Lenders: The Unlicensed Consciousness by Travis Borne

7/2/2018

Debut author, Travis Borne introduces us to his epic, intergalactic journey, Lenders: The Unlicensed Consciousness:
When dreaming becomes an occupation...but it’s no picnic and what must be done is not for the faint of heart. Very few can do it successfully, or stomach it, until Amy comes along. She's special, but not for any reason you’d imagine.
Jump twenty-five years into the future where the last of humanity survives in the last city, a quaint town surrounded by a great wall. Science is limited, except in the facility where technology stabilizes the world of dreams, where consciousness itself is harvested in exchange for protection.
When the unexpected happens Jim is faced with a gut-wrenching decision that could change everything. But it’s what his malcontent self had always wanted, right? Travel beyond the solar system, through wormholes, into The NOTHING—The SOMETHING as some call it, then explode out; to the edge of the universe, realms unrecognizable—and depending on his choice, possibly into a world of doom purposed for the unimaginable. But is this really just a dream, a MAP as labeled by Ted and the other scientists?
Journey into a vast desert with mezcal-drinking Felix in his clunker pickup where secrets run deep. Meet Mister Quain Renmore in a world unimaginable; he wants to disclose more than he's allowed to—beware of his slaps and kicks. Push the boundaries of the system, testing its limits with newfound powers. Will it burst through causing the ultimate surge, or is it already too late? And will it even be enough to save them—the drone army has already punched through the defenses! Head to the safe room, pack in tight while Amy, Jim, and the lenders battle against all odds to pull off the impossible.
Experience the beginning where it all started, 25 years ago. Powerful companies race to develop AI, and one man with a prescience greater than your typical mortal manages something special by working nearly 20 hours per day. He's rudely blunt and tells it like it is. But can he tear down the walls that hold him prisoner to a world of hate? Will he realize, he doesn't have to go through this alone. Hatred forged from years of abuse and mockery, once a nerd but now a king, haunted by terrible speculations of a perspicacious mind he knows things will take a turn for the worse and decides to unfold a chair, pop open a beer and watch it all burn, but now...has everything changed? He finds someone special across the border in Mexico, but can newfound love assuage the demons raging war inside his mind. His immense mental capability is balanced by a terrible trio that bullies his rational and sanity.
With a select group of friends and a rescued heart, will he alter the plans? While there can be no stopping the coming destruction, could he and his team pull it off anyway? Maybe, with the assistance of another very special mind.
Horrific terrors delivered to your spine, encounter myriad dream worlds, learn lessons from goodhearted characters like old Nanny at the fair, laugh at red-headed Myron, Amy’s wacky chainsaw-wielding school buddy going ballistic on tourists in the canyon map. Cry when new love is born, also cry when trust is shattered.
A warning to all readers: attempt to retain your lucidity while things snowball for civilization, fires rage, and volcanoes vomit. Bear witness to mass destruction on a comprehensive scale—but just as the lights are about to go out for good: along comes Jim, Amy, Rico, and the lenders, assisted by head scientist Ted—in the future; Herald, the love of his life, and his friends—in the past. Can Herald and his team outrun the approaching nightmare in the hover-jet? Can Amy and Jim slip through where all others have failed? Will a species prove itself worthy? Will a beacon for intergalactic assistance be heard, and if so will it arrive in time to save the final stragglers?

Woo hoo! I haven’t been on such a wild ride in a long time! There is so much I want to say about this book. However, I am committed to a policy of no spoilers! (Maybe)
First, Travis is definitely a journeyman word wrangler, especially considering this is his first novel! He is very expert at assembling descriptions, scene setting and dialog!
Second, his plotting is marvelous! Just when I thought I might lose a thread he finds a way to bring it back into focus.
Third, there are many major and minor characters, and he keeps them all in line and performing solidly. Even the AI and then robots keep the action going, sometimes at breakneck speeds.
Fourth, there were quite a few times when I could barely close my Kindle. I don’t stay up late anymore without good reason and Travis gave me more than I could handle.
Fifth, I found the ending very satisfying and it left me wanting the next book. “Lenders 2: The Time Tribulations”, you heard it here first!
If you like sci-fi, if you enjoy works about a post-apocalyptic future, if you make jokes about robot overlords, this large-scale techno-thriller is for you!
This is the best book I have read this year. Sci-fi is my favorite genre, I am going to give it a score of 5.1 stars, on a 5-point scale. Yes, I know, I cheated. Read the book yourself and tell me I am wrong.
EDIT: As of December 9, 2018, this book has been rewritten and re-published in the Kindle format. It is so much better than the previous edition! My mind is blown again! What until you read "Lenders 2: The Time Tribulations"! The awesomeness continues!

You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Lenders-Unlicensed-Consciousness-Travis-Borne-ebook
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40182962-lenders
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/lenders
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lenders-travis-borne

You can follow Travis Borne:
https://twitter.com/Travis_Borne
http://travisborne.com
https://www.facebook.com/Lenders
https://www.facebook.com/borneworlds

Tags: dystopian, drones, killer drones, wormhole, artificial intelligence, lucid dreams
Here is the link to the review of Lenders 2: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/lenders-ii-the-time-tribulations-the-lenders-saga-book-2-by-travis-borne
Copyright © 2018 Mark L Schultz except for the author's introduction

33 Comments

Travis Borne link

7/3/2018 08:12:33 pm

Curious, Mark. Which chapter was your favorite? Or like me, the top ten because I have decided it's impossible to have just one favorite, although I do have a favorite entire section: Part III, then Part V

Mark

7/3/2018 09:09:30 pm

I don't exactly have a favorite, but the first scene that jumped to my mind was when Amy was hiding in the junkyard as a little girl. Your description of her feelings and what she was experiencing left quite an imprint. I also enjoyed Amy as a dreamer, her ingenuity impressed my a great deal. Your descriptions of the drones attacking the city were quite scary, the drones were so methodical and creative.
My turn with a couple of questions.
Were you born to write or did you just want to learn the craft?
What experience first taught you about the power of words to influence people?

