Eden Baylee's Blog, page 87

Music Monday accompanied by a rant ~ Cold as Ice

Remember Foreigner? They were a British-American rock band formed in the seventies. They sang a song called “Cold As Ice” and it became one of their big hits. The song was about a woman. When I listen to it now, I interpret the lyrics to be about something else.

Winter is my least favorite season. I make no secret of it, and this year is making up for mild winters of the past.

My experience with winter?

I’m Canadian.

I grew up in Montreal, a city where the winters were much harsher than they are in Toronto, where I now live. We had more snow, which was fun as a kid. I used to skate, toboggan, and jump in snow banks.

As I’ve aged, I’ve grown a thicker skin (metaphorically), but the physical reality is the exact opposite. I wear a hat in the house four to six months of the year. If there is one thing I loathe, it’s having my head cold. I also don’t like being touched on the top of my head. It gives me the shivers like the cold does, so the hat keeps me warm and prevents anyone from patting my head.

Along with the hat, I wear little socks that resemble slippers, and I have a cup of tea beside me all day, which I repeatedly reheat if I don’t drink it quickly enough. It’s not that I can’t afford heating. The truth is I feel the cold acutely and find it difficult to think unless my entire body is warm. Someone coined the term “brain freeze” for me, I’m sure of it.

Canada is a country of four seasons. I love the heat. I hate the cold. I used to think I had to suffer through winter to appreciate the summer, but no …

Seriously, no.

I would appreciate and love summer even if it were 365 days of the year.

This circles me back to Foreigner and “Cold as Ice,” a song about a love affair with a woman, written by a man. He considers her cold as ice because she sacrifices love for money, prefers gold and riches to a fortune in warm feelings from him. He says to her, someday, she will pay the price for wanting paradise.

I would too if paradise was somewhere hot.

I used to like that song, but I listened to it last week while in my car at below freezing temperatures, waiting for the seat warmers to kick in. That was following an ice storm during Christmas, and before the freezing rain which recently hit. “Cold” and “ice” were not two words I wanted to hear.

So … I decided to do a quick re-write of the song.

~~~

I’m as cold as ice

I’m not willing to sacrifice my hat

I never take it off

But someday it will be spring

I know

I’ve seen it before

It happens all the time

I’m closing the door

To leave the cold behind

I’m wearing my socks

My big sweater too

I look out my window

And wish for the sun

I’m as cold as ice

I’m not willing to sacrifice my hat

I never take it off

But someday it will be spring

I know …

~~~

Brrrr. Now enjoy the real lyrics, stay warm everyone,

~eden

Filed under: Musical Mondays, Revelations & Humor

New Release by @RaymondBolton ~ Awakening (The Ydron Saga)

Raymond and I go back a few years when  we wrote as part of the collective Black Ink, White Paper. We had lots of fun in that group, penning blogs that were not just about writing, but about what we did outside of writing.

Ray and I also shared a love of  good scotch, so we always had something to talk about.

I’m thrilled to learn he has released his novel  Awakening, The Ydron Saga.

I know Ray to be a pristine writer and I’ve picked up my copy. Find out more and grab yours.

Way to start the new year, Ray, congratulations!

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Sold via Amazon: ebook | Print

How does a world equipped with bows, arrows and catapults, where steam power is just beginning to replace horses and sailing ships, avert a conquest from beyond the stars?

Prince Regilius has been engineered to combat the Dalthin, a predatory alien species that enslaves worlds telepathically, and to do so he must unite his people. But when his mother murders his father, the land descends into chaos and his task may prove impossible. Faced with slaying the one who gave him life in order to protect his world, he seeks a better way. Set in a vast and varied land where telepaths and those with unusual metal abilities tip the course of events, Awakening goes to the heart of family, friendship and betrayal.

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Connect To Raymond

Website | Facebook | Twitter

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Filed under: Author & Artist Interviews, Author Promotions

Props to the people I interviewed in 2013

I hosted 47 authors in 2011, the first complete year of my blog.

I expanded the segment to other creatives with 44 interviews in 2012.

