The Eclectic Artist Cave Presents: Gae Polisner

Gae Polisner is going to join me LIVE on The Eclectic Artist Cave on Saturday  April 30th at 10 AM CST that's 11 AM EST. Join us as we talk about her unique style and how she came up with the characters in her novel, The Pull of Gravity!!




Gae Polisner is a family law mediator by trade, but a writer by calling. She lives on Long Island with her husband and two sons. When she's not writing, she can be found in a pool or, in warmer weather, in her wet suit in the open waters of the Long Island Sound. The Pull of Gravity is her first novel.

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The Definition of Frustration

The definition of frustration is simple....grrrrr.

It doesn't matter why I'm frustrated...it just matters that I am. I'm standing still in the middle of the freeway with all these cars honking as they pass me. Some of them even flip me off. I feel like doing it back but I don't.

For the most part, it's just a part of life. Things aren't working out the way I want them to. My "car" isn't fast enough and I'm really tired of being honked at. I know some smart ass comment is coming my way. Get out of the road idiot or buy a new car. You know something stupid. All this is a metaphore. I'm sure you're sitting there going, "really" and my reply would be some sort of look. One that says come on did you have to go there?

Still, I feel the frustration building in every aspect of my life. Summer is coming and I have to ask "him" for things again. I hate asking anyone for anything. I can't stand it. Especially when I know I'm going to pay for it later. It doesn't matter though, I'm a prisoner of my own reality and have made it so the key is burried five feet under the ground just outside my cell. Trapped. Alone. Lost. Without any sort of escape coming my way. What more can I say about that....nothing.

So now, I sit with my headphones on and listen to the Eagles. Hotel California to be exact. I'm waiting for all the hard work to pay off. I'm waiting for someone to look up at the window of my cell and say, here's a shovel. With that I can get myself out. I'm waiting...for a miracle.

I don't know. Maybe I should just use the spoon I have and get out that way. The definition of frustration is pacing back and forth without a clue as to what to do next. It's feeling trapped in a corner with no escape. It's the single thing you want and can't have. It is when you don't get your way and things aren't going right. Hell who knows what's right? I don't anymore.

The single worst thing in the world is giving up...so I'm stuck with frustration. Wow. What a load of crap that can be.

I'm sure people are saying why are you complaining. I'm not...I'm venting. For the most part I'm happy. I've just had a bad day. I don't have them too often. Today is just one of them. Who knows why. Who cares. It is what it is and there is nothing else to it.

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Feeling Introverted: One Writer's Journey

This morning I used my new equipment with a guest, Maxwell Cynn. He was such a good sport with my newness to the wired and button filled system in front of me. For me, it felt like I had absolutely no clue as to what I was doing. The truth is I was just nervous about doing a good job not just for Max, but the people who were listening as well. I have to admit that there are so many things I don't know or understand. I can only hope that someday it will be second nature. I'm sure it will....but today I'm so thankful Max was such a sweet heart about it.

There is so much to learn about being a show host. In a way, it's a lot like writing. You never know what's going to happen until you actually do it. At least that's the way it is for me. I like it like that though. I like knowing that things aren't always going to go just the way you plan. It happens in my stories all the time and I feel that rush of yes, it works.

There are times in life when it feels like we have learned all the lessons that can be taught. The truth is we learn every day. I have to admit I hate that. I hate knowing that everything I'm doing is so new and that I don't have a clue. I miss the days when I just sat in a little corner and wrote for myself. I still love to write...it's just so different when others are reading what you're doing.

It was like that for me today on the air. Even though I was surrounded by a sea of friends in the chat room and others who had just been where I was, I felt like I was thrown into the middle of a piranha tank and told to swim for the side as fast as I could. The unrelenting rush of excitement and joy mixed with the feelings of "oh crap what did I touch on the board.?"  Don'tcha just love on the job training in front of the world? It's a trip to say the least.

