I’ve been
away for awhile, finishing up my novel, titled, “Pumps”. Not like anyone cares or notices (I have no
regular readers or visitors but I pretend I do – haha). That’s why I haven’t posted in awhile though,
because I’ve been feverishly working on my novel, but now it seems like I’m
back. I’ve always said, when you’re in
the zone, you gotta zero in and take advantage.
I was definitely in the zone.
So L.A.
Ninja is still doing pretty well as far as I’m concerned. Although I have always hoped that many people
would read it and enjoy the story as I do, it is not really turning out that
way. I guess I have mixed feelings about
it. I try to remain happy that I have
sold any copies at all, and the three reviews that I did get so far are
freaking awesome, so I have to be psyched about that. Right?
Ok, I’m cool now, did you enjoy going on that quick emotional breakdown
with me? My head is a scary place to be,
lol.
Interestingly,
after talking with some distant (distant as in they live in New Jersey and were
here to visit) friends over dinner the past weekend, the topic of my novel
writing came up, so of course, I told them about L.A. Ninja. Surprise and shock is the usual reaction I
get, and they did not fail me there. We
did also discuss the fact that I never tell people that I know that I am a
writer. It’s funny really, from a
psychological perspective, on why I never tell anyone about it. It should seem so obvious that I would
immediately tell everyone I know about this this thing that I’m so passionate
about, yet only a few people know about it.
You’d think that I’d announce it to the world, right?
But I
don’t. I don’t have a good reason,
either. I think I’m a bit modest and
even a little shy about it. I think it
feels strange to just blurt it out to people too. It never seems natural, like when I’m in the
moment. Then, also, I don’t want them to
feel obligated to go buy it. I wonder
now, as I’m writing this, do artists and singers do the same thing? Like, if I could sing, would I announce it to
my friends? Would I start belting out
Vicente Fernandez songs out of the blue?
Would I do it while we’re standing in line at Starbucks? I wonder.
I guess that’s why I was never a good salesman, lol.
I digress,
however. I do have something that I’m
very proud of, and that is the first review that I’ve ever gotten. It was written by a reader on Amazon.com:
Format:Kindle Edition
“Kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time. Excellent
narrative, characters and plot twists. Can't wait for the next one.”
Are you
kidding me!? That was awesome! And I’m so glad that the review was a good
one, in fact the best, with 5/5 stars. I
was so nervous that the review was going to be bad, or that it was going to
trash my work. There is this anxious
fear I have that I will face utter rejection from readers that invest time in
my book. (Maybe that’s why I don’t tell
my friends??) So far, though (knocking
on wood) the three reviews are good.
Thanks to Eli, and the others. I
owe you guys a beer, or soda, or tea, or whatever you prefer to drink. I’m glad I didn’t let you down.
Now, onto
Pumps. Pumps represents a huge
divergence from L.A. Ninja. First off,
it’s a book about a woman trying to find herself. You can’t get further away from LA Ninja than
that. I think it’s interesting because
this woman, Alexis, has been a very complicated character for me to write. At least with Gabe, he was very focused and
motivated, which made him easier to write.
Alexis though, is emotional and complicated. I was hardly ever sure what she would do
next, whereas with Gabe (protagonist –LA Ninja for those who don’t know) I
pretty much knew what he would do at every turn.
The other
difficult piece was the process of Alexis finding herself. I guess it can be hard for someone –anyone-
to find themselves, that is, find their true purpose in life. It involves someone getting to know their
true self, and becoming clear about what they want out of life. It rarely happens easily, in my
experience. It can happen through trauma
in some cases, or through trial and error.
It can happen as easily as having an epiphany in a dream. Usually though, it happens to many of us as
we experience life and get older, finally narrowing down what we like and
dislike in life, and what like to spend our time doing the most. If you can answer those questions, you most likely are already focused on finding true happiness, whatever that may mean to you.
That has been the
hard task for someone like Alexis. She
is in her late twenties, smart, sophisticated, strong, and determined. She has a great career in the fashion
industry, and just when she thinks she has life all figured out, life shows up
to begin unraveling a destiny that she never saw coming. The truth is, the story is a fantasized
version of what I think my wife’s life could have been if she hadn’t married
me. I promised her that I would write this one next, and I finally have.
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