Author: John W. Howell

I have been working in business for over forty years and now have the time to work in special areas of interest. My passion has always been to create compelling stories of fiction. I have authored six novels and am working on my Seventh. The first novel is still in manuscript form and being utilized as a door stop in the laundry room. The second is a contemporary fiction novel of 89,000 words and is complete and I am currently seeking a publisher. I also write poetry but have not had the guts to share any with anyone. The one time I read a piece to a person their only comment was, “it doesn’t rhyme.” I will continue to write and hopefully my blog, Fiction Favorites at www.johnwhowell.com will provide some entertainment and an interesting thought or two. I live in the Austin area with my wife Molly and an assortment of loving pets.

Thursday – A little Personal – Pelicans

~ John W. Howell ~ 42 Comments

By now you must realize I have a fascination with the birds here on the Gulf. They never seem to tire of providing a fun watch as they go about their day. This first picture is of an approaching flock of pelicans.

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I would like to point out a couple of things. Notice the haze in the sky along with the clouds. ((Trust me it is there) This photo was taken on Tuesday this week and believe it or not the haze is from the burning of crop lands in Mexico and South America. The farmers do it each year as a method of pest control. The smoke flows over South Texas when the wind is from the South as it has been for a few days. The other thing I would like to point out is the haphazard way the Pelicans are in formation. Usually, they form the classic V formation much like geese. The winds are blowing at about 20 knots, so it is difficult for them to hold the position.

Here is an another look. I waited for them to get closer for this shot.

Pelicans on the Gulf

They still look all over the place. I’m sure their commanding officer will have a chat with them back at the perch.

I managed to catch a shot of the Pelicans in the water (Those black things at the water’s edge). The gulls were having a time with the wind as well.

Gulls and Pelicans

So you will not think the haze is forever, here is a shot taken Wednesday morning after the winds shifted to coming out of the North. (Thank you, Yankees) What a difference a day makes.

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This shot is a long beach view taken from about a half mile North of our walkway. (The dogs get a mile walk in the morning, and since the wind was coming out of the North, I started out heading into the wind. I just turned around to head back and took the photo) The haze will return today but it was a nice break.

 

Get Caught Reading — The Sign of the Ape 1

~ John W. Howell ~ 2 Comments

The start of a mid-week serial by the best serial writer on the planet. This is in support of Get Caught Reading and looks like a big hit already. Congratulations Teagan.

Teagan Riordain Geneviene's avatarTeagan's Books

Crystal Atonement book stack

Crystal — Got Caught Reading

Yes, Crystal got caught reading…  If there’s ever been something you wanted to get caught doing, it’s reading!  Did you know that May is officially Get Caught Reading Month?  I didn’t know about it either untilAnnette Rochelle Abentold me. 

Get Caught Reading is a public service campaign launched by the Association of American Publishers to remind people of all ages how much fun it is to read.  So I challenge you to do something, say something, cook something, dig, dance, or draw something that encourages someone to read.  

In honor of Get Caught Reading Month, I’m doing a midweek mini-series.  A few elite bloggers (and their pets) band together with one quest — catch the Story Reading Ape reading.  Now, you may say the Ape is known for reading, but our crafty friend is determined to lead the intrepid band on a merry chase…

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Wednesday Story Day – AKA Hump Day

~ John W. Howell ~ 24 Comments

Wednesday Story Day

 

Wednesday Story Day again and we last left Ben and Father Lightfoot discussing Ben’s situation. Ben was trying to explain the situation when Father Lightfoot interrupted him and implied that Ben was not right in the head. Let’s go back and see if there will be anything positive coming out of this discussion.

