Tag: Stories from the Heartland

On the Rack: Ugly Love

On the Rack: Ugly Love

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Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

Colleen Hoover might very well be replacing my love of Nicholas Sparks. That’s a very hard statement to make considering my long standing commitment to the guy. I have read almost all of Hoover’s books. I read Slammed in the first couple of months when it was first self-published. I found it by accident in the Kindle store and thought it seemed intriguing. I loved Slammed. Even more, I loved the story of the writer who came out of nowhere and started dominating the book lists. She is an inspiration to what can be accomplished in the self-publishing world. I honestly planned to list Slammed on The Book Rack as the first Colleen Hoover entry since it was my second self-published novel I ever downloaded.

Then I read Ugly Love.

Troubled and damaged people walk through our lives every day. They pass by everyone while hiding the pain they feel. They do this in order to survive until it becomes a way of life. The new normal. The new them.

Ugly Love is a modern day love story at its best. The sad Miles masquerading through life fooling everyone around him. He’s good at it until he meets Tate. Thus the Ugly Love begins with a person who fights to get through the façade.  With broken people, the ugly comes out with spikes and edges and glass ripping at anything that gets too close.  So the question remains for Tate.  How much are you willing to endure to stay close to the person who seems to need you the most?

This one brought me to tears so I can’t give the plane travel stamp of approval. However, this is a must read for all Colleen Hoover fans and dare I say it, for all Nicholas Sparks fans too! Find Ugly Love on Amazon here.

The Mason List Story Line in Pictures

The Mason List Story Line in Pictures

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This picture reminded me of two things. The epic montage in the Disney movie Up and the over all epic story line of The Mason List.  It’s not the complete storyline so don’t worry about any spoilers.

Grow Old Together

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

Source Credit: Twitter Love Quotes

 

The Mason List Cover Reveal

The Mason List Cover Reveal

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Thank you for visiting my website.  Today is the first public broadcasted push to the world.  Take a look around and I also invite you to follow SD Hendrickson on Facebook,  Twitter and Instagram!  Stay informed on the upcoming fall release of The Mason List.

And now for the official cover reveal of The Mason List!

The Mason List New Cover1

The Book Rack: Mud Vein

The Book Rack: Mud Vein

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Mud Vein by Tarryn Fisher

Blown away.  Those were the words I had after finishing Mud Vein.  This Book Rack entry is a current read of mine instead of pulling from the vault.  I will preface.  This book is not for everyone but I personally loved every weird piece of it.  In fact, I have not read something on this level of psychological romance since Gone Girl.   I hate to use that comparison because it’s not even close to the same story.

Any summary of the plot would do an injustice to future readers.  Here’s  what I can say.  Girl is kidnapped and left in a strange house.  She finds a man from her past tied up in the same strange house.  The story twists around their means of survival while the girl comes to gripes with her past.

Reason for being on the Rack:

Hands down, the writing.  The style and the flow of words twisted across the pages.   I also appreciate where the author had to go in her mind to write something this haunting.  I wasn’t so much involved in trying to love the book or the characters.  The words spiraled around in a picture that allowed the reader to feel the main character in a weird psychological way.  I say weird because it’s in a way you can relate to but not really sure you want to with the character.

I read the good and bad reviews going into this book.  I think for some people, it’s difficult to associate with darkness.  The main character is a very troubled individual and has been most of her life.  The writing puts the reader smack dab in the middle of her troubled mind.  And it’s not very pleasant at times.  In fact, it can be very confusing on how someone can think in such a manner.  But that’s the darkness.  Sad people are often not logical.

Instead of Gone Girl, I think a couple of Terrence Malick films would serve as a better comparison.  I did not love the first one I watched.  That’s because I didn’t understand.  You have to feel the experience of his films.  You have to feel the experience of Mud Vein.  Every ugly piece of the beautiful book.

If you are interested in reading Mud Vein, here’s the Amazon link.  If you are worried about the cover, it’s not that kind of book.  It’s metaphorical and makes sense once you read the story.

From the Red Chair…

From the Red Chair…

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This post comes live from where I do my best writing. Everyone needs a writing cave. Unfortunately, mine is a red chair parked in Panera with an endless supply of espresso.

Since The Mason List went to the editor, I often get these questions. Are you going to write another book? Have you started writing another book?

The process of writing my first novel was a learning experience. I used the platform from NANO (National Novel Writing Month) for the first draft. I went into NANO with the following concepts.

A love story of a boy and girl who live on a ranch. The girl is poor and lives on the charity of this rich family. Instead of being the typical story, make the poor girl hate the rich family.

That was all I knew when I started NANO which may surprise those who beta read it.  Everything spiraled into The Mason List as I logged into NANO each day to hit my 1700 words per day. I wrote from the cuff. It was intense but it pushed me to put words on paper in abstract fashion. I didn’t think about elaborating. I just moved forward through idea after idea. The concepts came out of thin air with little depth to each scene. This gave an initial shape to the story.

When I reached the 50,000 word mark at the end of the month, I saw a lump of clay which had the resemblance of a story. I spent the next two years shaping that lump into what is currently being edited for release. I learned the hard way on what worked for me and what didn’t in the writing process.

So the answer to the question is yes. I am writing a second novel. It’s called Red Dirt Claws. I have taken a different approach with the second book. I have written excerpts out of order. Spur of the moment at times. Some very light scenes and some very deep. Most of it consists of dialogue between characters. With each exchange, I get a little better grasp on the characters. I get to know the characters as they get to know each other. I know. Sounds like a strange concept but it seems to work. I hope this approach cuts out on the many rewrites I did for The Mason List.

After collecting all my sporadic writing over the last few months, I have an approximate 26,000 words rough draft. I plan for this novel to be much, much shorter than The Mason List. I’m aiming for 80,000. The Mason List is what I call the epic love story that is also New Adult/Young Adult. Red Dirt Claws is more the classic New Adult story. Moving forward, I would like Red Dirt Claws to be ready for the editing process when The Mason List goes live to the world in a few months.  Here’s to hoping and not holding me to this time line.

That’s the writing update coming live from the red chair.

Writing Song of the Day: Band of Horses – Detlef Schrempf (Acoustic Live from the Ryman)