A #Book Every #Writer (Everyone) Should Read Before They Die

The Coddling of the American Mind

(Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt)

 

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I read an interesting book this week. No, it wasn’t an urban fantasy or a romance, but a book about lessons in life and how they relate to what is happening on our campuses today. This is not meant to be a political blog post, although I do believe the authors are spot-on about their observations throughout the book regarding the younger generations and colleges today.

While I was reading, I couldn’t help but notice that much of the book related to the life of an author/writer, particularly to the Notable Quote taken from the book (below in italics).

From the Authors' Amazon Product Page:

Something is going wrong on many college campuses in the last few years. Rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide are rising. Speakers are shouted down. Students and professors say they are walking on eggshells and afraid to speak honestly. How did this happen?

NOTABLE QUOTE from inside The Coddling of the American Mind.

“From time to time in the years to come, I hope you will be treated unfairly, so that you will come to know the value of justice.

I hope that you will suffer betrayal because that will teach you the importance of loyalty. 

Sorry to say, but I hope you will be lonely from time to time so that you don’t take friends for granted.

I wish you bad luck, again, from time to time so that you will be conscious of the role of chance in life and understand that your success is not completely deserved and that the failure of others is not completely deserved either.

And when you lose, as you will from time to time, I hope every now and then, your opponent will gloat over your failure. It is a way for you to understand the importance of sportsmanship.

I hope you’ll be ignored so you know the importance of listening to others.

I hope you will have just enough pain to learn compassion.

Whether I wish these things or not, they’re going to happen. And whether you benefit from them or not will depend upon your ability to see the message in your misfortunes.”

How do these points pertain to writers?

Haven’t we known the loneliness that writing brings?

Haven’t we lost many times in our endeavors to write that bestseller? How many times have we heard that, yes, one must write a terrific book, but one must also have a little bit of luck tossed in to make the big time? 

Some writers might possibly gloat over our failures while lauding their own success, and yes, sportsmanship is a hard lesson to learn, but it’s an integral part on our journey through life. 

It’s important to promote and brag about the new book you just released, but it’s more important to listen to others about the latest baby they released into the world too. 

And, like the last sentence in the Notable Quote above, all of these things will happen at one time or another in our writing/personal lives. Like the authors of The Coddling of the American Mind point out, how we benefit from them will depended upon our ability to see the messages in not only our successes but our misfortunes. 

If you have a chance to read The Coddling of the American Mind. There is a plethora of strong lessons about life within the pages. You can judge for yourself whether or not they also pertain to a writer's life.

Well done, Mr. Lukianoff and Mr. Haidt, well done.

#Demons are like obedient dogs. . .Find Out How.

Thanks so much for visiting Keta's Keep. Today, we're talking about Demons and Angels. There's two sides to everything, right? Good vs. evil, demons vs. angels, dark vs. light.


When I wrote I SPY A DEMON, I knew very little about demons, their names, their rankings, how many times they're mentioned in the Bible and so much more. If you're curious about demons or angels, Google them and thousands of articles appear (and different opinions too).The same goes for books about demons/angels. One book I referred to often for my research was A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies & Fallen Angels. You can find several used paperback copies if you're interested in reading more about demons, fairies or fallen angels.

Here are two quotes I tried to keep in mind while writing I Spy A Demon:

"Be careful who you trust; the devil was once an angel." Unknown.

"Demons are like obedient dogs; they come when they are called." Remy de Gourmont

So in all fairness and equality, here are some more facts about Angels and Demons that might interest you.  

Angels

The term angel, which is derived from the Greek word angelos, is the equivalent of the Hebrew word mal’akh, meaning “messenger.” The literal meaning of the word angel thus points more toward the function or status of such beings in a cosmic hierarchy rather than toward connotations of essence or nature, which have been prominent in popular piety, especially in Western religions. Thus, angels have their significance primarily in what they do rather than in what they are. Whatever essence or inherent nature they possess is in terms of their relationship to their source (God, or the ultimate being).

Angelic Council: The seven archangels, Jegudiel, Gabriel, Selaphiel, Michael, Uriel, Raphael, Barachiel. 

Demons

Demon, also spelled daemon, Classical Greek daimon, in Greek religion, a supernatural power. In Homer the term is used almost interchangeably with theos for a god. The distinction there is that theos emphasizes the personality of the god, and demon his activity. Hence, the term demon was regularly applied to sudden or unexpected supernatural interventions not due to any particular deity. It became commonly the power determining a person’s fate, and a mortal could have a personal demon. As early as Hesiod (c. 700 bc), the dead of the Golden Age became demons; and later philosophical speculation envisaged these as lower than the gods (possibly mortal) but as superior to humanity.

