tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8361704131214340492024-03-12T17:37:24.203-07:00An Author's Life for MeECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.comBlogger193125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-71953373874443211352018-08-05T11:39:00.001-07:002018-08-05T11:39:37.269-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tUxkYmHc8i0/W2dDsiz7kYI/AAAAAAAAATY/1GbEOvk4GVYGWQGkiOWBvV_2HZyTron-ACLcBGAs/s1600/AuthorPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="457" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tUxkYmHc8i0/W2dDsiz7kYI/AAAAAAAAATY/1GbEOvk4GVYGWQGkiOWBvV_2HZyTron-ACLcBGAs/s320/AuthorPhoto.jpg" width="311" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://authorsinterviews.wordpress.com/2018/08/05/here-is-my-interview-with-edward-c-patterson-2/">New Author's Interview of Edward C. Patterson by Fiona Mcvie</a></span></b><br />
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<h2>
I really enjoyed giving this in-depth interview to Fiona. Hit the link and read the chat.<br />Thanks<br />Ed</h2>
ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-30573351994493567442018-04-21T08:20:00.000-07:002018-04-21T08:20:08.341-07:00FREE: April 21st & 22nd at Amazon Kindle Store: THE SAPPHIRE ASTONISHMENT - A NICK FIRESTONE MYSTERY by Edward C. Patterson<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Sapphire Astonishment — a Nick Firestone Mystery</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">by Edward C. Patterson</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3nHhiOn5_Go/WttVgtlzqYI/AAAAAAAAAS4/J9HP2anCHtA1yJ-f7xGR3aX_Qu339a-MACLcBGAs/s1600/TSACvr.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="440" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3nHhiOn5_Go/WttVgtlzqYI/AAAAAAAAAS4/J9HP2anCHtA1yJ-f7xGR3aX_Qu339a-MACLcBGAs/s320/TSACvr.jpeg" width="218" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MC58684">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MC58684</a></div>
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<b>Excerpt:</b><br />
Night fell on Ashbury Street as surely as the rain. The Painted Lady embraced its tenants (and a guest) and, although they were as dry as the situation permitted, the wind made for a damp companion — a chilled-to-the-bone companion. Garments were shod immediately and draped over towel racks and windowsills. Still, despite the weather’s relentless presence, Nick Firestone and friends managed to install themselves in their hospitable warren for the evening. There had been no further discussion — the race home silently stifled by tender considerations. Nor did the conversation blossom once they were in the loft — John quietly retreated to his room, while Nick slung the backpack on the bedroom chair. Still locked in his soul’s confusion, his heart rose when he saw Amy head for bed — in her nightie. No pajama slumber party this evening. Nick grinned, tried to put his troubles behind him and disrobed to his tighty whities, which were damp. But he knew they’d be gone soon after diving under the sheets.<br />
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Lust has a way of erasing, even for a moment, life’s quandary. No matter what brand of sexual indulgence on the mattress, the world flew to a zone devoid of heartaches and fears. That worry’s tidal wave would return after the primal urges were satisfied held no doubt, but at least they would wash up on a different shore — a shared margin where the honeyed waters’ sleek glistening anointed knotted breasts and loitered loins. It was neither love nor a lofty totem. Animalistic, it represented naught but a dash in time unless meant to produce a legacy, which in this case it was not. Still, erasing tension with an indelible memory was as fine a thing as could be imagined and, if it became a blister in the aftermath, could always be renewed on some future beach head.<br />
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<b>Also Availble on KindleUnlimited</b><br />
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254 pages<br />
<br />
<b>What Readers say:</b><br />
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"The spirit of the Jade Owl Series next generation!!! With our older friends included!!! An amazimg start of a new series featuring Nicky F irestone and his friends." - ellen<br />
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"The Pricilla Queen of the Desert type romp over the Golden Gate Bridge in a convertible 1967 Cadillac was priceless." - S. M. Reaves<br />
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"This is a terrific way to fill a day! I purchased this book right after finishing the fifth book of The Jade Owl series. I really enjoyed reading about Nick Firestone along with John and Amy Gray in this new mystery series. I'm lookinf forward to reading the next book about Old Friend Cane." - Nancy.<br />
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<b>Book Description</b><br />
The last time we encountered Nick Firestone (in The People’s Treasure and In the Shadow of Her Hem - Book 4 and 5 of The Jade Owl Legacy) he was a five year old scamp, precocious and filled with the spirit of adventure. Now he’s all grow’d up, as Simone DeFleurry would say, and itching for an occupation worthy of the scratch. It’s 2025 in San Francisco (post-earthquake of 2020) and things have changed for the adventurer as he wakes up to the sparkle of a rare relic – a Chinese hat-pin called The Sapphire Astonishment.<br />
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This first Nick Firestone mystery will take you on a wild ride through the city by the bay as young Firestone seeks the provenance of the curious hat-pin and its secrets. Many want this prize, including characters familiar to the readers of The Jade Owl Legacy series, but you won’t need that story to enjoy this one. So, slip into your eShirts and hold on to your gillifrickers for a ride down the hills of San Francisco into the world of the youngest China Hand. Your GlimmerGlasses will never feel the same. <br />
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<b><i>This book is dedicated in Memory of Timothy Mulder — eBook author and pioneer.</i></b><br />
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<b>Also available on Amazon</b><br />
<b>Old Friend Cane - the Second Nick Firestone Mystery on the Kindle and KindleUnlimited.</b><br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Sapphire Astonishment — a Nick Firestone Mystery</span></b><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MC58684">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MC58684</a><br />
<br />ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-16480789854822352712018-03-04T08:15:00.000-08:002018-03-04T08:15:12.715-08:00My Call to Chinese History<div style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">
<b><span style="font-size: larger;">"Within these halls, the relics told their tales and slipped their secrets."</span></b></div>
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So I wrote in The Jade Owl, a short snippet of an undulating paragraph about the tales historic artifacts tell. And back in 1971, I first heard the cuckoo sing history's sweet song from the podium. First from the leader of the Hungarian Revolution, Bela Kiroly, and then from Mary Giles, a consummate lecturer on Ancient history, a woman who brought the old Roman threadbare jargon to life. Sumerians glowed; and I remember doing a paper on Hathor's mirror, which sat on a velvet drape at the Brooklyn Museum. <b>Within these halls, the relics told their tales</b> and let slip their secrets. Yessum. It was history for me.</div>
