I ran through a stop sign today. Went right through it without ever looking. That’s bad, Į know. That’s a really bad thing. I wish I had it to do over again, maybe I’d… No, I’m sure I would stop if I had it all to do over again. But, like everything else in life, there are no do-overs. You do it once, and it’s done. Whatever that may be.
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I’m proud to be working with Keli Richards- putting her story into a memoir. Keli has done her best to drop her name and mine in the same sentence… ending with “Book”… since late last year. We’ve been working hard, going the extra mile to get it right, and have now reached a point where the manuscript is nearly ready for the editor.
Many remember her from her early days in the Adult Industry of the 1980s. Keli was only in Porn Valley for a couple years… and was kinda like one of those shooting stars. They appear brightly, and then fade from sight. All of a sudden, you’re left with nothing! The question I hear most often from fans and those within the Industry most is- what happened to Keli? Where’d she go? The answer is… wait and see. It’ll blow your mind! But let me tell you- we’ve got that plus a lot more. Stay tuned as this gets kicked into high gear, and starts to really take shape. Follow Keli on FaceBook, and Twitter. ***Bonus*** Website at KeliRichards.com! ~Jim Steele
***UPDATE***
As many of you may know, Keli is fighting Cancer. She is in the early stages, and we are optimistic that she will beat this. Still, please consider visiting her GoFundMe to help with expenses. Like many other performers, Keli did not have health insurance, and is doing her best to pay for everything as she goes. Thank you in advance.
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Jim Steele (JS) – Today, I’m fortunate enough to have a conversation with Pamela Bliss. I went out on a limb, and cold called her for an interview while she was busy working on her latest mural of John Mellencamp in downtown Seymour, Indiana, which has quickly become the talk of the town. I’d use “The Small Town”, but I’m trying oh so hard to keep this on an even keel, and the fact of the matter is that Pamela has been out and about for many years. She’s arguably one of the most accomplished artists I’ve had the pleasure of meeting, and I appreciate her time and her talent. Through her work, she has helped to make this town, State, country, and even places beyond our shores a brighter place to live. Thanks for taking some time Pamela.
JS – I suppose the first thought I have is to start at the beginning and ask- how long have you painted; and what type of art, or discipline, did you first begin to pursue?
Pamela Bliss (Pamela) – I’ve been painting for about 30 years. I’ve always drawn or painted in realism. I typically paint highly detailed and very literal. However, I will be attempting some other forms this winter when my schedule slows down.
JS – When did you kind of settle in on murals, and at what point did you reach what we all would term as a “professional status”?
Pamela – I painted some cartoon type of murals early on for some schools. But 23 years ago, I was approached about painting a mural of a large-scale jazz band in eastern Indiana. I was asked to do another and then another so it snowballed into full-time. So initially I was a part-time professional painter and now I am full-time.
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I flew out of Indianapolis International a year or so back, bound for San Francisco. I had a connecting flight down in Phoenix, and even though I usually tried to get the non-stop, Sky Harbor Airport is normally a quick turn-a-around. So, I didn’t see any problem with landing at San Francisco around 11:30 pm, catching a train uptown, and then making it up to my apartment.
My rule of thumb is that those in the know, even in this day and age of sweatpants and flip-flops, always dress up at least a little bit to take a plane. And so, I cruised up to Indy, and marched into the terminal wearing a nice sport coat, clean jeans, and some shiny black slip on dress shoes. For me, no big deal. That’s just the way I like to look when I fly… you know, like you belong to be there. Besides, I’m old enough to remember when flying was actually kind of a big deal, and most people back in the late 70s and well into the 80s would dress up a bit to fly.
Anyhow, I was feeling pretty good about myself that night, and just went in, hit the restroom, checked myself in the mirror, and then off to catch my flight. On my way to the TSA security lines, I’m looking around at all the other frequent fliers in their pajama pants, house slippers, and head phones.
“Pathetic,” I thought aloud, “They all look like they’re going to Walmart at midnight on a Saturday to get potato chips.”
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Posted Nov 18 2019 by TheButler in Interviews with 0 Comments
The Indie Book Butler Interview – Jim Steele
Tell us a little about yourself and your work.
I’ve written for probably 30 plus years, but only in the last 4-5 kind of graduated into starting to learn how to craft a novel. On that topic, I’d say that I started trying to figure out how to write more than 4-5,000 words about 20 years ago. Little by little, I finally completed Ride My Highway in 2017. Ride is a rough and tumble story of a guy who is just out of control. Meanwhile, he’s driving an 18-wheeler cross country. But it also tells a lot of stories along the way: how he got to be the way he was, where he’s going, relationships ruined, lessons learned. For me, just to complete that first book was a pretty big accomplishment.
