I just did an interview with LiteralRemains.com. You can read it at
http://www.literalremains.com/?p=1214
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Writing Conflict and Great Fight Scenes
One of my friends on Facebook recently asked: How do you get the mechanics of fight scenes into stories, and construct them well enough to keep people interested, and the scene exciting?
First you have to build conflict. And conflict always starts light and builds over multiple scenes. For instance, in SHADOWS IN THE MIST, my main character Lt. Jack Chambers has an antagonist named Lt. Fallon. They have a bad history, so I use their past falling out to create some immediate tension. From the moment they get assigned to work on the same mission, they don't like each other. I create tension in their dialogue as they take a few verbal jabs at one another. Every scene that follows, Chambers and Fallon argue more and more. Later their hatred builds to the point that they're slugging each other. All this builds up to them battling in a climatic scene with weapons. So, the key is your protagonist (hero) must always have an antagonist (villain) who oppose one another. No matter how much they dislike each other from the beginning, start building conflict slowly, light to heavy.
Another thing is your protagonist and antagonist have to have a reason they hate each other that's believable. A common reason is two men are in love with the same woman or are competing for the same job or are on opposite sides of a war. They are enemies competing for the same prize. The opposing characters can be between two women (as in the movie BRIDE WARS) and also between a man and a woman (ROMANCING THE STONE or FOOL'S GOLD). The tension builds as they go from bickering at one another scene after scene until it builds into a heated screaming match. This also builds sexual tension, which is why the man and woman end up tearing each other's clothes off. That's the formula for a great romance novel. They dislike each other from the start, have opposite viewpoints, bicker, argue, fight, have passionate sex, and then fall in love.
The next time you read a book or watch a movie, notice how the conflict builds over time. Notice by the time two people are screaming at each other or fighting with fists or weapons, you the viewer are ready for that action, because it's been building in every scene prior. When you build conflict scene by scene in your novel, then the actual fight scene happens naturally. Your characters will take over the story and let you know when they're ready to duke it out.
In answer to your second question, the way to keep your reader interested is you create believable characters that are human and passionate about opposite ideals. The protagonist and antagonist are so headstrong that they'll do whatever it takes to get their way, and they are righteous about their viewpoint. Watch the movie DOUBT. It's classic conflict that builds into a brilliant verbal match between Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman. When two of my characters get into a fight, I always ask myself, what's the worst thing that could happen that could come out of this? What would be the worst outcome for each character in the fight? And that's usually the way I write it.
First you have to build conflict. And conflict always starts light and builds over multiple scenes. For instance, in SHADOWS IN THE MIST, my main character Lt. Jack Chambers has an antagonist named Lt. Fallon. They have a bad history, so I use their past falling out to create some immediate tension. From the moment they get assigned to work on the same mission, they don't like each other. I create tension in their dialogue as they take a few verbal jabs at one another. Every scene that follows, Chambers and Fallon argue more and more. Later their hatred builds to the point that they're slugging each other. All this builds up to them battling in a climatic scene with weapons. So, the key is your protagonist (hero) must always have an antagonist (villain) who oppose one another. No matter how much they dislike each other from the beginning, start building conflict slowly, light to heavy.
Another thing is your protagonist and antagonist have to have a reason they hate each other that's believable. A common reason is two men are in love with the same woman or are competing for the same job or are on opposite sides of a war. They are enemies competing for the same prize. The opposing characters can be between two women (as in the movie BRIDE WARS) and also between a man and a woman (ROMANCING THE STONE or FOOL'S GOLD). The tension builds as they go from bickering at one another scene after scene until it builds into a heated screaming match. This also builds sexual tension, which is why the man and woman end up tearing each other's clothes off. That's the formula for a great romance novel. They dislike each other from the start, have opposite viewpoints, bicker, argue, fight, have passionate sex, and then fall in love.
The next time you read a book or watch a movie, notice how the conflict builds over time. Notice by the time two people are screaming at each other or fighting with fists or weapons, you the viewer are ready for that action, because it's been building in every scene prior. When you build conflict scene by scene in your novel, then the actual fight scene happens naturally. Your characters will take over the story and let you know when they're ready to duke it out.
