MY SON, MY HERO

Tomorrow is a very special day. Tomorrow, June 1, 2013, marks my only son’s thirty-sixth birthday. Sometimes I joke that the day he was born was the worst day of my life. I say that because there were some delivery complications and I waited for some number of hours frightened of the outcome. The fact is it was the best day of my life. He fills in all the little spaces that I cannot. He is there when I need him and he needs me. I like that!

At twenty one he decided to join the army. I drove to Fort Sill, Oklahoma to watch him graduate basic training, which was an eye opener for me. There were plenty of parents there, together we watched our children march in formation, do coordinated calisthenics, and stand at attention. Practically without exception I saw the young people divert their eyes and glance at the smiling faces of their proud parents. I say virtually without exception because my son never looked my way, not once. His was a face of absolute concentration, a resolute focus that convinced me he would excel at whatever he undertook. His was the face of a man on a mission.

Within months he was invited to go through Selection. This is the Army’s thirty-nine day process of assessing who has the best chance of becoming a member of the Special Forces. Only three percent of those invited to Selection become Green Berets. This program defines and recognizes the best of the best. My son is one of the three percent.

He did his duty in Iraq twice, seven months each time. He overcame hardship, worked hard, and along with his small team accomplished his mission. He returned home safe and unharmed. Sometimes I think he leads a charmed life. He was in many situations, like an IED exploding under the Humvee he was riding in, where others were hurt, but he was not.

If there is any fear in my son, it never shows. He is kind, generous, and compassionate. He has an incredible intellect and an ability to see the world and its machines as they really are. I often wonder if I have made my mark in life. It occurs to me that my son is my legacy. He is the best of me without the worst. He carries my name and continually makes me proud. If people do remember me, it will be as his father.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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HEROES AMONG US

Yesterday I wrote about Memorial Day, our veterans and my family. The piece was well received by many of you and in keeping with the season, the weeks between Memorial Day and Independence Day, I would like to continue with this theme. As I mentioned, my older brother served in Viet Nam, Desert Storm, and Desert Shield.

Recently I was cleaning out some files and I found something I wrote in March 1991.

HEROES

When first he went, it was 1970, I was sixteen years old. I knew where he was going and I had a vague idea of what he might be doing, but I certainly did not understand why my brother had to go.

He went with many other young American soldiers to Southeast Asia to fight a war that no one really understood. It was on every newscast, not the 24 hour news cycle we have today, but still it was a lot of information. Yet, no one understood. Without question he proudly did his duty.

Thank God he came home alive, but he was no hero. There were no heroes in 1971. Our dead exceeded 57,000 and our casualties filled military hospitals across this great nation while society turned its back and pretended innocence. Many of those brave men and women who returned often wished they too had died and still we turned our backs.

Twenty years passed and in those people, who came to be my personal heroes, I found strength and valor that I might not have otherwise discovered.

This time when he was called I was thirty six. I knew where they were going and I knew why. They were on their way to the Middle East to protect our shrinking world from a powerful tyrant.

At first I was angry, angry because he had volunteered, angry because he was risking a life that is very dear to me. My anger was followed by an acute feeling of helplessness. In this situation I would have no control.

The day he left I stood in the soft grass on a little knoll for a better view of a man who sees inside my soul. His helicopter was fifth from the end. As they lifted, hovered, and then turned in formation cold rain and warm tears stung my cheeks. I was filled with pride, fear, and hope. Hope for the life of my brother and his friends, fear of the unknown, and pride in those inspiring souls and this wonderful country.

Now they are again coming home. This time there are few injured and fewer dead. I was proud the last time and now I am prouder still. We are all Americans and they are all my brothers. This time they are coming home heroes and with them they bring peace and hope.

Paul D. Alexander
March 4, 1991

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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Our Veterans' Stories, Our Span of Wars

I was born between wars. I celebrated my eighteenth birthday in February 1972. The timing was such that the draft was abolished and I missed the military and the Vietnam War by weeks. My mother was pleased; my brother spent a year in Vietnam during 1969 and 1970 and she had enough. She insisted her second son not go to war.

My brother survived, he came home with a heavy heart, but he survived. Later he flew –med-evac helicopters in Desert Storm and Desert Shield. My mother did not like it, but she kept her mouth shut. My dad spent the last part of World War II in Japan, but that was before he met my mother. Since I have never been to war I cannot say how difficult it must be. I know it must be almost overwhelming. However, I do know from very personal experience how hard it is to be the one to not go. To be like my poor mother, home waiting, wondering and praying.