In 2013, I continued to share amazing talent on my blog. Read them if you missed their interviews initially. They’re wonderful people to have as part of your social network.

 Click on the name for the interview. 

 Profession and/or Genre
 Name


 Mystery/Thriller/Humour
 John Dolan


 Crime/Paranormal
 Tim Dittmer


 YA Fantasy/Romance
 Raine Thomas


 Editor and author of poetry
 Loren Kleinman


 Women’s fiction
 Erin Cawood


 Romance/Contemporary fiction/Short stories
 Cameron Garriepy


 Memoir/Crime thriller/Romance
 Billy Ray Chitwood


 Paranormal Romance/Celtic
 Shannon Macleod


 Contemporary Fiction
 Lance Burson




 Erotica/Romance
 Layna Pimentel


 Editor and author of urban fantasy/Flash fiction
 Annetta Ribken


 Thriller/Suspense
 Everett Powers


 Historical fiction/Humour
 Nicole Chardenet


 Paranormal/Suspense
 Sheilagh G. Lee


 Filmmaker and author of non-fiction/Poetry
 John T. Trigonis


 Satire/Politics/Humour
 Christoph Paul


 Literary Podcaster/Social media brand manager
 Lydia Aswolf


 Actor/Producer/Biographer
 Gregor Collins


 Science fiction/Fantasy
 Matthew Bryan


 Editor and author of short stories/novellas
 Jennifer Wingard




 Publicist and author of multiple genres
 Anne Chaconas


 Speculative fiction/Horror/YA
 Jessica McHugh


 Urban paranormal/Epic fantasy
 J.H. Sked


 Short stories/Aspiring novelist
 Timothy Bryant Smith


 Victorianesque fantasy/Science fiction
 MeiLin Miranda


 Noir crime/Personal development non-fiction
 Joe Hefferon


 Instructional non-fiction/Science fiction/Fantasy
 Matt Posner


 Historical Fiction
 Mary Ann Bernal

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Filed under: Author & Artist Interviews

Gratitude – My Message for the Holidays

This past year has been a strange one, a tumultuous year for many friends and loved ones, myself included. I had not intended to write this post at the beginning of the month, but then something strange happened.

I took a shower.

No, that’s not the strange part.

The strange part happened during it. My muse opened the door and stepped in. He’s done this before, but not in a while. I should have known. He tends to show up when I least expect him. On this particular visit, we had a long conversation. It started off as more of a monologue on my part. I rhymed off all the things I had to do, my gift list, my dinner list, this list and that list. The lists went on and on, and somewhere between the shampoo and body scrub, he reminded me to clean out my ears because I wasn’t listening to him.

He’s kind of pushy that way, but I complied, and that’s when he said I needed to blog about gratitude.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes in the frenzy of “doing,” I tend to forget just “being.” When I cannot take the time to reflect, then it’s difficult to be grateful.

Another year was coming to an end. It deserved its own time apart from all the things that still had to be done.

A time-out was important.

He was right.

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2013 went by in a flash, and the years have gone by quicker as I’ve gotten older. When the end of the year approaches, it speeds up, almost as if we want this one to be over with, so we can start anew. In an effort to let a difficult year slip into oblivion, I thought the best thing was to not even write about it, but of course, I could not. Life, like my muse, always shows up on its own schedule—at an inconvenient time. I didn’t feel like writing this. I had a million other things to do. Yet here I am.

So … gratitude.

Around this time of year, the question does not tend to be: “What are you grateful for?”

For Canadians, that was back in October. Americans had their Thanksgiving less than a month ago.

No, this holiday demands to know: “What do you want?”

Everywhere I turn, I see the lure of things that people want.

For me, there’s little I want that is material in nature.

Stay with me … this is going off on a tangent but I’ll circle back. I promise.

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I visited the John Lennon exhibit in New York City several years ago at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Annex, which no longer exists. The exhibit consisted of all things Lennon that one would expect—music, memorabilia, pictures, albums. I’m a big fan of John Lennon, but I don’t remember anything specific from that show, except for one thing—a crumpled brown paper bag.

