Amber Waves of Curiosity

As Catherine so beautifully put it, my novel AMBER WAVES would make a great holiday gift. What more can a person want or get for under a buck?

In this book i have given you a smorgasbord of history. But, after all, history is a smorgasbord -- all you can eat,m choose what you want. One day I'm reading Carl Sagan;s COSMOS and come across the name Christiaan Huygens for the first time, and fall in love. Curious, I did deeper (to the point of visiting the Huygens summer house in Hofwijk, near Den Haag, in the Netherlands). On another trip to Holland, while visiting a good friend in Nijmegin, i happen on the ruin of Charlemagne's castle -- one of many castles he constructed throughout northwestern Europe so he could better monitor his kinbgdom. The encounter sparks memories from school, and those memories spark further interest. Another day I'm wathcing Brad Pitt as Achilles in the action adventure flick, TRPY. Curious, I read Robert Graves' brief but both fascinating and entertaining account -- well, you get the point.

So this novel is my restaurant, my menu, my delights, selected from the so very many choices out there. One day you want Swedish meatballs, the next fried chicken. Or, in terms of the book, one day you want to hunt the Bull of Heaven with Gilgamesh and Enkidu, the next you crave a glimpse of Cleopatra in her bath.

This being a work of fiction, I am allowed a certain amount of license in what I present and how I present it. The fundamental facts cannot be changed. The characters ;iving through those facts -- and not always aware of how those facts will be remembered or why -- have greater freeedom. What makes writing fiction so much fun is to set the characers free and let them tell me, the writer, what to say.

The truth is, no one really knows what happened back then, whenever then was. It's all our best guess. We lkearn new things about such poeople as Gilgamesh or the Frankish King all the time, revise our thinking, and press on./ We now know that Troy did exist, the Dark Ages were far from dark, and so-called golden ages pop up from time to time as a matter of course. As one of my former co-workers might say, "It's all good."

There just isn't time to learn it all.

So, Gentle Reader, if you become curios, even the tiniest bit, from my book or merely this brief discussion of my intent, make like an archaeologist and dig deeper!

Thanks for listening.

Welcome to Amber Waves

In a serious attempt to get people interested in my first published novel, available exclusively on Amazon Kindle, I dedicate the next few blogs (unless somnething earth-shaking gets in the way). Yes, this is flagrant self-promoition, but, heck, it;s a ripping good yarn, if I do say so myself. So, here goes:

Welcome to Amber Waves, Nevada. Population, 218. Average lifespan, 294 years, three months, seventeen days. Of course, it only takes a few to throw off the curve. Felonies committed, only one in the last forty-three years.

All that's about to change.

MABER WAVES is a novel about immortality, mortality and confrontation. It traces the personal journeys of Jason Edwards and Edna McFadden, better known as Amber, from the time of Gilgamesh past the seige of Troy, through two and a half Golden Ages, inside the death camp at Dachau, to the rough and tumble mining town of Virginioa City and nthe little nstagecoach stopover that became Amber Waves. But Edna/Amber has begun to feel the effects of aging, while a ghost from Jason's more recent past has come back to haunt him -- or it might be the other way around -- and an agent from the FBI, suffewring from a serious case of curiosity, has come mto visit.

Through their mmemories we become witnesses to certain key episodes of history, with humor, mystery, sex, amurder, and a touch ofn the absurd running through it -- as well as that deepest of human emotions, regret. If you like to categorize a story based on other authors' works, I suggest you think of it as Thomas Cahill meets Christopher Moore.

For 99 cents on Kindle, how can you go wrong? Neverr has fun been so reasonably priced!

Amber Waves Discount

I have dropped the price on AMBER WAVES to 99 cents. There are many independent writers selling their wares on Kindle at that price and I want to price myself fairly and competitivelty. I WANT TO BE READ!

To those of you who paid $2.99, I thank you. Your sacrifice has been a great encouragement to me. But let anyone and everyone know that there are many books at Kindle for under a buck. How can you go wrong? You get a great book for less than just about anything in the world these days except at the 99 cent store. And you lend encouragement and hope to aspiring writers who could not publish in the competitive Best Seller only environment that has taken over Publisher's Row.

Plus, there's an app for downloading a Kindle product directly onto your personal computer, and it's free. But Kindles are cool, too.

a day without sunshine

Yesterday was an odd day in one respect: I never went online, not once, not no way, not no how. I never even looked at my computer. I was just a bit too busy with real life stuff. And yet, I cannot really call it a day without sunshine: Diane and I got to spend the better part of the entire day doing real life stuff together, and we had fun doing it.

And yet, that means I did not write yesterday. Strictly speaking, I write every day even when I don't write, because I can compose in my head ore refine something I have already written. I rely on notes to help me remember but I find really good stuff (good in my opinion, at least) sticks with me or comes back once I find a pen.

And today I summarized my novel's basic premise for a tie-in on Helium. I was told a long time ago that a good writer can summarize his book in 25 words or less; more than that and he may not have a clear idea of what it is he is writing. I am proud to report -- despite how many words I have spent to get HERE -- that I did it in seventeen words! 17! AMBER WAVES summed up like this: "about people, often mistaken as gods, who do not die, coping in a world where people do."

Cool, huh?

They're interesting people, the residents of AMBER WAVES. I might go back sometime.

Amber Waves Is No Field of Dreams

Dear loyal friends and readers,

I am stymied -- AMBER WAVES is not selling. As if I would find isntant success! As if half a million people would "discovert" me and glom onto my work, clamoring for more. I have to admit that Shoeless Joe Jackson did NOT whisper into my ear, saying, "If you write it, they will read." But I swear it is a funbook worth aanyone's time and better tham much of the formulaic fiction out there.

