T.L. Gray's Blog, page 65

Milledgeville Misfit – T.L. Gray -- Guest Post!

Milledgeville Misfit – T.L. Gray -- Guest Post!

Twice Upon a Time - Review

Review first published in July/August edition of West Georgia Living Magazine, a bi-monthly print publication of the Times-Georgian. ©2012 Times-Georgian.




Author: Frank Allan RogersPublisher: Solstice PublishingExpected Release Date: Summer 2012Words/Genre: 94,000/Fantasy
Bio: Frank Allan Rogers, the new F-word in Fiction, lives at Fairfield Plantation in Villa Rica, Georgia with his wife, Mary.  His debut book, Upon a Crazy Horse, was published in 2009 and nominated for Georgia Author of the Year Award for Best First Novel. Frank is a current member of the Carrollton Creative Writer’s Club, Western Writers of America, and Southern Independent Bookstores Association.  Please check out Frank’s website at www.frankallanrogers.com  for announcements and appearances. He can also be found on Facebook.

Twenty-first century, philanderin’, womanizin’ and playboy millionaire August Myles is shot and killed during a senseless robbery on what was to be his fifty-seventh birthday.  At first, eternity seems quite pleasant.  He feels no more fear, fatigue, stress, or the aches and pains of aging, and as far as he is concerned, he looks damnedgood walking around in his favorite jacket and walking shoes.  That is, until he meets Socrates … Yes, that Socrates!  …and finds, though he never murdered, raped or stole from anybody, he doesn’t qualify for a ticket through the pearly gates. 
Socrates tightened the chord on his toga.  “Satan is demanding your soul.  You’ll have to take up your case with him.  I can do nothing, August.”“Yes you can!  Go back to your precious Divine Council and ask them to take another look at my record,” August demanded, then requested, and then fell on his knees and prayed for another chance, one more time around.  “I can get it right next time, I know I can.”
That’s exactly what Socrates does, and the Divine Council, in a desire for a grand experiment, grants August his second chance by giving him a mission, but one that comes with a little twist and just a few restrictions.  
·         The Twist – August is sent back to the year 1847 to the Wild West, thirty years younger, but he will be almost as a mortal– complete with all weaknesses and desires, but no supernatural abilities.  ·         The Mission – August must escort and protect eleven-year old orphan, Emily Lewis, in a wagon train along the Oregon Trail.  ·         The Restrictions– August isn’t just wagering his soul against damnation, but that of a thousand other souls.  He cannot fail his mission, and he cannot have intercourse with a mortal.  
Trouble starts immediately for August as he arrives in Independence, Missouri with nothing more than the clothes on his back and a hundred dollars’ worth of gold coins in his pocket.  His first purchase – after a tough battle of hagglin’ with a black livery owner named Forrest (whom everyone else just calls, Trees), is an Appaloosa stallion named Aristotle for seventy-two-fifty, nearly three-fourths of all the money he carried.   It was still weeks away before the wagon train left for Oregon, and according to the Wagon Master, Clark Bonner, August will need a few more things to be in the train: basic supplies from Leeds, a rifle and ammo, a wagon that can haul a couple thousand pounds and can take a beating for six months, a team to pull the wagon, and a sixty-five dollar fee. Oh, and most importantly, he is notallowed to bring the whore Candy Valentine. The problem is, August already promised to take Ms. Valentine on the train with him as an escort for young Emily.     As if August doesn’t have enough on his plate as it is, trying to earn enough coin working for the local saddle maker, Sam “Hoppy” Hopkins, to get everything he needs, and convince Bonner to make an exception for Ms. Valentine, he finds himself chasing down a thief he stumbles upon in the middle of the night who tries to steal a load of Mr. Bonner’s ‘shovels’. Come morning, after delivering the thief to Marshall Edenfield’s deputy, Jonas, August finds himself behind bars, accused of the very crime he tried to stop a few hours before, and the deputy nowhere to be found.   Gettin’ out of jail and proving his innocence becomes tricky for August, and is not without its complications – and let’s not forget there’s a real thief out there somewhere.  
