Blog Tour, Guest Post - Family Rules: We Are All Stories ...

I'm very pleased to get this chance to share some time with you, and my 2011 novel, Family Rules.

In Family Rules, Kenny Walsh, a former child star turned drug addict turned car thief, decides to play Dad to a child he accidentally abducts.

First up, I should really make very, very clear that Family Rules isn't my story. I've been fascinated by the response of readers, who often ask me whether it's about me. It's not, definitely not; it's a fictional memoir.

I think this comes from the main character, Kenny, who is pretty compelling. I'd be lying if I said I knew who he was when I started the novel. As with all my books, I started with a somewhat stereotypical character going in; I was planning to answer the central idea/question, "what would happen if a really bad man became an accidental father?" I won't describe what I had in mind for Kenny originally, because it's largely nowhere in the book - only his drug addiction remains, and even that is downplayed from what I first imagined, a passing phase of his avoiding reality.

I began the writing, placing this character in New York and fighting his habits. Then, as I was writing, the idea/question changed from 'bad man' to 'a man whose own family was as broken as possible.' Good fortune stepped in and, around this time, I caught a documentary on VH-1 about child stars, and was shocked by how so many of them ended up in addiction and the downward spiral towards suicide. To go from such adulation to desperation in the length of a very short life struck me as being so sad, and such a waste of human life. I knew immediately the basis for Kenny - the first introduction of the theme is in Chapter 6: 'Believer,' which was written the weekend I saw that documentary.

As I wrote Kenny, he grew more and more real to me - and, in fact, when I talk about him now, it does sound like I've met him and know him. He feels like a real person to me. In the year since I published the novel, I've adapted it to screenplay with my screen-writing partners, James Patric Moran and Timothy Quinlan, and their reaction was the same: Kenny feels like a real person. I think this is why people ask me if it's a true story, and I'm humbled and proud to have been able to write such a compelling character.

Our screenplay for Inventing Kenny is beginning to gain some interest with production companies in Hollywood

[actually, it's hard to type this with so many fingers crossed!]

And the reaction has been fascinating to me - this is a story that touches into some dark corners of family and relationships, with a protagonist who we may even dislike initially, yet whom we come to care for over the course of his story. Several producers even asked me whether it's a dark comedy. It isn't. It's a drama, and it will make a great independent film.

This feedback and reflection has been really, really useful, as constructive feedback always is, and reinforces my decision to self-publish Family Rules. I thought about shopping the book to agents and publishers but feared that I'd get the same reaction: it doesn't fit the formula, there's no market, it's not commercial enough, etc. What I'm finding in pitching the story to Hollywood, and in hearing from readers, is that there is a market but it's best built one-reader-at-a-time. I'm more than happy to do this and love connecting with my readers at VinceT.net - my only request is that they tell me what they think of my writing and tell someone else about it.

It's been a pleasure to share some of the background of Family Rules, especially as so much of the year since it came out has been spent writing and publishing Escalation, a novel that took me by surprise in April and demanded to be written immediately! I hope some of you will be interested to read more of Kenny's story and, if you do, please tell me what you think, and tell someone else about it!

Thanks for reading, you have my love.

Vince


*Guest post was submitted in participation with Vincent Tuckwood's Family Rules book blog tour, hosted by Pump Up Your Book*

Charlene Reviews - Blue Fall, The Tournament: Volume One by B. B. Griffith

ISBN #: 978-0982481745

Page Count: 514

Copyright: September 1, 2011

Publisher: Griffith Publishing

Description:

"There was a time ... long ago, when whole nations, entire races of people, pinned their hopes and futures on individual warriors. Whole wars were won and lost on the outcome of a single battle between heroes. Entire countries were moved. Empires rose and fell ..."

In Blue Fall, that time has come again. A routine investigation throws a hapless insurance agent down the rabbit hole, into a world where the rich and powerful place wagers on the greatest game on earth. They call it the Tournament. It offers competition without limits. It is beholden to no man, and constrained by no law, and it is extremely dangerous. But where does the true power lie in this World Cup of warfare? With those who place the bets, or with the deadly players themselves? And can one man expose the secret before they find him?

