Reviews Archives - Author K. Williams

The Moral of the Story – Open Book Blog Hop #374

May 1, 2023 By Captain Maiel 4 Comments

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

Topic #374

Does every book have to have a moral?

Welcome back to another Open Book Blog Hop! The authors included in this ongoing series wish to thank you for your reads. Even more so, we appreciate that you share our writings with friends. If you’re new to the series, welcome aboard. The authors engage and impress weekly. Prepare to become a regular reader.

100% it absolutely does not. A moral need not apply here. Regardless, your readers are going to find something in the work that resonates with them and teaches them something (usually about themselves). Every reading is deeply personal, and we cannot anticipate the results. Certainly, we can try to steer the ship, but a heavy hand makes for a dogmatic read.

If you want to create a dogmatic read, you’re more than welcome to do so and likely have your reasons. That said, fiction errs on the side of fun. It exists to entertain, first and foremost. The fact that we have literary study is merely a sidebar to the experience of books. Even a literary theorist would admit to that.

hands made of words hold a brain illustration also made of words, resting on a mountain of words. The words respectively respresent being & existing, thorughts & feelings, and Love. Moral, morals, morality

Books are art. Art is an experience. The things we put into them are just as deeply personal as what the audience gets out of them. However, that does not have to be so ethereal. For instance, I rather enjoy the Fast and Furious film franchise. I make no excuses about that. The cars, the actors, and the scenery are all fun! It doesn’t have a real deep meaning. That said, Vin Diesel did bring in a thread about the importance of family. That thread builds a binding and beautiful tapestry over the series, especially after the untimely loss of Paul Walker. I miss him, but not at all at the level his friends do. So, the films take on a meaning for its contributors that my enjoyment as na audience member does not. Although I enjoy them, there merely a little cloud cover now.

The moral of Fast and the Furious could be to love, and love hard, those who are in your life, because you never know when they won’t be there anymore. It could also be, don’t steal, don’t be a dick, or even that perseverance wins the race. Maybe it is that hard asses can always been redeemed–even a piggy cop type. For me, there’s not really a moral here. I see a celebration of hot cars, great vistas, fun actors, and found family.

Yes, the film is really a text. After all, it has to be a script first. Books can serve this same purpose for readers: just being fun. I don’t think a lot of people read the Star Wars books with any moral learning in mind. As an example, I read a Star Trek Book back in the day, and it wasn’t for any teachings. At that time, I was just a fan, and it had Mister Crusher on the cover, so I thought it might be a great starting point for me, being so familiar.

open book blog hop, a journal lays open on a desk in a black and white photograph. A glass half full (or empty) rests near and a lamp base is seen in the back. It is stark and clean.

Admittedly, I read Tolkien’s works for the fun of it. In fact, everything I have ever picked up was for the fun of reading. Whether or not there exists a moral is something to suss out later. Lord of the Rings clearly has a moral, as does his friend’s Narnia series. Many pieces of great literature come with baggage, such as theory which speaks on the morality play within the pages. That’s because they have been studied for generations and picked to death. They left great impressions on their readers. Don’t forget that there have been studies into the effects of reading on empathy, which is deeply tied to morality.

Newer books are mass produced and therefore numerous. It is hard for there to be a large following for each that leads to in-depth study. The pulp fiction of the 20th century is the hub of that outcome. Unless your book reaches so many readers that it is held on high, scrutinized by academics, it will never matter if there is a moral or not–except to you.

In the end, write your story as you see fit, moral or not. Write it for the reasons you personally have. If readers like it, one day, you may be surprised to find the lessons they took from the pages you created. Our job, however, is merely to entertain. The rest is bonus. Don’t stress, as your moral compass will surely show through no matter what you do.

Find out how the other authors answered this fun question by clicking on their links below. Subscribe to my blog to have the hop delivered to your inbox every Friday.

Research Go To – Open Book Blog Hop #373

April 24, 2023 By Captain Maiel 3 Comments

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

Topic #373

What are your favorite resources for research?

The internet at our fingertips is such a powerful tool. However, we can misuse this source of information unintentionally. Far too many people think that whatever is published on the internet is somehow vetted. If it’s on a page, it must be valid is not a great way to come to the information at our fingertips.

