A World with no Good Guys

What do you think that would be like? More to the point, what does that question mean to you? Nothing? Just another day at the office? Armageddon? What?

Because, that's exactly the world we live in. We like to pretend we're all good guys (by now you know I don't mean 'guys' in a gender sense). In some ways, we are, but we're also all bad guys. Note that I've not used the term evil in this context. This is not necessarily a case of Good and Evil, but merely of good and bad.

Take my protagonist, Adam Watson, from my newest release, The Evil Within. He is essentially a good guy who comes home to recover from some very bad experiences on the battlefield. All he wants is to go hunting in the little Eden he'd grown up in, and to be left alone.

With a reputation as a local good guy, he steps up to the plate when some clearly bad guys threaten a young woman in his presence. Little does he know they're there because of something a member of his family has done, and they're not the type to back off. One thing leads to another until all hell breaks loose. Literally.

Adam is back in a shooting war, right on his home town's main street. On the path from uncomfortable to unlivable, his eyes are opened to the reality that nobody he knows is free of the evil he'd tried so hard to avoid. When the smoke clears, he's left with a remnant of his family, an old girlfriend, and a lot of cleaning up to be done.

The Evil Within, offered by MuseItUpPublishing, is available as an eBook download at: www.tinyurl.com/7z9m97c and will soon be available for Kindle readers at Amazon.com or for Nook readers at Barnes and Noble.com

Search for Pat Dale, author at either site. caution: You are entering a no-win zone, rife with gritty, vulgar, violent scenes not for the faint of heart. Adult content, with a message you're not likely to forget.

Read THE EVIL WITHIN if you dare.

PD

A Writer's Universe: Inside or Outside

I've been relegated to observer status of late. A serious leg injury has necessitated my inactivity, so I've had lots of time to think. That's a dangerous thing for a writer. An idle mind is the devil's workshop, my grandfather once told me. Or was it, an idol mind? Hmm.

Many an author these days creates amazing outer worlds, with non-human characters, places, intrigue, etc. Fascinating for readers, especially those inclined to science fiction/fantasy. I even took one fanciful line and twisted it into an erotic fantasy, Blue Streaks. In the end, however, I couldn't help doing an unconventional twist into an all too true, down to earth, climax.

On the other hand, I find that the world which teases and tempts me the most is the one on the inside. How a character thinks and feels is more important than the derring do's and heaving ho's of life's little adventures. For the most part, my readers will find flawed heroes who demonstrate redeemable characteristics, more seriously flawed villains with little to redeem them, and strong women who follow or lead their heroes through thick and thin. No weak women for me, for I've never found that they exist. Strong women gone wrong, now that's a different tune, one I'll pipe all day and all night.

All of which leads me to the reason for this post. Fanfare, if you please, maestro! The Evil Within will be released on Friday, January 27, 2012. In Evil, you'll find a flawed hero, Adam Watson, who demonstrates a tendency all too many men will find uncomfortably familiar. He thinks of himself as a good guy.

Well, he is a good guy. Problem is, he's also human, which means he's got some inside plumbing in need of a good cleaning. Not physical plumbing, but spiritual. Before this saga is done, Adam learns more about his family, his community, and himself than is comfortable. Sorry, Adam, that's the way it goes in my book.

We also have not one but a plethora (there's that word again) of strong women, all with character flaws, but with the feminine wherewithal to hold life's little drama together when the seams pop. There is Sarah Reynolds, Adam's married sister, whose application for sainthood is on hold. Kelly Samples, a girl older than her years by a coon's age, and Amanda Moore, Adam's high school sweetheart, who turns out to be full of heart, but not so sweet.

Have I got a villain for you to hate? In spades, I do, and his name is Ramos. He does not deserve a last name and doesn't get one. What he does get in the end is something for you to wonder about. Oh, and the end is anything but happy for all concerned. Hint: keep a box of hankies handy when you read the last portion of this one.

Is this some kind of irreverent code, I'm blathering here? Could be, but you won't know if you don't read the book. Caution: it is not for the faint of heart, or those with tender feelings easily hurt. This is an adult novel in the manner of a Steinbeck, Hemingway, Lewis, or, dare I say, a Twain. In my view, we can still learn a thing or two from the classic writers of old.

What's inside your favorite character? Your favorite villain? Your own head? Look out. I may be lurking nearby, hoping for a little insight into what makes you tick.

Fair warning!

Pat Dale

Music: A Muse Builder

Have you ever tried writing while some good mood music plays in the background? I have, and it often helps me keep going when, otherwise, I might dawdle over some detail. I’m not talking pop music here. Each generation has its own favorites when it comes to pop stuff, but they often fade into the distant past within a few months or years.