7/3/2018 09:45:34 pm

I hated English. It was my worse subject in school. I was the math guy, really though, the resourceful guy who could achieve As and Bs by cheating and not trying. I broke out of school like a prisoner from Alcatraz, as fast as possible, then was ignited by life and partied until all hell broke loose, then fell apart.
It wasn't until I'd learned myriad things (not unlike you or anyone). Coding, graphics, programming some more, maybe a little hacking, and then Facebook came out. It was a new channel to express myself. I'd type clever shit and realized, because a few friends said it, that I was 'articulate' or whatever that meant. Hell, I couldn't even spell the word 'tomarrow' right and my grammar was that of a second grader. Really.
Then, tragedy, the worst day of my life. I lost him. Murphy my golden retriever. We were so close. It was so sudden. He was gone and I was a complete, stupid idiot. It was all my fault, and I died inside. I saw him at night, and in my dreams, and thought maybe he was still there, that maybe by some weird possibility I could turn back the hands of time. But I couldn't.
I'd have to live with it.
It hurt. Then I awoke one day, a few day later.
Those clever Facebook posts, some were neat lil' stores, sure, and some could articulate a rival into a mole hole. I was mean sometimes, a real political winner, a my-only viewpoint master of manipulation. But it changed. I changed.
I said I'm gonna write, stories. I remember sitting up in bed that morning and saying it out loud. Life change. And this wasn’t long ago. Use the power of articulation wisely, do not belittle others, take your stories hardcore, just like all other passions in your life. My says it, I’m an extremest, always pushing everything to the max, and just why Murphy died. But I was going to push this, push it just the same. Somethings really are out of my control. Stop blaming yourself, Travis. Push it like you always have. Make it happen, shock everyone (a cool phrase I saw somewhere).
Anyway, I bought a cheap Dell laptop from a flea market and spent six months letting it just seethe, and learned to type—the right way.
After six I went outside, daily. And damn is was hot in that trailer. I wrote Lenders in my concession trailer with a swamp cooler blowing me away. It was holy-moly, holy-shit hot. And I was that second grader and the writing sucked—although the plot was, I thought, magnificent. My years of studying lucid dreaming, and living, being crazy as hell, working like a worker in hell, myriad jobs, my experiences in Mexico, in the Army, paid off, perhaps.
It came quick. Really quick. I'd learned to code by going hardcore, too, reading entire forums from front to back, then back to front, actually doing the exercises, doing the exercises in big fat books, and this was not a single thing new. Just put in the work, go extreme—it's what I did. Just sat, or stood, and did it.
I burned alive in that trailer. Then moved to Colorado, and I froze like a Popsicle, and Lenders Saga one, minus the last chapter, was finished.
I wrote the last one, 6K words, in one morning, right on the dinner table. Later I cut it in half, and the brick was done.
Looking back, I would have done things differently. I would have paid attention in school—but then, would it really have turned out the sam. Life is suffering, mistakes are the essence of life, and the end result can sometimes come together in expected, and sometimes great, ways. The bad, the pain, can become something wonderful. And it’s not always your fault, and you don’t always have to go at everything alone—but you do have to decide, then just do it. Sit or stand, and do it.

7/3/2018 09:55:06 pm

That is am impressive story. You found a talent and taught yourself how to maximize it and leverage it. It sounds like there is a lot of you in your stories. Your experiences with the different locales translated well into your book.
Did you have to do very much research for Lenders 1 or 2?
When you write now, do you need peace and quiet or something to concentrate against?
Do you have a lucky charm for writing?

7/3/2018 10:16:10 pm

No research. Well, maybe a few places, such as coming over the San Jacinto Mountains, just north of Yuma, AZ. I'd never been there. But most was stuff I’d done, or studied already, such as the lucid dreaming (as explained in the Author’s Rambles section of the book)—and the partying, yes, even the drugs. Should I say that? But who cares? We’ve all did crazy stuff. Rab in the club, his back tale, well, just wait until you read Lenders II. Really!
Nothing special, though. I’m a Gemini, too frivolous to even decide on a tattoo. But I would usually listen to rock music while writing. And I find first-draft mode to be exhilarating, like being awake, yet in a dream. And I think maybe I like that best, although many details are brought forth in 2nd and 3rd, or even 4th-draft edits.
It’s a weird style perhaps, too. But what do I know. I’d write chapter, and then edit it to 2nd draft, and I call 3rd/4th as the next pass, where some more magic happens, maybe—or I hack it and have to fix it.
So no, no special charm, besides just putting in the time, making the time at cost of other important things in life. Sometime I wish I could actually slow down, balance it out a bit more, spend the right amount of time with my kids. I try, but it’s still a constant battle. Like now, I said we’d watch a movie together, but here I am. I’m horrible. Better turn it off now.
PS. As of writing this Lenders II is 82 chapter done, 38 to go! And it is coming out amazing, if I might say so myself!
Good night!

7/3/2018 10:35:36 pm

Your style of writing seems rather unique, but I have only interviewed ten or so writers, so I have a lot to learn still. You are right, time is the most precious aspect of our lives, it's always moving, we can't save it and can only choose how we spend it.
Kids need a lot of our time. How many and how old are your kids?
What is the most important piece of advice another writer has given you?
Do you have writer friends to bounce ideas off of?

Erinn Price link

7/4/2018 09:47:45 am

Hi Travis,
When you made your decision to write, what kept you going? Many people want to write, but they just can not take that final step and actual write and finish a book. What drove you to finish it and then publish it?

7/4/2018 10:42:19 am

Erinn, not sure. Just went full steam ahead. Took it on because I made the vow to myself, needed the change—really really needed something, although I wasn’t at the time sure of what, and if it was even the right path. But none of it was done in a day. I sat learning to type (the right way) on an old swap-meet Dell for months before heading into my trailer (the quiet office away from the chaotic harmony of my family). And there were like anything else, good days and bad, days where the brain might as well have been a pile of grey crap, and days where I was Einstein, or even a god.
I might suggest a book, though, one that stuck with me. It’s The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, by Charles Duhigg. Start small, write for only 5 or 10 minutes a day at the same time every day. Give it about two weeks time and the habit will ingrain itself. Then bump it up a notch. Go 15, 20, 30 minutes. The power of habit really is remarkable.
Also, don’t worry about anything. I felt like a second grader when I started, hadn’t a clue and the words might as well have been written by a toddler. But it came. And relatively soon, just by staying hot on it with my new *habit*, I got better. I got comfortable. And I guess after that, I stayed with it because the world I was creating, was coming alive.