That said, if you know your way around, and you’ve come up to speed on how to vet information for yourself, this powerful tool can provide all you need to do your research. This is why I stress the importance of taking classes at a collegiate level. Regardless of what you believe, getting to consult with others on acceptable documents and so forth, is actually very important. Credible resources matter, especially in writing historical pieces and any work that rely on accurate events, places, and people.

Another point of importance on the validity of information: published books aren’t always accurate either. Not every author is trustworthy. How do we know who to trust? If you rely on books from which to gain information, you may fair better more often. Not every conspiracist with an ax to grind has access to publishing a book. It requires navigating a litany of steps to prove the value of your work to the public. Via books, only those with enough power or clout get to have their ideas presented.

Now, keep in mind, power and clout often make for a questionable concoction. It’s a lot easier to consider the source when you’ve been able to digest other moments and words from them prior to coming across their written word on any given topic. A healthy exercise of one’s skepticism is necessary with any research. This is a lot harder to do when the information is coming from an unfamiliar source.

How would you vet something that comes from someone with whom you’re unfamiliar then? Ask yourself a few questions: where is this being posted (vetted journal with a reputation, private blog, scholarly outlet)? What is the background of the author (do they have degrees or experience in the field, how are they viewed by their peers, what have they contributed to the area of knowledge)? Is this contributing to confirmation bias I may have, or is it bringing in facts and from where? Then, you’d go back through the questions with who is providing those facts.

All of this said, please remember that not all bias is negative. Some people will tell you otherwise, and that is often because it challenges their agenda. That is one of the things you’ll need to sniff out using instincts you hone over time. If your gut is screaming something isn’t right, there’s probably a good reason as to why.

I, for one, find the internet a great tool to get me started on the research I need to do for any of my books. Obtaining more detailed manuscripts is always a step in that process. Finding the right works to add to my bibliography has always begun online.

You can learn more about the processes that I utilize in writing my books through my series on Writing Historical Fiction. There is also my graduate papers on this site which provide some epic bibliographies on doing research. For example:

MacMillan, Margaret. Dangerous Games: The Uses and Abuses of History. New York: The
Modern Library, 2008.
May, Lary. The Big Tomorrow: Hollywood and the Politics of the American Way. Chicago: The
University of Chicago Press, 2000.
Kuhn, Thomas. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. 3rd ed. Chicago: The University of
Chicago Press, 1996.
Appleby, Joyce, Lynn Hunt, and Jacob Margaret. Telling the Truth about History. New York: W.
W. Norton & Company, 1994.

The above list enumerates my top recommendations to learn how to process and deal with information that we find online and out in the world. These books will set your perspective and help create those critical lenses required for this line of work.

In the end, it is up to each author to determine how far they will go in their research and what kind of work they wish to produce at the end of it. Not all books require this level of care. Not all authors are willing to put in this much effort, either. Therefore, the above list can provide the average reader with much needed tools in navigating the books that they consume. After all, how many times have you heard someone spout misinformation they learned through an Old Western? Passively absorbing information can do that to you, whether it comes from a film or a book.

Let’s hop on through the other posts our authors have written by clicking on their links below. Subscribe to this blog by dropping your email in the box on the top right, and this hop will be delivered to your email each Friday afternoon.

Time Change – Open Book Blog Hop #372

April 17, 2023 By Captain Maiel 3 Comments

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

Topic #372

If you could live in any place, any time, any world, where would you live?

I’d never return to the past, unless it is guaranteed that I can come back to at least my own time. Many people love the idea of exploring the past if they had access to a time machine. I don’t blame them. The idea of getting to see persons and events that we’ve only read about, which had an enormous impact on our history, that’s compelling! However, when you consider the finer details, you’ll see why I have no interest.

Prior to modern history, women were not afforded the equal rights. The majority enjoyed a quasi servitude. Giving up the freedoms that I have now would be alarming. Certainly, women and femmes are not on equal footing with the dominant demographic. That said, would you want matters to get worse? Consider, if you will, how bodily autonomy is being ripped from the grasp of those who are not cis males. This is no joke and it will have ripple affects that lead us into an era of absolute authoritarianism not seen in centuries.