What I’m talking about is ‘classical’ music; music for the ages. Just as each generation provides a handful of ‘classics’ that linger, so does the music of the masters. Only, with the masters, their music will be here for centuries, providing a continuum for music lovers worldwide. How will their music help keep your muse amused? Let me show you what I mean.

For instance, say you’re a writer of romances. You have to write a love scene and you want it to be sensuous, but not blatantly graphic. There are two pieces I like to use at a time like this. The more sensual is Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony, Movement Three; the slow movement. If you’ve heard it, I don’t need to embellish its languid seduction of the listener. If you haven’t, you owe it to yourself to treat yourself to some of the most sensual sounds ever penned.

It begins with a poignant theme that repeats over and over, but not monotonously. As it builds, you can almost see two lovers who kiss, separate, kiss again as they entwine themselves in a buildup to an irrepressible climax. Then they settle into a few moments where you can sense the lovers enjoying the afterglow, before they're overwhelmed with the need to couple again, this time more slowly but rising to an even higher peak than the first. And, finally, a peaceful settling into the classic ‘love-death’. A word of caution here; if you listen to this for love scene inspiration, stop the recording immediately at the end, because the final movement begins with a bang.

The other piece mention is Gustav Mahler’s slow movement in his Fifth Symphony. It is less sensual than Rachmaninoff’s, but somewhat more extended. Also, it fires up the muse in a most romantic way. I’ve used both of these as I write the love scenes in my romances, and I highly recommend them to you. (Hint: They also are excellent to play in the background if you want to create a proper setting when romancing your own mate.)

There are many other examples of music that 'lights your fire', sensually speaking, of course. Debussy penned dozens of short and medium length compositions that can lull you into a world where your muse goes wild. Also Ravel as well as Frederick Delius wrote similar ethereal music.

Alas, the contemporary music world bombards us with such cacophony that Don Juan couldn't get it up for one of his conquests. Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, we are not captive to live performances. We can go down the street, waking or driving, with some midget device crammed into our ear, and enjoy the music of the ages. For me, the greatest thrill is to listen as I write yet another story.

My advice; try it. You might like it. Cheers, and happy listening.

Pat Dale

Pump Up Your Blog

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Hi folks. Our guest today is Frank Scully. We’ll be discussing his Muse novel, EMPTY TIME. Welcome, Frank. Before we get into the nuts and bolts of your story, can you give us a thumbnail of the novel’s background universe? Oh, and tell us a bit about your protagonist.

James Lang is like so many people today. He works in mid-management in a large corporation, Intelligent, competent and hard working. Loyal to the company. A vital cog in the wheel, yet always slightly afraid of losing his job so he bends to the whims of the corporate leadership. Divorced twice, alone, estranged from any family, his whole existence is tied up in the company. Like a serf tied to the land and the lord of the castle.

Corporate titans today are much like the feudal lords of times past. They fight and scheme their way up a ladder of prestige, wealth, power and privilege. The major difference is the lack of a belief in a coherent code of conduct or moral precepts. Chivalry is dead. Working on a global scale beyond governments and borders, these new aristocrats are almost untouchable. The only rule they obey is greed. They are willing to employ any methods necessary to win. The prize is enormous wealth. CEO’s are paid huge salaries to bring in the numbers. How they do it is not questioned. The ultimate prize for a CEO is to take the corporation private and own it so they have complete control. Then they become icons to the rest of the corporate titans.

Many corporations today have more wealth than some countries. For a CEO who owns his own large corporation it is almost the same as being the dictator of a country. And it is far easier to take over a corporation than a country and less dangerous. In addition, there are more corporations. You don’t even have to own the corporation. Often, all you have to do is control the board of directors. CEO’s of large publically owned corporations today can get paid hundreds of millions of dollars a year even when the corporation is losing money.

James Lang isn’t thinking about any of that. All he wants to do is get through each day and hang on to his job. To not lose his place on the corporate ladder, maybe to move up a rung or two. So he will do the bidding of his masters even when he knows there is something wrong. He may have in the back of his mind a realization that there should be more to life than this but like so many wage slaves he is a prisoner to what passes for reality and success in the culture that surrounds him.

To take over a large leading-edge technology corporation three top executives are willing to commit murder and fraud to manipulate the stock market and the international currency exchange market. To divert attention and provide a patsy they set up Jim Lang to take the blame before he is to be killed and disappear. Disappear he does, die he doesn’t. He survives and discovers through the sacrifice of another that in order for life to have meaning he must be willing to give it up for something. To save the people he loves he must put his life on the line to turn the tables on his former colleagues.

That’s a pretty amazing scenario, Frank, but one we can easily recognize from the corporate world’s recent headlines. As far-fetched as it sounds, this world does exist and I suspect that many of us would relish a hero who rises to the challenge of bringing at least one or two of those corporate moguls to justice.