7/4/2018 10:29:45 am

Mark, my family is the best part of life. They keep me grounded when my mind goes haywire, when the pressure of life is crushing, when it gets tough, and it does, does it ever. I have four kids. Todd, age 5: his energy is boundless. Jess, age 11: her creativity is unrivaled and she never forgets someone’s special day, e.g. birthday, etc., always drawing a beautiful card. And Niel, age 17: caring, emotional, helpful; and my first born, John, now age 20: brainiac, perfectionist, will probably be president one day. We live together and I could probably write a novel about us, make that ten novels, but what family couldn’t. Must just say, I love ’em all, as well my wife of 21 years who has always been by number-one supporter.
Your second question, well, not sure. Maybe my writing is unique—if it is—because really, I’m not a reader, never been one, and had to force myself to read and find the time for it. I do feel I've forced this new life, which, I am happening to completely and totally love. And moving forward, needing less and less force—and now, hardly any at all. It calls me daily. Write, write, write. A world has been created; there’s real living people in there!
I’d tinkered with code (still do), switching things around, dissecting little programs just to see how things work (my so-called *hacking*), optimizing, minimizing code blocks. I write add-ons (macros) for graphics software, namely CorelDraw, and design websites using PHP/MySQL. Just opened a book taught myself, then, and changed my life in doing so.
The same way I suppose I changed my life when I began writing stories. Just sat and started, pouring out the life experience and letting it twist with my weird dreams. What evolved surprised me more than any, perhaps. Putting the words together, optimizing and minimizing for the most powerful punch, was in a way, no different than coding.
Instead of learning functions, methods, properties, I took on words (finally, yes, I know). Learning to spell, grammar—for what did a graphics guy, coder need with any of that, besides just some basics? And I fell for it. The etymology of every word, its history—I found myself knee deep a the world that’d been beneath my nose all this time.
For advice, I suppose it was just from reading, hot, hot, HOT. A glint of notables… I loved and still it’s one of my favs: Building a Better Vocabulary by Kevin Flanigan, The Great Courses. And there were myriad more one after another, vocabulary, how to write, etc. Some were fantastic, like Stein on Writing, some I did not particularly like, such as On Writing by William Zinsser. On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft book, by Stephen King, was superb. Like anyone, I chose. I picked what I wanted to place in my toolbox.
Then I dove into the etymology of words (and I know some of you reading this are laughing, but better late than never). Hiking tons, running, working out in the back yard with the ol’ 80s speaker hooked to my ol’ iPod, or the earbuds blaring—WORDS! I listened to tons of book and took notes. Just like when I began coding, I read all I could, the whole dictionary of code from beginning to end and back again. And just wrote daily. All that was my advice because I didn’t start interacting with other writers until after it was published. I’ve only been on Twitter for about four months now and now love talking with others who have experienced their own “wake up,” or life change, and of course the veterans who’ve been writing forever.
Now, Mark, my turn! Enough about me. I must know. How did you become such a talented proofreader? You’re a true superman, a hawk with a magic eye.

7/4/2018 08:30:47 pm

Thank you for sharing so much of your writing journey and how you developed it from the ground up. I love that story. That is quite a process, teaching yourself to appreciate words like you did code. Then educating yourself by reading, reading and more reading.
Your family sounds great!
We have three, girl, boy, girl. Our baby has given us three talented grand-daughters.
My mother was a reader, I think reading was in my genes. I learned to read before the first grade, and never looked back. Growing up on a small non-working farm in a small town, there was little for me to do. Reading was my favorite form of entertainment. I could get lost in a dictionary for an hour or two easily.
I discovered a sensitivity to spelling errors during the college years. I got a job working for a firm of engineers in the contract department. In the early 70s, typewriters were used, no computers. Correction tape was a huge thing! I was better at finding the errors than the others in the department. They jump off the page as I read, I don't have to go looking for them. As they say, now you know the rest of the story.
Is there any form of Kryptonite that totally interrupts your writing?
Is there a hidden message for anyone or any group in your book?
If a new writer were to ask you what was the most important thing you learned in the publishing process, how would you answer them?

7/5/2018 06:32:43 pm

That is so interesting, Mark. I loved hearing the back story to your gift. I look forward to us working together for years to come. With Lenders II soon! I just finished a 4th or 5th (I lost count) draft pass on chapter 83 as I type this.

Kryptonite? Not really as far as first-draft mode goes, however, my state of mind at the time affects how much editing will be needed later. Right now, work is probably the largest factor that affects me in getting writing done. I work seven days a week and am on the edge of burn-out at any given time. The most difficult days can affect my brain for two. I fight depression with a morning run and exercise; the smiles from my kids are heaven.
Usually I get a chance to write after dinner, from 7 p.m. until about ten, before my one flask of tequila (my favorite—I like Sauza) or whiskey (when our budget comes crashing down—LTD or R&R) knocks me out cold. Without that BTW, up all night and I cannot force myself or my brain to stop.
Props to my wife. She works with me and so hard. We joke about it, saying to ourselves that we really, really need a vacation—it’s been years since. We dream about it and discuss what we’d do if we had a week off, even one day. That, really, is the one chunk of Kryptonite that stops these stories from flooding out one after another. It’s not easy being a small business owner—props to those out there working to the bone and squeezing by, families or anyone working to make ends meet.
But, it might be a good thing, too, as sick as that may sound. When life is pressing and times are tough, keeping the fridge full for a family of six, dreaming of not having to worry—it brings out the demons. You have read Lenders Saga One so you probably understand me better than most, Mark. (As I say, to understand me read my fiction).
Writing is an outlet for the pain of life and I write most times while sipping that flask—plus one extra, maybe two, or maybe that knockout third, sockdolager of a shot. And the demons of life itself translate directly into my stories, as well the little unexpected things and mundane tidbits filling the days of a working man and the love of his life. There’s some chapters in Lenders II, Mark, that I think are going to blow your mind! And sometimes I wonder how much less it would be, LENDERS I or LENDERS II, if I we were comfortable. I know it would be less.

Hidden messages in the novel? Yeah, probably tons. There’s stuff that can blow a mind right of the top of its head. You know it. It’s the future of humanity, one possible future; but as I disclosed at the beginning of LENDERS, *just* science fiction.
But it’s also a message of love; tears had fallen from my eyes while writing it, and I felt the characters’ pain, rage, and humanity’s good side when everyone came together for what truly matters. Strife, struggle, survival for good, against all evil. And I burst out laughing while typing away, sitting at the dinner table, and my family looked back at me, and I laughed harder and longer and it was contagious, and they said, “What? What’s so funny?” And we all laughed and I told them what just happened in the story.
And there’s a million smaller messages like those in Amy’s dreamworlds with the lenders she spent time with individually. Nanny, Lia, Jim, even wacky little chainsaw-wielding Myron—but I don’t want to spoil it by directly saying anything.
And Herald, oh geez, where do I begin. But I truly must not say, for part two is gonna be a game changer—they are all back!

New writers advice, from me, Mark? Well then, I’ll take it to second person. I’d say it’s gonna be hard, harder than you thought and never count your chickens. Work, work, make the time for it and always find some time for your family even if you are literally working yourself to the bone. It could be a long wait, too, and there’s tons of marketing needed, and trust no one. Just because the publisher has good reviews and a fancy website, doesn’t mean squat. Ask around from others who have used the publisher. And if you are going to self-publish don’t be bullied into giving your hard work away for free, even in the name of a big company’s so-called advice. You are worth it, each and everyone of you.

