Greg Sandora His Writing Process & Characters Coming Alive #AmReading #Thriller #Romance

Tell us about yourself. 

I’m originally from the Portland, Maine area, lived, and worked there for years before moving to Southwest Florida. My Dad and Mom were artists, my father painted and his mother wrote poetry and loved to garden. Most Saturdays our family loaded up the 1970 Chevy Impala to trek to a one-man show somewhere or other. I took a different track graduating with a business degree, owning and operating an Award Winning Franchise Fitness Center. Currently a professional manager I’m living in Florida with My beautiful wife and children, and following my passion. I have a deep faith. I believe God helps us in all things.

Name a few of your favorite authors and why.

Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Eckart Tolle, I love books on spirituality.

Tell us a bit about your family. 

Originally we were from the Portland, Maine area. My mom graduated from Westbrook High School and lived in the same small town her entire life. My dad was in the Air Force stationed in Guam; he returned to work in accounting and went back to school to earn a degree in art. My Dad and Mom were artists, my father painted and my mother wrote poetry and loved to garden. Most Saturdays we loaded up the 1970 Chevy Impala to trek to a one-man show somewhere or other. I took a different track graduating with a business degree, owning and operating an Award Winning Franchise Fitness Center. I am currently a professional manager living in Florida with my beautiful wife and children, following my passion.

Name one thing you absolutely can’t go without when writing.

My computer, I use word. Second, for my morning writing, coffee.

How do your family and friends feel about the book? 

My family and friends have been supportive. Funny story – I sat down in the living room in our most comfortable chair and wrote the first paragraph. I liked it even though it didn’t end up making it into the book. Finishing that paragraph I announced to my wife and 22-year-old son that I was writing a book. We still laugh about the eye rolling. The idea came to me all at once – the entire story. I wanted to tell a story of great characters that are the best of friends. There’s tenderness, romance, political corruption at the highest levels, not to leave out murder and revenge.

Why should everyone read your book?

One reader review put it this way, “Readers will love Jack Canon from the very first pages. He is confident and ready to fight for his dream. He has wanted to change this cruel and unjust world since he was 10 years old. Now he has a real chance to make a difference and he’s not going to let it go. America needs such a man. So, if you’re …indignant at what is currently happening, then you’re going to love this amazing character.

Do you ever experience writer’s block and how do you overcome it? 

I don’t get writers block because I wait until the story literally explodes onto the page.

What is your favorite part of the process of writing a book?

I love when the characters seem to come alive.  It starts to happen after the first few chapters. Then when the books half way done, and you get a chance to read it from the beginning. The characters personalities take shape and help the story with their distinct feelings and mannerisms. That’s my favorite part of the process.  Overall the best part is sitting down to read the completed book.

If your book was made into a movie, who do you picture playing each part? 

My sister-in-law has already chosen Ben Affleck to play Jack Canon. Funny – I took the first draft to Disney. At first she didn’t have any interest, but my mother-in-law was reading and commenting – enjoying the story. So, my sister-in-law, Terri, picks up the pages mom had finished and turned them quickly – long story short – she ended up loving Jack! She bought a kindle just to read the final version. I figured Katherine Heigl could play Sandy. Sandy is blonde and beautiful and fixes herself up to look like Marilyn Monroe for Jack. Daphne Cole is going to be tough to cast being the most beautiful woman perhaps on the planet.

Two months have passed since the long awaited inauguration of the New President of the United States – Jack Canon. Now he must live up to his promises. The World is wounded, people are hurting, the new President must keep the country afloat. Jack leads a very full life – The first couple’s relationship is hot with passion, but he can never admit that to Sandy, his best friend who is also head over heels in love with him. The Women of the House provide a welcome distraction while helping with the arduous task of running the country.

As President Jack must make tough decisions: Global Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Korea on the brink of war, all while thwarting International Greed. Women of the House is a story of noble sacrifice at extremely high cost. Who’s going to be the first to be strong enough and willing to pay? It’s not all work in Women of the House – Think the Wedding of the Decade meets the Crime of the Century.

Jack Canon’s Women of the House, is a story filled with Love, Lust, and Loyalty where passions can run wild! In Sandora’s monumental sequel, patriotism and valor mingle with an undying love that refuses to quit. Ride along as Jack Canon fights back against the most evil people on the planet. Readers are sure to embrace this unforgettable tale which will appeal to fans of political adventure, suspense and romance alike. Jack Canon’s Women of the House is a story of kindness, passion and courage that can’t be separated.