The exhibit was marked: “Patient’s Belongings,” and it contained all of John Lennon’s belongings after he was killed, his body processed, and his clothing removed by the coroner.

Stark.

That image has stayed with me, and I saw the exhibit four years ago. For me, it was a metaphor for life, no matter who we are. Though Lennon lives on through his music, he left this world as we will all leave it, with nothing of value we can take with us.

For many of us, who we touch, love, spend time with, and share of ourselves will be our lasting legacy.

With a circle of friends that extends out from a small family, I consider the readers and writers whom I’ve connected with over the past several years as important in my life.

This season, I will spend time thinking of you and how you have enriched my life, how material goods will never replace what you mean to me. Even the occasional email you send my way is worth more than any diamond, which to me is worthless, so don’t send me one.

In this fast world where we are sometimes overburdened with too many tasks and too little time, I never want to be someone who doesn’t take the time for those I love most. That includes the readers of my blog and books.

Thank you.

In the end, none of us will be defined by the ‘stuff’ we have, but by the kindness we’ve shown, the love we’ve shared, and more than anything, by the gratitude we’ve shown others.

Wishing all love, warmth, health, and happiness,

~ eden ♥

Filed under: Revelations & Humor

Music Mondays with Stormy Weather

Toronto woke up to a deep freeze after this weekend’s ice storm. My heart goes out to those without power, especially during this crucial time of year for travel and family.

“Stormy Weather” sung by Billie Holiday is one of my favorite versions of this song. Here is hoping power is restored quickly and temperatures begin to rise.

If you need a bit of heat, feel like to pick up a copy of any of my books.

~eden

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Buy links: 

US | UK | Canada | Germany | France | Japan | Italy | Spain

Filed under: Musical Mondays

Get Inside the Mind of author Mary Ann Bernal (@BritonandDane)

Social media and serendipity connected me to Mary Ann Bernal, and I’m proud to say she’s my final author interview of 2013.

I knew little about her until now, but I loved discovering her work. You will too.

Please welcome Mary Ann and learn more about her and her books.

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Who is Mary Ann?

Mary Ann Bernal, author of The Briton and the Dane novels, is an avid history buff whose area of interest focuses on Ninth Century Anglo-Saxon Britain during the Viking Age.  While pursuing a degree in business administration, she managed to fit creative writing classes and workshops into her busy schedule to learn the craft, but it would take decades before her “Erik the Viking” novel was ultimately published.

Mary Ann is also a passionate supporter of the United States military, having been involved with letter writing campaigns and other support programs since Operation Desert Storm.  She has appeared on The Morning Blend television show hosted by KMTV, the CBS television affiliate in Omaha, and was interviewed by the Omaha World-Herald for her volunteer work.  She has also been a featured author on Triangle Variety Radio, The Phil Naessens Show, and The Writers Showcase, and has been interviewed extensively by American and European bloggers.

Mary Ann is a New York “expat,” and currently resides in Omaha, Nebraska.

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View Mary Ann’s video of The Briton and the Dane:  The Complete Trilogy by hitting the image below.

Available from Amazon in ebook and print

US | UK

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Inside Mary Ann’s Mind

[eden] Welcome Mary Ann. Please tell readers your idea of perfect happiness. 

[Mary Ann] To be at peace with oneself and one’s surroundings.

What turns you on creatively? Watching movies.  Yes, I will admit to being an action/adventure/period and Sci Fi junkie.  What better way is there than to picture your own characters in settings on the big screen? 

Do you overuse certain words or phrases? Paying no heed and I beg forgiveness come to mind.

[eden] I don’t think anyone has ever said this before.

What quality do you most admire in a man? The Nine Noble Virtues – bet you can’t name them, which is why I’ve listed them: Courage; Truth; Honor; Fidelity; Discipline; Hospitality; Self-reliance; Industriousness and Perseverance.

In a woman? I do not believe in double standards.  The Nine Noble Virtues, of course.

