Flipping Procrastination: Creating Monica

Along with losing focus at times, one of my dreadful faults is procrastination. But in a strange twist of fate I was able to flip procrastination on its head and make it work for me. You see, I’m constantly writing and simultaneously coming up with new story ideas. As you can tell, this creates a big problem whereby I temporarily lose focus on my current writing project because of the steady flow of fresh incoming story ideas. In an effort to organize and keep track of my numerous story ideas, I jot down notes about each one and then I stick them in a pile in which I tell myself that I’ll get to them sometime in the near future. Sometimes this method works for me but for the most part it simply doesn’t. One day I looked at my ever-growing pile of story ideas and the lightbulb in my brain suddenly came on. It hit me, sift through the pile and create a short story collection, and that was the initial work to bring my latest project ‘MONICA a Short Story Collection’ to fruition. Whatever your goals are, don’t let procrastination stop you completely. For sure, it may slow us down a bit but keep moving on and never let it defeat you. Learn more at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

Beauty Below Us

One of my favorite school field trips during my elementary years was to the Luray Caverns in Culpeper, Virginia. What my eyes witnessed that day will stay with me forever. I was so taken by the natural beauty of the underground Wishing Well and the other sites during our guided tour that these memories resurfaced as scenes in HEAVEN, one of the twelve stories in ‘Monica A Short Story Collection’, my most recent work. If you ever get the chance, please go visit this ‘beauty below us’. More at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

Books for Everyone!

I’ve been loving books ever since I was a little boy. It’s a shame and a disgrace that some politicians and school districts want to ban certain books nowadays. Placing strong restrictions on teachers and controlling how they conduct their classroom hurts the students. The classroom should be a place that nurtures open mindedness, not a place that erases history or attempts to brainwash young minds. I love it when some public libraries and book stores, large chains and small independent ones, proudly display and offer the ‘banned books’ to the general public. This photo was taken at Barnes & Noble, October 26, 2022. – Randolph Randy Camp

Autumn Blessings at Randie's Library

Autumn is here. The leaves have fallen and kindness is still permeating. It’s October 20, 2022 and on this bright Thursday morning, RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY was gifted three bags of books. It makes me smile to see people supporting their neighborhood book exchanges and free libraries. And, by the way, if anyone would like to checkout and read the paperback edition of ‘Monica A Short Story Collection’ (which features the short story ‘Randie’s Free Library’) please check the catalog of the Ankeny Kirkendall Public Library, the Urbandale Public Library, the Des Moines Public Library, etc. for its availability. It truly is a blessing to see Randie’s giving spirit still shining. – Randolph Randy Camp

Writing Challenges: Time and Voices

WRITING CHALLENGES: TIME and VOICES…Needless to say, any writer would tell you that procrastination and actually making time to write is one of the greatest challenges of finishing any project. For me, personally, when I don’t feel like typing, I go old school, and I simply jot down a few handwritten notes. When I’m fully energized and motivated again, I would start typing. While writing ‘Monica A Short Story Collection’, one of the other challenges I encountered was writing in the voice of a fourteen-year-old girl. Allie is one of the main characters in the story ‘Heaven’, and looking at the world from her POV certainly made me totally step back and wipe away all of my maleness. Choosing from whose POV will tell your story is a unique challenge. Ask yourself who is best suited to connect with your audience or your readers when making this decision. More at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

Monica: Classroom Book Talk

MONICA: Classroom Book Talk….I love it when two people have read, seen, or heard the same exact thing, but they each may have a different perception. I appreciate all of the book clubs and school teachers who are using any of my books for discussion. Regarding ‘MONICA a Short Story Collection’, here are a few topics and tips: (1) In RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY, do you think that the insulin samples are a symbol or a metaphor? If so, a metaphor for what? (2) In LABREA, what do the dandelions represent? (3) In MONICA, is there a symbolic meaning in the freeing of the cattle? (4) What is the underlying message in GI BLUES? (5) Regarding character development, how is Johnny different in the end of GI BLUES? (6) In RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY, what’s the reason why Phillip wants to be a doctor? (7) In THE WATCH, were the scenes in the story real or were they all an illusion? (8) Regarding HEAVEN, is there an underlying message in the story? If so, what is it? Learn more at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

Monica: Story Teasers

First of all, I want to thank all of my 3,500 plus followers, friends, and readers from sites such as Readers Hook, etc. To say the least, the past few years have been exceptionally rough. Writing is both therapeutic and a sometimes fun escape for me, and I’m truly grateful for your support. With that said, I like to share with you some brief story teasers from ‘Monica a Short Story Collection’. In GI BLUES a homeless man’s greatest desire is to be a Marine, but is he mentally fit? In THE NEW STORE IN TOWN, where the kids are in total control, a mother finds herself in court after she goes into her son’s room and takes a few quarters out of his piggy bank. In LABREA a podcast gets heated when the subject of CRT is discussed. In LOVE AT ANY AGE a dating service for seniors makes a successful match. In 7 O’CLOCK a young man confronts White silence head on and must make a decision that will change his life forever. In THE WATCH a career police officer is forced to deal with the detrimental effect of fentanyl in a very personal way. In THE LINE an executive of a prominent restaurant franchise creatively teaches a racist manager a lesson in fairness. In TELL HIM I’M SORRY an elderly lady in a nursing home tells the staff about her past secrets. In HEAVEN two teenagers discover themselves, in more ways than one. In CHEROKEE WINGS an old Native American takes the kids in their trailer park on the ride of their lives. In RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY a police officer uses his people skills to calm a worrisome neighbor. More details at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp

You have to stand up and fight for what you believe in. Monica is determined to bring down and expose the dirty secrets of a hypocritical State Senator who voted against Roe. Monica and the other eleven short stories in this collection are a snapshot of America today. Monica is standing up and fighting for abortion rights and for her personal freedom to choose. Sometimes, we all have to take a stand for something. Here are the titles of the twelve stories in this collection (1) GI Blues (2) 7 O’clock (3) The Watch (4) Tell Him I’m Sorry (5) Monica (6) Heaven (7) The New Store In Town (8) The Line (9) Randie’s Free Library (10) Love At Any Age (11) LaBrea (12) Cherokee Wings. In GI BLUES a homeless man’s greatest desire is to be a Marine, but is he mentally fit? In THE NEW STORE IN TOWN, where the kids are in total control, a mother finds herself in court after she goes into her son’s room and takes a few quarters out of his piggy bank. In LABREA a podcast gets heated when the subject of CRT is discussed. In LOVE AT ANY AGE a dating service for seniors makes a successful match. In 7 O’CLOCK a young man confronts White silence head on and must make a decision that will change his life forever. In THE WATCH a career police officer is forced to deal with the detrimental effect of fentanyl in a very personal way. In THE LINE an executive of a prominent restaurant franchise creatively teaches a racist manager a lesson in fairness. In TELL HIM I’M SORRY an elderly lady in a nursing home tells the staff about her past secrets. In HEAVEN two teenagers discover themselves, in more ways than one. In CHEROKEE WINGS an old Native American takes the kids in their trailer park on the ride of their lives. In RANDIE’S FREE LIBRARY a police officer uses his people skills to calm a worrisome neighbor.