J.R. Brule's Blog
May 19, 2015
Book Signing at Fireside Book Shop!
WHEN: Blossom Weekend, Saturday May 23rd, 1-3 pm
WHERE: Fireside Book Shop, Chagrin Falls OH, 44022
This Blossom Weekend, come hang out with your favorite local author (me!) at Fireside Book Shop! There will be books, candy, autographs, small talk, big talk, bookmarks, a fancy poster, awesome books, and a whole lot of fun to be had! Any and all of your support is greatly appreciated!
Come see me at Fireside Book Shop, Saturday May 23rd from 1-3 pm!
WHERE: Fireside Book Shop, Chagrin Falls OH, 44022
This Blossom Weekend, come hang out with your favorite local author (me!) at Fireside Book Shop! There will be books, candy, autographs, small talk, big talk, bookmarks, a fancy poster, awesome books, and a whole lot of fun to be had! Any and all of your support is greatly appreciated!
Come see me at Fireside Book Shop, Saturday May 23rd from 1-3 pm!
March 10, 2015
Merging My Online Identities
January 5, 2015
Oh, happy days!
Mind Trap officially sold its first copy today! No doubt from the help of my friends reading their free copies and putting honest reviews on its respective Amazon page.
Since I'm feeling so good, I've decided to share the beginning of a new story with you all--a heightened-realism romance. While it's not my current project, some day I do plan to release the completed version.
As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!
The hospital room is dark, and as quiet as it’s ever been. Maddy’s heart monitor beeps in long intervals, the little green graph etching across a black screen. I am in a chair I’ve pulled close to her bed, and I have her unmoving hand in mine. Her skin is so white that it’s almost translucent now... her veins as thin as her hair.
“My Maddy,” I whisper to her, leaning forward with my elbows on the edge of her bed. My eyes water at the memories of her. All the time we spent together during our young lives... and all the time we missed, during pointless arguments, it all whirls together into a single emotional blur. “Oh... my Maddy.”
On the closest nightstand is a photograph of us, young, in love, conscious. Our smiles are huge, our eyes are small, and our hair as dark as rivers of red wine--a strong contrast to what the years have done. We’ve both gone silver. Our smiles are not so big now, and our eyes don’t squint with happiness as easily as they used to. Our skin is no longer tight against our bones--it is folded, and sagging, and wrinkled. The youthful spark in our eyes has dulled into a mere shadow of all we know.
I’m the only one ever here now, in the hospital. At first, people cared. They visited often, bringing flowers and chocolates and stroking back her hair with gentle hands. They consoled me, though they needn’t. People were more understanding when Maddy first got admitted. They were hopeful. Everyone knew she’d get better, that someday she’d wake up.
Weeks passed, months went by, and as the years added up, Maddy’s caring crowd thinned. The flowers died, shriveled, and disappeared. The bright boxes of chocolates first went empty, and then were never refilled. The nurses went from checking on us twice a day to twice a week, into once a month. Everyone but me was giving up their hope.
Everyone but me had fallen out of love.
I read her her favorite books. They were mostly romances, and most of them made me laugh with their sappy plots. And every time I’d laugh, I’d look up from the pages, and pretend Maddy had crooked her mouth into the slightest smile to laugh along with me.
Sometimes the passages brought up painful feelings. Some authors were real jerks for stirring those types of emotions--the ones I hate to feel, the ones that form cold fingers around your heart, the ones that summon something swelling deep inside your throat. These were the times I paused to grab for Maddy’s hand, and squeeze. I’d take my glasses off and study her dormant face. I could still see her youth under all the years--that girl I met so long ago, that girl that stole my heart. The girl that changed my life.
With Maddy’s heart monitor bleeping intermittently, and with my hand massaging hers, I felt the past come rushing forward from the back of my mind. A tidal wave of memories. I was not trying to relive our lives... something deeper had taken hold of the wheel... something that wished to remind me how good the world used to feel.Read Sample
Since I'm feeling so good, I've decided to share the beginning of a new story with you all--a heightened-realism romance. While it's not my current project, some day I do plan to release the completed version.
