Going
It Alone by Rival Gates
Let me tell you a
story. A young man (okay, a teenager) came up with this idea for a short story.
As he worked out the details the story became longer and longer until it turned
into a novella. But the story was not finished. Every idea like a snowball rolling
down a mountain side just grew and added more to the storyline. At last the
young man looked down and saw he had a novel he could write with the potential
of others to follow. In the weeks that followed, he carefully crafted the first
chapter and presented it to his father, an editor by trade, for review. The
next morning over breakfast the Young Man asked his father what he thought of
the first draft of the chapter. His father sat down his coffee, slammed his
fist on the table and proceeded to tear the papers in half and then into
quarters. When he was done, he dropped the papers on the ground and left for
work. Heartbroken, the boy fell to the ground and picked up the pieces and held
them to his chest. Being late for school, he hid the papers in his room and ran
out the door. As he briskly walked to school he realized, My ideas are good but my writing isn’t good enough yet. I must fix
that.
He paid more attention in English class as they studied the great
writers of the past. But where he really excelled was in creative writing. After
working through some grammatical problems, his stories were always top of the
class. In fact, one was so good it was entered and won an Ontario Provincial
Contest. His success mounted in high school as he was asked to write numerous
school plays. Never, in all that time did he tell anyone outside his family
about his books. He had already finished the first one and was working on the
second. Then college came and there was little time for working on books. So he
thought about a different part of the series every night before bed. He told
one friend about them and let her read a few chapters. She was astounded and
said it should be published. He was unprepared for ridicule again and refused
to try.
After graduation, he married his college sweetheart who had no interest
in the books as long as it wasn’t an inconvenience. They had three children
together and finally bought a computer. He began transferring his books onto it
and printing copies for his one supporter to keep safe. Through all the years,
his mother loved to hear the stories over and over. She said he had a 'Gift'. Little
did he know when he gave her the chapters that she was loaning them out to her friends.
He built up quite a following, as it turns out, as the ladies bickered over who
received a chapter next. It was years later he found that out. Many years came
and went, and his parents came to visit from far away. She asked to go for a
drive. That was always a fun thing for the two of them to do.
As they drove,
she informed him that she had terminal cancer and that she would not be
visiting again or be around much longer. She said she wanted one favor from
him. He said to name it and she said, “Publish your books.” When she got home,
she went straight into hospice and died a couple weeks later.
As you may have guessed, the main character of this story
is me. The time to go it alone was over. I made a promise I would keep. It took
time but I discovered an agent who found me a publisher. I now have 4 books in print
with more to come as time permits.
Going it alone is very dangerous. It is hard to grow as a
writer without constructive feedback. It may be harsh but break it down to
information you can use. Going it alone also means that no one else sees your
work. Trust me, there is no better feeling than when someone comes up and says
they loved your book. Deep down you wrote it to be read. It wants to be read. Polish
it up and find a publisher. Do your homework and surround yourself with good
people. Don’t wait for the horrible wake-up call I did before acting. What’s the
worst that can happen? You’re right back where you are, but you tried.
Wow! This author's journey was rough, but inspiring! There's a lot here for writers of all stages, and book readers to think about. :)
Readers, let's take a look at one of Rival Gate's books, a fantasy novel titled Repercussions Abound.
Here is the blurb.
Linvin doesn’t remember him! Anvar is being held hostage by Linvin’s
twisted nemesis, Lord Mandrean. Linvin has until the first frost to
surrender to him and take his uncle’s place in the gallows. Sadly, after
a crack on the skull Linvin has forgotten his old life and taken up a
new one. With time passing quickly and still a long way to travel,
Linvin must regain his memory soon and leave his new life and wife
behind if there is to be any chance of reaching Anvar in time. Even if
he gets there, can he really save Anvar and hold out any hope for
himself in this custom made trap?
Here
is an excerpt from the book.
Mandrean was annoyed, but in control. “My subjects
have made do for the last two winters and shall do so again. The person who
should be most concerned about winter coming is you. I confess when I gave
Linvin until the first frost to arrive here, I thought I might have been too
generous in my timetable. After all, if the two of you are as close I am led to
believe, he should have moved with all haste to get here. Now the crops are
nearly harvested and the frost could arrive any night. Still there is no sign
of your nephew.
“I believe my information to be correct about the
two of you, so that leaves me with one explanation. Something or someone has
delayed or prevented Linvin from coming at this point in time. But who could
have stopped my worthy opponent? Surely no one under my command would impede
his progress. I want him here so I may have the pleasure of killing him myself.
