Michael Crichton - Dead at 66

To say the least, I just received a shock to find out that one of my favorite authors has died recently. Michael Crichton, author of The Andromeda Strain, The Congo, Jurassic Park and many other great novels in my personal collection died on November 4th, aged 66, of cancer. I am at a total loss of words to explain how much his work has meant to me. If you haven't noticed, there's always been at least one of his novels on my "books I've read recently list" along the side of this blog. The most current one was State Of Fear, which I happened to acquire in a first edition hard cover. To say that he meant a lot to me would be an understatement. I have read and enjoyed his books for my entire adult life. I even have a techno-thriller novel currently in pre-production that I have been working on. I need to finish writing that book, now for sure. Rather than babble on here, I'll just post this message I found on his website, posted by his family:

In Memoriam

Michael Crichton

1942 - 2008

Best-selling author Michael Crichton died unexpectedly in Los Angeles Tuesday, November 4, 2008 after a courageous and private battle against cancer.

While the world knew him as a great story teller that challenged our preconceived notions about the world around us -- and entertained us all while doing so -- his wife Sherri, daughter Taylor, family and friends knew Michael Crichton as a devoted husband, loving father and generous friend who inspired each of us to strive to see the wonders of our world through new eyes. He did this with a wry sense of humor that those who were privileged to know him personally will never forget.

Through his books, Michael Crichton served as an inspiration to students of all ages, challenged scientists in many fields, and illuminated the mysteries of the world in a way we could all understand.

He will be profoundly missed by those whose lives he touched, but he leaves behind the greatest gifts of a thirst for knowledge, the desire to understand, and the wisdom to use our minds to better our world.

Michael's family respectfully asks for privacy during this difficult time.

I couldn't have said it better. I'm going to miss Michael Crichton.

Tri-State Book Fest

Well, my second novel isn't out yet, but I did get invited to attend a local author's book fest. It was called the Tri-State Book Fest and it was held in Evansville, Indiana and covered the three states of Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky. The event took place this past September 27th, and lasted from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. in the afternoon. Of course I stayed until the very end. There were some authors who started packing it in around 3.30, but not me! The weather was perfect and turnout for it seemed pretty good.

It is an annual event for my area and it was the first one I was ever invited to. Actually, I hadn't heard of it before because it had previously always been held in Kentucky. This year's event was held at the Washington Square Mall, pictured below:

It was a nice setting to host a book fest and the accommodations were excellent. There was plenty of wide open spaces for merchandise to be sold and for the authors to sit at:





I mentioned that my latest novel that was accepted to be published didn't quite get out in time for it to be available at this event, but I did have several copies of my first novel, The Wizard Of Destiny available, which I blogged about here and you can purchase here. My dad has taken to writing in his retirement and his second book did get published in time for him to premiere it at the book fest. The people that organized the event grouped him and I at the same table, so that was pretty handy. If one of us had to step away to get something, the other was there to man the books. There were several places to get food and drink all around us, and the cookie shop to my front and right had my attention, let me tell you! A fellow author was kind enough to use my camera and snap a picture of my father and I together, so here we are, courtesy of Dawn Knight:



For doing this favor for me, I took her picture and emailed copies for her own personal collection.



All in all, it was a very enjoyable event for me and I had a great time. Although I only sold one book, I did get to meet and talk with several of the 70 authors that were present. I found them all to be nice people and it made for a friendly atmosphere to mingle with other writers and the public at large as they drifted among the tables finding books that interested them. I ended up buying three books myself, from other authors, so I lost money on the deal. But, having acquired three new books for my collection more than made up for this loss, so I figure I came out on the winning side anyway. I know I'll be sure to attend the one next year and who knows, I might have a couple more books out by this time next year! If I do, my regular readers will be sure to hear all about it right here.

My Second Novel

I just wanted to let my regular readers of this blog know that, recently, another one of my manuscripts has been accepted to be published. It should be out in a month or two, so watch for it. It will be called This Paradise, by Kenneth Dwain Harrelson. It's a period piece, set in The Great Depression, and it's about a drifter that goes to work at a small husband and wife farm. It's in the same vein as John Steinbeck used to write, but no wonder - him and I share the same birthdate! (Just not the same year, however....) A gazebo is part of the central theme.

I'll probably have more to tell about it later - when it gets near publication or just after it's published with a cover image. Be on the lookout for it wherever fine books are sold! (And average ones, too!)

The Wizard Of Destiny

Have I mentioned before that I love to write? If not, I probably also didn't pass on this little tidbit: I have had a novel published. It is the historical/fantasy you see pictured below:

Yes, it was published in May 2005 and I was quite happy with the way it turned out. I should have been, because I had a great relationship with my publisher. They were E-BookTime and let me have things the way I wanted them. I designed and created the cover art, did all the artwork inside and they even made sure that the words First Edition were prominent on the copyright page, just like I requested. That was probably the most important thing with me. First editions are always the most valuable!

First off, you have to know that I'm a big fan of the whole fantasy genre. The Lord Of The Rings cycle, by J.R.R. Tolkien, has always been my favorite fantasy books. To me, it holds the perfect recipe for a fine and engrossing fantasy novel - lots of magic, a fabulous quest, colorful characters and poetic writing. When I wrote The Wizard Of Destiny, that's the style I most emulated. Not that it's anything like it, mind you, but it is that type of quest-fantasy that I so adore. Above, you can see the map I drew for it; and like every good fantasy novel must have, I, too, have a map with places and names so you can follow along in your head wherever the characters go.

Seeing as I wanted to have a realistic background as it's setting, I chose medieval England, during some indeterminate year. I left the era vague for the simple reason that I wanted to speak about real people and places, but didn't want to be tied down to a specific year. As to the plot, it's about a young boy who becomes the great Wizard Simon's apprentice. Well, here is the blurb I wrote for the back cover:

Young Alfred doesn’t realize what lay in store for him when he goes to visit his local Wizard. But soon, through a strange quirk of events, he becomes the great Simon’s apprentice. At first, the lad has doubts as to his abilities to learn everything he will be taught. And to compound matters further, their King needs the services of his Wizard just then for a dangerous quest of great importance. With just a Friar to accompany them, they begin a journey that thrusts Alfred into an important and hazardous time in his young life. Does he have what it takes to become the Wizard of Destiny?

And of course I injected some humor into the whole melange. I hate reading those deadly serious and dry fantasy novels with characters who have such complicated names as to be unpronounceable by human tongue. Those kind of books are just so boring. Needless to say, if you want to find out all about how and why the people of Stonehenge lived, how to use a magic spell that will turn someone into a bagel, the beginnings of four lads from Liverpool - long before rock and roll came along, or the further tales of that bandit from Sherwood Forest, then this book is for you! It may not be 100% factual, (wink, wink!), but it will have you smiling as you get pulled into and along with their quest.

Why haven't I said anything about it before? Modesty, I suppose. I never liked pushy people myself, so that's something I try to prevent from happening in me. But.... if you happened to see this little blog and were more interested in my book.... here's a link where you can pick it up from my publisher's website: The Wizard Of Destiny, by Kenneth Dwain Harrelson. By purchasing it from them, I get a higher royalty rate, don't you know. But, you can also find it on any other online bookstore.