John A. Heldt's Blog, page 17
December 15, 2016
A first draft for a last book
Fifty-five days after telling others I would not begin writing the fifth American Journey book until January 1, I have finished its first draft. Weighing in at just over 100,000 words, it is the fifth longest of my ten novels, the second to complete a series, and the first to feature chapters set in another part of the world.
Set in Chattanooga, Southern California, and the Pacific Theater of World War II, Hannah’s Moon will follow a childless couple and the wife’s brother from 2017 to 1945. I hope to find a suitable cover in the next three weeks and begin the editing process in January. The projected publishing date of April 1 remains unchanged.
Set in Chattanooga, Southern California, and the Pacific Theater of World War II, Hannah’s Moon will follow a childless couple and the wife’s brother from 2017 to 1945. I hope to find a suitable cover in the next three weeks and begin the editing process in January. The projected publishing date of April 1 remains unchanged.
November 12, 2016
Starting down the final road
There is nothing like bringing a series to an end to focus the mind. Authors pay more attention to details and getting it right because they know they won’t have another chance to get it right. When a series is done, it is done. There are no second takes.
With that in mind, I have paid attention to the little things in writing the fifth book of the American Journey series. Questions will be answered — including a big one — and problems explained. In the series finale, I will bring back each of the time travelers from the first four books and borrow a few names and themes.
I am currently 35,000 words into the 100,000-word work. Set mostly in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the novel will follow a young childless couple from 2017 to 1945. Driven to adopt a baby in an age where babies were plentiful, the couple and the wife’s brother will find themselves caught up in the tense final months of World War II.
I hope to finish the first draft of AJ5, as I call it now, by Christmas. I intend to publish a Kindle edition of the book by April or May.
With that in mind, I have paid attention to the little things in writing the fifth book of the American Journey series. Questions will be answered — including a big one — and problems explained. In the series finale, I will bring back each of the time travelers from the first four books and borrow a few names and themes.
I am currently 35,000 words into the 100,000-word work. Set mostly in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the novel will follow a young childless couple from 2017 to 1945. Driven to adopt a baby in an age where babies were plentiful, the couple and the wife’s brother will find themselves caught up in the tense final months of World War II.
I hope to finish the first draft of AJ5, as I call it now, by Christmas. I intend to publish a Kindle edition of the book by April or May.
October 7, 2016
Review: Edge of Eternity
I am not a fast reader. I almost never finish a book before it’s due at the library and usually max out my renewals before bringing it back. Even so, I normally finish a work before the seasons change.
That was not the case with Ken Follett’s Edge of Eternity , part of his Century trilogy. I started listening to the audiobook on May 17, when green leaves began to appear on trees, and finally finished the novel on Wednesday, when those same leaves started to yellow.
One reason was that I simply had other things to do — like write and edit Class of ’59 . Another was that Follett’s latest work was long — as in 1,136 print pages or nearly 37 audio HOURS long.
But the biggest reason I didn’t rush to finish the book is that I didn’t find it as compelling as Follett’s previous works. I have read nineteen of the Welsh author's novels and loved most. I consider The Pillars of the Earth my all-time favorite book.
Edge of Eternity , unfortunately, did not measure up. Unlike with Fall of Giants and Winter of the World , the series’ first two novels, Follett tried to take on too much. That can happen when you try to follow seven families and dozens of others, including real historical figures, through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Cold War, Vietnam, Watergate, Iran-Contra, and the fall of Communism.
But Follett compounded his challenge by turning his characters into cliches and giving his work a partisan edge it didn’t need. For much of the book, it seemed the author was more interested in sending a message to his readers than in connecting with them.
I hope Follett returns to writing shorter, more focused novels, like Eye of the Needle , Jackdaws , Hornet Flight , and Night Over Water. I know I will be ready to read them when he does. Rating: 2/5.
That was not the case with Ken Follett’s Edge of Eternity , part of his Century trilogy. I started listening to the audiobook on May 17, when green leaves began to appear on trees, and finally finished the novel on Wednesday, when those same leaves started to yellow.
One reason was that I simply had other things to do — like write and edit Class of ’59 . Another was that Follett’s latest work was long — as in 1,136 print pages or nearly 37 audio HOURS long.
But the biggest reason I didn’t rush to finish the book is that I didn’t find it as compelling as Follett’s previous works. I have read nineteen of the Welsh author's novels and loved most. I consider The Pillars of the Earth my all-time favorite book.
