Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

March 11, 2016March 10, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 Comments

Excited-about-Friday

Friday again. YAY. This has been a week of taxes. Ugh, spit. It seems every year they become more complex and take more time to complete. Oh, I know what you are saying. “You do your own taxes?” Yes, I do. I have been doing them for thirty years and before that, I had a tax guy for four years. Before that, I did my taxes for 21 years. The tax guy (Big Eight firm) was a requirement by the company I worked for so there would be no conflict between personal and business. The Big Eight guy would drive me up the wall since I never seemed to have the right documentation in the right place at the right time. I spent so much time chasing requests for things that once my tour was over with the company I vowed to go back and do my own. After all, I am a business school graduate with a concentration in finance. What could be so hard? Also, I have my friends at Turbo Tax to help me out. So there you are. The tax law changes have done little but add more paperwork which I just love. (don’t believe it). My John Ku today discusses the frustration of missing things at tax time. I hope you like it.

All systems ready,

Burning the midnight candle. . .

Can’t find the W2.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA TGIF – AKA – Ereader News Day #RRBC #ASMSG

March 4, 2016March 3, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 31 Comments

His Revenge front final As a reminder (Ha ha ha) His Revenge Kindle edition is on sale for $0.99 US and £0.99 UK. Also Ereader News Today is helping spread the word.

Here are the links:

US Edition

UK Edition

His Revenge enjoys a review rating of 4.8 Stars on 14 reviews.

John Cannon unwillingly becomes an accomplice in a terrorist plot to undermine the US President’s credibility and the stability of the worldwide oil market.

Here is the trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTaDFcY9l_s

All this promotion leads me to this week’s JohnKu

Finish bleeding words,

Pack them up for those to read. . . .

Can’t sell loud enough.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – Hump Day

February 26, 2016September 15, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 29 Comments

Another week has gone by. I don’t know about you, but these puppies are really going fast. It seems like yesterday that I was putting together last week’s JohnKu. I think it is because I’m busy as hell.

I have received some feedback from my Beta readers and I must say they have been pretty uniform in pointing out some need for additional attention to elements of my next John Cannon story. The title is Our Justice and will be the last in the trilogy. I will need to get busy and start before all the feedback is all in since I have promised my editor something by April. (Lucky I didn’t give a date)

I will be promoting His Revenge Kindle version for $0.99 starting on March 3rd through March 6th.

Today’s JohnKu talks about being busy. I hope you enjoy it.

Busy by John W. Howell

As the days fly by,

The choices made impact time. . .

Till there is no more.

Friday – John Ku – AKA – TGIF

February 19, 2016September 15, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 33 Comments

Hello, Friday. Happy to see you. Boy, it seems like it has been a month since we last ran into each other. I think “ran into” is a bit of a misnomer. More like me standing here and you coming around like you do every week. No matter I’m pleased you finally made it. What took so long anyway? Was it the number of guest posts this week? Or maybe the number of radio shows I had to get ready? Might it have even been the amount of travel over the weekend? Well, whatever, here take this margarita. The important part is you made it. Put your feet up and tell me what you have been doing for the week. Oh, I see, you’ve had a tough time and all you want to do is relax. I understand. Maybe we can talk next time. Give me back that margarita. Today’s JohnKu talks about seeing old friends. Hope you like it.

Missing an old friend,

Finally have time to talk. . .

Forgot what to say.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

February 12, 2016February 11, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 30 Comments

Friday has arrived. Only about twelve more hours until margarita time. It has been a rewarding week. Got into the fourth book edits after a long rest from that document. WHAT WAS I THINKING WHEN I WROTE THAT? is a question I have asked quite a few times. I actually finished the rough draft of the manuscript in May of 2015. There are a few places where I can’t really recall what mindset caused me to write a particular passage the way it came out. Whatever it was my edit brain now has to correct my artist brain output. I guess we all get into this situation now and then. I don’t know about you but sometimes I read some of my stuff and wonder who wrote it. I guess that’s what happens when you are on the run to finish something. When you are in the moment to come back later and read what you’ve written can be a surprise. This is the subject of my JohnKu today.

Words in Black and white,

Laid out emotionally. . .