In answer to your second question, the way to keep your reader interested is you create believable characters that are human and passionate about opposite ideals. The protagonist and antagonist are so headstrong that they'll do whatever it takes to get their way, and they are righteous about their viewpoint. Watch the movie DOUBT. It's classic conflict that builds into a brilliant verbal match between Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman. When two of my characters get into a fight, I always ask myself, what's the worst thing that could happen that could come out of this? What would be the worst outcome for each character in the fight? And that's usually the way I write it.
Monday, May 4, 2009
On Writing Horror and Suspense
When writing horror, don't hold back. Tap into your deepest, darkest imagination and write whatever your imagination gives you. Avoid censoring yourself. I've written some pretty twisted scenes and thought: I can't let anybody read this. The violence is just too brutal. But then people would read it and say they loved the scene.
I enjoy writing and reading fiction that originates from truth. When I say “truth” I mean that the scene was written from the writer’s heart. There’s a great distinction between stories written from an idea and those written from an author’s heart. The way to tell the difference is a story written from a writer’s heart evokes feelings in you when you read it. So in the case of writing horror, which explores darker themes, the genre attracts readers who want the writer to give us everything he or she has within her. As you type words across your computer screen, unleash whatever's clawing to get out. At the core of good protagonists and evil villains is a darkness driven by fear. Readers of horror can relate to fear, because we all have inner demons that we battle from time to time.
Suspense is putting a character into a situation where the reader knows danger is present. Example: a cop enters a house where a serial killer is hiding. All the lights are out. The cop finds a mutilated body, and it’s his partner. The dead man’s face has been skinned off. We might already know the killer likes to peal off the faces of his victims and wear them as masks. Now the cop has tracked down the killer to his lair. Every second the cop is exploring that house, we're on the edge of our seats, wondering when the killer is going to leap out of the shadows. We can ratchet up the suspense as our hero discovers a basement where shelves are lined with mannequin heads, each one draped with shrivled skin masks staring at our hero with hollow eyes and twisted grimaces. The more we learn how dangerous the killer is, the more suspenseful the scene gets.
Describing violence and gore: As far as gore goes, that's a matter of taste. Horror includes a whole spectrum from psychological horror (with very little gore) to splatter punk (graphic gore and violence - Brian Keene's zombie novels are great examples). So write gore according to your taste. Extremely gory novels attract a certain group of readers and tend to repel others. So, again, write horror the way you love to read it.
Writing descriptions: If you're writing suspense, keep descriptions to a minimum so you can keep the action driving at a fast pace. I describe settings in short paragraphs, then I start the action or dialogue. I generally interweave descriptions with the action. In SHADOWS IN THE MIST, I have a platoon take refuge in an abandoned Catholic church that's suffered a lot of war damage. I don't describe the church all at once. I give a brief description when the soldiers first reach the church. Then I describe a little more and a little more, as the soldiers explore the church with their flashlights. At some point the reader puts it all together and sees the big picture. When describing a setting, feed the reader a little at a time, so the setting becomes its own mystery--a place full of wonderful discoveries and hidden darkness.
We don't have to describe every detail. I like to allow the reader's imagination to fill in the gaps. Buildings like churches, castles, mansions, hospitals create their own image. If it's a minor scene, I'll just say my character entered a Catholic church. I describe more the action happening within the scene rather than paint the setting. When you allow the reader to use his imagination, in a sense you and the reader are co-creating the scene together in the reader's mind.