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Genre - Romantic Thriller

Rating – PG-13

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@ShelleyDavidow on Providing Doors & Windows into Other Worlds #AmReading #SciFi #YA

Have you met any people in the industry who have really helped you?

I had a wonderful writers group in Oregon when I lived there, made up of some very prolific authors whom I deeply respected. They taught me how to pare things down to what was essential, and how to work slowly and carefully. We worked on poetry and that helped me become a better fiction writer.

What do you hope people will take away from your writing? How will your words make them feel?

I hope my words provide windows and doors into other worlds, where the writing vanishes and the characters and their struggles and relationships remain.

How do you feel about social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter? Are they a good thing?

If you mean, are they a good thing for a writer, then the answer is, maybe sometimes. They can be good for marketing and staying in touch with the general conversation, whatever that is, but they also just take up space and time and words and can also be distracting. Whenever I’m doing something on Facebook or Twitter I always have this little voice that says, ‘real writers would just be writing their books.’

If you could do any job in the world what would you do?

Write.

What are you most passionate about? What gets you fired up?

I’m passionate about children and education and looking after the environment. I get fired up by the stupidity of those who poison our world and don’t understand that in doing so, they poison themselves.

What makes you angry?

War and harm. I’m angry that the human race still behaves in awful ways to those who are vulnerable, and to an earth that will not sustain us forever.

How do you think people perceive writers?

As imminently interruptible!

What’s your next project?

I’m working on a memoir entitled ‘The Immigrant’ for my doctorate, and planning the sequel to Lights Over Emerald Creek, A Portal at Emerald Creek.

What would you love to produce in your life?

Books that are worthy of being read.

How do you feel about self-publishing?

I feel it’s had a democratising effect on writing. I think in some instances it might be the way to go. If your manuscript gets rejected by twenty publishers, and then a million people like what you’ve written and buy your self-published book, then the masses have spoken, and I think that’s really great.How important are friends in your life?

They are essential to both mental and emotional health!

Lucy Wright, sixteen and a paraplegic after a recent car accident that took her mother’s life, lives in Queensland on a 10,000 acre farm with her father. When Lucy investigates strange lights over the creek at the bottom of the property, she discovers a mystery that links the lights to the science of cymatics and Scotland’s ancient Rosslyn Chapel.

But beyond the chapel is an even larger mystery. One that links the music the chapel contains to Norway’s mysterious Hessdalen lights, and beyond that to Saturn and to the stars. Lucy’s discoveries catapult her into a parallel universe connected to our own by means of resonance and sound, where a newly emerging world trembles on the edge of disaster. As realities divide, her mission in this new world is revealed and she finds herself part of a love story that will span the galaxy.

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Genre - Young Adult SF

Rating - PG

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Author Spotlight on N.S. Wikarski (Arkana Mysteries) #HistFic #GoodReads #AmReading

When did you first know you could be a writer? I think it was all the positive feedback from my teachers during my school years. I learned early on that I might be pretty good at this sort of thing.

What inspires you to write and why? I have to be in love with a particular subject or concept in order to write a book about it. Otherwise I’d just as soon not write at all. (There’s that laziness thing again.)

What genre are you most comfortable writing? History because I love the romance of the past. Mystery because I can’t resist a good whodunit.

What inspired you to write your first book? Guilt that I hadn’t gotten it done sooner in my life.

Who or what influenced your writing once you began? I consciously avoided outside influences because I didn’t want to end up sounding like somebody else. I will say that I was quite impressed with Caleb Carr’s The Alienist when it first came out. That was around the time I wrote my first historical mystery. Similarly, I loved the divine feminine aspect of the The Da Vinci Code which may have influenced my archaeology thriller series.

What made you want to be a writer? I didn’t want to be a writer per se. If there’s an idea which I feel an overwhelming need to communicate, I’ll write. For example, my current series is all about the lost women’s history of the world. Things that have been forgotten for millennia are emerging in the archaeological record right now. To me, that’s an intriguing subject which people might want to know about.

What do you consider the most challenging about writing a novel, or about writing in general? The biggest challenge has to do with the specific type of books I write. I use a fictional plot and characters to disclose loads of suppressed historical facts which aren’t generally known. Trying to assimilate the data and then convert it into something that’s entertaining and fits my fictional world can be quite a task.