As the train is set to roll out of Independence, Missouri, August has gained a wagon and a team of mules, a waiver of the sixty-five dollar fee to Mr. Bonner’s train, as well as a reprieve for Ms. Valentine.  Yet, it came with a strong warning that he would be held accountable for Candy’s behavior, and she was not to cause trouble, or else they’d both be kicked off the train. 
After a few days on the trail, August feels like he’ll be able to meet all his mission requirements, even the one about chastity – though Ms. Valentine makes that a bit difficult for him with her constant flirting and combined assumptions of the other wagoner’s, that is until fate steps in and he meets the most beautiful woman he has ever seen, Mrs. Diana Desmond.   This young, beautiful, strong-willed widow confuses and befuddles August to the point of frustration.  He doesn’t understand how she can have such strong compassion one minute, and then cold treatment of his eleven-year old ward, Emily, the next.  She confides to August that her marriage had been one of convenience, and not of love, and she’s not shy about sharing her troubled past or how she feels about a particular cowboy.   He draws her in one minute, in moments of weakness and overwhelming desire, and then pushes her away the next, when he remembers his restrictions.  On top of that, he has to deal with Candy and her constant advances and the insufferable, egotistical Ian Callahan and his romantic notions toward Diana.   In his jealousy of Callahan, August finds himself in a high-noon showdown, facing death, and ultimately the failure of his mission – all for a woman.  How does he fare in the gun fight?  You’ll have to read and find out. But I can say this is not a ‘forbidden fruit’ moment and the undoing of August Myles.
“I’ll see you in Oregon City,” August said.Diana stared at the ground. “Why should I believe that?”“Because I love you.  I risked my life in a gunfight because I love you.”“Gunfights don’t prove you love me.  They prove you’re stupid.”“Love can make a man do stupid things.”“Like getting himself killed?”“Like kissing a woman who calls him stupid.”“Then shut up and kiss me, stupid.”…In that occasion of ultimate human intimacy, of life’s greatest pleasure that could have been created by none other than God – when time is suspended, when vision goes cloudy, when hearing is subdued, when all senses and desires surrender to passion in a perfect world and focus only on fleeting moments of pure ecstasy – August Myles and Diana Desmond …
Does August fulfill all parts of his mission?  Does he break his restrictions? Does he give in to his natural desires and temptations? Or does he have the strength to resist?
It seems every decision made by August bears an eternal consequence.    They cost him a best friend, his wagon to burn, and got the Devil scrambling to prepare a case against him at his trial with the Divine Council. Before August is whisked away to face the battle for his soul, he finds a friend in an enemy, and trades his greatest treasure for a safe return.  
Does August Myles escape condemnation?Is Socrates able to pull out a miracle?What becomes of the women (Diana & Emily) August loves?What happens to Candy Valentine?
I’d love to be able to tell you how this story ends, but you’ll just have to read it for yourself.  Frank Allan Rogers does an amazing job answering all those questions, and reading his words would be better than mine.  Rogers’ skill with novel writing is superb.  He grabs attention in the first paragraph and doesn’t let go until the last word.  I was ‘literarily’ pulled from my twenty-first century existence into a nineteenth-century adventure.  I fell in love with the wagon train lifestyle, as well as the cowboy, August Myles.  I know you will too.

