Who is Seamus Winshell in LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS?



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One of my favorite characters of all time is in my new novel, Light Hidden by Darkness. His name is Seamus Winshell and to say that Seamus Winshell is a complicated character would be an understatement. As the author of Light Hidden by Darkness, I have to admit that more time and effort went into the creation of Seamus Winshell than any other character I have ever written about, including Chayton from Shadows on the Trail.

 If I had to describe an analogy for Seamus Winshell's personality, I would use a crystal prism.  If I aimed a beam of white light at the crystal prism, the prism would absorb the white light. When the  light exits the other side of the crystal prism, the white light has transformed into a variety of colors. Seamus Winshell's personality is much like this. Input from the world strikes Seamus Winshell and his response comes in a variety of colors, much like the colors in a rainbow. Except, in the case of Seamus, his response may not be beautiful or positive or even constructive. 

Highlighted in blue is dialogue from a scene in Light Hidden by Darkness. This particular scene gives one perspective from Seamus’s complex personality. In this scene, he is in one of his few  vulnerable and reasonable moods. Believe me, he is not often this vulnerable or reasonable. In this scene, Seamus is on an outing with a woman acquaintance, a woman named Gloria. See if you can determine anything about Seamus's personality from the exchange. 
        

Seamus walked out of the elevator and instantly looked up and saw the dark sky above. They were on the roof of the building, high enough above the city to touch the clouds. The lights of the city reflected off the clouds, making them glow iridescently in the night sky. Seamus looked up and watched the fast-moving clouds rolling past the roof of the building.

"Come here,” Gloria insisted.

Seamus walked towards Gloria and noticed that she was standing very close to the edge of the roof. Gloria peeked over the edge, balancing herself with her arms as the light evening breeze gently pushed her. She gave Seamus a smile.

“Be careful, Gloria!” Seamus warned. “There is no railing around the roof!”

“I’m always careful when I do this,” she announced.

Gloria slid her toes even further out near the edge of the roof. Seamus offered his hand to Gloria, but she just shook her head, refusing to accept it. Instead, she pushed her feet an inch or so further towards the edge of the roof.

“Back up, Gloria!” Seamus pleaded. “You are scaring me!”

“No!” Gloria refused. “Join me out here, it’s a thrill!”

“Not a chance in hell!”

“Are you scared?”

“I am absolutely petrified and proud of it.”

“Ha! Ha! Ha!” Gloria laughed. “You are afraid! Come join me.”

Gloria held out her hand to Seamus and he reached out, grabbing it. He pulled on Gloria’s arm, trying with all of his strength to pull her away from the ledge, but the more he pulled, the more Gloria fought back. Seamus dug in his heels and pulled hard on Gloria’s arm, but she just pulled harder. Seamus jerked at her arm, causing Gloria to lose her balance. Gloria rotated her free arm and body to regain her balance and to keep from plummeting over the side of the building.

“Stop pulling on me or I will jump and take you with me!” Gloria proclaimed.

“Okay! Okay!” Seamus replied and then stopped pulling on her arm. Seamus let Gloria pull him closer to the edge of the roof.

“Scared?” Gloria asked.

“Terrified is a better word!” Seamus exclaimed.

Seamus looked down and saw that the toe of Gloria’s high heel extended out past the lip of the roof. Gloria leaned out over the ledge and peered down at the street below.

“Stop!” Seamus shouted.

“I won’t stop until you look down” Gloria replied, holding tightly onto Seamus’s hand. “If I fall, you fall.”

Seamus was too petrified to look down. He hated heights. Still grasping Gloria’s hand, he knelt down on his knees and grabbed the edge of the roof with his free hand. Gloria let go of his other hand and Seamus crawled away on all fours, away from the edge of the building. When he was safely away from the edge, he looked at Gloria and saw her teetering back and forth, first leaning out over the ledge and then pulling herself back. A wind gust of any kind would have taken her over the side of the building.

“I am not leaving here until you look down!” Gloria threatened.

Seamus slowly crawled back to the edge of the building, shaking like a leaf in a windstorm. Finally, he held his breath and peered over the lip of the building. Fear enveloped him when he saw the tiny street below. He crawled away from the edge of the building and laid on the roof, rolled up in a fetal position.