My son was a Green Beret; he did two tours in Iraq. Because he was in Special Forces he had access to satellite phones and computers, overall his ability to communicate with me was extraordinary. Still, the only peace I had during that total of seven months was in those telephone or Skype conversations. The rest of the time I held my breath. Like my mother I waited and prayed, all white knuckled.

If you have done the math you see that my immediate family has deployed a total of six times. Maybe it does not seem like a lot to the casual observer, but for me, the guy waiting at home, it was six eternities and a history lesson.

We celebrated Memorial Day this week. Many did so at the end of a ski rope or a barbeque fork, but there are still too many U.S. soldiers deployed around the world continuously paying our price for freedom. They may have celebrated, but they did so with one eye on the horizon and the other on the trigger.

I salute those brave men and women who have served and protect us still. I bow before those at home who wait and support our soldiers and their service. Memorial Day is a time for us to remember the high cost of liberty and democracy. Whether we are at home or deployed, in our hearts and minds we all pay a price.
Make an effort to thank every veteran you meet, hear their stories, and remember what you are told because it is our history, our history of peace.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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Indy Books, The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

There are those who look down upon Independent authors and their books. They probably do so because their perception of the quality of those books, and the writing, is poor. If and when they do read an Indy book they are probably more critical of the grammar, composition, and spelling, right along with storylines and characterizations.

It is true that traditionally published authors have more people behind them proofing, editing, reviewing, and generally ensuring the quality of the books. That does not mean they do not make mistakes, you can find a few in virtually every book in print. Indy authors can also have the same kind of support if they are willing to pay or if their circle of friends, who are willing to work for free, have the kind of expertise necessary.

Bestselling Traditional authors can bend the rules of grammar and composition, invent new words and new spellings, and be perceived as unique for their “style.” When an Indy author bends the rules he/she is typically seen as substandard, sophomoric, or just plain bad.

Indy authors write great stories, not every single one, but a substantial number. When an Indy author writes a bad book the only way to recover is to start over, from scratch. Traditional authors write bad books and sometimes fail miserably, but somehow we forgive the exceptions and look forward to the next page turner. Traditionally published books are not always great, neither are independently published books. However, there are many books out there in both categories that are fantastic.

Don’t judge a book by its cover, or its publisher. Read samples of books online before you buy. Decide for yourself if you like the work based upon the merit and ability of the author. If you like the book, buy it!

Our world cultures all depend upon the written word for our tactile foundations of understanding. We can all do our part to maintain the word’s significance in our lives and in the lives of generations yet to be born. Read more, read well, it can be a brand new world.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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Bookbub, Kicking Butt & Taking Names

Recently an author friend of mine signed up with Bookbub to help promote one of her books. She is an Independent, Indy, author and writes non-fiction. Her promotion is still in progress with great success. Bookbub should be of interest to readers as well as writers because they always promote good, highly discounted books. They have more than a million subscribers to their free discount notifications. When reviewing comments about their site and service I found a substantial number of grateful readers who mentioned the advantages of being steered toward outstanding, affordable books.

Let’s break this conversation down into a segment for readers and one for authors.

READERS:

Readers can go online to the Bookbub site, sign-up, and choose a genre of titles to receive, all for free. Bookbub’s editorial committee reviews every book that is submitted for promotion to ensure quality and an acceptable discount. They promote free books, 99 cent books, and even $2.99 books. The books can be available electronically from sites like Kindle, Barnes & Nobel, Apple, Smashwords etc. Print copies can also be obtained, although the deep discounts do not usually apply. As a reader, just imagine that an impartial third party will send you a brief e-mail every day with a list and short description of the kinds of books you like.

Indy authors work just as hard, if not harder than traditionally published authors. They are responsible for the writing, proofing, editing, publishing, and promoting. It is a daunting task with myriad variables and incredible competition. I try to read at least one Indy book per week. They are not all to my liking, but neither are all traditionally published authors and works. If I find no value in a particular book I may not finish. If I like a book I try to post a review and/or let the author know what I think. For my predilection the world is too full of negativity. If I don’t like a book I usually keep my opinion to myself. After all, it is just my opinion.

