BE CAREFUL OF AGENTS, SOME ARE WOLVES IN AGENT CLOTHING.

(Did you know that if you put your curser in the fish tank on the right it will draw the fish toward it? Good luck fishing!) A week has past and I am no longer frustrated, but I still have a warning for writers. Be very careful when you are looking for agents. I was “taken” only two (almost three) times by agents who directed me to editors who never finished the work and both agent and editor disappeared after getting their pay. I had an agent “just north of New York City” with a huge mailroom so I had to mark my manuscript “requested by _______” in order to have the agent receive it in a timely manner. Turned out that she was about 200 miles north and the mailroom was a mailbox in front of her house. She was a piano teacher who would receive a batch of manuscripts and send them to publishers five at a time. I suppose she would get one published every so often. The word is research, research, and more research. It is so tempting for a new author to grab at anyone who might get his or her book published. I know. I was one of them!

FRUSTRATIONS OF AN AUTHOR

The hard thing about writing is not the composition of a book. It is the getting the book published. When I write, I write to express something of myself and what I think in the art of words. The job is only half way done when I’m finished. The communication of my ideas to others is my goal. What would we have lost if Picasso and Monet, or any other artist had not been able to sell their paintings? Not that I’m in their league. Painting is only half the work, the other half is communication the painting to others. When I finish a book I try to sell it to an agent. But agents don’t really want to see books from unpublished writers. One book of mine received more than two hundred rejections before I gave up. Was the book that bad? I don’t think so, but then I’m prejudiced. It had won first place in two writing contests. Oh well. You can see that I would get excited when a “publisher” e-mailed me wanting to print a book I had written for juveniles. I sent him the manuscript. The letter came back that the work had merit, but since it would take three years to recoup their expenses, I would need to share the cost to the tune of $895! No deal!! More of this next time.

FIRST CRUISE

The house is very quiet now that the grandchildren are gone. I think that I have been missing them. However, there are many things to do. I bought a plastic model kit (never done one of these before) of the SS President Cleveland. I was on this ship with my family back in the early ‘50’s. I think I spent more time with the crew than with the rest of my family. The cruise , which was six weeks long, took us to Los Angeles, Hawaii, Yokohama, Japan; Manila, Philippians; Hong Kong, Kobe, and again Yokohama, Japan; and finally to Hawaii and San Francisco. Although I had wanted to be a sailor for a few years before this, the trip solidified my yearnings to be a seafarer and visit distant lands and people. The story of this cruise will be found in my book, Between the Devil and the Deep… which will be out soon. A few years later, I decided to try to get a position on the Cleveland, as a Steward (Bell Hop). I checked with the union to see how should go about this. They said I first had to take a two week course at the Maritime Academy in Vallejo, CA. In this course, they taught how to use three types of lifeboats (oars, Push-pull and engine), how to use and help passengers dawn a life jacket, first aid and many other things. I got in trouble during a loading of the lifeboats exercise. The order over the loud speaker came: “Man the lifeboats.” Everyone was at their station trying to get “passengers” into lifeboats. I was yelling “Women the life boats!” The trainer told me “the order was to man the lifeboats.” I replied, “You fill your life boats your way, and I’ll fill mine my way!” I do not think I will ever build an other plastic model kit. They are really bad...or maybe I am not so good.

GRANCHILDREN

I believe that grandchildren are a gift from God and a test of our patience from God. That they are a gift there is no doubt. We have just had a month long visit from our daughter, Alaina Hernandez, and her children, Auston and Rachael. They are very intelligent children and polite most of the time. Auston, 12, tried very hard to be helpful to me by not letting me carry heavy things. He likes to cook and he does make fine pancakes. He is looking forward to playing football next year. He is lively and very curious. Rachael,9,her mother calls "Ray-Ray," much to my confusion. We had an English Cocker Spaniel whose name was Ray and we often called he "Ray-Ray." Every time her mother called her I look for a dog. She very alert and likes to play the piano and other creative projects. She is very pretty and reminds me of another granddaughter Sara, who is married and has four children of her own. So I'm afraid I called Rachael, Sara several times. We have a dog, Aubrey, another English Cocker. The kids love her, but sometimes she has to run under an end table to get away from the attention. After all, she lives with a couple of old timers. Now the patience part. Sometimes the kids would do what kids do - argue and tell on each other. It's normal I know, because I did that with my three sisters (Dianne, Jackie and Joy). But I have done my duty raising three daughters. So I have to learn to be patient all over again. I think I did pretty well this time. I hate to admit that we miss them and the noise and clammer of two children running around the house. Aubrey misses the also and each morning checks their rooms to see if they had returned. We are very thankful for their visit and can hardly wait to see them again.

MY FIRST ATTEMPT AT BLOGGING

This is my first attempt at creating a blog, and I am having a tough time trying to get it correct. My goal is to meet others with the same interests and have conversations (pro and con) about them. My main interests, beside religion, are writing, sailing – especially cruising, sea shanties and songs, and prison chaplaincy. (You can add the Woodstock Rock Festival to the list as I was chaplain there.) I have written a book of Sea Songs, The Bitterend Song Book, that goes with a tape. Yes, I said tape. CD’s were not invented when I wrote the book, but I have tried to make CD’s from the tape. They are not to good but OK, I think. I have also written a Cruising Prayer Book. If I can figure out how to do it, I will place what I have left up for sale. I have a new book, Between the Devil and the Deep…: Memoirs of a Maverick Priest, coming out soon. I let you know when it is ready. Please sign in as a FOLLOWER, which will help me reach you. I hope to hear from you soon.