Heaven's Point Guard Now In Paperback

This book was published in November of 2010 in hardback. Now, it is available in trade paperback and in a reformatted ebook edition. 

Heaven's Point Guard: The Kirk Gentrup Story

by Ken Cruiser Gentrup and Shaun C. Kilgore

Description: Heaven's Point Guard is the story of sixteen-year-old Kirk Gentrup, popular student, star basketball player, and all around great athlete who was tragically struck by lightning while on the baseball field in 1995. Written from the perspective of Ken "Cruiser" Gentrup, Kirks' father, the story includes many accounts, recollections, and messages from those who knew and were impacted by Kirk's example in the sport he loved and in his community. Heaven's Point Guard is both a memoir of Ken's attempts to cope with the loss of his son and a testimony of Kirk's enduring legacy in his school and in the community. 

Here's the link to the book on Amazon. More to follow.

AMAZON - Paperback and Kindle editions

NaNoWriMo 2013: Final Update

Despite my best efforts to cross that finish line, I did not complete 50K words on my novel Killer Of Dragons. My final word count was 32, 367 words. National Novel Writing Month is officially over. The next step for me is to continue working on this novel until it is complete.

I made some good strides this month even with life's familiar complications. I progressed farther on this book during November than any of the others. Though I have not done it yet, I believe that I will be able to write a novel in a month's time. There are tweaks to be made and flexibility is key to fitting in the right amount of writing into each day.

Writing every day is essential in this work. Each 1,667-word day matters. They add up and if you miss one they can quickly pile up to unrealistic levels. That is the main lesson for me this time. Do my very best to meet that minimal word count and I should have zero trouble getting to 50,000 words every month.

I am aware that not every novel fits neatly in to 50k. Some of them will be longer and that's fine. You just take the time necessary to get to the ending. Then the work of proofreading and checking the book takes over. That might spill over into the following month. That's also fine unless you're crazy enough to think you can write a novel every month. You might have to write more than seven pages a day.

Eight pages a day puts you a 2K words. That means you could do 60K in 30 days. Very nice.

Ten pages a day puts you at 2.5K words. That means you could do 75K in 30 days. Also nice.

If you want a fatter novel, say 90K, then you'd just have to write 3K words in 30 days. That's just twelve pages!

That's just a little math to put things into perspective.

I'm glad I participated in NaNoWriMo this year. I'll do it next year. With any luck, I will keep writing books in the meantime. Thanks for following along, folks. Later.

NaNoWriMo 2013 Update #4

Heading into the Thanksgiving festivities, Killer Of Dragons is at 25,018 words. At this point I have to accept that I won't finish by the deadline. I will keep writing but not try to kill myself trying to cram too many words in not enough days. It made my best effort this time, getting more words than in previous attempts. I'm proud of that accomplishment at least.

I will make one final update at the end of the challenge to let you know how I did. More than likely I'll be around 30 to 35K words but I will provide the final word count that I did during the month of November. I may have some thoughts or might reflect on the process of National Novel Writing Month, but it mostly comes down to scheduling and staying on target with the word counts each and every day.

Even if I am not finishing by the 30th of November I do intend to finish this book as soon as I can. Then I will consider the next book or whether I'll break with some short stories.

NaNoWriMo 2013 Update #2

Well, I'm still writing the novel. Currently, Killer Of Dragons is at 10, 268 words. Given it is the 15th of November, I'm behind by about 15,000 words. It is the halfway point in this challenge and I still believe I will get to the end of the month with 50,000 words written on this book.

I've had gaps in writing this month which has upped the number of words I need to get written each day in order to cross that finish line. At this point, I have to write at least 2,500 words to have a shot at hitting this milestone. A few really good writing days where I could get over 2,500 maybe even double that would help give me more room to work out this book and have it completed ahead of the deadline.

Still, I am happy to be in this race. I've had enough of failure and am committed to seeing this through. I'm trying to see NaNoWriMo as a fun experience and one that can help liberate me. As  a writer I have goals. One of those is to be fast and free with my writing so I can write stories faster and in the white hot heat of the creative flow. And I want to be able to do it repeatedly.

I am trying to regain my footing so I can write every day though life does intrude with other important matters I know that I will make my way back to it. I hope everyone else participating in National Novel Writing Month this year is having fun creating stories and that you all consider publishing your works afterwards. Some of the best stories are written fast and furious.

See you at the finish line.

