Memorial Day 2009

Pale Writer

Last night, in a vain attempt to distract myself from thinking about ABNA, I watched Clint Eastwood's "Pale Rider" on TMC. It was made in the 80s, but I'd never seen it. Yet as I watched, I got the feeling that maybe I had seen it and had forgotten. I started paying close attention to the story's arc -- which wasn't easy, since the movie was interrupted every 90 seconds or so by four or five minutes of commercials.

Anyway, the arc as I see it:

Mysterious stranger rides in. Bullies in town causing trouble. Sexual tension between stranger and good man's wife/intended. Offspring of good man's wife/intended infatuated with stranger, threatening relationship with parent. Violent incident forces mysterious stranger to dust off his six-shooter. Blows away the bad guys. Rides off, with good man's wife/intended's offspring calling after him.

After the final commercial... I mean, credits... rolled, I realized that I had seen the movie before. But it was called "Shane." It starred Alan Ladd. And it was made in 1953.

I'm not criticizing Clint Eastwood. (Hey, I've seen Dirty Harry.. I'm not stupid.) I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. My point is that the movie reinforced for me the challenge of putting new twists into a plot.

Case in point: I groaned out loud when I saw another Eastwood film, Gran Torino. The hero is a Korean war veteran who forms a friendship with a teenager. The hero of my novel, Bill Warrington's Last Chance, which by the way I finished writing well before Gran Torino hit the theaters, is a Korean war veteran who bonds with his teen-aged granddaughter.

We are all pale writers. (No, I could not resist that pun. Sorry.) Our blank pages come alive on the shoulders of myth and archetypes. Our challenge as writers is give them creative twists, to make the old stories new. So that when readers finish our books, we can hear them calling out, "Shane! Come back, Shane!"

Countdown to the Final: Worried? Who's Worried?

The voting period for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel is now closed. We now enter the waiting period. Final results will be announced on Wednesday, May 27 in New York City.

Some people have asked if I'm nervous or worried about the outcome.

Uh... hell yeah!

In fact, I recently read the excerpt from one of the other finalists: "In Malice, Quite Close," by Brandi Lynn Ryder. In Tristan Mourault, Brandi has created one of the most creepily compelling characters I've read in a long time. And while I have not yet finished the other excerpt, Ian Gibson's "Stuff of Legends," I have no doubt that he has justifiably garnered a lot of votes.

In any event, now that the voting is over, it's out of my hands. No matter what happens, this has truly been one of the most rewarding experiences ever. I have received an incredible amount of support from family and friends, for which I will always be grateful.

Now the trick will be to keep my mind off the contest for the next five days.

Yeah, right.

Countdown to the Final: Last Day to Vote

Thank goodness today is the last day to vote for the ABNA.

If the voting period were any longer, I might be attending the awards ceremony on a shipping dolly, wearing Thomas Harris.

Soon, the real waiting will begin as the votes are tallied...

Countdown to the ABNA Final: Three Voting Days Left

The ABNA contest has been a blessing in so many different ways.

One experience that's been especially wonderful is the incredible support I've received from family and friends. Writing can be a lonely profession. I am in awe at how so many people -- some of whom I haven't seen or spoken with in decades -- have expressed genuine happiness for me and have demonstrated such a willingness to spread the word. Thank you all!

BUT... there are still three days left. Please continue to tell your family, friends, and colleagues to vote.