Following that vein, this leads me to the reality that those who veer from dogma face the possibility of harm from those who would enforce rules, laws, and norms. They don’t even have to be the majority of the group, a historically repeated phenomena. Small groups enforcing dogmatic beliefs have commonly been very dangerous.

open book blog hop, time, clock floats in cloudy space above an endless road

Lastly, another reason for my reluctance is the loss of present day medical advances. Especially in the case of female anatomy, there are a great many reasons to fear such a loss. While I am past the possibility of having children, there are other things that continue on. There are also hereditary issues to be concerned about. What if breast, cervical, uterine, ovarian cancer is a great risk? What if prolapses have happened? Fibroids? Aside from that, heart disease is one of the most common killers of women.

So, unless I can visit and return as needed and at the drop of a hat, I have no interest in the historical eras. I remain curious, however, about the future. It is likely that medical advances will lead to a healthier society (at least one that can address diseases we fear today). I also assume that bigotry against gender and sexual orientation will fall away along with the dogma that plagues our world in this time.

If one thing holds true, things get better, even when the echoes of those issues may still continue. It gives me hope that bigotry and all the suffering it causes will end. No, that wouldn’t create a utopia. There will be other issues that come to fill that void. What do you think they might be? If the catastrophic results of climate change, such as crop failure and flooding, don’t bring us past the pettiness of judging gender and skin tones, what do you think would?

Going to the future would answer these two questions, and I would love to see what shakes out. I’d feel a heck of a lot safer in a future world. That said, what if the bigots win? What if hate takes over and they rampage across the world like the hate-fueled factions of the Second World War? It is possible that this could happen. People are still acting just as complacent as our grandparents did in that time. So much has been allowed to happen that turning back could be impossible.

The frightening prospect of a world yoked by authoritarianism in the guise of morality and faith is so close to reality. Have we not just recently escaped such in recent history? Think about it. Is there any time outside the one you know that could be fun to visit? If you’re a fan of Star Trek, you’ll know that visiting any other time (past or future) could be like visiting a foreign world and the dangers are great.

I still think I’d take a chance on the future. Humanity has such a great capacity for compassion. I believe that will win out over the capacity for violence.

Let’s hop through the answers the other authors have given. Be sure to subscribe to my newsletter to get this hop delivered to your inbox every Friday.

What’s Your Favorite Animal – Open Book Blog Hop #369

March 27, 2023 By Captain Maiel 3 Comments

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

Topic #369

What is your favorite animal and why?
Have you ever included it in one of your stories?

The answer to this may be obvious considering my book series, The Trailokya Trilogy, and the covers of two of the installments. The animal I’d answer this question with features heavily in the series. Some other clues can be found in the type of companion I keep, and the videos I love to make on TikTok. I have a lot of fun with my buddy producing some bonkers content spoofing film and television favorites like The X-Files (1993).

A favorite animal is actually kind of hard for me to pick. I love them all. In fact, I had hoped to follow my dream of getting a bio degree and working at a zoo. When that didn’t happen, my love of animals didn’t stop. Sure, I switched gears to pursue a stronger dream (writing), and earn a degree I felt was more marketable, but the love of animals is still deeply with me.

Since I was a child, as you know if you know the Trailokya series, I’ve been dreaming some pretty epic dreams. In those dreams, I met the characters for the series. That included my favorite animals. There’s a twist to this, though. You see, my family bred and showed dogs. The tie to canines is deep and meaningful. Not only are they beautiful creatures, but they make great companions. Honestly, I can’t imagine my life without one at my hip.

The cool thing about dogs is their connection to human history which extends thousands of years. They descend, in fact, from my favorite animal: Wolves. I am sure you guessed by now! And, yes, they do show up in my dreams. In fact, I still see the packs that feature in my series in my dreams to date.

When I lost my dog, Sadie Sue in 2018, my depression deepened. I felt as if part of me went with her. I remarked to a friend that I cannot define myself without dog being part of that equation. Sadie had begun Shagbottom Theater with me. How could I continue the theater with existing images of her, and all my friends and followers knowing she passed? That would be most uncool. Moreover, I feel safer with a dog in the house. They also provide a lot of affection and fun.

Did you know that dogs share 98% of their mitochondrial DNA with wolves? It’s a fact. “One study showed that dog and wolf share 98% of their mitochondrial (mt) DNA, which contrasts to the 7.5% difference between wolf and coyotes (Canis latrans), the species that is their closest wild relative.” (Science Direct.) Think about that the next time you’re cuddling up to Fido! It’s pretty mind blowing, and it also should put the lore into better perspective.