Writing emotions: Your ultimate goal is to evoke emotions in your readers and have them fall in love with your characters. But you can't contrive emotions or the scene will feel flat or trite. I first create characters that I, myself, fall in love with and care about. Then whatever happens to them evokes emotions in me. When I write dramatic scenes or scary scenes or action scenes where my protagonist is running for his life, I have to feel what's happening. I drum up those feelings of anger, fear, sadness, love, lust, and then write what my character is feeling. This happens naturally when I get into the story and I'm in tune with my character. The love scenes between my leading man and lady are by far the most fun to write. :) Again, don't hold anything back. Write about people you love and then write whatever you're feeling as they face conflicts with antagonists who will do everything in their power to stop the protagonists from achieving what they most desire.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Interview #1
I just did an interview with Bookgasm.com. You can read it at
http://www.bookgasm.com/interviews/qa-brian-moreland/
http://www.bookgasm.com/interviews/qa-brian-moreland/
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Dream Big and Make It Happen
Working your dream job takes courage, commitment, and tenacity. When that dream doesn't earn you money right away, it’s easy to get discouraged. You might question whether following this career is worth the effort. It seems like a huge mountain to climb. And there are no immediate rewards in sight. I say start climbing anyway. Just go for it. There are rewards at every level. Start doing what you love now and the money will one day follow.
Since beginning my path as a novelist, I faced a lot of hurdles. It took eighteen years before I began earning money as a fiction author. I could have been successful much earlier, but several times I gave up on myself. I took advice from people who only looked at the practical side of life. They didn’t strive beyond their comfort zones. They didn't see the point of me writing manuscript after manuscript and not getting paid for all the hours I spent typing at a computer, alone by myself. So those people became voices in my head that slowly, over time sapped my passion to continue. I quit climbing the mountain to my dream. I focused on working other jobs that actually paid a salary. I was making money, but inside a part of me felt empty, and it was only when I got back into writing in my mid thirties and pursuing my real dream--being a published author--that I was happy again. My dream stood before me like a giant mountain, so daunting I feared I could never reach the summit, but I started climbing anyway.
I had the fortune of meeting bestselling author Robert Crais at a book signing. He had just landed a huge Hollywood movie deal for his novel Hostage which stars Bruce Willis. I told Robert Crais that I was writing a novel and I wanted to be sitting where he was one day. He looked up from autographing a book and told me, “Then I’ll give you some advice. Never give up.” Those words stuck with me. I have since rephrased the motto to: “Never give up. Keep taking steps until you reach your goal. No matter what, stay persistent.” We can spend our whole lives making excuses, or we can start taking action now and just make it happen.
So I had a dream fueled by plenty of desire, but I still needed direction. I first listed my values. I asked myself, “What do I want most? What’s most important to me about my dream career?” I listed my values in simple words like: achievement, fun, seeing my books on bookstore shelves, sharing my writing with readers, receiving advances and royalty checks, hanging out with other writers, writing a bestselling novel, etc. And then I listed those values in order of importance. Prioritizing your values is key, because it causes your mind to focus on what’s most important to you. You feel an emotional boost. It empowers you and stokes your inner fire. Then as you begin taking steps toward doing what you love, you take the most important steps first.
Once I had my values listed, I had a new sense of purpose. A vision I could work toward. It was like filling my engine with rocket fuel. I was ready to blast off to a career that was more aligned with my truth. I posted my values on a wall so I’d see them every day. Then I wrote out specific goals, and chunked them down into small daily “action steps” I could accomplish easily. I continued writing, pushing myself daily, weekly, monthly to complete my manuscript. I read books on my craft and took classes so I could get better at it. I read books about other people’s success stories so I could believe that I could accomplish my goals, too. And I read about the publishing business. As a writer seeking to publish my novel with a major NY publisher, I needed a literary agent. I submitted query letters to countless agents over the span of ten years and received only rejection letters. At the time I felt like a failure, but I wasn’t. “Rejection,” as I later learned, is just a guiding post. Rejection guided me away from the wrong paths—the wrong people to do business with. In my vision, my literary agent was passionate about representing me and my books. Rejection is where a lot of people give up. I say, “Never give up. Keep taking steps until you reach your goal. No matter what, stay persistent.”
