Sunday, August 28, 2016

The Art of Being Obstinate

I wasn’t much of an artist back in grade school. I didn’t make any real attempt at that until I was a little older. I liked to doodle and make designs or other marks on the paper but as far as drawing something, anything, that anyone could view as art, that wasn’t happening. I didn’t have time for such things.

But that didn’t stop my teachers from insisting that I needed to at least TRY to draw. Of course, I resisted.

One day, the assignment was to draw a house—simple enough. But always ready and willing to be cantankerous, I decided to make things easy on myself and I drew a teepee. My drawing consisted of about five lines; that was it. I was fully prepared to argue that a teepee was indeed a house. She hadn’t specified what kind of house, after all. Still, I knew she wouldn’t be amused.

Thing is, about half of the students at the school I attended were Indians. And as I discovered, it wasn’t too difficult to convince a few of my classmates to join me in my stubborn sidestep of the assignment. They actually thought it was a great idea. Me, I just figured if I wasn’t alone, the teacher might not be so hard on me.

My theory must have worked because she didn’t really say anything; just gave me, and the rest of my brave cohorts, a disapproving look.

But, toward the end of the school year, after a few more such antics by me, she finally voiced her discontentment. Surprisingly, she wasn’t really upset by my behavior. Rather, she was concerned because I never took things seriously enough. She said a few other things too, most of which I didn’t hear because, well, I wasn’t listening. But one thing I did hear was that I would probably never be an artist. But that was okay, she said, not everyone can be an artist.

A couple of years later, once I’d gotten serious about giving my creative side a chance, I drew the picture below. I’d like to think it was perhaps partly inspired by my teacher. And although, I’m not into naming my artwork, if I were, I think I’d call this piece, A Tribute To The Teacher Who Said I’d Never Be An Artist! ~



Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. Bruce A. Borders is a proud member of Rave Reviews Book Club.

Monday, August 22, 2016

Rave Reviews Book Club’s Back-To-School Book & Blog Block Party


 Welcome to the Rave Reviews Book Club’s Back-To-School Book & Blog Block Party!


Location for this stop:
Central Oregon High Desert
(Pictured Below)



What I’m giving away today:
$25.00 Amazon Gift Card

Number of winners for this stop:
1

Click here for more details on the Block Party
and see how to become eligible for more prizes.

For those who may not be familiar with me, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Bruce A. Borders. I’m the author of several books, sixteen at last count, but that is subject to change. Although, I tend to branch out into more genres, I usually write crime/mystery/suspense novels. Most often, my books tell the story of someone who has been wronged in some manner and how they deal or cope with it, how it affects them, or (my favorite) how they retaliate.

One of my habits is to add a plot twist to the end of a book, which may change the entire story. I don’t always do that but then I usually hear about it from some of my beta readers—that would be my wife and kids!

As I mentioned, I have several books and I doubt anyone wants to read a synopsis of each of them, so I’ve limited this post to introducing my four best selling titles.


Dead Broke is my most recent release and the first in what I hope will be a LONG series, the Lana Denae Mysteries. The setting for the books is Portland, Oregon. I chose that city because, living in Oregon, I am fairly familiar with the layout and other details unique to the area.


Dead Broke
(Lana Denae Mysteries, #1)


It was the perfect murder... almost.

An elderly woman is found murdered in her apartment. Cause of death; a single gunshot wound to the chest. The only door is locked from the inside. There are no signs of entry, no bullet holes in the walls, and no weapon is recovered from the scene. That’s when Detective Lana Denae of the Portland Police Bureau is assigned the case. The investigation gets off to a slow start until she realizes there is more to the story than a single random murder. Someone is looking to rake in a profit to the tune of more than a million dollars, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to get it. Lana is determined to stop the killer before he strikes again but with limited evidence, finding just who is responsible is more difficult than she imagined.

“Every time you think you've got this one figured out, it turns out you're wrong.”

“One of the more enjoyable books I've read lately!”

____________________________________


Over My Dead Body is my first novel. The story combines two news stories I heard when I was much younger. In both stories, a corrupt official threatened—and then followed through with the threat—to remove a minor from their parents’ home without justification. This provides the setting and beginning plot. I’d wanted to write the story for quite a while and describe what I would do, how I would react, in a similar situation.


Over My Dead Body


How far will a man go to protect his family?

