R.J. Palmer's Blog, page 8

Review of Mad Gods by Athanasios

First and foremost, let me say that I started reading Mad Gods with more than a little skepticism and was fully prepared to have to slog through a written work that I figured was more politically coded than the Bible. I was prepared to be bored out of my mind, Athanasios and you can be annoyed with me for it later but read this review first and perhaps you'll change your mind about it.



You see, I had interviewed Athanasios at one point and during the course of said interview, he had explained what Predatory Ethics means to him. His definition was something akin to, "Do unto you because I can," and since he'd written a few works about it and I had read the reviews and garnered some small kernel of the plot line from them, he asked me to read and review the books. Now that I've read Mad Gods I must say that I'm glad I have because it was not only an interesting and engaging read, it has underlying meaning and morals intricately interwoven into the storyline that are impossible to miss. Athanasios seems quite adept at multitasking in his written works and I can respect that.



I couldn't help but notice one consistently underlying theme through out the entire story and it was as simple as this: Destiny is not preordained or predetermined, your life and the direction it takes has everything to do with the choices you make. While a person's path may be set in front of them, it is up to them to determine which direction that path goes. It's integral to the story and carved like stone into the plotline.



I enjoyed the blending of religious iconography with mysticism and mythology as well as occultism. Mad Gods was an artful and masterful blend of all the myths, legends, rituals, rites and beliefs to which everyone clings, both the religious and the faithful and it painted a vivid portrait of the writers' beliefs about the circumstances that brought about all our modern day faiths. Athanasios has a remarkable grasp on historical religions and myths and legends and their influence on the modern day right down to the everyday choices we make.



In the end, I'd have to give Mad Gods a four star rating because there are formatting issues that took me out of the story at first. I thought that it was patterned for dialogue and wondered at it until I noticed that there really was no discernable pattern and I was thereafter able to disregard it and just continue reading. There are also some punctuation errors though I want to stress that they didn't interrupt the story or take from the storyline for me. I do believe that this is not a work for anyone who is easily offended or for kids because there are openly sexual encounters and though they're realistically not terribly descriptive, they are not for those who don't like written illustrations of same sex encounters. I really liked Mad Gods and believe that anyone with an open mind will think the exact same thing I did when they read it; Well done, Athanasios!



If you would like to read Mad Gods, visit here on Amazon and here on Smashwords and take the time to enjoy a thoroughly engrossing read!

Lemon Press and Lynn Hubbard

Hey there in the wingnut ward! I've spent some time talking with Lynn Hubbard, author of Run Into The Wind and found out that she says she's not ornery but insisted on being born in the middle of a blizzard. I'll let you guys judge for yourselves though so now, I'll just ask the questions and she can take center stage, what say? Here she is folks, Lynn Hubbard!



RJ Palmer:

I've visited your books page and read the reviews for RITW. It seems to be the consensus of opinion that your writing style is steamy and interesting without being over the top. Do you set out particularly to break the romance genre mold and write a new breed of romance novel?



Lynn Hubbard:

Absolutely! My books are enjoyed even by women who do not read romance books. I try to put my Character in a setting and stay historically true to that period. They are very detailed in all aspects ;-) but in a classy way.



RJ Palmer:

Your bio on Amazon says you were born during a blizzard on the first day of Spring and it seems to be something of which you are very proud. Tell me, are you inordinately ornery by nature or is it something you've worked to cultivate and does that help you in your writing? :)



Lynn Hubbard:

No I wasn't born ornry! I was actually a very sweet child who was very sick with Asthma. Not having the energy to run around outside, I stayed inside and read. It took me along time to build a backbone and stand up for myself as well as others. One reason why I love being an indie. No rules.



RJ Palmer:

Is there anything you want to tell me about Run Into the Wind? Something you've never told anyone or even something you've told everyone within earshot and want everyone else knowing?



Lynn Hubbard:

My characters are very detailed even the minor ones. One reader fell in love with a certain Army Captain and requested a book written about him. Don't know if Ben will get his own book, but I was very touched that he has a following!



RJ Palmer:

I know I'm the type of writer that could never write romance, science fiction/paranormal would be the only way I could go. Do you have another genre you would consider writing or is romance the only genre in which you can see yourself happily writing?



Lynn Hubbard:

I just finished a short Christmas story which has no Romance. It is mostly historical, I love history! I do have other Genre's in mind. In fact, I have a serial killer running around in my head as we speak. Shhhh!



RJ Palmer:

I like to hear quotes. Tell me your favorite and no, it doesn't have to have anything to do with writing but tell me what it is and why?



Lynn Hubbard:

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Life is not easy, I think that is why people love to read so much. If they are feeling down or stressed they can pick up a great book and fall into the pages. Like a mini vacation.



RJ Palmer:

What inspired you to write? Was there a particular choice you made or a journey of self-discovery?



Lynn Hubbard:

It was defifinately a jouney! A very long one. I was always better in than English and loved to draw in high school. I didn't start writing 'til my late 20's. I always got frustrated with some books I read. It would start out great and then it would shift somehow and the ending would suck. So I decided to write my own books which don't suck. ;-) I do like happy endings!



RJ Palmer:

Do you have a particular routine when it comes to your writing that helps the muse along? I know I call my routine a little OCD but tell me, do the words come whether you've stuck to your routine or not?



Lynn Hubbard:

No, I have to be inspired to write, I can't force it. So my books take a while, but they are worth it.



RJ Palmer:

Is there anything else you would like to tell me? To be truthful, I don't care if it's off the wall or not, just tell me something and be completely flippant for a moment if you would be so kind.



Lynn Hubbard:

I'm a pretty private person. I guess that's why I write fiction. I own a publishing company, Lemon Press Publishing, and most of my clients are non-fiction. They spilled out their life into their books. I am so proud of all of them, I'm not sure if I could ever be that strong. To rip off the scabs and open up my life to the world. If you have a second hop over to www.lemonpresspublishing.com and find some brave folks!





Awesome and thanks for talking to me, Lynn. If anyone is intrigued by what they see or would like to read Run Into The Wind (hint, hint) you can find it here on Amazon and here on Smashwords. You can also find out more about Lynn by visiting her website here and perhaps you'll be inclined to pick up a story. Enjoy!

