A Timeless Battle

Hey y'all,
It's coming up on Halloween and I thought I would share a poem that Anna and I worked on a few months ago.  It seems fitting for this time of year and hopefully it will bring the chill bumps cheerfully raising on your skin.  Just remember that all myths have a grain of truth at their inception.  It really makes me wonder about the legends of vampires, werewolves and other creatures of the night.
I have recently been re-reading my collection of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter series and believe me it has given me a lot of pause for thought.  The woman is a master when it comes to mixing Greek Gods and vampires to make it all sound so  . . .  reasonably plausible?  Who knew?  If you haven't read anything by her this would be a great time to check it out.  I really enjoy her work and if you get a thrill out of Gothic vampires in modern day situations mixed with thousands of years of torturous memories that haunt her characters, and how they deal with the humans they inevitably come into contact with, you will love it

Now, here is the little ditty that I promised you:

The Timeless Battle

On wings of silence the wind swept, in evil defiance the mist crept as the new moon ruled the night

Lurking among shadows underneath heaven's gallows, the malevolent bastards started the fight

The gossamer veil grew too thin between spirits and ghosts and men as the battle for souls raged on

The Furies took their stand claiming souls of the recently damned as they greeted the blood red dawn

Magic dark and magic light ravaged each other through the night but only one will claim the power

It can be said the inception of this nightly obsession began at the dawn of the Golden Hour

Voices were raised in futility as darkness died in humility and they all screamed in pain

The dawn lay bleeding from the celestial feeding when the Gods were dark and insane

And the demons of fear demanded entry here as they beat bloodied fists upon the door

As the new moon set and the God's collected their debt, the evil ones retreated once more

To the depths of hell where Hades hailed, and the shades of Tartarus wailed in constant pain and woe

The evil ones will try to flee from there, the lost souls will do what they dare to end what they know

Forever in hunger and pain and thirst, to this existence they were cursed for the sins in their life

So know it now when offered this deal, some of the myths and legends are real, in your time there is goodness inside the strife.

Heed this warning for your immortal soul, evil has but only one goal: to return to life in the sun

As the world endlessly turns, their thirst for your blood burns if you fall the end has begun.

Oooo! give you the chills yet? Think about it on all hallows eve!

Have a great Halloween.

Kate





Tomorrow will be a better day!

Hello,
Now that summer is almost over and the heat and humidity have decreased, I have found myself looking back over the past year. The beginning of the new year was difficult with joint replacement surgery and the financial burden that placed on my already screaming wallet. But as I look back over the past nine months, and the years behind me as well, I realize that recovering from anything, be it surgery, loss through death of a loved one, divorce or financial problems, it is all in how you feel about yourself whether you come out of it with painful scars that cause perpetual remorse or lessons learned and move on with your life.
Many of you who know me know that I lost my husband to lung cancer nearly nine years ago; this was the most painful time of my life and I didn't think I would ever get over it.  With the memories that Don and I made to sustain me and the unconditional love he had shown me for the thirteen years we were together I made it through those years. This past weekend I found some pictures of some of those memories and it reminded me of where I had been and where I am now; the people that have passed through my life and those who still remain. I will always be grateful to everyone who has touched my life for I have gained something from each and every one of them; the good and the bad made me what I am today: a strong and independent woman of middle age perfectly capable of taking care of herself come what may.
In my youth I lacked self esteem and feared being rejected, feeling that I was unworthy of being loved and thinking that I had to do what ever I was told to make sure I was loved.  This drove me to marry the first man that said he loved me at the age of twenty.  What a disaster that was!  We were separated within a year and divorced by the second year.  As I mentioned earlier the good and the bad helped shape the person I am and how you feel about yourself will determine how you handle a given situation.  Over the years I have learned this one truth: "TOMORROW WILL BE A BETTER DAY SO DON'T LOSE HOPE!" If tomorrow isn't what you want it to be, then do something about it and the next day will be better.
There is no reason a person must settle for less than what they truly want.  Not even the lack of financial support should stop you.  If you need money and you can't find a job, use your own imagination to create your own income whether it is as simple as baby sitting your neighbors kids, taking in outside laundry or offering to cut your neighbor's grass on Saturday evenings or as complicated as starting your own home based business, there are ways to improve your situation.
If money isn't your problem and human companionship is what you crave, try keeping a smile on your face even when you don't feel as though you have anything to smile about.  A simple smile and a cheerful "Good Morning" will be more readily accepted and appreciated by friends and strangers alike than a constant frown and foul language. The old saw "Misery loves company" is so true, but the opposite side of that coin is "A smile is more contagious than the flu"