I eventually self-published my first novel, just to get it out there on the market. More important, to make being an author more real for me. Being your own publisher can be a very time-consuming venture. It was also a huge financial investment. It’s not necessarily the path for all writers, because it requires a business sense and entrepreneurial spirit. It’s also a very high risk of ever seeing a profit. If you don’t mind taking risks and hard work, then I recommend self-publishing as an alternative to getting a book to the market. For me, self-publishing is how I jump-started my career.
Within nine months my novel went from polished manuscript to a soft-cover book I could hold in my hands. Through great marketing efforts in tandem with a publicist I hired, the book sold relatively well. I began to do book signings and realized I had achieved one of my goals: to be like Robert Crais, the author autographing books. It was an awesome feeling.
When you pursue your dream 100%, there can be wonderful surprises that happen along the way. My WWII novel Shadows in the Mist hit number one on Amazon.com’s Bestselling Mystery and Thrillers list, stayed there a couple hours, beating out Dan Brown’s DaVinci Code. That was very surreal, let me tell you, and a victory I would have never experienced had I given up.
So if you're pursuing a dream that isn't paying you the big bucks just yet, keep going for it. Even if it’s just a hobby on the side. You may not see the top of the mountain right now, but keep climbing, one step at a time. Little by little. Focus a few hours each week on your dream career. Commit your weekends to it. You can accomplish anything with time and persistence. And when you reach the summit you can just smile to yourself and say, "I went for it, and I made it happen, and now I can do anything." Whatever your dream is, start taking steps toward it now and make it happen.
I also coach writers to be successful, and I'm available for one-on-one personal coaching. Contact me at Brian@BrianMoreland.com. On Facebook look up “Author Brian Moreland” and feel free to join my two groups, “Horror Shadows in the Mist” and “Coaching for Writers.”
Since beginning my path as a novelist, I faced a lot of hurdles. It took eighteen years before I began earning money as a fiction author. I could have been successful much earlier, but several times I gave up on myself. I took advice from people who only looked at the practical side of life. They didn’t strive beyond their comfort zones. They didn't see the point of me writing manuscript after manuscript and not getting paid for all the hours I spent typing at a computer, alone by myself. So those people became voices in my head that slowly, over time sapped my passion to continue. I quit climbing the mountain to my dream. I focused on working other jobs that actually paid a salary. I was making money, but inside a part of me felt empty, and it was only when I got back into writing in my mid thirties and pursuing my real dream--being a published author--that I was happy again. My dream stood before me like a giant mountain, so daunting I feared I could never reach the summit, but I started climbing anyway.
I had the fortune of meeting bestselling author Robert Crais at a book signing. He had just landed a huge Hollywood movie deal for his novel Hostage which stars Bruce Willis. I told Robert Crais that I was writing a novel and I wanted to be sitting where he was one day. He looked up from autographing a book and told me, “Then I’ll give you some advice. Never give up.” Those words stuck with me. I have since rephrased the motto to: “Never give up. Keep taking steps until you reach your goal. No matter what, stay persistent.” We can spend our whole lives making excuses, or we can start taking action now and just make it happen.
So I had a dream fueled by plenty of desire, but I still needed direction. I first listed my values. I asked myself, “What do I want most? What’s most important to me about my dream career?” I listed my values in simple words like: achievement, fun, seeing my books on bookstore shelves, sharing my writing with readers, receiving advances and royalty checks, hanging out with other writers, writing a bestselling novel, etc. And then I listed those values in order of importance. Prioritizing your values is key, because it causes your mind to focus on what’s most important to you. You feel an emotional boost. It empowers you and stokes your inner fire. Then as you begin taking steps toward doing what you love, you take the most important steps first.
Once I had my values listed, I had a new sense of purpose. A vision I could work toward. It was like filling my engine with rocket fuel. I was ready to blast off to a career that was more aligned with my truth. I posted my values on a wall so I’d see them every day. Then I wrote out specific goals, and chunked them down into small daily “action steps” I could accomplish easily. I continued writing, pushing myself daily, weekly, monthly to complete my manuscript. I read books on my craft and took classes so I could get better at it. I read books about other people’s success stories so I could believe that I could accomplish my goals, too. And I read about the publishing business. As a writer seeking to publish my novel with a major NY publisher, I needed a literary agent. I submitted query letters to countless agents over the span of ten years and received only rejection letters. At the time I felt like a failure, but I wasn’t. “Rejection,” as I later learned, is just a guiding post. Rejection guided me away from the wrong paths—the wrong people to do business with. In my vision, my literary agent was passionate about representing me and my books. Rejection is where a lot of people give up. I say, “Never give up. Keep taking steps until you reach your goal. No matter what, stay persistent.”