What is your greatest regret? To quote the words of my favorite song: “Regrets, I’ve had a few, but then again, too few to mention” – for the youngsters in our audience, the song is “My Way” written by Paul Anka, made famous by Frank Sinatra, but I prefer Elvis Presley’s version.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Working on one elusive virtue – patience – so far, the word DOES NOT COMPUTE!

[eden] I’m the same way. I think it has to do with wanting to do too much in too little time. 

What is your greatest fear? Not finishing everything I’ve set out to do before leaving this earth.

Which living person do you most admire? Hillary Rodham Clinton – and yes, I will vote for her if she runs for President.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Call me Felicity Smoak – do not recall the name or career?  She’s the IT guru at Queen Industries.  Still need help?  Check out the TV series “Arrow.”

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be? In human form, naturally – a Starship Captain exploring space and booting Captain Janeway out of my chair.  For non-Trekkers – I am referring to Star Trek Voyager’s bridge.

What do you consider your greatest achievement? My son is my greatest achievement.

What is the trait you most deplore in others? I can think of two – greed and lack of compassion.

What is your greatest extravagance? Extra cheese pizza – an artery-clogging nightmare, but something has to be the cause of death!

What is one thing you want to do before you die? Getting my pilot’s license.

[eden] Terrific, I hope you accomplish this!

Who is your favorite writer/musician/film director? Frans Gunnar Bengtsson/John Williams/George Lucas

What are some of your favorite curse words? Oh, my – cannot write them here!  I do try to behave myself!

Do you have a motto? Never give up, never surrender!  (Captain Jonathan Quincy Taggart, “Galaxy Quest”)

[eden] Great motto, and love your brevity, Mary Ann. I’m happy we bumped into one another on Twitter.

Readers, feel free to say hi and leave a comment for Mary Ann. 

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Connect to Mary Ann

Website | Twitter @BritonandDane | Facebook | Blog

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Filed under: Author & Artist Interviews

Music Mondays with Bill Withers

Toronto was hit with its first big snowstorm this weekend.

I hate winter so I thought of summer, which led to thoughts of sunshine.

“Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers is a favorite of mine, even though I break out in a sweat every time I sing it.  Try singing along with him and you’ll see what I mean (at the 54 second mark).

If you feel like sweating by reading instead of singing, pick up a copy of any of my books.

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Buy links: 

US | UK | Canada | Germany | France | Japan | Italy | Spain

Filed under: Musical Mondays

Get Inside the Mind of author Matt Posner (@Schooloftheages)

I met Matt through mutual friend and author, Junying Kirk. He was kind enough to interview me earlier this year, and I’m delighted to return the favor.

Matt is a diligent writer with passionate views. He doesn’t pull his punches as you will find out from his interview. He’s written a new book entitled How to Write Dialogue, and I’m happy to spotlight it.

Please welcome a man of many talents, author Matt Posner.

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Who is Matt?

Matt Posner is a writer and teacher from New York City. Originally from Miami, FL, Matt lives in Queens with Julie, his wife of more than ten years, and works in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Matt is also the Dean of School of the Ages, America’s greatest magic school, located on a secret island in New York Harbor, and is pleased to tell stories about its people in the five-book series School of the Ages, which will be published between 2010 and 2015. As the child of classically trained musicians, Matt is a performing poet and percussionist with The Exploration Project, New York’s premier avant-garde multimedia club band.

Matt teaches high school English, with a fondness for special education students, as well as SAT preparation. He has an active channel at youtube dot com called schooloftheages and regularly posts to pinterest dot com backslash mattposner. His interests include magic and the paranormal, literature, movies, history and culture, visual arts, world music, religion, photography, and professional wrestling history.

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Amazon: US | UK | Canada | India | Australia

Great dialogue is essential to fiction — but what are the elements that make it great? Novelist Matt Posner breaks down the subject with meticulous detail and plentiful examples from published novels. Using classic novels and recent novels by active publishing authors, Matt tackles every element of dialogue writing, from content to punctuation. It’s a fun and comprehensive study of dialogue writing that’s as entertaining as it is useful.

