Saturday, December 3, 2011
My Mental Status: Shadows Through a Window Excerpt
My Mental Status: Shadows Through a Window Excerpt: A day late and a dollar short. I know I promised that I would post an excerpt of my published novel yesterday but I ran into a few snags on ...
Shadows Through a Window Excerpt
A day late and a dollar short. I know I promised that I would post an excerpt of my published novel yesterday but I ran into a few snags on the personal level and was unable to do as promised. So, I am posting it today. This is a blog post but you can also view the preview at http://createspace.com/Preview/1091899
This morning started like
any typical morning it is May 28, 2009 and as I prepare for a hard day at work
I wanted nothing more than to sleep in but I had the alarm clock set to go off
at six o’clock which is very early but my first meeting started at nine in the
morning and I needed to be at the hospital by eight. I had back to back
meetings scheduled all week and was thankful that today being Thursday was
looking forward to tomorrow which would end my hectic week or least that is
what I thought. As I spent the day ending each of my meetings on a good note
meaning the Nursing staff was happy with the news that they were given…changing
people’s shifts and schedules isn’t easy especially when you are trying to run
and operate a unit that is as busy as my unit. You see, my unit is the type of
unit that deals with people who are labeled by society as undesirable. They are
people who have mental disorders and deemed unfit to live in a “normal”
environment. Most of my patients suffer from delusions and are often lost in
their own fantasies whether real or imagine. But, regardless of what is wrong
with them they have been shunned by their own families and society has labeled
them as outcasts or crazy.
Well, the day went on
hour by hour as usual and I am happy to say that for the most part my staff and
the patients haven’t gotten into any trouble. Most of the patients here in the
Psych ward refuse to take their medications meaning the nursing staff has to
take drastic measures to ensure that the patients get their medication whether
they want it or not. As I sit at my desk watching the clock tick away second by
second wishing the day would just hurry up and end the phone rang and it was
the EMS crew calling to say that they were bringing in a new patient. Well, I
didn’t think much of this since it seemed that new patients were arriving
almost on a daily basis. Just as I hung up the phone in walks Shon a colleague
of mine. Shon and I spent the last few
years of medical school together at Harvard. We dated each other for about year
before calling it quits on the boyfriend girlfriend relationship and decided
that we would be better off as friends. But either way Shon has stuck with me
through the years and through thick and thin. I think that Shon thought I was a
little insane when during the last year of my residency I decided to seek out
abnormal Psychology meaning I started to attend meetings with a Paranormal
Group that was studying at Harvard. All this came about when I was on a drive
across the country to visit my home Portland, Oregon. The reason I decided to
drive was because I wanted to stop at every major attraction along the way
simply because I enjoy collecting key chains. But anyway, enough about cross
country drives and key chains. The total drive from Boston to Vancouver had
taken four days. The final day of driving I had driven twelve hours and I
decided my final destination would be just over the bridge that joined the two
states of Oregon and Washington. I found the most perfect place in the world
outside of Oregon and in Washington State. The Heathman is the most breath
taking picturesque place I had ever been too! You see, the Heathman
Lodge…Located off of the main highway along the Columbia River Gorge offered
anything that an outdoors person could possibly want hiking, fishing, camping
etc. The reason I decided to stay there was it reminded me of growing up in
Oregon and visiting my grandparents in Washington. As a child I can remember
going camping and fishing with my family what seemed like every weekend. So, as
you can see I have a fondness for the outdoors. But, as I grew older the
camping and fishing trips with my father started to seem less and less until I
eventually moved out and started medical school in Boston. My father succumbing
to Sudden Cardiac Arrest unfortunately passed away leaving me alone to enjoy
the memories of him sitting around the campfire...drinking a cold beer while
smoking a cigarette, telling stories about Bigfoot ( Sasquatch ) and I can
remember feeling that as I long as I was with my father I was safe.
Friday, December 2, 2011
My Mental Status: Creative Writing
My Mental Status: Creative Writing: This morning I will be speaking on creative writing. I have had people ask me to explain exactly what this is. Well, in my opinion the answe...
Creative Writing
This morning I will be speaking on creative writing. I have had people ask me to explain exactly what this is. Well, in my opinion the answer to this question is not that easy. Creative writing can be considered by some as a waste of time.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
My Mental Status: On Dec 2, 2011 I will be posting an excerpt of my...
My Mental Status: On Dec 2, 2011 I will be posting an excerpt of my...: On Dec 2, 2011 I will be posting an excerpt of my published novel. Please feel free to comment. Also, I am thinking about starting a contes...
My Mental Status: Marketing Tip #1
My Mental Status: Marketing Tip #1: Word of mouth always works. Also, creating and maintaining relationships with people who you share a mutual interest. Also, bookwhirl.com is...
Marketing Tip #1
Word of mouth always works. Also, creating and maintaining relationships with people who you share a mutual interest. Also, bookwhirl.com is a great place to start for newbies. I have found that in my research createspace.com is one of the best places to publish and market.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Marketing Your Work
I know that once you have self-published your work you might start to think what next. Right? Well, the self-publishing is the easy part. The real work come in when you start to market your work. There are many outlets in which to market your work especially with all of the free social sites on the world wide web.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
So, it has been a month now since my last novel was published. So far, I am happy with it and all the decisions surrounding it. Although the paperback version is not ready for retail distribution just yet. I am however looking forward to that getting completed. If any of you have questions regarding editing on your self-published works I would be more than happy to lend you a hand. Just feel free to ask!
Publishing
To self publish or not to self publish? I know this is a difficult question. I spent two years writing my first novel and three months debating with myself as to whether or not do self publishing. I chose self publishing simply because it was the best and cheapest route at the time.
Creative Writing 101
Please feel free to let your creativity get the best of you! It is better than sitting there letting it go to waste.
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