Sample my upcoming new novel for free!

Image from Amazon.com

My latest manuscript was entered into this spring's Amazon/CreateSpace Breakthrough Novel competition, and has made it through the first two cuts (it's a quarter-finalist!). Which means you can now read the first 5,000 or so words for free by downloading the Kindle file (you don't have to own a Kindle device to read it; you can get a Kindle app for your smartphone or laptop or pad or desktop system for free from Amazon).

>>Go here to download the excerpt and see some reader reviews<<

I'm really thrilled by the reception it got from the judges so far. Two reviews by "expert reviewers" were posted to my CreateSpace account, and here are some of their notes:

"Beautiful writing, really terrific. Love the description of the car crash and its immediate aftermath.
Sweet character-building for Arthur Magus. ... Super beginning to what promises to be a great story. Really looking forward to reading it."

"The writing is great, it really shines. It seems like someone put a lot of time into perfecting it and it felt like part of a finished novel. ... I'm stumped. I can't find anything weak about it. ... This is a very well written piece. As long as the rest of the book is as strong as this excerpt, it could go to print right now and I'd want to read it. From the use of italics to the unhurried pacing and switching of story back and forth between characters, the whole thing is quite a treat."

Wonder how this tale evolved? >>You can read the story behind the story here<<

Some 10,000 entries (so I understand) were trimmed to 2,000 on the first cut, which is now at 500 (100 in each of five categories). The next cut will determine 25 semi-finalists, which will be announced on or about May 23. I'm holding on to hope that the tale will make the next cut. The final level will call for voting by Amazon users to determine a grand prize winner, so I'll let you know if that ever becomes a concern for me. The grand prize is $50,000 and a book contract; the four second-place winners will receive $15,000 and book contracts.

It's been an honor just to make this far. Seriously. "Caliban" is in the world now. People are reading it. That's something I dreamed about since I was a teenager. I hope they like him and root for him as much as I do. I hope you will too.

Peace.

Bring on the Dancing Horses

Michael Lowe | Photos by Patti Blake

PANAMA CITY — Lightning and driving rain kept the “blood moon” at bay early Tuesday morning, though a power outage brought the full effect of a lunar eclipse to life in the night.

Our ancestors quaked in fear on nights when the moon turned dark and red, interpreting the event as a warning of evil times or the anger of their gods. For me, at least, the reaction was mild disappointment at a natural spectacle passing invisibly beyond the cloud cover.

But now I have to wonder if it’s worse to know what you’re missing than to discover that you miss something only after it’s gone?

… Bear with me here as I search for the metaphor that will tie these concepts together.

Me, reading from 'Caliban'

Tuesday night, I participated at Writers Gallery, a monthly gathering of local writers at Chez Amavida coffee shop in Panama City. The event is an open mic night, with writers reading their recent work — poems, short stories, excerpts. In past months, the event filled the venue to capacity, but this week few people read or attended to listen.

A young woman remarked that Writers Gallery should be packed because the area is home to a number of writers in all genres, not to mention people who love to read. But Michael Lowe, a poet and fiction writer who has tried to promote the event, said he expected Writers Gallery to fade away soon because of flagging attendance.

“I’m no Nick May …” Michael suggested, referring to the young author who established Writers Gallery a few years ago, moving it from Joey’s Java Juice to other venues until settling at Chez Amavida; Nick and his wife, Kayla, moved to Pensacola recently to support a branch of Northstar Church, placing the fate of Writers Gallery in the hands of its participants.

Attendance has steadily declined since then, Michael said. With only three readers on Tuesday, the handwriting was on the wall.

From Wikipedia

About that time, the shop’s sound system — the background soundtrack for our conversation — began playing “Bring on the Dancing Horses” by Echo and the Bunnymen, a song that always seemed to be more about the end of an era than simple self-destruction.

(In retrospect, I’m wondering if it referred to those of us who nervously stood up to read as being little more diverting than dancing horses. “Shiver and say the words of every lie you’ve ever heard,” the song continues.)

But at that moment, I thought about signs and portents, which made me reconsider the eclipse. The “blood moon.” Harbinger of the end times. In case we didn’t get the message the first time around (or, as happened locally, the eclipse was called on account of rain) the gods have decreed four blood moons between last Tuesday and September of 2015.

From Space.com

These events are caused, scientists will tell you, because the orbit of the full moon takes it through the Earth’s umbral shadow, cast because the sun is at the opposite side of the planet at just the right angle for us to see the shadow envelope our heavenly orb. The red coloration appears because the faint ring of sunlight passing through the Earth’s atmosphere falls on the lunar surface like the crimson glow of a sunset.