One of my peeves, and Mark knows, is the *big companies* taking advantage of new writers. The companies still get theirs through every step… I say they should step up, say: We will no longer advise writers to promote their hard work for free—then set a minimum wage so-to-speak, for tangible products are not simply given away in this manner. Just because it can be, your hard work formed as something that can be delivered electronically, a virtual world in a bottle, doesn’t mean it should be free. But what do I know. I am subjective on this point. It’s just how I feel in my h

7/5/2018 06:39:46 pm

...It’s just how I feel in my heart. My opinion, like a you know what.
Some will laugh or mock, but I do care. You asked, Mark. Writers, aspiring or veteran, you rock! Advice…? Write on! Others might treat you like it’s not actual work, or just a hobby—no. Listen to me, what matters is the passion in which you’ve chosen to immerse yourself. Stay at it. Follow your dreams. Construct useful, powerful habits. Do it. Make it happen!

7/5/2018 08:57:04 pm

I am looking forward to working with you also. I am very excited about Lenders 2.
That's some great advice to a new writer! Hard work and dedication to writing is essential. Lots of writers never finish that first draft. If you don't get it on paper, it will never be edited or printed!
Alcohol seems to help you. When I am proofing I have to be sober. I can't even have a beer.
I know that you are an entrepreneur. Would share about your business or businesses?
Do you have any beta readers or critique partners?
Do you have any friends or family that might recognize themselves in any of your characters?
Do you need to base your characters on real people or can you develop them completely from your imagination?

7/5/2018 10:02:31 pm

Ha. It does, but a drink here and there, only after 7 p.m., is only a part of the package I suppose. Some is done sober, some is done ‘winding’ down. Each mode it has it’s own unique result and there’s magic in each, but I hear you about proofing while under the influence, it can be a detriment; best each part of the process is done in the right state of mind.
Jobs? Well, I’ve been self-employed for a long time. Before settling into what I do now I had myriad jobs: US Army, mechanic, brick-layer, road work, forklift driver at a marina in Florida, boat painter/mechanic, Golden Corral, Burger King, car-audio/alarm installer, and the list goes on and on and on. A lot of reckless partying too, in the early days. Drugs, living life as if there really was no tomorrow. Much of that is the pith of some great experiences for writing, though, as I’m finding out. Lots of characters, scenes, and twisted, excuse the curse, mind-fuck worlds (Chapters: 25. Club Subterranean; 26. Thought Energy; 27. Blue-gel Teeter-totter). What’d you think of those, Mark? Really though, what is possible and what has and hasn’t happened in my life—well, I won’t point out the specifics but it could pop a mind out of a brain here and there (that was goofy, haha—and yes, still sober right now, 7:10 p.m. here in Colorado).
Anyway, after becoming ‘the’ go-to car-audio and alarm guy in the 90s, and starting a business doing just that, I moved on to graphics. Lots of hard work for two decades and still at it. CorelDraw was the software of choice and I began writing add-ons for graphics software somewhere in the middle of that chunk of time. Loved it. Loved coding. PHP, MySQL, databases, the works. Made a lot of stuff, websites, apps, and still sell ’em today. Coding was like writing is now. I’d sit and create stuff and it was utterly wonderful, then ‘wonder’ where the hours went.
Business was fantastic for a time. It was easier to make money back then, I think. Weekends we set up at trade shows, flea markets, events, the works, selling graphics. Rain, snow, 108° outside, screw it, we were truly die hard. Family business. We had several cars and tons of stuff.
Then business went sour, about a year after Obamacare kicked in. Flea markets are half the size now, with half the spenders, spending half the money. I remember it clearly. It was 2014 and we moved back to Texas to be closer to my wife’s family for a time—then Murphy died. All changed about 30 days beyond that. I went deep into my mind and wasn’t the same for a while. Pain. I hurt, cried inside. I still cry. And business fell on its face. It’s been unstable since. I’m not blaming Obamacare, either. Let keep this clean. But I do recall clients complaining about high premiums, especially those with a larger family. No buying extras, tighter budgets, tough times, no money for extras. We’ll stay on track though.
Since, we lost a lot; things are still tough now, today. Nothing left to sell and been writing since 8 months after Murphy died in 2014. (Remember, I had to learn to type the right way first). Work is work. What can I say. We could each respond to this question with a glob of words, big ups, sometimes terrible downs. Life happens to us all. It’s fabulous; it can be hard. It can uplift. It can crush.

Beta Readers, critique partners? I have my wife, I love her. God, I love her. Been married 21 years! And yep, she gets to read everything first. She’s my number-one supporter. Also, I made small secret Face book group. It has 11 people. Friends, family. I spill some details occasionally, where I’m at, progress, etc... Sometimes I get feedback from them too. And I’m humbly grateful. I’ve since minimized my stuff, material possessions, and I am seeing life for what truly matters. Although it gets tough, the gratefulness, gratitude, and love is stronger than ever. We all have our demons, but I must admit, I am a demon ass-kicker!

Characters? Really just winging it and I do all of my own editing (learned a ton by editing a f…k-ton!). E.g. one character. Like Amy in Lenders, she had learned to read at an early age. My mom said I had too, and I would always wake and articulate about my dreams first thing, just like Amy (Lenders, chapter 93). So I’m like her in part, perhaps, and many of my characters are a part of me and have grown to blossom in their very own life, as if they really are alive, changing, evolving. Like us all. We live, we learn, we become something we probably had never imagined we could.
Some characters are on the fly, some start as parts of a memory, and some are a part of my own character. And the result is anyone’s guess, even mine. They live now, right now. And you can read them and turn them on at any time!
Now, Mark. My turn again. Your top three favorite books. Books that have perhap

7/5/2018 10:03:49 pm

(cutting me off, here's the end)
Now, Mark. My turn again. Your top three favorite books. Books that have perhaps, changed your life.

7/5/2018 10:23:08 pm

I certainly can see some of you in Rab/Herald. But I didn't expect that parts of you would seep into other characters, even Amy. It certainly makes sense now.
You didn't say anything about your vinyl business, it is the current one. I was hoping to learn more.
Three books that may have changed my life. I have to start with the Holy Bible. The next one would be Dale Carnegie, his "How to Win Friends and Influence People" was a serious boost in me overcoming a speech impediment, stammering. I gained a lot of confidence in public speaking also by taking a course of his.
Books that have stuck with me. The LOTR and The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien, Foundation Trilogy by Asimov, and a little known sci-fi trilogy by CS Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet. These three books are at the top of my list for different reasons, I read them all in the previous century, before computers and the internet.
Do you ever read your books out loud, why or why not?
How many drafts of Lenders 1 did you do?
Were there any large parts that were edited out?

7/6/2018 09:33:50 pm

I began reading the Bible, Mark. Got about 25% in. I plan on finishing it one day for sure. It is a book, like many, that needs to be read several times in order to be better understood. I’ve never read any LOTR, and don’t really plan on it, but I am interested in the Dale Carnegie book you mentioned. I will check it out. One of my top-favs of this year is 12 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson.
I don’t read any out loud. I would like to, but time is limited. And I want to do the audio for Lenders myself. ‘Tugs collar’ I thing my voice would be perfect for it, that and knowing the storyline so extremely well.
Drafts? I really didn’t count, but it was a few, and I know my style is highly abnormal perhaps, a style I’ve come to sit in like a cheap recliner that’s worth more than a million-dollar one.
Cuts? Not really, as you can probably tell. Although the knife did get a dabble here and there. I have even the very first drafts saved. One which, I had fast published using Create Space so my insiders could quick snatch a copy. I ordered every one, then unpublished quickly. I thought I had gotten them all but one dude must’ve snuck in and snagged a copy; that’s the one bad review. He reviewed my first draft! But it did work to get fast copies to my insiders.
Though, yes, I thought of cutting the hot-air-balloon chapter with Fran and Nanny, or The Reef, with Alex and Trixie, but as you will see, they come in with high importance for Lenders II.
Can I say again? Watch out world! Lenders II is another four novels in one. A massive, massive saga that is every bit as good as part one. I am confident some publishers who didn’t respond to me are going to be kicking their own asses when they realize the buckeroos they could have made! Mark, you are gonna love it!

7/6/2018 09:56:21 pm

The Bible is a well read book. I read on Quora, some time back, that Shakespeare quoted the Bible well over 1200 times.
I think your audio of Lenders might come off well. You know it so well, of course. Would you just read it verbatim or would you turn it into theater of the mind?
Why didn't you set up a Dropbox with that first draft and tell them 48 hours to grab it? That may have protected the first draft better.
One bad review is actually a good thing, it validates the other good reviews!
More questions.
Do you think self-publishers can make a book as good as traditional publishers? Why or why not?
Are using any other social media to sell your book besides Twitter?

7/6/2018 10:18:42 pm

Audio of Lenders. I’d make the craziest show of it. Really. I’d roar and cry, even scream and howl. It would be—ooh I have some whiskey in me and’d love to throw a colorful metaphor—fun. Fun, fun, fun!
Q2. I did a fast first draft with Create Space because most didn’t and wouldn’t use Kindle. You know Kindle has about a bad a rap as PayPal. I get customers weekly who say, I don’t have PayPal, or I don’t use PayPal, not knowing that PayPal is just a payment processor like any other, only with the option to have an account too! Same with Kindle. Many think you need a Kindle device, like some sort of weird tablet, the old days. So I did it with paper. Clever. Not. Backfire. But yeah, I see your point, maybe! Sure!
Yes. I think self publishers can make a book better than those who have had an entire team of editors and spent thousands upon thousands—those who, perhaps…write first draft, pay ten thousand, screw it, twenty, another ten to twenty or thirty, or fifty, on marketing, boom bestseller! But times are changing. People want what’s real, now more than ever. They spot the grit, and feel it, understand it on a new and ever-changing level. The big publishers know this, and it’s currently and all-out scramble for salvation. I believe they are working harder than ever to stay atop their game, and soon the dominoes will fall. What’s coming next, and I mustn’t slip for it’s the idea for a next and totally different, new novel, is going to change this entire planet forever, irreparably. No going back. Perhaps for good, perhaps bad.
Facebook. Yeah. I'm there. It’s not pulling its weight, though, and I like the people I meet on Twitter. Anywhere else, not really. I hired a marketing specialist. She stopped responding to my emails after launch day and lots of stuff never got done. Basically she told me to get on Twitter, and said the site I made, looked good, and had me join a hundred FB groups, and post in them—turned out to be shit—flop. All for over a thousand bucks I didn’t have. My family about starved for a time; we went through some really, really tough times a while back—and I had been straight with he up front about my current situation. But I’m not looking back. And as per my advice earlier. Do not trust anyone.

7/6/2018 11:54:13 pm

When I first decided to get serious about my business, retirement from construction was looming, I tried to connect with authors on FB and LinkedIn. Both were a bust for me. Now, there are lots of authors on FB. I have joined a few. But all of my contacts and business have come from Twitter.
That person sure didn't do much for you! I wonder how many other authors have been screwed over like that.
More questions.
Have you thought about a book trailer? Would you make it yourself or sub it out?
What famous person, dead or alive, would you most like to meet? Same question for an author?

7/7/2018 03:55:35 pm

The prior response was with whiskey. See the difference—it brings out the demons. But I usually get them suppressed by morning. A two-mile run usually does the trick.
But jokes aside, sorry it didn’t work out for you in the early days with FB, but seems you made it just dandy, and Twitter really seems the way to go for you. Personally I’m loving the people I have met on Twitter so far. So many creative minds, intelligent people who blow my mind—and you’re asking *me* the questions! They’re probably reading this and saying…what! Or laughing. The talent out there is truly mind boggling. Props to all you guys!
But, just being me. My wife says I talk too much. When I walk the flea market I end up with long conversations with everyone, friends, acquaintances, and people I’ve just met. Love it. Meeting new down-to-earth people is what I’m all about.
And yeah, there are some bummers and I could go on with other tales about the process of getting Lenders from A to Z, some I’m still dealing with, some pressing me into the floor, a real backpack of rocks. It is not easy that’s for sure. And that’s why Lenders II might just be a self-pub. And I’ll do the cover myself. I could have the whole thing published in one morning! I’ve always been the hardcore DIY’er and had decided I don’t always have to go at everything alone—and now I’m once again swaying toward the latter. Loner for life. Do what ya gotta do. No money, no help; the sad truth of this world.
Q1. Book trailer? I haven’t thought about it, Mark. Really just keeping things running here as far as business is concerned, along with my wife, we’re managing the Sisyphean task that is keeping food on the table for our kids. And of course, devoting as much time nightly for finishing Lenders two, then finally a moment with the family—we put on a short show and watch it together, or play a board game.
BTW, as of yesterday I finished five chapters. I’m up to 89 of about 120 (editing 3rd-4th draft for those who don’t know), and totally ecstatic because I love the ending (or should I say endings—Mark knows what I’m tailing about).
“…you are now arriving to the TOP of this roller-coaster peak. Be prepared! The final thirty chapters are a rush. They’ll send your hair back, head back, and might just pop it from your neck!”
Back to Earth. And I will look into your info on that, Mark. Thanks.