As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!
The hospital room is dark, and as quiet as it’s ever been. Maddy’s heart monitor beeps in long intervals, the little green graph etching across a black screen. I am in a chair I’ve pulled close to her bed, and I have her unmoving hand in mine. Her skin is so white that it’s almost translucent now... her veins as thin as her hair.
“My Maddy,” I whisper to her, leaning forward with my elbows on the edge of her bed. My eyes water at the memories of her. All the time we spent together during our young lives... and all the time we missed, during pointless arguments, it all whirls together into a single emotional blur. “Oh... my Maddy.”
On the closest nightstand is a photograph of us, young, in love, conscious. Our smiles are huge, our eyes are small, and our hair as dark as rivers of red wine--a strong contrast to what the years have done. We’ve both gone silver. Our smiles are not so big now, and our eyes don’t squint with happiness as easily as they used to. Our skin is no longer tight against our bones--it is folded, and sagging, and wrinkled. The youthful spark in our eyes has dulled into a mere shadow of all we know.
I’m the only one ever here now, in the hospital. At first, people cared. They visited often, bringing flowers and chocolates and stroking back her hair with gentle hands. They consoled me, though they needn’t. People were more understanding when Maddy first got admitted. They were hopeful. Everyone knew she’d get better, that someday she’d wake up.
Weeks passed, months went by, and as the years added up, Maddy’s caring crowd thinned. The flowers died, shriveled, and disappeared. The bright boxes of chocolates first went empty, and then were never refilled. The nurses went from checking on us twice a day to twice a week, into once a month. Everyone but me was giving up their hope.
Everyone but me had fallen out of love.
I read her her favorite books. They were mostly romances, and most of them made me laugh with their sappy plots. And every time I’d laugh, I’d look up from the pages, and pretend Maddy had crooked her mouth into the slightest smile to laugh along with me.
Sometimes the passages brought up painful feelings. Some authors were real jerks for stirring those types of emotions--the ones I hate to feel, the ones that form cold fingers around your heart, the ones that summon something swelling deep inside your throat. These were the times I paused to grab for Maddy’s hand, and squeeze. I’d take my glasses off and study her dormant face. I could still see her youth under all the years--that girl I met so long ago, that girl that stole my heart. The girl that changed my life.
With Maddy’s heart monitor bleeping intermittently, and with my hand massaging hers, I felt the past come rushing forward from the back of my mind. A tidal wave of memories. I was not trying to relive our lives... something deeper had taken hold of the wheel... something that wished to remind me how good the world used to feel.Read Sample
October 21, 2014
Get your FREE copy of Mind Trap! **EXPIRED**
I'm offering FREE signed copies of my new book, Mind Trap. To get a free copy, you can either write your mailing address in the comment section, or email me directly with the "Email Me" button on the right of this blog.
So what do I need YOU to do?
Read the book and write an HONEST review.
When the book goes live (November 20th), I want to have many reviews ready to be posted on Mind Trap's Amazon page. With your help, I think we can push it out just enough into the reading public's eye, where it will get its fair fighting chance.
And if it does well enough, that signed copy might fetch you a pretty penny.
Genre: Thriller
"Rudy has the Gift--an ability so powerful it's worth killing for.
Four other Gifted have Rudy in their crosshairs: two outlaw gamblers, one ruthless businesswoman, and a seasoned killer. As Rudy shifts between different times and places, he struggles to understand his newfound powers--and to stay alive.
One man offers Rudy his mysterious guidance, a man Rudy cannot decipher as friend or foe. Rudy must determine the man's true intentions if he's to understand his own abilities--or escape the disastrous Mind Trap."
So what do I need YOU to do?
Read the book and write an HONEST review.
When the book goes live (November 20th), I want to have many reviews ready to be posted on Mind Trap's Amazon page. With your help, I think we can push it out just enough into the reading public's eye, where it will get its fair fighting chance.
