Lost weight and the 10K

Just a note:  Last year I came close to dying twice and in the process of getting well lost 45 pounds in 6 weeks. I don't recommend the method used. But I've pretty well kept it off and a few weeks ago actually did the Austin Cap 10. It's a 10K. I actually did it. I now walk (fast) 3 to 4.5 miles a day and feel great.

News and Tips for the new writer

Hello,

I's been a while since I last Blogged. My new Adam Thomas book Trashy Gourmet is scheduled to come out in June 2012 (in a few months) and Dangerous Threads is scheduled for the fall. Nice!!! I also wanted to share something for new writers so here we go:

                                                          Tips for a New Writer

·                Begin writing. Don't worry about how it sounds the first time through... just write.

·       When possible, develop a rudimentary 'goal' (a potential ending); a theme (or themes); a rudimentary setting (temporal [time] as well as geographic); a rudimentary set of characters - including the protagonist (sometimes a 'hero' - i.e. the main character); one or more antagonists (those who hinder, or attempt to hinder the protagonist from achieving his/her goal); and the supporting characters (family, friends, co-workers, etc.)

·       You can use tools such as Topical (or other types of) Outlining to help you develop the story line; and logically keep track of your continuity along the way. Maintaining logical continuity in your story is highly desirable; as it is a hallmark of professional writing; and nobody wants to read a story that has no logical progression; with unexplained holes and gaps along the way.

·       Consider using authoring software, if you do not have a good feel for going it on your own. This can be expensive, but can help the novice and professional alike in developing solid stories using some of the tried and true formulas that have been analyzed in creating such software.

·       It's not always the best idea to send your manuscript in for publishing the second you finish it. Give yourself awhile to consider revising and rewriting. This may be a few days to a few weeks. Step away for a bit, and then come back. There always will be things in your novel that you may wish that you had done differently. Don't linger too long - revise it; spell-check it; grammar-check it; pick a time when you feel the manuscript is ready; let friends, colleagues and select others review it; get feedback; apply or don't apply that feedback. Get an agent - have the agent submit it; OR go the small independent press route.

·                It's really up to you, the writer, regarding how long you should take to revise/rewrite.

·       Consider joining an online writing community. This can provide support and feedback/peer reviews. Or, even better yet, join a critique group locally to get their personal feedback on a personal basis and it also allows you to be inspired and around other writers for the often overlooked support from people with the same goals and problems.

·       Consider an agent and hope for a large publisher or small press before a vanity press. NOTE: Many e-publishers really are just another form of "vanity publishing" - they claim "no costs," but you end up paying fees for various add-ons, premium 'this' and premium ‘that’. REAL Publishers pay you.

·       Many e-pubs and small presses are offering print versions of their books through the benefits of Print on Demand services like Lulu. Also, with MOST NON-TRADITIONAL (small presses) PUBLISHERS, be prepared to help promote your own work by setting up a blog and attending online chats, as well as other promotions AND other leg-work on YOUR part!

·       Write your story the way you want. There are markets for all genres. You can search for publishers based on the keywords that you think describe your story best. Many publishers cater to a broad variety of tastes in readers and writers.

·       Make your idea as original as possible; or make it a truly unique twist on an already-existing idea. Without realizing it, you could be taking storylines from books you've read or movies you've seen. Conversely, using other works as inspiration is a useful writing method - just be sure to avoid plagiarism and clichés as much as possible.

·       Use writing advice that works best for you - different writers write differently. Regarding writing advice: "One size" does NOT fit all.

·       You do not have to write about something you already know: you always can research and learn about things you wish to incorporate into your plot. Use the Internet, libraries, interviews, etc. as tools to assist in research.

·       One method of developing a novel is to begin with the ending in mind: If you know the ending of the story, it can help you form the theme, the plot, the settings, and the characters; and it can help you more easily progress toward that ending.

·       Develop your characters to be as multi-dimensional as possible - flat, boring, uninteresting characters can kill even the best story before it gets off the ground. Sometimes your characters will begin to develop in ways you hadn't expected. Don't panic! This can be a good thing, and it can add new and refreshing directions for you in your plot. Try to base your characters on real-life experiences and on what motivations and traits that you believe your characters would have in an equivalent real-life setting. Use your imagination fully; use your interactions with others as an initial basis. Also, don't be afraid to research various personality types for character material.

·       Another tip that might prove useful is a "big picture" approach: Try to create the world (the overall setting and environment), and then build on it to create your novel. Base your characters around the world that you have created (geography, races, towns, cities, capitals, cults, factions, governments, etc.)