Political Reflections

I've been watching a political ad lately in which Obama has stated that Americans have gotten kind of lazy in the last couple of decades. One of the Republican hopefuls is using this statement as a way to make Obama look bad and saying that his socialist policies are bankrupting the nation coupled with a whole bunch of promises to tear down and restructure the American government. Part of me wants to believe him but the realistic part of me (or perhaps the cynic because sometimes I use the two interchangeably) knows that these promises sound sterling but are in reality empty. These are the campaign promises spoken by every presidential hopeful for more decades than I've been on this earth and the same platitudes grow more tiresome each time I hear them.



In truth, I tend to agree with Obama. Americans as a whole have become lazy and complacent and just because we don't want to hear the truth doesn't make it any less truth. I have a certain kind of respect for someone who is willing to tell it like it is and Obama didn't disappoint. If you think about it, the President of the USA is the most highly paid, visible scape goat on a global level. He, and when the time comes, she must be at all times the perfect diplomat and is the representative of the United States and those are some pretty big shoes to fill. The President must also deal with bipartisanship and I'm wondering where everyone got the notion that it's an easy thing to accomplish.



You see, near as I can tell, bipartisanship is the art of arriving at no solution or acceptable compromise because the minority party in Congress will uphold the rights of the underdog while the majority party espouses the need to spend more money. When the roles are reversed and what was formerly the majority party then becomes the minority, it is then their job to champion the American people and the majority to become more cavalier or callous, whichever term you prefer. Then in their own time, those who are part of the bipartisan process will tout what they have or have not done and what they voted for or against and completely disregard the idea that they were once the ones to advocate or protest on the opposite side, whichever suits them better for the moment.



Does this seem a little convoluted to anyone besides me? Am I the only one who thinks that so much vacillation between opposite sides of the same spectrum might make it more difficult to separate fact from fiction and arrive at an agreement? Why is so much time spent bickering like children and almost nothing gets accomplished? Why does the President consistently get blamed for Congress dragging their feet? For Congress to pass a bill doesn't take a Presidential vote realistically because Congress can also issue an override on a Presidential veto with the proper amount of votes but the President will always be vilified for it. This sounds like the chess game from hell to me.



I've wondered how detrimental to our economic environment bipartisanship has been because if nothing's ever agreed upon, nothing ever gets accomplished. It's a simple enough idea and a cause and effect relationship that a child could notice. Why can't members of Congress pick one ideal, stick to it and bear the consequences or rewards respectively? If a person wants to try to solve the problem by spending more money they should stick with that stance and learn to defend it wholeheartedly and if a person wants to solve the economy problem by saving money then they should do the same. Don't jump from point to point or stance to stance simply because it'll make you look good in front of everyone else for your bid for the White House, that's counter productive.



Perhaps I'm a little too idealistic in this and perhaps I feel like I've cornered the market on one simple solution that could make a world of difference. If our politicians spent more time sticking with their home grown ideals (or at least that's how they always describe them) something might get done. Who knows? Isn't it worth a try? I don't really feel like I've solved all the nation's problems but I do feel that something more would get done if the politicians in our nation's capitol would stick to their guns and stand up for what they feel is the right thing to do. It certainly couldn't hurt.



Am I expecting too much from the leaders of our nation and conversely those who choose a career as a public servant? Am I expecting too little from the President? Many Presidential hopefuls have made promises to fight for this cause or that cause and perhaps being disillusioned, we've blamed the President when he's promised to fight for something and doesn't win. This isn't the movies, there isn't going to be a sweet and uplifting ending with inspirational music and the ticker tape parade. That kind of stuff just doesn't happen out here in the real world. The President will fight and the President will lose some of those fights but is it really fair to blame only the President when he does lose? I could've sworn that Congress had something to do with it or am I just completely daft and forgot how the legislative process goes? I couldn't have missed it completely because Congress hasn't changed their process in what seems like centuries. Perhaps that's why hardly anything of consequence ever gets done. It could also be that our governing body is so laboriously litigious that an attorney could argue and win over something as simple as the placement of a comma.



Is that a reflection of what we've become as Americans? Are we so worried about agendas and addendums or stepping on anyone's political toes that we've stepped into a minefield of do's and do not's and something as simple as the nation's representative telling it like it is would send us into a flurry of outrage? I sincerely hope not because in order to fix the situation we're in both politically and economically, we all have to be willing to take a critical look at it and remember that it was us that put us here. This is one fact from which there is no escape. We put us here and no one else and we can't be running to the government to fix it and expecting it to happen overnight. The problems we have didn't just crop up in the space of a night and they're not going to go away that way either. It's just not the logical next step no matter how you look at it. I'm not saying these problems can't be fixed; it's just not going to be quick or easy.



In the simplest of terms, I honestly believe the President has done a remarkably good job with what he's had to work with and what he's been up against. I believe he took on way too much in the way of campaign promises but I also believe that the American people put way too much faith in one man to fix all our problems overnight. We've been disheartened and disillusioned and we want to be angry at the President for it but that's not really fair if you ask me. I'm not saying that it's not okay to place a certain amount of expectation in his lap but to dump all the blame for all the problems of a culpable nation on one person is just unreasonable. He's not the only one who got us into this mess and it's high time we take our lumps as a nation and get on with life.



The President said at one point that Americans have become lazy, I tend to agree with him and that's fair.

Interview With a Mad God

Ladies and gentlemen, wingnuts and warriors, I was given the honor of an interview with Athanasios Galanis recently. It probably had something to do with the idea that I issued a challenge of sorts to him and he stepped up like a champ. That pretty much means that Mr. Galanis answered my questions and didn't let me intimidate a bumbling reply out of him and what's more, he's proven himself fairly insightful. Okay, now I'll shut up and let Mr. Galanis take center stage. Welcome, Athanasios Galanis!



RJ Palmer:

Define Predatory Ethics for me. What does it mean to you?