Conflict between wolves and ranchers touches issues of conservationism and Native American rights – ABC News

Sadly, humanity grew apart from their long connection to wolves and have treated them as enemies for hundreds of years. Much of what is believed about the species comes from fairy tales and other media that continue a false image. Sadly, certain industries lean hard into the lies and continue to focus violence on the species, both removing their responsibilities and reducing their labor load for better profit margins. It also arose in species resource competition (such as food). You can read about the myths here. Also, keep in mind that indigenous populations regard them as sacred, and the hunting of these animals is a violation of their rights.

Wolves are truly amazing animals that should fill us with a sense of awe as well as gratefulness. Their contribution to our history is one of cooperation for survival. We owe them much and that bond should be respected along with respecting the protection of their populations. It behooves humanity to ensure their success, as it directly leads to our own successes. Our species are deeply entwined. There is no escaping this link of cooperation but to both species detriment.

We are all well aware that they can be dangerous when encountered in the wild, or when people attempt to make them pets, or even at the zoo. Wolves are wild not domestic animals. However, the danger comes from their self-preservation drive. In other words, if you make them fearful, they will defend themselves. Not everyone can interact with them, because not everyone understands their language. Wolves read us, just like dogs do. That said, dogs have had eons to understand our weird behaviors and facial expressions.

While wolves are wild animals and not the furry friends we keep at home, and we should not attempt to domestic them, I cannot help but see the link and love them. Did you know they’re about the same size as a Great Dane? Think about that the next time you meet a Dane. Also, keep in mind the bad behavior of humans, how dogs end up in shelter, the over use and abuse of resources, and the drive to do less and get more for it. Wolves aren’t evil. They’re not out for Grandma or the little girl skipping to her house. They’re just trying to live how they were designed for a wild world.

Hopefully, your appreciation for wolves grew from reading this post, even if they’re not your favorite. I’ve linked great resources for you to share with others to help these animals continue to be a fantastic part of our ecosystems. Click on the links below to see what the other authors have answered this week. Please subscribe to my blog to get this hop delivered to your inbox each Friday.

Atypical Lives – Open Book Blog Hop #368

March 20, 2023 By Captain Maiel 4 Comments

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

Topic #368

Tell us about the day in the life of one of your characters.

The books I write follow some unconventional character lives. Blue Honor, the US Civil War drama, is the only one that follows a semi-normal track. It is historically set, so the days in the lives would still be different from what we know today. That said, they’re a little closer to home.

During the US Civil War, life was hard–especially for women, indigenous, and Black people. There was nothing typical for the latter two of that list. Lives torn apart in the upheaval of colonization, they were no longer on their familiar territories and there cultures erased to force assimilation to the current power structure. Survival against the evils of the times really made the day to day mundane we would think of a lot more dangerous. Just walking to anywhere could be death sentence.

For the main characters of that novel, Emily in particular, mundane life was blown to bits by war. Emily was bored with her northern dairy farm life. However, the winds of change still reached that deep into Vermont and brought change. She had thought things would just grind on as they were, and the expectation of her marrying and carrying on exactly the same would wear her life away.

Why was it so boring for her? She was the daughter of a former New York City well-to-do mother and a thriving dairy owner father. Her mother, a pious and austere woman, had certain ends in mind for her daughter. Yet, her son was free to rise in the ranks and go out into the world to do so. This did not set well with Emily, who was raised far more independently by a father who did not want his child to only aspire to marriage and family. His dairy, in the end, would likely go to her and her husband. She would need enough education to help that business continue to thrive. The man they had in mind would expand their lands, and make it a greater endeavor to deal with for both young people.

Emily did not see herself in that life. True to the Victorian Novel, she had aspirations of adventure and lives spent elsewhere. Fetching eggs from the coop each morning was not her fate. Up to the start of the book, that was where she was trapped. The change that came for her mingled with the plans that her parents painstakingly placed. They hired young women and girls to assist with the maintenance of the home. The girls, from neighboring farms and villages, would provide Emily with the knowledge of running a staff.

Although she wasn’t fetching eggs anymore, Emily’s life wasn’t exactly headed in the direction she wanted. The marriage portion was fast approaching. You see, the young man in mind was soon to graduate from West Point and, therefore, present an honorable match at last. He had land, rank, and standing, which would mean that he could take Mr. Conrad’s place as intended.