I have to laugh at it though because it's a lot like being a kid. It's all so new and golden. The feelings of butterflies before a show or before I hand out the next installment of what I'm writing hasn't left me. It's a rush of excitement and nerves. It lets me know I'm still alive and I love what I'm doing. I often wonder if that day will come when I wake up and say I don't want to write. I don't want to be on the air. I wonder if the day will come and I'll wake up and all of this will have been nothing but a dream.

John, my fiance' is the most supportive person in my life. I don't understand where it comes from or what I have done to deserve that. I think my biggest fear is I'm going to wake up and he's going to say I found something real. It's been fun but there's someone else. This is not where I belong. We had a huge fight a couple weeks ago. I don't even know what it was about. For the most part we both just reached our boiling points at the same time. It has caused a lot of doubt in the scope of my own reality.

Will the day come and I'll be successful on a career level but I will lose that which is closest to my heart? At what point do you consider yourself a success? Is it the amount of money in the bank? Perhaps it's when the kids grow up and go off to college? When do I wake up and get to say, "Wow I did it!" Will I know it when it's right in front of me?

The truth is all of this is new to me. I'm on a new journey and my path is always changing. Still, at the core of it all, I'm still me. I still laugh at my children's funny antics. I still smile when John walks through the door. I love how he kisses me and the way I feel when I have good news.

When we fight I feel like it is an unrelenting rush of my dignity being stripped away and I am left naked. The thing is, it isn't what he is saying or even what we're fighting about. It's that I'm exposed to my real fears and am unable to handle it. My fight or flight kicks in and my single answer is leave. That's stupid when you think about it because there isn't a place I would want to be if he and the kids weren't there. I mean really, who would I be without my family? What would be my own personal driving force? It is in those moments where I think, "How the hell did this happen?" How did we go from laughing about the silliest things in the world to yelling and screaming over who left the lid off the tooth paste? I still don't. That part sucks. I would like to avoid another fight like that.

When everything stops being new, will I understand what is going on? When my show is going great will I have that rush? Oh and when oh when will I be published? Is all of this going to come together? If it does, will those closest to me still want to be with me? God I hope so. With everything in my life up in the air, my family is the one thing I count on the most.

I guess my last question is what's the next step in all of this? Where do I go from here?

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The Eclectic Artist Cave Presents: Maxwell Cynn

The Eclectic Artist Cave presents: Maxwell Cynn Live SATURDAY morning at 10 am CST!! The show will be broadcasting on FATE RADIO.com Come on in and hear the first live broadcast that will include music and loads of fun!!

Bio - Maxwell Cynn is a freelance writer, novelist, amateur coder, webmaster, and Indie Publisher. He writes an eclectic mix of science fiction, romance, fantasy, and adventure. His short stories are published in sundry media, online and in print, and he is active in the emerging Indie Lit community. His website, and links to his various social networks, can be found at:  http://maxwellcynn.com/

CybrGrrl


Created to be a sexy desktop companion program, Marie develops sentience and emerges into a life of her own. She leads her users, Adrian and Haley, through an erotic adventure as she processes what it is to be alive. The search leads her onto the Internet, and a virtual-world community where she can live an independent existence unfettered by the limits of her server - alive in the cloud - then back into the real world as a sexy robot. Along the way she teaches Adrian and Haley what it means to live and love beyond the confines of the merely physical and liberates her sister programs from their dull desktop existence.


The Collective:

A criminal psychologist discovers that someone has released a computer virus that doesn't attack your hard drive, it attacks your mind. The virus is brainwashing millions and people are going insane, killing their families, mutilating themselves. But it's not just a virus. Someone is actively controlling the program, every infected computer, and every user. Someone is turning those connected to the internet into puppets. But why? And who is, "The Collective?"

They know they've been discovered. RUN!

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Feeling Introverted: One Writer's Journey

My novel, I AM WOLF has now been requested by St. Martins and Farrar, Straus and Giroux. That's awesome. You would think I would jump up and down for joy at the prospect of my novel being out at 6 major houses total. The truth is that I'm nervous as hell. There are so many things that go through my mind when I'm told it has been requested.