Edge of Eternity , unfortunately, did not measure up. Unlike with Fall of Giants and Winter of the World , the series’ first two novels, Follett tried to take on too much. That can happen when you try to follow seven families and dozens of others, including real historical figures, through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Cold War, Vietnam, Watergate, Iran-Contra, and the fall of Communism.
But Follett compounded his challenge by turning his characters into cliches and giving his work a partisan edge it didn’t need. For much of the book, it seemed the author was more interested in sending a message to his readers than in connecting with them.
I hope Follett returns to writing shorter, more focused novels, like Eye of the Needle , Jackdaws , Hornet Flight , and Night Over Water. I know I will be ready to read them when he does. Rating: 2/5.
October 4, 2016
Review: Timeless
Like a lot of people, I love time travel. I’ve written nine time-travel novels and read or watched everything from
A Sound of Thunder
,
Timeline
, and
The Time Machine
to
Outlander
,
Somewhere in Time
, and
The Time Traveler’s Wife
. In short, I can’t get enough of it.
So when I heard that NBC was rolling out a new time-travel series called Timeless , I knew I had to check it out. As it turned out, the series, or at least its first episode, lived up to its considerable hype.
Goran Visnjic stars as a sophisticated criminal who steals a time machine in order to change the course of American history and destroy the country. In last night’s series pilot, he goes back to May 6, 1937, in an attempt to prevent the Hindenburg disaster.
Kept in the dark until Visnjic takes the time machine from the private company that developed it, the Department of Homeland Security quickly assembles and deploys a team to retrieve the criminal and the device. The team includes a history professor (Abigail Spencer), a soldier (Matt Lanter), and a scientist (Malcolm Barrett).
Almost from the beginning, the best-laid plans go astray for both the hunters and their prey. People live who were not supposed to live, timelines are changed, and little is resolved. The butterfly effect and the grandfather paradox are trotted out like show ponies.
There were a few things I didn’t like about the pilot. Timeless relied heavily on trendy sayings and cliches and its pursuers more often resembled cookie-cutter action heroes than normal human beings, but the story itself was superb and the visuals arresting.
I have been looking for a quality television show to watch since Downton Abbey faded into the English countryside last season. Thanks to NBC, I think I’ve found it. Rating: 5/5.
So when I heard that NBC was rolling out a new time-travel series called Timeless , I knew I had to check it out. As it turned out, the series, or at least its first episode, lived up to its considerable hype.
Goran Visnjic stars as a sophisticated criminal who steals a time machine in order to change the course of American history and destroy the country. In last night’s series pilot, he goes back to May 6, 1937, in an attempt to prevent the Hindenburg disaster.
Kept in the dark until Visnjic takes the time machine from the private company that developed it, the Department of Homeland Security quickly assembles and deploys a team to retrieve the criminal and the device. The team includes a history professor (Abigail Spencer), a soldier (Matt Lanter), and a scientist (Malcolm Barrett).
Almost from the beginning, the best-laid plans go astray for both the hunters and their prey. People live who were not supposed to live, timelines are changed, and little is resolved. The butterfly effect and the grandfather paradox are trotted out like show ponies.
There were a few things I didn’t like about the pilot. Timeless relied heavily on trendy sayings and cliches and its pursuers more often resembled cookie-cutter action heroes than normal human beings, but the story itself was superb and the visuals arresting.
I have been looking for a quality television show to watch since Downton Abbey faded into the English countryside last season. Thanks to NBC, I think I’ve found it. Rating: 5/5.
September 16, 2016
Review: Brooklyn
I don’t watch a lot of movies these days. One reason is that I don’t take the time to watch them. Another is that I don’t find current offerings all that compelling.
Every now and then, however, I see a film that makes me think I should give more motion pictures a chance. Brooklyn , a romantic drama directed by John Crowley, is one such movie.
Set in Enniscorthy, Ireland, and New York City, Brooklyn is the tale of Eilis Lacey, a humble young Irish woman who immigrates to the United States in 1951. She finds employment in a department store and love with Italian-American plumber Anthony "Tony" Fiorello.
Saoirse Ronan and Emory Cohen are magnificent as Lacey and Fiorello, respectively, but both take a back seat to the story itself. In Brooklyn , one gets a sense of what thousands of Irish and Italian immigrants experienced in the early postwar years.