Author is surprised.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

February 5, 2016February 4, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 48 Comments

Ah, sweet Friday again. I’m getting to the point where I feel I’m working for someone other than myself. I don’t seem to have enough time to get everything done and it’s like being on a conveyor line and not being able to stay ahead. Words, words, words, and more words. They just keep coming and I keep trying to put them together into something that looks like a story. I string them together and carefully add the binder to make sure they stay in line. I then finish them with a fine coat of polish designed to make them stand out. The quality control department rejects a few of the constructions and then I have to re-work them. The whistle finally blows and I can take a work break. One thing about the word production line. It never stops. While I’m taking a break more words keep coming down the line. If I don’t get back to them some may get damaged or wasted. So my break is fraught with concern for those words and I don’t feel I have had a rest at all. It is good to get back to the line and continue to produce the finished product. I stand with pride as ninety thousand or so of those words are contained in one collection and the customer order is fulfilled. Okay, so I don’t work on a word production line but it was fun to write about as if I did. Today’s JohnKu is about time off. I hope you like it.

Work hard all week-long,

Finally time is for rest. . .

Still think about work.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA- TGIF #JusJoJan

January 29, 2016September 15, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 29 Comments

It is Friday again and I think I am pretty glad to have some time over the weekend to do nothing. It seems this week has been a blur of putting together a number of guest posts and promotional pieces. I have also been putting the final touches on the final book in the John J. Cannon thriller. I thought I was set to mail to the gracious beta readers when I found some kind of version corruption. Nothing serious but enough to delay the mailing for a day or so. It is also very frustrating when you feel you have everything ship-shape and then some other problem comes in. This just speaks to the fact that we should always double and triple check the file to see if everything is good. I’m glad I did in this case. I could just imagine the reaction to what I would have sent if I hadn’t looked. The subject of today’s JohnKu is care. I hope you like it.

The I’s all have dots,

The T’s all have been crossed too. . .

Typos still survive.

Friday – JohnKu – AKA – TGIF #JusJoJan

January 15, 2016January 15, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 Comments

Well, Friday arrived with the news that three Power Ball tickets have been sold. Unfortunately, none of them were in my area. Not that I care about others winning but it is sure knowledge that I finished out of the money. Of course, I could have just looked at the numbers to understand I will not be loaded with money. It just seems easier to have the information that the winning tickets were sold somewhere else. Also, by not looking at the numbers the idea that there could sill be a million bucks for five matching numbers. I could use a million. It’s not a billion but certainly more than I will earn writing. Which brings us to this week’s JohnKu that talks about being disappointed. I think all of us want to avoid disappointment for as long as we can. I guess I better put on my big boy pants and look at the numbers and face the fact that a million isn’t going to be mine either. Also, maybe next time I should not buy a quick pick. Who’s to say the Powerball machine knows how to avoid quick picks. I’m just saying.

There’s a fevered pitch,

Before every big event. . .

Suckered every time.

Friday JohnKu – AKA TGIF #JusJoJan

January 8, 2016January 11, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 Comments

Another week has come and gone, and there are now only 51 weeks left in 2016. Why I decided to look at 2016 this way is not clear. It might be an attempt to slow things down by looking uphill instead of downhill. I think that might be an honorable way of trying to put the skids on the speed with which time passes.

This week has been a challenge. The Chinese stock market has given the world the jitters, and so most of us sit and watch equity vanish. The idea of getting into a panic is one that doesn’t appeal to me. I guess I will have to ride it out and bet on the fact that when the market declines at some point in time, it does rebound. Well, in any case, it is too late. All the smart money already took off. Today’s JohnKu talks about remaining calm during stressful times.

The sea boils with change.

The sun hides and holds its warmth. . .

All this will pass soon.

This post is part of the Just Jot it January. If you want to join in here is the link http://lindaghill.com/2015/12/31/just-jot-it-january-2016-rules/http://lindaghill.com/2015/12/31/just-jot-it-january-2016-rules/

Friday JohnKu – AKA TGIF #JusJoJan

January 1, 2016December 31, 2015 ~ John W. Howell ~ 23 Comments

A brand new year with the promise of a new beginning. It is funny how one day can be so different from another. Yesterday was so last year and today is what is happening now. I hope everyone had a lovely New Year’s Eve. Mine is usually pretty mild. We normally have a nice dinner and then pretty much sit and do what we always do. A little talk, some iPad time and one hour of a favorite show that has been pre-recorded. We are usually in our reading room (a euphemism for the bedroom) well before midnight. On New Year’s Eve, we don’t make an exception. Of course, we do have to put up with the tourists who think it is legal to shoot off fireworks on the beach (it’s not). So we have an interlude of explosions and idiots yelling from midnight until about one o’clock. Maybe I’m being persnickety but I think the choice of being up for the new year should be mine.

Today’s JohnKu talks about the difference in one day to another. I hope you enjoy it and Happy New Year one more time.

Nighttime comes this year,

The resolutions are made…

Dawn reconsider.

This post is part of Just Jot It January. If you want the lowdown visit Linda Hill at http://www.lindahill.com