Jethro Tull: Songs from the Wood: Released Feb. 4th, 1977

“Songs from the Wood” by Jethro Tull has some incredibly thoughtful lyrics and musical arrangements, which makes it one fantastic album. The songs are multi-faceted in the sense of its musical delivery.  Yes, I know that this was the era of the thematic album, which threaded the tracks together both musically and lyrically. There is always some type of celtic / medieval flavor within Jethro Tull’s music. What do I mean by ‘multi-faceted’?

My Explanation

We hear the strings, percussion, flutes, and other instruments creating that signature Jethro Tull sound. However, what if that medieval flavor is delivered via a heavily distorted guitar? Now that’s what I mean by multi-faceted.  If one were to have a listen at “Jack in the Green” and compare it to the opening of “Pibroch (Cap in Hand)”, you’ll understand.

A Pibroch is considered an artful piece of music for bagpipes. They are usually played slow with theme variations.  The intro for “Pibrock” certainly sounds like something written for a bagpipe, but played on a distorted guitar. Of course, deftly delivered by the magical hands of Martin Barre.

I remember the title track getting its share of airtime on FM radio back in the ‘70s as did “Cup of Wonder” and “The Whistler.” However, for many fans (me included), “Hunting Girl” remains a favorite, as does the aforementioned “Jack in the Green” and “Pibroch.”

“Songs from the Wood” is my second favorite offering from Jethro Tull. Can you gather a guess at number one?

This is one of those albums that put the ‘classic’ in the term Classic Rock. I have made links. Enjoy!

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“Storm of Divine Light” is an epic fantasy adventure by Ernesto San Giacomo. Download it to your Kindle!

Indie Book Review: “Sophie’s Key,” by Jodi Jensen

When I first thought about reading a Romance novel, I shrugged off the idea as quickly as it manifested itself in my mind. Even my choices in film veer away from the Romance genre save but a few. But, some weeks later, I saw promo announcements / Tweets for the release of “Sophie’s Key” by Jodi Jensen. I have known Jodi Jensen to be a friendly and fun person to commune with over the vast distances of cyberspace. Dutifully, I purchased a Kindle copy and here is my spoiler free review.

Characters: The main character is Sophie, as the title would suggest. Through Sophie we get the classic “fish-out-of-water” character. Through which we have some comical and / or embarrassing moments. Along with Jacob and the child Meri, Jodi offers us a main and two strong secondary characters. Together they comprise a sort of trinity of wholesomeness. Of course, as design would have it, we also have an unholy trinity of antagonists.

Plot: The storyline is wonderfully solid and follows a logical progression with some decent surprises. These surprises create fair conflict and do not feel as if they were ‘parachuted’ into the story. Jodi Jensen methodically planted her conflict seeds without a formulaic feeling. No reader should feel the need to second-guess or discover a path of lesser resistance for Sophie or any other character.

Writing: Incredibly neat, clean text. I did not spot any typos or convoluted sentences. Also, there seems to have been keen observance for preventing other amateur slips, like repeated catchphrases, body language or facial expressions used to the point of nausea. Therefore, let us say that both the writing and editing were done with the proverbial fine-toothed comb.

The dialog is professionally written with a natural feel for flow. I am especially grateful for the lack of “info-dumps.” In “Sophie’s Key”, the characters are doing the talking. For example, Jacob is an observer of people and a man of few words. He is somewhat blunt and gets his point across with brevity, and then he reads reactions. Which of course befits and speaks of his background.

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Jodi Jensen Links

Follow Jodi Jenson on Twitter and FaceBook

Visit Jodi’s WordPress Blog

Put “Sophie’s Key” on your Kindle or Nook

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Conclusion: After two chapters, one aspect of its appeal became clear. The scant Romance Films I enjoy share elements with Sophie’s Key, first, a magical quality and second, a multi-genre appeal. Think about classic films like “The Bishop’s Wife” or “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.”

Is “Sophie’s Key” a romance? A western? A crime thriller? Or A magical Tale? Of course, it is a romance first, but Jodi Jensen weaved all these other elements in, like a great chef combining ingredients. Jodi pulled off this neat trick without her final product looking like a random hodgepodge of disparaging elements.

Do yourself a favor, read “Sophie’s Key” and let me, and Jodi Jensen, know your thoughts.

Ragged Souls

The title of my latest short story collection is Ragged Souls: 3 Tales of the Holy, the Strange, and the Bizarre. It was my editor, Ruth, who created the subtitle for this book. She read and pondered the three stories before having a flash of insight into a connecting theme.

Let’s take a look at “Holy” for a minute. In Martha’s Kitchen, one could discuss the concept of misguided piety. For A Purveyor of Odd Things, it would be a general lack of Holiness. Finally , in Cactus Valley, worldliness is the cause for impiety. However, we get to witness an attempt at Angelic intervention in this last story.

I can sum up the usage of “Strange”, and “Bizarre” quite readily. Within Ragged Souls you’ll meet Angels, Demons, Dopplegangers, Murderers, and Mummies. Need I say more?

Here are excerpts from the three stories that you’ll find within the pages of the Ragged Souls collection.