·       Try to avoid throwing away ANY ideas! In writing, it's often a good practice to have MORE material than you actually need, so please try to retain ALL of your ideas (even those you may have considered tossing out earlier). At times, you may need "filler ideas" to finish out a sub-plot and move to the main plot along. Set up a computer or hard copy file for all “discards” and other ideas for future reference. This also helps when you have to cut the great idea that didn’t really fit and you don’t want to lose it. Put it in the file for future reference.

Things you will need

·       A clear mind. You can't do anything without clearing your mind.

·       A quiet place to sit and work.

·       Loads of stamina, perseverance, and the willpower to plough on and finish what you start, running with your idea to its conclusion rather than abandoning it midway through.

·       A dictionary and thesaurus. You might need to look up words or you might need a different word to use. This will help!

·       A computer or typewriter.

Dangerous Threads

Virginia is at it again. The title of Virginia's new book is DANGEROUS THREADS and it has lots of action, twists and adventure as usual. She and her husband Andy along with her friend Donna are in search of the 1933 Sears quilt contest winning quilt that was displayed at the Chicago Worlds Fair. It was later given to Mrs. Roosevelt and then it disappeared. That part is true, but in the story, it contains something of great value to the government and others who will stop at nothing to get their hands on it, including murder.
I finished the book and it is at the publisher for release in the fall of 2012. .

TSA

Traveling these days, especially by air can be trying. The airlines can be a royal pain but the real trouble can be the TAS guards. Notice I called them guards and not officers. They are NOT police officers! 

TSA personnel at airports and other places are like Mall security guards. They have as much arrest authority as Joe Public. They are government rent-a-cops.

TSA arrest authority derives from 49 USC 44903(d)(2):

[The] Secretary of Transportation may authorize an individual who carries out air transportation security duties– (2) to make arrests without warrant for an offense against the United States committed in the presence of the individual or for a felony under the laws of the United States, if the individual reasonably believes the individual to be arrested has committed or is committing a felony.

John Q Public can do this too, and John Q Public can also do it for state crimes where the TSA guard can not. 

With respect to searches and denial of transportation, Federal law at 49 USC 44902(a) allows an airline to refuse to transport:

(1) a passenger who does not consent to a search under section 44901(a) of this title establishing whether the passenger is carrying unlawfully a dangerous weapon, explosive, or other destructive substance; or (2) property of a passenger who does not consent to a search of the property establishing whether the property unlawfully contains a dangerous weapon, explosive, or other destructive substance.

In addition, 49 USC 44902(b) authorizes the denial of transportation to anyone or anything “inimical to safety”.

Nothing in either of these sections purports to grant any authority for search, to require consent for search, or to authorize denial of transportation, except on the basis of safety.  

To date, courts reviewing TSA actions have assumed that TSA searches were limited to searches for weapons, explosives, or other threats to aviation security.  Most recently, for example, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2007, en banc, that “the scope of such searches is not limitless. A particular airport security screening search is constitutionally reasonable provided that it ‘is no more extensive nor intensive than necessary, in the light of current technology, to detect the presence of weapons or explosives [ ] [and] that it is confined in good faith to that purpose.’” (USA v. Aukai, quoting US v. Davis, 9th Cir. 19


You do not have to comply with any TSA guards orders except as noted. 
They can also legally look at a government issued photo ID and your boarding pass to verify you are authorized to enter the secured area and that you are actually the person with the boarding pass. If you are not, they can prevent you from entering the secured area or getting on an airplane. That is reasonable.


Beyond that, they are limited to what they can do. The TSA thinks they can by executive order they can do more, but all they can LEGALLY do, if you have weapons, explosives, or other threats to aviation security is call the police and stop you from getting on an airplane. 

Promoting Yorself at a Writing Conference

Promoting Yorself at a Writing Conference

Attending a conference is fun, but it's also expensive. There are travel costs, registration fees, food, lodging and time away from writing. So...the question is, "How do I maximize my presence? How do I promote myself and my book?"
Even if your book won't debut until a few months, there are things you can do. Still, it seems silly to "waste" this opportunity even though you don't have a book in hand. After all, you know that you make a note of books you want to read and you might not buy them for months! Surely other people have the same habits. And, remember, in advertising that it takes many exposures for people to form an impression. But those exposures can't be spaced too far apart. Waiting until your book hits the shelves means all those exposures would come AFTER the book is out. And those 6 weeks afterwards are critical because that's when sell-through happens. It makes sense to start now...if you can do it economically.

Here are all the promotional activities you can undertake for our visit to a book writing convention. You won't be able to tell right away which of these have been valuable.

