Sal Buttaci - Flash Fiction specialist

Author Salvatore Buttaci writes very short stories - usually under 1000 words.  This genre has come to be known as Flash Fiction or Sudden Fiction; and it's perfect for today's hectic, instant gratification, short attention span, multitasking world: stories you can read during a power lunch.  The more extreme examples of Flash Fiction can be truly brief.  Here's one of the classic examples, sometimes attributed to Ernest Hemingway.  This is the entire story:

For Sale:  Baby shoes, never worn.

This legendary example launched a craze that has swept the world:  Thousands of Six-Word Stories have resulted.

Buttachi is a master craftsman of Flash Fiction.  To date he has two volumes of Flash Fiction:  'Flashing my Shorts' and '200 Shorts'.  Reviewers uniformly rave about both of these books, often recommending them as gifts, declaring they intend to read them again, etc.  Here are two examples:

A review of 'Flashing my Shorts' from Wanda Woody:

"Flash fiction has now been redefined, with the unveiling of "Flashing My Shorts" by Salvatore Buttaci. It is a collection of short stories that go above and beyond the definition of flash fiction. Each page, though short in words, is powerful in depth, meaning, perception and emotion. Each story rouses our intellect, tugs at our heart strings and revives our morals and ethics. I journeyed through a wealth of feelings and insights as I devoured each page. Stories packed with humor and wit, yet refreshingly sensitive to important issues such as patriotism, discipline, respect, honor and humility. I highly recommend this book, because I am certain that it will exceed all your expectations. This is a book you will read over and over; one you will talk about and one that you will treasure because you will find yourself in many of the stories. Your own memories will coincide with so many of Buttaci's descriptive illustrations. Now we have words for the thoughts that all of us have tucked away somewhere. Buy this book, and I guarantee you will enjoy it almost as much as me! I also recommend the author, who is an excellent writer, a wonderful human being who loves life, loves his country and loves people. Great Book! "

 And a review of '200 Shorts' from Jean Rodenbough

"Sal Buttaci is a master of flash fiction, those short prose pieces that tell a story in two sentences or two pages. This is his second publication of short fiction, and contains for the most part stories of an Italian boy growing up in New York or New Jersey with his immigrant parents and grandparents. I have suspicions that "Antonio Lanzetti" bears sharp resemblance to Sal. The stories abound with incidents in Catholic schoolrooms commandeered by stern Sisters, dangerous characters in the immigrant neighborhoods, pranks played by the narrator and his friends, who manage to stay out of serious trouble in spite of their activities. Other stories, events, and characters abound in this collection as well, however. Some deal with visitors from alien planets, or visions of strange communications. Some imply mystery, some are love stories, some are stories of overt violence, others of gentleness. Of these 200 stories the reader will discover the talent of the author to narrate a story, mostly in first person for immediacy, that keeps the reader with him all the way. This is a collection for those who enjoy brief stories well told, and who will finally come to the close of the book hoping for a third collection by Sal Buttaci."

Buttaci has many more writing credentials.  His poems, letters, and stories have been published in The New York Times, Newsday, U.S.A. Today, The Writer, Cats Magazine, and widely elsewhere in America and overseas. A retired teacher and professor, Buttaci lives with his wife Sharon in West Virginia.

South African author writes paranormal romance

Maggie Tideswell lives in Johannesburg, South Africa, hates the traffic, and would like to settle in Sitka, Alaska some day - or some similar small town with mountains and forests.  My kinda gal :-)  She's been writing for decades, and originally did not intend for her work to go in the direction of the paranormal--it just seemed right for the characters as they came to life on the page.  I'm a firm believer that a good fictional character has to be like that.  It's the best way to make characterization seem natural, and most importantly, interesting.

Maggie's debut novel, 'Dark Moon' was published in 2011, and there are more books on the way.  Look for "Moragh, Holly's Ghost" coming soon.

Set in beautiful Cape Town, South Africa, "Dark Moon" is the story of love and betrayal and misplaced loyalty. Storm has a choice to make, but is her information and perceptions reliable? Isn't she being unduly influenced? Trevor is an attractive man, but he is an expert at bending people to his will. Then there is Jarred...  In Storm's words, "One knew what to do with her, but he didn't love her. The other loved her, but had no idea how to treat her." One wanted to control her, and only one wanted her as his wife. Storm finds herself, her friends and every one she holds dear in mortal danger. What can she do to neutralize the evil that is following her?

In Dark Moon, the eternal triangle takes an innovative twist into the occult. Riveting plot lines will have you guessing from chapter to chapter - you won't be able to put it down until the dramatic ending. Read it on a stormy night, and you'll find yourself jumping at things that go bump in the night.

