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My Yard Is For Freedom

Aug19

Who cares about political affiliations except for those who think the Civil War is still being fought? Actually, that ordeal is and was a total embarrassment; a Country declaring war against itself with winners none. That chapter is thankfully gone, but in its place was

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supposed to be born the beginnings of a brand new liberty and freedom. What happened to that freedom? Hard for me to tell and I live on the prairie where the wind whispers free and unemcumbered. It is for this reason, peace of mind, that I am taking a Facebook break. I am a writer, a northern, Republican, Catholic, American writer, and I know what real freedom tastes and feels like and cannot and will not settle for less.

If you are looking for me, this is where I will be; although, I will continue to share with FB but I imagine my posts will be DOA on arrival. Love to my friends and family, and you will be hearing from me.

 

The Joys of Being a B-Book Author

May28

120px-Rippl_Young_Girl_Dressed_in_YellowWhat is a B-Book Author? If you write e-Books, you know. It one of the two million e-Book authors that are stuck in the bottom tier, with more arriving daily. Make no mistake, there are many e-Books  deserving of the bottom tier; faulty grammar and syntax, scammers, and  pamphlets that  claim to be books but are not, but what about e-Books that are well written but cannot move because they are being crushed into oblivion? It’s a real dilemma, but such is life.

Of course, I and many others  would love to be in the A-Class, but I am not and probably never will be. But here’s the thing. I am retired, have three sources of income, and I live on the prairie where there is nowhere to go and nothing to do. It’s not like I have anything more pressing to do than write B-Books, so in a sense, I guess it’s a hobby.  Here’s the other thing. In the course of creating B-Books, I learned to write, really write. I use punctuation correctly, write with clear concise wording, and keep my paragraphs tight.

I guess, it’s all about perspective, and I would rather be a B-Book Author than never have written anything in my life.  It’s sort of like leaving footprints behind, and that’s not such a bad thing.

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http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0185HGFR6

 

Lessons Learned From Eccentric Blogging

Apr20

 The lovely lady seated at the typewriter is Amelita Galli-Curci one of the most popular Italian operatic singers of the early 20th Century.  She was born in Milan, Italy in 1882, and died in La Jolla, California in 1963. She was self taught, and her voice can still be heard on 78 recordings and LP and CD reissues.

pic It’s impossible to know what Amelita might be typing, but I expect fan mail because she is smiling. Although, she probably portrays the height of fashion for 1910,  she has that eccentric quality about her. Who sits down to type in a full length fur coat and hat? But she’s a dish, and I was quite smitten with the image. However, this is not a post about the eccentricities of Amelita, it is about the eccentricities of readers and writers.

I started a blog, firstly to write because I can, and secondly to determine what is currently being read and trending. The results after two weeks, are rather puzzling and quite shocking.

To date, the article that gained the most attention was a commentary on abortion, not that I believe in abortion but I am pro-choice because I remember a time when abortion was illegal and girls I went to school with were dying from illegal abortions.  Then readers went gaga over an obscure scratched black and white picture of the poet Emily Dickinson. I’m not so sure they were interested in the accompanying story, but they loved the picture.  By contrast, I wrote a article ‘The Great Poetry Disconnect’ that lamented that although poetry was once a loved literary genre, people have very little use for it these days. That article brought in readers from China and India. Then there was a article that was actually a tribute to my aunt, ‘Angels Cry When Teacher Die’. It seems readers have an affinity for teachers, and every family has one.

So where does this leave me, and where should I go? Something tells me I have accidentally connected with a bunch of Millennials who are eager for new information that is really old information, or people will reach out and read anything if it’s interesting.  It’s actually hard to tell as I sit in my favorite Amelita pose, but I’m having a  great time.

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(a gramophone for 78 rpm records and Nipper the dog 1899)

Photos: Creative Commons (Wikimedia Commons)