When the director of Child Protective Services uses his position to exact a personal vendetta in removing three-year-old Ashley from the Blake’s home, Jeff Blake, a financial advisor, responds to the threats in the only way he feels he can – violently. By the end of the short encounter, three people are dead and Ashley, the daughter, is still taken and placed in temporary foster care, so the tragic fiasco gained Jeff nothing. Or, so it seems.

Matters are further complicated when Amy, the wife and mother, winds up for a brief stay in a mental ward due to the trauma she witnessed in her home. It seems as though everything is against the Blakes. Understandably, the police, as well as the Courts, are not too concerned with the needs of the family. Complete with many twists of fate, the story looks at the common problems of a typical family caught between love and the law.

“Thought provoking!”

“Exceptional! One of those books you can't put down!”

____________________________________


Miscarriage Of Justice was written and then re-written several times. In fact, over the course of about a year and a half, there were seventeen re-writes. And even then, I put it aside because I wasn’t satisfied with the book. A year or so later, I picked up the manuscript, made a few minor changes and “suddenly” it seemed to work.


Miscarriage Of Justice


The justice system is just a system, not a just system.
Sentenced to fifteen years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, Ethan Rafferty has one thing on his mind—payback! With his time up, the ex-con is free to pursue his mission of revenge.

During the trial, the District Attorney, Mariana Clark, suppressed evidence that would've exonerated him and now is the focus of Ethan’s vengeance. Intent on making her life a living hell, he works daily to antagonize and torment the woman. Unable to retaliate through the courts, considering the role she played, Mariana chooses to fight fire with fire. Soon, their feud escalates to a point where neither imagined it would go.

Which one will prevail, Ethan or Mariana? Can either? Or, are both of them bound to a destiny produced by a Miscarriage of Justice?

“You will never look at the court system the same again!”

“Never saw that ending coming!”

____________________________________


Inside Room 913 is my best selling book, which is odd. I wrote the book intending for it to be a short story. But as usual, I got carried away and the book turned into a few hundred pages. I then edited it down to about 150 pages. Originally, I thought the book would be categorized as young adult but thanks to input from readers and advertisers, it has become a suspense book.


Inside Room 913


Parkview Manor has a secret, and eighteen-year-old Cynthia is curious! 

When Cynthia Holt takes a job at a former sanitarium, now operating as an assisted living center that doubles as a hotel, she instantly discovers something more is occurring than simply providing the elderly with housing and care. Something very strange is going on behind the locked door of Room 913!

After she is repeatedly warned to stay away from the room and to not discuss it or the occupant with her co-workers, she is even more intrigued, and suspicious! Letting her curious nature guide her, she immediately begins asking questions. When she finds that Room 913 has been closed off, locked and sealed for 40 years, her curiosity turns to concern. Though rumors abound, no one seems inclined to talk about it.

Not giving up so easily, Cynthia persists in her pursuit of solving the mystery, investigating the rumors until she learns the truth of what is inside the forbidden room—or does she? 

“Truly great story - unexpected ending!”

“Excellent book! 5 Stars! I thought I’d figured it out, and then...” 

____________________________________

 See all of my books on my Amazon Author Profile.


Thanks for dropping by! And don’t forget to leave a comment below!








The Information Age

It’s amazing what a guy can learn from those little human-like creatures known as grandchildren. Having recently spent a week with all five of my grandchildren, I am now brimming with information. While some of it is interesting, some are things a guy would rather not hear.

Among the things I’ve learned is: that I need to lose weight (although, it was not stated quite that way), that I’m getting old, that when the sun rises it’s time to get up (even if you’ve just gone to bed a couple of hours before), that what little hair I have left is mostly gray, that kissing my wife spreads germs, that I wouldn’t make a good fisherman, that I talk too much, and the list went on. And on.

Then there was the utterly useless stuff like: motorcycles have two wheels, water is wet, and you should open a door before going in. While it come as a surprise to some (my grandchildren) these things I already knew but had long ago dismissed them because they don’t serve much of a purpose for, well, anything. That didn’t seem to matter; I was still deluged with all of their “profound” knowledge.

Some of this enlightening info I asked for but most of it was offered freely with no prompting. The little critters seem to have no inhibitions when it comes to speaking their mind. But in a world where everyone has learned to sugarcoat things in order to not offend anyone, I found their open honesty refreshing! But also, a little overwhelming. I’m not sure how they expected me to remember it all!

