Nothing makes a writer more proud than when they hear that someone enjoys their novel. If I wrote for a living I would be sleeping under a bridge somewhere by now. Writers first thought is to write because they love it and they want their readers to enjoy the words that they see in print. If financial success comes, then it is an added bonus.
My first success in writing was being published in Our USA Magazine. A wonderful magazine founded by a woman that saw in her mind the stories and photos that Americans wanted to share. My first story that was published was, Milk Carton Football. My brother and I with some friends used to get in our yard and play football with a milk carton stuffed with leaves. We didn't have a real football, so stuffing leaves into one of those waxed milk cartons worked just fine.When I think of it, I smile! I call them the good old days.
I had some other stories published in Our USA Magazine and Cher Valentino, the founder of the magazine gave me the inspiration I needed to expand my writing. Could I write a book I thought? Then I was thinking to myself, that if you can write a short story, then you can write a novel. A novel is made up of chapters and each one is a short story. Keep writing chapters and soon you will have a book. I do have to admit that the thought of holding a book that I wrote in my hands kept me interested.
I had my first novel, Golden Haze, self-published. When I got those first copies and held one in my hand, I was on cloud nine. It was the most exciting feeling knowing that I had accomplished something that I had wanted to do for a long time. It received good reviews on amazon.com.
I decided to write another book and I wanted to take a different route. Golden Haze, was a paranormal novel. My second novel, Walk to Love, is the story of a man that was in deep depression after his wife was killed in a car accident. I thought what if he was visited by God? I took that route and God sent him on a walking journey across America that would change his life forever. It is a Christian romance novel of romance, tragedy, depression, inspiration, sadness, and the ups and downs of everyday life.
In December of 2014 I had, Walk to Love, published. This novel is special to me because it was proofread and the cover was designed by my daughter. When I held that first copy in my hand I knew that I wanted to write no matter the outcome of my success.
As, Walk to Love, was in the final stages of corrections and making changes I was working on a third novel.
That novel is complete and I look to have it self-published sometime in 2015. With three works under my belt I am taking a little break, but am thinking of a fourth novel. I wrote a short story some years ago and the more I think about it the more I realize the fourth novel will become a reality. I have written a paranormal novel, two romance novels, and my fourth will be more of terror and horror.
I think of the family and friends that I have around the world and one of the things that makes me the proudest is to know that my novels have been read in Okinawa, Australia, Brazil, the UK, and Russia.
My novels have reached around the world and nothing makes my feel prouder than to know that I have brought joy to someone in a far off land.
I started to write late in life, but some of the greats started late. Laura Ingalls Wilder of Little House didn't get published until she was 65. We all know of Grandma Moses whose first painting wasn't sold until she was much older. I will continue to write, because I enjoy it and it makes other people happy. When other people tell me they enjoy a story or a novel, then I an happy, that is what matters most.
Copyright Larry W. Fish 2015
Monday, February 16, 2015
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Monday, February 2, 2015
WHEN THEY ARE FAR AWAY
When you have those young children in your life and you see them grow up it makes you as a parent feel so proud. I can still look back and remember the birth of my children, Thomas and Leonor. I remember their first day of school and all those years of Brownies, Cub Scouts, Little League, Majorettes, School Band.
I sit here and smile at those memories. I remember my daughter being the Drum Major of the marching band her last year in high school. I remember my son taking a tour of Europe with a world band.
They grow up and leave home and it gives a parent an empty feeling. The home feels empty, but you realize that they have grown up and have to leave the nest to be out on their own. They are now on their own and you think well we don't have to worry about them anymore. That is about the dumbest feeling a parent can
have. You will never stop worrying no matter how old they get.
Thomas joined the Marine Corps at an early age. He spent 20 years serving his country and served three tours of duty in Iraq. Leonor went to college and she knew from a little girl that art was her desire in life.
She is an artist/graphic designer. Her sketches and paintings make me as a parent feel so proud of what she can do. She also teaches art classes.