Then I got Just Across The Way in 2018. I’m finishing up Out Past Round Barns now, which is a prequel/sequel to Just Across The Way, both are just very messed up psychological Thrillers/Horror. The thing about those books is that they’re told in the first person, so they read like the journal of mad-man or something, which I think is pretty compelling. I use real places, hotels, towns, you name it. You could go to these places, and the story is right there in front of you. The first person is pretty much my favourite voice to write.
More than anything, I’m just wanting to complete the works I’ve already started, and then continue on with this business of writing books. I also enjoy short stories on occasion, and maybe even a bit of poetry if the mood hits me right. But, day to day, I’m pretty much focused on putting out books.
You’ve got 20 words to sell us on your work. Tempt us.
I write raw. My dialogue is real and conversational. No topic is off-limits. My stories are authentic and alive.
Were there any particular parts of the writing/publishing process that you struggled with?
Not selling very many books! Haha. But then again, I remind myself that I was never in it for the sales, even though that might be nice at some point. I have a day job that I enjoy, my family, kids, granddaughter, and our dogs. But at times, and this probably has a lot to do with being an Indie Author, there is nobody pushing me to do anything! If I start a work and then don’t finish it? Nobody cares. So for me, sometimes the grind of it all, putting the words down, and completing a book… when nobody is ASKING for it, that’s a tough thing to make yourself do sometimes. But, what can I say, I love it? So, I write.
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Snapshots
Gathered up to form,
A portrait in a frame
All of them together
Tiny pictures with no name
Through them we can see
Years and times gone by
With them we may feel
At times the urge to cry
Each one had a life then
Now they’re simply frozen
An image staring back through time
Forgotten, once was chosen
Snapshots
Stills and hazy memories,
Never in a frame
Fragments of a lifetime
Tiny pictures with no name
~ Jim Steele
On the wall of my office, hangs a beautiful portrait of a lovely young lady. It is the only picture of a woman, other than my wife or family members that I have. If I had to guess, I would say that it will be the only one of “another lady” that would ever be allowed, now or in the future, to reside on any wall in the house, let alone the wall directly opposite my desk. I am confident that the only reason my wife allows it to stay is twofold– the first part being that she knows that, for whatever reason, I like it; and secondly, I am usually the only one in my office, and my dear wife never really has to look at it… at her. “Her”, or that “lady”, a generic descriptive is all that I know of her, of the portrait. I have no idea, nor will I ever, of the origin or name of the lady in the portrait. It is a mystery. She is a mystery. However, to me, it is a grand mystery, one that is better left unsolved. To solve it… to know of her… to place her, would be to ruin her forever.
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“Books… They transport us to many locations, and we dare not retreat; we beg to go, and clamor to become acquainted with the mysteries held within the binding.”
Since the invention of the PDF and then of the iPad, Kindle, and other E-Reader’s, the debate of which is best- paper versus “books in the cloud” has been going back and forth. I have no dog in this fight, since I simply refuse to be swayed from my opionion that old fashioned paper books are so much better- in so many ways- than a digitized version of the same. In fact, I don’t regard my postition as opinion, I look at it as just another fact of life that some people wish to argue over from the point of view of sheer laziness.
If YOU are too lazy to physically hold, store, and care for a book- then you might not deserve to read it.
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Went to a baseball game the other night. Yep, loaded up in the ‘ole family mobile, and headed up north, up to Indianapolis. Went to the Indians game; had pretty good seats too, Row “S”, seats 12 and 13, behind the Indians dugout. It was the third, and probably the last, baseball game of this year that I’ll be able to go to. It being later on in the year and all.
At the last minute, my little fella was unable to go. Sometime 10 year old priorities can change at the drop of a hat, though I really can’t understand what could be more important than a ballgame. So instead of my boy, I took an old friend along to the ballpark. Well, the game started at 5:00 pm, so we left Seymour around 2:30’ish, I really don’t like to be late. No, I like to have plenty of time to mess around, get a bit to eat, find a parking space, and still beat the crowd. That being said, I took a wrong turn off of I-70, and burned up my “messing around time” getting turned back around, and heading in the right direction. Well, I finally got my bearings straight, and found my way to the parking garage.
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I insist on hanging out in bars. It will ultimately be to my detriment and part of me knows this. Still- at times, I can’t help myself.
I neither feel good or bad inside the all too comfortable confines of these establishments, I’m just “there”. I rarely go to any that are within my home zip code- preferring instead some kind of anonymity. I’m not sure that the effort pays any dividends for it is painfully clear to all within the place that, upon my arrival and then demeanor, a non-drinker; more specifically, a recovering alcoholic is within the midst of an otherwise good time. But, I can say that if I were to go to my former haunts, the chances of my actually starting to drink again, due to peer pressure and out and out memories, would be far too great. I can’t really have that, besides- to drink or start drinking again is not what I’m after. Actually, it’s the last thing that I’m after…
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