Athanasios:

I've always been into art and storytelling. That came about in no small way from looking at art and finding out what touched me and delving further into that artist or storyteller's work. One that looms large is Norman Rockwell. Not the Saturday Evening Post Frank Kapra regurgitating illustrations but something more real and honest. He did a painting titled the Golden Rule and it showed a beautiful painting crammed with every conceivable race, age group and diversity of humanity imaginable. Beneath it in a nice serif font is listed "Do Onto Others As You Would Have Them Do Onto You." I have a much prized smaller print of it hanging up on my hallway wall. I decided long ago that that is the only rule I'll live by and the definition of good to me. Since I've gravitated to both evil and good interchangeably I wanted to define it as well as Norm did for me. So I came up with Predatory Ethics, "Do Onto Others Because You Can". A wide theme of Predatory Ethics is showing and defining our baser, cruder and more evil natures.



RJ Palmer:

You seem to have a fascination with mythology and its influence on the modern day. Tell me, what cultural mythology do you think has had the most powerful influence on modern pop culture?



Athanasios:

All of them. Judeo Christian mythology found in the Old Testament rules our lives. Everything else, from the pantheons of the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Celts and Norse have become twisted and bastardized beyond recognition or understanding. Many or the symbols used in the pagan worlds however, are still prevalent in our art and all over our advertising and commercial culture.



RJ Palmer:

Why did you choose the pen name Athanasios Galanis? Does it have special meaning to you or was it a pseudonym that just came off the top of your head and had a certain ring to it?



Athanasios:

LOL, that's not a pen name, that's my real name. I just use my first name Athanasios as my pen name. Tom is easier on everybody who isn't Greek to pronounce & to write.



RJ Palmer:

There's a dark and brooding aspect to your cover art and I'm going to assume that since you work in graphic arts, you designed the cover art for your writing yourself. Is it a reflection of your personality? Why or why not?



Athanasios:

To be fair my books are about the AntiXos defying his destiny, so I've got to keep it thematically correct. By definition they should be dark and brooding. Unfortunately the same is true of me, the writer of said dark and brooding story. I'd like to explain, however, I'm not always so, or I'd be walking around in goth wear: not me. I'm not adverse to exploring my dark depths so I'll let my darkest impulses out through my work both art and writing. Why? I can't answer that question with too much certainty because I'm not that self-analytical. I can only guess it's my upbringing, not my parents but their lack of parenting. They left my sister and myself alone to fend for ourselves while they worked to put food on the table. Luckily I went into my imagination which was fuelled by the ancient myths and the bible, or as we knew it the Orthodox Gospels.



RJ Palmer:

Someone told me at one point that I have to believe in myself. Do you recognize the sentiment? Why do you believe in your writing and in your characters but not seem to believe so much in the person as a whole that created them? You can feel free to deflect this question a little bit because it is somewhat unfair but you have to give me some kind of answer even if it is just a casual reference to other things. Pick your poison.



Athanasios:

I believe in my work because I have to. Which isn't to say I doubt myself and the veracity of my work sometimes when I haven't reached many people or sold many or ANY copies of said work. I doubt myself a lot. I think on the poor deluded folks on the early parts of American Idol and ask myself am I fooling myself into believing anything I've got to say is good? This then becomes a very dark time for me, but I reason myself out of it by reading my work and getting engrossed in it despite the fact that I wrote it. I would buy my stuff. I would enjoy and do enjoy my own work. I'll believe in myself when I'm earning a living as a writer. Until then it's not a proven entity yet. I can believe in the quality of my own work in art and dvd because I've proven it, but thus far I haven't proven it in my writing yet. Talk is cheap, I've got to see it happen.



RJ Palmer:

Apparently, faith and mythology are something of an addiction for you. Do you ascribe to a particular faith (without having to tell me what it is) or is it a fascination as a general rule? My guess is with the quaint combining of different languages (some of it sounds Yiddish) you would also combine different aspects of different beliefs into one cohesive central idea. How far off am I?



Athanasios:

It's not Yiddish, it's Greek. I grew up Greek Orthodox but I'm interested in every religion's explanation of their own superiority. You're correct in my belief in the central religious idea and I intend to use Predatory Ethics to explain what I think. I use the term think instead of belief it because belief in itself would be too close to a religion.



RJ Palmer:

You've validated others, including myself and yet you shrink away from being validated. Tell me why is that? Of course you can give me some BS about your parents and family not being supportive of you when you were a kid which probably has something to do with it, but that's too easy. Tell me something real, like why you have such a hard time accepting a compliment?



Athanasios:

As I said earlier I'm not that self-analytical so the best I can do is guess as to why. My best guess here would be that I'm not used to it. Fighting against misconception is more familiar so that would mean that once I start to get more praise and validation it'll feel more real. I do believe in my work and by extension myself but I have enough humility to know that it's an affinity for something that entertains people and hopefully enlightens them. I feel the most validation when I've actually helped somebody like showing kindness or coming to somebody's aid.



RJ Palmer:

I've read the reviews for Mad Gods and it seems to me that there are people who would consider your work more difficult to follow which simply means that they're not such fans of a split narrative. Have you discovered your following? Who do you believe would like your work?



Athanasios:

Predatory Ethics would appeal to intellectuals who are interested in history, reinterpreted and reevaluated to show our own reality. A throng, a multitude of me. Many, many Tommies, Athanasi if you will. To go further into my perceived audience would be to describe myself really and we've already established I'm uncomfortable in doing that. People who know history, religion and popular culture and are interested in social commentary about all of the above.



RJ Palmer:

Okay, I have to ask this question just because. If you could have ONLY one wish and you have to be completely selfish for just a moment, what would it be? No fair saying something like "money" or "immortality" or any of that easy stuff.



Athanasios:

Fair or no those two are pretty damn great. Money enough so I can write and illustrate Predatory Ethics while being comfortable in my life and immortality so I can continue to learn about religions, history and what this reality truly is. Sorry I don't listen to fair.



RJ Palmer:

What's the most inflammatory statement you've ever made and did it come anywhere close to what you were actually thinking or was it a discreet and diplomatic echo of your real thoughts?



Athanasios:

The most inflammatory statement I've ever made was on the Kindleboards months ago. I went on and stated that sometimes I felt like all my writing was a pixel holocaust, in that I was committing pointless mass murder to the pixels that comprised my thoughts. Suffice to say it was taken way out of context and I profusely apologized but I've taken note of every one of the people who didn't understand what I was trying to say and remember them for their dim and narrow view of my thoughts.



RJ Palmer:

What's your favorite quote by any person? This question has become one of my obsessions so you'll forgive me if I must ask.