A Purveyor of Odd Things

Meet Detective Renner Branson, a man so enslaved to his work that he’s forgotten how to live. In his newest baffling case, he will discover secrets – not just about the world, but about himself. The terrors lurking within may shatter his grip on reality.  Or they may show him just how beautiful reality can be.

Excerpt:

Branson squeezed his eyes shut. His sense of real and unreal, of possible and impossible, was shredded by these apparitions. He wanted so badly to run, run anywhere, to the car, to the gate, anything to get away from this insanity. But he wouldn’t – couldn’t – leave Hannah. Through his panic he became aware of her clammy hand clutching his, and though he tugged on it, she seemed unable to move. Paralyzed by that cold stare. Fight or flight…or freeze.

Available for Kindle, Nook, Kobo and Smashwords for all other formats.  Free extended excerpt at Wattpad.

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Martha’s Kitchen

Martha and Jillian, two sisters from a dying town, cope with the hollowness of city life in a bloodcurdling way. Come explore this bizarre case of nostalgia gone horribly awry, but beware the secret recipe at Martha’s Kitchen!

Excerpt:

“His pants and suspenders are still on. I hope he didn’t soil himself,” Martha said.

“No, I heard the toilet flush.”

“It figures,” Martha said. “Mr. Jenkins always was a proper gentleman.”

Available for Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and Smashwords for all other formats.  Free extended excerpt at Wattpad.

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Cactus Valley

One New York couple’s vacation turns into a horrific nightmare. Ancient forces of good and evil do battle to win their souls – but which will be victorious?

Excerpt:

In a tense voice, Andrea said, “There’s still enough gas for thirty miles. Turn around.”

“We’ll never make it back that far. See if there’s another one ahead.”

Andrea studied the road atlas. “Okay. Get off at the next exit and make a right. There’s a service station about fifteen miles away.”

Available for Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and on Smashwords for all other formats. Free extended excerpts on Wattpad.

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Cover Reveal for Gematria² – Breaking Convention

Announcing the cover reveal for my latest short story, Gematria²!

The writing approach in this short can be summed up as breaking the conventional mold of formula writing. But that doesn’t mean that I’ve created a new style for other authors to emulate, because I’m doing the emulating.

I’ve always been enamored with the styles and conventions of South American authors, namely Julio Cortázar and Jorge Luís Borges. If you read anything from these short story masters you will immediately notice differences from the North American writers you may be used to. For one thing, these authors don’t describe or sometimes even name characters. They play with time, space, human consciousness, synchronicity, metaphysics, philosophy, and magical realism, to name a few themes.

The best way that I can describe the style is non-formulaic literature. With Gematria², I tried that approach as best as I could.  When I presented it to a critique group, some scoffed, although they couldn’t exactly say what was bothering them. Others embraced it as pure literature and eagerly volunteered to beta read future drafts.

Gematria² will be released on Smashwords as a FREE download on February 15^th, 2014 on all e-reader formats. If you prefer getting your e-books from Amazon or Barnes & Noble, it will be listed there as well about one to two weeks later.  As a bonus, the release also contains extended excerpts from my other short stories.  Hope you enjoy!

Free Previews: A Double-Edged Sword?

If you’ve browsed for a novel or a short story at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords, then you’re probably familiar with the free preview feature. On Amazon you can view the first 10% of an e-book, and on Smashwords it varies by author preference.

Now many think that this is a positive feature for your work. After all, you’ve been through several revisions of the piece and you want prospective readers to see that you’re not contributing to the dreaded Indie Author Stigma. You want to show that your writing is clear and properly edited, with no amateur errors.

I suppose that’s a good thing, but here’s the problem. I’ve heard that most audiences today judge whether or not they like a film within the first five minutes, and I suspect that readers are no different. So what happens when the best parts of your work are in the middle or at the end?

I’m selling short stories right now, as a way to build up some readership before my novel is ready for the public. My own quirky story-telling manner never jumps at you in the first page or two. Instead, my style does quite the opposite. I like to lull a reader into a sense of security before everything begins to run amok. Therefore, the first page or two may not hook a potential reader and reel them in. But my beta readers tell me that the lulling makes for a real punch at the end, so I’m reluctant to change this style.

Now, we all know about the need for a first chapter to be powerful. However, I’m talking about a short story, which can be chapter length or less. So the online retailers only show the first few pages, which I generally use to establish characters and setting. Therefore that percentage-based preview often cuts off before the story really gets going.  And I really wonder if that is affecting my readership.

So I have two questions for the blogosphere:

Readers:  

Authors:

Martha’s Kitchen Published!

Announcing the release of my new short story, Martha’s Kitchen, on Amazon and Barnes & Noble!  If you love a good dose of dark humor, this is definitely for you.

The description:  Martha and Jillian, two sisters from a dying town, cope with the hollowness of city life in a bloodcurdling way. Come explore this bizarre case of nostalgia gone horribly awry, but beware the secret recipe at Martha’s Kitchen!

This is my first published work, selling at only $0.99, so if you can, please purchase a copy and let me know what you think (and let your friends know too).  No spoilers please!

Also coming soon on Kindle and Nook is Stasis, a Libertarian-themed short story about the horrors of big government. Evil flourishes when good people stay quiet.

Thanks everyone!

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