To some this may sound far-fetched. Unfortunately, after working in a variety of large corporations for almost 40 years, I have to say it is not. This exact story line may not have happened, but executives of corporations have manipulated their stock with impunity many times, colluded with government agencies for nefarious purposes, cheated to obtain lucrative contracts, and employed people or other corporations to get around the law or intimidate others. Now they have the right to spend unlimited amounts of money in elections. The Robber Barons of the late 19^th century and the feudal lords of the middle ages would be jealous of the power wielded by the corporate titans of today.

I simply use this as high concept backdrop for the story of James Lang, a man who finds his way out of the morass of empty time. Through good fortune and the help and sacrifice of others he learns that life has no meaning unless you are willing to give it up for something.

Well, I’m sure we’ll cheer James Lang on as we read your fascinating book. My guess is this one, with its worldwide scenario, was not easy to accomplish.

It was a fun book to write. It required considerable research, but that was part of the enjoyment, particularly learning about the waterways of Europe and those who work and live on them. That specific aspect is an essential part of the story. The waterways of Europe have been used for commerce for hundreds of years and still are. Boats of varying sizes haul goods all over Europe on these waterways. There are also boats that take tourists throughout Europe on the inland waterways. Many people live on their boats and do not have a permanent address. It is into this world that Lang disappears after the attempt on his life.

How in the world did you come up with such an engaging story?

I can’t honestly say how this story line came into my head. Ideas simply pop in and I follow them. Some are discarded if I don’t like where they go. Others I develop because I like where they go and enjoy the characters. What happens usually is a general theme or story line will come to me. Sometimes it comes with a set of characters, sometimes without. I write it down and start developing it. What theme or message is it trying to express? Who are the characters and what is their backstory? What is the crime and how does it play out? Without a crime how can it be a mystery/thriller? I may spend a few months ruminating over a variety of story lines before any of them make it to the stage where I am ready to settle on one to be the next book. I may be writing one while I am thinking about the plots for several to follow.

You certainly have raised lots of intriguing questions here. Would you elucidate your writing process for us?

Once it makes it past the initial stage, I will start doing more detailed notes on the characters, place, crime, time lime, and other aspects of the story. However, I do not do an outline. The prime things I want to know before I sit down at the computer are the characters, the crime, the setting and a general idea where I want to end up. Once I am comfortable with that, I work on the first few paragraphs. Developing that hook is the hardest part. So much rides on capturing the reader in the first few paragraphs.

Once I am past the first chapter, the book tends to flow. I allow the characters to come to life in my mind. It is almost like a movie starts to run in my head and my job is to get it down on paper. As the characters and the story move along I have at times found that the story and the characters will take different directions than what I originally had intended.

I don’t wait till I complete the first draft for re-write and edit. Each day, as I start to write, I go back and review what I wrote the previous session and do some editing as well as checking for consistency in the character and the story. Once I am done, I set it aside while I work on something else. I need to let it get out of my head for a while so I can approach it with a more open mind for the final editing and re-write.

Sounds like a pretty complicated process, but one that yields very satisfying results for certain. I’ve read your other novels so I don’t have to ask whether this is your first. How many books have you done now, Frank?

I have now completed six novels and am working on my seventh. EMPTY TIME is the third one published by MuseItUp Publishing. RESURRECTION GARDEN was the first, DEAD MAN’S GAMBIT was the second, and BLOOD SINS, the fourth, will be coming soon. All are part of what I call the Decade Mystery Series. I am writing at least one novel set in each decade from the beginning of the 20th century to the current time set in different locales with both continuing and new characters in each one. There is something unique in each decade that marks it as separate from what went before or what follows. I explore aspects of what is unique as it is expressed in the locale chosen and how it affects the culture, characters and the tenor of the times and yet also see the common humanity that never changes.

All are available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords and other online eBook retailers as well as the publisher’s bookstore at: https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/

Well, Frank, I’d like to thank you for dropping by to visit with us today. You’ve shared a bit of your book and your writing regimen. I feel we know you a little better now, and I’m also sure we’ll want to visit a site where we can pick up a copy of EMPTY TIME and cheer James Lang on. Best wishes for a successful career as a novelist.

About the author:

Frank Scully was born and raised in a small town in North Dakota and received a Bachelor’s degree in History with Phi Beta Kappa Honors and a Juris Doctor degree in Law from the University of North Dakota. He then served more than five years as a Judge Advocate General Corps Officer in the U. S. Army in the U. S., Vietnam, and Thailand. After that he attended the prestigious Thunderbird School and received a Masters in Business Administration with honors. In his professional career he has worked as an executive with large aerospace and defense manufacturers and also owned his own small business.

