F. P. Dorchak

Speculative Fiction Author

reading

Best Reads…

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Best Reads In A Long Time! (Photo © F. P. Dorchak, 2017)
Best Reads In A Long Time! (Photo © F. P. Dorchak, 2017)

…in a long time!

I had started reading these four books about a year ago—and last week had finally finished them all. I think I’d started around September. They’re all anthologies. They all have the element of The Weird in them. The stories run the gamut from pretty much mainstream to the out-and-out horror. It’s so funny—and interesting—that in the past few years I have not been happy with nearly every novel I’ve picked up and [tried to] read. Either the story or something about the story/writing just didn’t grab me. But this last year, during all the author events I’d participated in (local and distant library gigs to Denver’s Comic Con), I’d come across these books. Many of my writer friends are in these books, and that’s how I found them: they were selling them at these events. And I must tell you that—hands down—wow. I was so impressed with these works! I loved all of these books—maybe not every story, but the en masse entirety of the collections. The quality of the writing…even if I didn’t like a particular story, man, they were all well-written! I really appreciated the writing, since the past couple of years I have not appreciated much of the writing I’ve read or tried to read.

This is important, becaaause….

I’d begun to wonder if I’d become jaded as a writer-reader. That nothing I read was ever going to be “any good” any more…is this how editors and agents feel?

And I’d worried that perhaps it wasn’t that the works I read were actually bad…but that perhaps in my mind’s eye nothing I read would ever measure up to some insane and wholly arbitrary ego-constructed measure. Yes, I was a little bit worried I was becoming that angry non-selling author sitting on that front porch with a double-barreled shotgun yelling out at all the authors out there to get the hell off my lawn!, while I fired some well-placed buckshot into their collective literary asses.

Open, pop em, reload.

But having read these books reassured me that I was fine. I don’t know what my major malfunction is, but having read these books showed me that there still is great writing out there—great reading. I’m not into pure horror fiction anymore, but I still love well-written “dark fiction” pieces with elements of The Weird in it, however defined. And that’s another thing—seeing The Weird defined by other writers. How they look at the world and suitably warp the hell out of it. I’m more into the psychologically, the metaphysically bent stories, not the gore…but love “weird.”

It was also fun as hell to see what my writer friends had written!

So often we run into each other at these promotional gigs (well, when I go to them, that is, and 2016 was a banner year for me attending them…) and talk and stuff, look at each others books, but to buy everyone‘s books…all the time…becomes prohibitive. I know too many writers and I only have so much income and wall space—as I’m sure is the same for every other writer out there. I always feel terrible that I have to put a friend’s book back down and somehow slink away with my tail between my legs because I haven’t bought anything—but hey, I wish you the best!

Ga, I hate having to do that!

But, this time I made an active attempt to better support those friends I haven’t read anything from and find something of theirs of interest and buy one or two books per gig…annnd read them! These four books I’d bought around the same time so they all “went together” in my head. The two books on the right (The Deep Dark Woods and Nightmares Unhinged) are straight horror and dark fiction and have some outright startling stories in that vein (pun intended). Tick Tock and Found are not really “dark fiction” per se, but have some elements in some of the stories, and they are stories that involve the element of their titles (i.e., stories about something found and the element of time). Really well-written stuff!

I’m not going to call any one writer out, here. That wouldn’t be fair without commenting on all of them, and that would get long…and to be honest, I’m not known for my memory, so that would involve a bit more rereading and note taking and I don’t want this post to be a book report on authors. I just wanted to say that if any of you have any interesting whatsoever in dark fiction—weird fiction—stories about something found or that involve the element of time in them…well-written short stories…give these anthologies a try!

And to all my writer friends who wrote this stuff–outstanding effort! I really am impressed and look forward to reading more of your work!

 

The "You Belong" Anthology 2016

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You Belong 2016 Anthology, Edited by Steve Kenworthy, ©2016 (ISBN 978-0-692-77438-0) Used with permission of Steve Kenworthy.
You Belong 2016 Anthology, Edited by Steve Kenworthy, ©2016 (ISBN 978-0-692-77438-0) Used with permission of Steve Kenworthy.

