What Inspires Me To Write? … Breathing! By Gerard de Marigny

Today is a special Friday treat for my readers. I've most recently had the pleasure of 'meeting' (online anway) author Gerard de Marigny, and was able to talk him into writing up a little something to grace the pages of my blog. Thankfully it didn't take too much coaxing otherwise you might not get the chance to read this little inspirational tidbit that follows...

What Inspires Me To Write? … Breathing!

By Gerard de Marigny

“I shut my eyes in order to see.”

Paul Gauguin (French painter, printmaker, and sculptor, 1848-1903)

Author Gerard de Marigny

Where does a writer find inspiration? It depends on the type of writer…

For journalists, they find inspiration in finding the next big headline. A journalist dreams of receiving an award for being the first to uncover a scandal or for exposing corruption. Journalists spend their professional lives in an endless attempt to be on the spot and/or in the know when something spectacular happens.

For non-fiction authors, their inspiration lies in their expertise and experience – aka their platform. Doctors write about new treatments; lawyers write about how they won their cases; baseball players write about their careers and winning the world series… or losing the world series; and politicians… oh, politicians write about all sorts of topics… some of which should be considered fiction!

Inspiration for fiction writers, though, comes from a different place. I'm a writer of fiction, as is Courtney Conant. Our inspiration comes from the undiscovered worlds that exist between our ears. These worlds are shaped by our individual lives, but like dreams, they're not exact interpretations. Some of our worlds are vivid and clear, while others are hazy and dark… and our worlds are filled with the most extraordinary characters, both righteous and evil.

A fiction writer is a world creator. If we apply our craft well, a fiction writer can paint a canvas that becomes a portal into the world we've created. As authors, we stand at the doorway of these portals and invite readers to enter… but we don't enter with them. Each reader's journey through our domain is theirs alone to take. Some readers decide to act as mere observers, watching our stories unfold from a distance, while other readers become sojourners temporarily residing in our worlds.

And then there is the special breed…

These special readers undergo a metamorphosis that can only take place in our fictional universes. In our worlds, this special breed finds that they have the power to become our characters… and not just one of our characters, unless they chose only one. These special readers can morph into any of our characters, jumping to and fro from hero to villain and from old woman to little boy. Even more thrilling, they find that they can adapt the skills and powers of our characters and do the things that our characters do! Suddenly, a teenage girl can kiss a prince in a far-away kingdom or an old soldier can once again pick up a weapon and defend his country.

What inspires me to write? Extraordinary characters that live in my mind, captivating stories that touch my soul, profound experiences that have shaped my life, shuttering fears that keep me awake at night and comforting prayers that let me sleep…

And dream!

In a word, what inspires me to write… breathing!

Author Bio

Gerard de Marigny is the author of the geopolitical thriller, _The Watchman of Ephraim_, Book 1 of THE WATCHMAN OF EPHRAIM series. The sequel, _Signs of War_ is scheduled for release in September 2011.

Gerard de Marigny resides in the beautiful foothills of Las Vegas, NV with his wife Lisa and his four sons. When not bending an arm with friends at the local pub, he's putting to paper the stories and characters that are alive in his mind.

Author/Publisher Sites

Author's Website: www.GerarddeMarigny.com

Author's Blog: SelfPubber's Pub

Social Networking Sites

Facebook Page: www.Facebook.com/GerarddeM

Twitter: www.twitter.com/GerarddeMarigny

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/gerard_demarigny

LinkedIn: www.LinkedIn.com/in/GerarddeMarigny

MySpace: www.MySpace.com/GerarddeMarigny

Buy Links

Amazon: Gerard de Marigny Books

Barnes & Noble: Gerard de Marigny Books

Smashwords (all eBook formats): _The Watchman of Ephraim_

Personalized, signed copies are available at the author's website: www.GerarddeMarigny.com (all transactions secure via PayPal)

The One Percenters by John Podgursky

The One Percenters by John Podgursky

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Purchase The One Percenters here.

I found myself very conflicted when reading this novel. The concept really intrigued me and kept me moving forward but I found my mind wandering off to other things instead of staying focused on the book. I don't blame this wholly on the book, but the formatting was so bad that I found it rather distracting. Of course, the formatting was only an issue with the ebook version, not necessarily the print copy.

While the book is gripping from page one, it slows down drastically very soon into it. It's almost like telling the simple life of a simple man, not much exciting or entertaining happens except for brief moments here and there. It took a long time of reading to start to really figure out what was going on. It was obvious that the MC was telling his story but not to who or why, for that matter. There are so many details that seemed unnecessary, even pointless, yet were thrown in almost as filler.

One thing I will say, Podgursky has a very vivid imagination and can paint a picture with the best of them. I just didn't enjoy this particular novel as much as I had hoped I would. I'll keep my fingers crossed that there is another book of his for me to read and enjoy in the future.

Debt of Bones by Terry Goodkind

It's been awhile since I've posted up a review so I figure it's about time to put up something new... After years of having people suggest the following author to me, I decided to give his work a shot. I now have the full series of audiobooks and chose to start at the beginning... Wait, is it the beginning? I started with the prequel so I guess that is technically starting BEFORE the beginning...

Debt of Bones by Terry Goodkind

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Debt of Bones was short and sweet. I enjoyed the writing style and the concept of it but it felt like something was missing. Of course, I blame myself for that. I think that if I had read the series in the order in which it was published, it would have made more sense. Silly me for starting where I shouldn't have.

It's kind of fun meeting Zedd, the wizard of all wizards, as a VERY young man. His abilities amaze and intrigue the reader, making you want to know more of who he is and where he came from. There is almost no background given on the characters (I can guess this is because more is given throughout the series and not in the prequel.) so I felt as if I was left wanting more.

I find that, with most series that have prequels, I can usually start with the prequel and it helps the rest of the series to flow better. With this one, it is the opposite. I can almost guarantee that if I had read it like I was supposed to, this novel would have gotten a 4 star rating. I'm sorry,Mr. Goodkind... I blame myself entirely and the 3 star rating in no way reflects your talent as an author.

In closing, seeing as I am now more than halfway through book one, I would definitely recommend starting there. Don't start with the prequel or you might not want to continue on with reading. Debt of Bones was well written and definitely a good read but I think readers would enjoy it more if read in the originally released order. Start with Wizard's First Rule and enjoy the ride through the world that Goodkind created!