Athanasios:

Duly forgiven. Early in my adolescence and most of my teens I studied martial arts ending up studying Jeet Kune Do, a style pioneered by Bruce Lee. His moto was an awakening for a young man looking for direction. It was: "Using no way as a way, Having No Limitation As Limitation." This still echoes in my mind everyday, and has given me clarity in a lot of trying situations.



RJ Palmer:

Autobots or Deceptacons? Sorry, Transformers fan right here. I know, it ranks right up there with "cat or dog person" but I might as well ask something lighter.



Athanasios:

I loathe the Transformers from way back. I hated them when they originally came out in comic book form in the early 1980s and I worked in a comic book store. I hated them when they came to television animation. I loathed them further when they came to the movie theatres yet I found a perverse satisfaction that they were being directed by my most hated director Michael Bay.



RJ Palmer:

If you could have one "do over" in life, would you take it and what would it be?



Athanasios:

If I could do over the first few years out of illustration school I would. I barely finished due to my mother and sister coming to live with me and emotionally clinging to me to such an extent that I just wanted to get away. I should've pursued what I studied instead of going through a few years in menial jobs just to pay my rent. I could've been in a better situation career wise.



RJ Palmer:

If you could have a drink with one person from the past, present or future, real or fictional who would it be and what do you imagine would be their drink of choice?



Athanasios:

So many choices. My first would be the Buddha but I don't think he drank, so that rules him out. Next would be Jesus, but I think he only drank wine and I hate wine so that's out too. So in this scenario I would have to choose a drinker, especially of whiskey, because that's what I like so there's a few candidates.



WC Fields comes to mind, also Errol Flynn but my final answer would be Joseph Campbell. I'm not sure if he was a whiskey drinker but I would have to insist.



RJ Palmer:

Which of your characters do you most closely relate to and why?



Athanasios:

I most closely relate to Kostadino & Adam. There's no single character who can do that. The reasons being that they are me. Take both and you'll have me in a nutshell. Kostadino's reverence for history and Adam's refusal to bend the knee despite reason are hallmarks of my own character.



RJ Palmer:

Put all dramatic talent or lack thereof to the side for a moment here. If you could star in any movie, what would it be?



Athanasios:

Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I love the feel of the world and would love to be part of that collective creativity.



RJ Palmer:

If you could wake up one morning and know how to speak, read and write any one extinct language fluently, what would it be and why?



Athanasios:

Ancient Greek. I would love to be able to understand my ancestors and how they arrived at democracy and the age of reason when all about them fellow men were allowing themselves to be ruled by absolute monarchs and blindly followed absentee deities.









There you have it, everyone. If you're interested in reading about the Mad Gods, go here and here. If Committment tickles your fancy, go here and here. Thank you, Athanasios Galanis and much luck!Related articlesLost Souls, Byzantium and the Anti-Christ: Meet Author Athanasios Galanis (writeatyou.wordpress.com)
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A Blog Post About Nothing In Particular

I'm controversial, brash, brazen and somewhat rude and blunt when I write things like this but then again it brings to mind the quote by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich when she said, "Well behaved women seldom make history." Don't get me wrong, I don't believe I'm a woman of the same caliber as the pop culture icons of today and when asked, I won't tell anyone that I want to go out with a bang or a blaze of glory. I would much rather end my existence with the whisper that rocks the world for even as my writing is my rebel yell, I also firmly believe that if I can't get my point across with a softly spoken word, it's not something that bears speaking. It can reasonably be said therefore that it is only in my writing that the ill-behaved woman comes to the fore and I like it that way. Such is the contradiction of my everyday life but what a glorious oxymoron it is.



If a person would ask my other half, he would probably laugh at this sentiment and talk about any one of numerous times that I've completely scrapped this ideal and hollered with the best of them. Arguments are an exception for both of us and shouting matches get nothing accomplished but sure make a person feel better.



In truth, I don't know exactly why I'm writing this. I only know that the urge struck me and where the compulsion leads, I follow. It's a simple enough idea even if it's a little bit convoluted or confusing because normally when I write and I do mean with this one exception, I always have an idea in mind about what it is I want to write. I have no real idea what I'm writing or why this time, I only know that I need to write and that has to be enough for now. If you have no idea what I'm talking about at this point or even if I have a point, rest assured that neither do I and we'll find out together.



To date, I've written two novels and I'm gearing up to start a third, several blog posts and numerous other little tidbits because a talent for the written word comes in handy more often than you might think. I can't leave something that I've written alone and I'm consistently critiquing my own work which brings to mind the quote from Leonardo DaVinci when he said, "True art is never finished but only abandoned." My sentiments exactly.



I've had another quote go through my head for years now and I always revise it though I always do so quietly because I've tried to explain my point to people and I invariably get blank looks or the thousand mile stare when I do. The quote is from Ralph Waldo Emerson and goes like this, "There is no knowledge that is not power." I beg to differ and if you'll bear with me for a few moments, I'll explain why. I believe that as a whole, the quote itself is powerful and perfectly fit for the time however, I also believe that as that same knowledge evolves and becomes greater than what it was, the word "knowledge" should be replaced with the word "understanding" thus making the quote, "There is no understanding that is not power."



I'm making this statement because I firmly believe that knowledge is not the least bit useful until the person who possesses that knowledge understands what it is they possess. A person can walk through the whole of their life knowing almost everything but without understanding what they know, there is no practical application for their knowledge. Understanding is the key that unlocks the treasure trove of knowledge and makes it something that can be utilized and applied in a logical way to everyday life.



If you think about it this way, let's use the example of a small child. A young child, shall we say four or five years old is just beginning to grasp the concept of math for until then, most everything they've learned is through mimicry. They figure out how to eat, speak, walk, run, play and even potty train by watching others and doing what those others do. The old monkey see, monkey do in point of fact. In this, they know because they have been told the simple math problem that 2-1=1 but if you think about it this way, they have no understanding of it until it's put in real terms for them. Now, if a person were to explain the idea like this to them it's much easier to grasp; I have two apples and I share one with my friend, now I have one apple left so now I understand that 2-1=1. This is something practical for them that they can apply. It seems to me that the reason the alphabet is learned by associating each letter with the beginning sound of a familiar or known object is to put a nebulous concept into understood terms for a child. It's a simple association.