I was first included in the Longmont Public Library’s first anthology back in 2012. It was an honor to have been selected by an organization I’d never before heard of, especially since I don’t live by them! I’ve forgotten just how they found me, but they did, and it was an honor to have my short story, “Tail Gunner,” included in their collection.

This year, I was again included in their fifth anthology, You Belong 2016, Words and Images from Longmont Area Residents!

As Steve Kenworthy, anthology editor, explained to me they had gone more “in-house” with their last four anthologies, and rightly so. They wanted to keep it more local. But with the fifth collection, they decided to again extend their reach outward to those who had been in the first one. The release of the fifth anthology was in conjunction with their library festival, and a handful of us read from sections of our stories on September 8th. All proceeds from the book go to supporting the Longmont Public Library, and I am proud to have helped them and even bought 15 of their books. I gave out a bunch of them at the RMFW Colorado Gold Conference that following weekend.

My entry into this year’s anthology is my story, “Broken Windows.” It’s an emotional and tragic tale of a woman’s reconciliation with her dead father. Of course, since I wrote it, it’s paranormal. I don’t write “normal.” After the reading, as I was on my way out to make the hour-and-a-half return trip home, a lady came up to me and complimented me on being brave enough to face my emotions like that. I thanked her…but carefully told her this story was not about my family. Eeeee…I always hate to point out when someone has made an error when I’m being complimented, but it goes to show you how powerfully I’d done my job in writing that story. Wow. I’m so glad it hit at least one reader like I’d wanted it to! Sure, I used elements from other people’s lives, but it’s a story. I did, however, tell the lady that up until the present (I started this story—the first four pages—in 1997, but finished it a few months back), every time I finished reading the story, I cried.

Cried?

Yes.

Outwardly. And not on the inside, like I joked about at the closing keynote at the RMFW conference! Actual tears.

See, ladies, I really can weep….

This story is that emotional for me. So, thank you, ma’am, for your compliment.

Of note, my story, set in Kansas, fits in beautifully with the cover image! How serendipitous!

I love the Longmont area and its library, have now been there twice. Terrific people! And the stories that I’d heard at the reading were wonderful and heartfelt. It was fun! It also hit me as I sat there that except for Steve Kenworthy I didn’t know another soul in that room! That just hit me kinda funny.

So…thank you…Steve and the staff at the Longmont Public Library…for inviting me to your 2016 anthology and including some of my work! It is an honor to have been thought of and included! I truly feel that I belong!

To get a copy of this or the other anthologies, contact:

Steve Kenworthy
Head of Technical Services/Systems Administrator
Longmont Public Library
409 4th Street
Longmont, CO 80501
303-651-8614
steve.kenworthy@longmontcolorado.gov

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Pikes Peak Library's Mountain Of Authors 2016

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Anne Hillerman at MOA 2016
Anne Hillerman at MOA 2016

“If something is holding you back…something is also pulling you forward.” Mario Acevedo.

This past Saturday I attended the Pikes Peak Library District’s (PPLD’s) annual Mountain of Authors (MOAs) event, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This was my second year in attendance, and I continued to have a blast meeting and talking with others interested in books! It was held at the north end’s Library 21C.

There were two panels and one Keynote Speaker—who was Anne Hillerman, Tony Hillerman’s daughter and an author in her own right. People were allowed to mingle with the authors throughout the day’s events. We had full tables to ourselves, as authors, and I got to share the neighborhood with Kevin Ikenberry, who I’d met and been on panels with at last year’s MileHiCon. Good to see you again, Kevin!

It’s A Mystery!

This was the first panel, moderated by K. D. Huxman, and its panelists were Nancy Atherton, Robert Greer, and Manuel Ramos. All manner of questions were asked of our panelists, about writing, being a writer, being a mystery writer. A couple of responses from the panelists grabbed me, so I wrote them down:

“I’m surprised at the sheer volume of writing out there.” Robert Greer. Mr. Greer also went on to say how he misses the old days, when editors really edited material and there was better quality being published. I have to agree with him!

“I still think being a writer is a big deal.” Manuel Ramos.

“Good writers steal from other good writers.” Manuel Ramos. The context was that all good writers learn from other good writers…so we’re not talking about plagiarism, here!