Though Lacey makes a fairly smooth transition to American life, she feels the constant pull of Ireland in the form of a controlling mother, an ill sister, and a would-be suitor. From the moment she arrives in the U.S., she struggles to reconcile her two worlds.
Based on Colm Tóibín's novel, Brooklyn wowed audiences at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and earned three Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress. I strongly recommend it to any fan of historical fiction. Rating: 5/5.
Every now and then, however, I see a film that makes me think I should give more motion pictures a chance. Brooklyn , a romantic drama directed by John Crowley, is one such movie.
Set in Enniscorthy, Ireland, and New York City, Brooklyn is the tale of Eilis Lacey, a humble young Irish woman who immigrates to the United States in 1951. She finds employment in a department store and love with Italian-American plumber Anthony "Tony" Fiorello.
Saoirse Ronan and Emory Cohen are magnificent as Lacey and Fiorello, respectively, but both take a back seat to the story itself. In Brooklyn , one gets a sense of what thousands of Irish and Italian immigrants experienced in the early postwar years.
Though Lacey makes a fairly smooth transition to American life, she feels the constant pull of Ireland in the form of a controlling mother, an ill sister, and a would-be suitor. From the moment she arrives in the U.S., she struggles to reconcile her two worlds.
Based on Colm Tóibín's novel, Brooklyn wowed audiences at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and earned three Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress. I strongly recommend it to any fan of historical fiction. Rating: 5/5.
September 2, 2016
Finding fun in the Fifties
In every series there is usually one novel the author looks forward to writing the most. For some, it’s the first book, the one that sets the tone. For others, it’s the last book, the one that brings a story to a conclusion. For me, it’s the book that brings the most enjoyment.
And this one, folks, was just plain fun.
Say hello to Class of ’59 . The fourth novel in the American Journey series and my ninth overall, it is a book that breaks new ground, answers old questions, and takes readers on a T-Bird ride through the era of Happy Days , Pleasantville , and American Graffiti .
Like in
September Sky
,
Mercer Street
, and
Indiana Belle
, people from the present access a portal to the past in a Victorian mansion in Los Angeles. Unlike in the first three books, they do so without the knowledge and assistance of Professor Geoffrey Bell.
On March 21, 1959, Mark Ryan, 22, is a focused college senior, an engineering major with an eye on building rockets and missiles. Then he explores an old desk in his family’s new home and finds a letter and two crystals that give him the means to travel through time.
On June 2, 2017, Mary Beth McIntire, 22, is an Alabama woman headed to medical school. Her life seems set when she takes a trip to California with her family. Then she sees a man in 1950s attire outside her vacation house and her world turns upside down.
Mark and Mary Beth share their startling discoveries with his adventurous brother (Ben) and her sensible sister (Piper). Within hours, four young adults throw caution to the wind and plunge into the age of sock hops, drive-in theaters, hot rods, and jukeboxes.
Class of ’59 is the first of my books set almost entirely in the Golden State. Instead of scattering across the country to places like Texas, New Jersey, and Indiana, my time travelers stay put.
From the streets of Hollywood to the high schools of Pasadena to the beaches of Santa Monica, they see Southern California in its storied prime. They experience the fifties up close and personal.
Filled with history, romance, humor, and suspense, Class of ’59 provides readers with a nostalgic snapshot of an unforgettable era. The novel, available as a Kindle book on Amazon.com and its international sites, goes on sale today.
And this one, folks, was just plain fun.
Say hello to Class of ’59 . The fourth novel in the American Journey series and my ninth overall, it is a book that breaks new ground, answers old questions, and takes readers on a T-Bird ride through the era of Happy Days , Pleasantville , and American Graffiti .
Like in
September Sky
,
Mercer Street
, and
Indiana Belle
, people from the present access a portal to the past in a Victorian mansion in Los Angeles. Unlike in the first three books, they do so without the knowledge and assistance of Professor Geoffrey Bell. On March 21, 1959, Mark Ryan, 22, is a focused college senior, an engineering major with an eye on building rockets and missiles. Then he explores an old desk in his family’s new home and finds a letter and two crystals that give him the means to travel through time.
On June 2, 2017, Mary Beth McIntire, 22, is an Alabama woman headed to medical school. Her life seems set when she takes a trip to California with her family. Then she sees a man in 1950s attire outside her vacation house and her world turns upside down.