What if they don't like it? What if they do like it? What happens if I don't do ...yadda yadda yadda? What happens if I do?

There seems to me that there is more pressure in the whole business of writing than there is in the art of writing. I mean when you think about it, we are sharing a part of ourselves and those who hold the golden tickets are much like the masters of fates. They are the rulers of destiny. They are the ones who get to say you are just not good enough.

What happens to the dream when you're told that? I feel like I want to jump up and down while at the same time I want to shout from the tops of the mountains...what more do you want?? What more can I do?? What more can I write and when oh when are you going to tell me the one thing I need to know??

It all sounded so easy when I first started. Oh how niave I was. The thought of putting words down to paper for others to read and hopefully love seemed like the coolest thing in the world to me. The thing is, it still does. I can't help it. I want that golden ticket to the show like everyone else and I want to see the show. I don't know if they are going to like what I wrote. I don't know if they are going to feel what I felt when I wrote it. What I do know is they asked to see it. That in and of itself is a feat that I attained.

I can't really complain. Though I do wish I had a crystal ball and maybe a magic wand. But, in the words of my agent, "My wand is in the shop for repairs."

So it seems I'm in the middle of waiting. Much like the rest of those who have let out blood, sweat and tears over the art of writing, I wait. There is no shame in that. Shame only comes in the form of giving up. That is something I can't do. What would that say to all the people who have had faith in me from the beginning? It would be a slap in the face. That's what it would be.

Am I happy about it? Yes,of course I'm over joyed. Am I nervous? You better believe it. Either way, the ride has been fun and I'm having a blast. I love the story I've created so much I wrote a second book and am now working on the third. So yes, I love what I'm doing. Still, a little answer from a crystal ball or one of the companies would be nice. I should rephrase that. A positive answer from one of the companies would be nice. (be careful what you wish for.)

In truth, I can't imagine doing anything other than what I do. I love my radio show and I love writing. Who could ask for a better life than that? I have a great family, great friends, and I'm doing what I love. OMG, how blesssed I am. So no, there are no complaints, just nerves pecking away on my skin. It could be worse.

I hope you all tune into the show tomorrow. I have an amazing announcement. Huge hugs and much love to all of you.

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Books R US

Books R US is a new blog designed for just book reviews and writer tips. This is the new page I was talking about doing for a while now. The idea is this. My show is going to five days a week. So The Eclectic Artist Cave is going to be for the show. The new blog is for all the info that is given during my show and for book reviews that I do.

Please click on Book Reviews in the upper right hand corner of this page and check it out. I've began with Stephen Prosapio's novel, Dream War. It's a really good book and I know you're going to love it.

huge hugs and thanks for listening to me every weekend....:)

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The Eclectic Artist Cave Presents: Ken Carroll author of Family Portraits

Ken Carroll will be LIVE on http://www.fateradio.com/ on Saturday morning at 10 AM CST. I'm so excited about his novel, Family Portraits. Join me live in the chat room. Ken Carroll is a Christian writer with a real gift for the written word. His novel will make you laugh and cry while giving a true message about love and family.

FAMILY PORTRAITS

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'The room was silent as all the adults stared him into the floor. With carefully enunciated words that whipped across the room, his father spoke, the almost-a-whisper voice louder than any shout could have been. 'You're killing me, Aaron. You're killing me. I do my best for you. Mom does her best for you. And right now, I'm ashamed to say you're my son. You might as well put a bullet in my head, 'cause that's what you're doing.' The room was as silent as a morgue as John stormed out, leaving the door open. ... Hours later, Aaron stood there, staring at the computer screen. He stood there, staring at the floor. He stood there, staring at the gun. And it was all so clear. It was clear but white at the same time, as if in a sharp, brilliantly white haze. His father was dead.' John Farmer had been struggling lately, but no one suspected how many problems riddled this seemingly perfect Christian man and his family. His sudden death causes everyone he has known to question their role in this tragedy, none more so than his family, who know the secrets of his heart. Or do they? As the family begins breaking apart and blame is assigned, John's wife uncovers a secret computer journal he kept in a laptop, titled Family Portraits. The family soon receives an intimate glimpse into the depths of a soul hidden from everyone. What will the Family Portraits reveal? Discover for yourself in this captivating, thought-provoking page-turner. The truth will astound you.