How to Write Dialogue contains selections of expert dialogue writing by eleven current working and publishing authors in many genres. This amazing bullpen includes fantasist JA Beard, science fiction writer Cynthia Echterling, harsh realist Marita A. Hansen, multicultural icon Junying Kirk, horror specialist Stuart Land, fantasy romance author Mysti Parker, conspiracy expert Roquel Rodgers, prolific nonconformist Jess C. Scott, fantasy/science fiction/romance author Chrystalla Thoma, thriller and children’s book writer Ey Wade, and time travel romance specialist Georgina Young-Ellis.

Featuring commentaries by best-seller Tim Ellis and prolific non-conformist Jess C. Scott, and with illustrations by fine artist Eric Henty, How to Write Dialogue is a powerful resource for fiction writers at all levels of experience.

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Inside Matt’s Mind

[eden] Welcome Matt! So good to finally have you here. Please tell readers your idea of perfect happiness. 

[Matt] I would like to stop making mistakes. The things I’m too lazy to do, someone else does them all for me and I don’t have to feel bad about neglecting those tasks.

I would like to be able to eat cheese all day every day without any health consequences.

I would like Internet that is lightning fast and always shows me what I am looking for whatever search terms I pick.

I would like it if all people on the opposite side of the political spectrum from me just shut up and mind their business forever.

I would like to be a professor with my own office, tenure, and the right to teach whatever courses I like.

[eden] Wow, I don’t think anyone’s ever listed it quite like this before. You must be a teacher! 

What turns you on creatively? I like permutations and combinations. I like to blend old things in new ways. Things that I do have been done before but not in the same place or in that particular way. For me it’s like the world is a Chopped kitchen with infinite ingredients. How do I make these previously uncombined things taste good together?

Do you overuse any words or phrases? I went through a phase in which all my dialogue tags were “snapped.” A search-and-replace took care of that problem. Other than that, I am like many other teachers in that I tend to tell the same stories over and over again, to the point that I apologize when doing it even if my class hasn’t heard those stories yet.

What quality do you most admire in a man? If you mean the quality I admire in a man but that is not present in me, then I admire the ability to fix things. I envy contractors and mechanics.  I can keep track of hundreds of characters in my head, and construct lengthy periodic sentences, but I can’t change my oil or replace a bad light switch. A house that I own has had running toilets for three, four, five years, and I keep reaching into the tank after the flush to make them stop running, because I can’t repair a running toilet myself and the plumber is too damn expensive.

[eden] Matt, they have instructional youtube videos on how to fix running toilets. You’ll save on your water bill too.

In a woman? Uh-uh, not touching this one. I went to graduate school during the 1990′s iteration of feminism (Laura Mulvey, etc.) and learned that if a man has an opinion about women, he is automatically being sexist. Let me appeal to an expert instead. Whatever Sheryl Sandberg said in Lean In is 100% right.

What is your greatest regret? I should have focused my college education upon a money-making profession. Without money, life is too damn difficult.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My diet. I don’t enjoy healthful food (greens, fish).  I wish I did. I wish I was one of those people who eats salad with tofu and exercises every day. It’s not just a matter of willpower, which I don’t have; I wish I craved those things rather than seeing them as a disgusting chore to eat. I would like to be one of those people who gets intense pleasure from being fit and healthy. But I get intense pleasure from gruyere and asiago and potato latkes and gooey chocolate chips.

[eden] You are an honest man. I’m sure you speak for many people with this  response.

Do you have any great fears? Day to day, I most dread being late, especially because of traffic. It triggers a feeling of being out of control, of being helpless in the hands of malignant forces.

On a greater level, my pattern as a human being is to fear losing what I have worked to obtain, such as my home, my possessions, my creative output. I think my personality pattern is about building a stable base and then trying to improve incrementally. If I lose the base, I will be traumatized. Once I lost a flash drive that had creative work on it and I was so upset that I couldn’t write fiction for three months.

