RonVitale.com

Audio Books from Ron Vitale: Dorothea's Song and The Jovian Gate Chronicles

Interested in reading or listening to my fantasy novel "Dorothea's Song" or my science fiction short story collection "The Jovian Gate Chronicles"? Here's all you need to know:

Dorothea's Song:

If you love fantasy and are looking to read or listen to a full-length novel for free, you've come to the right place. The podcast of my fantasy novel "Dorothea's Song" is now available for free as well as a free download of the PDF. Or, if you prefer a hardcover version, you can purchase the book through Lulu.com. And most recently, you can purchase the Kindle version on Amazon.com.

So what's the book about? “Dorothea’s Song” is the story of an ordinary boy named Peter who dreams up an extraordinary fantasy realm to flee the hardships of his own life. Inspired by classic high-fantasy themes, his tale has all the makings of a great adventure—a brave elvish warrior named Dorothea, a ruthless coven of witches, a renegade elf lord and a kingdom on the verge of collapse. But as the chaos intensifies in both worlds, instead of retreating from it, Peter is forced to take a daring stand in each.

Want to listen to the book or read it in digital or hardcopy format? Be sure to check out the links below:

• Subscribe to the audiobook (for free) and listen through iTunes.
• Listen (for free) on Podiobooks.com.
• Download and read the free PDF of the entire book.
• Purchase the hardcopy version of the book on Lulul.com.
• Purchase an electronic version through Smashwords (50% of the book is free as a trial).
• Purchase the Kindle version on Amazon.com.

Thank you for your support!

The Jovian Gate Chronicles:

"The Jovian Gate Chronicles" is now available on Podiobooks.com. Visit "The Jovian Gate Chronicles" Podiobooks.com page to listen (for free) to the entire collection.

Want to download the entire audiobook from iTunes? Subscribe to the "The Jovian Gate Chronicles" RSS feed with iTunes:

--Copy the URL: http://www.podiobooks.com/title/jovian-gate-chronicles/feed/ and then open iTunes.
--Pull down the "Advanced" menu in iTunes, select "Subscribe to podcast," paste in the RSS feed.
--Click "Ok" and then click on the podcast icon in iTunes (in the left navbar) and click on the "Get All" button to download all 4 stories of "The Jovian Gate Chronicles" (the stories are four podcasts that are 142 minutes in length).

To learn more about me and my work, visit my "About Ron Vitale" page. Interested in my podcasts and blogs? Check out these websites:

• The Poddcouple Podcast (A weekly marriage/relationship podcast that my wife and I produce: "A podcast about what happens when opposites attract...and breed.")
• Let Go and Be (A blog and podcast about spirituality and our place in the universe.)
• The Magic Sock (now defunct Magic: The Gathering podcast, but there are more than 200 episodes available from Nov. 2005 - Nov. 2009).

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoy my work!

Woven Light: David Livewell

Every once in a while I stumble upon a work that captures the essence of art in a quiet and pure form. I purchased a copy of David Livewell's "Woven Light" and was amazed at the photography and the beauty of its poems. Livewell's book takes the reader on a journey through Andrew Wyeth’s historic Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, revealing the "private symbolism that captivated the artist his entire life."

As a lover of art, I was aware of Wyeth's prominence as an artist, but I had never had the opportunity to explore the meaning behind his works in more detail. One of Wyeth's famous paintings, Christina's World, is stark and jarring. A young woman lies in a field, positioned in an odd manner. There is a story to be told in her movements, but the viewer takes in the view, wanting to know more.

In "Woven Light," Livewell, painstakingly captures, through his own photography, the essence of Wyeth's paintings, showing the scenic landscape of Chadds Ford and then interpreting that beauty through poetry. The result is a beauty to behold. Quiet, yet powerful Livewell delves into Wyeth's secret world, transforming the ordinary world we know into one full of potential and grace. A great companion piece for any Andrew Wyeth enthusiast, I would also recommend the unfamiliar to gander down the pages of this book and travel through the imagination of the spacious and pure fields of Chadds Ford relieving a time of contemplation and peace.

