Novel – Page 16 – The Stories of Scott D. Southard

July 27, 2012

Permanent Spring Showers, Chapter 1
Permanent Spring Showers

Chapter 1

The Argument

–

It probably all began far before the argument.

It might have even begun before the affair he had, no matter how brief it was. He wanted an excuse to end it, her mind cried at her. His penis only gave him the excuse he was looking for.

… The fact it was with one of her students was just the icing on the cake.

–

“How many times do I have to say I’m sorry?”

She turned back to him; it was the first time she even dared to look at him since he broke the news to her that morning before her flight. And yet all she could think right then was why did he have to chase her around the house in that old raggedy bathrobe? That damn old weather worn bathrobe he bought on their honeymoon. “God, help me,” she thought to herself staring at the pleading man, “he looks like a broken bunny in that hideous thing.” (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
July 19, 2012

Book Review: Summer Morning, Summer Night by Ray Bradbury
Since the passing of Ray Bradbury, I’ve been re-reading his books (or reading ones for the first time), trying to find a lost classic, a gem I had not discovered before.

So far I have reviewed three of his books (Something Wicked This Way Comes, From the Dust Returned and The Halloween Tree). This review is on Summer Morning, Summer Night, published in 2008.

–

I have attempted to write this review three different times. Frankly, this difficulty is because I am uncertain what kind of a book Summer Morning, Summer Night by Ray Bradbury is exactly attempting to be.
- Is it a sequel to the great Dandelion Wine and the embarrassingly bad Farewell Summer?
- Is it a collection of unpublished short stories?
- Is it new work?
- It is old work?
- Is it an insight into Ray Bradbury’s notebook? A collection of unfinished ideas and unused snippets?
The frustrating answer is yes and no to all of my questions.

The best way I have discovered to explain this book is to think of your favorite CD. You know how artists will sometimes include an additional CD in a boxset? It might include demos, songs that were cut from the album, and early versions of the songs you love? Well, in many ways, Summer Morning, Summer Night is that additional CD for Bradbury, and like one of those collections there is good and bad, and a little of everything within it. (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
July 10, 2012

Book Review: The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
Since the passing of Ray Bradbury, I’ve been re-reading his books (or reading ones for the first time), trying to find a lost classic, a gem I had not discovered before. So far I’ve reviewed two of his books (Here are the reviews: Something Wicked This Way Comes and From the Dust Returned). Today, I review The Halloween Tree.

–

The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury has had a thorny history. It began as a screenplay for an animated film that was not made, then turned into a young adult novel, then into a screenplay of a holiday special and finally into a more finished version of the book… Whew… It’s exhausting just writing that, I can’t imagine what it must have felt like for Bradbury.

The Halloween Tree is more than a celebration of Halloween, it is a celebration of death, and because of it also a celebration of life. (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
July 2, 2012

Book Review: From the Dust Returned by Ray Bradbury
When Ray Bradbury died Entertainment Weekly listed some of Bradbury’s books that their readers might not have read. These were not the classics, but more like hidden gems for readers to discover. From the Dust Returned was one of the books listed, which is what drove me to pick it up.

From the Dust Returned is the story of a house filled with ghosts, the undead, and other supernatural creations. There is one human living with them, a young orphan boy named Timothy, and it will be his fate to write about them.

For me, upon my reading, I had two reactions. First, I am not sure why Entertainment Weekly listed this as one to discover. I could have easily named a handful that would have fit more perfectly into that distinction (Did they just call the publisher? Did they just Google?). The second is the untapped potential for the work, leaving me with the feeling I read the shadow of a good book; not the good book itself.

Ray Bradbury stated that he had spent fifty years working on this book, but with an imaginative mind like Bradbury I really have no idea what that means. He was always creating, always generating works. Chances are, for me, when a book is not being moved forward it is for a good reason, I am waiting for that lightning bolt to truly ignite the creation with a Frankenstein scream of “It’s alive!” (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
June 20, 2012

Book Review: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
I first read Something Wicked This Way Comes while as a teenager. I was going through a massive Ray Bradbury kick, and I was devouring his books like many do pizza. Something Wicked found its way in between some of his other works in the monthly large pile I got from my local library, and I must admit at the time it didn’t make a dent on me.

It didn’t emotionally touch me as Dandelion Wine or inspire me like The Martian Chronicles or R is for Rocket. I can clearly remember spending most of my time reading it comparing it in my mind to the movie version by Disney I had seen a few years earlier. Yet, when people talk about his classics, especially after his death, Something Wicked is always discussed; so to honor the great man I decided to reread the book again.

Something Wicked This Way Comes is the story of an evil carnival that invades the town of Green Town, Illinois (A town that will not sound unfamiliar to readers of Mr. Bradbury). Two boys, Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway, are the only souls in the town that are able to see the carnival for what it is, a place of evil magic and sinister characters. It is after the carnival workers (under their leader the illustrated man, Mr. Dark), realize the boys are on to them that things start to become more intense.

Something Wicked has an interesting history to its creation. It first began as an abandoned short story, then Bradbury turned it into a screenplay after being inspired by Gene Kelly.

No, I’m serious. (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
June 13, 2012

The Trials of Self-Publishing: Why I Consider It a Last Resort
Self-publishing feels so easy… It feels so safe.

The sad truth of writing is that the fun aspect of creation is only really 10 percent of the work. The rest is the difficult and time-consuming work of marketing and promoting the manuscript to the publishing world. Query letters, writing conferences, agent meetings; that is the real work, and self-publishing takes all of that away… Just leaving the author with their creation and then publication and none of the hassle of the mess in between.

