One Last Follow-Up To The Morton's/Cancer Patient Story

Below is a link to a news story done by WSMV-TV Channel 4, in Nashville.  It seems the executive team at Morton's has stepped up and issued an apology.

Again, if the link isn't clickable, please copy and paste.


http://www.wsmv.com/story/24234919/reaction-swift-after-mortons-customer-with-cancer-told-to-remove-hat


Keep reading!

Michael  (T. M.)

Follow-up To Earlier Post

In a follow-up to my blog entry from this morning, here is a link to an actual news story listing the incident:


http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/12/16/police-escort-cancer-patient-from-nashville-steakhouse-after-hes-forced-to-remove-hat/


If the link doesn't show as clickable, please copy and paste.

Keep reading!

Michael (T. M.)

How Do They Live With Themselves?

You know, it never ceases to amaze me how inconsiderate and downright mean some business establishments can be.

Below is a story shared on Facebook, and I have to share the story with you.  The story is copied and pasted directly from the social site.  If it's true, something should be done about it.

“Morgan Overholt

Needed to out Morton's Steakhouse in Nashville, TN, because of an incident that happened last night that shouldn't go unpunished. My company hosted their annual Christmas party last night at the restaurant. We wined and dined and accumulated a bill to the tune of nearly $2500. Near the end of the meal, a coworker of mine, who is battling cancer and undergoing treatments, put on a black beanie to cover his head because he was getting chilled, one of the many side effects of his treatments. When the waitress asked him to remove the hat, he and his family kindly explained that he had cancer. After getting a manager the waitress came back and said she would need to see a doctor’s note before he could resume wearing the hat. Of course this understandably upset his wife and children who then sought out the restaurant manager, who in turn, asked them to call ahead next time so that they could have placed us in a private room by ourselves. I had no idea cancer was so offensive in restaurants that we need to be separated, did you? Due to the rising emotions, the waitress then motioned over two policemen who told our party that they needed to leave. We left our half eaten desserts and fresh cocktails along with our PAID and TIPPED $2500 bill and left. Exactly which incident was more disturbing to the restaurant? Bullying an emotional cancer stricken family or allowing one man to wear a hat? The manager assured the rest of our group that the cops hadn't been "called" for us that they just happened to be around. He also told us that they could handle one person being upset but "not everybody else" So next time you are battling a potentially deadly illness make sure to call ahead to the restaurant you are planning on dining at with a doctor’s note, so that they can put you in a room by yourself. I've reposted my coworkers personal account on my wall if anyone wants additional details.”

In this day and age, with so much media attention given to stories like this, and how quickly they can go viral on the Internet, it amazes me that businesses still do things like this!

I live about two hours away from Nashville.  My wife and I usually make at least one trip per month there, but I can assure you that this particular restaurant won’t be seeing any of our hard-earned money.

I noticed in the comments that one person posted the story to the pages of WSMV-Channel 4 in Nashville, and to WTVF-Channel 5, also in Nashville.  Perhaps they will follow up with a broadcast story.

You know, I write about some really bad guys in my books – Esteban Fernandez comes to mind – but real life incidents like this always makes me wonder how people can live with themselves.

That’s the entry for today, faithful reader…

Keep reading!

Michael  (T. M.)

Come, They Told Me

Blog time, baby!

I’m working hard on that Christmas gift for you, the devoted reader.

I’ll let you in on a secret:  Remember when we talked about writing in the first person?  A big part of this Christmas story is told in the first person…and not just by one person…

Oh, what the heck…Gotta build a little excitement.

It’s called The Little Drummer Boy – A Justice Security Short Story.  It features Percival “King Louie” Washington and Dexter Beck sharing a story about their early days in Justice Security…before they made it big.  The story takes place on Christmas Eve waaayyy back in the day, and they’re telling the story to Megan, explaining why Christmas Eve is such a huge deal for Louie, Dexter, and the drummer for a formerly huge rock band called “Omega”.

So, the goal is to have it ready for YOU by December 18^th, 2013, as an ebook story from Amazon.com.  Unfortunately, I won’t be able to get it done as an audiobook by then, but it may also be long enough for a “short story” paperback, much like I did with The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald and Someone Saved My Life Tonight.

So, I’m writing furiously, and I hope to finish it by then.

Until later,

Keep reading!

Michael (T. M.)

Good News Is Bustin' Out All Over!

Big news today from the audiobook world!

Mama Told Me Not To Come – A Justice Security Novel has been completed, and is in the final review by ACX!

Patrick Peterson did the honors on this one, and did a fantastic job!  I only gave him a couple of pointers about the book, like that fact that Esteban Fernandez is insane, and that late actor Michael Clarke Duncan was who I modeled Percival “King Louie” Washington after, and the man ran with it!  He has created some memorable characterizations with this book, and, when it’s available around mid-January, I hope you give it a listen.

Now, I can’t wait to hear Scott O’Neill as he performs If You Could Read My Mind – A Nicholas Turner Novel.  Scott works wonders as well, and his performance as Tony Armstrong in Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go is right on target!

