My Favorite Themes and the Power of Words

June 18, 2008 - Seattle
The June blog, dedicated to books and publishing, as it should, except for a note about Father's Day. Happy Father's Day, everyone!

* * *

As I mentioned, I am reading A NEW EARTH by Eckhardt Tolle. My gosh, I've typed that name enough times I should know the spelling by heart.


I realize what follows may seem like extra promotion for a book that hardly needs it. Yeah, I should be talking and building the buzz about some deserving unknown author who has not been blessed by Oprah, with all the associated glory and goodness.


As happens with most people, I stumble upon little wise books usually when they are squarely in my face, emblazoned with the praise of recognizable names. Evidence, I might add, of the importance of branding. But more about that later.

* * *

I like A NEW EARTH very much. Here are some nice pithy spoilers:

Negation of the female principle was necessary because conquest of the earth could only be achieved in the male form.

Ego and obsessive scheduling are hallmarks of a culture obsessed with achievement and material gain.

The individual pain-body associates conceptually with martyrdom, religion and spirituality, but results psychologically in contraction of the primal spirit in favor of the temporal ego.

The collective pain-body associates conceptually with activism and patriotism, but results in a us-versus-them mentality, nationalism, and ideology driven terrorism.

A lot of the book is even more abstract than the above. But the book actually goes beyond hippy mantra to provide a psychological explanation of the institutional and cultural paradigms that we now recognize as environmentally destructive and spiritually empty.

Hopefully I have convinced you that you have now absorbed the gist of this book and therefore need to find your new reading elsewhere, say in one of the books by Finial Publishing. What a great idea.

* * *

I just got back from Oslo and Stockholm.

While in Oslo, I had a chance to see Jenny Holzer's word art at the Telenor office complex in Forneblu near Oslo.



The red letters under the eave of the building scroll such observations as:

LOVING ANIMALS IS A SUBSTITUTE ACTIVITY

ALL THINGS ARE DELICATELY INTERCONNECTED

YOU ARE A VICTIM OF THE RULES YOU LIVE BY

ROMANTIC LOVE WAS INVENTED TO MANIPULATE WOMEN

Her scrolling digital messages can also be found at her site. I was mesmerized, watching a kind of ironic minimalist TV. Yeah, it's the artsy fartsy one in me that takes note of these things. But when you stop and think about the content we normally experience like:

JEEP RAM TUNDRA, THE WILD UNTAMED IN YOUR SUBURBAN SUV

HEAVY TRAFFIC AND INSANE VEHICULAR HOMICIDE, EXPECT DELAYS

You get the idea. Fact is, were it not for artists like Jenny Holzer, working for years with little recognition and renumeration, social communication would be just this commercial noise and perfunctory drone. What is encouraging though is that the small stories of our lives, told as scrolling corporate art or Oprah-ordained bestseller, do ring clear and true above the perfunctory drone...the power of words.

* * *

All of which puts me on the defensive. After all, Eckhardt Tolle and Jenny Holzer touch on some of my favorite themes; I count them in my philosophical tribe.

But I can see people, some persons very close to me in fact, casting us as artsy fartsy dreamers, pretentious poets and spiritual quacks who mine our highly-developed pain-bodies to find clever, pretty ways of dissing everyone and everything. A conclusion that does not surprise me a bit.

Books and philosophy after all are not necessary factors in our closest relationships. I met my husband in a dance club and to this day my New Age predilection barely registers with him. My mother comments that my thinking is "Western", and I only vaguely understand what she means.

One of the most difficult things about publishing and writing is finding an appreciative audience. This is also one of the great things. Finding a reader who "gets it" makes it all worth it.

Virginia Woolf, for instance, is famous for novels like A ROOM OF ONE'S OWN (1929) and ORLANDO (1928) which explore the inner life of women and androgyny. But it would be hard to imagine her work finding an appreciative audience in the cultures of Asia or the Middle East. Even the Christian literalists of America might condemn her novels as corrupting to family values and the work ethic.

So leave it to the Brits to help bring Woolf's literature to mainstream culture, even as an Oscar-winning Hollywood movie, where it continues to speak to the generations.

The Gut Truth About Publishing

January 2, 2008 - SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
A new year. The fortuitous year of 2008.