Mark and Mary Beth share their startling discoveries with his adventurous brother (Ben) and her sensible sister (Piper). Within hours, four young adults throw caution to the wind and plunge into the age of sock hops, drive-in theaters, hot rods, and jukeboxes.
Class of ’59 is the first of my books set almost entirely in the Golden State. Instead of scattering across the country to places like Texas, New Jersey, and Indiana, my time travelers stay put.
From the streets of Hollywood to the high schools of Pasadena to the beaches of Santa Monica, they see Southern California in its storied prime. They experience the fifties up close and personal.
Filled with history, romance, humor, and suspense, Class of ’59 provides readers with a nostalgic snapshot of an unforgettable era. The novel, available as a Kindle book on Amazon.com and its international sites, goes on sale today.
August 1, 2016
Giving a nod to my better half
She is usually the first person I consult on writing matters and the contributor I trust the most. She is the person most likely to recognize problems in my books because she has read them all and helped fix them all — more times than I can count.
No one else, I think it is safe to say, knows me better as a writer than my wife, Cheryl Fellows Heldt. Then again, no one else knows me better as a person.
Her support for my “hobby” goes back to the beginning. Long before I even dreamed of writing my first novel, The Mine , in the summer and fall of 2011, Cheryl encouraged and supported my career as a newspaper sportswriter, reporter, and editor.
She went through my manuscripts, attended events I covered, and occasionally provided me with story ideas. She also put her own career ambitions on hold for many years so that I could achieve my goals as a journalist, a librarian, and finally a novelist.
Even now, when she is extraordinarily busy blazing her own trails as an educator, Cheryl sets aside blocks of time to help me with various projects. In the past year alone, she has listened to and offered input on the narration of three audiobooks.
So it’s with much love and respect that I recognize my wife today. On our thirtieth anniversary, I have never appreciated her more.
No one else, I think it is safe to say, knows me better as a writer than my wife, Cheryl Fellows Heldt. Then again, no one else knows me better as a person. Her support for my “hobby” goes back to the beginning. Long before I even dreamed of writing my first novel, The Mine , in the summer and fall of 2011, Cheryl encouraged and supported my career as a newspaper sportswriter, reporter, and editor.
She went through my manuscripts, attended events I covered, and occasionally provided me with story ideas. She also put her own career ambitions on hold for many years so that I could achieve my goals as a journalist, a librarian, and finally a novelist.
Even now, when she is extraordinarily busy blazing her own trails as an educator, Cheryl sets aside blocks of time to help me with various projects. In the past year alone, she has listened to and offered input on the narration of three audiobooks.
So it’s with much love and respect that I recognize my wife today. On our thirtieth anniversary, I have never appreciated her more.
July 14, 2016
A finished first draft and more
It took seven weeks, a lot of sweat, and some swearing at the cat (just kidding), but I finally got it done. The first draft of Class of ’59, the fourth book in the American Journey series, is a done deal.
I have forwarded the manuscript to the first of eight beta readers and hope to have a finished product by September 20. A cover for the book is also in the works and should be out within a week.
I am also pleased to report news on four other books.
Midwest Book Review, a highly respected and influential book review site founded in 1976, reviewed Indiana Belle this week. The review can be found online in the MBR’s July newsletter.
Narrator Sonja Field is two-thirds of the way through The Show audiobook. I expect to release that title by September.
Chaz Allen, who narrated the recently released September Sky audiobook, has started an audio production of The Fire . I hope to submit that work to Audible by October or November.
Downloads for Mercer Street , yesterday’s featured book on e-Book-Daily have been brisk. The second novel in the American Journey series is available as a free download through Saturday.
I have forwarded the manuscript to the first of eight beta readers and hope to have a finished product by September 20. A cover for the book is also in the works and should be out within a week.
I am also pleased to report news on four other books.
Midwest Book Review, a highly respected and influential book review site founded in 1976, reviewed Indiana Belle this week. The review can be found online in the MBR’s July newsletter.
Narrator Sonja Field is two-thirds of the way through The Show audiobook. I expect to release that title by September.
Chaz Allen, who narrated the recently released September Sky audiobook, has started an audio production of The Fire . I hope to submit that work to Audible by October or November.
Downloads for Mercer Street , yesterday’s featured book on e-Book-Daily have been brisk. The second novel in the American Journey series is available as a free download through Saturday.
