Luke's
Tale
by
Carol McKibben
BK:
Please tell us a little about yourself...
CM:
It almost seemed like I did everything in my power to avoid becoming
a writer! I taught writing but didn’t really write or publish. I
was a magazine publisher, but had to do a little writing in spite of
myself. My excuse was always that I had no time. Then, when I
couldn’t resist any longer, I sat down, put all those journals and
pieces of paper together, and wrote my first book. It turned out to
be a memoir, entitled Riding
Through It.
I consider it an exercise in leaving my past behind me and really
becoming a writer.
BK:
Please tell us a little about your book....
CM:
Luke’s
Tale is a
story of a young couple’s search to find unconditional love, as
told through the “eyes” of their blind dog, Luke. Luke,
an intelligent, 89-pound yellow Labrador retriever, has an odd
ability to understand human conversations and actions. When he
discovers that Sara, his owner’s girlfriend, is hiding a secret and
soon disappears, the dog uses all of his skills to help reunite them.
Through clues that he provides to his master, Ashlundt, Luke is the
catalyst bringing the two lovers back together. But this is only the
beginning of the challenges the three must face. Ashlundt, who
suffers from a tormented past, doesn’t understand how the
conditions he places on those around him, prevent him from finding
happiness. Luke, knowing how to give unconditional love, is the glue
that binds them through a series of life-changing events. In the
midst of it all, Luke is spiraling into blindness!
At
the heart of Luke’s
Tale is the
story of two lovers and their struggle with unforeseen
disillusionment to build a lasting relationship – as told through
the eyes of the loving furry creature who is devoted to them beyond
all reason.
BK:
What inspired you to pen this particular novel?
CM:
The premise
for Luke’s
Tale came to
me in a dream about a year after I wrote my first book. I told my
best friend Debi about it, and she encouraged me. So, I started to
write the novel. Around that time, I went for a psychic reading for
my birthday. I told the psychic nothing about myself…yet; she told
me that the angels around me, my
guardians,
were urging me to write a book about unconditional love. This freaked
me out! Then, afterward, I had the original dream again.
On
top of everything, my yellow lab Luke is/was my hero. He was a
therapy dog and so dedicated to me. When he was six, he was diagnosed
with Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) for which there is no cure.
Complete blindness was the result. Even after that, he continued to
bravely go everywhere with me, gently feeling his way with his paws
and sticking to me like Velcro. He continued his therapy dogging long
after he went blind and brought joy to hundreds of hospital and
nursing home patients. He was my inspiration.
I
made the narrator of Luke’s
Tale a dog,
because the book’s message is unconditional love. What other
creature except a dog exemplifies unconditional love?
BK: When
did you first consider yourself a writer?
CM: The
day my father read some of my newspaper articles, looked at me,
smiled quietly and said, “Carol, you are a writer.” I simply
believed it. I ignored it for a while, but I always knew it was true
in my heart. When you can’t resist writing down your ideas and
making something out of them for other people to read, you know
you’re a writer.
BK: How
do you keep your story flowing?
CM: Oh,
wow! William Faulkner said it best: “It
begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet
and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a
paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he
says and does.” For
me, that’s the way it works. Once I know my characters, they come
alive and are a life of their own. They move through the story and
fall out of my mind onto the page.
BK:
Do you ever run into writer's block, and if so, what do you do to get
past it?
CM: I’m
fortunate. Not often. When I do, I take a break from it. I’m
working on an episodic series for my publisher right now, and I’m
half-way through having a first draft. I’m taking a break from it
for a couple of weeks so that the characters will show me where we’re
going next. But, that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped writing. Just
working on other things until I feel inspired to go back to it.
BK:
What is your writing process like? Do you have any quirks, or
must-haves to write?
CM: I
dream on the idea for a while and discuss it with trusted associates.