Dear Writer: Writing Plans

"The work never matches the dream of perfection the artist has to start with." 
~William Faulkner

I've been over this many times already. I've made plans about the books and stories I planned to write during a given period of time. None of those plans have panned out. Right now, I'm contemplating the formulation of another plan and also wondering if it is all for naught. (Yeah, just a bit of melodrama in my choice of words, I know.) But, I'm still going to make another plan. I recognize the importance of having some sort of plan even if it isn't a detailed one. It's something that many writers agree about at least in theory though often those plans never get past the first thoughts had about them.

I think one of the reasons I keep thinking in terms of plans is that I am also an indie publisher. Publishers have plans and schedules for publications that need to hit. Meeting deadlines is even more important when you're trying to build up an inventory of titles. Publishing imprints have regular monthly releases. This present a unique set of challenges for a writer who is trying supply the new books and stories to fill that list month after month.

I have not established any reliable schedule of writing to get that new material published, but I am well aware that it is exactly what I need to be hard at work doing. If I were able to make a realistic plan for writing new books and stories, I would be able to make measureable progress towards publishing goals too. I want the viablity of an imprint that is releasing titles regularly. The more titles that are up and available for purchase, the more likely I am to approach earnings that constitute a viable living.

If there is one thing I've learned as a freelancer it is that having multiple income streams is a far safer way than being totally reliant on a single income source. Relating this fact to writing plans it is clear that if I plan to produce a certain amount of stories over a given period of time I create the chance that those stories will sell in modest amounts, combining those smaller numbers to produce a decent amount of money each month.

Is this guaranteed money like working for a wage would be? No, not exactly. You are beholden to readers to buy those stories. I am not saying that traditional jobs are just more secure than freelancing and indie publishing are. They often are not anymore stable. Employers can hire one day and then fire or layoff the next. You can't count on an employer to always be there.

The bottom line is that nothing is ever certain. The same is true of any plan. Plans do not always go off without a hitch. More often, they fall apart when you get started making reevaluation and improvisation the norm. Does these facts mean that you should just skip a writing plan? No. I don't think so. It is always good to have a working blueprint of how you'd like things to go. Sure, life will get in the way of those carefully crafted plans, chew them up, and spit them out. But you can always draw up new ones and keep going. Better yet, have contingencies so you're prepared for failures. They will happen. If you can hit the ground running with a new plan, you minimize how your writing production is impacted.

Writing plans allow the writer a level of flexibility that they do not always afford themselves when lost in the white heat of creation. Some writer (this writer included) don't do any real planning when it comes to writing stories so any writing plan has to account for that and focus on general principles like how many stories to shoot for during a given timeframe.

So what is next for me, Dear Writer? Well, I think I need to make a new writing plan. Wish me luck. I wish you the same in all that you do.

Dear Writer: It's Okay Not To Write Sometimes

"I advise writing to oneself. If you don't want to read it, nobody else is going to read it." ~ S.E. Hinton

Dear writer, if you read my last message, you know that sometimes life gets in the way and you experience what is called a "life roll." It's bound to happen at one point or another. If ones takes over and you found you haven't written for some time, or at least not written to whatever level or standards you declared to yourself, you might feel guilt or disappointment. It is easy to blow things out of proportion. After all, most fiction writers are drama queens to one level or another. It's a bi-product of making things up all time in the stories we write.

Even if the events that sent you off on that life roll are now over or you're adjusting to a new paradigm, you might be wondering why the writing hasn't bounced back. You might be wondering, 'why haven't I gotten back on that old horse and resumed the pace I had set?' I don't know your reasons, but I have a few reasons besides the adjustments I've been making since I had to take on a part-time job.

I've been second-guessing myself and evaluating what I really want to do as a writer or maybe as a storyteller. I am really thinking about the subject that the quote at the beginning of this post mentions. I am not writing because I really am not sure whether I'm writing to myself or getting caught up in the idea of writing to readers or to some market in particular. The expectations that this can foster affects whether I am going to produce something or not.

I forget that I need to write stories that I find interesting and entertaining, first and foremost. All of the other considerations have to come somewhere beyond a distant second. I need to enjoy the stories I'm spinning. Otherwise, I have to wonder what it is I'm doing. I've said before that writing has to be fun or just won't do it. That basic philosophical point is a hard one to swallow at times. I believe it, but putting the ideas into practice can be difficult.

I do believe that if I'm not writing something that touches me on these kinds of levels that, ultimately, they will not be enjoyed by readers. What do you think, Dear Writer? Do you agree with me or no?

It's okay not to write sometimes. Especially when you just don't know whether what you've tried to write just isn't fitting that important criteria of being fun and entertaining. There no reason to beat yourself up about not putting down new words, if those words aren't ones written first for yourself. Just give yourself some time, seek out the stories that are fun for you and that speak to you. Then you'll be amazed at what might happen.