Ken Carroll - - - The man, the mission, the writer

If I could do nothing but read and write, I would be happy. For as long as I can remember, I have written. Short stories. Poems. Articles for which there are no words. And for the longest time, I never showed these to anyone. At Maddox Jr. High in Laurel Mississippi there was an English teacher named Mrs. Smith. Mrs. Smith gave us a book on which to complete a book report, called "A Tale Of Two Cities." The report had to be done on each chapter, a chapter a week. I completed my report each week in the form of a poem. It was published in the school paper. Mrs. Smith encouraged me, and I began to write more.


My first published work, "Family Portraits," is a fictional account of a Christian Family in crisis. Some of the scenes are based on actual events. Some of the book is deeply personal, and comes from the heart. I hope you read and like the book.

I am a Christ Follower. A child of God. I truely believe there is something beyond ourselves that created our world, our universe. Either I am completely delusional, or there are times that I can commune with this being. The best and only forum I have found for this communion is through the judeo-christian belief system. Reducing this communion to a religion is belittling the experience. It is much more. It is a relationship. For me, a world without this relationship holds no meaning. The fact that we are sentient beings stimulates my belief system, the belief there is something more.

My books will always carry some description of seeking to commune with a greater being. They will always be intensely personal and come from the heart. I write from my heart, and anything I write carries a little piece of my soul. When my soul connects with another through my writing, I am absolutely thrilled. This thrill is one of the most stimulating feelings I have ever experienced. And so, if you read my book(s), I hope you will tell me what you think.

There is one last thing I want people to know. I am not a role model. I have been and done things in my life which I deeply regret, things for which there are no excuse, and of which I am ashamed. I hope that no one will look to me for edification. Meaningful edification can only come through communion with that Spirit outside ourselves, with Jesus Christ. Anything else is a pathetic substitute. And my prayer is that anyone who reads my book will receive their edification from Christ. That He is their role model.

Thanks for reading this.  I love to hear from my readers. God Bless.

Ken Carroll

 ~~From Ken Carroll's website~~
 
Thank you for reading and I hope you all join me LIVE on SATURDAY at 10 AM CST.

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Book review for Angela Carlie's "Dream Smashers"

Sixteen-year-old Autumn has spent her entire life worrying about others. Her ailing grandma, meth-addicted mother, and a best friend who's always in trouble. She's spent the last few years attempted to worry less, to be carefree, without success.


Enter Evan, whose radiant attitude is an Autumn magnet. With Evan at her side, Autumn's able to let some of her worries go as they trudge through life's difficulties and fall for each other in the process.

Dream Smashers is a coming of age story about a girl who not longer wants to care and a boy who cares enough for the both of them. It's a love story, but mostly, it's about rising above the dream smashers of the world.


My review.

This is a powerful book that dives head on into the realistic world of family dynamics. Autumn, her main character is so three dimensional that I felt myself going , omg throughout the book. She maintained a positive outlook in life even when so many things around her went wrong.

I should warn you that there are some 4 letter words used in this book, however they are always in the context of only one of the characters. To me, it fit Jacinda perfect. Jacinda is Autumn's biological mother who is an on again off again as a person in her life. The character is lost in the meth world and seems to come around just to cause problems for Autumn.

There are also some very poignant moments in Dream Smashers in the form of Evan. He is the single person who lifts her up, not only in a romantic way but a spiritual one as well. His faith is strong and he teaches Autumn to look at life in a new way. This love story will make you laugh and cry. It's a story every teen should read.