I eventually self-published my first novel, just to get it out there on the market. More important, to make being an author more real for me. Being your own publisher can be a very time-consuming venture. It was also a huge financial investment. It’s not necessarily the path for all writers, because it requires a business sense and entrepreneurial spirit. It’s also a very high risk of ever seeing a profit. If you don’t mind taking risks and hard work, then I recommend self-publishing as an alternative to getting a book to the market. For me, self-publishing is how I jump-started my career.
Within nine months my novel went from polished manuscript to a soft-cover book I could hold in my hands. Through great marketing efforts in tandem with a publicist I hired, the book sold relatively well. I began to do book signings and realized I had achieved one of my goals: to be like Robert Crais, the author autographing books. It was an awesome feeling.
When you pursue your dream 100%, there can be wonderful surprises that happen along the way. My WWII novel Shadows in the Mist hit number one on Amazon.com’s Bestselling Mystery and Thrillers list, stayed there a couple hours, beating out Dan Brown’s DaVinci Code. That was very surreal, let me tell you, and a victory I would have never experienced had I given up.
Self-publishing turned out to be a great way to launch my career, but it was always just a path toward my bigger dream of landing a book deal with a major NY publisher. I continued to pursue literary agents and eventually found an agent who catapulted my career to the next level. She sold Shadows in the Mist to Berkley/Penguin in New York for a mass paperback deal, as well as to a publisher in Germany. In 2010, a German version of my novel (titled SCHATTEN IM NEBEL) will release in Europe. Within two years of self-publishing I became an international author. What was once a passionate hobby has finally become a career I take seriously. When you focus on your dream daily, you get there little by little. In fact, that has become a mantra in my head: “Little by little, little by little, little by little …”
We all have a calling. A life purpose. A reason we came onto this planet. What brings you joy? What do you dream of doing as your career? We can spend our days living mundane lives or we can do what gives us joy. My calling is novel writing and inspiring others to pursue their dreams. Life can be so joyful when you are doing what you love.
We all have a calling. A life purpose. A reason we came onto this planet. What brings you joy? What do you dream of doing as your career? We can spend our days living mundane lives or we can do what gives us joy. My calling is novel writing and inspiring others to pursue their dreams. Life can be so joyful when you are doing what you love.
So if you're pursuing a dream that isn't paying you the big bucks just yet, keep going for it. Even if it’s just a hobby on the side. You may not see the top of the mountain right now, but keep climbing, one step at a time. Little by little. Focus a few hours each week on your dream career. Commit your weekends to it. You can accomplish anything with time and persistence. And when you reach the summit you can just smile to yourself and say, "I went for it, and I made it happen, and now I can do anything." Whatever your dream is, start taking steps toward it now and make it happen.
I also coach writers to be successful, and I'm available for one-on-one personal coaching. Contact me at Brian@BrianMoreland.com. On Facebook look up “Author Brian Moreland” and feel free to join my two groups, “Horror Shadows in the Mist” and “Coaching for Writers.”
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Publishing SHADOWS IN THE MIST - Part 2
After doing a goal-reaching exercise on being a published author, I began to list out my top ten values for my career. What was most important? At the top of the list were "launching a successful writing career," "seeing my book in print," and "sharing SHADOWS IN THE MIST with the world." While I was submitting manuscripts to agents, achieving these goals was completely out of my control. I had already spent years playing the waiting game with agents and was ready to waste any more time. So I made a key business decision: self publish.