“There, I did it!” Seamus announced. “Now, get away from the edge!”

"Ha! Ha! Ha!” Gloria laughed. “You act like such a big tough guy, but you’re not!”

Gloria began hula dancing on the edge of the roof, swirling her hips wider and wider. Her body swayed back and forth. She picked up the pace and her body swung farther and farther, her high heels creaking under the strain of her movement.

“STOP IT!” Seamus screamed…

Without spoiling the book, let's just say this is not the typical mood of the cantankerous Seamus Winshell. Nuff said...



One question that readers ask me often is where I came up with a character Seamus Winshell? Was he someone I knew in the past? How did I create him? I usually reply by telling the questioner that Seamus Winshell is a composite character. His personality comes from a variety of sources and ties back to his various roles and responsibilities in life or in his 'book life'. Seamus Winshell is a father, husband, businessman and acquaintance. For each of these roles, his personality changes. The reader sees Seamus Winshell through the different colors flowing through his crystal prism. The reader sees a different Seamus Winshell for each separate role in his life. The reader gets to see Seamus Winshell's strengths and weaknesses from a bird's eye view.

Jack Nicholson in the movie As Good As It Gets. As
Melvin Udall, he carries several different personalities.  

In his role as a father, Seamus is one person while as a husband he is another person. As  a business executive, Seamus is an entirely different person. It might sound like Seamus has multiple personalities, but I don't think so. He is doing what we all do. He is utilizing  different parts of his personality for his different roles or situations. We all do this. Don’t you?

Bottom line, Seamus Winshell is a complicated fellow and as my main character, he has every right to be!



When I read books or watch movies or TV, I always like to see how an author, writer, or director portrays and develops certain characters. Are the characters single-faceted or complex? Is the character believable or are they like a sheet of cardboard, no depth and flimsy to the touch? I love complex characters, especially those found in books written by skilled authors. A good author knows how to paint a word picture of the basic essence of a character while still allowing the reader the leeway to interpret the character’s behavior. The reader can then develop his or her own perspective of the character within the context of the story. How many debates have occurred when different readers have different interpretations of the same character? Personally, I love to unravel the mysteries of characters and find out whom they really are, what makes them tick, or more appropriately, what I think makes them tick.
     

In, Black Swan Natalie Portman played
one of the most bizarre characters
in any movie ever and she had
but two hours to portray the role.  

 In movies and TV series, much of the depth of the characters comes from the script and the actor/actress who plays the part. Since movies are only about two hours long; the actor, script, and director have a tough time giving the character any depth. When the movie is character driven more than story driven, the producers bring in the big guns such as Pacino and Streep.



Okay, I am beginning to meander all over the place. Let me get back to our protagonist, Seamus Winshell, my character. More than anything else, I wanted Seamus Winshell to seem real to readers. I wanted to demonstrate to readers that he had certain strengths and was successful in some aspects of his life. I also wanted Seamus to demonstrate that he was vulnerable and unsuccessful in other aspects of his life. To me, this is reality. Few people are successful at all aspects of their lives and more than a few people have tremendous challenges in their lives. Seamus Winshell, like most of us, had these challenges and Seamus Winshell, like most of us, had to decide how he would deal with these challenges. There was only one important difference between Seamus Winshell and you and I.



Well, I am not going to tell you what that difference is, you will

just have to read Light Hidden by Darkness to find out.        

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Light Hidden by Darkness by John Bradford Branney - Afterlife or Not?

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I have not done any scientific research and I do not have any polling data, but I would guess that most people in the world hope and believe that there is some sort of afterlife after our brief journey on Earth. Well, imagine my surprise when doing my research for my new book, Light Hidden by Darkness,  that I found that there was an entire religion, the Progressive Jews, that do not believe there is an afterlife. Now, we are not talking about some fringe group in North Dakota, Progressive Jews make up the largest segment of Jews in the United States of America. Finding this out was a big discovery for me. I expected to find that the atheists did not believe in the afterlife, but never thought that there would not be an organized religion that did not believe.