Here's a good informative review of "Dark Moon" from Books4Tomorrow:

"Yet again I was pleasantly surprised, and suitably impressed, with the writing of another South African author. Maggie Tideswell has done what only a handful of others have been able to do before her - and that is to prove that South African authors can compete on an international level with the best out there.

"Dark Moon" is a splendidly written novel which takes the reader on an unforgettable journey full of twists and turns and keeps you guessing until the end. The author introduces all the characters at the start of the book and develops their stories throughout to tie together in an explosive ending that will surprise even the most hardcore of readers. In this novel she expertly blends romance, mystery, fantasy and the occult; and explanations are given out of every angle and for every situation the characters are faced with, so that the reader isn't left hanging at the conclusion of the story. It is clear that Ms Tideswell has thoroughly researched every element that is used to make this a great novel.

The book is written in a unique South African voice and the dialogue reflects this accordingly. I have to applaud this author for being one of few who successfully uses the more-showing-less-telling technique. Not many have mastered this.

Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Southern African landscape, any reader who hasn't visited the country before will feel like they are taken on an explorative journey to the spectacular sights, sounds and colors of this strikingly beautiful tip of the African continent. The author doesn't hold back on the descriptions of the characters' surroundings and thus lets readers immerse themselves into the real-life world the story is based on.

Even though I had reservations when I started reading this novel, I am now a dedicated reader of this author's work and am looking forward to what Maggie Tideswell will surprise us with next."

UPDATE:

Maggie's  second book, Moragh, Holly's Ghost will be available late summer 2013. It's - you guessed it - a ghost story.  But it's also a romance.  Here's a review from Nora Chipley Barteau:

 "All Holly ever wanted was to be married and have children. She thought she had her life's dream with Donald, her now husband and father of their two beautiful boys, and she thought he wanted the same. Why then did he find it necessary to cheat on her with his new assistant Gwen? She thought he loved her as much as she loved him. And now, why does he feel he has to be so cruel by keeping the boys away from her? What desperate measures will she resort to in order to be with her children and how many lives will it affect? Follow Holly in her quest to answer all of the questions haunting her life and find out how magic and the supernatural play a huge role in it. The tortured spirit of Moragh, who wanted her story told in death because her life, her very existence, was taken from her and thrown aside like yesterday's garbage.

In Moragh Holly's Ghost, Maggie once again shows brilliance in breathing life into her characters, allowing them to crossover into the reader's reality. As a reviewer and fan of Maggie's, I was excited when asked to review Moragh, not knowing anything about the subject matter, which peaked my imagination. I walked with Holly as she encountered love, disappointment, betrayal, magic and a bit of ghostliness. My heart was into this book from the beginning to the end.

Moragh Holly's Ghost is not your typical love story. It is a well written story by an author who puts all of her creativity, imagination, talent, heart and soul into her work. You as the reader will not be disappointed, and I encourage you to take a chance and get your copy today!"

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Randy Wallace writes a gem

... actually a geode.  And then the tale gets interesting.

Here's the description of author Randy Wallace's newest book, '#9 Grundpark Road':

"Sold into slavery by his foster parents and smuggled out of Alberta, Canada, Daniel is held captive by Terrance McMaster, a greedy and sadistic farmer. While he toils in a mine, Daniel discovers an ancient geode and a forgotten civilization. Though the discovery would change the known history of the world, the world is not ready for the crystals' amazing powers. #9 Grundpark Road is an inspiring tale of perseverance and heroism. Will Daniel be able to survive a power that has destroyed everyone who has come in contact with it? Will he discover the true meaning of family?"

That's a teaser that draws me into the book.  The author seems every bit as interesting.  Here's a profile written by NorthernBCbusiness.com, a website in his local area (yes, he lives in northern British Columbia, Canada):

"Randy Wallace woke up this morning in Vanderhoof, British Columbia, happy to be living—quite literally. We don’t have many days on this earth and Randy appreciates that fact more than many because he is a survivor of a rare kind of brain bleed—a subarachnoid hemorrhage.

"Although there are scars, a titanium plate and some lasting mental challenges, Randy leans on his degree in education, his past work with children, and his knowledge that a  good story can change outlooks and lives. Having survived may, to large degree, fuel his drive, but his past work with children infuses his writing. Randy’s stories encourage readers and leave them wanting more.

"Randy has had two books in print, his most recent, #9 Grundpark Road. The main character is a young boy named Daniel Sterling, who, like all of us, struggles with his own particular challenges. Daniel refuses to let his disadvantaged beginnings prevent him from reaching his goals. This uplifting, page turner will make you feel like you are capable of more, too."


