In Love With Love Stories?

Love in all its forms is a splendid thing indeed. On Valentine’s Day we pay homage to the romantic variety. It is certainly deserving of the honor. I think it’s safe to say that without romantic love the world would contain a great deal less art, which would be a monumental loss. How many songs, books, poems, paintings, movies, etc. have been created in an attempt to capture the elusive spirit of romantic fervor? Sure we’d still have religious art, and mankind wouldn’t expire because lust and duty to maintain our species would be sufficient to keep procreation going. But it just wouldn’t be the same as when inspired by the urges of two people to unite until death do them part. It doesn’t always work out that way of course. Many of us outlast those feelings, or rather, we decide it would be best to transfer them to someone else. Valentine’s Day doesn’t concern itself with the hard work required to keep a relationship together through the ravages of time. This day is about the magical, mystical moment when holding a certain person’s hand is as great a high as can be achieved. No work of art has truly captured that euphoria, though this won’t stop artists from eternally trying. And no matter how brief the stay at the peak of its height may be, and how arduous maintenance of a far less intense version proves to be, this does not stop lovers from seeking and finding each other. We are put here first and foremost to love each other. Some have better luck at it than others. Cupid’s aim is haphazard. Yet most of us are struck at one point or another, repeatedly in many cases, in certain scenarios once proves to be enough. When it hits the mark the concept of Forever becomes meaningless unless it can be spent with The One who makes our heart beat to a rhythm that nobody else can match. However...

On the other hand, some say that men are predestined by biology to be serial lovers. The consensus is that men have been hunters and gatherers from the start. Women, being the ones capable of giving birth and providing nutrition from their bodies, are natural nesters. Much has changed from our days of cave dwelling until now, but what has probably altered least of all is our DNA. Women and men are still instinctively what they were from day one. This being the case, is it genetically unnatural for a man to settle down with one woman to the exclusion of all the others? Do monogamy and marriage run counter to the most primitive urge of men to spread their seed? Or is this just a convenient excuse for those who play at love as if it was a game of Chess, calculating and emotionless, accepting that certain sacrifices are necessary to achieve the pleasurable victories they desire? Such individuals are not immune to the effects of love but are not currently under its spell, so they are able if willing to exploit its power for selfish gain. It seems we were also put here to be cruel to one another. Love is an enchanted gift that in the wrong hands can be used as a merciless weapon. Proceed with caution.

My novella FEEDING THE SQUIRRELS, which in its own unique way is a love story, will be presented here at A Line A Day in serial format beginning on March 1, 2013. Every three days after that a new chapter will be posted until the tale has been told in its entirety. No need for you to be idle while waiting for the story to begin though. Enter the contest at GoodReads.com for a chance to win a copy of my novel, PATCHES OF GREY. Three winners will be selected on the day serialization of my novella begins - March 1st. As for members of Kindle Nation, I certainly don't want to leave you out of the equation. So I am making the Kindle edition of Patches of Grey available to download at Amazon FREE of charge 3/1 - 3/3. Let the games begin.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Patches Of Grey

by Roy L. Pickering Jr.

Giveaway ends March 01, 2013.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Excerpt from Feeding the Squirrels - Video

*

**

***

If intrigued by what you hear, my novella Feeding the Squirrels is sold by SynergEbooks. They publish in every variety of electronic format and you can find it anyplace where ebooks are sold. If you own a Nook, head on over to the Barnes and Noble web site. If you're in possession of a Kindle, next time you're shopping at Amazon give it a download. If you write reviews of the books you've read, I'd appreciate seeing what you have to say. Happy Reading!

Brief excerpt from MATTERS OF CONVENIENCE

Happy reading!

- Roy Pickering

Author of Patches of Grey and Feeding the Squirrels and Matters of Convenience

Done with the scant amount of unpacking required, primarily his day to day wardrobe comprised of black t-shirts a few pair of khaki pants and well-worn regular fit dungarees, Marshall surveyed what would be his home for the next ten weeks.  He liked what he saw, not that he was a stranger to the view or to the enveloping hug of Audrey’s couch.  Although not an official resident, his status had been elevated from that of mere visitor.  He would miss Brooklyn.  Manhattan had not been his home address since he lived with roommates for a few years after college.  This was followed by a year in Astoria, Queens in his first solo apartment and then a move to Brooklyn where he’d been ever since.  He wondered if the temporary change in zip code would have an effect on his writing style, infuse it with heightened energy.  Other things were pondered as well, but he tried not to dwell on them as they were the stuff of pointless daydreaming.

He reminded himself that his presence was the result of Audrey needing him to be here, by no means the same thing as wanting him here.   Desire and dependency were not identical twins, though it was not unheard of for one to segue into the other.  Still, he would resist the urge to grow ensconced in a set-up that came with an expiration date.

His cell phone rattled and hummed, indicating receipt of a text message.  Minutes earlier he had left a news breaking voice message for Chase.  Chase sometimes joked that he was working on a book chronicling Marshall’s eternal quest to swing his relationship with Audrey from the platonic end of the spectrum to the end featuring naked exchanges of bodily fluids.  A stellar wisecrack was likely about to be read.  As it turned out the message was far from humorous and the sender was not Chase.

