Most of you are familiar with the book Lies My Teacher Told Me. Some of the more infamous historical corrections made in this book include the truth about Christopher Columbus and the attempt to wipe out entire populations through genocide.
As a former history teacher, I can assure you that no one is talking about Christopher Columbus as a syphilitic drunken rapist as part of their state mandated social studies curriculum (or at least I hope not.)
The bottom line is that everything you were taught as a child is simply not true.
Fast forward to2015.
Over the past year I have been introduced to some very nice people who have a very strong agenda. To put it bluntly, these people represent the ultra conservative branch of the current Republican party.
Through a series of conversations I was asked if I had ever considered writing a book about the attack on Benghazi.
No. I had not.
I was informed that there was a market for such a book and that my new acquaintances would be excited to see what I could come up with on the subject. So I sat down and began toying with an idea and eventually did write such a book.
Shadow of Benghazi.
While my new acquaintances LOVED the title and the foreboding implications they were less excited by the contents. You see, I write fiction. I've never had any interest in writing nonfiction nor has it ever occurred to me to do so. Thus, Shadow of Benghazi classifies nicely as "historical fiction."
This apparently is not what my new contacts had in mind. In fact, they apparently thought I was writing some scathing "hidden truth" book about what "really" happened in Benghazi.
Or, to be more specific, what they WANT to believe happened in Benghazi.
In other words, this group wanted an over the top "tell all" about the sins of a certain former Secretary of State and presidential candidate.
They wanted something they could hold up as "the real truth."
Now let's analyze that for a moment.
How would a book that relied on a preconceived notion of guilt be "the truth" in any form?
The answer quite simply is it would not.
Thus leads us to the thin line between History and Historical Fiction.
Many of the books being published today have a very strong political agenda. Now, don't get me wrong, so do most history textbooks. The whole point of Social Studies Education in this country is to instill a certain amount of civic pride and loyalty in our students. In truth, the victor not only gets the spoils, but they get the right to record their own version of history. If you have any doubt of this, then hop online and look up a retelling of what we call the American Revolution as told by a history textbook written in Great Britain. In Germany, the textbooks make no reference to the Nazi Party or Adolf Hitler.
NO REFERENCE!
They tell us that we aren't supposed to lie to our kids. Yet we tell them a magical bunny leaves a basket on Easter Sunday and that Santa is watching to see if they are naughty or nice. While these "stories" may be harmless in the long run let me remind you that we also have a federal holiday named after Christopher Columbus.
There is enough lying and hypocrisy in what we teach as "History" in this country.
So I refused to add to it by writing a book that would classify as nonfiction and might be used as propaganda against a political candidate (regardless as to my own views of that person.)
In closing, I hope that everyone that reads Shadow of Benghazi enjoys it for what it is: HISTORICAL FICTION.
There was no Sgt. James Thatcher on duty at the Embassy the night of the attack.
There is no government conspiracy (that I have any knowledge of anyway) to cover up any truth.
Shadow of Benghazi is a STORY. The characters are MADE UP.
That, boys and girls, is what we call fiction.
Showing posts with label fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fiction. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Sunday, February 1, 2015
New Series: Writing Tips for Potential Authors
Hello friends and fellow readers!
Today I begin a series of writing tips that I have collected not only from my own experiences but from interaction with other authors. I hope that each of you find something new and positive that will encourage your own writing.
#1: STAY POSITIVE
This may sound like a no brainer but doubt can be a killer. There are going to be periods of rejection in each of our lives. An independent author is going to face a lot of rejection. I recall my first rejection came as a form letter from Dark Horse Comics. I had submitted a storyline for a potential comic book that I titled "The Worst of Times." Anyone who has dealt with the comics industry knows that the big boys (Marvel and DC) do not accept unsolicited submissions...but the smaller imprints do! Thus my submission to Dark Horse. Dark Horse sent me a very polite yet firm letter stating that while they appreciated my submission they had no interest in my story "at this time."
