Novelist

Novelist
Daniel (Danny) Lance Wright, Author

Saturday, February 20, 2010

A Winner's Instinct

Earlier this week, a relatively warm afternoon somehow wedged itself between cold fronts. I enjoyed the simple pleasure of walking the hundred yards to my mailbox. Afterward, while making a beeline for the garbage can with a handful of credit card offers and other ways to spend money, I saw a roadrunner, but that’s not out of the ordinary since a pair of them live nearby and are neighbors year-round.


What brought me to a standstill was that the bird had a live long snake in its beak. It was obvious that the skinny serpent had no desire to be its lunch. And, it was clear that the roadrunner did not care for its proximity to me. It ran, or so it tried. It was, at first, very comical.

The snake encircled the bird’s legs and tripped it. The roadrunner had gained enough momentum that it slid on its beak before recouping balance and taking off again. This repeated several times in quick succession. That poor roadrunner floundered but refused to release its prey even as it approached a barbed wire fence with a dense stand of dried weeds along it. It appeared impassable.

Well, dear chaparral, it would seem you’ve met your match and might consider shorter snakes in the future, I thought.

The bird suddenly found footing, stood and took wing—snake still clutched and dangling like the tail of a kite. It was a genuine spectacle of nature.

As it disappeared behind a cedar tree to enjoy its meal, my smile faded away as I thought on what I had just witnessed. That bird refused to give. The snake refused to give up. But, in the end, there could be only one winner.

That’s life. That’s what we, as humans, do everyday—try to progress positives in measurable ways, defeating whatever downsides stand in our way.

So, tomorrow when you’re eating breakfast thinking about your day, ask yourself: Today, will I be the roadrunner or will I be the snake?


Daniel (Danny) Lance Wright
Author of
"Paradise Flawed"/Dream Books LLC/2009
"Six Years' Worth"/Father's Press/2007
"The Last Radiant Heart"/Virtual Tales/Spring 2010
"Anne Bonny, Where Are You?"/Rogue Phoenix Press/May 2010

Friday, February 12, 2010

Brain Power

Below is the foreword to my new novel, The Last Radiant Heart, set to release in late spring or early summer of 2010. I thought it would be fun to post it and invite comments. Even if you choose not to leave your thoughts on it, I hope you enjoy the read. –Daniel Lance Wright


Whether beliefs are rooted in creationism, evolution, or any other discipline, there is a point everyone will likely agree on: The human mind functions at a mere fraction of potential.

Debate on the subject creates more questions than answers. Although theories are bandied about, nothing has ever been proven. It remains a debatable and interesting topic of conversation.

If two people can agree that the human mind is only using a miniscule portion of that potential then the question becomes: Is there a story out there—a person—that could provide evidence of a brain fully developed? If so, what would it mean? What would that person be capable of?

Theoretically, such a person would set the scientific and theological communities on their ears. Such a discovery might require an overhaul of thinking that has been around for thousands of years. Since beliefs tend to harden with time, changing that thinking might require a large hammer of truth.

Let’s explore a possibility: What if a person existed that had full use of every square centimeter of brain matter, not just part of it? Furthermore, what if full use of that gray matter did not constitute an increased ability to think reason or control body parts—or any other function considered primary?

The result could be a projection of power that changes this person’s personal universe. In other words, allowing him to physically move from one time to the next, one place to the next, or even one dimension to the next.

Could there be truth in such a story? The popular answer would have to be no. But let’s assume the unpopular answer is correct.

Thanks to near-infinite genetic variations, we are amazing creatures, and amazingly different. Some are capable of tremendous feats of ingenuity while others are tragically challenged to perform the simplest tasks.

What if a scale should exist to measure absolute mind capacity? The difference between the near-vegetative human being and the person with the highest intelligence quotient on the planet is indistinguishable on this scale, both near the bottom. The ability to think and reason is common to both. Their assigned position on the scale already indicates how little difference there is between them. Furthermore, we are assuming a scale to measure absolute mind capacity.

What if thinking and reasoning were only a tiny part of the brain’s planned purpose? What if incremental increases in mental capacity create abilities that compounded with each click of the pointer on our assumed scale?

These extraordinary gifts wouldn’t be considered normal or even believable by today’s standards. Such gifts would be labeled queer aberrations of the human condition. Religions of the world would take it to extremes. Some would assign Christ-like status. Others would call it Satan’s work. But everyone would disbelieve until they witnessed it for themselves. It would test all belief boundaries. Therefore, it makes sense that someone possessing such abilities might desire to keep them secret.

Let’s consider these for example: telepathy, telekinesis, astral projection, time travel, inter-dimensional travels and a myriad of others, real or imagined. Small, yet passionate, groups around the world believe in such areas of study. A few openly profess to practice these fringe concepts.

Somewhere, in a lonely position high up on this mind-measuring scale is a nonbeliever. He’s a man of average intelligence—a man that confines such topics to party conversations. But, what he has believed all his life is destined to become irrelevant.

Daniel (Danny) Lance Wright
Author of
"Paradise Flawed"/Dream Books LLC/2009
"Six Years' Worth"/Father's Press/2007
"The Last Radiant Heart"/Virtual Tales/Spring 2010
"Anne Bonny, Where Are You?"/Rogue Phoenix Press/May 2010