“You said I was talking crazy Father.”
“I didn’t mean that you were talking crazy my son. What I meant is your statement was the talk of a crazy person.”
“What? The idea of blowing up the Student Union.”
“Exactly Ben. You think it is okay to do something like that?”
“I believe that it is a little eccentric but certainly not the act of a crazy person.”
“Okay, maybe I was a bit too harsh. Why don’t you tell me why you wanted to blow up the Student Union.”
“Well, Alexis and I thought it would be a statement.”
“Statement? What kind of statement?”
“Well, father to be honest Alexis and I were never really happy at the university, and we thought by blowing up the Student Union we would exorcise whatever feelings we had for the place. That was before Mrs. Worthe came on the scene.”
“Okay, so Mrs. Worthe got involved. How did that change things?”
“Well, the mission went from one of a single purpose of cleansing to one of greed.”
“Greed? You want to explain what you mean?”
“Sure. Mrs. Worthe convinced us to plant the explosives and then demand from the university a ransom to keep us from blowing up the building.”
“My word. How much?”
“Ten million dollars.”
“Whew that is a lot of money. What were you going to do with all that money?”
“We were going to launder it and then send it to offshore accounts. Alexis thought it would be a way to have all the things she wanted.”
“What about you Ben. Did you want the money?”
“Well, I never gave it much thought. I guess it would have been nice to give Alexis what she wanted.”
“Come on Ben. We are talking about you. What did you want?”
“I wanted to forget the whole thing. That’s what I wanted.”
“So you shot yourself.”
“I didn’t mean to shoot myself.”
“But it sure put a stop to the plan. Didn’t it?”
“I suppose. Will you help me, Father?”
“I must confess my son. Yours is a sad case. You have allowed Mrs. Worthe and Alexis get you into a position of breaking some pretty big laws.”
“I know right? How can I get out of this mess?”
“Take a look at this Ben.”
“This is an ID of a FBI agent. OMG, you are with the FBI?”

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Creative Kue #74 by Keith Channing

~ John W. Howell ~ 25 Comments

I have been participating in Keith Channing’s Kreative Kue prompts. In his words, “Using this photo (below) as inspiration, write a short story, flash fiction, scene, poem; anything, really; and either put it (or a link to it) in a comment or email it to me at keithkreates@channing.fr before 6pm next Sunday (if you aren’t sure what the time is where I live, this link will tell you). If you post it on your own blog or site, a link to this page would be appreciated, but please do also mention it in a comment here – for reasons I have yet to fathom, pingbacks don’t seem to be working.

Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries, with links to your own blog or web site, next Monday.”

This week’s photo.

Kreative Kue #74

The Enemy by John W. Howell ©2016

“Do you see ’em?”

“No, you twit. Put that camera down and get over here.”

“I just can’t help recording this moment.”

“Moment? Which one? Our last you mean?”

“Oh, please. Those guys were just fooling around.”

“Fooling around? Did you see that dust and brush kicked up when they passed overhead?”

“What are you saying?”

“Those were fifty caliber machine gun bullets tearing up the ground that’s what I’m saying.”

“You’re kidding right?”

“I wish I were. I think they are trying to kill us for some reason.”

“Who are they?”

“Might be rebels I don’t know. I do know that they will probably come back.”

“Do you think they know they missed us?”

“I’m sure of it.”

“Shouldn’t we get off the road?”

“I think that will be a good idea. I need you to come back and get this car going.”

“I think you are right. Do you have the keys?”

“I thought you had them.”

“Maybe I left them in the ignition.”

“Come look.”

“Shouldn’t we try to find them before they see us again?”

“Well, yeah stupid. I’m looking.”

“Might be easier to see them if you removed those lens covers.”

“Just find the keys okay.”

“Okay.”

 

 

Top Ten Things Not to Do With Book Promotion – Guest Post with Charles Yallowitz

~ John W. Howell ~ 50 Comments

Normally I post my Top Ten Things during this time. Today I am so pleased to have a guest “Top Tenster.”  Charles has put together a laugh out loud list for you today. Charles is a gifted author, and his Amazon Author page will give more detail on his books. If you are unfamiliar with Charles Yallowitz and his fantasy series Legends of Windemere (I think maybe you have been in solitary confinement for the last three years), then I hope you will have the incentive to check out his first book. After all, the price is right and here is the cover.

Cover Art by Jason Pedersen

So Charles, welcome, and the post is yours.

Thank you to John for letting me attempt a Top 10 list.  Recently, I made the first book of my series, Legends of Windemere: Beginning of a Hero, permanently free.  A tough choice to make after it being 99 cents for three years.  Though there are worse ideas and here are ten book promotion methods that I wouldn’t recommend:

  1. Do not offer free flu shots with every purchase of your book. You are not a trained physician, and I don’t think your friend Scruffy is a pharmacologist. He may own a white lab coat and know how to spell ‘influenza’, but I’m pretty sure his degree is in Sandwich Artistry.  Also, you’d lose money on traveling to all of your readers.
  2. Do not promote your book by skywriting an excerpt. Yes, it’s a unique idea that’s never been done.  Though the reason is because you would run out of smoke before you get through the first paragraph.  Not to mention the beginning will fade long before you get to the end.  Does that say ‘dork and scurry right’?
  3. Do not brand your readers with a booby-trapped book. It doesn’t matter if it puts the Amazon URL on their forehead.  Seriously, you need to be kept away from all of mankind until you get professional help.
  4. Do not tie a promotional kite to yourself and streak through a major sporting event. The cameras will all be on you getting tackled in your pixelated glory.  Your precious kite will end up in a tree or trampled by the entire NY Giants defensive line and part of the Philadelphia Eagles offensive line.
  5. Do not try to get a celebrity endorsement by harassing them on social media and begging for permission to put them in your book. More than likely, you’ll make a public spectacle of yourself and get no reaction.  Though there’s always the chance that they’ll respond with a restraining order.
  6. Do not make and maintain a Twitter account for every single character in your book. It might sound like a good idea for the main character, but nobody cares what Marcel the Blacksmith is doing after being mentioned in one sentence.  Not to mention you’ll never leave Twitter to write your book and give Marcel a second sentence.
  7. Do not hold a raffle for your firstborn child and enter every reader into it. For one thing, it’s rude, and not everybody wants a child.  More importantly, your spouse and their new friend in a white coat might have issues with this.  Let’s not forget that it’s illegal too.
  8. Do not print out multiple cover slips for your book, go to the local bookstore, and put them on all of the bestsellers. For one thing, you never put a barcode on your creations and the cashier can simply write it up with a discount for damages.  There’s also that security guard approaching to ask why your clothes are stuffed with cover clips.  Enjoy the collection of paper cuts in uncomfortable places.
  9. Do not promise to include a copy of your sex tape with every purchase. There are many reasons why this is a bad idea.  The biggest one is that it will result in your spouse saying, “What sex tape?”.
  10. Do not run for President of the United States to get attention as an author. Seriously, you could win and be put in charge of the red button.  We both know how that will end, and cockroaches only read graphic novels.

 

Links

Legends of Windemere

Twitter

Facebook

Grab Legends of Windemere: Beginning of a Hero for Free!

 

Sunday – Views of the Neighborhood

~ John W. Howell ~ 50 Comments

 

On Friday of this week, a group of individuals organized and staged a one hundred person Flash mob formation of the peace symbol. The idea was to foster peace and understanding. The event included dancing and a skydive by a parachutist dressed as a mermaid.

The event was near the municipal pier on the beach. As you can see from the photo, the weather was perfect for such an event. The organizers felt responsible for bringing a message to all politicians that the government should be of the people, by the people, and for the people. The founders of the constitution tended to agree with this sentiment.

If you wonder about the kind of individuals who live in Port Aransas, this event was almost iconic in representing the majority view that government has lost its way. Most full-time residents have a high degree of skepticism when they hear the words, “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help you.”

Here is another view

 

 

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “TA”

~ John W. Howell ~ 26 Comments

 

 

 

Stream Of Consciousness SaturdayOnce again time for Stream of Consciousness Saturday. This week Linda has come up with another two letter prompt. It is “Ta” which Linda explains is British slang for goodbye. I remember the old TTFN designation used may years ago. It stands for Ta Ta For Now.  I’m not sure people still sat TTFN, but if you want to join the fun, please visit Linda at https://lindaghill.com/2016/04/22/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-april-2316/ Here is my interpretation of “Ta.”

Ta by John W. Howell ©2016

“So what are you writing?”

“A little sign to put up in my yard.”

“Yard? What for?”

“Well, as you know I have had a bunch of people constantly wandering around my property.”

“No, I didn’t know. What’s that all about?”

“I’m not sure. I asked one guy about it, and he told me there was a rare bird nesting in a tree in my backyard.”

“So these people are visiting the bird.”

“I guess so. You would think they would ask me if it was okay.”

“Yeah, seems like the decent thing to do.”

“I haven’t had one ask. When I go up to them and politely ask them to leave, they just look at me.”

“So why not call the cops?”

“Did. They said there was nothing they could do.”

“Brother. So what is the sign going to say.”

“Ta ta for now. Take you and your bird watching stuff and beat it or else.”

“Uh. I don’t think that’s going to do anything.”

“Would you read a sign like this and not react.”