Time Off!

After a big project, take some time off, step away from the computer for a mini-vacation.  We must give ourselves time to recharge, re-energize and re-group before we pour ourselves into our next creative projects.
Today, I’m taking my own advice.  I’m taking the next few days off.  I’ll be back on Monday.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Do What You Love

A good educational background and work history can provide many career opportunities, but while they all may be obtainable, not all are beneficial.  Being an indentured servant merely for a wage can be life-draining and turn you into a human zombie – where your heart beats, but there’s no life, no passion and no vision.  Where there is no vision, there is death.
I’ve been a slave, an indentured servant and an entrepreneur.  While I was able to provide sufficiently and financially for my family, my heart was always searching for something or somewhere else.  I learned to persevere and endure my situations.  I also learned a lot of other important life lessons, ones that developed my skills and sharpened my talents.  I greatly appreciate every experience, even the one’s I hated, because I still learned something. 
However, now that I’m pursuing what I believe I was born to do, to chase the dream that I dared to dream, and step out into the unknown with no guarantees and no promises, I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.  I’m learning to do without a lot of those materialistic and physical things I used to think I had to possess in order to claim success.  It’s the intangible that matters most.
Don’t get me wrong.  I still need capital in order to function, to be able to chase my dream, to have the opportunities to experience many of the intangibles that so enrich my life, and I couldn’t do this without my family’s help and support, both emotionally and financially. Being broke and homeless would only force me back into slavery and indentured servitude, so I understand that it is my family’s love and support for me that affords me this opportunity.  It is upon their shoulders in which I stand. I hope I can return the favor for them as well.  It is that love they give me, combined with my passion for what I do, that propels me into the ether.  When I succeed, it is not I alone who prospers, but all of us together. 
My heart goes out to all those reaching for their dreams on their own.  This fight is hard enough with a great support system; I can’t imagine how difficult it is alone, or filled with adamant opposition.  For those considering to take the leap – I’d advise setting up a good foundation of support before jumping. However, don’t lose your courage, and be determined to jump, even if you have to do it by faith alone.  Do what you have to, but above all, do what you love.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Fearing Change

Change is the greatest thing most people fear, and most of us don’t ponder that realization until it begins.  I didn’t think I feared change, especially working in a career that transformed on a daily basis, but I did, and still do.   Change goes against my natural instinct, which is to be organized, to be ritualistic, and to have a set pattern and routine.  All of that relates to security.  Change is unsecure, unpredictable, and unable to control.  That’s really what we fear most, losing control. 
We, humans, believe that if we can control everything around us, we can avoid disaster and find success – to control the flow of our lives.  However, I’m beginning to learn that the more control I give up, the more success I gain; the tighter I cling, the more I lose.   
More than financial or professional success, I desire peace with myself, my family, my friends, my neighbors and my God.  There is no secret formula, or ten-step program that can guarantee possession.  Formulas and programs are about taking control. I’ve tried them, again and again.  However, the past several years I’ve tried something new – letting go.
It’s been scary not knowing what the day holds, or what will happen tomorrow.  What’s funny is that this concept isn’t something new.  None of us knows what the day holds or what will happen tomorrow, and none of us have control over it.  We can set goals and agendas and direct ourselves to fulfill them, but whether we are successful remains out of our control, no matter how much we believe.  The moment we become comfortable in our assurance, something happens to shake our belief and disrupt our plans, and then cause us to doubt everything we thought we knew, especially ourselves, since we thought we were in control.
Please don’t misunderstand.  Continue to set goals, agendas and make plans (they are good), but keep in mind that the ultimate success of them is beyond our control.  If our plans succeed, be grateful and thankful, but if they fail, get back up and try again.  This is living – going from moment to moment, step to step, journey to journey.  Our failures are just as much part of our living as is our successes.   Who we are, is who we are while we’re on the journey, not necessarily what we achieve at the end.  Don’t fear change, get excited about it, because in the midst of it dwells our peace.
Storms, obstacles, set-backs and monkey-wrenches are not to be feared, for they’re just as important in our lives as our triumphs, our sunny days, and our discoveries. We won’t truly appreciate acceptance letters unless we’ve first received our share of rejections, and neither defines who we truly are. How do we let go of our fear of change?  I’m still working on that.  So far, I take it day by day, and one decision at a time.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Breathe

You can’t do it all in one day.  Do what you can, but make sure you breathe.  Take a moment to catch your breath, reflect on how far you’ve come, and then find your second wind. 

Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Father's Day

As someone who no longer has a father, nor had a relationship with their father when they were alive, and thought I’d have to raise my children without a father,  this was usually a holiday I chose to ignore.  The word “Father” was nothing but a negative connotation for failure. However, over the past eighteen years, I’ve come to witness what a true father looks like, and I couldn’t be more blessed to have those examples in my life. The first good father I met was my husband.  When we got married, he instantly stepped into the role of father, not just step-father, to my two oldest children.  He didn’t jump into this responsibility with hesitation, but with full force, even though he had absolutely no experience whatsoever or children of his own.  Not long after, we added a third child to our family.The next good father I met was my father-in-law, who himself was a step-father and never had children of his own.  He didn’t like me much, I wasn’t the ideal partner for his son-in-law, but we managed our difference through mutual respect.  Even today, we have many conflicting ideals, opinions and beliefs, but we share a great respect.Soon following, I met another father-figure important in my life, my Pastor.  Very weary of religious bigots, I watched and measured every word and every move, and after seventeen years, I’m still very impressed with this man’s character.  He earned my trust, respect and love.  He doesn’t tell me what I want to hear, but what I need to build my character and be a person of integrity.  That’s not been an easy task.Finally, but not least, the best father that’s come into my life is my Heavenly Father. I can’t even begin to express the difference having him with me, or the change that’s happened in my life, mostly the love and confidence I now have in myself.  That’s something I couldn’t learn from all these other great fathers.  They taught me to love others, but my Heavenly Father taught me to love myself.  It’s because of all these great fathers, which my life is filled with love, and love is the greatest treasure I’ve ever found.If you have a great father in your life, please take a little bit of time this Sunday and tell them ‘thanks’.  Let them know you love and appreciate them.Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Dis – What Was I Talking About?

Distractions! Nothing stops progress more than interruptions. Most often, the greatest appetizing diversions always occur when you’re facing a deadline, or the finish line, of a huge project.  However, failure to meet our goals is not the fault of the diversion.  WE are accountable, WE are in full control of our choices, and WE are the one responsible to make the decision to allow, or reject, the distraction.
Not all distractions are bad.  Some are a welcomed reprieve; a change of pace to re-store energy, re-charge and re-focus.  A vacation, an afternoon nap, a celebratory evening are all good examples of good distractions.  However, just as important is the discipline to return to the tasks at hand.
Examine your latest goals, and then try to identify the biggest distractions that have kept you from reaching that goal. 
Go ahead, do it now.
So?
Now that you know what they are, use your creativity and wisdom to manage them.
You still there?  I hope you weren’t distracted.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Becoming Our Own Biggest Fan

Artists spend a great portion of their time creating their masterpieces, and then an even greater amount of time promoting and marketing them.  Like any relationship, the beginning of this process is filled with excitement and much zeal, but after a prolonged period of exposure, that enthusiasm begins to fade.
As artists, we need to make sure that the ‘love’ of our art doesn’t wane with the decrease of excitement, but solidifies to an even deeper degree.  The millionth time we meet a new fan, we must have the same degree of excitement for our work as we had with the first hundred. The only way this can happen successfully, is that we must become our own biggest fan.
One of the first things I learned in my college marketing class was: If we don’t believe in what we’re selling or promoting, neither will anyone else. If we’re not excited about our work, who else will be?  Not only does this excitement affect the way we market our products, but it greatly affects our stamina, determination and devotion. We must continually inspire ourselves in order to be an inspiration.
One of the basic laws of the human condition is: We want what everyone else wants.  A good marketing strategy is to create desire and demand.  The greatest tool to do just that is by becoming your own biggest fan.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray

Set Small Goals

Human beings crave a sense of accomplishment.  A defeatist attitude usually comes from not being able to meet the goals we set in our lives.  Often times, we give up when the pressures get too hard, and we feel like we spin our wheels, mercilessly, without any traction. 
Where we usually fail when it comes to meeting goals, is we often set them too big, especially if we’re a dreamer, or artistic in any way.  Creative people see no limit to the possibilities, and are open to most prospects, so we set our life goals in adherence to our dreams, regardless if they’re against the natural current.  Practical people usually shake their heads at this behavior, because they themselves usually opt for what is in their grasp, what they’re capable to achieve within reason, and don’t often fight the current seeing no sense in the action.  However, neither is wrong and the other right.  There should be a balance between the two. 
Dreamers shouldset impossible goals, because that’s where true dreams are realized.  However, we need to be practical in our application, and set for us a series of small goals along the way.   With each small accomplishment we achieve, we will also receive more confidence, more faith, and more inspiration to move forward.  If we constantly struggle against the current, without finding small pools of respite by the wayside, we’ll burn ourselves out.  We must be able to find small side-streams to rest and regroup, so that we will have the strength to make it all the way upstream. 
Your inspiration exercise today:  Think about what you really want out of life, and then try to think of at least six small steps you can take that will ‘lead’ in that direction, and then set one of them as your first goal.
Till next time,~T.L. Gray