A friend once told me something that literally changed the way I felt about myself and I am going to share that bit of advice with you in hopes that it will help you feel better about yourself:
"People will treat you the way you teach them to treat you."
Huh! Imagine that! If you treat yourself badly others will pick up on that.  If you treat yourself with love and respect, they will pick up on that as well.

I hope my little ramble has helped you have a better day.
Lots of love
Kate

A taste of "Secrets"

I had a brainstorm this morning, or perhaps it was a brain fart but I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the results are from this "idea" that popped into my head.  I've been mulling it over all morning and I have come to the conclusion that I have to stop limiting myself and just put it out there for any and all to catch a glimpse of; to see if there might be a spark of interest that could be fanned into a hungry flame with the potential of a raging inferno.  I'm talking about posting a very small passage of my completed manuscript titled Secrets in Bethlehem on this blog. 
As this is my baby, and I its mother, I am very proud of my finished work. Seeing as how it is the first of my creative endeavors I realize that a published author with years of successes under their belt would beg to differ.  I am a novice; I admit it.  I have no resume to speak of and this is my first foray into this arena but I have been told that I am very tenacious.  I will accept any and all creative, and constructive suggestions from those who have been in the business and have learned what is needed to become a successful published author. I have taken fiction writing classes, creative writing workshops, correspondence writing courses and read insatiably.  I know that writing a best seller right out of the gate is not an every day occurrence and I have no delusions of this happening. I do, however, intend to see one of my fiction creations in print.
A word to those who suggest a "Vanity Press" or self publication: NOT IN THIS LIFETIME!!! My ego is healthy and I may be a little obsessive when it comes to my writing, but not to that point and my wallet doesn't allow for that type of self-indulgence.  I have more respect for my gift as a writer even if no one else does at this point.  Perhaps I am being naive about it  in this economy but there you are.
Anyway, here is a little snippet of one of the several high impact scenes:

                                                              Secrets in Bethlehem
                                                                      Written By:
                                                                     Kate Donns

. . . Travis broke through the closed door at the end of the hall like a human battering ram.  Leading with his shoulder the wooden door, weakened by age and neglect, splintered and gave under the brutal force. He stopped dead as though he had hit an invisible wall.  A tall, powerfully built man with a scar slashing his left cheek from eyebrow to chin stood behind Janey, one arm around her neck, holding her close to his chest the other holding a gun to her temple. An ugly purple bruise was starting to form on her cheekbone.  The sight of that evidence of abuse had Travis’s blood seething, hissing an oath between clinched teeth.

 Her head was tilted slightly to the side at an unnatural angle and Travis could hear the breath as it heaved out of her lungs fast and harsh.  In the dim light he could see the courage in Janey's eyes where he had thought he would see fear; not in his Janey, he decided and it filled him with wonder. It filled him with the need to put his hands around the throat of the man who held her and squeeze the life out of him for putting that gun to her head. For putting his hands on her.

            “Drop the guns on the floor and kick them to me.  All we want is the kid.”  Bogarde said.  “Give him to me and you can all go free.  No harm done.” Bogarde knew that Jasper had to be dead.  The two gunshots he’d heard and the two men standing in front of him were proof of that and realized his chances of getting out alive had drastically decreased.

            “Don't hurt her.”  Travis begged as he lowered and carefully set Jasper's gun on the floor in front of him. “Look.  I'm putting down the gun.  Now let her go.” Do what he says, Travis thought, and keep him distracted.  There had to be a way out of this; he couldn’t lose Janey. Not after all they had been through.