The last two questions are tough. I am not religious but I always say it would have to be Jesus. The man who changed the world more than any other, and I’d bring some beers and sit with him and his friends and we’d chat while watching the sun set. And you?
Author. That’s even tougher, as you know now I am not the most hardcore reader—well, maybe I am now at least closer (I read about half to a quarter as much as you). When I stop the daily grind and can relax a little, end these 7-day work weeks then I surely will read more. But if I had to pick, hmmm….
I’d pick someone from Twitter. Someone who interacts with me a lot, someone who knows I’m a tad crazy and is also a tad crazy. A creative thinker who uses many colorful metaphors and has out-of-this-world adventures going on in their head at any given moment. Some who isn’t famous, and probably doesn’t want to be. I’d pick a regular guy or gal, someone who probably should be famous in the place of someone who is actually famous and shouldn’t be. I’m more interested in meeting a regular hardworking person, a vendor at the flea market or the person taking my order at Burger King. I’m not at all interested in meeting anyone famous or successful just because of that reason. So for now, I’ll say, I’d like to meet you.
And if it just has to be a writer, how about author Ellie Douglas. She really (I mean really, really) supports fellow authors on Twitter and I’ve read her book The Dead Undone. It’s insane.
Can I add one more… I’ve been friends with author Jeff Wright for about five years and have read at least 5 of his books including Yeti 1 and 2. He’s a really down-to-earth, a cool guy, and a wonderful author.
And you, Mark?

7/7/2018 05:05:21 pm

Night and day! Almost Jekyll and Hyde. I love your answers, you are sharing so much of yourself.
Of course, you are teasing me without mercy about Lenders 2, I am trying hard not to drool on the keyboard!
Great pick for a famous person. I have been twitter friends with Ellie for a long time. What is Jeff's twitter handle? If I am not following him, I want to.
You are so right, there are a lot of amazing people on twitter, and most of them are writers and other creatives!
More questions.
Do you ever write poetry? Have you had any published?
Do you think you will ever tire of writing sci-fi? What genre would you pick next to write?

7/7/2018 05:37:40 pm

Truly Jekyll and Hyde. A truth. I wake many a morning wondering what kind of trouble I got myself into online last night (better than the old days getting into trouble out there). Facebook posts and replies I don’t even remember writing. Stephen King said he didn’t remember writing Cujo, if I recall, and that’s a whole novel so I suppose I’m still in the safe zone.
Poetry, no. But as mentioned earlier I used to post a lot of creative writings on Facebook. Some were close to poetry—and I’ve forgotten most. I’d just pick a topic from the current events and roll with it. Many times pissing people off. And I would see friends who’d once liked my every post go to liking only my friend’s posts and none of mine. Whole friendships fizzled away.
Since, I’ve minimized Facebook, took it inside. I keep my writings few and far between, mostly remaining quiet now. This QA session is the most I’ve spilled in a long time for I do appreciate you helping me get the word out about Lenders. I hope others will enjoy it as much as you have. If I have given the world anything, it is Lenders, and soon, Lenders II, and that might just be it.
And yes, Ellie sure is great. There are so many others I could acknowledge but she surely stands out like a bright light among bright lights. Jeff isn’t on twitter but here is his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/JeffWrightBooks/ I’ve read his books Yeti I and II (my favorites) and a few others. I met Jeff because I had made some decals for his Jeep.
…tire of writing sci-fi? Maybe, not sure. Right now I can’t help but feeling like the light that burns really bright for a half second, then explodes. I’m tiring of life itself, Mark. My family is probably the only reason I haven’t jumped of the cliff during one of my hikes. It’s tough, and I am tired, Mark. I’m really really tired. I am gonna keep writing though, I think. As to what, who knows, but the ideas don’t stop coming. I have more than I have time and I take it with me into my dreams. Dreaming. Dreams all night, although lately the whiskey is suppressing even those.
Like Jim (character in Lenders), however, I do try to keep it on the good side of the line. When my youngest son looks up at me and smiles and shows me the Lego boat he made, or my daughter draws a beautiful sketch for me, or my oldest boys 17 and 20, when we find ourselves in some interesting conversations or talking about their futures, or, when my wife looks into my eyes and says it’ll be okay, we are gonna make it, don’t worry… It’s all that, and just that. The only thing holding me to this life.

7/7/2018 09:18:57 pm

I have pulled way back from facebook also. The politics drive me nuts.
Life can be very hard, when you are digging yourself out of a hole. You mentioned you made decals for a jeep. Can you tell me a little bit more about that business? I didn't know that was possible.
Your kids can make a huge difference in your life. When they are grown and out, then you and your wife get to rediscover each other again! It's almost like dating, you sure can't take everything for granted, it's a big shift to make.
What genre would you write, if you wanted to keep writing, besides sci-fi. I think a lot of authors do that to keep the well primed. If one project goes flat, jump right into another. A good way to prevent writer's block in my mind.
Would you describe yourself as a plot-driven writer or a character-driven writer?
What aids do you use to keep the story straight as you write? Character sheets, timelines, maps?