“Read as broadly as you can.” Nancy Atherton. I do agree!

“It’s more important to read than to write.” Robert Greer. I don’t know that I agree with him, here, but the point is well-made!

“You never become really good at anything unless you do it over and over and over.” Robert Greer. I’d been in conversation at my table with a person who was having difficulty finishing a book he’d been working on, and that was one of the things I’d told him: persistence.

“Write the book you need to write…don’t set out to ‘write a genre.'” Nancy Atherton. She was talking about don’t worry what genre your book is, just write it…don’t worry about it…and let the book be what it will be. I liked that.

“Be an observer of life.” Robert Greer. Definitely. I always find myself observing life, nature, people, situations….

10th Anniversary!

The next panel was in celebration of the 10th anniversary of MOA. This panel was moderated by Shannon Miller and consisted of Mario Acevedo, Sandra Bond, and Kristen Heitzmann. I thought it was also cool that it also marked Mario Acevedo’s 10th year of being published, with his Felix Gomez vampire series. Congratulations, Mario!

While there was a lot said during this panel, I didn’t seem to write down much, perhaps because I was too drawn into the conversations and humor (Mario used to be an Army pilot and had sign in his chopper’s cockpit with an arrow pointing up)! I kept trying to write quotes down—when another one was ripped off, and I’d lose the thread of the previous one! With a couple of exceptions, I just stopped taking notes and listened. Guess I wouldn’t make a very good journalist.

Here is what I did manage to snag:

“Paperback books are making it too easy to read!” Mario Acevedo paraphrasing old tyme publishing. Mario was talking about how at the turn of the previous century, publishing was whining about the advent of paperback books! That—much like ebooks today—publishers were crying the sky was falling with the advent of paperbacks! I’d also read some early descriptions of publishing and the issues-of-the-times, and found that there was always something being touted as the “End of the World” for publishing…absolutely no different than today. People are people…and we love to whine and cry about how bad things are gonna be…then we buck up and move forward.

“Be in love with the story…the characters…don’t be thinking about selling.” I believe Kristen Heitzmann said this. I love this advice! You need to be in love with the world, the characters, the story you’re writing! If you’re not, it will show in your work, and no one will be moved/driven to tears/fascinated by your work.

There was talk about the resurgence of short stories. Apparently between 2004 – 2010 nothing was being bought in terms of short stories…but now…since around 2012…some short stories are being bought. This might have come from Sandra Bond. I find this kind of thinking so damned parochial. That “no one is buying anything” mindset in publishing. No matter how stellar an editor, a publishing executive, they are all prone to prejudices and bad decisions. Readers will read anything that’s good! And to “just discover” that today’s readers “have a half-hour there, and hour there” as they go about their lives utterly astounds me….

“If something is holding you back…something is also pulling you forward.” Mario Acevedo. I found this to be perhaps the most profound statement all day! Not only does it fit in perfectly Newton’s Third Law of Motion, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction,“…but it’s a terrific way to look at and deal with one’s publishing angst! Beautiful, Mario, simply beautiful!

Anne Hillerman

Anne’s Keynote speech detailed anecdotes about her father and her time with him, as well as the benefits of reading fiction. Reading fiction improves brain connectivity and function. One of the benefits-of-fiction discoveries was that reading fiction makes one more sympathetic with others. That people who read fiction were better able to look at pictures of people’s eyes and better determine how the person behind those eyes was feeling. Fascinating. It does kinda disturb me that there are people out there who just will not read fiction. For more information about this research, click here. Anne also took questions from the audience.

In Conclusion

While at MOA, I also met back up with several writer-friends I haven’t seen since the last MOA outing, Denver’s MileHiCon…or longer (one—Chris Goff—my God, it has to have been almost 30 years since we last saw each other). It was so great to see and talk to you all! And, yes, I am looking into this year’s RMFW Colorado Gold…which happened to have been the first-ever writer’s conference I’d ever attended some 30 years ago. I also have not attended it since that first time.

And a special thanks goes out to Darlene B., who is my wife’s client. It was so neat to finally meet her! She stopped by and began by saying that she’d known of my work for some 19 years. Thanks, Darlene, for stopping by! It was a pleasure to finally meet and talk with you!