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And then there was Professor Hyman Kublin, who specialized in Japanese history. Ah! Japan.. The land of <b><i>The Mikado</i></b> (not really), but I was hooked forever . . . well not forever. Until Prof Kublin introduced me to a larger well—<b>CHINA</b>. Her blossoming fathomless sea of rich history, relics, lore, customs and immovable presence. I couldn't get enough of her . . . never have . . . never will.<br /><br />Destiny knocked, and I cared little for the practicality of making a living as a Sinologist. I was still with a company that kept me fed (and would so 'til this day). I had scant notion of the job market or the glut of Sinophiles (unemployed ones). Still, China dominated all, including my writing. Suddenly hundreds of story possibilities came my way. So what did I do? I took a western-style tale and bent it <i>a la Chinese</i>. But it was an important tale. It was called <i>Vagrants Hollow</i> . It was my first mature novel. It concerned a Sung dynasty student and bureaucrat; and the death of his teacher - a murder mystery in 12th Century China. Why not? It had action, obsession and a twist ending (so twisty, it defied logic). Most important, it gave birth to my oldest fictional companion, Li K'ai-men (the scholar-official), whose story I tell. Little did I know then that Li and his ilk (his descendant Little Cricket figures heavily in later work), would burst through several works for the next forty years.<br /><br />I also scrawled a few Chinese themed short stories, one of which<i>Laughing Dog </i>reflected my knoledge as a Sinologist. It was sort of <i>the Papago Wedding</i> for the Chinese set. It also figured in the scheme of my writing, the basis for my play (1999) <i>Fishing With Birds</i> and the first sections of my novel (2002) <i>Nan-ya</i>, which has since become <i>the Southern Swallow series</i> (<i>The Academician)</i>.</div>
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Yes, these were fecund times. I also was writing papers, the real work of the historian. I committed to it. I would walk in the wake of Marco Polo. I would do it, because . . . because the relics <b>told their tales and slipped their secrets</b>. I would tell the world. Finally, a reason for a writing life. And then, after 5 <i>Jade Owl</i> novels and 4 (soon to be 5) <i>Southern Swallow </i>works, <i>Master Wu's Bride</i> was born. Yes, a reason for living . . . to provide a voice to a woman from the past to today's women in this age of #MeToo.</div>
ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-11489505954793994022018-03-03T20:29:00.001-08:002018-03-03T20:29:50.772-08:00Author Edward C. Patterson Urges Resistance<div style="color: #666666; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16.08px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em;">
<i><b><span style="font-size: larger;">Well, at 70 I won't see the final crash and burn. But I am resolved to b<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">e a voice, a pen, a quill, and this will be my last Hurrah, since I can't repeat my trips in the 60's for Civil Rights, or serving my country in the military again like I did in the late 60's, or march against Nixon and protest at college in the 70's, or go into he field to aid the dying during the AIDS crisis, or march on Washington as I did in the 90's as a Gay activist. The 21st Century gives me only my voice and this wonderful social media extension.</span></span></b></i></div>
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I lived in the business world for how many years? I've been in it and still in it after 52 years. Applying business acumen to government by a bunch of billionaire vultures who probably have not even read the Constitution is not my idea of the vision of the Founding Fathers. Their vision was a WHITE only (even Native Americans were specifically proscribed in the Declaration of Independence) democracy where their special interests were served. We have grown from that narrow definition in the context of a liberally interpreted document. Remember - we are the great experiment, and perhaps the experiment has failed, especially when we managed to let a narcissistic sociopath slip into the executive position.</div>
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My dedication to diversity and an America as a beacon of hope for the entire world may be naive and fraught with idealism, but living here is not all beans and potatoes. It's breathing in the many cultures that have changed us. We have had a governmental system which has worked despite of its Byzantine attributes. Tearing it down will not restore us to the vision of the founding fathers, because that vision was myopic. It's the generations between that have made America great.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: larger;">We evolve. We do not implode.</span></b></div>
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Thus, with the gifts I have - a voice, a pen, publication, social media - I will continue to inspire, piss-off and otherwise egg on those who can still march, shout, bray and shore up what we have rather than to replace it with a beehive of fascist uniformity. That is what history has taught me - European, Chinese and American History. And here I thought my legacy would be living out my days in quiet reticence. Nope.</div>
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<span style="font-size: larger;"><b>"Do not go gentle into that good night."</b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">,</span>ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-78556531932569069922012-10-14T09:47:00.002-07:002012-10-14T09:47:33.774-07:00Coming Out - Reversing the Lie<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For National Coming Out Day and dedicated to PFLAG - Here's my little award winner.</span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>No Irish Need Apply</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>a Novella by Edward C. Patterson </b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“ This book is multi-faceted in that it describes in great detail the impact this love story has on all of the characters in the story. ” </span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“ This is a great book if you want to get a perspective on what it would be like to be so different in high school; you're more than alone but estranged. ” </span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“ In his novel No Irish Need Apply, Mr. Patterson breathes life into the characters and the dilemmas they face. ” </span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No Irish Need Apply <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44</a> on the Kindle</span></b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>also on the Nook, Sony, Kobo, Dieselbooks and the Apple iPad</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>available in Paperback on Amazon <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1434893952">http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1434893952</a></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>and at Barnes & Noble</b></span></div>
ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-40694989362244558082012-10-11T17:04:00.001-07:002012-10-11T17:04:33.732-07:00Fishing the Ocean Dry<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>"Some days the fish bite and the fisherman is happy. Some days they laugh at him, and he sits on the shore and pouts. But no matter how many fish he catches, there is always more laughing from beneath the waves. So he sighs and whistles and baits the hook again, casting with his best lure. Flounders dream — dreams flounder."</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>
- Edward C. Patterson (me)
from Extempore Thoughts of the Day
included in - A Reader's Guide to Author's Jargon </b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006K66C0">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006K66C0</a></b></span></div>
ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-37784962523982890942012-10-09T06:46:00.002-07:002012-10-09T06:46:41.943-07:00The Imagination Runs Wild<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was in the Army, I was stationed in Grafenwöhr, Germany and there was this woods - as spooky as you can imagine just outside the town - Hansel and Gretl spooky. When I would walk through it, my imagination would run wild with every Grimm story that my active mind could conger. So it should come as no surprise I would encapsulate those spooky mind roves with authobiographical material into a novel - and with 9 5-star reviews, and the Halloween holiday approaching, let me get your mind juices flowing too.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Road to Grafenwöhr http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004QGYBKE</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">from the author of Surviving an American Gulag, No Irish Need Apply, Look Away Silence and The Jade Owl Legacy series.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">PFC Quincy Summerson begins his military adventure in 1968 in Bavaria realizing that his presence stirs the paradigm - the thin line between twilight and night. His hyperactive imagination gets the better of him, and soon the world enlists him for a predestined purpose - to travel on the road to Grafenwoehr, where the wood is alive with myth and folk lore. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Set in a tense Cold War atmosphere during both the invasion of Czechoslovakia and the Vietnam call to arms, The Road to Grafenwoehr is one man's emotional journey to square nature's justice with humankind's disregard for it. It’s a summons for a least likely and reluctant champion. But those called to service rarely choose where they serve. They just answer it, ripening to their purpose. For Quincy Summerson, a hero’s life is not his choice, but can he ignore the call? Can he stay off the road once the twilight snares him?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The author writes: "The Road of Grafenwöhr owes its existence principally to my own good fortune to be stationed in Germany and that bustling Bavarian town between 1967-68. Although the work is far from autobiographical, most of the events of a historic and pictorial nature (and even some used for the fantasy) are recounted from my direct experiences. Such is the web we weave. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During the last days of authoring this work, my father passed away. Therefore, this work is dedicated to his memory and also to the memory of all the brave heroes who — from Bastogne to Peleliu — have made our world possible through their sacrifice."</span><br />
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“ The plot is very tight and the storyline moves. ” Todd A. Fonseca <br />
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“ "Road" is a fascinating mix of reality and fantasy woven together with writing that can turn lyrical or gritty with the twist of a phrase. ” Dana Taylor <br />
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“ The added specter of Vietnam during the era of this book gave it another layer. ” Doug DePew <br />
<br />
ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-25101366830858064482012-07-09T19:32:00.001-07:002012-07-09T19:32:29.058-07:00PRESS RELEASE - In the Shadow of Her Hem<br />
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The Final Installment of The Jade Owl Legacy
Series Is Published</h1>
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<b>Edward C. Patterson has released the fifth
and final installment of his epic fantasy series The Jade Owl
Legacy</b></div>
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE</div>
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<a href="http://www.prlog.org/11919878-in-the-shadow-of-her-hem-the-jade-owl-book.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="In the Shadow of Her Hem (The Jade Owl Book V)" class="im2" height="300" onmouseout="ssi(this,197,300,230,351)" onmouseover="sli(this,197,300,230,351)" src="http://www.prlog.org/11919878-in-the-shadow-of-her-hem-the-jade-owl-book.jpg" title="In the Shadow of Her Hem (The Jade Owl Book V)" width="197" /></a></div>
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In the Shadow of Her Hem (The Jade Owl Book
V)</div>
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<i><a href="http://www.prlog.org/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #5080f0;">PRLog (Press
Release)</span></a></i> - <i>Jul 09, 2012</i> - <br />Just published, In the
Shadow of Her Hem, the fifth book and last installment of Edward C. Patterson's
epic fantasy on Chinese cultural themes - The Jade Owl Legacy.<br />.<br />598 pages
ISBN - 1478203064.<br /><br />“China Hands! To Me!” A green fog has engulfed the
Wei River Valley. The First Emperor’s tomb is mysteriously rumbling. The Big
Goose Pagoda is glowing like a lighthouse. And to blame? A bunch of Americans
stranded in the consulate at Bei-jing, who, at the end of the last installment,
came bursting through a portal in the People’s History Museum. “China Hands! To
Me!” With that command, Rowden Gray has summoned his forces to return to the
action - to the Dragon’s Pool in the shadow of Her hem, where the Jade Owl’s
overlord commands an army of creatures, engineering the end of the world; or at
least, the world, as we know it. <br /><br />In this last book of The Jade Owl
Legacy, our mixed bag of adventurers face their greatest challenge. They must
negotiate the perils of the People’s government, the mysteries of the Palace of
Broken Dreams, the dangers of the Ghost Lands and the mythic realm of the
Classic of Mountains and Seas. Their odyssey delivers them to the final showdown
— the Battle of the Full Moon, where all mysteries are revealed and every threat
is settled. What began as a Sinologist’s dream converges on everyone’s
nightmare. The Jade Owl calls you, but so does the muster to arms. Heed them
both, but answer only one. “China Hands! To Me!”<br /><br />The Jade Owl Legacy is a
five book series. The first book (The Jade Owl) introduces a peculiar quest led
by Professor Rowden Gray and a rag-tag team who follow a mysterious thread of
instructions to thwart an ancient Chinese prophesy. Instead, they managed to set
off events, igniting the crisis. Two demons, which possess a relic known as the
Jade Owl, each in turn, after eons of imprisonment, test their land legs among
the living. In The Third Peregrination, the Destroyer takes his turn with wrath
and fire. In The Dragon’s Pool, the Great Marshal takes his spin, preparing the
way for a curious ritual that will restore the world to a prehistoric state. To
combat these spirits, our heroes acquire extraordinary powers in an attempt to
thwart destiny’s course. However, destiny is not easily thwarted. In The
People’s Treasure, all hell breaks loose as our heroes are manipulated to serve
destiny’s course to fulfill the prophesy. However, In the Shadow of Her Hem,
they bounce back against insurmountable odds and fight to save life from
ultimate destruction. From San Francisco to New York, from Florence to China
with her many faces, the Jade Owl proclaims an ancient evil that intends to
triumph. This is the story of the brave hearts who rise to the challenge to
tangle with the dark forces of yin.<br /><br />AVAILBLE at Amazon.com for the Kindle
- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008I9IS22" target="_blank"><span style="color: #2050d0;">http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/B008I9IS22</span></a><br />(Paperback)
- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1478203064" target="_blank"><span style="color: #2050d0;">http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/1478203064</span></a><br /><br />The
entire series (kindle links, but available in paperback and at all major eBook