Then, create my characters, outline it and let the characters lead
me. I don’t think I have any quirks, except don’t bother me when
I’m writing. My husband says I go into a “tunnel” and don’t
come out until I’m finished. Oh, and I have to have my dogs next to
me. They’re my muses, you know?
BK:
Where do you hope your books/writing will be in the future?
CM:
As far as
Luke’s Tale
goes, I want to get it into the hands of as many people as possible.
Not for any other reason than I believe in its message of
unconditional love. It’s
important to me because too many couples give up on their
relationships at the first sign of trouble. We often place
expectations on others, and when they can’t live up to them, we
give up on them. A dog is the only creature who loves us without
question, without conditions, no matter how we feel, look,
act…whether we are rich or poor…have a great job or are
unemployed. If dogs can love us like that, why can’t we love each
other unconditionally? The book lights the way, and that’s why I
wrote it. I think in this time and place, it’s important for people
to know how to love each other like that.
For
the future, I just want to keep evolving as a writer. I want to
experiment with different storylines. I hope people will find what
I’m writing worthy of reading.
BK:
What do you hope readers will take away from your books?
CM: I
want them to be both “touched” and “entertained.” I want them
to feel compassion for my characters and be willing to go along with
them on their roller coaster rides.
BK:
What is one piece of advice you received that you carry with you in
your writing?
CM:
Practice your craft. As
Papa Hemingway advised, write every day. (Even if it’s your grocery
list!) Writing is a disciplined art. It takes time and effort to
become really good at it.
BK: What
is one piece of advice you would give to new and aspiring writers?
CM: Practice
your craft – see above.
BK:
Are you currently working on any new projects? What can we expect
from you in the future?
CM: As
I mentioned above, I’m writing an episodic series from the
point-of-view of yet
another dog! It’s
called Snow
Blood.
However, this one must have been inspired by something other than
angels, because it’s filled with vampires, demons, magic and
mystery!
BK:
Where can readers find you?
CM: Visit
my Web site at www.carolmckibben.com.
Come chat with me on my Blog
(www.carolmckibben.com/blog.html.)
My books are on Amazon
and
Amazon
Kindle (Click
the links). Please “like” me on Facebook via
https://www.facebook.com/CarolMckibbenAuthor
and follow me on Twitter @carolmckibben. Whew! Hope you can find me!
Thank you so much for taking
time to chat with me today. It's been a pleasure having you and I
wish you much success in the future.
Giveaway:
One lucky
winner will receive a print or e-book copy (Winner’s Choice) of
Luke’s Tale: A Story of Unconditional Love FREE! All you have to do
is reply to this post and write something about Unconditional Love
and what it means to you. Please be sure to include an email address
where we can reach you for an address and we will pick one lucky
winner at random!
About
the Author:
Carol
writes from the heart of a dog's eyes. Often telling her stories to
LaberDoodles, Basset Hounds and any stray that happens by, it wasn't
long before people stopped to have a listen as well. Now Carol writes
for people and speaks to large audiences, dogs included.
Genre:
Family Drama
Publisher:
Troll River Publications
Release
Date: January 1, 2013
Book
Description:
Luke,
an intelligent, 89-pound yellow Labrador retriever, has an odd
ability to understand human conversations and actions. When his
owner’s girlfriend, Sara Colson, discovers she has breast cancer
Luke is the sole secret keeper of her disease. Not knowing if she’ll
survive, Sara leaves her boyfriend, Ashlundt Jaynes, to shield him
from the pain. Luke, knowing how to give unconditional love, is the
catalyst bringing the two lovers back together and helps them stay
together while Sara and Ashlundt overcome a series of life-changing
events.
At the heart of Luke’s Tale is the story of two lovers and their struggle with unforeseen disillusionment to build a lasting relationship -- and the loving, furry creature who is devoted to them beyond all reason.
At the heart of Luke’s Tale is the story of two lovers and their struggle with unforeseen disillusionment to build a lasting relationship -- and the loving, furry creature who is devoted to them beyond all reason.