And a tremendous Thank You! to all of the Pikes Peak Library District and all those who took part in putting this together! And thank you, Bryan Matthews, for again having me! I hope to be back for next year’s!

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Can Reading Make Us Happier?

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Wow. Who Knew? (Deutsche Fotothek‎ [CC BY-SA 3.0 de (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons)
Wow. Who Knew? (Deutsche Fotothek‎ [CC BY-SA 3.0 de (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons)
To be totally honest, when I read this long article, about how reading can make us happier, I thought two immediate things:

1) It’s the New Yorker, so they’re looking to fill issues. And they love long articles.

2) It’s another article making much to-do about nothing…yet trying to also pump up reasons to read.

Wow. To make this simpler…do you really need to be “preached to the converted” about how doing anything you like or interests you is going to make you feel happier? Improve your quality of life? To throw around such deep analytical considerations, such as how reading a book “splits us into two parts as we read,” or “the state of reading consists in the complete elimination of the ego,” while promising “perpetual union” with another mind….

To me this is what this article is really about: whether or not your “forcing” another to read for “medicinal” purposes or not, once you are reading, you’re going to continue reading something that interests you…otherwise—forced or not—you’re simply going to stop. I would. I am one of many.

Oh, and this “prescription” has a new name: “Bibliotherapy.”

I’m not saying there isn’t a lot of good in this article or all it talks about, and I get it that researchers love having things to research…what I am saying is that doing anything that interests you or that you like doing will improve your well-being, whether it’s reading, walking, or skydiving.

That’s all.

 

 

Reading. For Fun?!

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A Good Read. [CC-BY-4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
A Good Read. ([CC-BY-4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.)
What’s that?

I love reading, I really do, but I find it hard to carve out the time to do it anymore, and by “it” I mean for fun, for leisure reading. With a more than full-time day job, and with all the research reading I do for my own novels, saving the world, and helping little old ladies across busy intersections, it’s just très hard to do.

But.

I did manage to finally complete one novel I had been reading since, like, spring. This was Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep. It’s classic King fare in its relation.

So, occasionally, I do pick up a for-fun read, but it’s far and few between. Maybe after I release my next novel, and I again begin on a whole new manuscript, I’ll have a little more time.

You know, except for my research reading.

 

Going Indie—What I’ve Learned (So Far)—Part 11

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Forge Your Own Way. (By Morrowlong [CC-BY-SA-3.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0] or GFDL [http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons]
Forge Your Own Way. (By Morrowlong [CC-BY-SA-3.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0] or GFDL [http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons]
It’s truly never-ending.

When you’re doing everything yourself—and by “yourself” I do mean having a team, but though you do have a team, you’re still in charge—you never really get a break. And that’s okay, because, in this instance, it truly is a labor of love.  But, you can only push yourself so far without adversely affecting your health, relationships, that kind of thing. It’s like I’ve said before, you can only do what you can do. Don’t fret about it…but do your best.

Indie publishing.

I’ve been working on my Psychic manuscript since before 2000. I’d originally started notes and chapter one around 1994, actually, when I’d discovered that our government claimed to have disbanded a classified remote viewing program. It gave me a story idea, so I began notes and such, but it wasn’t until 2000 that I sat down in earnest and began the task I’m still trying to complete. This month, I hope to finally complete it. And though I’ve been working on this project for a large frigging part of my life (surprisingly, this is the manuscript I’ve worked the longest, good God—20 years, if you count when I started taking notes—man that just hit me as I write this!), the difficulty has largely been the timeframe of the book. I’ve had to change the dates and ages and technology numerous times in trying to get this thing out there. And, as I’m wrapping things up, I’m still discovering little nit-noy shit (even though I have a proofreader), like the age of my antagonist at certain events, or the need to again change his weapon of choice. It’s become maddening. I am, however, finding this stuff before my proofreader will find it (she’s still reading and not yet at the end), but it’s frustrating! So, once again, I have to go back in and make corrections. But, that’s the way this works. Unless you do have another set of eyes…and even perhaps despite that, you may still find errors, because no one knows your story like you do.

Good Lord, 20 years?