Charlene's Review:

Blue Fall is the type of novel that pulls you in, and breathlessly drags you along. Loaded with suspense, this tale of competitive war is reminiscent of the days of gladiators, with the exception being the warriors in Blue Fall can be brought back to life. Interspersed with the suspense is a mix of mystery and many subplots that blend into one action-packed story. What began as a competition to settle disputes between warring nations, has now become a war of its own. Frank Youngsmith, an insurance investigator, unknowingly stumbles upon The Tournaments' darker side. He may be the only one able to stop the violence. Unfortunately, powerful forces are behind these games, and they may get to him first.

Admittedly, I sighed upon seeing all 503 pages. I was barely into the first hundred when I knew I was hooked. I read it straight through, afraid if I stopped I might miss something. There is no shortage of excitement in this book. Quite a bit of violence, and yet knowing the opponents could be saved, made it easier to handle. The premise of The Tournament is quite believable in our current state of world affairs, and the greediness of the wagers equally possible. All of the tournament players were firmly established in my mind as separate personalities, and were very well developed. I found myself fully invested in some of the teams. By the end, I couldn't get enough and was sad to see this volume end. I'll be awaiting the next book to see what happens next!

Kathy Reviews: Lisa's Way by Robert Collins

ISBN #: 978-1463777395

Page Count: 212

Copyright: November 21, 2011

Publisher: CreateSpace

Book Summary:

(Taken from author's Smashwords' site)

Lisa Herbert lives in on the planet Fairfield. The "Savage Rain" decades earlier isolated her world. a remark from her sister gets Lisa to ask, "If life was better before the 'Savage Rain,' why couldn't it be better again?" Lisa travels to three planets, using wits, compassion, and a little sneakiness to rebuild civilization.

Kathy's Review:

Here's what I like about Lisa's Way: the message. One girl, one person, can make a difference.

Now, for the bad news.

Remember early RPG video games where your character had a very linear plotline, a set list of tasks to accomplish before moving on to the next area? A list of quests, that would later be solved by finding an item, or having a conversation with a key person in an area? That's what this book feels like. And I don't mean that as a compliment. Lisa, a young girl, I think she's only seventeen (I tried to find her age and was unable to), leaves home via a portal that takes her to another town. Most towns are in ruin after something called the Savage Rain, which apparently leveled the world, including Earth, which is mentioned a few times as a distant planet that no longer exists. Her own town of Fairfield is lacking in opportunities, and often endures attacks and raids from outlaws. She leaves to explore the world and find her place in it. Sounds like the typical coming-of-age story, right?

Here are just a few things that bother me about Lisa leaving her town:

• Her father just let her do it. He is the mayor of her town; you'd think he would be more protective of her
• Didn't seem like she packed a bag. How long was she planning on traveling? Was she going to wear the same smelly clothes? The author mentions Lisa's "regular rough patch" - meaning her monthly period - hope she packed supplies, because these worlds don't have drugstores.
• Money. How was she going to pay for food, clothing, lodging, etc.?

Each town Lisa encounters needs help in some way, and Lisa is a miracle worker of sorts, showing grown adult men how to rotate crops (really?), solving a murder in a day (really?), finding a match for a young spinster, outsmarting criminals, taking people hostage without resistance ... the list goes on. She is seemingly wise beyond her years as she plods from town to town. You wonder how these people managed not to die off without the guidance of Lisa.

As the story continues on, Lisa's character becomes more and more unlikable. She leads a group of people who share her vision of doing good in the worlds they visit, but I finally realized that the title - Lisa's Way - may just be because she rules with a "My way ... or the highway" mentality. If I were in her group, I might be considering a mutiny. I was hoping they would turn against her by the end.

Her journey is not all that exciting, the dialogue is pretty flat, and I don't really know who Lisa is other than a genius/rocket scientist/CSI whiz - completely unrealistic for someone her age.

I noticed that the author plans to continue Lisa's story in further books. I urge the author to try and make Lisa a more realistic, likable character before proceeding. I would have no interest in reading more about her, or any of her travels.