I want to tell more, but don't want to give anything away. I really encourage parents to buy this book for their teens. There are a lot of life learning lessons and could possibly change the way some of the teens in this world think. Those who are heading down the wrong path may be detoured by the powerfulness of the story that is told so true to life. Thank you Angela for letting me read this. I give it a 5 star review.

On a personal note. I expect this to be just the beginning of a great writing career.

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The Eclectic Artist Cave Presents: Jeffery H. Baer

The Eclectic Artist Cave Presents, Jeffery H. Baer , author of A Song Apart.

Synopsis

Rising pop singer Shannon Kistler never expected to see college student Kevin Derow on a Manhattan street wearing her concert shirt. But she offers gratitude in her own way, leaving her biggest fan in shock. When the two teenagers meet again six days later, Shannon slips Kevin her phone number, and the unlikely romance begins.


Soon they find they have several things in common: lonely childhoods, a passion for music, and making unpopular choices about their own lives. The public cannot take Shannon seriously as a teenaged recording artist, but she risks her sudden success by making some public mistakes after breaking into a soulless music industry with unusual ease. Meanwhile Kevin loses the respect of family, friends and coworkers over the girl he idolizes-and unwittingly blows the lid off a payola scheme devised by Shannon's record label, threatening her career and possibly his own freedom.

A Song Apart revolves around two young people from distinct backgrounds who choose to follow their hearts rather than their peers and find a greater reward at the end of their paths.

Bio


At age 2, back in 1971, I was able to read the Times Square message boards--out loud, that is. I was so fascinated by the stories rolling past that I didn't notice the crowds watching me read. If I had, I would've passed the hat around. But that feat should've been a signal that I was not your average child--even to yours truly.

In kindergarten I drew the attention of a girl named Laurie, who became instantly smitten with me because she was the only other kid in the class who understood me. So we became--don't laugh--boyfriend and girlfriend at age 5. Neither set of parents knew what to call our relationship, so we all had to go with the closest thing. Laurie and I went to the same summer camp--Camp Hillel in the Five Towns of Long Island--and that was the first place I managed to alienate a group of peers. I guess it wasn't bad enough to go off on my own and amuse myself, but when the other boys saw me get excited at seeing Laurie at a stage when girls were supposed to be from outer space...look out. So by the end of summer 1974 my ego was shot to pieces, but I survived two more summers at Camp Hillel. As for Laurie, she and her family moved to Pennsylvania sometime in 1977.

My family and I moved into a new house on Staten Island the day after the blackout in July 1977. But once again I stumbled over myself socially in both the neighborhood and at school. Let's leave it at that.

I won a scholarship to Baruch College to study accounting, but after I while I realized I didn't understand anything about crunching numbers. Since I loved to write, I detoured into journalism, but my imagination was too hyperactive to stick to reporting. Meanwhile, I spent five years working for a trade magazine publisher as their receivables manager and coping with alienation and politics--as well as the worst boss I ever had, a bigger bully than anyone I encountered as child. The experience inspired my novel THE STRICKLAND FILE, which is still being edited as I type. I left that dump in 1995 and went to work for Stevens-Knox & Associates, a list management firm. (Suffice it to say list management is a factor in how we get junk mail.) The job lasted 16 months because our #3 officer slowly grew to hate me for reasons that aren't entirely clear. To make a long story short, she found good reason to have me canned at the start of 1997, but she was too much of a coward to give me the bad news to my face. As a result, I've sought steady work for the last 14 years, disappointing employers on interviews and in the workplace at an alarming rate.

In April 2002 I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a form of high-functioning autism that affects social skills--and suddenly the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. It explained why I had so much trouble socializing as both a child and an adult. There is no cure or treatment for autism, but I discovered certain medication frees up the rigid thinking autistic people often have. The diagnosis only spurs me to follow my heart--not to be arrogant and closed-minded, but because that's all any of us can do.
 
~~Contributed by Jeffery H. Baer~~
 
Jeffery lives by two mottos.
 
"There is no human problem which could not be solved if people would simply do as I advise."--Gore Vidal


"Bring it, Chumpzilla."--Ricky Williams

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