The pair were tight friends, but had no intentions of ever becoming lovers. If this came to pass, nothing would change for Emily. This also failed to mention her intended’s penchant for chasing women. Although he deeply cared for Emily and respected her, it was only a matter of time before his eye roved and with it his feet. No one would bat an eye at this, but this would betray Emily’s heart. She had expectations for her life aside from adventure, and a good match was necessary if she was to be forced into one at all.

Farm life and the drama of womanhood in the 1800s was pretty typical for Emily. Her brother and friend, however, faced far different lives. The young man alluded to above is Evan. He came from a smaller, far less wealthy farm. That said, his father had a lot of land, though he couldn’t afford to process it and make it produce for him. That would take paying wages and having equipment. While he could make enough to maintain the property as it was, and support his small family, they were saving to help their eldest son find a better position in life. Buying equipment to clear the land and paying hands would certainly benefit them in the long run, but they need an immediate solution.

Evan’s family also had the misfortune of a sickly child in their midst. Paying for medical care was taxing their income, making it far more difficult to make ends meet, and still reach their goal for their eldest. While their neighbors helped as they could, by sending Emily, who was very talented in the ways of medicine to assist, they still had to bring in doctors and buy medications.

Michael is Emily’s brother. He comes from greater privilege and it was easy for him to find his way into West Point. Their family thrived and so did their bank accounts. Evan was lucky to know the Conrads, who were a giving sort–even though it was spurred by ulterior motives. Their intentions saw to their aiding him into a seat at the Point ahead of their own son, just because it was necessary to the joining of the farms and the children. The arrangement was not on paper, which lended the wiggle room those young people needed to escape it.

The day to day for Evan was attending classes and training at the military academy. Comradery and order were his culture. Michael arrived sometime after, inspiring Evan with a plan to escape the arrangement he found himself bound to. A little finagling, and the war willing, he would be able to pull it off. After all, time off to visit family was expected.

In that time, travel by train, carriage, or horse was the norm. It took a lot longer to get anywhere. Letters took longer to travel, instead of instantly via internet. Determining one’s exact arrival time wasn’t as accurate either. You could give a couple days as an estimate, if all went well.

Another typical aspect of the time was the threat of disaster from current technology. Not only could trains wreck, carriages topple, or horses go lame–but a fire was really easy to start in any type of dwelling or structure. Because people used lamps (oil) or candles, and many items in the home were combustible (let’s not even get into wallpapers with arsenic), fires were quite frequent. There is a great series on YouTube that goes into the dangers of the Victorian Home, and I highly recommend it, even though it covers the British nation not the United States. Things were very similar.

So much could kill you at home, thus war was hardly a stretch of difference. For the men of Blue Honor, they spend a great deal of the book away on war campaigns. They’re cavalry soldiers, but marching is also part of their daily experience. The household tasks were conducted by lower ranks, while the upper ranks administered and executed the battles. The dangers of the home would be with them, even in the camps. Fire, poison, accidents, and disease were still top threats, but they also faced the addition of mortal wounding by lead bullets or bone shattering cannon shot.

Don’t let me leave you before mentioning the lives of the Maynard family. They play an important role in the changes that sweep Emily off the family dairy. Because Evan went to West Point, he met the Maynard’s son Joseph and became fast friends. The pair so hit it off that they remained inseparable and end up deployed together. Joseph also provided the exit strategy for Evan from an ill-fated marriage. Evan knew that this was the right man for his friend.

What was it about the Joseph that clued Evan in? The lives of the Maynards were closer on par with what the Conrads would ultimately want for their daughter. Emily deserved something better than running a farm that he knew bored her to tears. Though she loved the animals there, living marginally satisfied was not acceptable. She deserved to go out into the world, too. She had gifts that only Joseph would be able to support and shield from the conventions of the time. The Maynards lives had led them to be rather progressive–abolitionists and feminists!

Evan would be free to pursue his life as he saw fit, and hopefully not on a farm in the great north of the States. Boy did he relate to Emily’s need to get out of town!

Looking back on the setting of the Victorian times, I always see it with a dreamy, dusty veil filtering the images. The inference of that symbolism is clear, I think. A day in the life of my Victorian characters exists with many threats leading them to misery and death that the time is shadowy.

Let’s hop on over to the other author’s answers by clicking on their links below. Please subscribe to this blog and get an email on Friday’s to link you to the new installment.