Have you developed a specific writing style? I try not to be a literary stylist. I think a writer who’s trying to be clever will throw in bits of stylistic fluff so that a reader will admire the verbiage of the book. That can become distracting. In my case, I want the reader to focus on my characters and their stories, not on how well I can describe a sunset. If I have a style at all, it would be “cut and dried.”

What is your greatest strength as a writer? I think I’m fairly good at structuring a plot. Mysteries are tricky to write because the author has to keep the last page in mind from the very start. It takes mental discipline and focus to get the reader to the intended destination.

Have you ever had writer’s block? If so, what do you do about it? Strangely enough, I never have had writer’s block. I may occasionally wrestle with a stubborn plot point but I find that a long walk out in nature usually clears away the problem.

Who designed the cover? I designed the covers of all of my books. Many of my author friends complain about the covers their publishers use for their books. The biggest gripe I hear is that the cover artist had no concept of what the book was about. I like having creative control over the images associated with my work. At least the design has something to do with the story.

THE ARKANA SERIES: Where Alternative History Meets Archaeology Adventure
Volume Four – Riddle Of The Diamond Dove

“From Kindle Nation fave N. S. Wikarski comes the long-awaited fourth book in her fascinating seven-part Arkana archaeology thriller series — with more of the wonderful characters, sly humor, intrigue and mayhem that come together to create the absorbing world of her intricate, fast-paced mysteries.” (Kindle Nation Daily)

Global Treasure Hunt
Where do you hide an ancient relic that has the power to change the course of history? As Cassie Forsythe and her Arkana team discover, you scatter clues to its whereabouts across the entire planet. Five artifacts buried among the rubble of lost civilizations point to the hiding place of a mythical object known as the Sage Stone. Thus far psychic Cassie, bodyguard Erik, and librarian Griffin have succeeded in recovering two of those artifacts.

Opposing Forces
Cassie and Company find their lives threatened at every turn by agents of a religious cult known as the Blessed Nephilim. The cult’s leader, Abraham Metcalf, wants to exploit the power of the Sage Stone to unleash a catastrophic plague on the world. The quest for the next piece of the puzzle has led both sides to Africa. They must comb an entire continent–their only lead a riddle carved onto a mysterious dove sculpture. Even as the Arkana team struggles to decipher the clue, new dangers hover over their colleagues at home.

Other Dangers
Metcalf’s child-bride Hannah has taken refuge at the home of the Arkana’s leader Faye while mercenary Leroy Hunt creeps ever nearer to her hiding place. His search for the girl brings him dangerously close to the secret location of the Arkana’s troves–a collection of pre-patriarchal artifacts which confirm an alternative history of the origins of civilization itself. While Hunt closes in on Hannah, Metcalf’s son Daniel dogs the footsteps of the Arkana field team in order to claim the next artifact before they do. Daniel recruits a clever ally along the way who might be more than a match for the opposing side.

Collision Course
When the forces of the Arkana and the Nephilim converge on a ruined city in a forgotten corner of the dark continent, the shocking outcome is beyond even Cassie’s powers to foresee. The quest for the Sage Stone will veer in an unexpected direction once both sides solve the Riddle Of The Diamond Dove.

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Genre - Alternative History Fiction

Rating – PG

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Host Chronicles: The Devil’s Offspring (Vol. 1) by D L Cox #Fantasy #Fiction #GoodReads

Makeda said, “The devil actually has three seeds here on earth. They’re not working together, which will make our job a little more difficult.”

Tobias scratched his chin. “That’s an interesting development. We need to inform the high council.”

“The high council?” Nat questioned.

“Yes,” Tobias said. “The Host is a heavenly warrior, but her efforts against the forces of evil are coordinated by a group of enlightened humans known as the high council. They head the Order of Light.” Tobias patted Nat on his back. “There is much you need to learn young Nathaniel.”

There was the sound of a helicopter approaching.

“Our ride is here,” Tobias announced.

Makeda led Nat and Tobias out the monastery. In the distance, a convoy of four black SUV’s and two low flying helicopters approached. Each helicopter carried a sniper. The convoy of SUV’s pulled up in front of Nat, Makeda, and Tobias while the helicopters hovered in the air about twenty yards away. Three men carrying automatic machine guns got out of each of the first two SUV’s and spread out in front of the monastery. One of the men motioned Makeda to get in the back of the third SUV. Makeda headed to the SUV, opened the door, and then ran back over to Nat.

“What’s wrong?” Nat asked her.

