Wednesday's Guest - Cairn Rodrigues

Good morning everyone. Please do grab a piece of this delicious Fantasy Fudge and join me in welcoming Cairn Rodrigues to It's Not All Gravy as today's Wednesday's Guest. Cairn is doing a blog tour to let folks know about the Song Of Solstice stories, and was kind enough to make this one of her stops. She would like a glass of milk with her fudge. What about you? The picture of Cairn below was stolen...er...borrowed from The Diesel Electric Elephant Company. It is just so perfect for Cairn, I couldn't resist.

Photo courtesy of Alaska Michael's Recipes.

Greetings to all who muse with Maryann! She’s a warm and wonderful lady and I’m grateful she opened her blog to me. I'm Cairn Rodrigues, publishing neophyte, lapsed chef, and avid questioner of life. Recently my first novel, The Last Prospector was released. It's an alternate world fantasy that kicks off a much larger story, but this first one is all about Prospector He's a man with a sealed fate, but that fate is a mystery as is the reason he was chosen.

I know you have been working on the release of this book while also dealing with your father's cancer. Do you want to share anything about the challenges of doing that?
Challenge is a good word. There's been nothing but challenges since his diagnosis in September of last year. My dad’s cancer is pretty aggressive, he went from stage three to four in the space of a month and he’s currently in hospice. It was important to him that the book be published before he dies, so I had to push to get it done. I can’t lie, the pressure was enormous because most of my time was spent caring for him, taking him to radiation and helping to get his affairs in order. I did get a lot of help and support from great friends, and this probably wouldn’t have happened without them.

How long did it take you to write The Last Prospector, and where did the story idea originate?
It took about four months to write the first three installments of the Song of Solstice. The Last Prospector and book two, Travellers &Tramps were originally one long book. Thinking a 900+ page novel might be a bit frightful from an unknown novelist, I split it into two books. The idea started when I finished reading the fifth book of another wildly popular fantasy series. It really dissatisfied me because I felt the author was just milking his success at the expense of the story. That’s when I started thinking about what it would take for a series that would satisfy me, which led to me actually having to write. 

Writing the story is the easy part. One of the most sublime pleasures of my life is being in Solstice, exploring it as I write. It’s everything after that is so daunting. Being a first time novelist, and a self-published one, makes the hills much higher to climb. This blog tour is a great opportunity to talk about The Last Prospector and all the aspects of Solstice. Recently, I wrote about the influence of colors on the story on Alberta Ross’ blog, and yesterday I addressed Bruce Springsteen’s large contribution on The Doglady’s Den.

If you could go back in time, what one thing would you change about yourself?
I would have taken better care of my teeth! Seriously. My life-long terror about dentists was a fear that has cost me dearly in the long run. Running from, or catering to, our fears is the worst form of self-sabotage. Now I’m confronting those fears and taking some positive, but very costly, steps towards good oral hygiene.

What other creative things do you do?
I really enjoy creating goofy art installations in my backyard. Generally, it’s a way of using things that might otherwise be tossed away, such as the old rusted, dented wheelbarrow that became a portable floating candle pond. Last year’s big install was the rubber duck pond and for the upcoming season, I’m planning something I call Boulevard of Broken Pottery.

Do you have a pet?
Of course! We took in a lutino cockatiel last summer and named her Tyra Jackson.  She is a very reserved and somewhat hostile beast, but has loosened up quite a bit since we adopted a kitten in December. Viva is sweet gray and white tabby and Tyra loves her to pieces. Every morning, they meet at Ty’s water bowl for a very complex bird bath and chit chat session.

How did you come to write in the genre you chose?
Because fantasy is carte blanche to spin a really fantastic tale. There aren’t the constraints of other forms of fiction, such as historical, where there is a body of known facts needing acknowledgement. With fantasy, it can be anything, anything at all and the rules are made up by the writer. The opposite side of that is that readers need to have a certain amount of trust to embark on a fantasy read. They want to know the story will explain itself, that the author won’t leave them confused about the rules of the world they’re entering.