Dear Writer: Life Intervenes Sometimes

“I think all writing is a disease. You can’t stop it.” ~ William Carlos Williams

It happens. Life can step in and turn you and your carefully articulated writing plans on your head. Nothing goes as good as it does on paper or in your mind. You might have decided, clearly, how many stories or even books you were going to write. You took the time to compile a list of concepts and set a timetable. You might even get off to a good start with a story and then...bam! Life intervenes and you're stopped cold.

Author Kristine Kathryn Rusch and her husband, author Dean Wesley Smith, have both wrote about this subject often. Here is one example from Rusch's weekly blog column, The Business Rusch.

The point of her article is that life is often messy and unexpected. As a writer (and really anybody) can be going along, going fine, and doing your thing, and then all of it get stopped by some unforeseen difficulty, a change in lifestyle, or something else. Some of these life rolls as Rusch calls them can be minor delays. Others, like an illness or a loved one's death, can ben long-lasting and capable of changing your whole life.

As a writer, heck as a human being, you'll have life rolls and they will send you spinning. Sometimes, only for a short spell so that you can get back to your work and everything is peachy again. Other times, the change is so tremendous that you might find yourself away from writing for a long time--or at least writing something else or writing far less while you adjust to the new circumstances.

It is also true, however unpleasant to acknowledge, that some life rolls take you away from writing permanently. I'm not even talking your death here. There are just things in life that can change everything forever and often there is not one thing you can do about it.

Pretty tough message isn't it? Why am I writing about this subject?

Well, the fact is, Dear Writer, I am in the middle of a bit of life roll right now. It's not a big one, but just enough of one to disrupt the schedule and the plans I had made. I'm working through it. I'm a bit discouraged but I'm pushing through that and working to come back to writing fiction.

I'm sure some of you reading this might be facing something similar. The only thing I can say to you is that you're not alone, it most likely won't last forever, and I promise you'll write again someday soon. Don't give up. You'll make it, Dear Writer. And so will I.

I'll catch you next time.

Dear Writer: Where It All Started

"If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it!" ~ Toni Morrison

It started in my head.

It always starts in my head.

It probably starts in your head as well. We writers are often those peculiar and foolish sorts of people who spend a great deal of our time imagining things in our heads and then attempting to put them out on pages using words. We started out innocently enough, absorbing the stories that we were told as children, watched on television, or read in books. Humans need stories. It is one of the main ways they, social animals that they are, communicate with one another. Writers took that a step in one direction and said that it was not just that stories needed to be told, shared, and expressed in some fashion to others, but rather our stories.

Quite the egomaniacs, aren't we? I'll admit it.  I write because I want people to read what I wrote. It's not enough just to write the story and put it away in a drawer somewhere or store it on a flash drive. That line of thinking makes me an author. (Shh, it's not a dirty word as long as one doesn't use it as a badge that keeps them focused too long on one book or one story.) I can say with a hint of pride that I'm the author of more than one book. Still, I am a writer first and foremost, meaning I'm someone who writes rather than merely someone who has written. (In case you're wondering, that could be a simple way to explain the difference between the words 'writer' and 'author.' Many newer writers might be shaking their heads at this point. Sorry about that. Maybe I'll talk about it more in a future post.)

It started in my head when I was very young. It started then in your head too. While it's true that no writer is the same as another writer, it might be fair to say that we all cross a line between just playing and using imagination as other children would and really thinking that the things we made up are worth sharing with others. I don't know when I crossed that line. I could think of many instances throughout the rest of my childhood when those impulses reared up and sometimes even found outlets. You could too.

Dear writer, if it's okay with you, I will talk about this thing we do. I'll come back to this space every so often and unpack what we writers do, think, and grapple with as we, hopefully, continue writing. Thank you for tuning in and reading. It makes this writer happy.

My First Appearance On TV

Just wanted to share this with my readers. I appeared on a local television news station with Brett Sheldon, my co-author on the book Kicking The Odds. We are trying to promote our book around the area through media sources and we do have plans to do some book signings throughout the spring and summer months. Brett, who is building steam as a motivational speaker, will be adding talks when he can and hopes to have opportunities to to talk at schools and other organizations. Other promotion efforts are being put into place. I hope you get a chance to read this great book. It was a wonderful story to tell. I did my best to give you a glimpse into Brett's life and how he has been able to overcome so many obstacles in his life. He is an inspiration. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO.