Tuesday – Anything Possible Kreative Kue #41 Prompt by Keith Channing

September 8, 2015September 14, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 23 Comments

As you may know, I have become enamored by the talent of Keith Channing. He has a weekly prompt named Kreative Kue, which runs on Mondays. Here are the instructions from Keith for the prompt. “Using this photo 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 on Sunday (if you aren’t sure what the time is where I live, this link will tell you). If you post it on your blog or site, a link to this page would be appreciated.”

His advice. “Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries, with links to your blog or website, next Monday.” Here is the photo.

“Wow, I don’t believe I actually won something.”

“Well you did, and it looks nice on you.”

“I thought this was going to be your usual church service.”

“Well, it didn’t turn out that way.”

“You know usual like the old stuff kneel, pray, ask forgiveness, get communion, be forgiven, give thanks.”

“I know right. There you were with your hands ready to receive the host and plop the priest drops a hat on your head.”

“Yeah, then he says something about go forth and sin no more.”

“What was the last thing he said?”

“Ping someone else.”

“Ping? That’s what it says on your hat.”

“It does? I’ve been afraid to look. What does ping someone else mean?”

“The guy behind you has a polo pony on his.”

“I heard the priest say ‘ride someone else.”‘

“Oh, you did not. You’re just saying that.”

“What about the rest? No hats.”

“There is one, but that’s it.”

“So what does it mean?”

“You are special?”

“Yeah right.”

“Okay. You got a free hat.”

“I wonder if anyone else wore this one before.”

“Ew. Take it off.”

”

Ten Things Not to do on Labor Day

September 7, 2015September 6, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 17 Comments

In honor of Labor Day and since I’m currently out-of-town I’ve decided to boil the top ten list down t the most important items. Let’s all remember those who make our lives easier and more pleasant. The remembrance includes we authors.

Top Ten Things Not to do on Labor Day

10 through 1

On Labor Day have fun but do not drink and drive. If you do, at best you are a fool. At worst, you could hurt or kill an innocent person not to mention your guilty self.

Happy Labor Day all.

Sunday – Fifty-Two Views of the Gulf

September 6, 2015September 5, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 12 Comments

I have to confess that I’m out-of-town, and this photo was taken Friday morning instead of the regular Saturday morning.

The beach is unusually quiet for a holiday weekend. The lack of people, cars, tents, and mayhem is mostly because most parents cannot get to the beach before the kids are out of school. I expect a change later. Hopefully, I will be back in time to get a photo of what the scene looks like which I will publish next week. Have a great Labor day.

Last week’s photo.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Light”

September 5, 2015September 4, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 21 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday and this week’s prompt is “Light.” Linda Hill says we can do whatever we want with it. (Hmm causes one to wonder a bit) If you would like to participate, visit Linda and find out the rules. (Almost none) Here is the link. http://lindaghill.com/2015/09/04/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-sept-515/

“Get that light out of my face.”

“Tell me what you are doing here and maybe I will.”

“I was looking for a glass of water.”

“A glass of water? Here in the family room?”

“Well, I got turned around.”

“I guess so. It would be logical to get a glass of water in the kitchen.”

“Duh. I know that. I just got turned around is all. Get that light outa my face.”

“Not so fast. I still have to wonder how you got into the family room?”

“Okay, okay it’s no big deal. I came in through the window over there.”

“That’s what I thought. So you broke in.”

“No, I didn’t break in. The stupid window was open. I more or less fell in.”

“Fell in?”

“Yeah I was leaning against the house and the next thing I know I’m lying on the floor inside.”

“You don’t think entering someone else’s house is a problem?”

“Someone else’s? This is my house.”

“And who am I then?”

“Damned if I know.”

“Well, if you don’t know I’m not telling. See ya.”

“You’re a burglar. Hey not so fast.”

“What?”

“That’s my flashlight isn’t it?”

“Yup. Bye now.”

“You are taking my only light.”

“Tough break.”

“Yeah, tough. See ya.”

My Interview with Sacha Black

September 4, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 8 Comments

I am very pleased to be interviewed today by Sacha Black at her place.

WHO IS SACHA BLACK?

They say night owls stay up late. But in the depths of midnight, Sacha isn’t just awake. She’s hunting. A nightwalker carefully treading the line between light and dark, strange and unusual. A hunter desperately pursuing the right words to chronicle the tales of The Netherworld.

Keepers, the first in the Fallon trilogy which is set in The Netherworld, is currently boiling in the cauldron of her mind, the first draft of Keepers is almost finished.

Sacha was always meant to write, she was the girl who spent her lunch break tucked away in the corner of the school library, head buried in a pile of books pencil in hand, weaving stories onto the page. But she grew up, stumbled and fell forgetting her dream. She spent a while lost in a dark and twisted place. Then, one day she sat in front of her laptop and started to write. She remembered that all she’d ever wanted to do was write stories in far away places filled with curious creatures and magical happenings. Characters started to talk to her, fill her brain with incessant chatter and demanded their stories be told. And so, The Netherworld was created, and Eden’s story began.

Sacha is a wanderer at heart. A thinker, and ponderer on anything unusual or controversial which you can see in her Weekend Wonders series. She finds inspiration in the beauty of imperfection and is enthralled by evocative questions.

She’s loud, but it’s mostly a mask, preferring instead to take sanctuary through travelling the world, particularly New York or Asia having spent time in Nepal and the Himalayas Trekking up to Everest Base Camp. But she also finds peace through shoving her nose deep in a book, through haunting songs or a filthy dirty base beat!

Sacha has a fascination with writing, but particularly with deconstructing the writing process. She shares the trials, tribulations and lessons she learns trying to write the stories of the Netherworld and eventually become a published author.

Sacha is also a mother to a toddler and wife to a beautiful woman. When she’s not writing, she can be found working in the public sector, doing gel nails or occasionally baking cupcakes.

You can also find her here:

Twitter

Facebook

Googleplus

Give her a visit. She is someone you should know and follow

Friday JohnKu – AKA TGIF

September 4, 2015September 1, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 30 Comments

Friday again. It has been an interesting week pretty much filled with catch-up work for me. I’m getting ready to publish the sequel to My GRL and have decided to self-publish this time around. As most of you self-published authors know there is a lot to do before the book is ready. I am waiting for the final editor proofread and will then do the formatting. I have done some formatting so I think I can handle this part of the exercise. I plan to do a paperback and a Kindle edition so I will need to get the proper formats for each. My GRL was published by Martin Sisters Publishing, and they did all the work, so this is all new to me. Hopefully, I won’t blow a gasket in getting it done.

With the launch of My GRL, I had no control over price, timing, cover, or the internal appearance. This time will be different. I have control over all of these things. One thing I wished I could have done with My GRL was to get it into the hands of reviewers before publication. After the formatting is complete, I plan on putting it into the hands of those reviewers who will graciously agree to review and then publish the book with a more organized launch. I’m not sure it will make any difference, but it can’t hurt. This week’s JohnKU is about timing. Hope you like it.

Starting a project,

Time spent planning the outcome. . .

Finishes it well.

A New Release by Author C. S.Boyack – #RRBC

September 3, 2015September 2, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 6 Comments

Author C. S. Boyack has a new novel The Experimental Notebook of C. S. Boyack on preorder for release September 15th. The book is a collection of short stories and a price of only 99¢. That is a big value since it includes a dozen or so stories at that price.Here is the Amazon Link. Here is the cover that was designed by fellow blogger Rachel Carrera.

A little about C. S. Boyack.

I was born in a town called Elko, Nevada. I like to tell everyone I was born in a small town in the 1940s. I’m not quite that old, but Elko has always been a little behind the times. This gives me a unique perspective of earlier times, and other waysMore about C. S. Boyack

Bestselling Books: Will O’ the Wisp, The Cock of the South, Wild Concept.

Thursday-A Little Personal – Wedding Coast Style

September 3, 2015September 2, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 25 Comments

This weekend my wife and I were able to attend our friends’ wedding. I thought I would share a couple of the photographs from the reception.

The first is a photo of the event venue. As you can see, the reception was held on the beach. The wedding itself was in a church in town. The guest arrived at the reception welcomed by drinks and raw seafood bar. There was music and to the left you can see an assortment of palm trees (brought in by the caterer) and Adirondack chairs for lounging. The sun is setting in the West but casting a pink glow to the East.

Here is a closer view of the chairs around a fire with torch accents. The full moon is beginning to rise over the Gulf.

A closer view of the palms which became the border for the dancing area. You can see the DJ to the right. He played well into the night. The food was terrific and the night was magical courtesy of the beach, the moon and, of course, the happy couple.

I did try to get a nice shot of the moon reflecting off the Gulf but was only a little lucky. My wife Molly, on the other hand, was very successful. (Photo Credit; Molly D. McCormick) Those lights in the background are freighters waiting to enter the ship’s channel to pick up or unload their cargo.

Wednesday Story Day – AKA Hump Day

September 2, 2015August 31, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 36 Comments

It’s Wednesday Story Day again. This week is a brand new story, and I have to take a moment to offer some condolences to those who didn’t have their seatbelt fastened for the conclusion of Bob and Charlotte’s little soap opera. I can only hope Y’all recover quickly. So this week we will join a couple of college kids who are sitting in the Student Union and trying to figure out what to do for the weekend.

“So I don’t care what we do Ben. I know I don’t want to party too hard. Next week is midterms, and I have to get some studying done.”

“I’m with you one hundred percent. If I don’t pull an A on my Psych exam, I’m going to get a C, and that will be the end of my scholarship.”

“Why don’t we just stay in and study?”

“You know it sounds like the right thing to do.”

“We could make it fun. You know we could order pizza delivery and maybe watch a movie.”

“Now you’re talking. I want to see an oldie. In fact, it’s for my writing class.”

“A movie for a writing class? That sounds odd.”

“I know right? The professor recommended this move as a study in the dialog.”

“Which one is it?”

“Chinatown with Jack Nicholson. It’s available on Netflix.”

“Well I never heard of it but I’m game. Why don’t we watch it and study at my place? We can stream the movie.”

“Cool, then we don’t even have to go out. What about your roommate?”

“Oh, she’s going home this weekend. Some wedding or something.”

“Perfect. We will be alone.”

“What is that look?”

“What look?”

“Then we will be alone look.”

“I don’t have a look.”

“I know you Ben, and you have a look.”

“Well, maybe I was thinking we could get close again.”

“By close you mean intimate right?”

“Er, um.”

“We agreed we were going to keep sex out of our relationship. Remember?”

“Sure I remember. I still miss it, though.”

“Well maybe someday we can think about it but for now forget it.”

“Yes, sir. I mean yes Alexis.”

“Don’t give me that puppy dog look. We agreed we didn’t need the complexity right now.”

“I know. Let’s drop it okay.”

“Good idea. What kind of soda do you want?”

“How about root beer. Not that diet stuff either.”

“You want chips with that?”

“I love you.”

“I know.”

Tuesday Anything Possible – Kreative Kue Photo Prompt # 40

September 1, 2015August 31, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 28 Comments

His advice. “Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries, with links to your blog or website, next Monday.” Here is the photo.