Hopefully, what you find are not egregious errors…but even so, remember, even with the Big Dogs (the Big Five/Whatever) readers find errors. We’re human, and we make mistakes.

So, here is my latest round of things I’ve discovered:

  1. We’re human, we make mistakes. Accept that, but do your best. Have a thick skin, and readers…be kind. Understand this, fact, too.
  2. Blurbs? As I’d written in a previous post, I’m no longer seeking them…but to those I’ve already gathered, I’m going to use. Again, I reiterate: all those who have written me a cover blurb have actually read my work.
  3. Copyright your work! There is a really good post on this, and it got my ass in gear, now all my work is copyrighted. I always meant to do this, it got lost in the shuffle, so, thanks, Susan (Susan Spann has been most helpful to our writing community)!
  4. Don’t respond to e-mails with your favorite (or any, for that matter!) music blasting away! You could get carried away! There, I said it. You think that’s a stupid thing to say, but I love rock and roll, and, well, yes, sometimes I can get a little carried away with the energy of it. Music can and does change your state of mind, and you don’t want to get cocky. Just sayin’.
  5. Putting a price on your cover. When I first noted this item, I was of the mind to put a price on your book when printing the cover (if you can). It’s been mentioned a couple times on sites/sellers of books. I’ve asked my community about it, and I don’t remember anyone responding, so I don’t take it as being all that important. The more I thought about it, the more I came up with: why? In today’s world, that only really seems applicable to brick-and-mortar bookstores. So, I’m backing off the need for that. I don’t think you need to have that anymore. That’s old school (unless someone reading this can give me a good reason to do so). Everyone discounts books, even the brick-and-mortar stores. Indie authors cut deals left and right. Why would this be a necessity anymore?
  6. Be quick to apologize! Never be afraid to say you’re sorry for something you may have done, even if you’re not sure you’ve actually done something wrong. I am constantly amazed at how few people in the world actually apologize for anything, especially men. You got it. Men, friggin Man-the-HELL-up and take goddamn responsibility for your actions. I see it so much in my day job it pisses me off (and had another experience with exactly this just yesterday!). I forget why I’d originally included this item, but the point is salient. Get off your Ego Podiums!
  7. WP blogging: check that your saves are actually saved! Good Lord, this bites me more than I care to consider—and other WP bloggers! Yet, every time I contact WP about this, it’s like the first time they’ve ever heard about it! It’s not, WP, so please, fix the damned issue! Below the post window, on the right, there’s a “Draft saved at…” timestamp, and below that is a “Revisions” history. Checks these areas frequently!  Can’t emphasize this enough! Check them every time you save, to make sure your save—whether it’s a “Ctrl-S” or “Save Draft” selection—that they actually have taken. Especially if you’ve completed an initial post then been away from that post for a long time, like hours or days, and come back. Copy your text into Word or Notepad as you’re working. Highlight and copy into your clipboard what you’ve worked on periodically. If you happen to get a message that has the words to the effect “Do you really want to do this“…it’s too late. You’re screwed. You’ll keep what you last entered and saved, but anything after that last “official” save is forever gone.
  8. Cut your losses. If something’s not working out for you, detach yourself from it. Remove yourself from it. I recently had to do that with something with which I’d been associated for a very long time. It’s going  its way, I’m going mine. C’est la vie. Move on. Don’t keep the “bad energy” in your Weltanschauung. Don’t bad talk whatever it is…just move on.
  9. Not all advice is good. Everyone has an opinion, just like me, but not everything we give will work for you. And—I have to say this—not everyone knows what they’re talking about! Not everyone truly understands Indie publishing! And…some are actively trying to still discredit Indie publishing, because they’re in Traditional publishing, are pissed, scared, Old School, whatever, and are trying to interdict, spoof, and (argh, I’ve forgotten the term!) intentionally direct you away from your chosen path. Be aware. Consider all you hear with a block of salt. And remember this: there are always a million reasons not to do something…but, you only need to find one reason to change. Make the break and create a new path for yourself. This, however, is one guy who has his shit together: Bob Mayer. Read his stuff.
  10. Not everything you write is publishable! This should be obvious! Going Indie may give you license to publish everything you write, but everything you write is not necessarily publishable.
  11. Keep writing.

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