Make room, Christopher Moore. Move over, Niel Gaiman. Thomas Cahill, this might have been what you wrote if you wrote fiction. And remember me in the great writer's garret in the sky, Kurt Vonnegut and Douglas Adams -- put in a word with the Big Guy Marduk for me!

The rest of yoiu, give AMBER WAVES a try. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll be glad you did that Kindle thing or direct to Personal Comupter App. Trust me on this. AMBER WAVES may be no Field of Dreams, but it is the first square in a magnificent Traveler's Quilt.

Three Blog Night

I missed the last two nights for good and busy reasons, but now I want to mke up for it by dividing tonight's entry into three blogs. Bear with -- none will be too long; in fact, just right!

Blog One: AMBER WAVES demonstrates my feminist side. In fact, when Di read it she commented, "You really are a feminist, aren't you? I thought she knew that -- but what one perceives intellectually about another one does not fully believe until seen in practice.

Blog Two: Farewell, Columbo. I will remember Peter Falk always, but not just as Detective Columbo, the trickster cop. He was brilliant in so much and two supporting performances stand out in my mind: Joy Boy, the wisecracking but immensely pragmatic number two to Glen Ford's superstitious mobster in "Pocketful of Miracles"; and as the persistent and silvertongued narrating grandfather who read us all "The Princess Bride." Thank you, Mr. Falk.

Blog Three: Lost In Holland: Even as I settle down in the beautiful lakeside community of Lakeside, Montana, I still find myself wishing I could go back to Holland again, to visit. The Dutch connection remains strong. A key part of AMBER WAVES takes place there, and the stories of my family and my travels are anchored there. An amazing country with an amazing history and a powerful influence on the world, a large piece of my heart belongs there and always will, as my upcoming stories are likely to reflect. So, as they say, wait for it!

Keeping up with my promise

I have promised to blog every day, even oif no one catches on that I am here. Even wolves cry in the emptiness.

I have started assembling my book on World War Two and the occupation of Holland. It is not a unique story, and yet I thinbk it has a unique outcome. After all, this is my family I am writing about. The book may be fiction, but it is filled with my fatgher, my mother and my brother and my sister's ghost. And it leads to the factual stories to come.

I live in an exciting time, for many reasons. People who know me know the hell that Diane and I have been through over the past nine months. We are on the other side of it now, and I hope I am a better writer for it. So, even though I am "reassembling" old material, I am really re-writing it with an ear to the tragedy inherent in the material, and I hope to do it justice.

Humor is there, too. Humor is always there. But I am writing about a time without color, a time of sorrow.

Meanwhile, the few of you who so far have grabbed onto my book AMBER WAVES (thank you!!!!!) report that they like it. May it catch fire!

Download Kindle Titles on Your PC

Great news for all of you who want my book but don't have Kindle! Or just for anyone who wants a Kindle edition of any book . . .

My dear daughter Beth found out that Amazon Kindle offers a free app that you can download onto your PC or cell phone/Blackberry/whatever. Then you can order and download any book you want. To sweeten the deal you get three books free -- three public domain books like Treasure Island.

I did not know you don't have to have a Kindle to download a Kindle edition. So, in an act of shameless self-promotion, if you have a PC you have no reason to avoid what I sincerely believe is a ripping good yarn -- mine!

So, on my seventh day as a novelist I have learned that the availability of my book is far greater than I had imagined. Now I have to wait for you all to discover "Amber Waves." You won't be disappointed.

Five and counting

Hello again! This is the fifth day since my book came out on Kindle and we've sold six copies so far. Not bad for an unknown writer self-publishing. It's a thrill just to be saying that.

But not to bore you all, lets change the subject. Now that Mr. Wiener is out, I wonder if we can get down to talking about issues? While Wienergate was going on, the Republicans in the House have managed to cut funding to the WIC (Women, Infants and Children) program. Like trimming from the needs of hungry women, infants and children will bring the national debt in line or balance the budget. They also are attacking Social Security again while trying to get further tax breaks for the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans. Are these guys real? Do they have any sense of fiscal responsibility beyond protecting their own wealth? At least the Republicans show a united front. The Democrats cannot seem to agree on anything concrete or meaningful. That means the Republicans are likely to push their agenda forward because they have one. Like it or not.

As long as we fail to pay attention, our entitlements will be stripped from us as surely as our rights. Or our amber waves of grain may shrivel up and die.

Oh, for a good, entertaining read!

Day 3

I feel as though my life has just begun again at 61. It is a remarkable, happy feeling, especially bafter the last very trying and difficult year. Today the book is available on Kindle in the UK and Germany. I have no idea how many people will give me a try, or how to expand my appeal, but I am working on that, step by step, just as I am working on the next book. And it's fun. The world of physical publishing has gotten so competitive that the few publishers who remain are constantly searching for the Next Bestseller and small authors with small books have fallen by the wayside in many instances. I have to believe that if my voice is worth hearing, you all will find me. And my goal is to enlighten and entertain, mostly entertain. So join me on the ride!

Meet Helen of Troy and Socrates and Cleopatra and Charlemagne and Christiaan Huygens, and the Great God Marduk within the pages of my book. Meet the Travelers as they journey through time and history. Meet the lady who inspired the town of Amber Waves to be born. Meet the ex-Nazi retiree. They're all here, waiting for you!

And let me know what you think.