Which living person do you most admire? This is where I should be listing great humanitarians or successful business leaders, right? Or people who are more successful than I am in my own profession? But I see feet of clay everywhere I look. Let me try hard…

Colin Wilson, who is now 82, is a man with no foibles that I know of. His writing is terrific. He writes on topics that I like. He’s never done anything shitty that I know of or been in any scandal. He has a tremendous output and I have never read anything of his that I didn’t think was super. So I’ll pick him. I see that he has had a stroke and lost his ability to speak. I’m very sorry for that. I won’t ever get a chance to communicate with him — nor have I achieved enough in life to deserve it.

I should mention that the living and working writer Andre Jute has been very good to me since I met him, providing advice when asked and offering promotional help not only when asked, but on his own just because of his kindness. He is a very wise and articulate man as well, someone I would like to measure up to someday.

What profession other than your own would you like to try? I’m a teacher. A lot of people aspire to be teachers. It’s a caregiving profession, requiring a high level of skill and training, seen by some as having nobility, seen by others as the refuge of the incompetent and lazy. Those who think the latter can go and penetrate themselves. Those who think the former, thank you.

When I meet aspirants to the profession, lately at least, I try to talk them out of it. The profession has no honor in this day and age in the United States. We are treated by the powers that be with as much respect as clowns sitting on the high seats of dunking tanks. If I could be the same kind of teacher who taught me, I would do the job gladly until retirement. Maybe that day will come again, but right now the job is the shits.

Thus, assuming there were money in it, I’d like to be a movie critic or an art historian. I’d also like to be a professional drummer, and I wouldn’t mind being an actor either.

[eden] I’ve been fortunate to cross paths with many wonderful teachers in my life. I think an art historian would be a cool profession too.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be? Duh.

What do you consider your greatest achievement? I survived 1999-2004, years in which I had no job security.

What is the trait you most deplore in others? I can’t stand lack of compassion. People who don’t care about the suffering of others make me sick.

What is your greatest extravagance? My wife and I travel to Europe every year.

[eden] Fantastic! 

What is one thing you want to do before you die? I would like to live in some of the great cities of Europe, with enough money and with sufficient fluency in the language.

Who is your favorite writer/musician/film director? Writer — J.R.R. Tolkien/Jane Austen/Colin Wilson/Neil Gaiman. Musician — Jascha Heifetz/Zakir Hussain. Film director — Hayao Miyazaki/Stanley Kubrick.

[eden] Great lists. I like Kubrick as well. 

What are some of your favorite curse words? I like to create new combinations of the F word and other words. Instead of cock-a-doodle-doo, maybe F-a-doodle-doo. That sort of thing.

What is your motto? There is never enough time for everything I need to do.

[eden] You’re right Matt, there never seems to be enough time, but I’m happy you found some to come on my blog. Thank you for such a revealing interview.

Readers, please connect to Matt, and learn what he has to offer on his sites.

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Connect to Matt

Website | Facebook | Pinterest | Youtube

 Twitter: @schooloftheages | Amazon Author Page

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Filed under: Author & Artist Interviews

The Best Laid Plans ~ An update to my mystery novel

The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men

Gang aft agley

 ~ From “To a Mouse” by Robert Burns

Most of us know the line paraphrased as:

The best-laid plans of mice and men

Often go awry

Or simply: The best laid plans …

In layman’s terms, the meaning of the line is: No matter how carefully one plans, something may still go wrong, or the result may not be as expected.

If you consider I’m not a planner anyway, it is amazing how I accomplish much of anything, let alone write. In the writer’s world, I’m known as a “pantser.” I fly by the seat of my pants. I don’t plan my storyline—the ones who do are “plotters.” Some days, I envy them.

Up until now with writing flash fiction, short stories, and novellas, I’ve had the good fortune of not having to plan.

When I set out to write a novel in September 2012, a seed of an idea took root in my brain. It sprouted slowly, branched off in different directions until it began blossoming several months later. The story did not reveal itself to me in its entirety as did other stories I’d written, but for some ridiculous reason, I continued to think it might.