Makeda beheld Nat’s face and kissed him passionately on the lips. “I couldn’t be the Host until I experienced love, and it happened at first sight.” She took Nat by the hand and led him to the back of the third SUV.

Tobias smiled as Makeda and Nat climbed into the back of the SUV and then he climbed into the back of the last SUV. The armed men got back into their vehicles and the convoy pulled off followed by the helicopters.

In this Urban Fantasy, the devil’s daughter, SALEENA, and her reaper boyfriend, IZZY, elope to earth and seek to overthrow her estranged brother, SIMON CLASH, as the devil’s heir apparent on earth, but Simon is head of a powerful conglomerate, and he’s not going out without a fight. As the rivalry turns bloody, the warring siblings discover the devil has been manipulating their feud to advance his secret agenda and is using them as decoys to draw out a sword-wielding champion of humanity called the HOST, whom must be slain before the devil can unleash a reign of terror on earth.

Legend says the Host will emerge when humanity plunges into hopelessness and despair, and NATHANIEL BRENNER, the young man responsible for delivering a magic sword to the Host, hopes that is soon. Nathaniel has spent the last six years searching for the Host to no avail and has recently seen a drastic rise in demon activity on earth, which he knows could only mean one thing: humanity is running out of time. Saleena and Simon unite to save their own hides, but it may be too late—not only for the devil’s offspring, but for humanity too! The future of humanity hangs in the balance, and Nathaniel is determined to thwart the devil’s plans and find the Host.

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Genre - Urban Fantasy

Rating - PG-13

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Peter Simmons and the Vessel of Time by @RamzArtso #SciFi #YA #ComingofAge

Portland, Oregon

October 22nd, Afternoon Hours

I sauntered out of the school building with my friends in tow and pulled on a thickly woven hat to cover my fluffy flaxen hair, which was bound to be frolic even in the mildest of breezes. I took a deep breath and scrutinized my immediate surroundings, noticing an armada of clouds scudding across the sky. It was a rather blustery day. The shrewd, trilling wind had all but divested the converging trees off their multicolored leaves, pasting them on the glossy asphalt and graffiti adorned walls across the road. My spirits were quickly heightened by this observation, and I suddenly felt rejuvenated after a long and taxing day at school. I didn’t know why, but the afternoon’s indolent weather appealed to me very much. I found it to be a congenial environment. For unexplainable reasons, I felt like I was caught amidst a fairytale. It was this eerie feeling which came and went on a whim. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Perhaps it was triggered by the subconscious mind brushing against a collage of subliminal memories, which stopped resurfacing partway through the process.

Anyhow, there I was, enjoying the warm and soporific touch of the autumn sun on my face, engaging in introspective thoughts of adolescent nature when Max Cornwell, a close, meddlesome friend of mine, called me from my rhapsodic dream with a sharp nudge in the ribs.

‘Hey, man! You daydreaming?’

I closed my eyes; feeling a little peeved, took a long drag of the wakening fresh air and gave him a negative response by shaking my head.

‘Feel sick or something?’ he persisted.

I wished he would stop harping on me, but it looked like Max had no intention of letting me enjoy my moment of glee, so I withdrew by tartly saying, ‘No, I’m all right.’

‘Hey, check this out,’ said George Whitmore,–who was another pal of mine–wedging himself between me and Max. He held a folded twenty dollar bill in his hand, and his ecstatic facial expression suggested that he had just chanced upon the find by sheer luck.

‘Is that yours?’ I asked, knowing very well that it wasn’t.

‘No, I found it on the floor of the auditorium. Just seconds before the last period ended.’

‘Then perhaps you should report your discovery to the lost and found. I’m sure they’ll know what to do with it there.’

‘Yeah, right. That’s exactly what I’m going to do,’ he said, snorting derisively. He then added in a somewhat defensive tone, as if trying to convince himself more than anyone else, ‘I found it, so it’s mine–right?’

I considered pointing out that his intentions were tantamount to theft, but shrugged it off instead, and followed the wrought-iron fence verging the school grounds before exiting by the small postern. I was in no mood for an argument, feeling too tired to do anything other than run a bath and soak in it. Therefore, I expunged the matter from my mind, bid goodbye to both George and Max and plunged into the small gathering of trees and brush which we, the kids, had dubbed the Mini Forest. It was seldom traveled by anyone, but we called it that because of its size, which was way too small to be an actual forest, and a trifle too large to be called otherwise.