sites)<br /><br />The Jade Owl <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J54AWO" target="_blank"><span style="color: #5080f0;">http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/B001J54AWO</span></a><br />The Third
Peregrination http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/B001Q3M9QI<br />The Dragon's Pool
http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/B0028RY7BQ<br />The People's Treasure
http://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>dp/B0044DELYU</div>
</div>ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-34059172694442658592012-05-02T06:10:00.002-07:002012-05-02T06:10:37.933-07:00Writing for Just One ReaderAs an author, I have a mighty responsibility. I must engage a reader, who has taken his or her time to invest in my story. Therefore, any story I write must be relevant and find its way into a reader’s imagination. The world bustles around us and reading is an escape.<br />
<br />
<br />
Therefore, all my books have an element of fantasy, and like all fantasies, they must deliver the truth encapsulated in lies. Whether I take the reader to ancient China, a gay bar in Greenwich Village or a suburb in the wilds of New Jersey, they get there in the minds and hearts of my characters, who provide a view of my world through my eyes.<br />
<br />
All my novels have a gay theme. However, they are not gay books. Sometimes I explore current and past gay community issues, and every novel has gay characters, but while I am gay, my reader is ... a reader. I make no assumptions that my audience is gay and looking for hot steamy sex scenes or political discussions or equality discourses. When it comes to creating a novel, I’m only seeking a reader.<br />
<br />
Enough of the abstract. My novels are about the human condition, reality as I see it ~ in short, like any author, I’m a liar. I have a scholastic background in Chinese History. Therefore, I write Chinese fantasy works filled with drag queens, Cherokee warriors and wacky paranormal relics. I have written historical novels based on 12th century, homosexual Chinese scholar-officials.<br />
<br />
Then there’s a suite of gay-themed social novels ~ the usual stuff. NOT. A gay murder mystery mixing an original edition of Moby Dick and internet strippers (of course); a Boyz in the Band-esque gay activist gathering that dissolves into a general round of back stabbing; a stint in the U.S. Army before Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell; a little tale about a ghost and a priest and a computer programmer; a domestic drama about teenage love and widowhood. The usual mix. NOT.<br />
<br />
One of my latest work takes on the AIDS crisis of the 90’s from Act Up to the NAMES Project. In short, I write on a range of topics that transcend genre, but I guarantee you this. All are written for that one person out there looking for hours of engaged reading and who doesn’t mind seeing the world ... through my eyes.<br />
<br />
Edward C. Patterson<br />
<br />
<br />ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-19017239140353138222012-04-14T07:48:00.003-07:002012-04-14T07:48:38.209-07:00A Fish Out of Water<br />
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I
recently had an e-mail from a reader who asked where I get my inspiration for my
stories, especially </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Turning Idolater</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">, which seemed
unique to her — genre defying and yet satisfying genre need. In
</span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Turning Idolater</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">, I literally take the protagonist, a
young internet stripper who is yearning for something indescribable, and beach
him in a world that makes him squeamish. The sleaze of the porn world smashed
into the preciousness of the literary world creates a tsunami for all the
characters. That the two main characters are as noble as Ishmael and Queequeg,
taken from Moby Dick, grounds </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Turning Idolater</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> in a
genreless world, despite the echoes of gay-themed and whodunit. Is it a murder
mystery? Is it slice of life? Is it a gay romance? Is it a romance, period? Yes.
Like tofu in a pot, this novel is meant to appeal to every imagination it
infects. A fish out of water in every genre in which it swims.</span></span><br />
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">However, this doesn’t answer the prime
question. Where do I get my inspiration? Well, here’s a state secret. I imagine
a story that interests me, perhaps topically; perhaps it’s the character
development possibilities. I think on that story and its possibilities and then
I lay it out in a plank — simple and direct; an anchor for my writing. It stays
with me for a long time — years perhaps. </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">THEN</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">, and
this is the Patterson family recipe, I add an element diametrically oppose to
the simple line; a kettle of fish out of water. Thus, a study of gay activist
meetings becomes a satirical comedy on human frailty (</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893952&token=46EDDEA5FEE468B06C2FCF9F076A6F47C7AF4B78" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893952&token=46EDDEA5FEE468B06C2FCF9F076A6F47C7AF4B78" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Cutting the
Cheese</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). A love story teaming with deceit becomes
a super-charged ghost story (</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893960&token=CEAC6A4DC9DB146B3E2259C42BF5D7388A28CF45" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893960&token=CEAC6A4DC9DB146B3E2259C42BF5D7388A28CF45" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Bobby’s
Trace</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). A simple coming out tale becomes a
contemporary poster for prejudice (</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893952&token=46EDDEA5FEE468B06C2FCF9F076A6F47C7AF4B78" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fgp%2Fproduct%2F1434893952&token=46EDDEA5FEE468B06C2FCF9F076A6F47C7AF4B78" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">No Irish Need
Apply</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). A memoir of the gay experience in the
military in 1967 becomes a marathon run by a fat man (</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1438247230&token=B441DC2A76EC0A7236720584DDAFD27CC7E0E660" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1438247230&token=B441DC2A76EC0A7236720584DDAFD27CC7E0E660" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Surviving an American
Gulag</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). A simple porn boy meets snob man romance
becomes a high-powered murder mystery (</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1440422109&token=B823CD66766E878412D8FB6FD156A6A648E6BCCB" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1440422109&token=B823CD66766E878412D8FB6FD156A6A648E6BCCB" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Turning
Idolater</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). A quest story becomes a Dickensian epic
(</span></span><strong><em><a _fcksavedurl="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1440447977&token=72E7901AFB998574E7A656C24CEDF9F13872E806" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=cm_plog_item_link?ie=UTF8&location=%2Fdp%2F1440447977&token=72E7901AFB998574E7A656C24CEDF9F13872E806" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #003399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The Jade
Owl</span></span></span></a></em></strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">).