And if it does well enough, that signed copy might fetch you a pretty penny.
Genre: Thriller
"Rudy has the Gift--an ability so powerful it's worth killing for.
Four other Gifted have Rudy in their crosshairs: two outlaw gamblers, one ruthless businesswoman, and a seasoned killer. As Rudy shifts between different times and places, he struggles to understand his newfound powers--and to stay alive.
One man offers Rudy his mysterious guidance, a man Rudy cannot decipher as friend or foe. Rudy must determine the man's true intentions if he's to understand his own abilities--or escape the disastrous Mind Trap."
Get your FREE copy of Mind Trap!
I'm offering FREE signed copies of my new book, Mind Trap. To get a free copy, you can either write your mailing address in the comment section, or email me directly with the "Email Me" button on the right of this blog.
So what do I need YOU to do?
Read the book and write an HONEST review.
When the book goes live (November 20th), I want to have many reviews ready to be posted on Mind Trap's Amazon page. With your help, I think we can push it out just enough into the reading public's eye, where it will get its fair fighting chance.
And if it does well enough, that signed copy might fetch you a pretty penny.
Genre: Thriller
"Rudy has the Gift--an ability so powerful it's worth killing for.
Four other Gifted have Rudy in their crosshairs: two outlaw gamblers, one ruthless businesswoman, and a seasoned killer. As Rudy shifts between different times and places, he struggles to understand his newfound powers--and to stay alive.
One man offers Rudy his mysterious guidance, a man Rudy cannot decipher as friend or foe. Rudy must determine the man's true intentions if he's to understand his own abilities--or escape the disastrous Mind Trap."
So what do I need YOU to do?
Read the book and write an HONEST review.
When the book goes live (November 20th), I want to have many reviews ready to be posted on Mind Trap's Amazon page. With your help, I think we can push it out just enough into the reading public's eye, where it will get its fair fighting chance.
And if it does well enough, that signed copy might fetch you a pretty penny.
Genre: Thriller
"Rudy has the Gift--an ability so powerful it's worth killing for.
Four other Gifted have Rudy in their crosshairs: two outlaw gamblers, one ruthless businesswoman, and a seasoned killer. As Rudy shifts between different times and places, he struggles to understand his newfound powers--and to stay alive.
One man offers Rudy his mysterious guidance, a man Rudy cannot decipher as friend or foe. Rudy must determine the man's true intentions if he's to understand his own abilities--or escape the disastrous Mind Trap."
September 2, 2014
Mind Trap: Chapter 4
The final edits for Mind Trap were finished today. Next stop, formatting the text for print.
In the mean time, enjoy chapter 4.
Read Chapter 4 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
In the mean time, enjoy chapter 4.
Read Chapter 4 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
August 26, 2014
Mind Trap: Chapter 3
“SOMEONE KNOCKED ON THE front door while Rudy was on the couch, eating cereal. His parents wouldn’t be home from work for another hour, so he put down his food . . .”
Read the rest of chapter 3 by clicking the button below.
Read Chapter 3 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
August 20, 2014
Mind Trap: Chapter 2
Let's jump right into the next installment of my upcoming novel, Mind Trap. Clicking the button below will reveal the embedded PDF of chapter 2. If the PDF fails to load, reload this webpage and try again.
Enjoy.
Read Chapter 2 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
Enjoy.
Read Chapter 2 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
August 9, 2014
Mind Trap: Chapter 1
Want to check up on my latest progress? Read the first chapter of my new novel, Mind Trap, by clicking on the button below. The button will load an embedded PDF for you to read, print, or share with others. (If story doesn't load, refresh the web page and try again.) Enjoy.
Read Chapter 1 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
Read Chapter 1 of Mind Trap by J.R. Brule
Chapter 1 of Mind Trap
Want to check up on my latest progress? Read the first chapter of my new novel, Mind Trap, by clicking on the link below. The link leads to an online PDF file that you can read, print, or share with others.
Mind Trap J.R. Brule Chapter 1
Mind Trap J.R. Brule Chapter 1