A couple of years ago our daughter moved to Raleigh, NC and we only got to see her and our youngest granddaughter a couple of times a year. My wife and I decided that we wanted to be closer to them so we moved to Raleigh a couple of years ago. Now we get to see them often.
Our son retired from the Marine Corps while serving in Okinawa. He decided that Okinawa was where he wanted to live with his family. It gave my wife and I a hurt feeling, but we knew that he had to live his life as he wanted to. Okinawa is half way around the world, so the time we didn't get to see him, his wife, and our grand children turned to months and then years. It has been a long time and Lina and I hope that they will return to the US to live. We are getting older in years and we want to spend time with them.
Recently our son had an operation while living in Okinawa. There was complications and he had to go back in the hospital. His condition became worse and my wife and I could only be with him by email, phone, and facebook. His condition became urgent and he was flown to an Army hospital in Hawaii. Still to far for two people living on Social Security to travel. He is under good care and his condition is improving. Tom remains in our thoughts and prayers every day. We love him so much and wish we were there to hug him, hold his hand and tell him how much we love him. His wife and our youngest grandson are doing that now.
He will be having another operation sometime next month and we pray that everything will be fine. Lina and I hope that maybe him and his family will return to the US in the not to distant future. It is tough having them so far away, especially when problems occur. We would like to have those family trips, picnics, family dinners during the holidays again, and I would love to go fishing with Tom again. We had so much fun fishing and it is a dream that I hold onto that it will happen again. My wife will be 70 in a few months and I am on the road to 67 this September.
Yes, it is tough when they live so far away, but we do realize that they have their own lives to live.
Copyright Larry W. Fish 2015
I sit here and smile at those memories. I remember my daughter being the Drum Major of the marching band her last year in high school. I remember my son taking a tour of Europe with a world band.
They grow up and leave home and it gives a parent an empty feeling. The home feels empty, but you realize that they have grown up and have to leave the nest to be out on their own. They are now on their own and you think well we don't have to worry about them anymore. That is about the dumbest feeling a parent can
have. You will never stop worrying no matter how old they get.
Thomas joined the Marine Corps at an early age. He spent 20 years serving his country and served three tours of duty in Iraq. Leonor went to college and she knew from a little girl that art was her desire in life.
She is an artist/graphic designer. Her sketches and paintings make me as a parent feel so proud of what she can do. She also teaches art classes.
A couple of years ago our daughter moved to Raleigh, NC and we only got to see her and our youngest granddaughter a couple of times a year. My wife and I decided that we wanted to be closer to them so we moved to Raleigh a couple of years ago. Now we get to see them often.
Our son retired from the Marine Corps while serving in Okinawa. He decided that Okinawa was where he wanted to live with his family. It gave my wife and I a hurt feeling, but we knew that he had to live his life as he wanted to. Okinawa is half way around the world, so the time we didn't get to see him, his wife, and our grand children turned to months and then years. It has been a long time and Lina and I hope that they will return to the US to live. We are getting older in years and we want to spend time with them.
Recently our son had an operation while living in Okinawa. There was complications and he had to go back in the hospital. His condition became worse and my wife and I could only be with him by email, phone, and facebook. His condition became urgent and he was flown to an Army hospital in Hawaii. Still to far for two people living on Social Security to travel. He is under good care and his condition is improving. Tom remains in our thoughts and prayers every day. We love him so much and wish we were there to hug him, hold his hand and tell him how much we love him. His wife and our youngest grandson are doing that now.
He will be having another operation sometime next month and we pray that everything will be fine. Lina and I hope that maybe him and his family will return to the US in the not to distant future. It is tough having them so far away, especially when problems occur. We would like to have those family trips, picnics, family dinners during the holidays again, and I would love to go fishing with Tom again. We had so much fun fishing and it is a dream that I hold onto that it will happen again. My wife will be 70 in a few months and I am on the road to 67 this September.
Yes, it is tough when they live so far away, but we do realize that they have their own lives to live.
Copyright Larry W. Fish 2015
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)