Yep, I definitely learned a lot of stuff. A week’s worth times five! But I think the most important thing I learned during our time together is, don’t ask a child a question if you don’t want to know the answer! ~

Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. Bruce A. Borders is a proud member of Rave Reviews Book Club.

Monday, August 15, 2016

Back Home

Wisconsin in August! Probably not the best time to venture into America’s Dairyland.

For those of you who did not see last week’s post, the family and I, all eleven of us, took a road trip from Oregon to Wisconsin. For some in our party, it was the first visit to the state, and their first experience with humidity and bugs! Oh, and thunderstorms!

Also, for some, it was their first experience with long distance driving. At first, the grandkids seemed excited at the prospect and eager to hit the road. But I think the novelty wore off after the first 100 miles or so. After that, the “joy” of driving transitioned into the typical “Are-we-there-yet view.

For the adults, the adventure took a turn for the worse after about ten hours, in the form of car trouble. Outside Evanston, Wyoming, one of our vehicles broke down. It would run but the transmission would not engage. Sitting on the side of the freeway is not a real exciting way to spend a vacation. After a couple of hours and a few visits from the Wyoming law enforcement (who were very friendly and helpful) we had the car towed to the dealership where we learned it would need a new transmission, which incidentally, was not cheap. Eventually, we rented a car and continued our trip, leaving the problem vehicle to be fixed. We were a day late when we got to Wisconsin but better late than never, I suppose.

But wait, there’s more. The day before we needed to leave, the key for the rental car decided not to work. It was one of those new key fobs and not an actual key. The message panel on the car just said “Damaged key” when we tried to use it. And although those type of keys have a “real” key inside them for such an emergency, that wouldn’t work either. No matter what we tried, the car wouldn’t start. We couldn’t even roll up the windows. Not a good situation in a place that likes to rain buckets of water! So, after another tow to the dealership and waiting a day for them to fix it, with fingers crossed, we headed home.

There a few more minor issues with the rental, but finally, we made it back to Evanston, Wyoming. There, we picked up the repaired vehicle, returned the rental car, and hit the road again for the rest of our journey. After a day and a half on the road, we arrived home dead tired—and slightly disgruntled.

But the trip wasn’t all doom and gloom. While in Wisconsin, we visited my wife’s family, celebrating her parents’ 50 years of marriage and, I think, we all had a good time. We saw a lot of family and friends that we hadn’t seen for a long time and had a nice visit. Also, on the way to Wisconsin we stopped at Mt Rushmore, and saw a few other sites too. The stops helped break up the trip for the travel novices, know as my grandchildren!

In all, we visited nine different states. I’m pretty sure the extended freeway journey made for a fun-filled experience for, not only the grandkids, but everyone else as well. But I don’t think any of them are ready to go anywhere in a vehicle just yet. Except me. I’m headed back to work. I’ll be driving all night again. But not to Wisconsin! ~

Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. Bruce A. Borders is a proud member of Rave Reviews Book Club.

Monday, August 8, 2016

Almost A Vacation

Vacation! Yep, again. A year ago, on my summer vacation, I spent the week painting the house, and fixing things that had been neglected far too long. This year, I’m taking an actual vacation. Well, sort of. We’re traveling to that exotic land of enchantment, known as Wisconsin. (That last part may have been typed with just a hint of sarcasm).

It promises to be a fun-filled, or at least, interesting, trip. The whole family, my wife and I, our three adult children, our son-in-law, and the five grandchildren will be cruising down the freeway from Oregon to Wisconsin. Normally, it’s around a thirty-hour drive, but with that many people, and that many kids, it might take a wee bit longer this time. Hopefully, by the time anyone reads this, we will be there. Hopefully.

For everyone, other than me, this will be a LONG trip. By the end of our vacation, we will have driven more than 3,500 miles. I’m thinking the grandkids, and perhaps a few others, will have had enough of being car bound, listening to the hum of steelbelts on the asphalt, by the time we get back home. 3,500 miles is a lot of miles. I know. That’s what I drive every week. And now you know why I said I was “sort of” taking a vacation. ~


Bruce A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. Bruce A. Borders is a proud member of Rave Reviews Book Club.