Now that you have met Cairn and learned a bit more about The Last Prospector, I'm sure you would like this convenient little BUY BUTTON to get your very own copy. And if you want to know more about Cairn, you can visit:  The Cairn Rodrigues Amazon Page  * The Light Stealers Song Blog  * FaceBook  *  Twitter – @CairnRodrigues *  Google Ploo [This blog always uses the French pronunciation of Google + since it makes Google + sound slightly more interesting] *  Cairn on Goodreads

Creating Time: Using Creativity to Reinvent the Clock and Reclaim Your Life

Today's guest is  Marney K. Makridakis, who wrote an interesting new book and created a whole program around the concept of time.

For writers and other creative people, Creating Time: Using Creativity to Reinvent the Clock and Reclaim Your Life, is right up there with The Author's Journey and other books that inspire and gently nudge us to stay on track, or maybe get on the track in the first place.

However, the book is not just geared toward the artistic types. People in all walks of life and with many other careers can find inspiration and some good, practical advice in this book.

The sections of the book take us from exploring our relationship with time and how we measure it through various ways we can create time through gratitude, love, ritual synchronicity, visualization, and my favorite, stillness. Each section is illustrated with lovely art work by the author or by readers who have used her concepts for "creating time."

Among all the jewels of wisdom I found in the book, this one resonated with me. Perhaps because I have less years left in my life than I have lived, and also because of family and friends who have made drastic changes in their lives after receiving a diagnosis of cancer or some other terrible disease that had the potential to end their time all too soon. "The truth of the matter is that life is a 'life-threatening diagnosis' for all of us. We have no way of knowing how much time we have. So we might as well realize how precious each and every moment truly is. We can create time by creating our own urgency to live as if every moment counts, because it does!"

Lest you think that the book is all about stopping to smell the roses or ticking things off a bucket list, be aware that it is much more than that. The chapters present ideas and suggestion for helping us make  a mental shift in how we relate to time, and they all have real-life examples, step-by-step introspective processes, and powerful creative projects that inspire a new sense of time.   

Karen Karsten, a prosperity coach and teacher had an interesting concept of time. "When I think about time as one day, I think of it like a lake, with connections to the earth and the universe. There's total joy in diving into the lake: no waiting for the weekend here!" For her ARTsignment she painted a picture that featured a lake with the hands of a clock in the middle and one swimmer was diving off one of the hands, while a kid was swinging on another. She also had several skeleton keys in the picture because she said the ARTsignment "offered a little key to unlocking time. Come with me to this lake, swim in the stardust, surf with the music of time, unlock time for yourself."

I learned a long time ago how important images are to me for reflection and reminders of things I need to be mindful of, so the idea of creating artwork as I move through the chapters and concepts in this book is not alien to me, although my artwork will not compare to some of the pictures I have hanging above my computer. That's okay, though. Nobody is expected to turn out great masterpieces of visual art. The point is to make something that will remind you of what you learned and want to remember as you complete each section.

Now, just a few words from the author:

Why did you write Creating Time? Like most people, time has been a big challenge for me throughout my adult life, but it escalated after I gave birth to my first child in 2008 and struggled to find the time to “do it all”. I devoured every time- management book I could get my hands on, but found that I was still chasing time. I finally put myself on mission to find a new solution and explored ways that I could apply my best resource (imagination) to my biggest problem (time).

What are the main challenges with time that you've identified, and how does this book address them? To personalize the reader’s process, Creating Time contains a “Time Diagnosis Chart” which identifies 14 of the most popular time complaints and recommends which of the book’s tools are most effective in addressing them. I find it interesting that, while everyone’s specific time complaints are unique, they usually boil down to one very primal theme: I don’t have enough time to live the life I want to live.

What do you most hope that readers take away from this book?I hope that readers will come away with a new sense of a time, as well as practical tools to put this new approach into action, both in their day-to-day lives and into their fuller spectrum of meaning and purpose in life.

If you would like to purchase a copy of the book, click on the cover image on my right sidebar.

CREATING TIME by Marney K. Makridakis

April 17, 2012 •  Personal Growth/Creativity •  288 pages • Trade Paperback in Four Color

Price: $22.95 • ISBN 978-1-60868-111-2

Guest Post - Author Barri Bryan

Please help me welcome Barri Bryan as she shares about... Images and Imagination


I'm often asked where the inspiration came from for books I've written. Most of the time I can pinpoint a specific circumstance or event that inspired me. Occasionally I can't. My inspiration for A Second Splendor is one of those rare occasions. Spontaneous and fanciful thoughts about writing a book with 'true love never dies' as its theme had been running around in my head and images were troubling my imagination for a long time before I began to  put those thoughts and images together in some meaningful combination.

