Rick Jantz, Writer

Why Do I Want To Write? – Is It Money Or…

October 8, 2014 By Rick 3 Comments

This evening I was listening to a Podcast by Simon Sinek from startwithwhy.com about starting with “your why”. And, of course, as any writer should do…I asked myself why do I want to write? Now, to be frank, I was listening to this while on the treadmill so it’s a little difficult to have pen and paper in hand to jot down the explosion of ideas that came spilling forth.

Whoa! Let’s slow down. Focus only on the basic question that Simon asks: Do you know your why? What is the purpose or what inspires you to do what you do? And, I think most importantly, what is the belief that drives what you to do or want to do.

With this focus in mind, here’s my take on why I want to write; and please note that this is not outlined or scripted, it’s simply me talking out loud.

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Sunset’s Romance & Treachery

October 5, 2014 By Rick 1 Comment

Standing at the edge of the pond we watched in silence as the sun faded on the horizon. The water shimmered with the last lights, first a golden orange and then turning to purple ripples that caressed our toes. Our hands found each other’s as the sun’s last edge slipped behind our world.

The clouds now took over and turned the sky into orange, red, and pink cotton that floated peacefully over a world going to sleep. Without a breeze to disturb them they froze in solemn tribute to the descending orb and let themselves change moment by moment, treasuring the warm rays for as long as they were offered.

The day was over and could not be reclaimed. With a squeeze of our fingers we agreed that our journey to this moment was the right choice in a world gone mad. The sun and her sister clouds confirmed our desire to seek them out.

Alone At The Window

September 28, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

I see people,
Many of them I know.

How do they see me,
Sitting
Over here by the window,
As usual
By myself.

There is much noise,
From these people I know.
But none
From me,
Unless you can hear a thought cry.

It’s time
To escape
And get away from those I know,
Because I don’t
And they don’t.
I leave.

Free Western Books: You Don’t Want To Miss This One!

September 25, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

Colson’s Law is available FREE on Kindle October 1st to 5th! Written in the style of Louis L’Amour and some of the other great Western writers, this book is about a gunfighter who must overcome odds and help a young heiress claim her ranch. You can read a complete review here.

[bluebox]If you’re looking for free Western books you don’t want to miss the FREE Kindle release of my first book, Colson’s Law. This will be available for a limited time only: October 1st to 5th, 2014![/bluebox]

Colson’s Law Western Book Review

September 23, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

Colson’s Law tells the story about the infamous gunfighter, Rad Colson, who is hired to escort a preacher and his daughter to the West. Two years previous, Rad had been gunned down and left for dead. Now he dreams about that battle every night in his dreams and now hides in New York, nursing an ever present bottle of whiskey.

Only the attraction of an emerald-eyed heiress persuades Rad to return to the land that had witnessed his defeat. With mounting opposition against her, the heiress attempts to settle her affairs and pleads with the drunken gunfighter to reform himself and strap his twin six-guns on to help her. The conflicts of both can only be settled by Colson’s Law.

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How Important Is The Opening Line In Your Book?

September 5, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

BOOM! How was that? Or does BAMB work better? What about, “Yeah, I’m talkin’ to you!” Did any to these grab your attention? Were they eye-catching or annoying? These are just examples of the importance of the opening line in your book…or even a blog post such as this.

Now, for blog posts you have maybe five seconds to grab your visitors attention. And if you don’t do it that quickly they click away to the next website. You probably have the same amount of time to convince a reader to buy your book. Sure, maybe they’ve read the back cover for a quick book synopsis but then they may crack open the cover to see how your book starts (how many of us have done the same?)

If you haven’t reached out and grabbed your perspective reader’s attention with a great first line then they aren’t likely to reach for their wallet!

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The Types Of Genre Writing And How To Find Yours

September 1, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

For new and aspiring writers it’s sometimes difficult to decide on the type of genre that you want to write for. This includes whether you want to write fiction or nonfiction, write on your own website (a blog), or become a copywriter. So how do you decide which type of genre writing is for you?

Finding your writing genre or niche is based on two things:

Write about what you know
Write about what you’re prepared to become an expert in

You will need to find a way that helps you focus where you will spend your time writing. Starting with what you know and are passionate about is always the top recommendation. However, if you’re prepared to spend the time and become a subject expert then you can delve into a genre that you know little about but have always wanted to learn (passion and curiosity will take you far).

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How Research Will Help You Write Your Novel

August 30, 2014 By Rick Leave a Comment

Remember all the research you did in school when you had to write a paper or create a new project? Hours spent writing out your notes because we couldn’t highlight encyclopedias and we had to avoid plagiarizing like the plague. Ugh, tedious, boring work just so we could get a good grade.

Guess what? If you want to become a published author those years were not in vain! And whether your story takes place on another world, in another country, or in another time you must do your research BEFORE you put ink to paper or fingers to keys. Your story must be based on facts, accuracy, and attention to detail; otherwise your reader may do their own research and, if what you say is not true then you will lose credibility and likely a reader.