There will be other chances to see these eclipses in months to come, just as there will be other chances to listen or share at Writers Gallery in months to come.

You know what you’re missing now. If you miss it in the future, it’s on you — or perhaps you can blame it on the weather. In either case, it likely won’t mean the end of the world, just the eventual absence of something some of us think is special.

Peace.

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(This is my Undercurrents column for PanamaCity.com and The News Herald this week.)

How to support downtown businesses

(Contributed Photo)

PANAMA CITY — Have you been downtown recently? Besides the new businesses opening, there’s the sound of music in the evening air.

And it’s easy to support this springtime resurgence, as explained by Erin Haray of Estate Treasures, 500 Harrison Ave. Writing in this month’s Downtowner newsletter, she suggested three things locals can do:

l Find them on Facebook. Like the businesses’ pages, share their photos and events, comment on their posts. Social media is today’s “word of mouth” advertising.

“The more you interact with a business page, the more they will be seen by others and the more exposure they get,” she said. “You may connect someone with a small business they didn’t know about.”

l Shop downtown. This may seem obvious, but take a second to think about all the different kinds of businesses you’ll find: salons, galleries, dance studio, arts cooperative, cupcake shop, award-winning restaurants, antique stores, saltwater aquarium shop, boutiques, music stores, skate supply shop, theater and Civic Center, furniture stores, hardware and major appliances, and more.

“Downtown is a community in itself, and you will feel that when you are here,” Haray said. “Shopping in locally owned businesses ensures that part of the money you spend gets filtered back into the local economy. When you shop locally, everyone benefits.”

l Attend events. Friday Fest fills Harrison Avenue with food vendors, local organizations, car clubs, live bands and more on the first Friday of each month through November. Hogs & Grogs brings motorcycle enthusiasts to the street on the second Thursday of each month through September. Vintage Market, with its mix of antiques and collectibles, opens the first Friday and Saturday of the month through November.

Downtown also regularly hosts other events, like Festival of Nations, Oktoberfest, Dickens of a Christmas, concerts in McKenzie Park and more. (See our calendar pages and the online events calendar at PanamaCity.com for details.)

“In addition to attending events, find out about volunteering,” Haray suggested. “Some of the happenings downtown take quite a bit of setup, takedown, planning, organizing, etc. Get in touch with the Downtown Improvement Board (PCDIB.com) and find out which events need volunteers.”

Multiple restaurants and shops downtown are now hosting live music nights under the “Music Matters” banner. The musicians are not being paid by the venues, however; they’re playing for tips, so don’t forget to “Tip the Talent,” as the signs at each venue suggest. For more info, check out Facebook.com/MusicMattersPCFla online.

“Live local music talent is being offered at several venues on Wednesday nights downtown,” Haray said. “Go to as many as you can and let others know about them — that goes back to sharing on Facebook.”

As Haray points out, some of the best benefits of patronizing a small business are the personal touch and unique experience. The shops offer items you’re not liable to find in a big box store or an online retailer, and customers can count on receiving as much personal attention as they desire.

Peace. 

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(This is my Undercurrents column for this week's PanamaCity.com and News Herald insert.)

Shield-slinging hero still stands tall

Note: This is not a review of the new movie. It's my Undercurrents column for PanamaCity.com and The News Herald this week.

(C) Marvel Entertainment

The movie “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” opened this weekend, with many reviewers touting it as “the best” of the recent run of Marvel Comics-based films. I’m looking forward to seeing it soon, as 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger” was my favorite of the Marvel films. (Yes, even more than “Iron Man,” and right up there with “The Avengers.”)

I’ve wondered about that, and I think I’ve figured out why.

It goes back to the fact that I’ve always been a DC Comics fan rather than a Marvel fan. For those of you who don’t know the difference, don’t worry. These days, there isn’t much difference between the two companies — but in the 1970s, when I was probably at my most impressionable comic book peak, they were very different animals.

DC is the home of characters like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman — idealized personalities who were larger than life, self-sacrificing, brave, resourceful and stood for concepts like “Truth, Justice and The American Way.”

Whereas Marvel characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man and the Fantastic Four, however, were flawed (arguably more realistic) personalities who squabbled amongst themselves, wallowed in self-pity, and then rose above it all in the last possible moment to save the world.

As a kid, I admired those DC characters for being so steadfast, self-assured and above all, nice to each other. They were friends. “Super Friends,” even. It wouldn’t be until I became a teenager that I’d begin understanding and relating to the problems posed by Tony Stark’s alcoholism, for instance, or Ben Grimm’s self-loathing.