A sedate exposition of a Chinese official’s life in the twelfth century becomes
an historic epic (</span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The Academician</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> and </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Swan
Cloud</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> – the two parts of </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Southern
Swallow</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">). What happens when you tell a prosaic military tale set
in Germany during the 60’s and smash it up again the Brothers Grimm? You get
</span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The Road to Grafenwoehr</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">. Mix time travel and
alternative worlds with the history of the Cherokee nation and you get
</span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Belmundus.</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> How about gay discrimination in the
workplace mixed with a cocktail of the biblical triad — Jonathan, David and
Saul. That would be </span><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Green Folly</span></em></strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">. And it goes on and on
in my works.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Take a fish out of water and let it swim in
snow and everyone will want to know whether the snow is cold enough to preserve
the fish, or the fish large enough to swallow the snow. Nothing is ever too
simple to be riveting or too complex to repel.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><strong><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Happy reading, dear
readers.</span></em></strong></span></div>
<div style="margin: 12pt 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Edward C. Patterson</span></span></div>ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-57919313616796395882012-03-23T17:07:00.001-07:002012-03-23T17:08:48.510-07:00Artifacts and Revision Ghostsreprinted from Kindleboards:<br /><br />by Edward C. Patterson<br /><br />Recent threads continue the KB tradition of discussions about editing (poor or otherwise) and frustrations from readers and authors concerning books let out to pasture as thoroughly edited yielding errors nonetheless. At the risk of preaching to the choir, I'd like to talk about a post-editing phenomena called "Revision Artifacts" and "Editing Ghosts." One is bad, but the other is good — and sometimes really, really good.<br /><br />While typos and other misdemeanors can be the result of poor editing (read: author apathy), artifacts are the result of the opposite — author devotion and diligence toward perfection. Any software programmer will tell you that when you open a program for changes, you need to test it, because to monkey around with it usually breaks something else. This is what happens with revision and the application of duly found edits. The author applies the edit or pursues revisions and thus leaves an artifact.<br /><br />There are two classes of artifacts — passive and active. Active artifacts occur at the site of the change. They are usually an extra word or letter OR a missing word or phrase. Sometimes the original(or a portion of the original) is left alongside the change making for a bumpy read. A frequent offender is possessive conversion IE. the queen of the May converted to May's queen of. Whoops. It is quite easy to delete too much when highlighting in word processing or not enough. Joining two sentences and leaving the period or the opposite leaving the comma followed by a capital, is frustrating to an author who is confident their work was published unblemished.<br />Passive artifacts are caused to other parts of the sentence or paragraph apart from the change scene. Change a verb and you need to change pronouns perhaps. Change a tense, other areas of the paragraph may need adjustment. Omit an adverb and perhaps the remaining noun takes an "an" instead of an "a." In all instances, the artifact remains after the majority of revision and editing is accomplished.<br /><br />The remedy is simple (obviously). Last revisions and editing applications should be approached with care, Double check each. Spell-check the entire chapter after a revision (Spell checkers may be notorious as the sole tool of dependence, but in this case, it's invaluable). Finally, use a computer read back program such as Natural Speech or Kindle's text-to-speech to read back your entire manuscript as the final go through. You'll be surprised at how good these are finding both active and passive artifacts.<br /><br />Revision Ghosts<br /><br />Unlike artifacts, revision ghosts are good things. The more you author and the less you write, ghosts help support subtext and tone. When you're in the ZONE and spilling story down furiously without any regard for redundancy or refinement, some of the best stuff that you'll be cutting emerges on the page. During this act, all your words hug and embrace each other forming a bond. During revision you refine your work, adding and cutting and trimming and changing. However, despite your best efforts, the original bond between the original and the final remains. Cut sentences and paragraphs form an invisible hole, which the surviving sections still resonate. This resonance is called ghosting and is important to the mix, lingering unspoken but felt in the fabric of the work. I believe that one of the more important reasons for revising your manuscript is to leave these accidental ingredients. Much like artifacts, which detract, revision ghosts enhance a work. Writers (I say writers, because no author would consider a work finished without at least one revision) who rush to publication without revisions miss out on this perk.<br /><br />Well, I've babbled enough. The reason for it is to demonstrate that sometimes a critic, reviewer or blogger will take offense with an error and press it home, and although nothing exonerates the author's responsibility for any blight upon art's face, caring authors leave artifacts because they have tried hard, but just short of the goal — but in compensation they have enhanced the reading experience with revision ghosts that linger with a reader who just can't put their finger on it.<br /><br />Edward C. Patterson<br />Readers RockECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-31473093919211827022012-02-12T15:16:00.000-08:002012-02-12T15:21:34.285-08:00The Jade Owl (Book I)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hl4vEea46FE/TzhJCZizFJI/AAAAAAAAAPo/L7MNO0PUd6Y/s1600/TheJadeOwlCoverWeb.jpg"><span style="font-size:130%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708392833257510034" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 134px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hl4vEea46FE/TzhJCZizFJI/AAAAAAAAAPo/L7MNO0PUd6Y/s200/TheJadeOwlCoverWeb.