I WANT MORE TIME TO TYPE!!!

Why can't I do what I want? Right now I am doing what I have to do. All I want to do is rewrite the book for the final time! Work has been more than busy. When I finally come home, walk the dog and eat, I have only a few moments to type. This morning was fun. I was reminded of a funny situation as a cab driver and have laughed about it all day at work. Still I want more! More time to write! Of course as I was writting this another client entered the facility I work at. Time to take off my writer's hat and put on the therapist badge.

Funny, wouldn't you think, how my life has changed. In reading the book you will see how I was once a burn out, living it was named the Burn Ward. Today I am a doctor who treats people in mental health crisis. Kind of mind boggling, but life circumstances will change. Hopefully this other person that entered behind the last can be taken by another clinician or I will never get back to the passion that I love - reliving the past.

More to follow.

Getting Ready to Dig Back In.

Hello book fans. I am ready for another exciting night of typing. Unfortunately work has been extremely busy today and I've had to focus on client charting instead of fun time typing, like I am doing right now. The book is coming along. I am about one forth of the way through the book and realize that the proposed 2/28/10 date will probably not be reached but that is okay. The rewrite is cutting out lots of superfulis (probably spelled wrong) information.

:-) It's funny that I am an author and still have great difficulty with spelling. A client who was Dislexic talked to me about how great a reader his friend is but can't spell a lick. His brain can take it in but the output is flawed. He and I both believe we all have intelligence, some have more, some have less, but what is really important is the soul underneath. When overwhelmed we may not be in our right minds. We may lose the ability to reason. Still at those times our soul is working under the surface - observing, giving us valuable information. At this time we are aware and are taken care of.

The soul. A subject nobody talks about. Oh the mentally ill sure do because when all hell is breaking lose that is all they have. Our soul. This is the part of us at our core that is all knowing and connected to everything. Quiet your mind. Connect to your breathing. Listen within. Jesus stated that the key to heaven is found through insight. That is inward sight. Look inside of you, talk with your soul. That is where heaven can be found. Pretty deep? Without this insight John and I could not have survived the haunted house. Without insight how could anybody survive life in this crazy period of time?

May you all experience the Divine within.

Peace.

Synchronicity!

Well it's starting to happen again. Spiritual influences have crept back into my life. Yes, this is a good thing!

I was re-editing the book last night and came to the Christmas section in which I was given an eight track of Lynard Skynard from a friend. This morning I was donating some clothing and supplies to the Salvation Army and the attendent asked me if I liked Lynard Skynard, then handed me one of their CD's. While driving to work and listening to the CD I kept getting body rushes. For those who meditate, you know what I mean.

This has started the Dominos rolling. At work I have been sparking metal left and right. This hasn't happened for months. The sessions have been deeper and more fluid. Lynard Skynard. What a hoot.

In the meantime I am chopping the book and keeping the essentials. I am again, enjoying the writing process and obsess about it day and night. It is amazing how it once again got me plugged into an immence energy from dealing with the house.

Will keep you posted.

Back to the Drawing Board

Well fan. Here's the latest. I reconfigured the old lap top, because the main computer is still undergoing repairs, and began the task of going through the book for the final time. Thank God I am.

Now I love my sister, and she did a great job in editing the book, however, since I had to reformat the book to allow space for the page numbers I became aware of many mistakes that were overlooked, by both her and myself. Such is life. So this weekend, between chores, I went through the first ten chapters, did a lot of cutting and editing. Basically I trimmed away a lot of fat. I believe this version will be the one - because I am not going to do this again!! (Well, we'll ultimately see).

I am back in a groove. I miss Emily, one of my roomates. Her character is alive and kicking in this section of the book.

About my sister. She was the only person that was excited to read and edit the book. I love her for it. In the end she told me she wanted to meet everybody in the book - at a book signing, or a party. To me, this shows that the book is strong, if she felt emotionally connected to the characters I had accomplished something great!

So thanks for being patient. I only have fifty chapters left to edit. Seems like a lot. Hell yes it is! I didn't hold anything back. But step by step, page by page, it will be great.

Peace.