I was whistling a merry tune, and wending my way home with a spring in my step, when my ears abruptly pulled back in fright. All of a sudden, I couldn’t help but feel as if I was being watched. But that wasn’t all. I felt like someone was trying to look inside of me. Right into me. As if they were rummaging in my soul, searching its every nook and cranny, trying to fish up my deepest fears and darkest secrets. It was equivalent to being stripped naked in front of a large audience. Steeling myself for something ugly, I felt the first stirrings of unease.

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Genre – Young Adult, Action and Adventure, Coming of Age, Sci-fi

Rating – PG-13

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Website http://ramzartso.blogspot.com/

Alex Mueck on Mentors, Writing & #SelfPub - #WriteTip #AmWriting

Why Mentors Are Important

Every author needs help, support and guidance.

Inside the Mind of the Author

I think every author needs to set the mood.  Some escape too remote cabins, but that is not always possible.  But I do my best work when there are no distractions.  I like to have the room dark with a candle or two, and play soft jazz while I generally listen to hard rock.  Once I feel ready I try to lose myself to the characters and imagine I am them.  Some days the words just flow, others not, but I try to always forge ahead, and can always strengthen the writing later.
The Footsteps I Follow: Authors I Admire

Too many to mention.  I am always reading, and I have a wide varied interest in fiction and non-fiction.  I will just say that with each book I tried to do something in the vein of authors I respect in that genre, and yet ensure that it was unique. The first book was a financial thriller, the second a detective/serial killer story, and the third a comic farce.  In the latter genre I love and admire authors like Carl Hiaasen, Christopher Moore, and others, so I would cite them on my most recent book.

How to Overcome Radio Stage Fright

I love to talk, so I doubt I would have an issue.  I suppose one would imagine they are not on the radio, but rather having a chat with someone.

Why Writing is a Form of Personal Therapy

I think it is important for an individual to have a hobby, a passion, something that brings inner satisfaction.  We all have different gifts, it may be art, mechanics, athletics, and pursing these goals makes us feel alive with purpose.

How to Find a Critique Buddy

I have a friend or two who are also authors, and we all seem to have different strengths and weaknesses.  For instance one has great imagination and the author does a splendid job of capturing characters thoughts and emotions, and I feel I am good with dialogue and plot ideas.  So getting feedback and opinion always helps.  Even if you don’t agree, I feel if you even change one thing, then you still improved the book.

How to Create a Great Work Area for Inspiration

I think you need to remove yourself from distractions, family, friends, TV, phone and lose yourself into the characters and setting.

How to Write by the Seat of Your Pants: Outline or No?

I like a semblance of an outline.  What is the goal of the story?  What am I looking to achieve.  Who are the main characters, and what is the main plot, beginning and end.  So I definitely give a fairly large rough outline.  I expand on them as ideas form, but I like to write as I go, let the words come natural, although I script out each chapter in advance.

How to Research Your Story Before Writing Your Book

Depends on the book.  On m y 2nd book which dealt with religious leaders being offed by the killer, I read quite a bit about each religion, and then sat down and visited places of worship and even participated in some ceremonies.  So basically every scene in the book I had visited.  This new book is a historical fiction comedy.  I read several books on Jesse James and outlined areas of his life that worked in the framework of the story I wanted to tell.

Why Choosing Your Setting is Important

If your mind is not free from distraction, it is hard to write.

““A historical fiction comedy that packs
as much heart as humor.”
—Michael Dadich, award-winning author of The Silver Sphere

When a Harvard history professor receives a thesis paper titled Jesse James and the Secret Legend of Captain Coytus, from Ulysses Hercules Baxter—an underwhelming student—he assumes the paper must be a prank. He has never read such maniacal balderdash in his life. But after he calls a meeting with the student, Professor Gladstone is dismayed when Baxter declares the work is his own. As he takes a very unwilling Professor Gladstone back in time via his thesis, Baxter’s grade hangs in the balance as he attempts to prove his theory.

It is 1864 as philanderer and crusader Captain Coytus embarks on a mission to avenge his father’s death and infiltrates the Confederate Bushwacker posse looking for the man responsible, Jesse Woodson James. Accompanied by the woman of his dreams, Coytus soon finds himself temporarily appointed to be the sheriff of Booneville and commissions his less-than-loyal deputy to help him carry out his plan.

But when tragedy strikes, the Captain is forced to change his immature ways and redefine his lofty mission—more or less.”

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Genre - Humor, Historical Fiction

Rating – R

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