“I would be asking myself or else what?”

“Hmm, good point. How about this?”

“Or the bird gets it. You mean that?”

“No, but who is going to call my bluff?”

“Not bird people. That’s for sure. Good job.”

 

 

 

 

Friday JohnKu – AKA TGIF

~ John W. Howell ~ 39 Comments

Another week is history. It was a pretty productive one. I made some progress on my WIP. I had to figure out an ending that would make more sense to more people. I have to admit I was a little too esoteric on the ending, and it raised some questions as to feasibility in the minds of some beta readers. One of the great things about beta readers is they tend to tell it like it is, and when something makes vague sense to them, it is time to change things up a bit. So I spent the week going back over the ending a few times and hopefully it will work better for everyone. I can say I’m pleased with  it, so I think a number of good things came out as a result of the beta reader’s comments. Today’s John Ku talks about advice. Have a great weekend.

Advice by John W. Howell ©2016

We all get advice,

Well-meaning friends give the best…

Not to be ignored.

Thursday – A little personal

~ John W. Howell ~ 40 Comments

Two weeks ago I ran a photo of Peggy the Heron and received a number of questions on the state of her health.  She is doing well and to more or less prove my point I have some photos to share.  This first is from about a week ago.

Peggy Looking for a hand out

This was a foggy morning. You can see a couple of fisher people. Peggy is right there with them and you will get an idea on how she stays healthy. It is very hard for folks to deny her a handout especially when she puts on her injured bird routine.

Peggy keeping watch

This was taken yesterday. Peggy is perched on the dune and waiting for a group of fisherfolk to get settled. Once they are ready to bait hooks she will fly down and land on one leg. There will be aw’s and a call to the rescue group (who have given up catching her). Finally, a few undersized fish will be tossed and Peggy will have had her normal day.

This last photo is not of Peggy but thought you would enjoy one of the sights greeting me each morning.

On watch

It is another Heron sitting on the beach marker. This was also taken yesterday

 

Wednesday – Story Day – AKA Hump Day

~ John W. Howell ~ 28 Comments

Story Day photo

 

Wednesday Story Day time again. Last week we were introduced to Father Lightfoot the priest that Ben had requested earlier. Mrs. Worthe points out to the priest that Ben has been restrained by the hospital staff and could be insane. To add a little spice to the scene, Ben declares Mrs. Worthe to be the devil. Such a statement does not go a long way in convincing others that he is normal. Let’s go back and see how the priest reacts to this scene.

“I’m sorry my boy, but your statement about the devil and Mrs. Worthe leads me to believe you have some problems that need attention.”
“You can help can’t you father?”
“Well I can certainly pray for you, but my speciality is not mental illness.”
“I’m not mentally ill.”
“So says the boy strapped to a gurney. Come on father we are wasting time here. This person needs some professional help.”
“Just a minute Mrs. Worthe. Let me say a prayer for Ben.”
“Knock yourself out, father. He is so far gone I think drugs will be the course of treatment here.”
“I understand Mrs. Worthe. If you could leave us for a moment. I would like to concentrate on a healing message.”
“Sure father. By the way does your Parrish have any special needs that I could help with a donation?”
“Let’s talk a little about that after I finish with Ben.”
“Suit yourself. I’ll be right outside. Take care Ben. Don’t forget we all love you. Oh yes and Mr. Thumb was asking for you. I’ll call and tell him you are doing fine. Bye now.”
“Mr. Thumb? Is that why you are confused about Mrs. Worthe and your thumb.”
“Father. Listen to me. She mentioned thumb to remind me of her threat to cut mine off if I talk.”
“Oh now come on my son. How would she do that to you? There are too many witnesses here.”
“She will wait until everyone is gone. Then she will attack.”
“Let us pray, my son.”
“No father you must help me. Give me three minutes and then if you still think I’m crazy, you can just forget what I tell you. If that his the case then you need to tell Mrs. Worthe that I said nothing. How about it?”
“Well, I guess three minutes can’t hurt.”
“Thank you, father. Let me start at the beginning.”
“Yes, my son. Start at the beginning.”
“Alexis. Uh, Mrs. Worthe’s daughter and I decided to blow up the Student Union at the University.”
“Okay, Ben. I think you should stop right there and let me do the praying.”
“W-why father?”
“Do you realize what you just said is crazy talk.”