In short, I formed my own publishing company Blue Morpho Publishing. I shifted my focus from seeing my novel as a manuscript to seeing it as a product to design and release to the market. This was an easy transition for me, because I've always been an entrepreneur by heart. I studied business in high school and college. I was already operating my own successful business as a freelance film/video editor. I was so excited to be taking over the destiny of my book, that I jumped right in. I got some financial backing. I hired an editor, Karl Monger, to give my manuscript a professional polish. I was determined to have a cover that I was not only proud of, but it had to compete for attention of millions of other books out on the market. The cover is where I focused most of my budget. I hired Kathy Dunn to design the cover and Les Edwards to illustrate it. Here's the evolution from sketch to finished cover.
Most traditional publishers take anywhere from eighteen months to two years to release a book, from the day I decided to self-publishing, nine months later I was holding a bound copy in my hands. I'll never forget the feeling. Finally, after eighteen years, I had a bound novel with cover art and even a bar code on the back. It was ready to go to market. I originally released SHADOWS IN THE MIST in September, 2006. By October, it was on display at Barnes and Noble where I did two book signings. The goal-setting exercise I did paid off.
"Fast paced and tension ratcheting, Brian Moreland's SHADOWS IN THE MIST is a page-turner sure to satisfy even the most fickle thriller junkie! This one definitely won't be collecting dust on your nightstand!"
—Deborah LeBlanc, Author of Morbid Curiosity and A House Divided
“Shadows in the Mist is chilling horrorfest, written by a bright new talent in the horror genre. But more than that, this novel is a terrific page-turner that combines the best aspects of mystery, dark suspense, and the historical thriller. Well written. Well researched. And a gripping, haunting read from the opening pages in a creepy Nazi-occupied castle to the grand guignol of the last pages."
—Gary Braver, Bestselling Author of Flashback and Skin Deep
"Shadows in the Mist is one of the best books that I've read this year."
—Horror Bob, HorrorReview.com
“Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers meets Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code meets F. Paul Wilson's The Keep. With Shadows in the Mist, Brian Moreland weaves together the best elements of military, supernatural and religious conspiracy genres, staking out a new territory all his own.”
In short, I formed my own publishing company Blue Morpho Publishing. I shifted my focus from seeing my novel as a manuscript to seeing it as a product to design and release to the market. This was an easy transition for me, because I've always been an entrepreneur by heart. I studied business in high school and college. I was already operating my own successful business as a freelance film/video editor. I was so excited to be taking over the destiny of my book, that I jumped right in. I got some financial backing. I hired an editor, Karl Monger, to give my manuscript a professional polish. I was determined to have a cover that I was not only proud of, but it had to compete for attention of millions of other books out on the market. The cover is where I focused most of my budget. I hired Kathy Dunn to design the cover and Les Edwards to illustrate it. Here's the evolution from sketch to finished cover.
Most traditional publishers take anywhere from eighteen months to two years to release a book, from the day I decided to self-publishing, nine months later I was holding a bound copy in my hands. I'll never forget the feeling. Finally, after eighteen years, I had a bound novel with cover art and even a bar code on the back. It was ready to go to market. I originally released SHADOWS IN THE MIST in September, 2006. By October, it was on display at Barnes and Noble where I did two book signings. The goal-setting exercise I did paid off.
During its first year of publication, Shadows in the Mist received some great reviews.
"Equal parts horror story and spine-jangling thriller. An adventure not to be missed!"
—James Rollins, New York Times bestselling author of Map of Bones and Black Order"Fast paced and tension ratcheting, Brian Moreland's SHADOWS IN THE MIST is a page-turner sure to satisfy even the most fickle thriller junkie! This one definitely won't be collecting dust on your nightstand!"
—Deborah LeBlanc, Author of Morbid Curiosity and A House Divided
“Shadows in the Mist is chilling horrorfest, written by a bright new talent in the horror genre. But more than that, this novel is a terrific page-turner that combines the best aspects of mystery, dark suspense, and the historical thriller. Well written. Well researched. And a gripping, haunting read from the opening pages in a creepy Nazi-occupied castle to the grand guignol of the last pages."