That was 2010.
Five years later I'm not even sure if Dark Horse is still around but if they are they still have no interest in my story lol.
As some of you already know, I later expanded this storyline into my first novel also titled The Worst of Times. I am proud to report that we are fast approaching our one thousandth download of The Worst of Times for Amazon Kindle!
My point is that just because a story or idea is rejected by one format or publisher does not mean the death of that story. Only your own self doubt can truly destroy the potential success of your creation.
I hope that this first tip proves useful to all of you. I plan on offering many more in future posts!
As always...
KEEP WRITING!!!
Today I begin a series of writing tips that I have collected not only from my own experiences but from interaction with other authors. I hope that each of you find something new and positive that will encourage your own writing.
#1: STAY POSITIVE
This may sound like a no brainer but doubt can be a killer. There are going to be periods of rejection in each of our lives. An independent author is going to face a lot of rejection. I recall my first rejection came as a form letter from Dark Horse Comics. I had submitted a storyline for a potential comic book that I titled "The Worst of Times." Anyone who has dealt with the comics industry knows that the big boys (Marvel and DC) do not accept unsolicited submissions...but the smaller imprints do! Thus my submission to Dark Horse. Dark Horse sent me a very polite yet firm letter stating that while they appreciated my submission they had no interest in my story "at this time."
That was 2010.
Five years later I'm not even sure if Dark Horse is still around but if they are they still have no interest in my story lol.
As some of you already know, I later expanded this storyline into my first novel also titled The Worst of Times. I am proud to report that we are fast approaching our one thousandth download of The Worst of Times for Amazon Kindle!
My point is that just because a story or idea is rejected by one format or publisher does not mean the death of that story. Only your own self doubt can truly destroy the potential success of your creation.
I hope that this first tip proves useful to all of you. I plan on offering many more in future posts!
As always...
KEEP WRITING!!!
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Short stories verses novels
Hello friends and fellow readers!
Today I would like to talk about reader preferences. I recently had a conversation with a friend who told me that he wishes he could read more. After asking several questions I came to the conclusion that my friend has plenty of free time in which to read but that he is intimidated by the size of most modern novels. Anything over a hundred pages scares the pants off of him (not literally I hope).
I gave this problem some thought and came up with what I think is a possible solution. I suggested that my friend start of with a short story collection rather than read an entire novel. He commented that even those are intimidating because of the number of pages and the sheer size of the novels. I can't disagree with either statement. My suggestion was that he focus on the table of contents and start with some of the shorter of the stories and work his way up.
To be clear, my friend is not new to reading. He actually has an associates degree and is and educated man. He simply is used to reading for more technical purposes and not for pleasure.
I wonder how many other potential or past readers feel the same way?
Does word count and book length chase away the casual reader?
As always I welcome any thoughts, suggestions and comments.
Thanks again for reading and I hope that many of you will join me in setting time aside to read everyday.
As always KEEP WRITING (and in this case KEEP READING!)
Today I would like to talk about reader preferences. I recently had a conversation with a friend who told me that he wishes he could read more. After asking several questions I came to the conclusion that my friend has plenty of free time in which to read but that he is intimidated by the size of most modern novels. Anything over a hundred pages scares the pants off of him (not literally I hope).
I gave this problem some thought and came up with what I think is a possible solution. I suggested that my friend start of with a short story collection rather than read an entire novel. He commented that even those are intimidating because of the number of pages and the sheer size of the novels. I can't disagree with either statement. My suggestion was that he focus on the table of contents and start with some of the shorter of the stories and work his way up.
To be clear, my friend is not new to reading. He actually has an associates degree and is and educated man. He simply is used to reading for more technical purposes and not for pleasure.
I wonder how many other potential or past readers feel the same way?
Does word count and book length chase away the casual reader?
As always I welcome any thoughts, suggestions and comments.
Thanks again for reading and I hope that many of you will join me in setting time aside to read everyday.
As always KEEP WRITING (and in this case KEEP READING!)