For Progressive Jews, this life right now, here on this Earth, is all there is. After they die, they are dust. Now, as the attached article explains, this gives Progressive Jews more motivation to get more out of this life since they do not believe there is any evidence of an afterlife. They are not holding out on the hope that there is a 'Better Place' after we are done here, like most Christians, Hindus and others believe. For Progressive Jews, it is no heaven, no hell, just a pine box and an eternity of sleep. I know I am probably oversimplifying their belief, but read the article and see what you think.

Personally, I am not so sure I like the idea that there is not an afterlife and that God and Lucifer are not competing for my soul. I would almost bet a quarter of a dollar that most people would not like that situation, either. Many people have a pretty rough time with their lives right now. They are doing everything possible to make ends just meet. For them, the dream of a better life in heaven drives their

very being, each and every action. They are living 'holy', but austere lives. Take that hope and dream away from them and...well...ouch.

Criminals might like the idea of no afterlife. One of the bigger consequences for crime is not only the prison time, but the 'burning in hell' element. If there is no afterlife, no heaven or hell to worry about, then criminals wouldn't have their day in court with the Almighty, only Judge Wapner. They would be getting away with murder or robbery without eternal consequences. After all, according to Progressive Jews, the criminal would be sleeping for eternity right next to the law abiding citizen. Now, that hurts.

This article is mind blowing, to say the least, at least for me. I hope Progressive Jews are not on to something. I am one counting on an afterlife. You will have to read Light Hidden by Darkness to see what I really think about afterlife. Oh, I forgot, Light Hidden by Darkness is not about the afterlife. Order the book and find out for yourself. Enjoy the article.


Progressive Jews and Afterlife

Purgatory and Light Hidden by Darkness - Only for Catholics?

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I was raised believing that Purgatory or Limbo exists. From my early Catholic education, priests and nuns pounded the concept into my still friable brain. I had assumed every religion believed in Purgatory or something similar until I started doing research for my new novel Light Hidden by Darkness.



Now that Light Hidden by Darkness is released I am realizing through my readers that Protestants and other religions really don't accommodate the concept of a 'tweener' place between here and Heaven or (and it's a big OR) or between here and Hell.



Here is an article that discusses that Protestants are starting to see the light or not seeing the light, I mean starting to believe in the concept of Purgatory.



Vewwwy interesting!



Check out the link above and the link below, you will be glad you did.
   
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Light Hidden by Darkness - Purgatory from One Catholic's Perspective

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A priest discusses Purgatory, afterlife, and reincarnation. An interesting read. Hope you enjoy.


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Light Hidden by Darkness - Purgatory According to Paulie Walnuts

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I think this is a great article that explains one man's opinion on the subject of Purgatory. None of us know for sure if there is a Purgatory, it is a matter of belief and faith. But, leave it to Soprano's Paulie Walnuts to succinctly define the laws of Purgatory. ;) Click the link and enjoy. Then click the above link and order Light Hidden by Darkness by John Bradford Branney. What do you have to lose? We are all going to Purgatory, anyway. ;) 

Purgatory and Paulie Walnuts

Light Hidden by Darkness AND Suicide, Salvation and Redemption

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As usual, my wife and I attended church last Sunday. The pastor actually had a very interesting homily, not that this is entirely unusual, but let's just say, it is not commonplace. The pastor started out by talking about all of the commandments, rules, regulations, and laws that we have to follow in our day-to-day lives and how God really only wants us to follow three basic rules. Now, don't ask me how that pastor knows that God only wants us to follow three basic rules, but I am sure the pastor has a closer communications link with God than most of us. These three basic rules, according to the pastor, were;

·         Love thy Self.

·         Love thy God.

·         Love thy Neighbor.

The pastor emphasized that with only these three rules to follow, our lives are much less complicated and if we follow these three simple rules, we cannot go wrong in the eyes of God. I liked the simplicity of this approach. The pastor then went on to explain all three of these rules in the context of the lives of the parishioners. I liked this approach as well since many homilies fail to directly connect to the parishioners' everyday lives. When the pastor discussed the rule ‘love thy self’ and how suicide was a mortal sin against God, it resonated with me, especially since I had just written a novel called LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS that included that very topic. LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS not only includes an example of suicide but then links it back to salvation and redemption in the eyes of God.