            “Just tell me where the kid is.”  Bogarde demanded as he pushed the gun hard against Janey's temple.  “All I want is the kid.” Sweat beaded across the man’s forehead, dripped down his face.  Travis could almost smell the fear emanating from the man holding Janey and that wasn’t good.  Desperate men tended to take desperate measures.

            The soft, sweet voice saying, “Travis?” came from behind him.  It broke through Travis's concentration.  He whirled around to see Jesse standing in the door way and sick dread lodged in Travis's throat, terror and fury such as he had never known before, gripped him stopping time, all but stopping his heart. . .

Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think.  I'll be looking for your comments and suggestions.
Thanks again,
Kathy

Thank You! In remembrance

Hey, y'all,
Just a quick update to let you know what is happening here in the great state of South Carolina; Greenville, to be specific.
The weather has cooled a great deal and is now very pleasant in the mid to high 70's and lower humidity with sunshine and an all in all perfect Sunday afternoon.
The memories of 9/11/2001 are all around us today and I have seen a lot of respectful salutes to those who have lost their lives in the war against terrorism.
For instance: I went to Waffle House for breakfast this morning and I was very pleased and comforted to see that the Waffle House employees had replaced their usual uniform of blue with the patriotic choice of red, white and blue as a salute to the hero's of this day in history. I, myself, donned a tee shirt with a flag emblazoned across the front, and flag earrings as well, to show my support also. We all remember that black day ten years ago and we all remember the horror as we watched the towers fall in a cloud of black smoke knowing that there were so many who did not make it out alive. The World Trade Center, The Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania are all sites to be remembered as well as the battle fields of the Middle East. The anger that fueled just about every American still has not calmed in many of us and even though Osama Bin Ladin is dead, his fanatical zealots still are reeking havoc all around the world.
It is a sad thing that in the twenty first century we still have this type of thing going on because we don't believe as others do and therefore should not be allowed to live in peace and worship our own God or follow our own beliefs. When does it end?
This is a day of remembrance and to say "Thank You" to not only our soldiers fighting now, but those who fought for our freedom since this country was founded.


Thank You!


P.S. Just a little personal footnote; I have started a new book,the first in a series to be exact, and I have decided to write under the pen name: Kate Donns. The new book is about a team of vampire slayers based in the historic city of Charleston S.C. I can't wait to get it finished. I am still working on getting the other one, "Secrets in Bethlehem" published so wish me luck on that front too.

Writer's workshop

Hey Ya'll,
I have to let you know what happened at the Writer's Workshop that Anna and I went to in Macon, Georgia last Saturday. I have to tell you I had the most fantastic time and in that one hour I learned so much. Sarah Domet led the workshop and I am sure by what I learned about her that she must be a wonderful and enlightening teacher. She made learning sound like a fascinating adventure into Alice's Wonderland.
The people that made up the group were fun and constructive with their own information and writing foibles and, I have to tell you, I have never in my life met a group of strangers that I had that instant connection with. I suppose it's because this was my first workshop of this nature and I have never been with more than one or two people that had the same creative interests that I have. I guess you could say we were all of a like mind even though our writing interests were varied from Romance to Mystery to Science Fiction and more but we all had one thing in common: we wanted, no, needed to write. It is a part of us that we have to give free reign or lose a part of ourselves.

I've always wanted to write. Even as a child I would write odd bits of poetry that, as I grew older, became songs and developed into short stories and themes. I wrote to please myself and for the joy of seeing something of myself on paper. When my husband died over eight years ago my muse took a sabbatical. About three or four years ago she returned with a vengeance. Several times since then she has tried to escape but I grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back; she is now bound to me with the unbreakable chains of creativity. Since that time I have completed two manuscripts and have the workings of at least six or seven more. However, I've never quite gotten the hang of the process of how to get the novel I am writing to flow as it should. Until Sarah Domet explained it to our group in simple terms that just finally settled in the corner of my brain and gave me that "ah ha!" moment. The one thing that always gave me the shudders . . . outlines! If you don't know what is happening how can you write about it? And character bios; if you don't know your character how can you tell others about them?