Why fortuitous? The number eight has all sorts of lucky associations. For the Chinese, eight signifies wealth and prosperity.

There are a lot of other things one might wish for, of course – long-life, health and happiness, peace on Earth, a winning season for the Seattle Mariners – but wealth and prosperity definitely rank right up there.

Which brings me to the subject of publishing. I've received many submissions lately, and I'm honored that there are writers out there who take the time and care to put together some very thoughtful query packages.

But to be fair, I need to comment on publishing relative to the great boons of life, wealth and prosperity foremost among them.

* * *

The world of publishing is changing rapidly. Small bookstores are closing. Chain bookstores are reinventing themselves. General retailers are selling books. Online book retailers are selling everything. Big publishing houses are reorganizing and making movies. Self-publishing is growing. Digital print-on-demand printers are expanding. Traditional offset book printers are closing. Book distributors and wholesalers are flailing. Increasingly eyeballs are directed from books and television to the on-demand, customized offerings of the internet.

None of this is necessarily bad. Computers are changing the distribution of content. Changed distribution systems will open and close doors. No big deal.

But will the great hive mind of the internet change the nature of content in addition to distribution? I think so. Hallelujah. World peace as the consequence of freed consciousness and evolved culture. And good-bye to the mass media-created phenomenon of neurotic celebrities. Maybe we'll even score a winning season for the Mariners.

* * *

Despite the influence of the internet, however, the publishing industry is currently still key to success as an author. The best route to success as an author is still to find a well-connected friend who can lead you to an enthusiastic agent. The endorsement of your agent sets your manuscript out in the crowd and wins the moral and financial backing of a publisher. A large publisher can present and polish your work to fit into bookstore categories and reach appreciative audiences; your circle of readers will grow, and wealth and prosperity will accrue.

Or so the story goes. Content creation sites and companies are cropping up every day. Shifts in power within big media and big publishing are underway as creators explore new distribution and publicity models to achieve better financial returns and personal artistic reward.

So, for aspiring writers the options are confounding. But whether you choose self or subsidy publishing, publishing through a small house, or traditional publishing, the need to win over readers is the same. The need to create an effective vehicle or package for your material is the same.

* * *

And if you are one of those great people who sent me a query, let me extend my gratitude, and my recognition of your inspiration and courage.

Let me also offer some advice.

Don't sell yourself short. Pursue publication with a reputable, established publisher if writing as a career is your ambition.

Don't lose perspective. Be aware of the book buyer. Books are discretionary; think of the choices facing the consumer: books, braces for the kids, or new tires. I cannot emphasize this point enough.

The world of publishing is organized around established markets, particularly age groups, e.g. children, young adult and adult. Though the internet creates blended audiences, you still need to define your audience, whether it be limited to your friends and family, or extend further, for example: teenagers and adults with an environmental awareness, or all females over the age of thirteen bored with the he-man heroes of traditional romance genres.

Many publishers and imprints serve niche markets, and many prefer material that clearly fits in a category over something that is hard to categorize, however brilliant or well-presented. Innovative publishers such as ourselves will redefine current categories and pioneer new markets and categories.

Pioneering new markets includes developing different voices, and developing a dialog with prospective authors who may not necessarily fit into bookstore categories. But the author still needs to give a description of the prospective market for the work.

Understand that publishers invest in design, editing, printing, etc., and a sales level above ten thousand is necessary simply to recoup this investment. Explore the online world where even successful authors with large established publishers promote themselves daily with blogs, podcasts, and videos. Publishers need to like you, be excited by your material, and perceive you as an author with some computer savvy who can self-promote. It's a partnership, requiring a reasonable chance of return on the publisher's investment.

* * *

As you embark on your publishing journey, remind yourself of all those things that make writing worthwhile: prosperity, enduring artistic achievement, spiritual development, entertaining your friends, making new friends, contributing to culture...and...dare we say it...world peace. And who knows, we may even make the journey together

Gut Truth in an Age of Expert and Paid Information

December 18, 2007 - SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - As the the year winds down and attention turns to Christmas and vacation, a bunch of ornery points stubbornly assert themselves.