When I did it was more a result of desperation than it was inspiration. To paraphrase Montaigne, I was treating my imagination gently by trying to relieve it of all trouble and conflict. As I sorted through ideas for characters in my little drama, quite suddenly reality collided with my subjective inner world of impressions and feelings. My hero and heroine must be very young at the onset of the story-in high school maybe? I forgot my struggle to put life and substance to my characters as my plot began to unravel inside my head. I would write about a teenage bride. That shouldn't be hard for me to do since I had once been a teenage bride. My imagination took flight and I began to make my outline.  Almost immediately I had second thoughts. I was incorporating into my plot a very controversial subject. After arguing with myself through a long morning, I decided to pursue this plot line anyway.

Later when I tried to write character sketches of my hero and heroine, I ran into a brick wall, leading me to decide that imagination can be both a blessing and a curse. I laid my work aside and forgot it for several weeks. Then one evening, as I read these lines from a poem by John Wilmot:
"If I, by miracle can be
This livelong minute true to thee,
'Tis all that heave allows.

My fickle imagination returned with a vengeance. My heroine must be complex yet straightforward, wise and at the same time foolish. How would I reconcile those disparities? My hero must be strong and at the same time be considerate and kind. It would be challenging to make a man who did some of the things this man did, seem a hero. I had my work cut out for me.

Once more I was writing A Second Splendor. What did any of this have to do with the poem I had been reading? Nothing, except those lines succeeded in kicking my imagination into overdrive. How? I don't know. Who can explain how imagination operates?

From conception to completion, I struggled with this book as I have no other. It defied so many of my unwritten rules for writing. Maybe that's why it holds such a special place in my heart.   

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CRR Mini Blog Tour!

  CRR is delighted to host CRR Publishing and author Barri Bryan in a mini-blog tour to celebrate the release of A Second Splendor!

We have a wonderful line-up of blogs to visit, and three arc copies of A Second Splendor will be given to three lucky people drawn from those commenting on the blogs! Click on the blog name below to read and comment and stand a chance to win – make sure you visit on the right day!
A Second Splendor is available HERE

 

9 August – Lovestruck Novice
13 August – Nicole Zoltack
15 August – Maryann Miller’s It’s Not All Gravy
17 August – Linda Banche
19 August – Maggi Andersen
21 August – Steph Burkhart
25 August – Liana Laverentz

Blurb:
Julie Anderson is not happy that her ex-husband is coming home to attend their daughter’s wedding. Max has broken her heart in the past – not once, but twice. Thank goodness she’s too wise to fall under his spell again, or is she?
Max Anderson has some reservations about his daughter’s coming marriage to the son of his ex wife’s business partner. He shows up early and walks into a situation that begs him to intervene. When he does all hell breaks loose.
Have fun everyone!

Guest- Stephanie Burkart

I'm excited to be here at "It's Not all Gravy," the fifth stop on my mini blog tour for "The Hungarian." My thanks to Maryann for having me today.

Today my character, Count Matthias Duma has graciously agreed to be interviewed by intrepid (fictional) reporter Harry Douglas, who works for the London Sun. I hope you enjoy! Enclosed is a picture of Jonathon Rhys-Meyers, the inspiration for my character, "Matthias." (Author's note: Author Stephanie Burkhart is in character as Matthias and Harry.)

Harry: So, Count Duma, I heard you got your scar and unusual eyes in a carriage accident.

Matthias: How did you hear that?

Harry: The rumor mill.

Matthias: (rakes his hand through his hair) I hate that rumor mill.

Harry: I also heard a pack of gypsy wolves attacked you and turned you into a werewolf.

Matthias: (reluctantly) Keep that a secret. I don't want Lady Ashton to read about this.

Harry: So what's it like being a werewolf.

Matthias: Disconcerting. My eyesight is sharper. I can see in complete darkness. My sense of smell is very acute. I'm stronger than the average man, faster, and my sense of touch is very sensitive. I have a high metabolism requiring a special diet. When the moon is close to becoming full, I get fangs which secrete venom.

Harry: Venom? Really?