 Wow, Randy, your next book ought to be a memoir :-)

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Karma: what goes around comes around

Monica Brinkman wears a lot of hats.  She has owned a community theater, performed as a 'Singing Telegram', done radio commercials, acted in plays and musicals; and she paints.  Now she has written a novel that can be described as Speculative, Horror, Spiritual, Paranormal, and just plain unique.  The Turn of the Karmic Wheel, published in 2010 is a spiritual adventure of the soul, as one fictitious town, Raleigh, MO, faces the full force of Karma.  The book explores a collection of characters and follows their choices as their seemingly disconnected lives are shown to be linked.  Check out this new trailer just released in connection with the release of the Audio-book version.

Here's my chosen review, one of many available for this book.  I try to find a review that speaks to me and best informs me of the character of the book - a very personal choice.  This review is by Star at the Bibliophilic Book Blog:

"Karma: (1) In Hinduism and Buddhism - action, seen as bringing upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a reincarnation: in Hinduism one of the means of reaching Brahman.(2) In Theosophy - the cosmic principle according to which each person is rewarded or punished in one incarnation according to that person's deeds in the previous incarnation. (3) Fate, destiny. (4) The good or bad emanations felt to be generated by someone or something. [From Dictionary.com]

"Gossip and reputation make sure that what comes around-a person who is cruel will find that the others are cruel back to him, and a person who is kind will find others are kind in return. Gossip paired with reciprocity allow karma to work here on earth, not in the next life." - Jonathan Haidt

The Turn of the Karmic Wheel is truly a story to take to heart. It cautions us against being self-centered, hateful, and prone to venial sins. We all have choices in this life and it's up to us to make the best of what we're given. If we follow the Golden rule, we can reap the rewards of kindness, love, and reciprocity in this life. Each character's story seems at first to be a separate entity, yet as we move along in the book, we are shown that everyone in the world is connected to one another. Yet, we can all lose sight of that message and let darkness seep into our souls. The characters are well-developed and each has flaws - no one is entirely good or entirely evil. A beautiful blend of mysticism and spirituality, Ms. Brinkman has written an unforgettable and moving tale which will make you re-evaluate your own actions"


Monica  grew up in Pennsylvania, relocated to the West Coast, and now resides in the Midwest.

The Human Act

Fourteen stories of hope and discovery that will change your life

Angela Lam Turpin has done a lot of writing.  By my count she has six books in print and innumerable stories, essays and poems in magazines, anthologies, etc.  And her writing credentials include a B.A. in English and creative writing from Sonoma State University.

Her latest offering is 'The Human Act', a series of short stories, among which is the Pushcart Prize nominated story "Lips" about a teenage girl's struggle with loneliness, despair and sexual identity.  Another is the title story, "The Human Act", a dog-lover's delight.  Written in the first-person present tense from the point of view of Amelia's shelter-rescue dog, it explores Amelia's eating disorder and the role a dog's loyalty and love have in healing it.

That gives you a taste of the treats in store when you crack open this January 1, 2013 release.  Here's a brief review, written by Meg Sevrens:

"I thoroughly enjoyed these short stories although I wanted some of them to actually be longer! Angela writing has progressed immeasurably since I first read Legs. She gets inside the heads of a large variety of characters and I felt a connection to each one. Great read"

Angela is a California native.  You can find her Facebook author page here.

Review of 'Ender's Game' by Orson Scott Card

The genius of Ender's Game is its simplicity. The story naturally fits this style because the main character is a child. And the entire premise of the book is rooted in the observation that children show more skill at unraveling complex spatial relationships and at reacting instinctively and decisively to complex changing circumstances than mature adults. (Think of the Rubik's Cube puzzle - it took me, at age 35, fourteen hours to solve it the first time, whereas there are kids who have picked it up and solved it in minutes.) The simplicity of the theme goes beyond a child's perspective though: don't expect anything but the barest essentials of visual description or context. This is primarily a ride through a mind-scape: What it feels like to be Ender Wiggins and think like a child prodigy. More on that in a minute.

Ender's Game is dripping with intensity, but what I found most remarkable is that Card paints the tale with true believable emotion at the same time. This is pretty amazing considering it is basically what I call "Primitive Grunt Fiction" - that is, its all about self-preservation and using brute force to enforce it, the basest of animal instincts.

The story is about a kid who becomes a whiz at video games and uses that skill to remotely control a real military mission. Wonderful and believable (assuming you accept the zero-delay faster than light communication without which the entire premise breaks down). But a huge portion of the story takes place in an artificial enclosed zero-gravity "Battle Room" in which the characters use the walls and exits as key tools of their strategy. Wait a minute - space doesn't have walls. In the battle room the kids are the 'ships'. They propel themselves by inertia alone. Wait a minute - space ships have internal propulsion. Bottom line - sorry, but it's a real stretch to believe that confined "battle room" training would be the centerpiece of a training program for space warfare. Swallow hard and suspend disbelief.

