . .”: The World According to Doc – Chapter 4 (CATS)

Cats are a difficult subject for Doc, but he thought it important to try.

Um, So . . .  The World According to Doc
CHAPTER 4: CATS

Um, so . . . hi. My name is Doc. Today I want to talk abowt one of the grate miss-ter-eez of the wurld.

I want to talk abowt CATS. This is my thinking face. Cats are a miss-ter-ee. I do not underrstand them.

I think they like sum of the same things I do, like sleep. Cats are verry gud sleepers. But I do not think they like runs and...

Um, So . . .: The World According to Doc – Chapter 3

Docs blog continues! Enjoy.

“Um, So . . .”: The World According to Doc – Chapter 2

You asked, and I or, rather, Doc answered.
Enjoy some more of Docs thoughts, dear ones.
He hopes (and I hope, very much) they bring you joy.

Um, So . . . The World According to DocCHAPTER 2: My Day

Um, so . . . hi. A-gehn. In case you forgot, my name is Doc. 

Today, I want to tell you about my day. Every day is basik-a-lee the same. My life is verry boring, but that is ok. Boring can be nice sum-times.

My day starts with sleep. Sleep is verry important. I am the best sleeper...

“Um, So . . .”: The World According to Doc

The World According to Doc

Hello, friends.

I started this a while ago, not knowing when (if ever) it would see the light of day. 

Then the Rona (pending Aussie slang for our not-so-beloved COVID-19) hit.

Twas as if I heard a voice saying, Lo, the hour is at hand because I cant do much to help this anxious world in this dizzying time, but I can give you a little bit of Doc. And Doc makes EVERYTHING better. (Trust me. I have five and a half years of proof.)

Let me...

Another “Read”-y Respite (with a Rant!)

Its time for another episode of What Im Reading  this time, with a RANT added for extra flavor! Lets get the rant out of the way first. Its a mild one, but important.

If youre on my email list, you know Im taking a break from my customary self-publishing regime this year and attempting the traditional publishing route. That means searching for an agent and trying to learn as much as I can about publishing today which, oddly enough, means spending an inordinate amount of...

Why I Write Fantasy, Part 2 – Believing With Alice

My last post was a study in romance .

I examined that deep surge of feeling I experience at the end of a good romance story, and realized it is Wonder: joy so fierce and poignant, it aches, reminding me that everything sad will come – and, in certain moments/places, is already coming – untrue. I renewed my mission statement of sharing Wonder through my writing, and I also promised to explain in my next post why I write fantasy instead of romance.

The answer is almost embarrassingly...

Why I Write Fantasy – Part 1: A Study in Romance

I had a revelation recently about why I like romance stories.

I was watching Penelope, one of my all-time favorites. (If you haven’t seen it . . . do so. ’Tis a delightful contemporary fantasy full of wit and whimsy, starring James McAvoy, Christina Ricci, Peter Dinklage, Catherine O’Hara, Richard E. Grant, and Reese Witherspoon. The cast alone merits investigation.) As it concluded, I realized the rush of feeling inside me was far stronger and more complex than mere satisfaction at...

Thank You, Monty Python: Reflections on the Last Decade

That was quite a decade, friends.

(Note: I am aware that, since there was never a “year 0”, decades *technically* run 1-10 – as in, 2011-2020. But, since I’ve never heard someone consider “1950” as being part of the 40s, or “1990” not being the start of the 90s, I’m counting the last decade as “all the years with ‘1’ as the third number”. 2010-2019. The end.)

The past ten years have included neither the meteoric rise nor the neat, orderly, swift progression of events I...

Christmas Eve 2019

It’s been an interesting Advent journey this year.

As I said the first week, I’ve spent much of the latter half of 2019 thinking about Fear; hence, my Advent poetry became a continuation of those meditations.

I spoke of how Hope can feel so much like Fear; but, if we heed it, Hope will shake us out of our “safe” drowsiness.

We were thankful for Peace, soothing us as Hope continues its necessarily discomfiting work.

I remembered that Joy beats Fear in every one-on-one match.

We saw how ...

Advent #4 – LOVE

’Tis the fourth week of Advent, friends.

The first week, we light the Hope candle, encouraging us – with great urgency – to lift our eyes above our fear.

The Peace candle comes second, comforting us amidst Hope’s agitation.

Third, we light the Joy candle, reminding us that we always have reason to REJOICE.

The fourth week is all about Love. Nothing says “love” like a Charlie Brown style Christmas tree.

Love, fittingly, comes last, for it is that which holds the other three...