by kurtdemanche | Feb 16, 2017 | Uncategorized
Whenever I’m asked to sign a book I struggle to find the words I want to say. A funny thing for an author to struggle with… As an author I know words have meaning, and I don’t want to throw something casually out there and either miss the opportunity to inspire, or to fail to communicate clearly. I think I have finally come up with the perfect catch phrase so to speak for me.
Whoever you are, whatever you do, and wherever you go… go boldly.
To me that captures the core. We are from all walks of life, circumstances, races, and genders, and the list goes on of the things that make each person’s journey unique. On top of that what we do with our lives impacts us just as much as who we are. Add your geography on top of that and all I may share with you is that we both connect over the written word and the meaning it coveys. We all want to escape into the pages and characters of a book.
On top of that one of my favorite literary tools is the Ellipsis, more commonly know as…
It can convey a missing word, hidden meaning, inflection, an unspoken, or my favorite a continued thought that isn’t vocalized. To me it fits perfectly because “wherever you go…” leaves a tremendous amount of room for all of those things. There is room there to go no where. Maybe reading is how to you ‘go’. To me the ellipsis is an invitation to open the imagination and go. Just as I settled on titling my book For Liberty… with an ellipsis on the end I will shorten my phrase using one in reverse. It’s a way for me to say I appreciate what came before, and I understand it’s your story, but my wish for you is to.
…go boldly.
-kurt
by kurtdemanche | Feb 14, 2017 | Uncategorized
In the grand plan of writing I like to physically scout the places I write about. I try to draw from life experience and use the actually sight/smells/feel to make it crystal clear for the reader. Life, budget, and work make it impossible to always visit the places I write about though. So sometimes I have to draw purely from research and then try to create a realistic experience from pictures, accounts, maps, and other peoples’ words.
In my latest round of editing I am getting the chance to rewrite portions of a book that were drawn purely from research. Now I have the life experience to actually put myself there as I go through the scenes and get the details right. ultimately I know only a few readers will ever appreciate the little things, but for those few that have been there they will know what it’s really like and connect. To me that makes the experience well worth the extra effort to get it right.
-kurt
by kurtdemanche | Feb 5, 2017 | Uncategorized
When I’m nearing the end of a project I get an anxious feeling that is hard to explain. I want to finish the last few chapters, but at the same time I don’t. I’m suddenly afraid that the ending isn’t as good as I planned, or that I should do something different. I worry that it won’t be as exciting as the rest of the story, and this drags on while I procrastinate and don’t finish.
For me it usually takes me getting excited about the next project to make me buckle down and finish my endings.
-kurt
by kurtdemanche | Feb 2, 2017 | Uncategorized
I’m excited to be in the last stages of rough drafting Hakomi. This is a special project for me because it’s the first Finding Yourself story I have ever done. The main character goes through a lot over the course of this book, and through it all he keeps his optimism, and hit sense of humor.
Writing the main character, Jace, was like getting to know a good friend. Each little imperfection, flaw, or self realization the character experienced I got to as well.
This book is also special because I have always been very comfortable writing action, and quick moving plots. Hakomi is again very different. I wouldn’t say it’s a slow story by any means, but it isn’t a action packed adventure by a conventional definition. it is a story about humans, deeply flawed, and trying hard to find themselves and the meaning behind their lives. I think it’s there that a real lasting connection with the character is made, and all the action and plot serve to shine a light on that human condition.
Next step is sending my 1st draft to my beta readers. Hoping they enjoy Jace and his adventure as much as I do.
-kurt
