https://animoto.com/play/bLSFN65ZEGb0zPB2bYQICg
This is my first book trailer using a great program called animoto. I wanted a way to showcase the great covers on the new books. All the covers were done by Derek Murphy over at creativindie.
Let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing your thoughts or ideas on how it could be better! Drop me a note in the comments below and don’t forget to join the newsletter I really appreciate it.
I promised you a cover reveal and here it is! This is another great cover by the talented Derek Murphy over at creativindiecovers.
He does excellent work. This book is currently in final edits and will be released soon. Book 4 is in the works and is slated for the middle of the year.
Hope you enjoy it!
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Dont forget to join the nascent novel nation and subscribe to the newsletter!
For several years now I have been writing haiku. For me it is a deep personal connection to my life and surroundings. I enjoy this form of poetry because of the structure it gives. It is typically a 5-7-5, three sentence format. The short poem is comprised of 17 syllables in total.
They are poignant, contemplative and often describe the mundane in surprising ways. I call my haiku, zanshin haiku because I am most aware of my present when I write them. Continue reading Zanshin Haiku
Bound by Alan Baxter. Here is an excerpt: Alex Caine, a fighter by trade, is drawn into a world he never knew existed – a world he wishes he’d never found.
Alex Caine is a martial artist fighting in illegal cage matches. His powerful secret weapon is an unnatural vision that allows him to see his opponents’ moves before they know their intentions themselves. An enigmatic Englishman, Patrick Welby, approaches Alex after a fight and reveals, ‘I know your secret.’ Welby shows Alex how to unleash a breathtaking realm of magic and power, drawing him into a mind-bending adventure beyond his control.
This book is a pretty good read. It has a fast pace and memorable characters. This one is for mature readers as it contains adult language and scenes. That being said it reads like a cross between dark fantasy and horror. I recommend getting the entire trilogy, its gripping, gritty and packed with action.
Find a link to it HERE
A few people have been telling me about this fantastic series-Luther. I held off for some time even though all I heard were good things. Sometimes I’m slow that way. I watched the first episode and found myself finishing all three seasons over the course of a few days.
Here is an excerpt of the description: Meet Detective Chief Inspector John Luther. He’s a homicide detective with an extraordinary case-clearance rate. He’s obsessive, instinctive, and intense. Nobody who ever stood at his side has a bad word to say about him. And yet there are rumors that Luther is bad—not corrupt, but tormented. After years of chasing the most depraved criminals in London’s gritty underworld, he seethes with a hidden fury he can barely control, making him do things any other detective wouldn’t and shouldn’t do. Continue reading Luther-A Flawed Hero
I’m not a big Keanu Reeves fan.
I enjoyed the Matrix movies and I have seen him in several movies.
I have always found him to have a very limited range of emotions when acting. The last movie I saw him in was 47 Ronin. I wont get into how disappointing that movie was, no I wont.
However this movie was a pleasant surprise. Its a revenge story. An ex hit-man is brought out of retirement by a thug. And goes on a spree of mayhem and death.
Here is why this movie works: Reeves has a minimal amount of lines. The range of emotion is limited to angry, mildly angry, very angry, and cold and calculated, you guessed it- anger. This is perfect for Reeves. The fight scenes in the movie are excellent and the whole movie is really an excuse to get from one fight scene to the next. I’m not bashing Reeves. I really think this movie was the perfect vehicle for him because the parameters set were narrow and when that is the case he excels.
If you’re looking for a plot. You wont find it in this movie. It is basically violence for the sake of violence. Very much the way no city survives a Michael Bay film and everything is exploded within the first thirty minutes. Taken in this context John Wick is a good film. I enjoyed it for what it was.
Welcome to the Nascent Novel redux ( I enjoy that word so this was a perfect excuse to use it).
After a snafu with my previous hosting company I discovered that my last site, nascent novels is down. As in any situation involving two or more parties there were several different versions of what happened. Let me cut to the chase, they said an email was sent notifying me of the impending closure and I said no email was sent. End result? My site is down. The bad news? Many posts are now in limbo and missing and the site has lost continuity, which I am told in this day and age of short attention spans is the death knell for a blog.
The good news? I have all my posts backed up and will over time be restoring them to this site. This was also an opportunity to take the blog in a different direction.
Initially I had three active blogs. One on martial arts, one for writing, and one for my photos and daily life observations. When I shifted my attention to my writing blog I neglected the other two. Over time I realized that this was a mistake. I’m not only a writer or a martial artist or a person who enjoys photography. I, like each of you am an amalgam of many interests and pursuits. By trying to compartmentalize who I am, my blogging suffered. This site will address that. It is not strictly a “writing blog”. I will discuss those things which make me, me. Some of that will resonate with you and some will not. That’s okay. I’ll do me and you will do you.
Here you will find posts about writing, books I enjoy, movies and video games. You will also find posts about martial arts and martial philosophy, being a practicing martial artist for close to three decades makes it impossible to separate this aspect of myself from everything I do. It is a filter which shapes my life and actions. You will also see pictures of things I find interesting and my family. My family and fatherhood is the source, my source of strength and my greatest adventure. The good thing is that I have many large families. I have my immediate family, blood of my blood. I also have a large dojo family which is blended with my immediate family. This is a natural progression. My other family is the writer/reader family which grows and is growing by leaps and bounds daily.
So as you can see the aspects of me are diverse and complex and exciting. I do live a blessed life. If you go back into the history of this site you will find the old posts from the other sites now comprise the body of this site. That was intentional. Take a moment to go through them and read. I am certain you will discover something fascinating or something to disagree with me about. I enjoy and invite all kinds of discussion and interaction. Leave a comment and let’s talk.
So what have I been up to? Well I’m currently in the midst of edits for my third book in the Warrior of the Way series. I had the first book edited by my excellent editor, Lorelei, (if you are a writer and need an editor go here NOW) which required her to use extensive editorial kung fu to make into a coherent story. The end result is impressive. The second book, The Ascendants, is being soft launched and I haven’t given it much publicity. It is now available on Amazon, Smashwords, and Nookpress.
I also had the covers to several of my stories redone. Here they are:
These great covers were done by Derek Murphy. A few things about Derek. He is a talented and gifted cover artist. This means he is also in demand. If you want amazing covers by him be prepared to invest time and money. You can find his site here
I have been also speaking with writers, martial artists and fathers( moms too) about guest blogging here on this site. I look forward to the different voices that will be showcased here.
So why Creative Warriorship?
Throughout history warriors have always been known to be creative. I find that it is within the warrior nature to be creative. If I look at my own life and those of my fellow warriors I find this to be true. In the dojo alone we have writers, architects, graphic designers, painters, performance artists, dancers, calligraphers, musicians and singers among both the adults and the children. This is not an accident or coincidence. I truly believe that the warrior spirit is also a creative one. Creative warriorship to me is not a dichotomy or paradox. Rather it is the expression of warriorship in its full sense. A warrior knows that life is balance, light and dark.
It is my sincere intention to make this blog a weekly event. Whether with my own posts and observations or those of others. They wont all be this long, (although I cant guarantee that) but they will all be an expression of what I consider relevant and important to my life.
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