Now back to the mind of a child prodigy. Card proclaims in his introduction that he never felt as though he thought like a child--and he uses this hopelessly skewed first-person observation to justify projecting fully adult thought processes into his child character. Yes, survival instinct is fully functional at that age. But psychologists will tell you (and research confirms) that a child's ability to project the long-term consequences of his/her actions is not. Some of Ender's behaviors exhibit mature, critical forethought to a level that even most adults don't achieve. For me, that destroyed the realism of the story. But once one decides to overlook this flawed premise, they can settle back for an enjoyable ride. It's one of the classics.

Reconciling evolution with religious beliefs

Written by a pair of creative, imaginative and prolific scientist-writers, Charles Wynn, Professor of Chemistry, and Arthur Wiggins, Professor of Physics.  As a Ph.D. in Atmospheric Sciences myself (a branch of physics), and long time NASA researcher, I had great fun learning about the work of these distinguished gentlemen.

This dynamic duo has published four previous books over the last two decades, all of which seem geared to a teen/YA audience, and all of which educate and elucidate the novice into the exciting world of science.  To my way of thinking there is no more noble calling.  Two of these books have become standard classroom textbooks.

Now Charles and Arthur have teamed up as editors to tackle a sticky and sensitive issue.  Where is the middle ground, and is there common ground, between scriptural literalists and Darwinian science?  In 'And God Said, "Let there be Evolution"' they have enlisted three scientists/scholars of faith, one each from Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, to explain how they reconcile their deep-seated religious faith with the scientific evidence for the Theory of Evolution.

No work that tackles this field is going to be 'the last word.'  The opinions of three individuals, no matter how highly educated, is not going to sway those who adhere to a world-view that faith prevails over reason.

I am in the delightful position of having a well-educated Electrical Engineer daughter who went through a phase where she was a devout Christian biblical literalist.  Our discussions were always lively.  My bias--my 'world view'--was opposite of hers (though it is no longer.  When these conservatives' conception of hell began to make no sense to her, she moved on).  As a PhD scientist and one-time atheist-agnostic, my knee-jerk reaction to someone who would establish their belief system based on a 2000-year-old 'immutable, infallible' truth is "you've got to be kidding."  But hang on a minute.  If you truly adhere to your faith in 'critical thinking' and the open-ended nature of the scientific/rational process, wherein nothing is considered to be absolute immutable fact, (pending discoveries not yet made) then you cannot rule out the possibility that your 'faith' is just as unsupportable as theirs.

What I cling to is that we've uncovered a lot more evidence in the past 2000 years, so maybe those old texts ought to be updated.  What I admit is that there is a line of reasoning that asks: What if evolution is not random 'Natural selection' but a pre-programmed maturing of the universe toward an end that it (or some manifestation of a Maker) intended all along?  I explore these questions in great depth in my novel 'Eden's Womb'.

Okay, it's involving myself in these sorts of ever-evolving discussions that brings the sparkle to my heart.  Let the discussion continue :-)  Here is my selected 'best' review of 'And God Said, "Let there be Evolution".  It's from Dr. J. Harold Ellens: 

"Art Wiggins is a truth-teller of the first water. He has published, to genuine acclaim, such volumes as 1)The Joy of Physics, 2)The Five Great Ideas in Science, 3)The Five Biggest Unsolved Problems in Science, 4)Quantum Leaps in the Wrong Direction: Where Real Science Ends ... and Pseudoscience Begins; and now he inspires us with this new work on evolution, the biblical story, and a critique of the various creationism ideas. This volume proves to be a highly readable, popularly crafted, and comprehensive address to the fact that the overwhelming accumulation of verifiable scientific evidence demonstrates the universe and life on this planet has evolved over the long reach of time from early, simple forms of energy and material into increasingly sophisticated forms including life as we can know or discover it. The genius of this volume lies in the fact that Wiggins and his co-editor, Charles M. Wynn posed the question, "Is it possible to reconcile the Theory of Evolution with the Scriptures?" and then engaged three religious believers who are also scholarly scientists to provide thoughtful answers. Rabbie David Kay, Professor Howard Van Till of Calvin College, and T. O. Shavanas, a Muslim Physician responded with scientific evidence and argument, making it clear that accepting evolution does not require abandoning one's faith. In simple scientific prose that is laced with evidence of the authors' spirituality and with the relevant data from sacred scripture, these scientists demonstrate how their faith illumines their science and their science illumines their faith. The upshot of the whole work is a gratifying demonstration that evolution is the method God used to grow the universes and our world here on earth. I call this Theistic Evolution and am convinced that it is the only theory that handles all the scriptural and scientific data honestly and makes utter good sense. I believe that any other perspective betrays and falsifies the wonder of God's nature and work. Every high school and college student should read this work, and every believer should master it. This work ought to be a run away best seller because everyone should know of it and know it well. Sell your bed and buy this book." 

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