Given that, I committed myself to finish the novel by year-end 2013. I wrote a post in January called Scaling Back the Juggling Act to publicize it. I figured that if I wrote it down and announced my intentions, my deadline could no longer be a moving target. In other words, I had to follow through.

Fast forward eleven months …

People who know me well understand I’m private with my writing. I rarely disclose works in progress. I don’t lament when I’m struggling, nor do I announce any great revelations. Based on how I write, things can change, so there is no point giving away anything until the product is complete.

Why am I telling you this?

The main reason is that people have been asking me when my book is coming out.

And why shouldn’t they? I’m the one who said it would be ready by now.

Firstly, I’d like to say I am so honored and thrilled for the interest. The fact that my book will not be released this year obligates me to explain. Even though the deadline is self-imposed, I adhere to my own work ethics, and my word should mean something. I am disappointed in myself for not keeping it.

My inability to plan the release date is a big lesson for me. I set the fuzzy timeline but did not build in a buffer. Ultimately, I underestimated the steep learning curve of switching both genre and classification.

A few clues to my personality should have alerted me to the challenges.

I am my own worst critic, and I’m anal—a deadly combination. I cannot release what I consider inferior writing just to meet a deadline.
I’m fearful of my editor, Annetta Ribken, even though I absolutely adore her. That adoration compels me not to disappoint her. She knows I want to become a better writer, and that can only happen with hard truths, delivered in a way only she can.
I edit and re-edit my work as I write. I know this is wrong on so many levels. For my next novel, I aim to write a crappy first draft and not worry about it. For this one, that ship has sailed.
I’m not verbose in spoken or written conversation, and I’m no fan of wordiness. I’ve always admired authors who can write 100K and edit down to 80K. My style of writing is spare, so my difficulty has been to build up word count, not slash it.
I love a challenge even though writing this book has frustrated me to tears. At times, I despaired as to whether I could sustain a novel.

As of now, the truth is: My book will not be coming out this year. It will come out in 2014.

I’d like to end with a quote that makes the hardships some of us go through seem rather trivial, but we can still take inspiration from it for whatever challenges us.

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It always seems impossible until it’s done.

~ Nelson Mandela

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Filed under: Important Announcements, Revelations & Humor

Get Inside the Mind of author Joe Hefferon (@hefferonJoe)

I’ve gotten to know many sides of Joe Hefferon—author, news junkie, pithy commenter, wine connoisseur, and ex-cigar smoker.

He also has a self-deprecating sense of humor, which borders on the bizarre at times, but at the heart of it — the man is smart, very smart. And I have a thing for smart men.

Joe writes a terrific column for About.com called the Inspiring Women Series. He wrote a wonderful piece on me earlier this year. He’s interviewed many incredible women and offers a thoughtful perspective on each one. His articles are generous and well written.

If you get the feeling he likes women, you’d be right. Read his series and you’ll know what I mean.

I imagine Joe’s life experiences have shaped the man he is today. His responses to my questions reflect some world weariness, a bit of old-fashioned wisdom, and lastly—wonderment—a quality I greatly admire.

For these reasons, I think you’re going to enjoy learning more about Mr. Hefferon. I know I did.

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Not Your Average Joe

Joe was in law enforcement for 25 years before he retired as captain, and is a single dad and father of two. He keeps his hand in law enforcement, teaching classes in Personal Safety and Recognizing Signs of Danger for corporate clients.

He is the author of the noir crime novel, The Sixth Session and a personal development book inspired by the principles of architecture called The Seventh Level.

Joe is currently working on a noir crime novel set in L.A. in 1965.

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Buy from Amazon

In The Seventh Level, Joe breaks down the architectural process into seven fundamental steps from creativity to planning and best practices:

“I teach you how to follow the steps to reorganize your life or design that big project you’ve been putting off – to write a book, become a chef or open a small business. The premise is that you conceive of you and your mission in terms of a place – to be designed, built and maintained. I have peppered the book with dozens of quotes from interviews and the writings of architects. I ‘cross-apply’ their wisdom from the built world to personal growth. It’s a unique take on the subject matter and I’ve already gotten the attention of a few well-known architects who are curious to read how I portray their profession. It’s not a book about architecture but about how architects work.”