I've met some very knowledgeable and intelligent people in my life and I've felt sorry for some of them because of all the knowledge they possess, that same knowledge seems empty and meaningless because there's no way for them to apply it with any practicality. There is no understanding of it. I mean sure, they can repeat any number of dry facts recited from rote memory and most would do exceedingly well at a game of Trivial Pursuit but do they get a chance to enjoy that knowledge or does it sit there in the dusty archives of their brain and do little or nothing and enrich no one? Then again, it could reasonably be said that being able to thoroughly and inarguably trounce the competition in a game of Jeopardy and conjure cash hand over fist could be validation enough. Who am I to argue about what makes a person happy or even content and isn't that the very thing for which we all strive? We do what makes us happy or what we can convince ourselves makes us happy. Far be it from me to stand in the way of that.



In this, I've been writing what amounts to a stream of conscious thought that doesn't particularly tie cohesively together and a series of musings that have no discernable common theme. I wouldn't be surprised if I'm the only person who understands any of the points that I've written and everyone else is more inclined to simply skim over this and dismiss it as the asinine babbling of someone who just needed to write something. I've analyzed and recited some quotes and followed a stream of my own thoughtful associations to an end that's only logical to me and if that isn't a little off the deep end, I don't know what is. If you don't understand the point of all of this, don't feel like the Lone Ranger because I'm probably the only one that really does grasp everything that I've been meaning to say.



I guess to better understand the way my mind and consequently this writing works, I was thinking about quotes. Then I had a series of quotes dance through my head along with thoughts about their meanings. To that end, I began to think about the tiny flaws in those quotes and ran into the inevitable quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson which then compelled me to write out not only that I felt that it could use revision, but also why it was I felt it could be revised. That led me to explain my justifications and point of view and now, in front of you, you have the logical thought process that led me here. It's a glimpse into my psyche and realistically also an idea how the feminine mind works. Do I think that I've cornered the perfect explanation? Not a chance in hell. Do I think it might give someone somewhere some kind of understanding? Perhaps but then again, who am I to say anyway? I am, after all, not of the caliber of some of today's pop culture icons.Related articlesThe Transcendentalist Event: Starts Today! (jillianreadsbooks2.wordpress.com)
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Please Welcome Back Red Tash!

Okay, ladies and gentlemen, in the last couple of months or so, I had hosted Red Tash for the Blog Tour in which I'm a participant. I had fun and she had fun. Okay, so she rocked the socks off that post and I had such a good time I sent her some extra interview questions and we decided to do it again. SOOOOO, if you'll lend me your ear, your eye (or both of them) and your attention, let's welcome back Red Tash, author of This Brilliant Darkness!



RJ Palmer:

Red Tash seems to be a remarkably intelligent and somewhat devil-may-care alter ego of yours of whom I am particularly fond. You had mentioned that Red is yet another alter ego at one point. Just how many do you have? Which is your strongest? Your weakest?



Red Tash:

Oh, thanks for asking. You could probably be an entertainment journalist, because these are the same kinds of questions I would ask people. ;)



I used to play roller derby, and when a gal joins a roller derby team nowadays, she gets to make up a goofy/funny/dirty/intimidating name. I *really* wanted to be Hermione Danger, but that was taken by a skater in Chicago. If you reference the official roster of rollergirl names at http://www.twoevils.org/rollergirls/, you will see that each name must be unique. It's just roller derby tradition.



So…I pouted for awhile, and then a skater by the name of Kimmy Crippler suggested to me "How about Tyra Durden?" I am such a Fight Club fan, I just went nuts. I knew that was the name for me. Just like Tyler Durden frees "Jack" in Fight Club to do whatever dark deeds he conceives of, Tyra freed me to break out of my full-time Mom status, to leave the house, to have a drinkie-poo once in awhile, to wear crazy roller derby clothes, pierce my nose, color my hair pink & purple…oh, yeah, and to kick a little ass at roller derby, too.



I wrote more about that here, if you're interested: http://newsandtribune.com/family/x519381293/ONE-BAD-MAMA-Family-life-columnist-skates-away-to-join-Derby-City-Rollergirls



As far as other alter-egos go, I guess I was thinking of all those usernames we create for ourselves online. I've been at least five I can think of off the top of my head—and that's a lot to try and remember. Honestly, though, I'm really glad that most net users are "over" the anonymous handle thing. I feel like that's part of the net's infancy and best left in the past, unless you've got a very good reason for masking your identity. I just use a pen name for my fiction because it makes sense to separate my fiction from my non-fiction, and having Red Tash is a great way to separate those two "public selves." Plus, my real first name is more often than not misspelled.



RJ Palmer

You had told me that you're a professional journalist. Do you moonlight as your alter egos or do you moonlight as yourself and let the alter egos take the front the rest of the time?



Red Tash

Well, I took a leave of absence from my ongoing journalism assignments for maternity leave in March of 2011, and had planned to resume my work in May. When May rolled around, I was already deeply ensconced in editing This Brilliant Darkness and getting it ready to go, so I decided to put *paying work* off a bit longer. I didn't settle on the pen name Red Tash until after that, so, thus far, this hasn't been an issue. I used to write some roller derby journalism as Tyra Durden, but that was a drop in the bucket compared to the body of work I produced under my real name.



I think what you're really asking with a question like this is basically how does someone weird like me fit into the capacity of working as a reporter?



(RJ Palmer here and on a side note from me, I'd have used a word like "interesting" or "unique" instead of "weird" but hey, you said it, I didn't! Now back to Red.)



Do I put on a pretty face and look all professional? Or do I show up with a bone through my nose and smelling of bourbon? If I want to entertain you, I'll create some false anecdote about the latter, but the truth is, although I'm working on honing my own personal brand of weirdness into a laser beam of pure awesomeness, both these sides of me are legitimately me. So…what you see is pretty much what you get. The fact that I write about monsters and time travel and quantum physics doesn't typically come up when I'm interviewing a convicted murderer about his guilty verdict, or stopping by the mayor's house to do a write-up of his wife's home décor. People are, by and large, more interested in talking about themselves than learning anything about me. They want to be the story. You know what I mean?



RJ Palmer:

You've shown a keen eye for stunning photography and dark, brooding art. Are there other things that bend your artistic eye or tickle the right hemisphere of the ol' brain there?