Excerpts:
Prologue
September 15, 2015
The
world is darker today. Not because I’m blind. My world is always
black. But this day my heart is broken.
I
sit for a very long time next to the door. I long for her smell of
fresh cut flowers, her touch and her gentle voice. I visualize her
face. I see the fullness of her lips and the deep compassion in her
dark eyes. She is the most caring human I’ve ever known. I long for
her comforting arms around me.
People
come up and pet me. One nurse offers me a bowl of water. I remain
aloof, not wanting to be distracted in case… in case there’s some
word. She couldn’t possibly be capable of being with me now.
Bay
leaf and ocean scent assault my nostrils as I feel Ashlundt pass by
into the ER. I stretch my nose toward him, searching for some sort of
hope. I feel his desperation as he hurries past me with two words,
“Stay, Luke.”
My
stomach growls. I suppress the hunger. It doesn’t matter now. In
trying to push away the anguish, my mind wanders back to when Sara
left us. I was younger and not blind. She wanted to protect Ashlundt
from the pain of her cancer. She must have known that he wouldn’t
be able to cope with her being sick.
I’m
not sure what makes him tick. It has to have something to do with his
brother’s surfing accident. He blames himself to this day. Maybe
that’s why he can’t cope with illness or imperfection in those
he’s supposed to love. I once was his golden boy. We went
everywhere together. Now, my blindness has pushed him further away
from me.
I
still feel Ashlundt’s athletic strength every once and a while.
He’ll brush his large hands over me, and I can visualize his big
frame and angular face bathed in his long, sun-lightened hair. I wish
he knew how to cope with my blindness. It’s hard not to take it
personally.
I
wish I could cope better with my loss of sight. I’d always been a
watcher. It must be part of my Lab nature. What scares me the most is
that I can’t observe my humans, or help them now. Sara has always
depended upon our unspoken bond. Ashlundt is another story. I’ve
been through tough times with each of them, and I’ve had to be more
like that human detective, Sherlock Holmes, than a dog for them. I am
the product of a broken relationship.
It’s
long past my evening meal when I feel Sara’s presence. I hear
nothing but the despair in her voice. “Come, Luke.” She takes me
by the collar and leads me to the car.
I
sit in the backseat and slowly lay down. I know what has happened but
can’t bare thinking of it. She is silent, but her pain is
unbearable and palpable in the air. I think back to how Ashlundt
pushed her away, even when he finally discovered she was sick. I
fought so hard to help him try and win her back…
I’m
jarred back to reality as the car stops. I hear the door open, then
the backseat door. Sara whispers, “Let’s go inside, Luke.”
Slowly,
I follow Sara into the house.
She
says nothing as she fixes my kibble and leftover chicken, then leaves
the room. My greatest fear has been realized.
After
sating my hunger, I go to find Sara in her bedroom. She is lying
across her bed in silence, tortured and bereft. Even though I’m not
usually allowed on the bed, she says nothing as I crawl up next to
her and place my head on her hip. I give out a whimpered cry of
sorrow.
We
lie together in silence for a long, long time. I have to go outside
so badly that my bladder hurts, but I don’t dare leave Sara. She is
so cold. I move closer to her, wanting her to feel my warmth, the
warmth that Ashlundt should have offered. Time passes. My stomach
begins to growl and adds to my discomfort, but it doesn’t matter. I
will not leave her.
Sometime
later the phone starts to ring. It must be morning. All those
distraught voices leaving messages of sorrow on the answering
machine. I crawl up to her face, pressing my nose on her cheek to see
if she is asleep. Her hand softly touches the top of my head. “It’s
okay, Lukey. Thank you for staying with me.” A ragged sigh escapes
from her and is joined by my own.
Still
we remain motionless. I think back to the chain of events until I
started going blind. But, I’ve gotten way ahead of myself. I need
to go back to the beginning so that you understand how we arrived at
our darkest moment in time.
