Javier A. Robayo's Blog, page 9

In Honor of Flag Day

Author's note: I thought it appropriate to share this excerpt from the upcoming MY TWO FLAGS in honor of our Star Spangled Banner.      
   We land in JFK at about midnight. It would be another two hours before our papers are checked and signed. Only then, we are allowed to retrieve our bags, which are under heavy scrutiny, and take the first step into this new life.     I gather my coat and shrug it on while Mom buttons up my sister’s j...

Once a coworker, now a friend

   Mark is a thirty-eight year old, rough, tough, angry crane operator who started working at the steel mill the same year I did.  That means I’ve known him for over thirteen years.  We are diametrical opposites in nearly every aspect of life, so it’s no surprise that we never gave each other more than a passing glance along with a “Keys are in it, buddy.  See you tomorrow.”  A typical exchange at shift change when I replace him behind the controls of the crane.  ...

D DAY

    "June 6, 1944

     Dear Dad,

     I had to date this letter a day later because it may be the last time I can write to you.  I already gave Mom the 'don't worry' letter, but man to man, Dad, I've never been more scared in my life.
     Remember when that old owl chased me in the barn at night?  I was seven, and you ran in there, shotgun in hand, and saved me from its talons.  I always wanted to kno...

The Gaze, the book that almost never was...

   Despite the frustrated glances I endured in those first months of writing, my Sheri and two daughters eventually came to the realization that I had to see this novel through to the end.  I spent over ten months adding, deleting, rewriting, developing, and well, many of you know what it's like to write a novel.      I clearly recall walking into a Barnes & Noble when I felt I was a chapter away of finishing THE GAZE.  At that point, I had yet to c...

George (A Memorial Day Tribute)

      I was in the fourth grade, attending the prestigious Pensionado Borja 3.  The Jesuit school was essentially a prep school for Colegio de San Gabriel, which eventually led to studying at La Universidad Catolica.  There were no finer educational institutions in Quito, Ecuador.The homework was abundant, the reading was exhausting, and the teachers were increasingly demanding, particularly if you were at the top of the class.  I found myself in t...

@Mentions

I admit I was terrified of Twitter back when my good friend @johnwhuffman told me it was essential for me to tweet.  I didn’t understand the format.  I didn’t get what the #s and @s were about, or what the little links were. The concept of following and followers made me feel as though I was trying to start a cult.  Eventually, I plunged in.  As intimidating as it was, I found comfort in the fact that nearly everyone on the feed was either writing, or promoting their book...

The Harsh Critique

Note:  This blog is aimed at authors.  With the wonders of social media, feeling alone is a choice.  If my musings can help, inspire, or let one of you out there know that you're not alone either, then I'll keep openly sharing these chronicles.  Thank you for your visit.
   Over the past year, I wrote THE GAZE, and frankly I didn't know just what I had once I did what I thought was the final edit.  This book has gone on to garner some beautiful reviews and just...

Still Falling

   I came up to kiss our girls good night, wishing I didn't have to go to work for the night. When I saw you pull your brown hair back to kiss their little foreheads.  For a moment, my breath caught when you looked up at me.  Your clear blue gaze arrested me just like it has since the day I first met you...      I can easily recall walking into the bank where you worked.  You were at the drive-thru window, wishing your customer a good day when I wa...

A Mother's Day Thank You

   Damn!  Not again!   I sigh and glare malevolently at the offensive pen in my hand.  It can't be that noticeable, I think to myself, but it is.  It practically leaps off the page.   Damn!   I can hear Mom coming up the steps to check on my progress.  There's no point in writing anymore.  I have plenty of experience with what's about to happen.   "Well, let's see," she says over my shoulder.   The way she in...

Characters, they're all around us

For a while I thought about writing some paranormal story for that's trending big time right now.  Many of us aspire to write the next Twilight and to do that, we have to be at our best in creating a character.  Not an easy feat. 
But, suddenly it hit me, why do I need to invent the most beautiful vampire, sophisticated, sharp, strong, undeniably appealing, when there's an entire world full of interesting people that can easily become the basis of a character in a story? ...