For purposes of my own clarity, let me define what I think salvation and redemption are since I struggle with understanding these complex concepts, or at least they appear complicated to me. Redemption is the price that we must pay to get back what is ours, but has been lost. Salvation refers to the act of God saving us, which includes His forgiving us for our sins. I do not remember where I found these definitions, but these are the definitions I hung my hat on when I wrote LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS. I remember when I did my research on salvation and redemption. I found literally dozens of internet hits just on the analysis of these two terms, so I cannot be the only person who struggles to grasp the concepts of salvation and redemption. Well, I digress…or maybe not, but let me continue.            

Kurt Cobain, forgivable act or not?

For those of you who have not read LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS, I am going to need to tread lightly as to not give away or spoil the novel. For those of you who have already read LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS, you know what I am talking about and understand the dilemma created in the book by suicide, salvation, and redemption. In LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS, there is a character who sins through the act of suicide. This character requires salvation from God so he can redeem himself from mortal sin. It is one of the more complex scenarios in LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS and once you read it, you will understand the Catch 22 for this particular character.

 I now return to the topic of ‘love thy self’ and finish connecting suicide to sin. When I did my research for LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS, I found that most religions believe that free-willed suicide is a sin, but that suicide is forgivable in the eyes of God under certain conditions. I am not sure where a person 'waits' when he or she dies after committing suicide since the only religion I found that believed in a ‘holding area’ for those people who could be redeemed and saved was the Catholic Church. Catholics call this 'holding area', Purgatory. It is a place where sinners await redemption from God, or is it to ‘await salvation from God’? See, I still have trouble with these two concepts. It gets even more confusing since the Catholic Church believes that suicide is a mortal sin, therefore it's their opinion, that suicide is unforgiveable in the eyes of God and therefore Purgatory would not be a destination.

I have gone to Wikipedia for a definition of both mortal and venial sin. I know Wikipedia is not the most reliable place to find definitions for things, but here is what someone writes and please forgive whomever posted this on Wikipedia’s for their poor sentence construction and grammar;

“Mortal wrongful acts marked by a serious violation of God's law. These sins are called "mortal" because they sever a person's link to God’s life-giving grace. Mortal sins are commonly contrasted to venial sins only weaken a person's relationship with God. All mortal sins can be forgiven through the sacrament of penance or perfect contrition. In Roman Catholicism, absolution, which is given during the sacrament of penance, is the ordinary way in which mortal and venial sins are pardoned and requires, at least, imperfect contrition. Perfect contrition on the other hand, is an extraordinary way in which a person can also regain access to God's life-giving grace, outside of the sacrament of penance, in certain cases.”     

Now, here is what the Catholic Education Resource Center’s response is to suicide. The link to their website is http://www.catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/the-sin-of-suicide.html      

“Therefore, objectively, suicide is a mortal sin. (Moreover, to help someone commit suicide is

Robin Williams, sinner or not? Please rest in peace!

also a mortal sin.) Here though we must remember that for a sin to be mortal and cost someone salvation, the objective action (in this case the taking of one's own life) must be grave or serious matter; the person must have an informed intellect (know that this is wrong); and the person must give full consent of the will (intend to commit this action). In the case of suicide, a person may not have given full consent of the will. Fear, force, ignorance, habit, passion, and psychological problems can impede the exercise of the will so that a person may not be fully responsible or even responsible at all for an action. Here again the Catechism states, "Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, or torture can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide" (#2282). This qualification does not make suicide a right action in any circumstance; however, it does make us realize that the person may not be totally culpable for the action because of various circumstances or personal conditions.”      

The Catholic Church calls suicide a mortal sin, but allows some flexibility for responsibility and forgiveness. Hmm...


My novel LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS opens up a different type of dialogue and thinking in regards to suicide, salvation, and redemption. Read LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS and see what I think and then tell me what you think.    

 

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Not in Kansas Anymore, Toto! LIGHT HIDDEN BY DARKNESS!