AUTHORS:

Let’s call my friend, the Indy author and subject of this post, Madame X. Her first book has been out for more than a year; she has had free KDP promotions, sales events, she blogs, posts everywhere online, and wins awards for her work. She receives ample good or excellent reviews and still her sales have been not great, until Bookbub.

Bookbub reviewed and approved her work, she agreed to lower the price to 99 cents and keep it there for at least a week. Within the first couple of days of the promotion X’s book made it to 53 on the Kindle paid bestseller’s list. As authors we all know how hard it is to improve your ranking on Kindle. The competition is fierce and on the more popular days with book buyers everyone’s sales increase.

I am not saying Bookbub is the do all and end all. There is a small cost involved with the process. However, it is working for X and we all need all of the help we can get. I wish you good writing and great selling. What we need is the opportunity to put our books in front of a mass audience. What good is the work if no one reads it?

Readers, please be kind. Writers, be diligent and persistent. Together we can improve the literary standards of our world.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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Fiction is Harder Than Truth

Before we begin, in keeping with my tracking of Dan Brown’s “Inferno” success (not infernal), he is still ranked at number 1 in Kindle books with 382 reviews, 36 of which are 1-star. As we noticed before the percentage of poor reviews to good is continually decreasing. I credit this trend to haters losing their momentum.

Fiction is harder to write and more subject to harsh criticism than non-fiction and memoirs. This is not to say that authors of non-fiction are any less skilled or work less. Fiction comes from the author’s imagination and although he has some freedom with facts, geography, and imagery, in the end it all has to, in some way, be believable. In non-fiction, if the facts are correct, if you have all the persons, places, things, and occurrences in the right place and in the right order there is nothing to criticize about the story itself. Critics can review grammar, spelling, punctuation, and the author’s choice of topics, but that’s all.

In fiction, the characters must seem real and be believable. If the reader’s perception of a character’s actions, dialogue, or situation is that it could never happen, the reader believes it poorly written. Needless to say, every reader has a different opinion and preference of what will pass as real. Thus we can explain the huge difference between Dan Brown’s euphoric fans and his adamant haters. It does not necessarily mean that Brown is a bad writer; it means that his work is not believable, and does not appeal to a particular reader. A fiction writer can cause a character to survive a 100 foot jump from a building. It only requires a few keystrokes. However, to make it believable the jumper must be able to justify his survival. We all know vampires, werewolves, and superheroes can easily jump from any height, right? The novelist must either create normally believable scenarios or some extraordinary justification/explanation that readers will accept.

Fiction writers are subjected to readers’ grammar, spelling, punctuation, and composition reviews along with plot, characterization, dialogue, and story. Fiction can be stranger than truth if the writer wants it to be, it just has to be believable.

The next novel you read, try to imagine the author’s perspective, and if the story is a good one, give him or her a break.

It is motorcycle season and signs everywhere caution us to watch out for bikers. Let’s do that and while we’re at it, let’s watch out for authors.

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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A Novel’s All Important First Line

If other writers are anything like me, they struggle with the first line of every novel. It is the line that catches the readers’ attention and sets the tone for the entire story. The most notable first lines in history are well and widely known. Who can possibly forget lines such as?

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

Perhaps we don’t all remember every word of this incredibly long sentence. Unless you are also prone to memorize poetry you probably do not get much past the first twelve words. In that one sentence Dickens gives us an overview of the story to be told. Memorable, poignant, and important, the elements we all strive to produce in our work and most importantly represent in our first line.

My first attempt at a first line is usually quite easy. Of course after I finish the prologue or first chapter I generally rewrite the first line. After the second chapter I do it again and I continue this process throughout the writing. What happens to me is, as we have discussed before, the characters influence their own stories and their personalities and by making these changes they alter the first line introduction to the story.
The process is fluid and self-settling, it requires the author to be open to the possibility that the opening line is not in his mind. Rather, it comes from the minds of his story’s characters. If the opening line does not touch the writer’s sensitivity, it most certainly will not touch the reader.

When you begin a new novel I encourage you to read the first line aloud. Allow it to roll off your tongue, savor the moment, and let it touch your heart. Remember how it makes you feel. You might even write those feelings on a slip of paper. When you finish the book bring that memory out and consider how the first line set the stage for the book you just read. See if that feeling matches your impression of the book. I hope you will find many first lines equivalent to the quality and creative uniqueness of the books you read.

There is so much to be discovered on the written page, we have only to look!

Your comments and questions are always welcome.

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