There is the issue of Finial Publishing, and this website. I find myself tackling the profound question, why? Why publish books in a world already inundated with information?

The answer to this question is simple. I want to.

I want to publish content that pushes the envelope toward something true, enjoyable, and distinctively relevant. Like young adult fiction that does not mince words about the stark realities of cultural and political divides. My gosh, politics and young adult in the same sentence!

For example, the atmosphere is whimsical and yet ominously familiar in Rowena Wright's A LOOP IN TIME, a Polis adventure. Check out the book trailer set to Marvin Gaye's classic Mercy, Mercy.



It would also be interesting to see the stories of classical mythology without the patriarchal themes and glib pseudo-historical explanations we were all taught in school. Or technology and business books that capture the latest in technical know-how and management savvy in elegant language without the geek-MBA speak.

The list goes on. But returning to our holiday good cheer, I'd like to present our 2008 calendar, free for download in this link. The card features our logo and some whimsical snowflake motifs. We like it.

Returning to the title of this newsletter, I've been pondering some very shattering gut truths as I go about my holiday preparations:

THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE (LIKE OUR CALENDAR) EXCEPT WHEN THEY AREN'T. This I decided as a culled through my medicine cabinet tossing out those nice Bextra samples my doctor gave me some five years ago. Which I didn't take. I'm a bad patient, what can I say. For those not entirely clued into the Vioxx suits, Bextra is in the same class of miracle painkillers that have been removed from the market. But now as I toss out these supposedly generous FREE samples, I have to worry about the accumulated environmental damage of everyone's disposed drugs. That leads to GUT TRUTH number two.

NOTHING EVER COMPLETELY GOES AWAY. On a nicer note, this year I have rediscovered the whereabouts of friends from more than twenty years ago. I have discovered my mother still sings songs with her sister from their days as school girls. They are both now in their sixties. Memory is long and the moments of sweetness are forever. 'Tis wonderful to be a sentient human. But come to think of it I'm sure the smallest knat has these moments of epiphany as well, which leads to GUT TRUTH number three.

SMALLER IS BETTER. Looking back on the year, I have to classify my purchases. I have discovered that the enhancements to my material comfort follow a rule: The larger the volume the greater the resulting sense of bother and buyer's remorse. We acquired a nice flat screen 42" TV this year. I know, we are behind the curve on this. This acquisition has since become a monumental albatross, consuming electricity and emanating the synthesized hooks of video games. One purchase that has brought me quite a bit of pleasure, however, is my new ping pong paddle. Since this acquistion, you will find me at our favorite local ping pong club flinging top spins at my opponents. These are real-life flesh and blood opponents who often return my deadly smashes, not computer-generated animations. Real-life is still better.

On that note, I wish you and yours all the best for the holidays and the New Year.

The Strange and Madcap World of Rowena Wright

November 23, 2006 - SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - Seattle author Rowena Wright introduces a strange and enchanting world in A LOOP IN TIME, Book One of the POLIS series. Here is some advance praise:


"For fans who desire something different in their science fiction…"

— Harriet Klausner, Amazon Top Reviewer

"Wright has clearly done her research well: as a scientist I was impressed at how accurate the science is."

— John W. Weiss, CICLOPS/Space Science Institute

"Time travel, historical scientific personages, and mythology and ancient spirituality are themes tightly woven in this very readable story. I highly recommend it..." — Euro-Reviews

"…intriguing…[Wright's] style is poetic and descriptive…"
—October 2006 Voya

Rowena Wright answers some questions about the book and the inspiration for her work, and responds to fan and reviewer comments.

Q. The book is mostly about the three kids, Ericca and her friends, Elle and Matt, trying to solve a mystery. Yet, there are chapters like The Proletarian Prince and Blind Chess which refer to issues in politics. Explain this odd combination.

Time travel, reversal of history, and the politics of war become questions in Ericca's quest for her father who was lost in a wartime situation. Magical elements — her baby blanket where deceased thinkers come alive, and a magical subway token — help present these somber themes in an optimistic and engaging way.

Q. There are many references to Egypt and the culture of pre-historic tribes. Explain how these references tie into the story and the fascination you have with ancient history.