A Review: Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist

My wife recently returned from a whirlwind trip to Thailand. She was only there for a little more than 3 days. The entire trip took 6 days (there and back again) and during the way there she read Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist." When we had a chance to settle down, she gave the book to me and asked me to read it. Really read it--like now. My wife impressed on me the importance of reading the book, but she backed off and gave me the book and said that she thought I would really enjoy it. As I was nearly finished C. S. Lewis' "The Screwtape Letters," I finished that book and shot "The Alchemist" right up to the top of my reading list. I think it took me maybe three days to finish it. The book is very short (only about 170 pages), but on the way to work last Thursday I read the introduction by Coelho and knew his book would be the type of work that would mean a lot to me.

All my life I have studied the hero's journey and in my Masters of Arts thesis I student the female protagonists in Alice Walker's and Margaret Atwood's novel, showing how they struggled to find self-actualization and healing through telling their stories. Storytelling and its power is a central theme throughout my life. No matter it's the crazy fantasy stories I wrote when I was in grade school or my novel "Dorthea's Song." The power of a story and its importance is central to me as it's the realization that we have power as people. Myth and the power of our individual stories can catapult us to the top of finding healing and peace in our lives. Without our stories and collectively sharing them, humanity would wither and die (or so I believe).

So it's no wonder that I picked up "The Alchemist" and read the fable with a bright heart and eager mind. All of us, who choose to be awake, want to better ourselves. We want to be happy, to love and be loved and we want to find a way to deal with heartache and pain so that we can live happily and be free. Sounds simple right? In "The Alchemist," the shepherd, Santiago, renounces his life after he's had a vision of a great treasure he will find in Egypt. The boy, as he's known throughout the novel, goes on his hero's journey to find his treasure. Along the way he encounters much adversity, but he chooses never to give up, fighting and listening to the Language of the World along the way. The poetical feel of the novel is light and airy, like a magical fable, in which we're sitting around the fire, hearing Coelho tell us a story to pass the time. Whether we want to listen to the story, is up to us. At its core, the book is about each person struggling to find your own Personal Legend so that we can break on through to find our treasure and then realize that our inner self (our soul) is actually one with the Soul of the World.

Each of us has a path to walk in life and how often do we give up on our dreams because we have been told that it's impossible, that we're afraid that those who love us will be hurt if we abandon them, the fear of defeat and falling is too much for us and, finally (and most importantly) we self-sabotage our own attainment of our dreams because we're afraid of success. What would we do if we actually succeeded? Better to stay back and not reach our goal.

If you're looking for an uplifting read that will cause you to question the path you're taking in life and find some hope in the world, then read this book. My wife was right: It was good that I put everything aside and read it as quickly as I did. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and with the road I have been on, it's "an omen" for me that I am not alone. There are many voices in the world and mine is one of them. I am struggling on my journey to become the hero within (as sappy as that sounds in our jaded and modern world), but maybe it's good to believe in becoming a hero and in quests for we will blossom along the way.

Promethea: Alan Moore's Work of Wonder

I wanted to treat myself this morning and to write about whatever I wanted. I woke up feeling somewhat refreshed as I awoke at 4:30 am but was able to go back to sleep to 5:30 am as my daughter woke up crying for me. Still 6 1/2 hours of good sleep does the body, mind and soul wonders. Chronic lack of sleep and me, well, we don't mix well. Anyone who knows me well has seen how I don't function very well. It's embarrassing to be weak like that, but sometimes you don't have much choice as it's not physically possible to get more sleep. What's the hardest thing is to be moving about the world, like a zombie, trying to function and able to do so, but making good judgments is difficult. Yet a good night of sleep can do wonders for me.

I did get to sleep early and I gave myself the freedom to write about whatever I wanted today and Alan Moore's "Promethea" comic books came to mind. I think partly because of the ebb and flow nature of Moore's work--my unconscious mind had been flowing in and out of dreams all night long. Strange, odd dreams, but ones that make sense to me as I move along on my journey.

Last year a good friend had been reading Promethea and she kept telling me how much I would like it. Earlier this year, I was able to borrow the graphic novels from a mutual friend and delved into the crazy and wonderful mind of Alan Moore. Last year I read "Watchmen" for the first time and, although I did find it interesting, I thought the ending a out there. Seemed out of left field for me, but I will give Moore credit for trying to tie the storyline up in a unique way. Having somewhat liked "Watchmen," I didn't think it would hurt to read "Promethea." And I'm glad I did.