June 5, 2016
Getting a jump on novel nine
Those who know me well know that I rarely keep my word when I say I will take a long break between books. The temptation to jump into the next novel and start writing early is almost always too great.
Such was the case with the untitled fourth book in the American Journey series. I had hoped to put off the project until July 1, but I started early last week when I finished my initial marketing campaign for book three, Indiana Belle , well ahead of schedule.
In book four, two vacationing Alabama sisters, ages 22 and 18, will travel from 2017 to 1959 Los Angeles, meet similarly aged brothers, and immerse themselves in the age of Sputnik, sock hops, drive-ins, and cars with fins. I hope to complete the first draft by Labor Day and publish the novel -- my ninth overall -- by Thanksgiving.
Progress also continues on two audio book projects. Both The Show , narrated by Sonja Field, and September Sky , read by Chaz Allen, should be available to consumers by early fall.
Such was the case with the untitled fourth book in the American Journey series. I had hoped to put off the project until July 1, but I started early last week when I finished my initial marketing campaign for book three, Indiana Belle , well ahead of schedule.
In book four, two vacationing Alabama sisters, ages 22 and 18, will travel from 2017 to 1959 Los Angeles, meet similarly aged brothers, and immerse themselves in the age of Sputnik, sock hops, drive-ins, and cars with fins. I hope to complete the first draft by Labor Day and publish the novel -- my ninth overall -- by Thanksgiving.
Progress also continues on two audio book projects. Both The Show , narrated by Sonja Field, and September Sky , read by Chaz Allen, should be available to consumers by early fall.
May 9, 2016
Review: Friction
There’s a reason Sandra Brown, author of more than 50 New York Times bestsellers, is still going strong 35 years after publishing her first novel. Like a lot of authors, she can write a first-rate thriller. Unlike a lot of authors, she can infuse one with a first-rate romance.
So it was with enthusiasm that I downloaded the audio edition of Friction , Brown’s 2015 novel about Crawford Hunt, a troubled Texas Ranger who saves the life of a gorgeous newbie judge moments before she rules in the custody hearing of Hunt’s daughter.
In the week that follows, Hunt carries out a clandestine and ill-advised romance with the judge (Holly Spencer), battles his vindictive father-in-law for custody of five-year-old Georgia, and aggravates lawmen and outlaws alike as he pursues the people responsible for a deadly shooting in a small-town courthouse.
In Friction , Brown gets it half right. The crime drama is gritty and compelling. Though the identity of the ultimate culprit is never in doubt, the roles and motives of Hunt’s many other detractors are. Brown offers two twists at the end that lend poignancy to Hunt’s story as Georgia’s father and the neglected son of a town drunk.
Hunt is less sympathetic as a Romeo. His relentless pursuit of Judge Spencer is comically crude, a Lone Star version of “Me Tarzan. You Jane. Tarzan want Jane. Now!” Spencer, for her part, seems more like a schoolgirl with a crush than a rising legal star.
Even so, I liked Friction enough to recommend it. Sandra Brown may sometimes prompt readers and listeners to roll their eyes and shake their head, but she rarely leaves them bored. Rating: 3/5.
So it was with enthusiasm that I downloaded the audio edition of Friction , Brown’s 2015 novel about Crawford Hunt, a troubled Texas Ranger who saves the life of a gorgeous newbie judge moments before she rules in the custody hearing of Hunt’s daughter.
In the week that follows, Hunt carries out a clandestine and ill-advised romance with the judge (Holly Spencer), battles his vindictive father-in-law for custody of five-year-old Georgia, and aggravates lawmen and outlaws alike as he pursues the people responsible for a deadly shooting in a small-town courthouse.
In Friction , Brown gets it half right. The crime drama is gritty and compelling. Though the identity of the ultimate culprit is never in doubt, the roles and motives of Hunt’s many other detractors are. Brown offers two twists at the end that lend poignancy to Hunt’s story as Georgia’s father and the neglected son of a town drunk.
Hunt is less sympathetic as a Romeo. His relentless pursuit of Judge Spencer is comically crude, a Lone Star version of “Me Tarzan. You Jane. Tarzan want Jane. Now!” Spencer, for her part, seems more like a schoolgirl with a crush than a rising legal star.
Even so, I liked Friction enough to recommend it. Sandra Brown may sometimes prompt readers and listeners to roll their eyes and shake their head, but she rarely leaves them bored. Rating: 3/5.