7/7/2018 10:20:12 pm

Totally, Mark, and I hear you. I’m absolutely sick of the politics, the hate being pushed to drive agendas, and the bias, the blind fucking bias. Excuse my French. I watch a half hour of news per day just to stay in touch. CBS, although I can spot their bias, choosing this over that—but we will NOT go there.
Can’t I have some secrets? Ha! Well, I ate, breathed, lived graphics from the day I started the business in ’99 as an add-on to my car stereo and alarm brick -and-mortar store. It was a helluva passion. I got pretty famous with it too, couldn’t go anywhere without someone saying, “Hey, bro, I need a decal,” or, “…thinkin’ of upgradin’ my woofers, man.” Car clubs, wraps, signs, you name it. But I really don’t want to go to far in depth about it. I could talk until the last day ends.
Yep. Kids sure do. And my supportive wife. As well you, Mark. Friends I meet, I love ya all. Great dudes and dudettes. Keep rockin’ on, being you.
I likely will keep writing, if I can make it out of this hole alive. Mark, I think I just might be good at it. I’d even like to go through Lenders I again, make it even more awesome. I can’t say it enough, but you will see in part two. I’ll write sci-fi, I suppose. But my prescience only runs so deep and things are changing too quickly to be sure of anything.
Writer’s block… So far no issues with that. I sit and it just falls out in gobs. For years I studied lucid dreaming, as mentioned in the last chapter of Lenders one, Author Rambling & Highlights. I did a lot of weird things and being the extremist I am, always taking everything to near burnout, learned some amazing stuff in the process. Amazing places, mental heaven, and hell, zoning out like you can’t imagine, I can hardly imagine it now. Example one, I’d fall asleep awake, hear myself snore and dive into my mind. Example two, Herald’s thought energy, well that’s more real that you can imagine. And the Angel’s Trumpet, Herald’s mixing everything, the swirling emotions, grab one, feel it, grab another—well I don’t want to spoil it definitively but… I’ve did a lot of crazy shit. And I would sit inside my dreams, awake, knowing very well I am on the inside of a dream right dang now, and I’d talk to DCs (read Lenders to understand) and I’d just sit, all night, look at things, focus, fly, crash through buildings and grow tall, experiment with my consciousness and poke at my subconscious. Mark, I’ve read numerous books on lucid dreaming and tried countless things—I could write a book on all that stuff alone. I must admit, though, like I mentioned earlier, I just love dreams, dreaming. As my mother told me, I have been exploring the dream world since before even I can remember. She said I’d get out of bed every morning and dreams were the topic of discussion, period.
And I think I may have taken something from all that, perhaps. I was coding then, which I think also helped—constant, endless puzzle solving. And now I just sit, like I said, and it plops out. Imagine purple blobs, a burgundy lava lamp that has exploded, and words everywhere, raining from the sky. Lenders was on the fly. All 220K words, no outline, same as part two. As for character or plot driven, I’d definitely say a bit of both as you might have noticed. Amy, her character—what can I say; you said it made an impression. Jim, the malcontent. And Herald and Ana, where does it end. Door slamming, wall crumbling, love, love, love, change. The characters are all a part of me and my experiences. Herald and Ana, their time together, Tijuana, the club, el amor, that special moment and first glance—it gives me chills. And especially what I did in Chapter 98 of Lenders II: Soul Mates. Ooh damn, I must say, I’m in for a terrible, horrible, unspeakable moment comin’ round, and I’m soon to get there again; it’s followed by satisfaction, a surge of a release. Close too, currently editing 90: The Gift. Guess who’s back… Mark, I so want to share but, must wait.
Tools I use for writing. A Lenova Yoga laptop which I love, it’s really fantastic. And the books I’ve read. I listen to books while I hike and just like when I learned to code, reading dictionaries of functions, entire forums from front to back, so have I done with vocabulary words. They’re pasted in the bathroom, everywhere, but I’m needing them less now. I needing a lot, less now. I no longer read books that tell me *how* to write, don’t need them, I think. I just write—my way, for those who like *my* way; cuz there’s a billion dudes out there and as you know, can’t please ’em all. Your way, stick to it, someone loves it. My way, for me first and foremost, and never, ever, because of money!
I’d used c

7/7/2018 10:21:41 pm

(cut me off again)
Your way, stick to it, someone loves it. My way, for me first and foremost, and never, ever, because of money!
I’d used crossword apps, even while sittin’ on the John. Vocabulary learning apps, paper crossword books, but now less of that too. I’m now reading non-fiction works such as my favorite book of the year, Jordan B. Peterson's 12 Rules for Life, The Servant Leader, even Meditations, to name a select few.
Other *important* tools, and I’m in debt for this one. My noise-canceling headphones—to focus amid the chaotic harmony of my family, the road construction outside, and the noisiest place I have ever lived. Go figure, moved to Colorado for peace and quiet…
Now.
What tools do you use? What helped to hone your talent?
What do you like to do on your time away from reading? Yes, I’d like to know.
And, just how many books have you read?

7/7/2018 10:53:50 pm

How many books have I read? I have no idea! I have been reading since before the first grade. Living on the farm, I read every magazine that came in the house, mom's and dad's. That number must be huge, I am almost 65.
Things I use in my business, I have several style books and am going to get more. I have quite a few websites bookmarked, I have clients all over the world, I have used dictionaries of British slang, Irish slang and Australian slang. I google a lot of terms and grammar minutiae, also.
The lucid dreaming thing is interesting also. I remember listening to Art Bell, years ago, on the radio. He talked about that more than once, I think.
Question time.
Do you have a favorite quote from a book? Why is it your favorite?
Is it hard to come up with names for your characters?Especially Rafael. There is something I like about that guy.

7/7/2018 11:15:52 pm

I just wanted to *heeeeeaaaaarr* the scope of it. I wanted to ingest what I have missed out. Respect. Would be nice for me to have realized this key back then. But I found others keys, unlocked others doors. Perhaps for the best in the end.
“Do you have a favorite quote from a book? Why is it your favorite?”
Hmm. Get back to you on this… But… I have favorite ideas, such as when I was coding, although they’re not so easily put into words. The gist of the lesson, though, translates nicely into writing with words. Anything is possible, and if not, sleep on it, then it becomes so without denial—believe it will. Stop looking for the solution, it’s not there, it’s just outside the bounds and you only need open your mind so you can see it. There’s a lot of stuff out there, weird stuff. And a person can never know everything, so there will always be an entire dimension off limits, one never to be tasted, used for your particular agenda, manipulated to offset your uniqueness further from another's. Shot of whiskey.
Character names?
Rafael is cool isn’t he. And he’s about to get cooler. Take all of that, an egg in your pan, you’re in your purple, faded robe, grab the spatula and flip it. Lenders 2. Eating it tastes like nothing, but, something. The something is nothing and nothing never existed. It’s gonna be cool though, Mark.
But naw, not really. I pick the name just like deciding on the next word for what might send the entire book in a totally new direction. I do speak Spanish as a second language so that might have had something to do with that particular one. As well all the exploits in Tijuana, Mexico.
Hey, Mark. Can we take this interview into the nothing, or the something as some might call it?

7/8/2018 11:13:33 am

I think I hear the whiskey talking. It has a lot to say. I have never been into spirits, but I do enjoy a good micro-brew whenever I can.
I think being multi-lingual is pretty cool. Do you know any other languages? Would you like to learn another language, which one?
What do you think are common traps for beginning writers?

7/8/2018 01:05:05 pm

Good morning. An definitely. I had to re-read that and I wonder who wrote it. Wasn’t me. Mark, quit it. HA HA. But don’t we all have a flip side? One who wants to say what they want to say, even if it is not perfect, knowing oneself will change and evolve over time—get smarter, perhaps, perhaps not. Then, be able to come back and dive into the craziness that was your former self.
It makes the books colorful though. Write under the influence, as I hear many say, edit sober—then remove some of the color, and some of the flowers.
Another language I’d like to learn? Yep, I’d love to learn German. Just the sound of it. The borrowed words in English like schadenfreude. And weltschmerz, how it just rolls off the tongue (you know I had to Google how to spell tongue just then, what a night). But weltschmerz, oh the woes of the world. And zeitgeist, doppelganger, gesundheit, and one I *love* to use in my books, poltergeist. Meeting a person of German descent, there WILL be a conversation struck up!
I really like knowing Spanish, though, and my accent might just surprise you. I learned it on the streets. From the great people of Mexico, in Mexico, working out and about, vending, with no follow-up books so it’s just conversational, although I did take Spanish in high school—and yes, it did help by laying the base. So I think I could master German just fine. I had even dipped into Russian a while back too, but then there’s that pesky time thing, or lack thereof.