One common medieval classification associate the seven deadly sins with archdemons:

Lucifer: pride, Mammon: greed, Asmodeus: lust, Leviathan: envy, Beelzebub: gluttony, Satan: wrath, Belphegor: sloth.

 Of course, you can always read more about demons and devils in our newly released anthology: A DARKER SHADE OF EVIL

 

Also Available on KINDLE UNLIMITED

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Demons, Devils & Mermaids, Oh My! by Keta Diablo I SPY A DEMON

Hi all,



Thanks so much for visiting today.

I'm starting off the weekend happy and smiling. The reviews for my story I SPY A DEMON in the A DARKER SHADE OF EVIL anthology are rolling in and they're pretty awesome.

"A fantastic story full of mystery, suspense and feisty romance. I really loved the concept. The story held my attention the whole way through."

Ashley, Amazon Reader

"My first book by this author where the writing was smooth. I loved the chemistry between Cecily & Marcel. The story was fast paced.The ending was a shocker, and the story ended in a HEA."

SVG, Amazon Reader

"I really enjoyed Keta Diablo's take of demons - not only demons on the loose but also the internal demons we all must bear. I think that the steam that came off Cecily’s and Marcel could burn you to your soul."

Tami, Amazon Reader

"I Spy A Demon was such a great read. A story that is full of secrets and mistrust in the family that Cecily grew up in. She's determined to find out the truth amongst all the lies and deception. Even though this story is not considered a full length novel, it was long enough to get a good detailed read that grabbed me from the beginning and kept me fully engaged to the end."

mauireader, Amazon

About I Spy A Demon

When twins Cecily and Calder Sizemore’s parents are killed in a car accident, they’re adopted by the Frost family—Gus, Mae and their sons, Marcel and Elliott.  Over the years, Cecily’s love for Marcel evolves into anything but sisterly.  

Cecily always knew something was amiss in the Frost household. Little things belied the calm, peaceful ambiance Mae did her best to portray. Calder tried to warn her things were not as they appeared, but she didn’t want to believe him. When Calder begs her to leave Des Moines, start a new life away from the secrets, away from the Frosts and away from Marcel, she takes his advice and her shattered heart and moves to Minnesota.

Now she’s been called home for her beloved brother's funeral. There's more to the story than meets the eye. Discrepancies in how her twin died lead her back to Des Moines, and back to Marcel―the boy who stole her heart, the man whose very presence turns her blood to liquid fire. Marcel has always kept dangerous secrets, but this time, Cecily is determined to uncover the truth about the Frosts… and the truth about how Calder really died. 

She’ll find out what really happened to her brother, even if it’s her last act in life.

* * * 

I'm sure you'll love all NINE stories in A Darker Shade of Evil. Our demons, devils, shapeshifters and more are awesome! 

Pick up the Anthology here
FREE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED

A Tribute to Babs Hightower - Friend #Author Assistant

Hello friends and fans of the publishing world,

We are sorry to say that on September 7th the world got a little dimmer.

Barbara (Babs) Hightower, of Babs Book Bistro, an author assistant to many, passed away shortly after doing one of her favorite things in life─climbing a mountain with her beloved Tommy and young children.

Babs worked with me as an author assistant for almost two years and I miss her terribly, both as a very good friend and a tremendous assistant. At 1:oo a.m. on September 8th, I received a text from her husband, Tommy, and with his permission, share a portion of it with you:

"Hi Keta,

This is Tommy, Babs husband. I'm very sorry to say we lost her tonight.

We went hiking today up a mountain, and did 4 miles. She complained about arm pain once we reached the top, but thought maybe she slept on it wrong. By the way, she beat me down the mountain. She had a heart attack minutes after we got home, five hours after the arm pain. We lost her tonight at 6:00 p.m.

I am just numb. Tommy."

Babs and Tommy have four boys, three of whom are still at home, two with special needs. A month before Babs passed, Tommy had a stroke and I know she was very stressed out about that. 

Babs was only 49, and yet in her short time here, she was an integral part of the publishing world. She loved books, all books, but especially cozy mysteries. You can imagine how many times we laughed about her assisting an author who doesn't happen to write cozies, and another who writes sci-fi. But that's how Babs was, always willing to extend a helping hand to anyone who needed one. 

The family did not hold a public funeral, but rather had a private family service. Based on the many comments on her obituary page, she was much loved by so many in her home town of Taylors, South Carolina. 

It is in this vein that we are asking you to donate whatever you can to Babs' family to ensure her young ones (whom she loved dearly) are provided all the love and care she gave them in her short time here. 

Your donation will go to Tommy and the children and is sincerely appreciated. 

BABS GO FUND ME PAGE DONATE HERE

Rest In Peace, Babs.

Our sincere thanks,

Keta Diablo

Kayelle Allen

Amber Marr (Babs' partner in Crime at Babs’ BookMark)