Keeping a Promise

I made a promise with myself to keep a weekly blog on the happenings with the Burn Ward book. Today was difficult to finally get to it, but now typing I feel pretty good about my commitment to self. Work difficulties, a client that attacked a coworker, and no time to work on the rewrite. To add on more bad news my home computer is in disrepair and it became aware as I've gone through a few edits in the book I need to go over the book a final time.

Why? Why am I such a perfectionist? Trust me, in the few edits I had performed I saw a few more typos that both myself and my sister overlooked. Hey with 430 pages it happens, I could get lazy, but owe it to myself and the reader to produce the very best product I possibly can.

So with that said, and how proud I am of myself keeping this commitment, I say goodbye for now, have a great weekend and a-blogging I will go the following week - God willing.

Back to the Familiar Grind

Well, upon looking at the proof copy of the book, other problems became apparent. So much to making this the fastest book I had ever written. Hopefully it won't take the seven year process of the first one.

The page numbers could not be seen, the spine of the book was upside down, and in reformating the book I have to go through the entire text again and shorten it up a bit. Of course in the process I am seeing other mistakes and the process I tried to avoid - fine tooth combing the book - is now being realized. Hey I understand writing is a process and am trying to make the best of the situation.

So, here I am blogging at a time I would normally be writing on the book. I made a commitment to myself to blog and by God I am going to keep on blogging come hell or high water. (Interesting idiom). Just know this - for the next two hours I am going to be a writing fool. The good news - I love it!!

I think you have to enjoy the writing process if you plan to be an author. Living, eating, and sleeping this book has been a fact of life for almost thirty years!

Dr. Jenkins at work asked me how long have I physically been writing on the book. I have probably spent a good year writing. This is not too shaby because the book is over four hundred pages! That's a lot of writing, rewriting, rewriting again, and still more rewriting. Trust me, I am trying to avoid another rewrite, though in the back of my mind I know the book needs one more going over. Then what? Rewrite it again? At some point I need to make a stand and simply state the book is complete - flaws and all (and I know there still are many). So after this reformat / slight rewrite I am deeming this book is done. What may await me, if the cards, or dominoes fall in the right direction, is creating a screenplay about what went on in and around the Burn Ward.

So, since I've wasted enough time blogging, it's time to do the real writing. I know all the effort is going to be well worth it.

Peace.

Sweet and Sour

Well today there was great news. I got a proof copy of the book - yahoo! I looked over every inch and it looked perfect. Appearences can often be deceiving unfortunately. The artwork on the spine was upside down. A coworker showed me a few gramatical and spelling errors in the intro, which was the only section I didn't have my sister proof read. So for now I need to read through the book - for the zillionth time - and double check for any other random errors. Such is life.

The great news is the front and back covers for the book look insane!! This is so much better than the design I thought of with an artist rendering of the house, a cop car fallen off the side of the driveway and a few guys nursing a keg of beer at the front of the house. The cover, as you will soon see is an old poster that my friend Mike Browne created maybe twenty years ago. It was to be one in a series of jigsaw puzzles, entitled the attack of the party animals. This blows away my stick figure design and gives the book character, a crazy feel, and is inviting to the eye. I felt like Wayne's World - "Not worthy". Thanks to Mike I am absolutely blown away.

Check out bigredshoes.com to see what antics Mike is up to. His pen has given the book the professional look I never dreamed possible.

As for my next steps. Read, repair the three or four typos, fix the artwork on the spine and party!!!

Are they following me?

As I await the proof of the book, I've found myself doing a lot of work to our vacation home in the high desert near Joshua Tree National Forest. Hey I wasn't into the desert until I saw this place and we purchased it. The house is a real fixer upper to the point that I had to break up the buckled slab in the family room and repour the concrete. Yes - I am the MAN!!!

Anyway, one night as I finished pouring the concrete, I turned off the work light and watched the plastic covering the doorway move on it's own. Yes a flashback of what was a daily affair thirty years ago. All the windows and doors were closed and the plastic was moving up at a 30% angle!!