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-size:130%;"> The Jade Owl<br /><br /></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J54AWO"><span style="font-size:130%;">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J54AWO</span></a><br /><br />In China they whisper about the Jade Owl and its awful power. This ancient stone, commissioned by the Empress Wu and crafted by a mineral charmer, long haunted the folk of the Middle Kingdom until it vanished into an enigma of legend and lore. Now the Jade Owl is found. It wakes to steal the day from day. Its power to enchant and distort rises again. Its horror is revealed to a band of five, who must return it to the Valley of the Dead before the laws of ch’i are set aside in favor of destruction’s dance. Five China Hands, each drawn through time’s thin fabric by the bird, discover enchantment on the secret garland. Five China Hands, and one holds the key to the world’s fate. Five China Hands. Only one Jade Owl - but it’s awake and in China, they whisper again.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Professor Rowden Gray has come to San Francisco following a new opportunity at the East Asian Arts and Culture Museum, only to find that the opportunity has evaporated. Desperate, he means to end his career in a muddle of pity and Scotch, but then things happen. He latches on to a fascinating young man who is pursuing a lost relic that Professor Gray has in fact been seeking. Be careful for what you seek - you may just find it. Thus begins a journey that takes the professor and his companions on a spirited adventure across three-thousand miles of Chinese culture and mystery - a quest to fulfill a warrant long set out to ignite the world in myth and legend. The Jade Owl is the beginning of a series - a legacy that fulfills a terrible truth; and in China, they whisper again.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />A Finalist in the 2009 RAINBOW AWARDS<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Review from Rainbow Reviews<br />Sinologist Professor Rowden Gray receives the opportunity of his professional lifetime, a curator position at the fabled San Francisco East Asian Museum of East Asian Arts and Culture, which houses the collection of his late mentor, "Old China Hand" John Battle. Battle's great work had been discredited due to his insistence on the Jade Owl, a mysterious missing artifact commissioned by China's only Empress. When RG arrives, he immediately discovers the position has been rescinded, he encounters a strange young man who proves to be Battle's prodigal son, and learns the Jade Owl really exists. Plunging into a drama worthy of an Errol Flynn swashbuckler, the soon-boon companions and several others are off on a life-and-death chase through San Francisco and then on to Hong Kong as the portal into China.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The Jade Owl is a nonstop, don't miss page turner and only the first in a quintology, The Jade Owl Legacy series. Readers, run, do not walk to your nearest book outlet and grab this intriguing gay mystery with its fully realized characters, gay and straight and bi, roller-coaster plotting, and paranormal fantasy elements. The Jade Owl is a true winner.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Review from Aricia Gavrial's Book Reviews:<br />In this novel, the artifact is an ancient Chinese object, a six inch piece of Jade carved in the likeness of an owl -- and it's actually a key that opens a box known as the Joy of Finches. What's in the box? That would be telling! But everybody wants the key.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The first thing that impressed me about Jade Owl was how knowledgeable about Chinese antiquities the writer is, and about China itself. Shanghai and Beijing are described with the same amount of detail and enthusiasm as San Francisco -- and never having been to either China or the USA myself, I really appreciated the "local color." Many writers, when setting their plots in London, New York, what have you, seem to think that everyone's been there and knows intimately every secret of the city. Not true. So, the first level where Jade Owl succeeds is in "selling me" San Francisco, which is the setting for the first long segment of the book.<br />Jade Owl is a real treat, on a par with the top-notch writers who sell in the gajillions. The Jade Owl is an extremely good read.ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-71981482183429952012-02-08T02:12:00.000-08:002012-02-08T02:21:50.653-08:00No Irish Need Apply<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tjRDEs8aynA/TzJMOMrAlVI/AAAAAAAAAPc/vr5sMQrs1dk/s1600/noirishwebfront.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706707484635338066" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 134px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tjRDEs8aynA/TzJMOMrAlVI/AAAAAAAAAPc/vr5sMQrs1dk/s200/noirishwebfront.jpg" border="0" /></a> <br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">No Irish Need Apply</span></strong></div><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44</span></strong></a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div>Kevin Borden has a secret, and that secret is about to shake the world around him - a tame and suburban world ruled by his widowed mother, Sarah and peppered by his study-mate, Louis. Teenagers sometimes do the darndest things, but in Kevin and Louis' case, it's a stroke of wisdom wrapped in fool's gold. In a time not so long ago, in the days of JIM CROW and NO IRISH NEED APPLY signage, the world made hate clear to those regarded as the fringe. "Stay away." To those who know no better - or perhaps know best, such lines are only meant to be crossed, or why else would they be drawn.<br /><br />No Irish Need Apply is dedicated to PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), an organization that has guided many youth across that line into the loving arms of those listening to their hearts; those shattering those hateful Jim Crow signs. Come visit with the Bordens and the Lonnegans as they take that journey across the line.<br /><br />Revised for 2010.<br /><br />Winner of the Red Adept Annual Indie Award (2010)Selected as 2009 June Book of the Month by Booz Allen Hamilton's Diversity Reading Group.<br /><br />Review from Rainbow Reviews:<br />"No Irish Need Apply by Edward C. Patterson is light homoerotic contemporary romance.<br />Kevin and Louis may know what prejudice feels like, but otherwise their childhoods are vastly different. Kevin has always gotten along fine at school where as Louis has always been treated with disdain and thought of as gay. They saw each other at school, but never really met until Louis is assigned as Kevin’s study partner. Louis has always known that he is different and he hopes that Kevin is that way too. Kevin has always done what is expected until he meets Louis and begins to have strange feelings for Louis.<br /><br />As Kevin begins to explore these feelings, they both realize that slogan No Irish Need Apply relates to their situation more than they care for. Neither Louis or Kevin are truly out of the closet about how they feel for one another or their sexuality. Will they find the strength of will to acknowledge their feelings out in the open or will they like many people be doomed to deny their true selves?