The story introduces the idea of Ringgolds and Saplings. The idea of a pre-historic humans with longevity and intelligence superior to humans is not a new idea. In fact, mythology from all world cultures, Egyptian, Greek, Celtic, Sumerian, etc., refer to predecessors to modern humans with super-human if not godly powers, and also to intermingling and cross-breeding between mortals and immortals.

In the POLIS series, these characters bring a charming element of magic, but this magic is explained in terms of the concepts and theories of modern science.

Science and ancient history make a colorful background for fiction. The fascination of ancient history is already apparent in many of the popular books today. What is interesting is a melding of history and science where technology is a mirror of culture.

Art and artifacts have always expressed the spirit of a society. Consider the spectrum of art history: the earliest stylized cave paintings and exuberant shapes of pre-historic tribes contrast distinctly with the painstaking realism of the Greeks and Romans. The spirit of nomadic tribes in an environment where nature dominated is expressed in their art; the Greek and Roman preoccupation with a centralized infrastructure, where human power has conquered the environment is evident in the muscular, idealized images from this period. What different societies create, use and invent says something.

Q. Explain some of the references and influences for A LOOP IN TIME.

Can I say everything that has ever happened to me? I had the idea of being a writer for a long time. While developing the plot, some important ideas came to me, in part influenced by what I was reading at the time.

I am a fan of Brian Greene, but not just because his book cover has a cute picture. His books THE ELEGANT UNIVERSE and THE FABRIC OF THE COSMOS help explain some of the boldest concepts in physics. I also like Amir Azcel whose books GOD'S EQUATION : EINSTEIN, RELATIVITY, AND THE EXPANDING UNIVERSE, and FERMAT'S LAST THEOREM, also explain math and science in a clear and engaging way. I am also a fan of the website edge.org created by John Brockman, which features some mind-bending articles on science and the nature of reality. So John Weiss is absolutely right, there is a bit of research in the book.

I am also fascinated with pre-history and speculation about the origins of belief in ancient pagan cultures. There are some important ideas that are explored with the Elves in THE LORD OF THE RINGS, and other popular books (THE DA VINCI CODE, REALM OF THE RING LORDS, PEACEMAKER AND THE KEY OF LIFE, THE OLDEST EUROPEANS, etc).

A LOOP IN TIME focuses on characters whose subtle powers and connection to ancient magic help with personal problems. But these personal problems are part of larger problems that are real and familiar. Some of the events in the chapter The T-Gate, for instance, are based on Ed Cobleigh's WAR FOR THE HELL OF IT, a highly-readable, first-hand account from an American fighter pilot.

For all these references to science and war, however, A LOOP IN TIME reflects a distinctly female point of view. The book celebrates little things from the sweetness of a hand-made keepsake baby blanket to the private thrill of first attraction. This whimsical and unabashedly personal viewpoint contrasts with the mechanistic, reductionist and detached approach emphasized in politics and science.

Q. POLIS is a planned science fiction/fantasy series. Tell us about the sequel(s).

The end of A LOOP IN TIME resolves the mystery that eludes Ericca and her friends. But the Tunnel Wars are not resolved. I look forward to developing the ongoing story of Ericca and her friends. But that I suppose will depend on whether the first book catches on.

Q. There are references to motherhood, hip-hop, online social networking, feminism and fashion in the book. Are any of these references personal?

I am a mother and of course that experience has influenced me greatly. In fact, some of the motivation for writing a book about politics and science came from my kids, who are at an age where they start asking questions like Why is the sky blue?

I think teens and young adults will like the book, even though it doesn't fit easily into the young adult genre as currently defined. I'm thinking of Naomi Wolfe's New York Times article about the young adult genre. I went to high school with Naomi and we were both in the creative writing club.

Other parts of my life, including my interest in hip-hop, online social networking and fashion are there as well. The series is called POLIS and the setting for the first book is New York city, so important aspects of urban culture need to be included. Hopefully the "message" about online social networking is that there is a fascinating world of diverse characters out there, but more importantly, beware of liars!

Q. How did you become an author, and who do you hope to reach with your book?


I have always loved reading and was told early on I might consider being a writer. Now I find myself engrossed in the world I've created and I'm enjoying the process immensely. And now I'm finding with my aversion to exercise and housework, the only thing I'm qualified to do is write.