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       One of my most asked questions by the readers of my FIFTH novel Light Hidden by Darkness is “Where did this novel take place?” I have always responded to that question with a question of my own, “Where do you think Light Hidden by Darkness takes place?” Most readers have already decided where they think Light Hidden by Darkness takes place, but they still want to hear the 'supposedly right answer' from the author. Little do they know that this author does not have a 'right answer', he only has his answer.

       When I write a novel, I like to leave a certain amount of latitude in the story so that readers can interpret the story in their own way, 'between the details'. Based on the initial feedback from the readers of Light Hidden by Darkness by John Bradford Branney, I did a pretty good job of leaving several critical questions unanswered.      

Most of us have asked this question
once or twice.  

       Based on my personal beliefs, experience, biases, and psyche I know where I want Light Hidden by Darkness to take place, but that does not mean that readers have to agree with me. They could come up with a completely different answer and I hope they do.

       I would love to hear readers' interpretation of not only the story, but the venue in Light Hidden by Darkness. I believe that authors of fictional novels should install a certain amount of flexibility in their books. This makes the novel fun and entertaining for the reader. No one...or let's say very few readers want to read a novel where the author has painted conclusions in absolutely every corner of the book. This not only becomes monotonous, but it also strips away the potential imagination of readers, and after all, reading is all about using your imagination.

       How about you? Do you enjoy a five course novel all cooked by the author or do you prefer a five course novel with you, the reader, preparing two of the courses? 

       Following is an example of open interpretation of venue from Light Hidden by Darkness. In this scene, our protagonist called Mr. Bud is attempting to escape this odd city where he happened to find himself. Since his arrival in the city, he has met some pretty weird inhabitants and he is just about ready to meet another one. Here is how that first meeting went between Mr. Bud and this new stranger.       

Mr. Bud was by himself on a street as empty as a politician’s promise. There were no other people or




vehicles. No one was out walking and even though there were narrow paved streets, no one was driving. Mr. Bud stopped just to see if he could hear the usual sounds of a metropolitan area, but the city was as quiet as a closed coffin. Where are the people? He picked up his pace and walked even faster, more determined than ever to get out of this spooky city. He could not wait to return to a place where people walked up and down the street, cats and dogs played and prowled, and where cars were routinely stuck in traffic jams. After walking further, Mr. Bud was worried that he was lost. He was alone on the street and the city’s emptiness frightened him. He was contemplating turning around and heading back to his building when he saw a lone man standing on the sidewalk in front of him. As Mr. Bud cautiously approached the stranger, he studied the man’s mocha-colored face. The stranger smiled and Mr. Bud stopped just a few feet away from him.

“Hello, friend,” the stranger greeted Mr. Bud. “Are you taking a little stroll?”

Do YOU know the answer to this question? 

“Yes, I am,” Mr. Bud replied, “but, I might be lost.”

“Aren’t we all, sir?”

“Pardon?”

“Perhaps, I can help you, sir,” the stranger offered.

“Perhaps,” Mr. Bud replied. “I am not sure where I am heading.”

“That is not unusual,” the stranger declared. “Many of us are not sure where we are heading.”

“Are you lost as well?”

“No, but I have been lost many times,” the stranger recalled, “I somehow always find the right path.”

Mr. Bud looked at the tall stranger. If Mr. Bud was any closer, he would have had to crane his neck backwards just to look the stranger in the eyes. The stranger appeared as thin as wallpaper, but it was hard to tell because of the raincoat the stranger wore. He also had a funny little hat on his head. Mr. Bud had seen this style of hat somewhere before, but he could not remember where. The hat was brown-colored wool with small yellow squares in the fabric, giving it a tweed look. It had a yellow hatband for accent and the stranger wore the hat with the brim turned down over his ears.

The stranger noticed Mr. Bud staring at his hat and asked, “It is a nice one, isn’t it?”

“Pardon me?” Mr. Bud replied.

“My hat,” the stranger said, “I saw you admiring it.”

       Based on the above passage, do you understand what is going on? Who the stranger is? If this was a chance encounter or premeditated? Obviously, as the  book progresses, the gaps of understanding are filled, but hopefully not every gap. I have left much to the reader to fill in themselves. That is the only way to write a novel, in my opinion.

       Please enjoy Light Hidden by Darkness and please let me know what you think.  

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