Heard about your new living arrangement.  More proof of what you’d deny to my face if given the chance. Gotta go.  My man’s waiting for me.  Enjoy your ready-made family.  You’ll learn the truth someday.  SHE WILL NEVER LOVE YOU.

He pressed delete, refused to let her words irritate him.  For someone who claimed to have moved on to a more fulfilling relationship, Sarah did an impressive job of keeping tabs on him and expressing disdain for his actions.  Perhaps the man waiting for her was fictitious.  He reflected on the last sentence of her message.  It being spitefully intended did not remove the possibility of its being true. 

Most people surrendered fairy tale hopes in exchange for cookie cutter lives.  If a convincing image of happiness was presented to those looking in from the outside, success was claimed.  But some opted for chaos at the expense of the facade of tranquility.  Perhaps for them the appeal of the race was stronger than that of the finish line, the thrill of the chase more valuable than actually catching up.  Was the notion that Audrey would never love him in the most gut wrenching definition of the four-letter word precisely what made her his perfect woman, the carrot just beyond reach of his bite? 

Another text message arrived before he could answer the question.  He had asked it of himself often without being able to resolve the matter, so this interruption could not be blamed.  On the screen he found an example of Chase’s ability to say much with little.

No need to worry about safe sex so live and love dangerously.

“Marshall, could you get me a glass of water.”

           Audrey had woken from her nap and was summoning him via the intercom system they set up.  It was a baby monitor employed well in advance of baby’s arrival that they used for one way communication.  One way communication was a fitting match for a one directional love affair.  Since he could not respond through the receiver, Audrey would have to trust that her message was delivered and her request would soon be accommodated.  Such trust was well founded.  Where else would he be but there for her, at the ready to quench her thirst while his own lips remained parched from lack of her kisses?

                                               * * * * *

Passages from MATTERS OF CONVENIENCE.  A publication date draws near.  Stay tuned.

The Moment Has Arrived

My novella FEEDING THE SQUIRRELS has been published by SynergEbooks. For under $6 you can purchase a copy of this ebook in your choice of electronic formats. The fantastic cover was designed by the lovely Erin Rogers Pickering, and hopefully those who choose to buy it will find my prose to their liking as well. See below for a synopsis. To read an excerpt and obtain a copy for your reading pleasure,

CLICK HERE

“Feeding the Squirrels” tells the story of a self-absorbed philanderer who lives a life of leisure and usually manages to remain one step ahead of consequences for his actions. Michael reveals himself to the reader by chronicling his rapid fire sex life woman by woman. He is a prolific lover who defines himself by his various sexual conquests. Each chapter in between the first and last of this literary novella is named after a woman who has been seduced by him, and thus helped to shape his identity. Every one of the erotic encounters can be read as a story unto itself, with Michael’s single minded pursuit of pleasure being the common thread that unites them. Although his succession of affairs are singular experiences to a man who rarely thinks of yesterday or tomorrow, they eventually manage to intertwine and leave him with a web of his own design to untangle.

I love to hear from my readers, so please stop by after reading "Feeding the Squirrels" to let me know what you think.

- Roy

First Review: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/BookReviews/Feedingthesquirrels.html

We're Back!!!

It was our initial intention for this blog to be a regular endeavor, although Erin and I never specified exactly how regularly (daily, weekly, every 2 weeks, monthly?) we would get to it. Those of you who have been stopping by have no doubt noticed the considerable gap between our previous postings and those we have entered today. What can I say about that but "Ooops, our bad". The process of day-to-day tends to interrupt even the best laid of plans. Or to put it more profoundly by paraphrasing from one of the great songs of our time - "Fish don't fry in the kitchen; Beans don't burn on the grill. Takes a whole lotta tryin' Just to get up that hill."

We won't promise to do better, but we will promise to try. After all, chronicling our best efforts at being artists / parents / spouses / entrepeneurs / legends in our own minds / is what this blog is all about. As you can tell from Erin's latest posting, we have been doing a little more than just twiddling our thumbs. Despite our back-to-back trips to Virginia and New Mexico, along with a much shorter trip to DA BRONX, Erin did manage to create another wonderful ACEO -

Elephant

- and to do some artistic brainstorming for projects she'll eventually get around to sharing with the world. As for me, I made the decision to work towards getting my novella [Feeding the Squirrels] published as an ebook. If all goes according to plan, a copy of it in electronic format will be available for purchase in the not too distant future from SynergEbooks. Erin has designed the cover, so it's guaranteed to look sharp.

I suppose I could take up some time and internet space to express the wonder of being embraced by the extraordinary landscape of New Mexico, or share my thoughts on fatherhood now that I've had the gig for over a year and almost know what I'm doing half the time, or write an essay on how to get your property landscaped for no cost and practically no effort. But for the time being I will keep these matters to myself and save the energy for future blogging, which I plan to do on a far more regular basis from this point on. When I become as accomplished at "doing" as I am at "planning to do", I will be able to officially declare myself the greatest of success stories. Until then, I have some more fish to fry and beans to burn. Take care.

- Roy