Red Tash:

I love music. So much music. I've started posting playlists, and I'll keep trying to put them together. It's hard to listen to music in my house, and I rarely get any time alone, so that is an ongoing battle. That's motherhood, though. It kicks the feet right out from under your "cool" quotient. A bunch of my friends saw the Pixies this past Wednesday night, here in Louisville. I was sick with jealousy.



RJ Palmer:

Do you ever get the urge to write out something incredibly profound in 72 point script and the most ghastly color you can imagine so that the profundity of the statement itself is lost amid the screaming ugliness of the print? I know I do from time to time which is why I asked and if this gives you an idea, tell me what you would write.



Red Tash:

Ha! Yes! Of course! Back when I used to blog at xanga, I had a pretty vibrant web following. They were very responsive to everything I posted. I got thousands of hits per week. Crazy! Well, I loved those people, but I used to experiment on them a lot. I'd hold contests and reward them, I'd mess with them to see if they'd notice. I'd see how they'd react on any given day to what I did, and I think they enjoyed the unpredictability of it, because a lot of those readers are still my friends. Every now and then, I'd weed out the weirdos.



Once, when I was annoyed by something I'd read elsewhere on the web, I posted in huge pink letters on a red background something to the effect of "If you don't like what you're reading, don't leave a nasty comment, just unsubscribe and go away!" Only, I don't think I said it that nicely.



In about a half-hour, this woman blew up and flamed out. We'd never had a cross word between us, but I guess she was harboring some kind of grudge or something, because she just went nutso and started cursing me, posting profanity-laden blogs about me, and she even created a fake profile to cheer herself on, and defend herself against the stunned third parties who watched, aghast.



Previous to my post, she had set herself up as one of my biggest fans. She had been really, really nice to me. I remember looking forward to stopping by and meeting her when I was passing through her state, on vacation.



I don't know if what I said was profound, but it sure did make a splash. I recommend everyone experiment with their voice & their message from time-to-time. It teaches us a lot.



RJ Palmer:

I have to ask this because hearing about favorite quotes is something for me that's a little bit of an obsession. Do you have a favorite quote from a writer, or any quote at all? What is it and what does it mean to you?



Red Tash:

If I lose the light of the sun, I will write by candlelight, moonlight, no light. If I lose paper and ink, I will write in blood on forgotten walls. I will write always. I will capture nights all over the world and bring them to you.

~Henry Rollins



I think that pretty much says it all!



RJ Palmer:

I'm going to assume since you're a multi-dimensional person as it is that you also have multi-dimensional interests. What interests you as a general rule and why?



Red Tash:

I love to laugh. I love food. I love nature. I am ridiculously sentimental and I use facebook like a drug. I want to absorb and inhale the lives of my family & friends. I drown in their images, I delight in their status updates. Found a job today? Having trouble parking? Saw the fucking Pixies without me? I love it.



I watch a hell of a lot of movies, too. I wish it were easier to read with my hands full, but I have trouble doing that and folding laundry at the same time, so movies, it is.



RJ Palmer:

Do you put your left shoe or your right shoe on first? Okay, okay, you don't have to answer that unless you really, REALLY want to so here's another question: Be absolutely selfish for a moment and tell me, if you had ONLY one wish, what would it be? No fair saying stuff like "world peace" or "immortality" or "a billion dollars" because those are all way too easy.



Red Tash:

I wish I had parents.



RJ Palmer:

When was the moment you really figured out that you wanted to write for a living? Not when you announced it to the rest of the world, but when you figured it out for yourself. Were you hit by an inspirational thunderbolt when you were a wee one or did the lil angel on your shoulder have to slap you upside the head to get through to you? My slap still stings from time to time, just to let you know.



Red Tash:

I never wanted to write for a living. I mean, I did—just like I wanted to be a ballerina, a jockey, and an interpreter at the UN. What happened to me, as a writer, was that I ran from it. I ran hard from it and tried to do other things for a living. I was an accountant, for example. I tried being a teacher. I did a lot of stuff. But I just kept writing, so eventually I found outlets to do so for pay. And I started leveraging those into the next opportunity, and the next, and the next…



RJ Palmer:

If you had one "do over" in your whole life, would you take it and what would it be? Why?



Red Tash:

No.



I have regrets, but I forgive myself and I try to do better the next time. I like who I am because of my choices. I am authentically me, in Oprah-speak, and as it turns out, I dig that.



RJ Palmer:

If you could sit down and have a drink with anyone from the past, present or future, fictional or real who would it be and what do you imagine they would drink as a cocktail of choice? Why?



Red Tash:

I would drink absinthe with Edgar Allen Poe. 'Cuz you know that shit would be def. Or, God, what about drinking with Mark Twain? I bet that would be a riot, too. Bill Shatner in the early 80s, before he got sober. Imagine that. I'll take any of the above.



Thanks for interviewing me! I'll send you some questions this coming week.



There you have it, fellow wingnuts. A little insight and perhaps some wisdom from one of my favorite collegues, Red Tash. If you like what you see or find yourself at all intrigued, visit here and here to read her work and here to learn a little more about her.

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To Celebrate the Halloween Blog Hop

To celebrate this years Halloween Blog Hop I am going to give a free book to everyone who visits during the hop. You can get my book "Birthright" for free by going to http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/37466 and using coupon code SG97Z until 11/01/2011.



Halloween Hop



I would like to thank every blogger who has participated in this hop.



To any new readers go ahead and comment as us bloggers really live for the interaction.



My Favorite Monster movie - The Fly

My Costume - The Invisible Woman





****Promoting Me****



RJ Palmer is the author of "Birthright" which can

be found almost everywhere online because of my

husband. You can come to my blog at

Readers Welcome Helmy Kusuma!

Hey there bookworms! RJ Palmer (that would be me) is pleased to welcome Helmy Kusuma, author of Mementoes of Mai available here and here on Amazon and Smashwords. So without further adieu, I'll let Helmy take center stage so here we go...



Description of Mementoes of Mai:



A mundane office life is suddenly changed into something entirely different in a flick of a hand. Helmy's visit to Viet Nam made him face the beauties he long forgot, and now he must make up his mind to pursue the love of his life...