…common traps for beginning writers?
I’m relatively a beginning writer myself, although you could probably divide each of my novels into AT LEAST four books—which probably would have paid out better than having one massive brick, one that could probably survive re-entry alongside the space shuttle. But I wanted it to be a tome. Old school. And there are big fans of long sci-fi out there.
But back on topic, but what do I know? I’ll throw some things out there...
1) Ya gotta just do it, even if it feels weird. Even if you feel like a second grader, and without a clue (no disrespect to 2nd graders intended). Write even if the story is shit for the first ten chapters. You will never know what might have happened, what will happen, had you not just sat, and wrote. It takes a little time.
2) Start small. Develop a habit. Habits are one of the most powerful things a human being can learn to control. It has been said that 95% of our day is accomplished without thinking. Yes, just strung together habits doing their thing. We only think and consciously do stuff 5% of each day. So begin creating your new habit. Like sleep, write daily, preferably at the same time. Start with 15 minutes, and see #1 above. Increase time as the habit becomes more solid—and it will. In two weeks or so you’ll head to the writing desk as if being pulled by a tractor beam, and you'll feel guilty as hell if you break the habit!
3) Make the time. You don’t have to sit on the couch from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. watching a movie. That is just another one of your habits! And you will feel guilty at first by breaking it! Break one to create another. As you continue on you’ll learn to control the power of habit, how to use it to get what you want, to get out of any rut, change things up and set a new path to the future in motion.
4) Read. So they all say. Do I really need to elaborate on this? Personally I like hiking, driving, and running to non-fiction. I save the fiction for books I read with with my eyes, not audio books. Read a wide variety of books, and if you are just starting out my top recommendation is Stein on Writing: A Master Editor Shares His Craft, Techniques, and Strategies, by Sol Stein.
5) …
I’m heading out for the day. So no more, although there is. Just put *you* into your work, be yourself like I’m doing here—even though not everyone will like it. But don’t try to please everyone and do not try to be perfect. Perfectionism is a disease. Write for one person, be it yourself or a friend you admire—and there are millions like yourself and that friend, therefore millions who will want to read it!
I heading out. Going to spend the day with my family. Much needed because it has been a very long two weeks for me and the family. A day off! Yes. Screw it!
But I will be back. I want to finish chapter 91 of Lenders II today. And I want to thank you Mark for taking the time to talk with me. It has been my pleasure, and although it feels weird for this to be about me me me, my favorite part is learning about you you you! I raise my purple Monster Ultra Violet and say CHEERS! Have a great Sunday, Mark. And have a great one, everyone who happens to be reading this!
PS. Mark. Any books you have wrote, or are considering writing?

7/8/2018 06:52:52 pm

Very nice about languages! I had 2 years of French in high school. A few years later I was backpacking and riding the rails in Western Europe for a summer. My French was very handy, I could understand far more than I could speak. The foundation was there and it made a difference.
I have not been to Mexico, and think it really cool you learned the common language of the people.
I think you have some great advice for the beginning writers. Most of that advice is applicable to everyone wanting to accomplish certain things in their life. Habits are very powerful, and when combined with a conscious decision are nearly unstoppable. I am in the process of creating a habit now. I am training myself to brush my teeth with my left hand. This is one of the hardest habits I have ever undertaken. I have been working on it for most of the year. It is automatic now, but I am working on efficiency to improve my technique. I am doing it to create new neural pathways in my brain and prevent Alzheimer's or something else like that.
Some questions for tomorrow.
Is a big ego an asset or a liability for a writer?
Is personal suffering necessary for someone to be a good writer?
You can spread the answers out if you wish.

7/9/2018 10:08:34 pm

Sounds like you had some great experiences. And a lingua franca sure comes in handy, better as you learn, and learn the people. Some great people of Mexico, I vouch for that. Wherever I go, even though I’m the gringo who stands out like a white smashed thumb, I am welcomed. I’ve spent much time there, and one day hope to get a taste of some of the adventures you've had a chance to indulge in. Life, working as if in hell at times, and the good times with a beer, the best times, looking back is almost all good. We gotta get together one of these days. I’m sure you have tons of stories to tell.
Is a big ego an asset or a liability for a writer? Hmm. You know, I’ve never narrowed this idea down to a specific profession, a specific anything. I’ve always thought the ego is fucking huge at first, when your 16 or 20 or so, and then you live, get shit on, get fucking smashed, and then you see a good hand coming straight at you to help you up, a crowd of hands, and then you lose, and die on the inside, and you learn. So I think people start out with the ego amplified, and it lessens over time for many. As we learn.
We learn to go at life helping others, lowering a hand to help out someone in need. And we pull him or her up, and it makes us feel less alone, not just for ourselves, on some fucking rock rounding and rounding the sun.
But not everyone learns this, I see. And I don’t like it. But I think I have, yet I’m still learning it, as are most. Humanity, like in LENDERS, my novel, deserves a chance. Herald, the protagonist, goes round this well. He lives, learns, and ultimately finds love. A misanthrope finds compassion and true meaning, and the ramifications save an entire world.
For all those out there who do not evolve, humanity is mighty, most do. For this reason, as in LENDERS, there is a chance that we are not just shit, one for one and screw the rest.
Helping the writing? Big ego? I’m gonna pass on this one. But I think experience, real experience, does help the writing. And most times the massive ego means there’s still lessons to be learned. We get shit on. Shit on some more, and then some. And we learn that helping others in the midst of the shit, is better; the life to be lived, rather than take, take, take, me, me, me—has meaning, meaning *worth* living for. If I had to guess, though, the humble person, one who has learned to stand tall, survived against the odds, made it after getting squashed and still has love for his or her fellow man, is the one who will prevail most times, in writing and other stuff.
Is personal suffering necessary for someone to be a good writer? Right off the bat I want to just say, yes, and bow out. But there’s a million variables. What did you think of the forward in Lenders? The arrow? The strike?
The depth of this, where we’re heading, it makes almost any question unanswerable. There’ll always be a good writer out there who has lived albeit still a nascent existence, or merely vicariously. But most times, in this time, years before *that* time which is upon us, yes, one needs to be shit on a few times to write a truly good work of art. I could elaborate on this but the depth of the possible answers could press on space-time enough to pull a black hole towards the conversation.
Good night everybody, Mark. All of my followers and those I’m following. Cheers! ‘Raises flask.’ ~Trav

7/9/2018 10:18:49 pm

It's obvious to me you have learned a great deal in this life. I completely agree with you about helping others. Everyone around us needs help at one time or another, just as we do ourselves occasionally. This is a major part of our purpose in life, to help others. If you are ever passing through Oregon, it would be great to meet your family and you.
I hope we can pick this up again sometime in the future. However, tomorrow starts another review and interview. I hope you have time to drop in and say hi in that interview.

Lenders: The Unlicensed Consciousness by Travis Borne

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