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Showing posts from 2015

Finding My Way Back To "The Door"

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As you all know, for the past couple of months, I was pulled away from my writing by all the demands of my classes at the California State University of Monterey Bay.  But now all of that is over, until next semester begins late next month/early February when it all starts up again... possibly, things may change before then.  I'm up for a couple of job interviews which could change everything. In any case, you'd think I would be eager to jump back into my writing right?  Yes and no.  Now don't get me wrong, I'm still in love with writing, but trying to awaken my muse has been hard.  Being away from my writing for so long left me drained emotionally and mentally on the creative front.  Plus there's been other things I had to deal with which also got pushed aside thanks to all the schoolwork. Luckily a lot of that is done and I have more time to get back to writing, only I found I was stuck staring at "The Door" and not being able to do anything wit

From Novel To Film - When Are Changes Acceptable?

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This is a tricky topic to cover, because as with any form of art the old saying of "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" truly is the rule. Speaking ONLY for myself, it comes down to have characters been cut out?  Were certain scenes reworked to blend into one?  Was the flavor or message of the story lost or enhanced? Given the holiday season, I decided to focus on one Christmas movie that I consider a true classic, which definitely took some artistic liberties, yet managed to enhance the story in my opinion.  The movie in question is the 1951 version of  "A Christmas Carol" starring the legendary actor Alistair Sims as Ebenezer Scrooge. Now before I continue, let me assure you all that I have actually read the original story in Mr. Dickens own words many times before and am familiar with what was actually in the novella itself.  And I can safely say his original story was carefully kept intact in this film adaptation.  However, certain additions were mad

****ANOTHER 5 Star Review for "THE SHIP****

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A PAGE TURNER   5.0 out of 5 stars ByJohn Maberryon December 5, 2015 Format: Kindle EditionVerified A good follow up to The Bridge , also by this author. A little slow and moderately confusing at the start with a "Family History" that functions as a prologue but isn't 100% tied into the rest of the story. But other than that it moves along keeping interest and the virtual pages of a Kindle turning. Cassandra from The Bridge is fully developed as the protagonist and her relationship with Julie, another character from the earlier book is a central feature. Together with a whole host of other characters they battle supernatural forces, some of which are associated with the ones from the earlier book. While you can read this one without having read it's predecessor, I recommend reading the other one first. If you're into fantasy, paranormal mild horror and a little romance thrown in, you will like this book. I did. *Available now for just $1.

Tonight It Begins...

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For all those who celebrate this holiday I wish you every joy and happiness... May the blessings of this season bring you close to those you love, and success in the year to come. A HAPPY AND BLESSED CHANUKKAH TO YOU ALL MY FRIENDS!

Gift Ideas For Under The Tree

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****LOOKING FOR A GIFT FOR THAT PARANORMAL/MYSTERY READER IN YOUR LIFE**** Psychics, ghosts, and beings that are/and are not from this world await you within the pages of these 5-star stories Signed copies of books I and II in the "Para-Earth" series are just $10.00 each, plus $5.00 shipping and handling anywhere in the United States. (For overseas shipping will be more of course, and will depend on the destination).  These books are trade paperback sized and will look great on any bookshelf. *I accept Paypal, checks, or money orders* Just tell me which title(s) you want and if they're to be signed and personalized. (Some people prefer just signed, which is why I ask). You can contact me by leaving a message below or by e-mailing me at: allan.krummenacker@gmail.com Please note: Normal mailing time is 5-9 days, so order soon to get it in time for Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone...

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May all your journeys be safe ones.

There Are Only So Many Hours In the Day and Only So Much Of Me To Spread Around...

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Last time I talked about knowing when to release your book, which also meant knowing when NOT to release your book.  Today I'm here to tell you I'm really glad I am not releasing anything at this time.  Why?  See the image below... That's me right now.  Last week I had a major mid-term for Pre-Calculus, which is a class I'm still struggling with.  I study more hours for that class and I'm still not fully getting the concepts, so I study even more to try and learn them with only so much success.  I've also got two other classes I have to keep up with, along with doing hours of "Service Learning" which is basically volunteer work over at a local high school.  I have to do write-ups about my experiences at my Service Learning Site as well.  Finally, I'm also working on a major final paper for my third class, so in short I'm running on fumes most of the time. This week I'm taking two county exams (one in Santa Cruz tomorrow, and th

Possibly The Hardest Part About Publishing A Book Is...

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Knowing when to release your book to the public Every writer, dreams about this day.  The moment your latest work is about to be unleashed.  You've worked long and hard for it and the day has finally come.  You've shed blood (preferably not someone esle's), sweat  (and boy didn't you look hot at that moment), and more than a few tears (I'm not even going to try and make a joke on this one, I know damn well I've shed more than few in frustration, or because I wrote a section that moved me enough to shed them).  So you're all set and ready for your book's release, but in the back of your mind you have to keep asking "Is my work truly ready to be released?"  Is it? In my case the answer was a resounding "NOT EVEN CLOSE!" So, as a result of this fact, I've decided not to release my next work "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home" until further notice. How and why did this happen?  The answer is simpl

The Two Most Powerful Words When It Comes to Writing Fiction...