Matthias: The venom is more like a drug. It won't turn you into a wolf. It just numbs the skin. It makes one feel very pleasurable, in anticipation of the actual bite.

Harry: So, what do you do during the full moon?

Matthias: I usually stay within the confines of my estate. I like looking at the stars and I find the scent of roses help to calm me. I'm not a violent man and I do my best to curb those urges as a wolf.

Harry: Why doesn't Lady Ashton approve of Emily's nanny, Resa?

Matthias: I'm a widower, and Lady Ashton is my deceased wife's mother. She thinks Resa is a gypsy witch. The thing is, Lady Ashton is right, but I don't want her to know that. Resa knows what balms and elixirs to use to heal my body after a transformation.

Harry: Do you think you might get married again?

Matthias: I might.

Harry: Who is the lucky lady?

Matthias: Her name is Katherine Archibald. She has the most expressive eyes and I love running my hands through her long, curly hair. It's more than that though, she knows the kind of loneliness I've known. She believes in the stars like I do.
Harry: So, does Miss Archibald know what you are?

Matthias: No, but she will soon. I have every intention of telling her.

Harry: Well, I have an appointment with my dentist. I should be going. Have a good day, Count Duma. Thank you for the interview.

Matthias: Thank you.

Excerpt:

He reached for her hand and motioned toward the door. "Can we finish this talk outside?"

"Under the stars?"

"Yes. I've always considered them our friends."

"All right." She was reluctant to go outside, but his eyes were insistent on it, and she felt her resolve giving way under his careful attention.

They exited through the den and walked out into the garden. The stars twinkled overhead. Unfortunately, the waning half-phase moon hung over them as well as over the nearby pond.

Matthias stopped near the rose bushes, taking her hands in his. He looked down into her eyes, his own simmering in tenderness. Her defenses slowly began to drop. Unnatural heat radiated from his body. She was keenly aware of his rugged masculinity.

"I recall that I told you when I fell in love with you -- on the night of your birthday. Do you remember?"

"Yes."

"I'm no ordinary man, Kate. I didn't expect to fall in love again. I wasn't looking for it. I didn't want it -- and then you stepped into my life with your smile and your easy acceptance. I allowed my heart to feel again." He paused. "You accepted my looks, my situation, and you dared to love me with your whole heart. What you said about trust and love, I've come to believe it."

"So why did you act the way you did?"

"I don't quite have a clear head when I'm ill." He reached into his pocket and withdrew a small box, opening it. A three-carat diamond in a princess cut sparkled up at her. She gasped.

"I do love you, Kate. Will you marry me?"

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Check out "The Hungarian's" Book Trailer

Goodie Time:

I'll pick two winners out of those who post on today's blog to receive an autographed postcard of "The Hungarian's" Cover.

To qualify for the GRAND prize: You have to post on every blog in the tour. I'll put your name into the "hat." Then I'll pick the Grand Prize Winner's name out of the hat.

The GRAND prize: A coffee mug with "The Hungarian's" cover, a mousepad with the cover, magnets, and a set of autographed postcards.

The Hungarian is available 1 MAY 2010 with Desert Breeze Publishing. Here's A LINK to the site.

Guest Author LK Hunsaker Tomorrow

I hope you will come back tomorrow when my guest author, LK Hunsaker, blogs about Pushing Boundaries with Trauma and Genre LK is doing a blog tour to introduce readers to her latest book, Off the Moon: a literary romance that will be released November 27th.

"Riveting" Ryan Reynauld is immersed in a world of music, parties, and temporary companionship. Having risen to the top of the pop charts, his biggest concern is objecting to the way his music is produced. That is, until he finds a young woman standing on a window ledge. Against the advice of family and friends, and through media attacks and fan protests, Ryan determines to care for her himself, making a promise that threatens to destroy his career.

Convincing the skittish girl she can learn to trust again comes with a steep price. Sometimes the path to recovery begins by allowing your world to implode.


LK Hunsaker holds a psychology degree from University of Maryland University College and an arts degree from Illinois Central College. The author of “Finishing Touches” and the “Rehearsal” series, both revolving around the arts, Hunsaker dabbles in fine art, piano, and guitar and runs a group assisting writers with their publishing goals. Several of her short stories and poems have been published in literary ezines. Widely traveled as a military spouse, she is now settled in western Pennsylvania with her husband and two children.