Earth Goddesses and Post-9/11 Angst

October 5, 2006 - SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - Finial Publishing announces the publication of A LOOP IN TIME, first of the new POLIS series of science fiction/fantasy books.

The Seattle publisher comments, "We are excited by this book for melding many contemporary themes into an entertaining but highly-relevant read."

There are science fiction elements like time travel and charming magical items. There is an imaginary world where characters have supernatural powers. But the divisive and protracted Tunnel Wars involving both the ageless Ringgolds and the mortal Saplings inevitably evokes issues that are very familiar.

A central figure in the story is Ericca Ludwig. But this is not the typical "girl" story. Ericca is not a girl concerned with dating and designer labels. She is preoccupied with regaining her father, Branch Archer, who was lost in the Tunnel Wars. On top of that, she hangs out with some real geeks, two long-deceased thinkers named Albert and Leonardo who exist as talking bobble heads in her baby blanket.

Ericca Ludwig is really the antithesis of the typical young-adult or chick-lit character. Naomi Wolf comments on disturbing trends in popular teen literature on Oprah. Ericca's nemesis is Tory Skye, the fashionable daughter of a property tycoon who sashays around Manhattan in the company of her pet Pomeranian and delineates the gulf between the fortunate and the less-fortunate. As Ericca, her blanket, and her friends pursue clues to locate Branch, they experience an enchanting and madcap adventure, stumbling upon ancient Egyptian and Scythian art, an unlikely Web romance, and a hidden wing in the New York library. But ultimately, in the circumstances of Branch's death, the choices that distinguish the lucky from the unlucky are poignantly illustrated.

The author comments,"I love that Ericca and her friends inhabit a world where earth goddesses are taken seriously, and that they are engaged with the community and its issues; rather than personifying the cynical, effortless, frothy existence glamorized in much of the contemporary fiction geared to young women."

Fans of Tolkien will note similarities between the Ringgolds and the immortal Elves of the Ring series. Rowena Wright, a Tolkien fan, acknowledges this influence but also points to John Pinsent's book GREEK MYTHOLOGY, especially an excerpt describing the Five Ages of Man from Greek myth. John Pinsent writes:

...The first race...was of gold...They lived like gods, without labour and pain. They did not suffer from old age, but died as if falling asleep...The fifth..is the race of iron...because mens' hearts were hard as iron...[and] never by day cease from toil and woe, nor by night from being worn.


Archaeologists now reveal ancient gold art from the time of the Mycenaeans predating the Greeks. The Mycenaeans are associated with the ancient Minoans of Crete, whose art is stylistically likened to the abstract and swirling designs of the Celts and Scythians. These were the cultures of the original earth goddesses.

But art and myth are more than just color in a pretty cocoon. Rowena Wright notes a comment from C.S. Lewis from 1947. C.S. Lewis, an associate of Tolkien, and the author of the Narnia series, also wrote THE ABOLITION OF MAN wherein he comments, "Man's conquest of Nature turns out, in the moment of its consummation, to be Nature's conquest of Man." Even today we wonder about his work: eco-feminism, Christian allegory, or pretty children's fantasy?

Advance publicity for A LOOP IN TIME includes a review in the October 2006 VOYA.
Find A LOOP IN TIME on Powells.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Alibris.com, Amazon.com and other retailers. The book is also available through wholesalers including Ingram, Baker & Taylor, YBP, and BWI Books. Publicity events are planned for the upcoming months. Ebook and audio format versions of the book are also planned.

A LOOP IN TIME is the first of the POLIS series of contemporary fantasy books. Adult Fiction, Young Adult Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Mythopoeic Fantasy, Science Fiction ISBN-13 978-1-933791-07-4, 1-933791-07-1 Paperback; ISBN-13: 978-1-933791-08-1, 1-933791-08-X Hardcover, 291 pages. Library of Congress Card Number: 2006017919. CIP data available.

Order A LOOP IN TIME  from:

Elliottbaybook.com
Amazon.com
Barnesandnoble.com
Target.com
Blackwell.com
Waterstones.com

In ebook format at

Mobipocket.com
Amazon.com Kindle edition
Diesel-ebooks.com