Depending on the vagaries of the universe he has been well off at times and broke, but never broken, at other times. Blessed with an understanding wife who gave him twin sons, he has remained through it all a dreamer whose passion is writing stories.

Website: www.frankjscully.com

Thanks for dropping by. Please leave a comment if you can. Happy reading! Pat Dale

Hot Flash

Did that get your attention? I hope it did. I've got a new release that can be found in Muse It Hot because it is adult rated content. This one is a real flier for me. Based on a series of nightmares, it fantasizes a nocturnal journey to inner space.

Want to know what inner space is? Read Blue Streaks to find out. Warning: for all you IT types out there, this may cause you to hesitate any time you feel inclined to hit the escape button on your machine. And fair warning for those of you who have a tendency to nit-pick your mate. Do not let him lure you to the keyboard at four in the afternoon, whatever else you do.

That's all I'm saying about this one. Except that I'd love to hear from you readers after you've read Blue Streaks. Let me know how you like the ending. Hint: it is not what you expected, is it?

HE HE, HA HA, HO HO! They're coming to take me away, HO HO!

PD

Hollow Wollow (what the heck is that?)

Did that one catch you by surprise? It shouldn't have. By my calendar, it is still three weeks to Halloween, yet we've had a number of our peers wallowing in Halloweeny stuff since the middle of September. To each his/her own, I suppose.

I've looked forward to fall each and every one of my considerable years. Now, though, because some of us can't wait for one particular little bit of the whole scheme of things, the absolute beauty of fall in the northern hemisphere, along with the celebration of a new school year and its concordant games, and in our region a gorgeous Indian summer, is trampled. Run down by gobledygook spookism.

I love Halloween, don't get me wrong. The end of summer for Celtic civilizations, and the beginning of winter. Spiritually speaking, the Church has celebrated All Souls Day and All Saints Day for centuries. Trick or treating for kids, spooky costumes, gaily decorated parties; all are a part of the upcoming holiday.

Yet I cannot get past the concern that we're trying to rush right past a most delightful time of the year to get to that holiday. I'll stop with this because I don't want this to become a rant. So, for those of you who can't wait, go for it. As for me, I'll take my fall color drives and rake my leaves, cheer my favorite football team on, and remember all the good fall times in my past.

Alright, I know some of you are chomping at the bit, to read me out good and proper, burn my butt, tell me off. Go for it! Turn the comment column into a malevolent firestorm.

Just remember, some of us make serious charges with our tongues firmly in our cheeks. Ha! You didn't see that coming, did you? Mainly, I just want to get somebody fired up to respond to my blog.

While we're here, I'd like to invite you to go to Sharon Donovan's blog tomorrow to read a new short story I wrote for the season. Not too scary, but don't stop before you get to the end of it.

You can find her at: http://sharondonovan.blogspot.com Log onto her site today and read another author's really scary story.

Also, you can go to karenfindoutaboutnewbooks or longandshortreviews for my latest promos. I'm celebrating this fall with a continuation of promos of my romance and romantic suspense novels. I hope you've read one or more of them, but if you haven't, I invite you to pick one up and read it. Then, like it or not, comment so I can get your feedback. I truly value what you think of my work.

Empath-Fact or Fiction?

I'm in a quandary. As I work on my current wip, I've come up with a new slant for one of my protagonists. The problem is, because I've shown empathic tendencies throughout my life, some of it comes eerily close to real experiences. It's only recently that I realized my life has been so affected by this 'power'. Some of you will no doubt scoff at my claim. I accept that; in fact, there are times when I wish I didn't have it.

But it's there. It's been there forever, as far as I can remember. Now, for what I need from you, my readers. If you've ever experienced the strange notion that you know something is going to happen before there's any indication of it, how did you handle it? Or, if you know exactly what someone is going to say before they open their mouth, did you try to short-circuit the conversation by going on to the next phase of the discussion?

Are there other manifestations of empathy you've experienced? I really want to expand this conversation to include any and all who've had such experiences, as well as those who've written empathic scenes in their novels. For those of you who do not believe such powers exist, I'll also welcome your pov. I can only say that my life has been enhanced and sometimes debilitated because I've responded without realizing what is happening until too late. I could give examples but they are embarrassingly personal.

On the other hand, I have to say it is reassuring to know that I can, almost without fail, know what is in another person's heart when they talk to me. If you have no clue what the heck I'm talking about here, let me know and I'll try to explain it. LOL

I'm declaring this EMPATH DAY on Pat's Plethora. Here's a call to all EMPATHS, come out, come out, whoever you are. I want to play.

Happy mindreading day!

Pat Dale