Lend me your star power

I’m not much for daily or “hard” news. It tends to lean towards the negative. Take this edition for instance. There’s a story about the Coronavirus, human trafficking, falls, and a sad story about a family separated by immigration policies. It’s a serious edition. And I agree with its newsworthiness. But while the bad should not be ignored or pushed aside, I believe in spreading positive messages whenever we, as journalists and people alike, can, which is why throughout my career in newspapers, I’ve predominantly been a features reporter and photographer, choosing to focus more on people’s accomplishments than their mistakes or setbacks or less-than-stellar activities.

In my opinion, about 85% of news is glorified gossip that has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on the reader’s, listener’s, or watcher’s daily life and is only generated to get people watching, listening, reading, and therefore, talking. The next 10% is information that should be known and is good to know but isn’t very necessary. This to me, however, is the sweet spot of news. This 10% is where you’re going to find the most interesting stories that range from social-protest topics, to awareness issues, or just really cool people doing really cool things. This is the area I, as a features reporter and photographer, have always worked best. Of the remaining 5%, I think 4% is necessary content. This is the news that absolutely pertains to its audience and their daily lives. The final 1% is critical information like emergency broadcasts and the sharing of information and instructions that will keep people alive during catastrophe.

While I don’t know if anything I mentioned above rings true with you, Sun Day reader, it is the motivation behind a new venture of mine called Rhuined Fiction, which is a website I’ve established for my fiction work (written under the pseudonym Scott Rhuin). But its primary focus is to ultimately promote healthy journalistic and artistic expression to both young and veteran journalists and artists alike.

Dutch Kanin sees photos before they happen, making him a renowned photographer in the news business. Some say Dutch is psychic. Some say he’s lucky. But Dutch has a simpler explanation for his ability to be in the right place at the right time. People are predictable. And he thrives on that predictability. He hunts it. He even provokes it. At least that’s what he believes when he photographs a violent altercation that he let happen in pursuit of his own ambitions.

Soon the awards, accolades, and prestige become too much, and seeking redemption, Dutch retires to a small-town newspaper only to stumble upon the biggest story of his career: Philip Thorn. Philip is every reason Dutch abandoned mainstream media. He’s twelve feet tall, on the lam, has a connection with a mysterious piece of town history, and is the culprit behind a string of robberies that has the town on fire with speculation. In other words, Philip Thorn is big news. And nobody knows he exists but Dutch. Now Dutch must choose. Return to his old ways and expose Philip or keep the discovery a secret and help the giant make his great escape from the town that’s hunting him. Both, however, may end in calamity.

Complete with a classic love story and a set of ego-driven antagonists, All I See Is Red is a thrilling encounter with the world of developing-news stories and the perils that exist when people try to run from their past.

– Download your free copy
– Leave a review on: Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Goodreads

I see too much biasness in both news and entertainment today and not enough objectivity and pure expression that allows the reader, viewer, or listener to establish their own interpretations. As an author and journalist, I can tell you that my PERSONAL interpretation of any news story or fiction story I write is established in the writing/creating, but I always strive to write in such a way that allows my readers to make what I’ve written their own so they can establish their own opinions, strengthen their creativity, and expand on what I’ve said.

It’s my intent to promote this message with my fiction work and RhuinedFiction.com. And I could use your help, Sun Day readers.

For almost ten years, the Sun City community has been wonderful to the Sun Day and your support is humbling, overwhelming, and motivating. As clichéd as those words tend to be, they are true. And it’s my hope that you might extend the same kindness and generosity that you’ve given to the Sun Day to Rhuined Fiction. And I DO NOT mean monetarily. I’m not asking you to buy anything. In fact, I want to give you something completely free.

My goal with my fiction writing and Rhuined Fiction is not money. Whether I’m selling a print book, an e-book, or any of its apparel or products, I’m only making between $1-$3 per item sold, and some of that is being split with Sun Day Web Manager and Rhuined Fiction artist (and long-time friend) Billy O’Keefe, who deserves every penny for his outstanding artistry. Whatever’s left over is being used to grow Rhuined Fiction.

What I’m asking you for is an honest review of my novel All I See Is Red that’s releasing in May (see the summary on this page). The more reviews AISIR has, the higher it stays on Amazon’s (and other booksellers’) lists and Goodreads, which means more people will have an opportunity to discover it and ultimately Rhuined Fiction. But that’s all I’m looking for. YOUR HONEST REVIEW, like it, love it, or hate it.

To get your free copy e-copy of All I See Is Red, just visit rhuinedfiction.com. Immediately on the homepage, you’ll see links to download any digital format of your choice — epub, mobi, pdf.

Because other promotions are being planned, I can only keep the links active for a limited time so not all traffic to rhuinedfiction.com has access to free copies. There will be three download periods that coincide with the Sun Day’s publication cycle. The first download period runs with this publication cycle and is active February 13-26. There will be two more download periods, one in March, and another April before the book releases on May 19. If you have any issues downloading a copy, email me at chris@mysundaynews.com, let me know what format you’d like, and I’ll send an e-copy directly.

And while you’re there, feel free to look around Rhuined Fiction. It’s a long way from being fully established and there’s a lot of work yet to come, but the building blocks are in place. Now it’s time to create.

Thank you very much, Sun Day readers. You guys are awesome!

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