It all sounds like bliss.

Yet, the easy path is not always the right one, and for self-publishing that is just as true. While there are a few self-publishing success stories, there are a thousand unsuccessful stories to each successful one of books that appear on amazon and disappear into the vacuum that is a search engine never to be seen again.

Frankly, if an author wants success for their book, and success for their own future as a writer, self-publishing should be a last resort, to be only considered when all of the other avenues have been tried. Why? Well, I’ll get to that… (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
May 30, 2012

Time to Share! Some Southard Samples
Today, I thought I would link to some samples I have shared from some of my novels in the past. Think of this as something like Show and Tell, but it is my turn and no one gets a turn but me… Oh, and everyone has to listen and applaud at the end with a hint of jealousy… oh yes, and run out and buy all my books and love me.

Okay, maybe not all that, but you get the gist.

I have two novels currently in print. They were both honored in a novel-writing competition before being selected for publication by a new indie press. They are Megan and My Problem With Doors. I am really proud of both books.

Megan is the story of Megan Wane. Megan lives in two different worlds. In the real world, she is a very bored office worker, frustrated by the direction her life has taken and dealing with a micro-managing boss. In her fantasy world though, Megan is a princess superhero, The Great Defender.

In this excerpt (here), Megan deals with a very “bureaucratic” dragon. You can find my book on amazon.com here.

My Problem With Doors is the story of Jacob who has been stuck time traveling ever since he was a toddler. His “problem” is a unique one; doors do not work for him as they do for us, and when he enters one he never knows what he will meet on the other side.

In this excerpt (here) from the novel, Jacob has dinner with Jack the Ripper. You can find the book on amazon.com here.

A lot of my work over this year has been trying to find a home for A Jane Austen Daydream, my most current novel. Last year, it was selected to be shared online by greenspotblue.com. (Those links to the chapters from the book can still be found on the A Jane Austen Daydream page.) My hope is to find an agent for the work and then get it published. So if you are an agent or publisher reading this… ah… hi...

A Jane Austen Daydream is not a biography, it is not even close to being one. In the book, I am “retelling” Jane’s life as if she was one of the characters in her novel, giving her the love story she deserved and never had.

This selection (here) is chapter two from the first part of the work.

Thanks for reading! And please, if you like what you read, share the work on your page or share with your friends or buy the books or visit the Austen page or tell your aunt who is an agent about me or send me cookies… I like cookies. Who doesn’t?
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
April 25, 2012

Dinner With Jack the Ripper… a scene from MY PROBLEM WITH DOORS
Today, I am going to do something a little different and share a scene from my novel My Problem With Doors. After being honored in a novel writing competition, it was published by a new small press in late 2010 (you can find it on amazon.com here and as an eBook on Google here).

This is probably one of my favorite moments from the novel. I hope you enjoy this excerpt.

–

He was waiting at a table in a private part of the restaurant. He was sitting alone and tracing his fork across the tablecloth. He seemed to be fascinated by the lines they made on the fabric. His medical tool chest was nearby on a separate chair. It was as if he had positioned his weapons so I would know that they were there. It was when he took a sip of his red wine that he noticed me standing near him. His smile broke into a frown. “You’re late.”

“You didn’t give me a time.”

That answer didn’t appease him. “I’m not the kind of person who should be kept waiting.”

I decided not to test him with a biting reply and sat quietly across from him.

Jack seemed to be overjoyed that I was there. He clapped his hands cheerfully and motioned for the waiter to come over. “My guest has arrived.” (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
April 5, 2012

The Road More Traveled: Sacrifice and Luck, the Two Paths to Writing Success
The older I become the more I’ve come to believe that there are really only two paths to success with writing. One is a thorny path that is something akin to what Frodo experienced on his way to Mount Doom (and you’ll be lucky if you only lose part of a finger); and the other has rainbows, freshly mowed grass, beautiful pools with jumping fish, and I’m pretty sure I saw a unicorn once. They are simply the roads of sacrifice and luck.

Many writers I know view the path of luck as almost an urban myth. That can’t be! they claim, everyone has to work to land their careers! No, it does exist, my friend, yes, it does. If you don’t believe me, ask the daughter of Mary Higgins Clark, the son of Stephen King or Anne Rice’s son. You can find all three of them on amazon.com with shiny book deals for their first works. (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…
March 22, 2012

A Bit of Madness…
Yesterday, I wrote about my own experience with the artistic mad genius moment (you can read it here). During my experience, I created a novel that might be unpublishable called Maxmillian Standforth and the Case of the Dangerous Dare (One of my favorite of my works, to be honest).

Today I thought it would be fun to share the first chapter from this work. I hope you enjoy it.

CHAPTER 1
The Dreaded Invitation

It is with great trepidation and very little pleasure that I begin this next chapter in the life of the great Maxmillian Standforth. For many long months I have debated with my soul and conscience on whether to share this work with you, faithful reader. But in these hard times, my wallet and empty stomach has forced me to share this chronicle no matter what misgivings I may have at the task ahead. Yes, hard times have forced my unsteady hand and pen, but I will share no more of that now. No, it’s not important. If it comes, it will come later in these pages. For now, let me warn you of the morbid and sad tale ahead of you. This is a tale filled with horror, dear reader- dark passages, ghostly apparitions, and deaths I would give my last shilling to forget. A tale, I am sad to say that even tested the mind of one of our country’s greatest citizens…. The outcome of that test you will see shortly if you dare continue. (more…)
Share this:
Email
X
Facebook
WhatsApp
Pinterest
Reddit
Print
LinkedIn
Tumblr
Like Loading…