Romantic Fiction Author Rusty Blackwood Looks Back …

• Posted on 31st December 2015
• in Thoughts& Views
• by admin

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I think everyone, writer or not, takes time to reflect back on what has gone, how you felt, and where you now find yourself. For me, this last year has had its ups and downs, accolades, and heartaches. I have always been one to take things as they come, remain as positive as I can be, and keep moving forward. I believe that is all one can do in life, regardless of what it may throw your way. I believe it also helps to not only take things into account, but gain perspective on them when you do, and take from them what you can. I am fortunate in many ways. I have a supportive, wonderful family who is always there for me, and through knowing that, it helps tremendously when it comes to venturing into the unknown. This is good to know, because the world of an Indie author can be a most difficult one; yet it can also bring feelings of accomplishment in areas where you need it most. There are many times I wish I did not walk my path alone; that there would be someone beside me who believed in me and supported me come what may; then again when you walk your path alone you have total control over your steps, and where they lead you. I love to write, and part of writing is character creation. I love creating characters that in my mind truly do come to life and in many ways become my friends and confidants, and the same as in actual life, there are a few who would require a steady, authoritative hand; a hand that might lead them where they didn’t wish to be. But that is one of the coolest areas of writing – especially fiction writing – because it can take you wherever you decide to let it, create scenarios in which actual life may never bring your way. I think most writers would agree with that as well as admit to it. It is often said that art imitates life, I believe it does, but I also believe that life can imitate art, especially for the die-hard and hopeless romantic – like me – who is always searching for that certain someone that in many ways would be impossible to find. But in writing they are only a pen stroke, or key-stroke away, as well as the endless array of areas you wish to immerse them into. A character has a way of leading you where ‘they’ wish to go, and this can often result in setbacks in a story, or downtime in producing it. Yet when it all comes together it is a feeling like no other, and you truly feel elated and accomplished. This is exactly the way I felt when ‘Willow’s Walk’, my latest romantic fiction drama, finally released. I was beginning to think that novel would never move forward, let alone be finished and finding its way in the reader’s world. But it did, and I am immensely proud of it but I am also sad because my mother never got to see it in novel form, hold it, or read it. She did see the cover, which she loved, and I think she would have enjoyed the story. Mom read most of my work; I’m sure there were passages and phrases in some that might have caused her eyebrows to raise, but I think she also got a kick out of knowing her child wrote what she was reading. I can well-remember her looking over my shoulder when I’d be writing a school essay at the kitchen table back home. She was usually correcting my words and suggesting I try writing it differently, and most of the time her suggestions were exactly the way it should be, but like my mother, I would very often stick to the path I was determined to walk, so the end result was often left to chance. My mother passed away on September 18th, and it felt like my path and direction in life had completely disintegrated before me. She meant the world to me. I don’t think we realize the impact the loss of one’s mother can bring, until it happens, and you find yourself without her, knowing she is not, nor will she ever be on the other end of your telephone, let alone realizing you will never embrace her in the flesh for the rest of your life. It is a feeling that even the most imaginative of writer could never express in word. I know I can’t, and I have been known to express some wildly exaggerated thoughts. I miss her dearly, and though I step forward with hesitation, I know she is there – the same as I know my father is – and it is through those feelings that I can continue to step forward, but oh how I wish they were actually there to walk with me. Cherish your parents; they will not forever be there. Time continues to move forward, and we must continue to move with it. It’s almost impossible to grasp how fast it actually moves, yet never any faster than it ever has, but it sure makes you wonder where it goes when you’re standing on the brink of a new year set to reveal itself in a mere few hours. For each of you, I hope 2016 will be filled with safety, happiness, peace, prosperity, and good health. It’s all any of us can hope for, and I hope each of us can enjoy it.

I wish to thank each and every one of you who openly, and consistently give your support to me and my work. It means so very much to me, and I hope each of you truly know how much it does. I look forward to writing new words, revealing new emotions, and doing my best to maintain a standard you have all come to expect. Thank you again!

Cheers!

Rusty B.

Tags: 'Willow's Walk', Canadian Indie author Rusty Blackwood, Passions in Paris: Revelations of a Lost Diary, romance novelist Rusty Blackwood, romantic fiction author Rusty Blackwood