—Gary Braver, Bestselling Author of Flashback and Skin Deep
"Shadows in the Mist is one of the best books that I've read this year."
—Horror Bob, HorrorReview.com
“Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers meets Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code meets F. Paul Wilson's The Keep. With Shadows in the Mist, Brian Moreland weaves together the best elements of military, supernatural and religious conspiracy genres, staking out a new territory all his own.”
—T.L. Hines, author of Waking Lazarus
Self-publishing offered me the chance to do several book signings and a radio show and meet some incredible people along the way.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Publishing SHADOWS IN THE MIST - Part 1
Publishing my first novel has been a long and winding road that spans eighteen years. If you read my previous posts then you know that I began my writing career in college with a little horror novel called THE DEGBA DYNASTY (later renamed SKINNERS) that never sold, and that my second novel, SHADOWS IN THE MIST, began as a short screenplay I wrote for a screenwriting class. Back then I had stars in my eyes about how my career as a novelist would play out. I thought for sure by the time I was thirty, I was destined to be the next Stephen King or Dean Koontz, with half a dozen bestselling novels, my books made into movies, and millions in the bank. It's great to have dreams. They just sometimes take longer to manifest than we wish.
Well, I'm thirty-nine now, approaching forty real soon. And my dreams and persistence are what have gotten me where I'm at today, on the verge of releasing my first novel in small paperback through my publisher Berkley/Penguin. I actually self-published this book as a large trade paperback in 2006 under my own company, Blue Morpho Publishing. Here is the original cover painted by award-winning artist Les Edwards.
Well, I'm thirty-nine now, approaching forty real soon. And my dreams and persistence are what have gotten me where I'm at today, on the verge of releasing my first novel in small paperback through my publisher Berkley/Penguin. I actually self-published this book as a large trade paperback in 2006 under my own company, Blue Morpho Publishing. Here is the original cover painted by award-winning artist Les Edwards.
I'd love to have more books to share at this stage in my life, but I hit a few road bumps along my path that included a brief marriage, sudden divorce, a few bouts of depression, focusing on my video editing career, starting up several side businesses, and doing a lot of soul searching. With the intention of finding myself, I backpacked for three weeks in Australia and New Zealand. Five times I ventured down to Costa Rica to do yoga and meditate in the rain forest. I also attended a number of retreats in Hawaii, searching for my purpose. A frequent question I continually asked myself was "Am I destined to be a career author or am I just kidding myself? If my passion for writing is my true gift to the planet, how can I be successful at it? How can I get my books published?"
During my eighteen years of writing and dreaming, I never gave up my vision of being a published novelist. The flames of passion have always been burning. They just ranged from cindering coals to volcanic eruptions of creativity at different stages of my adult life. But I never gave up.
I shared in a previous post, that I failed to sell my first novel, SKINNERS. I spent years submitting it to New York literary agents and received dozens of rejections without anyone ever reading my manuscript. Then I spent four and a half years researching and writing SHADOWS IN THE MIST. Again, I invested two years and a lot of promotional materials to get an agent. I sent out half a dozen query letters then played the waiting game for several months. I even went to the Maui Writers conference and pitched my story to an agent. She read a portion of the book then declined, saying she was already representing a WWII horror author. Why she just didn't say this up front instead of making me wait for her response, I don't know. Bottom line is in 2005 I hit my breaking point. I was on the verge of doing something I never thought I would do--quit this silly dream of being a novelist.
I took some time off from writing and publishing to get centered. Get to the core of why I'm here on the planet. And what kept coming up was I'm here to be a writer. A storyteller. A novelist. Writing is my innate talent. It's my gift and I need to share it, even if it takes years until my words reach the world. Even if I never get rich from it or achieve the fame and glory of Stephen King, writing is still my destiny. And I believe if we follow our inner calling, we will live a life that brings us the most joy. So that's what drives me.
Here is a mission statement that I wrote to keep me motivated.
MY MISSION:
I am writing exciting stories that invigorate my soul.
