I AM SEARCHING FOR UNCOMMON SENSE IN A SOCIETY THAT IS LOSING ITS MIND... and its HEART...

     In a society that increasingly does not listen to diverging points of view, and whose members frequently take pride in that. They take pride in being rigid; they take pride in being intolerant.

     We have become a society largely manipulated (and manipulable) by the marketing schemes of others, others who have financial stakes and agendas all their own. We have sailed willingly into this mire, seduced by the prospect of convenience, fashion, and excess. 

     Greed rules the day. It rules the corporations, who cannot see beyond growth for its own sake, wealth for its own sake, and power. Barraged by media and “fake news” from all sides, most of us mere humans have fallen victim to this same addiction: the addiction to more. We chase after attractive offers of anything and everything imaginable, all coming at us at breakneck speed. So much so, that we may not even consciously realize that these offers are ultimately empty of any authentic fulfillment. In this attention-deficient culture, we barely realize when our souls are empty. And if we get an inkling, it can send us frantically running to fill ourselves up with more stuff.

     How can we wake people up? How can we break through the hardened shields that surround those who are deadlocked into the beliefs of party lines, whether cultist republicans or progressive extremists? The harder we knock on their doors, the more the locks are reinforced, the more defensive the ones behind them become. The more the struggle personifies “winning” and loses all connection to “achievement.” Are we entirely doomed?

     Let me tell you a story… Let’s put aside our disagreements about life and play in a fictional world for a little bit. Forget politics, forget shopping, put aside social media—just for a little bit. Put away your phones and tablets. Instead of arguing for our respective sides, let’s play together. There are no risks. It’s not real. It is only a fiction.

     I love to write fiction. Political thrillers, dystopian fiction, medical thrillers, science fiction. Come join me in a world of suspense, subterfuge, struggles for survival, and stories of hope and compassion. Let me entertain you. 

     You needn’t buy into any of it because it’s just a story. But maybe, just maybe, as you start to root for the heroes, you might come to understand even the villains. The points of view of each one and how their personal journey brought them to become who they are. Maybe you will see something of yourselves or of our lost culture, and just maybe, you’ll get some insight into the other side. Or not. That’s okay too. I’m not asking you to change your mind. And besides, none of it is real anyway, right? It’s just a story.

     I never used to pay much attention to the concept of a parable, but now I think it the most marvelous way to learn. To learn about others, to learn about ourselves. We do, after all, have many, many things in common. We are so much more alike than we are different. 

     So I invite you to read my books—or another author’s books. Enter the minds and hearts of the characters, characters who have nothing to do with you, really. (Or do they?) Maybe you will find something there that is also true for you, even in a story.

This is why I embrace TRUTH IN FICTION.

Because, the Truth hurts. But Truth in Fiction gently guides. If, and when, you are ready for the adventure.

" When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people. "

                     - abraham joshua heschel