Would he be able to reconcile his past and his present to step into the unknown territory of the probable future? Could he bridge the space between himself and his love?



Follow Helmy as he recounts the defining and beautiful moment in his life, through the river and the cove of Viet Nam, across the sea to Bali, and Jakarta.



Fictitiously, of course.



Author Bio:



Helmy Kusuma was born in Palembang, Indonesia. He spent 18 years there and went to Jakarta to continue his education. Having been working for IT industry for a decade, he decided to turn the tide and became a writer.



Helmy Kusuma has published two novellas: 'Mementoes of Mai' and 'Cinta 3 Sisi', a thriller short story, 'There Is Hope', and a collection of flash fiction, 'A Flash of Inspiration'.



Now let's learn a little bit more about what makes Helmy tick...



RJ Palmer:

Is there a work of your own of which you are particularly fond? Why?



Helmy Kusuma:

Cul-de-sac. It's a short horror story, special request of my friend, and my first horror story, ever. I managed to scrap a page out of my brain, and to my surprise, many like that story. So I might write some short horror in the future.



RJ Palmer:

What is your favorite part of the writing process? Your least favorite?



Helmy Kusuma:

My favorite part is when I get to the point where I have to decide the fate of my character. Ohhh, I am God!!



But, of course when my favorite character choose to die, I have to honor that character's wish. I hate to feel so powerless...



RJ Palmer:

Describe in your own words (for there can be no other way) what direction it is to which you aspire when it comes to your work. Where do you want your work to take you?



Helmy Kusuma:

Around the world if possible. If it's not possible, then down below is quite nice.



RJ Palmer:

Most writers have a favorite genre when it comes to reading that is not necessarily the genre in which they write, do you write in your favorite genre? If so, why? If not, why not?



Helmy Kusuma:

I write many genres and read many genres, so it's quite difficult to dislike any particular genre...although I prefer not to read something heavy...



RJ Palmer:

Do you have a favorite quote from a writer that you use for inspiration? What is it and why?



Helmy Kusuma:

"The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive. To him a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death. Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create — so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, his very breath is cut off from him. He must create, must pour out creation. By some strange, unknown, inward urgency he is not really alive unless he is creating."

(Pearl S. Buck)

(speechless...)



RJ Palmer:

Some writers tend to have a unique step in their writing process that has nothing whatsoever to do with the actual writing but has everything to do with inspiration or balance. Most people would call it a little bit OCD. Do you have such a step? Would you care to share what it is?



Helmy Kusuma:

Drink a lot of water, go to the toilet several times and then I am set.



There you have it ladies and gentlemen! Visit Helmy Kusuma here to learn a little bit more about him and enjoy the ride!

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Author Interview: Alan Nayes author of Gargoyles

Alan Nayes was born in Houston and grew up on the Texas gulf coast. He lives in Southern California. He is the author of the critically-acclaimed biomedical thrillers, GARGOYLES and THE UNNATURAL. His most recent releases are BARBARY POINT, a love story, and SMILODON, a science thriller. Girl Blue, an erotic horror story will be released by Samhain Publishing in 2012.



An avid outdoorsman and fitness enthusiast, he is one of only a few individuals to ever swim across Wisconsin's chilly Lake Winnebago. When not working on his next project, he enjoys relaxing and fishing at the family vacation home in Wisconsin.



Author Name Alan Nayes



Name of Book Gargoyles



Description of Book



Brilliant pre-med student Amoreena Daniels needs money. Desperately. Her mother is dying of cancer and her medical insurance has run out. When a seemingly perfect women's clinic offers Amoreena a generous payment for service as a surrogate mother, Amoreena thinks her prayers have been answered. But then—much too early—her baby begins to move.



The strange dreams, another surrogate's mysterious death and a drug-addicted former medical intern confirm Amoreena's worst suspicions: there is something terribly wrong with the pregnancy. Amoreena embarks on a dangerous journey to uncover the truth behind the endless battery of genetic tests, sonograms and frightened patients, only to discover that she has unwittingly become a pawn in a high-stakes game of biomedical experimentation.



Where to Find

Amazon

Smashwords



Author's Website http://anayes.com/



And now for the in depth questions :)



RJ Palmer

Is there a work of your own of which you are particularly fond? Why?



Alan Nayes

I actually think GARGOYLES is one of my best stories. I really like the character Amoreena Daniels. She's beautiful intelligent, and tough, besides being a good individual. Of all the characters I've created she is my favorite. Can I name two books--BARBARY POINT is a close second because of the setting where the story takes place. We own a cottage on Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin and go there once or twice a year. Really enjoy it up there.



RJ Palmer

What is your favorite part of the writing process? Your least favorite?



Alan Nayes

My favorite part of the writing process is when I've finally completed that initial first draft and am ready to go back through. For me, it's so much easier facing a page full of writing versus a blank page that I'm supposed to fill up with words. Least favorite--filling up that blank page.



RJ Palmer

Describe in your own words (for there can be no other way) what direction it is to which you aspire when it comes to your work. Where do you want your work to take you?



Alan Nayes

My aspirations have always been to write the best story possible and one that I am proud to see my name on the cover. I want my work to take me to that intangible place where I am totally content with how the story turned out. And that is not easy for me.



RJ Palmer

Most writers have a favorite genre when it comes to reading that is not necessarily the genre in which they write, do you write in your favorite genre? If so, why? If not, why not?



Alan Nayes

I write in several genres. I've done a romance/love story, thrillers, and horror. I never think about what genre I'm going to write in next--only what the story is going to be. If the story grabs me, then I'll attempt to write it--regardless of genre.



RJ Palmer

Do you have a favorite quote from a writer that you use for inspiration? What is it and why?



Alan Nayes

Hemingway once said the only thing that matters about a first draft is that you finish it. I take this to heart every time I sit down to write--no matter how slow my progress. Just finish the damn thing.



RJ Palmer

Some writers tend to have a unique step in their writing process that has nothing whatsoever to do with the actual writing but has everything to do with inspiration or balance. Most people would call it a little bit OCD. Do you have such a step? Would you care to share what it is?



Alan Nayes

Not really, though there are times when my writing is not going real smoothly and during these sessions I'll sometimes break and do fifty situps or some bench presses or even go out and run, to try to get back on track. I used to be a real exercise fanatic--not as much anymore--but physical activity does have a way of keeping me focused. Also, even if my writing is going badly, at least I accomplish something by burning some calories. That's what I tell myself anyway.