I am publishing novels that entertain millions of readers.
My books are made into blockbuster movies.
I am enjoying a prosperous career as a writer.
So now I had my life purpose and mission, I needed some direction. I needed someone to bounce off ideas and talk about where I was stuck. I started working with Life Coaches. I believe that hiring a personal coach is key to success. All successful athletes have a coach to keep them focused and motivated. There's so much that can distract us or weigh us down. It's easy to lose focus on what's most important. A life coach helps you prioritize the activities in your life that really matter and keep you focused on achieving your goals. I so believe in this that I trained to become a life coach myself, as well as a career coach for writers. If anyone is interested in personal coaching, email me at Brian@BrianMoreland.com.
So, here it was September 2005 and I'm down on my luck. I've got my life purpose--write novels for pleasure and profit and share my stories with the world--but no direction and very little gas left in the tank. During my coaching training, where I learned Nuero-Linguistic Programming (NLP), I used to practice techniques with my friend Mary-Helen. We did a goal reaching exercise where you write down in the present tense exactly what you want to achieve as if it's already happening, exactly the way you want it to happen, and then read it out loud to a partner with as much positive emotion as you can muster. I did this for my goal of seeing my novel SHADOWS IN THE MIST in print and selling in book stores.
To be continued on the next post . . .
During my eighteen years of writing and dreaming, I never gave up my vision of being a published novelist. The flames of passion have always been burning. They just ranged from cindering coals to volcanic eruptions of creativity at different stages of my adult life. But I never gave up.
I shared in a previous post, that I failed to sell my first novel, SKINNERS. I spent years submitting it to New York literary agents and received dozens of rejections without anyone ever reading my manuscript. Then I spent four and a half years researching and writing SHADOWS IN THE MIST. Again, I invested two years and a lot of promotional materials to get an agent. I sent out half a dozen query letters then played the waiting game for several months. I even went to the Maui Writers conference and pitched my story to an agent. She read a portion of the book then declined, saying she was already representing a WWII horror author. Why she just didn't say this up front instead of making me wait for her response, I don't know. Bottom line is in 2005 I hit my breaking point. I was on the verge of doing something I never thought I would do--quit this silly dream of being a novelist.
I took some time off from writing and publishing to get centered. Get to the core of why I'm here on the planet. And what kept coming up was I'm here to be a writer. A storyteller. A novelist. Writing is my innate talent. It's my gift and I need to share it, even if it takes years until my words reach the world. Even if I never get rich from it or achieve the fame and glory of Stephen King, writing is still my destiny. And I believe if we follow our inner calling, we will live a life that brings us the most joy. So that's what drives me.
Here is a mission statement that I wrote to keep me motivated.
MY MISSION:
I am writing exciting stories that invigorate my soul.
I am publishing novels that entertain millions of readers.
My books are made into blockbuster movies.
I am enjoying a prosperous career as a writer.
So now I had my life purpose and mission, I needed some direction. I needed someone to bounce off ideas and talk about where I was stuck. I started working with Life Coaches. I believe that hiring a personal coach is key to success. All successful athletes have a coach to keep them focused and motivated. There's so much that can distract us or weigh us down. It's easy to lose focus on what's most important. A life coach helps you prioritize the activities in your life that really matter and keep you focused on achieving your goals. I so believe in this that I trained to become a life coach myself, as well as a career coach for writers. If anyone is interested in personal coaching, email me at Brian@BrianMoreland.com.
So, here it was September 2005 and I'm down on my luck. I've got my life purpose--write novels for pleasure and profit and share my stories with the world--but no direction and very little gas left in the tank. During my coaching training, where I learned Nuero-Linguistic Programming (NLP), I used to practice techniques with my friend Mary-Helen. We did a goal reaching exercise where you write down in the present tense exactly what you want to achieve as if it's already happening, exactly the way you want it to happen, and then read it out loud to a partner with as much positive emotion as you can muster. I did this for my goal of seeing my novel SHADOWS IN THE MIST in print and selling in book stores.
To be continued on the next post . . .
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