I have been blessed with two great audiobook performers, and a writer can’t ask for more…except to have YOU go experience one of my books that are currently available as audiobooks from Amazon.com, Audible.com, and iTunes.

If you aren’t able to sit down and read one of my works, these two performers certainly make it fun to listen!

Now, one more thing:  I’m trying hard to get my trusty fans a special Christmas gift done in time for Christmas reading, so today’s blog entry is going to be shorter than most.  The only hint I will give you about the story, and it IS a short story, is this:  Ba-Rum-Pum-Pum Pum.

Think about that one for a bit, and…

Keep reading!

Michael  (T. M.)

Is Traditional Publishing Doomed?

It’s my personal opinion that traditional publishing is running scared.

Here’s why I think that:

In January 2009, when I finished my first novel, If You Could Read My Mind, I was determined to get the book published.

I did a lot of research, and found that publishers did not accept manuscripts from the average Joe on the street.  A manuscript had to come from an agent.

Okay, so I was going to find an agent.

Now, I discovered that agents specialize in certain areas, and often aren’t interested in anything else.  My novel, while I have it listed as a mystery/suspense type book, also has supernatural elements to it, along with a love story, and the redemption of the hero.  It’s very hard to “pigeonhole” that book.  It’s a mystery, yes.  It’s a touch supernatural, yes.  It has romance, yes.  It has action/adventure, yes.  And it boils down to the fact that Nicholas Turner finally realizes that he has lots of good in him, and lots of things going for him.

What category?

Many of the agents that I found online weren’t accepting new writers.

Fine.  I skipped those.

I found a couple of agents that were willing to read the first three chapters of the novel.  Both requested the complete manuscript.  I complied with both.  One agent rejected the story outright, with no reason.  The other agent liked the novel, but complained that it was too short, and rejected it for that reason.

I began to realize that no traditional publisher was ever going to see my first novel.  Meanwhile, I was well into the second novel, and wondering if any of it was worth the effort.

Then, one day, I scrolled down to the bottom of the page at Amazon.  I saw a link that said, “Independently Publish With Us”.  I clicked on it, and found that they accepted manuscripts from anyone that wanted to market their writing, and published them for their new Kindle e-readers!

I jumped on it.  With Amazon, I’m able to keep a big portion of my royalties, I don’t have to pay a commission to an agent, and I control all aspects of my stories.

And, with Amazon’s CreateSpace, paperback copies are printed on demand, so there’s never a charge from a publisher for returned books.

If You Could Read My Mind – A Nicholas Turner Novel has turned out to be one of my best-selling pieces of writing, a fact that I’m very proud of.

When an author can do everything that a traditional publisher can do, without changing his/her writing to suit a corporate entity (or to make it “sellable”), and keep most of his royalties to boot, why would an author ever return to traditional publishing?

Will I ever turn to traditional publishing?  Well, I’ve mentioned here that I’ve submitted a novella – Don’t Come Around Here No More – A Tale Of Sardis County to Harlequin, and I plan to submit Junior’s Farm – A Tale Of Sardis County to Harlequin as well, once I’ve completed it.

But, if those two are rejected by Harlequin, I won’t mind.  I’ll just post them on Amazon and CreateSpace, and line up a producer to do the audiobooks, and let the readers decide.

But, I won’t sweat it if traditional publishing doesn’t accept my work.

I'll just do it myself.

Keep reading!

Michael  (T. M.)

Who's On First?

First person.

Many very successful pieces of fiction are written in first person narrative, or described from the perspective of one of the characters in the story.  “I did this” or “I saw this” begins the average first person story.  One of my favorite authors, Rex Stout, wrote all of his famous Nero Wolfe stories in the first person, from the perspective of Wolfe’s assistant, Archie Goodwin.

Each one of Stout’s stories capture the reader’s attention, and, soon, you forget that you’re reading a story in the first person.

I have not written anything for publication that I’ve written in the first person.

I find it very difficult.  The reason that I find it difficult is that I often have many things happening at pretty much the same time, especially in the Justice Security series.  When there are six partners, an FBI agent, and various other characters often involved in  a particular adventure, it would be almost impossible to write one of these stories in the first person.  How would the person telling the story know what is going on with the other characters while he’s describing his part of the adventure?

Now, that’s not to say that I won’t ever write a story in the first person.  I can do it…I just don’t like to.

And, truthfully, I’m not sure that I can pull it off.

Let’s try it together, shall we?

A simple exercise:  You’re sitting at your computer, right?  Or maybe on your cell phone right now, reading this entry.  That’s great!  Open your word processor, and begin your assignment with the following sentence:

            “I was prowling the Internet, when something made me look behind me.  I saw…”

Finish it.  Use every descriptive term we’ve talked about, and describe what you saw behind you.

Hey, it’s a start!  And, we’ll be doing it together!

Keep reading!

Michael  (T. M.)