Charlene Reviews: Fractured Persona by Harry James Krebs

ISBN #: 978-1461149576

Page Count: 312

Copyright: November 12, 2011

Publisher: CreateSpace

Description:

Richard Fornek is shocked to discover he has acquired not only a different identity, but also a new body after recovering from a coma in a North Carolina hospital. Although he recalls every detail of his life as Richard Fornek - his job back on the West Coast as a structural engineer, and his stormy thirteen-year marriage to Karen - his appearance is that of a local warehouse worker Dan Curtis.

Traumatized, he insists that he's Richard Fornek, but when faced with the prospect of incarceration in a psychiatric hospital, has no choice but to live as Curtis; including accepting his marriage to Curtis's spunky wife, Elizabeth. Before long, Fornek finds himself beginning to fall for Elizabeth, but the accusation of the murder of Curtis's former lover throws a wrench in the blossoming relationship.

Fighting to prove his innocence, he attempts to plead his case to his only confidante, a Baptist minister. If all fails, he will be faced with the death penalty and losing the woman he has grown to love.

Charlene's Review:

Fractured Persona follows the life of Richard Fornek, who is involved in an accident and awakens from a coma in someone else's body. As if this strange development isn't enough, as time goes on, and he realizes he must live as Curtis, he finds that he has a dark past and is being questioned for murder. As he tries to reconcile his new identity, and fights to stay out of jail, Fornek realizes his new reality comes with some perks, mainly in the form of Curtis' wife, Elizabeth.

As a first-time author, Mr. Krebs has a grasp on character development and the art of storytelling. Intriguing from the first page, Fractured Persona is everything you could want in a fiction work: murder, mystery, a bit of the unexplained, love, passion, and flowing dialogue. The characters' ability to jump into his new identity seemed a bit too easy, but watching him transform Curtis into a different person made up for it. There was a certain soft quality to Fornek that drew you to him, and made you applaud the "loss" of Curtis.

I am not commonly a mystery reader, but I would be lead to read anything written by Mr. Krebs in the future. It all fit together so seamlessly, and the descriptive personalities of the characters left you feeling as if you knew them intimately. The true measure of the genius of the mystery was I never suspected the murderer, and the twists just kept coming. The redemption of a marriage plays a huge part, despite the extenuating circumstance. I would have liked to have seen a reason for the "body switch" but nonetheless, a very enjoyable book. I am looking forward to reading Mr. Krebs next novel, Lethal Retribution.

Charlene Reviews - The Dad Connection: A Bridge to Your Children by Scott Hanley

ISBN #: 978-1456352639

Page Count: 196

Copyright: November 8, 2011

Publisher: CreateSpace

Synopsis:

Scott Hanley's journey as a single parent raising two boys is a wellspring of experience, advise and know-how. Using his own deeply personal notes on the process of raising his children, recorded as their lives unfolded, he determined that love and respect would be the simple base upon which he would build relationships. The Dad Connection: A Bridge to Your Children is Scott's understanding of love, respect, patience, energy, care, perspective, service and trust needed to build strong and deeply loving parent-child relationships. It is a life-altering lens through which to see, understand and love the relationship you have been blessed to receive.

Charlene's Review:

The Dad Connection was written from the experiences of a single father, Scott Hanley. As his boys were growing up, Mr. Hanley recorded his thoughts on cassette, and eventually, they led to this book. The basis of this work parallels the building of a bridge, in which the relationship between child and parent begins on a firm foundation, depends on a framework of supports, and bridges the distance between often opposing sides.

Mr. Hanley states that "the deepest relationships didn't just happen, they were built." The foundation for a bridge to our children is respect. The most important structural element is love. Although it seems very simple, as parents, we often get lost in the day-to-day, and forget how critical these elements are. I enjoyed reading the stories of Mr. Hanley's interactions with his sons, and the deep care that is evident in his writing. The letters included from his sons speak volumes into the connection they feel.

Although this book was aimed toward parenting, the basis here would work in any and all relationships we involve ourselves in. The Dad Connection is a sincere manual of how one man learned to treasure and reach out to the ones he loved most. The lessons included in this book would go a long way in healing what is wrong with our society. Were we all to focus on loving and respecting those we interact with every day, what a wonderful world it could be. While some of his ideals may not mesh with traditional parenting styles, I found it very useful and wish I could have read it before I became a parent. If you are a new parent, or just want a closer relationship, The Dad Connection is worth the read.