J.S. Bailey's Blog, page 7

Obey the Muse

Oh no! I have been slacking here on Blogger again!

But that's because things have been happening. Cool, awesome things.

Like this:

 My floor was not large enough to write out the whole title.
And Rage's Echo now has a release date. It will be available in paperback and ebook formats on October 1. I had so much fun writing this story, and I pray that you will enjoy it, too.
Also, I have joined forces with some amazing people and created a brand-new blog called Obey the Muse. (www.obeythemuse.c...

Choices of the Heart by Rhonda Kooyman

Choices of the Heart by Rhonda Kooyman is one of the most terrifying and moving novels I have read in a long time. It is written mostly as the fictitious memoir of a woman named Tracy Dewitt who became entrapped by a psychotic and manipulative boyfriend who brutally abused her for years. Though this story is fiction, it seems very real because Tracy's story happens to women every day all over the world. They know they can't stay with their abuser because they'll end up being killed, yet at th...

Tell a Real Human Person!

I have read hundreds of books in my lifetime. Maybe thousands if you count The Cat in the Hat and Hop on Pop and all that stuff. But one author whose work I have yet to read is Neil Gaiman.

I follow Mr. Gaiman on Twitter, not because I have read his work (obviously), but because he is an author and I like to follow other authors to see what they're up to. Not the I'm-in-a-van-with-tinted-windows kind of following. You know what I mean.

Anyway, last night I saw this tweet from Mr. Gaiman:

A reque...

Risky Business

I often find myself thinking about random things. Earlier today I was thinking about how my stomach started feeling bad and I couldn't finish my sushi, and how it will really stink to throw it away; and then I thought how it would be funny if someone tried to return their leftover sushi to the store; and then I remembered how I worked at a shoe store six years ago and someone tried to return a pair of used shoes that had the wheel in the heel of them; and then I remembered how popular those s...

Updates, Randomness, and More--Oh My!

Goodness. A week and a half without posting. I'M SORRY. Truly. Honestly. But I'm here again. I don't have a lot to say, though. But there's nothing new about that. ;)

I finished the rough draft of a Top Secret novel earlier this week. It really stinks. Because that's what my first drafts are like. When comparing my rough drafts to my final products, it's like holding a picture of a stick figure up next to the Mona Lisa. In other words, there isn't much of a resemblance, and turning that stick...

That My Dreams May Change You

I'm sorry, Blogger.

I really am.

I have been neglecting you. And fear not, because it's not you, it's me.

It's the laundry piled on the floor. The dishes in the sink. The weeds in the garden and the constant battle against the wildlife that would gladly ruin it all.

It's spending time with family. Finishing that book I've been meaning to read. Going through Scripture so that I may never go astray.

And, of course, it's the words that I bleed onto digital pages through my fingertips. The stories I p...

The Rage's Echo Cover Reveal!

For those of you who are new to my neck of the Internet woods, you should know that I write speculative fiction and suspense. (Specu-spense? Suspecu-fiction?) Something like that.

Also, some of you may be aware that my next novel RAGE'S ECHO will be released later this year. No word on the exact date yet. My publisher is keeping me in suspense just as I am keeping you in suspense by beating around the bush. You really want to see that cover, don't you? Because I've been talking about RAGE'S EC...

You Might be a Dekkie if...

Or, "Signs you might be reading too much Dekker." If it is possible to do such a thing.

1. You visit the White House and wonder where the statue of Thomas Hunter went.

2. You wonder if the fancy writing journal you received for Christmas is actually a blank Book of History.

3. Your parish priest comes through your checkout line with duct tape and garden shears in his cart and you immediately call the cops.

4. Noxzema is your moisturizer of choice.

5. Steak and wine sounds like the perfect dinner.

6...

The Problem of Villainy

Everybody loves a good villain. And of course by "good" I really mean "evil," because that's what villains are good at: being evil.

Some of my favorite characters from both books and movies are the villains. I think it's because they're often more complex than our faithful protagonists. What caused him or her to act the way he or she does? What factors in their life influenced their villainy? Will they learn the errors of their ways? Why? Why? Why?

I'll illustrate this by analyzing one of my fa...

Speaking vs. Writing: The Power of Word Choice and Editing

I'm not much of a talker. Part of it is because I don't always know the right thing to say, so it's safer just to be quiet and listen. Part of it is because I'm always thinking. When I'm awake there are about ten quintillion thoughts bouncing through my head:

Look there's a fork on the table you know what you can do with a fork you can stab someone's eye out with it THAT'S IT when the protagonist is trapped in the house with the killer he can use a fork as a primitive weapon and poke the kille...