"Welcome!" I said with a smile. It seems like every place I go to a book will fly off the shelf, a lamp will fall over, something of importance falls from a shelf and breaks and now out in the desert - only a mere 170 miles away plastic is raising and falling on its own.

Laughing about this, I talked with my fiance's father the next day. He lives at the property in his own place (we have two) and since he thinks I'm a freak, well why not give him more of a reason to believe so. Of course after he left the room and closed the door behind him, a breeze shot through the bottom of the wall. Yes, in pulling out the carpet and placing Satillo tiles down, there must have been a gap where air was entering the room. Ha Ha. The laughs on me. After grouting in the tiles, the floor was sealed, the Scorpians and spiders that once dominated that room will be there no more!! Hopefully.

So I await the first true paranormal experience at the home, though I am sure hundreds have been going on.


Scott.


An after thought:

The property above mentioned was lived and worked on for forty years by a sweet couple who both died there. Tearing the grounds and house apart and rebuilding it gives me a lot of respect for people who have tolerated over 120 degree temperatures and many freezing winters. I actually do feel there presence.

Patience

As a Doctor of Psychology, you would think that I would understand patience. I understand patients, but patiently waiting for the proof of the book is a bit difficult. As I wait, I search my mind for how the public will take this book, if people will buy it, what are the steps I need to do to market it.

When I originally began writing the book, everybody who lived or interacted in the house was gung ho. "Anything I can do to help you dude", was often heard. Okay everybody, let's see if that is the case.

I ultimately wonder how these inner circle people are going to take the book. Some characters were combined, some of the connecting material - the scenes that brought one incident to the other were slightly fabricated. No we didn't sell Burn Ward t-shirts at our house parties but in writing the book that scene helped me portray the character of one of my house mates. Also my Frisbee Dog was two years after the fact and wasn't Victim but Heidi the wonder dog. I had so much fun with her going tournament to tournament that I was compelled to write about it. Who knows? This might be the first and last novel I ever write, so I wanted to provide a flavor of what was going on in my life around that time period.

Good or bad, I am sure that everybody who lived there has a ton of more stories to share about what went on in and around that house. This blog was set up to give a voice to those who experienced something beyond normal life experience.

So let it all hang out and let me know where you think I failed, lacked, or hit it right on the head. Remember this is something that happened 30 years and I've done the darnest to recall what transpired.

Happy Birthday Johnny Boy!

Today is the birthday of my cohort at the Burn Ward John. He is turning into an old fart like myself. We had often talked about not making it to our thirtieth birthday because we were a bit crazy in our ways and didn't trust anybody that was older (part of the establishment we were trying to avoid). Now that we are both part of that establishment, it seems a bit odd to remember that mind set, so long ago.

At the haunted house life was simple. If there wasn't anything to do we did absolutely nothing. When things stepped up, we still did out best to put out the most minimal effort. "Kicking back" was the term we used and sometimes still do. Though the carefree days of just "kicking it" seem like a faded memory when there are pets and kids to care for, a home to keep clean, shopping to do, and work to show up for and pretend like you are responsible.

Yes kicking back. I could just see me in my make shift pool out in the desert. Yes, just floating on my raft. Well with the cold weather right now, this is just a fantasy.

John. You are old dude! When was the last time you sat down and meditated? Tough when there is a deadline, the bills have to get paid, and a dog is looking you straight in the eye, wanting to play fetch.

I miss my Frisbee dog. This little half pint version wouldn't know what to do if a Frisbee flew in his direction. He would probably bark and run for cover. Yes the carefree days of kicking back, tossing the Frisbee, and traveling around the country.

Happy birthday partner. Many, many more. If it wasn't for you, I'd never be on this life path..... That's a good thing.

Passion

Life is an interesting phenomenon, probably spelled wrong. It is easy to go to the same job, though many businesses are closing, eat the same food, go to bed at the same time, same, same, same, same, or follow your heart. Well this is what this book is all about. Passion. I have been passionate about what transpired years ago and wonder if others have that same passion for anything in their lives? I see it with sports fans. They live and die with each win or loss. I see it with movie fans who just have to get an autograph from Taylor Lotner. So I know passion exists in the world. This passion drives us, consumes us. Okay it consumed me.