I would like to thank Alan Nayes for participating and encourage readers and viewers alike to please check Alan Nayes out, his story may be just what you were looking for.

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Our Favorite Wingnut Welcomes William G. Jones!

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Hey all! I have the distinct honor this week of welcoming Indie Author William G. Jones who penned Driving to BelAir. But enough of my babble, let's let Mr. Jones take the driver's seat and away we go...



Description of Driving to BelAir:

Dale had everything—dream job, dream girl, dream life. When he moved to New York to chase his dreams, he never planned on returning to the Indiana farm where he grew up. Yet, one phone call from his ex-fiance brings him back to face the brothers he abandoned and the consequences of the choices he made in pursuit of those dreams. Will a father's last wish be the key to reuniting a family torn apart by tragedy? Or will Dale lose everything while driving to BelAir.



About Mr. Jones:

William G. Jones is a University of Kentucky alumnus and has worked in media and graphic design for over a decade. His short stories have appeared in InFuze Magazine, and his story "Choices" was selected for InFuze Magazine's Best-of 2005 anthology. He currently resides in Western Kentucky.



RJ Palmer:

Is there a work of your own of which you are particularly fond? Why?



William G. Jones:

Years ago, I wrote a short story called "While Yet We Were Sinners". It's about a guy working in a hotel bar whose life is changed by one of the security guards at the hotel. I wrote that story back when I was focused primarily on Christian fiction and it's one of those stories that just hasn't gone away. I think it's because that story represents so much of what I wish my faith was like, and that's a chord that touches a lot of people. A friend of mine in Hollywood recently used it as inspiration for a screenplay, and while the two stories have nothing in common at all except for a main character who works at a bar, I'm amazed at how great of a story she was able to adapt from mine.



RJ Palmer:

What is your favorite part of the writing process? Your least favorite?



William G. Jones:

My favorite part is creating the story, and my least favorite part is typing words. I'm one of those writers who hates to write, mainly because it always seems so much better in my head than it does when I see the words on a screen (or on paper).



RJ Palmer:

Describe in your own words (for there can be no other way) what direction it is to which you aspire when it comes to your work. Where do you want your work to take you?



William G. Jones:

I feel like I was called to be a writer, and I want to make a living as a writer. Everything else in life just gets in the way of writing. As far as genre and message, I haven't figured that out yet. I spent more than a decade considering myself a Christian novelist but the more I studied the craft and the more I matured spiritually, the more I came to realize that I don't fit that box. Most Christian fiction I've read was written to affirm the beliefs of readers or to provide a "safe" alternative to mainstream genre fiction, whereas I want to do the exact opposite. I want to paint a picture of something bigger than my characters, something bigger than my story, and I don't want to play it safe in doing so. But more than that, I want to write stories that make readers feel better for having read them, whether they laughed or cried, whether the story itself was a catharsis or the characters just served as traveling companions for a cross-country flight.



RJ Palmer:

Most writers have a favorite genre when it comes to reading that is not necessarily the genre in which they write, do you write in your favorite genre? If so, why? If not, why not?



William G. Jones:

I don't read that much fiction, honestly, but when I do, I rarely look at genre. My favorite books range from horror to thrillers to comedy to literary. As a writer, I hope I can somehow manage to write collective body of work that spans genres, yet each book is uniquely a William G. Jones creation.



RJ Palmer:

Do you have a favorite quote from a writer that you use for inspiration? What is it and why?



William G. Jones:

The opening paragraph from THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE. I'd wanted to be a writer for years before I read it, even had a couple of manuscripts under my belt by then, but those opening words moved me and challenged me to step up my game, and still do every time I read them.



RJ Palmer:

Some writers tend to have a unique step in their writing process that has nothing whatsoever to do with the actual writing but has everything to do with inspiration or balance. Most people would call it a little bit OCD. Do you have such a step? Would you care to share what it is?



William G. Jones:

I'm not sure I do. Maybe it would help if I did, though. The closest thing I've got is my keyboard, a Microsoft Natural Curve. It's like a security blanket, I can literally write for hours on it without stopping, whereas I hate writing on my laptop or on a regular keyboard. And yet, this entire interview was typed out on my MacBook, so it's not like I *need* the curved keyboard... maybe it is an OCD thing...



Short Excerpt from Driving to BelAir:



Prologue



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



GROWING UP IS HARD ON anyone. But it's especially hard when you can't shake the feeling you were switched at birth.



That was me, the kid who never fit in, always off sync and out of place. I spent most of my childhood feeling like a broken toy, missing some important piece, and I'm pretty sure I'm the only kid in the history of kiddom to break down and cry when he found out he wasn't adopted.



Come to think of it, I was sixteen when that happened.



Growing up without a mother didn't help. I was five—almost six—when she died. I remember her only vaguely, just ghost-like impressions stitched together by an artful imagination.



In a way, I'm lucky. My brothers don't remember her at all.



It's mostly little things I can recall, like how her smile could make any bad thing okay again. In the twenty-five years she's been gone, I've never seen another woman whose smile was anything like that. If I did, I'd probably marry her on the spot. I remember mom's long, lightly curled hair and how she'd sometimes put it in a ponytail but mostly let it flow free, how she always wore jeans, even to church, and how she had this way of greeting people that made them laugh.



My favorite memory is how she'd sit on the couch and read books while I played with my toys and watched cartoons. I don't know what kind of books she read because after she died, dad got rid of them. The only one he kept was an old Bible. I use to sneak into his bedroom as a teenager and look through its dog-eared pages at the margin notes she'd scrawled and the little squares of paper she stuck in different places with prayers written on them.



I found one of those prayers, once, with my name on it.



Dear Jesus, it began. Please watch over Dale. He is so smart, let him have a good life. Let him be a good brother to Chad and let him love Billy no matter what happens. And if I'm not around to see him grow up, don't ever let him forget how much I love him. Please. Let my boys grow to be a strong family.



Eventually her prayer came true, but it took a long time before I could love Billy.



After all, giving birth to Billy is how mom died.



There you have it all! If you like what you read and it tickles your fancy, find a more in depth excerpt here and purchase this little gem here and here.

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