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Inside Joe’s Mind

[eden] Welcome Hef, and this is the only time I will call you that. Please tell readers what turns you on creatively.

[Joe] Good writing, old poetry, personal stories of triumph and sadness, black & white photography, classical music (sweeping romantic-era symphonies and adagios). I think writers see the bizarre or comic within that which is officious, but we also feel tragedy more deeply – it lingers in us. Oh and dark, red, chewy wine.

[eden] All wonderful, and because you’ve given me permission to share this … you are also smitten and inspired by the beautiful songstress, Lara Fabian. Afterall, you told me you’d crawl through broken glass just to do her laundry.

What is your idea of perfect happiness? From a writer’s perspective? Walking by someone in an airport who is reading my book and wiping away a tear. Otherwise, happiness is not perfect; it’s too subjective and so dictated by context it’s maddening. To come as close to perfection as possible would be to have many more happy times than unhappy ones, relatively speaking. This question made my cerebellum hurt.

[eden] This is a great answer. Your pain was worth it for me. 

Do you overuse any words or phrases? Lately I’ve been saying ‘afflicted’ a lot. She’s afflicted with melodrama and he’s afflicted with yellow fever. I suppose I like the idea that too much of something you love can be debilitating or that sometimes emotions are something we are stricken with, as if it’s beyond our immediate control. I also say, “You betcha!” (I really don’t say that.)

What quality do you most admire in a man? humility

In a woman? serenity

[eden] Nice.

What is your greatest regret? That I lacked the conviction to see things through when I was younger so I could understand accomplishment and fuel a desire to build upon it. I was always changing my mind about what I wanted to do or be, so I never accomplished anything.

[eden] 25 years in law enforcement? You’re too hard on yourself, Captain.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Fantasy? Be 15 years younger with the same brain. Reality? I’m finally happy with myself, so I wouldn’t change much right now, but I’d definitely work harder. Writing is a great job for lazy people.

[eden] I love your honesty, even if I disagree with you on the last part.  

What is your greatest fear? That my children will die before me.

Which living person do you most admire? It was my mother until she died last year. I haven’t found a suitable replacement. Although I could admire a man like Senator John McCain who was offered early release from a Vietnamese prison during the war but declined out of an obligation to a code of honor. Commander McCain just couldn’t allow himself to go home while men who were captured before him were still captive. That’s real balls. I also recently came to admire Diana Nyad, the 64-year-old who swam from Cuba to Florida. “Old Guys Rule” t-shirt sales must have spiked after that.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Late-night talk-show host, like Craig Ferguson.

[eden] I’d love to see this.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be? “What”? You mean it doesn’t have to be a person? Or did you mean profession? I would come back as Catherine Deneuve’s personal masseur.

What is your greatest achievement? I’m still waiting to have a great one. Finishing two books was a great personal achievement in terms of seeing projects thru, so it’s given me a better perspective on ideas and ambitions going forward.

What trait do you most deplore in others? narcissism (he said, while writing about himself)

Your greatest extravagance? restaurants

What is one thing you want to do before you die? get an extension

[eden] Ha! Great answer.

Who is your favorite writer/musician/film director?  Cormac McCarthy, with Joan Didion sliding in for the silver medal, but McCarthy is astonishing. Musician? Chet Atkins. Film director? I don’t have that movies category in my brain, but off the top of my head, whoever directed The Bourne Identity, Shakespeare in Love and/or North by Northwest.

What is your motto? Write drunk – edit sober.

[eden] I think your motto must be working for you, Joe. Thanks for answering my questions. I really enjoyed reading them.

Readers, please say “hi” to Joe, and connect to him on all his networks.

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Connect to Joe

Blog | Website | About.com Inspiring Women series 

 LinkedIn | Twitter: @hefferonjoe | Amazon Author Page

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Filed under: Author & Artist Interviews