In talking with my passionate friend Mike Browne (see www.bigredshoes.com) we realized that not everybody in our lives are going to share our passion. Each person has their focus. What is awesome is when two people have a shared passion for a sports team, a movie, or an about to be released book. Is it bad to have this passion? If it becomes obsessive perhaps. If it pushes one forward beyond their their familiar rut then passion is awesome!!

Mike and I are similiar. We are both passionate. This creates an incredible friendship and bond. He creates apps for the iPhone, I counsel people in distress and write books. I love people, I adore creativity. My quest is to combine both into my everyday life.

When I lived in the haunted house, I roomed with one of the most passionate people I have ever met. John. John was passionate about spirituality, saving the planet from corruption and pollution, and was passionate about friends, women, family, and drugs. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I was swept up into his passion and changed from a robotic do gooder to a person who meditated, had out of body experiences, and lived with ghosts. Who can say they have experienced the same?

Approval

Great news! The artwork was okayed and now is time for the proof of the book to be sent to me. It is one thing writing out a book on the computer, but when a physical copy of the book is in your hands, well that is something beyond sweet!!!

Now the fun begins. I am curious how people will take this book. I have visions of sitting in front of a room, with a few of my cohorts from way back when at my side, and fielding questions about our experiences at the haunted house.

For now I blog about it, send out emails, go on facebook and start the marketing process of the book.

Wish me luck.

I know one thing. This story would make one hell of a movie and if everything goes well... who knows?

Your comments are encouraged

Delays

Delays. Delays. Delays. Because the DR. wasn't placed before my name in the artwork, the publisher rejected (temporarily) the final approval. Bookus interruptus. Dang. I feel like a teenager rejected by the turn of the cheek.

So I wait for the minor repair work before fun time. Approval may be moments away then, as I used to say in my teens, "I'll be getting it!"

My parents used to laugh at that line. "Hey Scott!" My step-dad would yell. "Did you GET IT?" He would grin.

"No dad." I would reply sadly. "But I got some." I would smile.

There is a big difference. Getting it is going all the way, getting some entails no turn of the cheek, but still not getting it.

So, pertaining to the book. I'm not getting it, I'm not getting some, I'm still scheming to go round the bases.

Scott ;-)

Anticipation is making me wait

The release of the Burn Ward book is like giving birth to something that has been festering inside of me for 30 years. The interior has been approved by the publisher and Mike Browne, the cover designer had to reformat his artwork - which he did in record time, and I resubmitted the PDF a few hours ago. Now it is waiting time. On Monday I should find out if it is a go. I'll get a proof copy of the book to inspect and then it hits the Amazon.com website.

I remember this stage when I completed my first book: "Crisis Management: Step by Step." It hit the website, didn't have a picture next to it like the others did and I sent hundreds of emails to the publishers. All right so I over reacted a bit. A day later the picture of the book appeared and I was extatic!! Well this was a boring how to book - not "THE BURN WARD"!!!

So we are moments away from the release. Dave I still want to use the sound stage.

:-)

Still I wait, twittle my fingers and start to shift my focus to now making a screenplay out of the book.

I'll keep you all posted.

Welcome Burn Ward fans!

Years ago my friend and I moved into a haunted house and life forever after has drastically changed. How many of you have experienced the paranormal? This blog site is for people to write about their experiences in hopes of gaining more understanding to the unseen forces that surround us all. Have you ever seen things move on their own? Have books fallen off your book shelf? On my first day moving into the haunted house a water bottle sitting right next to my left elbow suddenly flew across the room, smashed into a wall spilling its water, and then landed on the floor. I was flabergasted! Did my friend and I move out? Normal people would, but we were far from normal.

There is a dimension to life that is unseen and only felt. There are good and evil forces that we will be talking about. What happens when we die? Do we have a soul? Is there a God? These are incredible topics to discuss and unravel.

I have just completed a book: "The Burn Ward" that depicts life at this haunted house. It will soon be available on Amazon.com. Please enjoy reading it. Please, please let's blog about it.

It is my intention to enhance our understanding of the unseen.