I suspect others want him here as well for their own reasons. Regardless of
which, there is no obstruction coming from Marinhalk. So where is he?”
“Maybe the information about your bond was
exaggerated and he sees no reason to throw his life away on a fool’s errand. It
is logical. I certainly would not do it for anyone else.”
“Perhaps he is testing my resolve. He wants to see
if I will follow through with my threat. After all, if I killed you, I would
have nothing to hold over his head. Of course, if you were not the right
pressure point, I would kidnap his cousins, Bander and Rander, so I could start
this game all over again.”
“That would do you no good,” Anvar laughed. “While
they have made headway in their relationship these past few years, Linvin cares
nowhere near for them the amount he does for me. I doubt he would leave his
tree for them.”
Mandrean became flustered and stood in front of his
throne. “If he cares so much for you then where is Grithinshield?”
Anvar stood straight and tall in front of the
emperor. “You said it yourself. He must have been delayed in a manner of which
we are unaware. One thing I am certain of, though, is that Linvin will come if
there is breath in his body. He may not make it in time to save me, but he will
come. When he arrives, I would not want to be you. He will be sure to finish
you this time. Bringing Linvin here will be the last mistake you ever make.”
“This fight will be different. I have you as a
hostage.”
Anvar leaned forward and said, “Suppose he doesn’t
care. He knows you will kill me regardless. Why surrender to your threats? What
else do you have?”
Mandrean began to stammer and sat down. “I have the
Blue Sapphire.”
“You had it before and Linvin beat you. What else do
you have?”
“I have the staff for it now.”
“That only makes your magic equal to his and as you
know, they cancel each other out. Therefore, it doesn’t matter. What else do
you have?”
“I have an army.”
“Linvin killed nearly seven legions almost entirely
by himself last time you fought and still had strength to defeat you. What else
do you have?”
“I have my superior fighting skills.”
“The same skills Linvin faced while half dead and
still was able to stab you and leave you for the buzzards? That’s your last
line of defense? You had better make sure Linvin is more tired this
time.”
Purchase
Links:
Amazon
Universal link: http://bookgoodies.com/a/B01LX8VHGY
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/repercussions-abound-rival-gates/1124652957Publisher: http://sarahbookpublishing.com/product/repercussions-abound/
Fascinating!
Readers, don't forget to pick up your copy of Repercusssions Abound!
Guest Blogger Bio
I was born in
Port Huron, Michigan USA and moved to a suburb of Toronto, ON, Canada at age
five. My father was a technical writer
and magazine editor while my mother was a high school teacher. Always interested in creative writing, I
participated in many contests in grammar school which led me to start writing
my own short stories. At age thirteen I
began working on one, which kept developing and progressing until I had a
hand-written manuscript for Quest for the Red Sapphire at age fifteen. The project was shelved for many years
through high school and then returning to the USA to attend Michigan State
University. I graduated with a degree in
Communication and found that I had a gift and enthusiasm for speaking in
public. That led me to a career in
furniture store management and sales.
With my first PC
I dusted off my old story and began to revise it. Not a day had passed since I first created
the story that I did not consider some aspect of its outline. An entire series was planned and put in order
to be written. Backstories were formed
and the series was ready to produce.
After years of
refinement of the stories, my mother came to me with a terminal illness and
made me promise to publish the books. So
I did just that.
I found a wonderful
agent and published the first three books of my series, The Sapphire
Chronicles. They are Quest for the Red
Sapphire, The Sapphire Crucible, Mandrean Revenge and Repercussions Abound. The series keeps on growing.
Author
Links:
Website: http://www.rivalgates.com/
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/1qqrjiB
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rivalgates1
Amazon
Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Rival-Gates/e/B00I3Q5YIG/
Rival's
Books:
I was born in
Port Huron, Michigan USA and moved to a suburb of Toronto, ON, Canada at age
five. My father was a technical writer
and magazine editor while my mother was a high school teacher. Always interested in creative writing, I
participated in many contests in grammar school which led me to start writing
my own short stories. At age thirteen I
began working on one, which kept developing and progressing until I had a
hand-written manuscript for Quest for the Red Sapphire at age fifteen. The project was shelved for many years
through high school and then returning to the USA to attend Michigan State
University. I graduated with a degree in
Communication and found that I had a gift and enthusiasm for speaking in
public. That led me to a career in
furniture store management and sales. 