<br /><br />Mr. Patterson has created an incredible story by linking it with prejudices that happened earlier in the century. By using this analogy that many understand from their study of history, it allows the reader to see how modern day prejudice effects people in the same manner it did years ago. I think that Kevin and Louis were very brave to stand up for themselves and in doing so they may have helped other young people in their same situation. I find this story very compelling and a must read for anyone who doesn’t understand how bigotry can effect people. I will be looking for other stories by Mr. Patterson."</div>ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-91983499288427057672012-02-03T09:24:00.000-08:002012-02-03T09:32:43.078-08:00Look Away Silence by Edward C. Patterson<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iXHYM9aS1rc/TywZt9x2c7I/AAAAAAAAAPQ/8CmBq3jX0cc/s1600/lookawaycover.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 150px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5704963105440035762" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iXHYM9aS1rc/TywZt9x2c7I/AAAAAAAAAPQ/8CmBq3jX0cc/s200/lookawaycover.jpg" /></a><strong>Look Away Silence </strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002HRER5S"><strong>http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002HRER5S</strong></a><br /><br /><br />Martin Powers wanted an ironing board for Christmas. Instead, he got . . . Matthew Kieler, a non-returnable gift, but a gift that kept on giving. Chance encounters are sometimes the ones that most change our lives. He sold Matt a tie, but got more in the bargain - more than most people would want and more than anyone deserved. Although these lovers may not have had the pink American dream, they had it better than most, even as they faced a crisis that would change us all. Look Away Silence is a romance set in the time of AIDS, when ignorance could spell trouble and often did. It encompasses the author’s experiences in volunteer community service and personal friendships during a tragic period in American history. The novel is dedicated to the Hyacinth AIDS Foundation, the NAMES Project and to the author’s own fallen angels. "Mothers, do not shun your children, because you never know how long you have to revel in them."<br /><br />PROFESSIONAL REVIEWS: Review from Rainbow Reviews This is an intensely emotional story about a young couple that falls in love, only to face the AIDS crisis instead of matching pink rockers on the porch. At a time when the government was refusing to acknowledge the crisis and the immortality of youth cast a protective pall over young gay men, this couple must cope with a horrible disease and the ramifications within their family and larger community. A very intensely moving story that packs an incredible punch, the last half left me crying all the way through it and beyond for some time. This is not a light-hearted tale but combines several important themes and a deeply romantic and fulfilling, yet heart breaking relationship that will resonate and stay with the reader for some time. Martin Powers meets Matt, a shy blue-eyed cowboy on Christmas eve and although Martin expects the relationship to barely last to New Year’s, it turns into a permanent partnership. Their happiness in each other create a small bubble around their love and world that is all too soon popped when the horrible specter of Matt’s dead lover and the crisis of AIDS invades their world. All of a sudden Martin is confronted with issues and problems he has never imagined and struggles with the intense emotions that come along. The writing is instantly engaging and engrossing as Martin’s character is likable and relatable. The pacing is well done and the book is incredibly easy to read, even for all the intense emotion elicited. Martin is a wonderful character as he is first introduced through his love of laundry and cleaning attachments through his surprising affection and love for a small, blue eyed cowboy that loves snow. Martin’s maturity, humor and intelligence are at odds with his young age, only twenty years old. Martin is not perfect and struggles through the story with his jealousy, fears, manipulation, and selfishness. His dysfunctional childhood has changed the way he views relationships and although he can look back on his faults, he makes numerous mistakes. However, for all his faults he truly and deeply loves Matt and that love is returned, creating the first solid and meaningful relationship young Martin has ever had. As Martin matures and finds strength and courage where he fears none exist, it’s easy to forget that he is only twenty three by the end of the story, and Matt was only twenty five. These are incredibly young men who should have been able to grow old together but instead live a full, loving life as best they can. Woven into the romance between the men are multiple themes about the gay community and the impact AIDS has upon the country and various individuals. Several couples from past works by the author make brief cameos in this story, although the focus never waivers from Martin and Matt. The depth of the characters and their story is an important tale that transcends gender and race. This is one story that will resonate for a very long after the incredibly beautiful final page.ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-1827869612043858402012-01-27T18:46:00.000-08:002012-01-27T18:50:30.867-08:00A Reader's Guide to Author's Jargon<strong><em>Just released - Exclusively for the Amazon Kindle</em></strong>.<br /><br /><strong>A READER'S GUIDE TO AUTHOR'S JARGON AND OTHER RAVINGS FROM THE BLAGOSPHERE</strong><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Readers-Authors-Ravings-Blogosphere-ebook/dp/B006K66C0K">http://www.amazon.com/Readers-Authors-Ravings-Blogosphere-ebook/dp/B006K66C0K</a><br /><br />From the author of <strong><em>No Irish Need Apply</em></strong>, <strong><em>The Jade Owl</em></strong> and<strong><em> Are You Still Submitting Your Work to a Traditional Publisher?,</em></strong> comes a collection of four humorous and stimulating works designed to amuse you for hours:<br /><br /><strong>A Reader’s Guide to Author’s Jargon</strong> — a glossary of authorial terms and definitions many of which will surprise you and all of which will amuse you.<br /><br /><strong>Extempore Thoughts for the Day</strong> — aphorisms both wise and clever from the author’s battery of fortune cookie wit.<br /><br /><strong>Ask Miss Chatty</strong> — an advice column from a drag queen, who isn’t afraid to flip her wig and the pithiest of reader inquiries.<br /><br /><strong>New Leaves in the Wind: 5 Essays from a Recovering Webaholic</strong> — an insiders view of corporate spending on website development and how it’s contributed to the current financial meltdown.<br /><br />If you want to fire up those synapses, come jog in the jargon. Regret’s not a four-letter word.<br /><br />Excerpts from <strong>Extempore Thoughts for the Day</strong>:<br />“Books, like chapels or cathedrals, open their doors for reader meditation. Of course, authors still must pass the collection plate.”<br />“Variety is the breakfast of life. You waffle today; you pancake tomorrow.”