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As you all know I talk a lot about writing and the different aspects of it.  Recently I got to wondering about where it all begins.  Where do most stories originate or come from in the first place?  Naturally the answer is a person gets an idea and starts to explore different avenues with it.  But that wasn't good enough of an answer to me.  I had to ask, where does the idea come from in the first place?    Where does idea get its beginning?  What if...  I began to ask and then stopped.  I'd just found my answer.   Two little words... that's all it takes for a story idea to be born.  But it doesn't stop there.  Oh no, my friends those two little words keep popping up throughout the writing process.  Time and time again, I find myself asking or thinking those two words as I'm working on scene after scene.  Or if I'm trying to decide which direction to take the story next.   Ask yourself, how many times do you find yourself wondering who's going t

More Insights Regarding Writing In the 1st Person...

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I've currently been focusing most of my writing time on revising and editing the 2nd draft of "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home".  As I've mentioned in previous blog entries, this is the first time I'm working from the 1st Person Perspective.  What makes this so different from third person, is the fact that the character is the narrator, instead of me just letting readers see inside the heads of the various characters.   This time I had to not only get inside the character's head, but I had to do a lot more.  Each character has something special beside their own thoughts and ideas.  They may walk a certain way, have an outgoing personality, or be quiet and shy, which can all be shown by describing how they behave around the other characters.  But there was one thing I really had to learn about them this time that I hadn't really explored as deeply before.  I had to find their voice. I can safely say this was have been the most crucial  and di

Always Writing...

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Recently I was on one of the buses that I regularly take to get to my university.  As I was riding I was taking in the scenery and smiling to myself.  A girl who had taken the seat next to me noticed and said I must be having a good day.  I responded by telling her I was observing the scenery and thinking about some of the trees.  In particular I drew her attention to the Spanish Moss growing on several of the trees.  "Is that what's growing on them?  I've heard of Spanish Moss but I never saw it before," she told me.   I nodded and replied, "Now picture that stuff moving on its own, maybe reaching down and grabbing a someone as they're walking by." That freaked her out a bit as she looked at me with wide eyes and said, "That's creepy!  You must be into horror movies and such." At that point I explained that I was an author who had two books out already and a third coming in December.  From there she relaxed and I told her a

My Review of Peter Straub's "Ghost Story"...

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With the coming of Halloween, I've been in a mood for scary books.  So today I decided to pull out one of my favorites and do a review on it.  This was the first novel I read by Mr. Straub, but it got me hooked.  I've read a number of his other works and he has yet to keep me entertained and enthralled.... "What's the worst thing you ever done?" "I won't tell you, but I'll tell you the worst thing that ever happened to me..." These are the words that set the "The Chowder Society", four elderly men who've known each other since they were young, into telling each other ghost stories. They've all known each other since their youth, when they were wild and reckless. Friendship and loyalty binds, them along with dark secret from those past days.   They tried to bury that secret and forget it, but some things don't want to be forgotten. Sometimes, they also want... revenge! "Ghost Story" is NO

My Review of Stephen King's "From A Buick 8"

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"From A Buick 8" was one of the first books I read by Mr. King after many years of taking a pass on his work.  His novel "Misery" had gone to places I found too intense and terrifying because the only monster in that piece had been human.  There were no safety-barriers of the supernatural involved, just madness, obsession and torture. Yet something about this novel beckoned and I plunged into his world once more and I'm glad it did.  The story covers a 25 year period in the lives of a group of state troopers who act as 'guardians' over a strange Buick Roadster abandoned at a gas station back in 1979 by a mysterious 'man in black' who wandered off and was never seen again. The vehicle seems to be like any other car... or so you would think at first glance.  Then you'd notice little things like how the overall look of the vehicle seems normal, but then you notice little touches that don't quite add up.  For one thing there's no

New Book Review - Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend"

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For those who don't know, Richard Matheson is one of my many favorite authors.  His work on the original Twilight Zone, caught both my attention and imagination.  To this day, I consider his novel "Hell House" one of the greatest haunted house stories ever written. But he also wrote about vampires in his classic "I Am Legend" (aka "The Omega Man").  I was given a copy of this novel last Christmas and had finally gotten a chance to reading it. Having seen several movie versions of the story (including the one with Charles Heston), I was already familiar with the overall concept of the tale about the last normal human being on the planet.  However, knowing how Hollywood likes to put extra spins and its own touches on a story, I was eager to actually read Mr. Matheson's original vision and I was not disappointed. We are quickly introduced to Robert Neville, who (as far as he and the audience knows) may be the last normal human being on th

Use It or Lose It... Keeping Deleting Scenes/Ideas

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Chekhov's Gun... There's an old trope that applies to theater and to writing.  It is credited to Anton Chekhov, author/playwright.  In a letter to a friend in 1889 he said, "One must not put a loaded rifle on the stage if no one is thinking of firing it."   Since then, the phrase "Chekhov's Gun" has become associated with the idea of not introducing something 'interesting' or 'irrelevant' into a piece, whether it be a stage play or a story, that is not actually poignant to the story.  If you put a gun into a scene, make sure someone uses it before the story is finished.  Don't just leave it lying there gathering dust.  Why?  If you were doing a story involving a killer like Jason Voorhees/Michael Myers, before anyone knew they were unkillable, and they were closing in on the hero/heroine in the room where the gun is in plain sight you'd have the person use it, right?  You wouldn't have them grab a curtain to try and ke