1. Interviews-- Offered to interview the headliners for the conference. This will give you the chance to ask questions of the best and brightest. Plus, the interviews were shared in the newsletter, and you can now post them in the resource section of your website. The aim: To be on the radar screen of some of the nation's best authors. You never know whom you'll click with. Or who will bring you the next big opportunity.

2. Business cards-- I was once told to wait, but that's silly. How do you follow up a meeting without information? Have the cards printed with your book cover on the front. The ISBN is on everything. "It's like the Social Security number for your book." Should you get a tattoo? Nah.

3. Proposal for a presentation--Any unique ability in your background works for being a speaker. So, offer to do a presentation on speaking before groups. If you give a talk, chances are you will sell some books!


4. Appearances—Try to be fortunate enough to be assigned as moderator on one panel and participant on another. You have to ask early, so register early and make a pest of yourself! If you give a talk or make appearances, chances are you will sell some books!

5. Panel descriptions--How do people choose which panel to attend? Try to write your descriptions in such a way that they were full of promise...promise that you know you could deliver. You want to brand myself as offering tremendous value while having fun. But remember, you MUST deliver on the promise!

6. Handouts--This is a key. But the handouts can NOT be self-serving. Of course, on all the handouts, you share your details.

7. Recipe Cards and Homemade Cookies, candy--Hokey, Sure. But every time I've seen them offered, people snatch them up. On the front is a recipe, on the back is info about your book and the book cover is in color on the cards.

8. Pre-Order Contest—See if your publisher will agree to take pre-sales. The publisher keeps a list of all the pre-ordered books. From those, I'll draw one purchaser's name to be included as a character in book #2.

9. Bookmarks--Pretty standard stuff, except that you can customizing each one with a scrap booking embellishment. People oooohhhhed and aaaaahhhed over them.

10. Prizes--As a motivational speaker, you’d be pleasantly surprised by how excited audiences got when they won something. So have customize bags of M & Ms made up. The colors are the same as your book cover.

11. A small booklet or other genre specific item to ID you--I've also noticed that folks seem really astonished that I actually have skeletons. It reinforces my niche and brands me as a mystery writer.

New items and comments

Hello out there,

First the news:
I had two operations within 6 weeks and almost died twice. Obviously news of my actual death was premature. I actually went on a cruise to Europe (Italy, Monaco and Greece). Doing well and in the process I lost 40 pounds. If anyone finds them--you can keep them.

My newest novel "The Trashy Gourmet" is scheduled for publication in June of 2012 and another book, a Virginia Davies novel, "Dangerous Threads" is coming out in the fall of 2012. This last one involves a quilt.

Now for the comments:
I know some of you may not agree with me and that's fine. That's what makes America great, we can all have and share our opinions freely.
My tirade today is about the governor of our state (TEXAS) and his bid to be the next President of the US. This guy (Mr. Perry) does NOT believe in global warming. I would agree with him if he said man was not the only contributor-that nature has a big part in it as well. BUT he said he doesn't buy global warming and that man has anything to do with it.
Next he asked for a got a law (overturned by a federal court) that made sonograms of fetuses be shown to women prior to an abortion. Whether you agree with abortion or not, this is cruel and just because he doesn't like it he has no right to hurt pregnant women.
Next he disagrees with science at the earth is over 4 billion years old. He's more inclined to believe untrained bible thumpers that it is only 4,000 to 6,000 years old.
He also disagrees with science about evolution and goes for the myth that the earth and man was made in 7 days.
This is a man who's running for President? He's sucking up to the Re[publican extreme right and evangelical christians and leaving the rest of the world out. He will NOT get my vote and I'll push for him NOT to get a lot of others. There are better candidates with business and government experience than him. A lot of Texans think he's operating on tortilla short of a taco. This is they guy who suggested Texas drop out of the Union, now he wants to be president?????

Operation and positive side of things

I went into the hospital the end of May for a routine laposcopic gall bladder removal. It was to be about an hour operation and out of the hospital the next day. Well things went really wrong. The surgeon had to call in another doctor and they opened me up. The operation took over 5 hours and part of the bladder was burned in place because of where it had nested. It was seriously infected and when it was ready to burst (soon according to the surgeon) it would have killed me. Left the hospital a week later with 3 tubes sticking out of me. Two weeks ago the doc removed two and today-after a couple x-rays, the last one comes out. It wasn't what I signed up for but it beats the alternative. The first weeks out of the hospital were trying and I slept a lot. On the positive side I think it was a success--I'm alive, no gall stones and I lost 35 pounds and have managed to keep the weight off so far. I feel great (except for this tube which is coming out today).

I do not recommend this weight loss program.

I'm getting back to writing and getting out more now.