<br />“The Roman Senate opposed dictators, but Caesar had his Gaul.”<br />“They say the world has seven wonders. I agree. They're called the days of the week.”<br /><em>and 263 more</em><br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-37201101868640031292012-01-13T04:35:00.000-08:002012-01-13T04:36:48.155-08:00Happy New YearI want to wish all my visitors, readers and fellow authors a happy and prosperous new year.ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-34044920334413792342011-11-02T18:06:00.000-07:002011-11-02T18:06:45.895-07:00Amazon.com: Swan Cloud - Southern Swallow Book III eBook: Edward C. Patterson: Kindle Store<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Swan-Cloud-Southern-Swallow-ebook/dp/B0062CGHU2/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_8">Amazon.com: Swan Cloud - Southern Swallow Book III eBook: Edward C. Patterson: Kindle Store</a>ECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-17939922559499166002011-06-11T07:47:00.000-07:002011-06-11T12:35:38.603-07:00This Week in The Indie SpotlightThis week: The Indie Spotlight Featured Authors and Books for June 6 - June 12<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theindiespotlight.com/">http://www.theindiespotlight.com/</a><br /><br />Monday: Steve Thomas - An Exercise in Futility<br />Tuesday: Linda Acaster - Torc of Moonlight: Special Edition<br />Wednesday: Jim Mosquera - Escaping Oz<br />Thursday: O'Neil De Noux - SLICK TIME<br />Friday: Donna Burgess - Darklands: A Vampire's Tale<br />Saturday: Brandon C. Laraby - 404<br />Sunday: Jacqueline Howett - The Greek Seaman<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-55835665606494152882010-12-30T14:47:00.000-08:002010-12-30T14:48:23.217-08:00Patterson Novel Wins Red Adept Indie Award - 2010I am please to announce that <strong><em>No Irish Need Apply</em></strong> has won in the Red Adept Annual Indie Award - 2010 in the Miscellaneous Genre Category.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44</a><br /><br />Red Adept Reviews: <a href="http://redadeptreviews.com/">http://redadeptreviews.com/</a><br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-44213309178470266092010-12-24T06:50:00.000-08:002010-12-24T06:52:08.593-08:00A Holiday Message from The Indie Spotlight<strong>A Holiday Message from </strong><a href="http://www.theindiespotlight.com/"><strong>The Indie Spotlight</strong></a><br /><br />Once a year, humankind gathers, no matter what belief they subscribe to or what oppression they have suffered, to exchange good will and the gift of life. Many traditions have captured the essence of this habit, from a simple toast to a riot of celebration. Those who know better know that in this season of joy we have a special custodianship for one another; a camaraderie and a fulfillment beyond the burdens of daily toil and labor. It is in this ability to touch strangers and loved-ones alike that we encapsulate the notion of civilization.<br /><br />We at The Indie Spotlight have been delighted to provide a conduit of great writing for our subscribers and readers; and an opportunity for authors to do what they do best - share in words their thought and imagination. Spinnings from the pen have been a tradition of the season. Great authors have made a special point to hon their craft during the holidays with memorable gifts that still linger in civilization's larder - from Dickens to Alcott, from Pushkin to Verne, from O. Henry to Schiller and a plethora of masters who command our attention, loyalty and gratitude. The wonder of it all is the wonder of this season; that there have been and are so many talents to express daily what we find best vented during these inspiring days. We are happy to say that there has been no dearth of authors or readers in the spreading of this cheer.<br /><br />Expressions of thanks are often empty - often shallow and lain upon the shelf with the tarnishing trophies. However, this first year of The Indie Spotlight has been something rare and fruitful. It has given a voice to those who need to be heard and an ear to those who thirst for music. Therefore, it is not with empty words that we thank our contributing authors and our faithful readership, because we intend to continue to maintain and grow this platform for your delight and our determination. May you all have a healthy, prosperous and bright holiday season as we, together, continue this business - this business of civilization.<br /><br />Edward C. Patterson<br />& Gregory B. BanksECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-32878803785339024932010-12-18T06:21:00.000-08:002010-12-18T06:22:19.845-08:00A Guide to Author Jargon for the Reader - 83<strong>free indirect discourse</strong><br /><br />when the author narrates a character's point of view, most frequently as postulated thought. i.e <em>Rutabaga Jones often thought that Victor was a vagabond and sometimes expressed it in public</em>.<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-89828106779236494122010-12-13T09:57:00.000-08:002010-12-13T10:16:32.662-08:00A Guide to Author Jargon for the Reader - 82<strong>ambivalent point of view</strong><br /><br />this is a <em>false start</em> point of view weakly presented at the beginning of a chapter where a character, usually already situated, is the point of view. However, when the scene gets going, another character is declared the point of view. This is effective when the author wishes to another character to reflect on the scene before the anchoring the scene it in an active POV.<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-39828077501010221052010-12-12T06:33:00.000-08:002010-12-12T06:34:40.715-08:00A Guide to Author Jargon for Readers - 81<strong>Stock character</strong><br /><br />a repeated characterization across the entire literary tradition. Examples are the precocious child, the witty waiter, or the <em>femme fatale</em>. When a stock characterization becomes central to a work, it is usually referred to as an archtype.<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-2306243497054531992010-12-10T07:40:00.000-08:002010-12-12T06:33:05.373-08:00A Guide to Author Jaron for the Reader<strong>third person omniscient POV (Head Hopping)</strong><br /><br />a Point of View (POV) rarely used today, but popular during the 19th century, where the author head hops from character to character. It can be disorienting to the reader and is mostly used by true master's of their craft, or in abstract novels or passages.<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-836170413121434049.post-20047595784973583182010-12-09T09:34:00.000-08:002010-12-09T09:37:00.582-08:00A Guide to Author Jargon for Readers - 79<strong>literary novel</strong><br /><br />a novel that does not attempt to tell a story, but might (quite accidentally). However, the term is applied by different schools at different times as a snub to novels that do purposely tell a story (genre novels). Unfortunately, because of this, the term has become meaningless in discussion and is now viewed as a conservative crutch for the writing elite.<br /><br />Edward C. PattersonECPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05632007143016828928noreply@blogger.com0