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Today I would like to talk about my recent experience with a local bookstore here in the Louisville KY area. I will spare that company from using it's name since my experience was a negative one.
Some time ago I was walking through my favorite part of old Louisville and came across a local bookstore. I entered the store to browse and noticed that in the far back corner there was a "Local Author's" section. I decided to ask about offering my books on that shelf and the young man behind the counter was very polite and helpful. He provided me with both an email address and a phone # for the store manager and suggested I contact said manager. I thanked the young man and went about my day.
A few days later I emailed the manager. There was no reply. I waited a week later and emailed again. This time I also called. Still no reply. I decided to take a chance and make a second phone call. This time I got through to the manager.
I wish I could tell you that the conversation was a pleasant one. It was not. We discussed pricing and the store manager told me that the store would have to mark up the list price of my books since I sale them at the minimal price allowed by my publisher. In case you are wondering, my publisher has set $12.99 as the minimum price for my detective novel The Worst of Times (which is almost 400 pages) and $9.99 for my science fiction book Elsewhere (which is 200 pages).
I expressed my concern that marking the price up to the suggested in store price of $19.99 (for The Worst of Times) seemed counter productive. My goal has always been to make my writing as available and affordable as possible...not to make the largest profit.
The manager informed me in not uncertain terms that I had no idea what it took to stay in the bookstore business and preceded to lecture me about overhead, distributor costs etc.
Long story short (too late, right?) my novels will not be appearing on the shelf at that particular bookstore anytime soon.
I hope that my experience with this particular store manager was the exception for my fellow authors rather than the rule.
As always I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions you might have...and thanks again for reading!
Keep Writing!
Some time ago I was walking through my favorite part of old Louisville and came across a local bookstore. I entered the store to browse and noticed that in the far back corner there was a "Local Author's" section. I decided to ask about offering my books on that shelf and the young man behind the counter was very polite and helpful. He provided me with both an email address and a phone # for the store manager and suggested I contact said manager. I thanked the young man and went about my day.
A few days later I emailed the manager. There was no reply. I waited a week later and emailed again. This time I also called. Still no reply. I decided to take a chance and make a second phone call. This time I got through to the manager.
I wish I could tell you that the conversation was a pleasant one. It was not. We discussed pricing and the store manager told me that the store would have to mark up the list price of my books since I sale them at the minimal price allowed by my publisher. In case you are wondering, my publisher has set $12.99 as the minimum price for my detective novel The Worst of Times (which is almost 400 pages) and $9.99 for my science fiction book Elsewhere (which is 200 pages).
I expressed my concern that marking the price up to the suggested in store price of $19.99 (for The Worst of Times) seemed counter productive. My goal has always been to make my writing as available and affordable as possible...not to make the largest profit.
The manager informed me in not uncertain terms that I had no idea what it took to stay in the bookstore business and preceded to lecture me about overhead, distributor costs etc.
Long story short (too late, right?) my novels will not be appearing on the shelf at that particular bookstore anytime soon.
I hope that my experience with this particular store manager was the exception for my fellow authors rather than the rule.
As always I welcome any comments, questions or suggestions you might have...and thanks again for reading!
Keep Writing!
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Elsewhere now available in paperback and for Kindle and NOOK!
As of today my new scifi book ELSEWHERE is available in the following formats.
Here are direct links to purchase ELSEWHERE in paperback or for Kindle or Nook:
Prestige Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley/dp/1505440157
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley-ebook/dp/B00QAS3SCS
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/elsewhere-john-eric-buckley/1120966159
Thanks again for all of your kind words and support!
John Eric Buckley
Here are direct links to purchase ELSEWHERE in paperback or for Kindle or Nook:
Prestige Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley/dp/1505440157
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Elsewhere-John-Eric-Buckley-ebook/dp/B00QAS3SCS
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/elsewhere-john-eric-buckley/1120966159
Thanks again for all of your kind words and support!
John Eric Buckley
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