And then there was Captain America, created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby in 1941, a Marvel hero who always seemed like he was living in the wrong comic book universe once he had been transplanted to then modern day 1960s America in stories by Kirby and Stan Lee.

Subsequent writers tried to manufacture problems for Cap over the years, but really, he was the idealized patriot from the Greatest Generation — honor, fidelity and self-sacrifice were essential components of his personality from the beginning. As I read his 1970s adventures, his problems were more with what he saw America becoming — politically corrupt, corporately controlled — and not personal failings or flaws.

So Cap was one of the few Marvel heroes I followed even then, because he fit my notion of what a hero should be. When my son started collecting comics many years later, I was gratified to see him enjoying Captain America — probably the first monthly subscription comic he chose.

From the trailers and early reviews, “The Winter Soldier” apparently merges some of Cap’s storylines from the 1970s — which introduced his crime-fighting partner, the Falcon, and exposed Cap to the dark machinations of political insiders — with recent plots that resurrected a former comrade as a formidable enemy.

And yet, I’m confident Cap will overcome. He believes in America and what it’s supposed to stand for — which doesn’t include the politics of fear — and he remains a symbol of what the Greatest Generation achieved and why they did so. He will stand tall, and we will look up to him as an example of what heroes can be.

Peace. 

Lister celebrates years writing, new book release

Michael Lister

PANAMA CITY — Local author Michael Lister recently marked his 20th year as a working writer with the release of “Rivers to Blood,” the first of three book releases he has scheduled for this year.

I’ve known Michael nearly as long as he has been producing novels, and he’s one of the most prolific and thoughtful scribes I know.

“Rivers to Blood” is Michael’s sixth mystery to feature prison chaplain John Jordan, and the follow-up to 2012’s Florida Book Award-winning “Blood Sacrifice.” This novel marks the return of Michael’s primary protagonist, the one that launched his career as a novelist with the publication of “Power in the Blood” in 1997.

“Rivers to Blood” finds Jordan searching for an escaped prisoner, investigating a shocking murder and a sadist who forces his victims to violate themselves — all while trying to take care of his family, friends and the members of his errant flock. It is published through Michael’s imprint, Pulpwood Press, and is available in hardcover, paperback and e-book formats.

June will see the publication of “The Big Hello,” Michael’s third mystery to feature Jimmy “Soldier” Riley, a 1940s gumshoe operating out of wartime Panama City. Michael is also working on “an old-time radio show” production of “The Big Hello,” with a full cast and sound effects, which will be performed live before an audience later this year.

In October, Michael will debut his second Merrick McKnight novel, “A Certain Retribution,” which is a follow-up to 2010’s “Thunder Beach.” Michael said he wrote these three novels over many years, but he is happy to see them all released as part of his anniversary year celebration.

“It’s going to make for a busy year,” he said, “but I’m thrilled to see each one of my series characters make an appearance during this year that is so meaningful to me.”

A Wewahitchka native, Michael writes nearly all day, every day, and said he has experienced life in the “idiosyncratic way” of a writer. But it all started 20 years ago, in a borrowed upstairs office with a balcony view and a window air conditioner.

“Of course, I had been writing for a while, starting and stopping, trying and failing, sad and bad attempts, beginning some five years prior,” he said. “But it was the summer of 1994 that everything finally aligned, as I was completing my graduate degree in theology, and I traded time spent in academics for creative endeavors.”

Join me in congratulating a local author for his drive and dedication. Here’s to decades more.

Peace. 

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(This is my Undercurrents column for this week at PanamaCity.com and in The News Herald.)

Cocktail Hour shares blog

When Bill Roorbach was in town for BooksAlive recently, he read and enjoyed a column of mine about the mad creative process I enjoyed on a long ride home from Birmingham. I told him it was a version of a blog entry, greatly simplified for the paper, and he asked permission to reprint it on his blog. I sent him a silly photo and an amalgamated version of the blog and column.

He posted it today.

Thanks, Bill!

I am the Night

My friend, Jayson Kretzer, is an artist. He did the cover of DRAGON RISING. He has begun doing "warmup sketches" every couple of days based on the Twitter handles of his followers. The first one he did was inspired by writer Jen Foehner Wells' Lovecraftian nickname:

"Jenthulhu." Awesome, right?

Today, I was blessed to be the subject of his pen. Or at least, my Twitter name was: 

"MidnightOnMars." Get it?

I was about to ask Jayson which of these creatures represented me, when I realized that I am the night. I am a concept. A fact of Nature. A time and place. (At least, that is, my Twitter name is.)

Thanks, Jayson. You made my week.