Needless to say, I bought her book 90 Days to Your Novel and I am studying it from cover to cover.

I have also started the character bios and an outline for a new novel that I am writing. I haven't gotten the other two published yet but I am still working on it. This new novel is a going to be better because I am going to follow the guidelines that have been working for years.

My advice to all of you is "Trust the process, it works for a reason".

Bye now and have a great day.
Kate Porter

It's a hot summer

Hi all,
yes it's definitely a hot one this summer. I have been trying to keep cool like everyone else but I draw the line at going to a public pool. Me in a bathing suit is not a pretty sight so I keep my cool by staying inside where it's air conditioned.

I have been doing a lot of work on my book, rewrites and revisions and I am almost finished with it. I am hoping to be finished by next weekend. I have rewritten my query letter, yes again, this makes something like . . . oh, maybe . . . thirty one thousand six hundred and twenty times, give or take. Okay, maybe not that many but it sure seems like it. I have very high hopes that I will be able to capture someones attention this time around.

I have found that writing the book is the easy part. It's the rewriting and revising that holds the key. The most difficult part is getting someone to read it that can put it in a publisher's hands. There is so much competition out there and the economy is in such bad shape that there really aren't a lot of people out there that would be willing to back someone that has never been published before so they tend to be very critical. I haven't lost hope though. The best way to success is to keep at it and don't give up.

Now, with that little tidbit of advice I think I will get back to my book. Right now it is over 125,000 words and 401 pages long. I am now on page 332 of my revision work. I can't wait to get if finished but I refuse to rush through it. Take my time and get it right.

I have already made notes on three other books that I intend to write but I needed to finish this one first. I know me, if I don't discipline myself I will jump from one to the other and never finish any of them. That was the trap that I had fallen into for so many years and that is why it has taken me until I hit my fifties before I finally finished a whole book.

Now I know better.

Take a lesson from someone that learned the hard way, go ahead and make your notes, but finish what you started before starting the next one.

Later to all of you,

Kathy

Happy 4th of July!

It's the 4th of July again and boy is it hot here! by ten o'clock this morning it was already 90 degrees. This is the kind of day that you really wish you could be in the pool most of the day. But when you have a phobia of being seen in public in a bathing suit, well, you tend to shy away from things like that. I'll just stay here in the air conditioning and work on my book.

In my last blog I posted the poem entitled "The Cost of a Hero". It is so important today, as always, to remember those who risk their lives to keep us safe. Not only the men and women in the military but also those who are on the front lines here at home: police officers,fire fighters and any other "First Responders". Like on 9/11 so many people died that day doing what they were trained to do, saving lives and helping those in trouble. Although we have seen in the news that the wars in the middle east are supposedly winding down and some of our military will be leaving the battle fields, we are still indebted to them for doing what they do and the sacrifices they have made to keep us safe. I hope you will all join me in thanking them this weekend for all that our "HEROES" have done for us.

Now I will come down off my soap box.

Here at home I have been adapting to no longer owning a television. Yep, that's right, I no longer own a television. The one that I had went out on me last weekend, not that I watched it that much anyway, and since I didn't have a TV to watch I had my cable disconnected also. That should save me about sixty dollars a month and every little bit helps this day and age. I love to read anyway and this gives me more incentive to do just that. I will read and reread my favorite books until the spine breaks and if I really like the book, I will go and buy another copy and read it again. This will also give me the chance to read some of the classics that I haven't read in too many years to count. I have found that I like reading more than watching television anyway because it makes me think more and after I have finished my book I imagine what might be happening after that last line has ended. Did the hero and his lady love live a life filled with love and adventure? Did they settle down into the mediocrity of normal life? Did they get married and have kids? You see, the adventure never ends even though the book does and that is what makes me want to be a writer. You just don't have that same tingle when you finish watching a television "reality show" that seems to make up most of the stations lineup these days.

In short; read a book and let your imagination soar!