I have made a conscious effort to read, listen and watch books/music/films that are atypical to my usual taste as a means to broaden my experience and to also help with my creativity. I had thought that I would enjoy reading "Promethea" because my Masters of Arts English Literature thesis was entitled "Memory and the Quest for Self: A Jungian Reading of Alice Walker and Margaret Atwood." There are a lot of similarities in the psychological aspects of "Promethea" and my thesis as both Moore and I tried, as men, to get to the core of a woman's individuation process. How a man could understand a woman's path toward self-actualization is about as clear as a goat can understand what it's like to be grass, well, not that bad, but I think you see my point here in that I claim to be no expert.

As a man, I wanted to study and explore through two literary authors their protagonists' journey to self-actualization and healing. From the beginning of time, we humans have had to struggle against adversity. We are damaged, banged up, beaten and abused. Yet we survive, no thrive, and move on to live productive lives. How is that? Humans have committed the most insane atrocities against each other, but we still, slowly, move forward.

Alan Moore's "Promethea" is a work of beauty as he tells the "story of Sophie Bangs, a college student from an alternate futuristic New York City in 1999, who embodies the powerful entity known as Promethea whose task it is to bring the Apocalypse." Along the way, Sophie explores many religious and spiritual traditions as she begins to understand who she is and can be as Promethea--her alter-ego superhero form. To say that "Promethea" is a work that goes beyond the normal comic book storylines is a bit of an understatement, and why I enjoyed it so much. There are no definite answers in the book, but there is a journey of self-discovery that is painted in broad, colorful, alternating art styles. The artwork alone is worth the price of admission as each section of the journey through the planes that Sophie/Promethea travel is represented by a different art style. And from talking to women about the story, they've told me that Moore does nicely capture a woman's inner thoughts and emotions on the page.

This comic book series is not for everyone. If you're a regular comic book fan (which I am not), you might not like this series because it's not so much a story about one bad guy versus good guys, but the journey is the point. It really is. If you're not into comic books, but enjoy reading something out of the ordinary and are open to the graphic novel form, then go run out and by this. I suspect that 98% of people out there won't have any desire or clue to read this and that's a shame because the stigma of a comic book series needs to be erased and put aside. Just as millions of adults are shaking their heads in wonderful surprise that they enjoyed "Harry Potter" and the "Twilight" series, it would not be much of a leap for a lover of those works to pick up "Promethea." Yes, it's different as there aren't many words, but it's well worth the journey. It's about the path we're on and the present--not the destination.

About Me

Ron Vitale was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Influenced by the likes of Tolkien, Asimov, and the British Sci-fi television series "Doctor Who," he began writing for his own enjoyment at an early age, creating short fiction from his early Dungeons & Dragons role-playing sessions.

During his early 20s, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and French and then went on to obtain his Master of Arts in English, writing his thesis on a Jungian interpretation of Alice Walker and Margaret Atwood. After graduation, Ron entered the world of medical publishing, utilizing his editing and technological skills.

In 1999, his role-playing article, "Fires in the Sky" was published in Wizards of the Coast's Dragonlance: Legends of the Lance newsletter and his fantasy story "Such Sinners We Are" appeared in the Winter 2000 issue of Welcome to Nod.

More recently, his fantasy story "Ghost Trails" was published on Ultraverse and his science fiction story "Toynbee's Gate" placed 5th out of 143 stories in the 2004 SFWoE contest (Science Fiction Writers of Earth contest) while his Magic: The Gathering articles have appeared on StarCityGames.com, Brainburst.com, Grimmoire.com, and MTGOntario.

In 2006, several of his Magic The Gathering articles appeared in Beckett Magic: The Gathering magazine and in Inquest Gamer.  He also wrote six web articles for Wizards of the Coast's Dreamblade miniatures game and has had over a half dozen "how to" writing articles published in the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America's Bulletin.

In October 2007, Ron published his short story collection "The Jovian Gate Chronicles" on Lulu.com that is also available on Podiobooks.com. "The Jovian Gate Chronicles" is a collection of four science fiction short stories that answers the question: What happens when humans cross paths with intelligent aliens who claim to be prophets from God?

In the fall of 2008, he released his fantasy novel "Dorothea's Song" as an audiobook on Podiobooks and for sale on Lulu.com. Ron is keeping himself busy by producing The Podd Couple Podcast with his wife ("What happens when opposites attract and . . . breed"), the Let Go and Be podcast about spirituality and religion, and on learning how to be a good father to his kids all while working on his next novel. Learn more by following me on Twitter @ronvitale.