Book Jacket

 

rank 1780
word count 26733
date submitted 13.09.2009
date updated 05.02.2012
genres: Non-fiction, Biography, Harper True...
classification: adult
complete

The Inevitability of What Is

l. lorene watts

Observations at the intersection of chaos and serendipity.

 

One mysterious universe. A brain on the run. An ambiguous life populated by an ambivalent soul. Consciousness streams while a crazy reality is pondered, and hidden truths come gushing forward. You're invited to a peep show, of sorts. How one makes it from here to there, and everywhere. Buckle your seatbelt; it's a ride through my universe, and it's not always prettified for your pleasure. The truth stings, my little darlings, but we all feel better in the end.

 
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tags

1940s, 1970s, 1980s, abandonment, abuse, adult humor, army veteran, auto-biography, cherokee, cooking, dark comedy, dating, daughter, disturbing, doct...

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139 comments

 

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Always bright wrote 105 days ago

Wow that this is one fu...up lady. None the less I kept on reading. Well done I rated this book highly for its courage and honesty. If you get a chance would love for you to take a look at Illusions of Comfort (somewhat dark and sad too)
Always J.

deathcabkid wrote 283 days ago

I've been reading a little bit of this delightfully irreverent biography every night, and with every sentence I'm being pulled deeper into your fascinating world and life. I love your humour and the diction is excellent. You're a very talented writer and it shows in every sentence. The characters are hilarious and funny. What an asshole, that ex of yours! Can't wait to read more, and I feel it'll be difficult to ever remove this one off my bookshelf!

s stocker wrote 291 days ago

Going on Chapter five and still loving it. I have nothing to say critically, as I love your style and images. Really enjoying your humor and descriptions of self-deprecation. Very funny stuff!

Susan

s stocker wrote 292 days ago

I just started reading this and I love it. I put it on my bookshelf and will continue the read and will give my comments.

Susan Stocker
Kissing Your Elbow

deathcabkid wrote 295 days ago

Wow. The writing is so poignant, provocative, and original. I love how the writing jumps around a bit. Inconsistency can definitely be fun and keep the reader guessing. You also do a good job of expressing your feelings merely through stating facts and adding a little wit to it, all without giving away too much of your feelings (which I'm assuming are saved for later) and the plot. Happily backed and rated 6 stars! Hope to finish it soon.

Ryan Holden
HOMOCIDAL

deathcabkid wrote 313 days ago

I love this so much, and I already have a print out of the first chapter. Would you mind emailing your entire book to me so I can format it for my Kindle? :D If not, I understand. Thanks!

Ryan Holden (ryanholdenn@gmail.com)
HOMOCIDAL

onepercussive wrote 423 days ago

I'm hooked.....

onepercussive wrote 423 days ago

I like knowing and not knowing where I'm going; therefore, I'm happy at this moment. I can feel my southern up-bringing emanating and oozing at times, which is comforting and queasy. Where were we, oh yes, nowhere. Ummm I like your rhythm, but I think you could improve it with some punctuation thingies in the right place.

In the next few weeks I will be posting over 10,000 words that will help to explain the patterns of anomalies I've witnessed as to why the world is the way it is according to my local perspective. You will be on my shelf, as long as, I don't know where we're going.

onepercussive wrote 423 days ago

I like knowing and not knowing where I'm going; therefore, I'm happy at this moment. I can feel my southern up-bringing emanating and oozing at times, which is comforting and queazy. Where were we, oh yes, nowhere. Ummm I like your rhythm, but I think you could improve it with some punctuation thingies in the right place.

In the next few weeks I will be posting over 10,000 words that will help to explain the patterns of anomalies I've witnessed as to why the world is the way it is according to my local perspective. You will be on my shelf, as long as, I don't know where we're going.

SusieGulick wrote 465 days ago

How totally wonderful you are, Lisa!! :) Thank you so very much for again backing my memoirs/testimony book. :) May God richly bless you. :) Love, Susie :) p.s. I have gold ******-rated both of your books :) - hope you've ****** 'd mine, too. Every ****** -ing & backing more than 24 hours moves our books up authonomy's lists. :) I want to ask you if you could please keep my book on your bookshelf because, I'm #1 on the editor's desk & I don't want to lose traction & to remain in the top 5 to be chosen February 28. :) Please read my profile page: I had a mini-stroke Nov. 10 with slurred speech for an hour & numbness of tongue still & over 24 smaller ones where I couldn't speak since & I"d sure like to cross the finish line of the editor's desk after almost 1 year of trying on authonomy. :) Thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me :) - I have lost 3 sisters to strokes & my last sister, Mary had 2 heart attacks this past year.

Eunice Attwood wrote 588 days ago

A gritty, edgy read, with a good strong voice. Great books evolve from such experiences, and I have certainly read some mind blowing bios on this site. Yours is right up there with them. Backed with all my heart. Eunice - THe Temple Dancer.

lavery51 wrote 598 days ago

hey LL , Just a normal all American childhood?I was intrigued by your journey, to find out about "love God the world and your place in it." A journey of discovery is always worth the effort. I haven't had time to read enough to discover what you found but I will. Good start, backed, IF you have time, please take a look at my book You Turn, thanks ,Lynne

lavery51 wrote 598 days ago

Hi L.L. I lived next door to a foster couple and was privy to the stories of the kids that came and went. It broke my heart. Good for you that you are giving a voice to these kids. Lynne ps please take a look at You-Turn if you can, thanks

PATRICK BARRETT wrote 618 days ago

This is like rummaging through someone's attic and opening box after box of suprises. The result is fascinating and very hard to put down, well done. Paula Barrett (Cuthbert-how mean is my valley)

Becca wrote 618 days ago

Love the Ellen Glasgow quote!

Very good voice and a bit nutty in a fun, intriguing way. The start with the second person kind of threw me off. Were those meant to be thoughts the you have toward yourself? I like that you manage to pull of this story without sounding whiny, too. Very good! And I love the Title too, not that titles are everything, but this is one I would have picked up in the story and the reading is definitely interesting!

xBeccaX
The Forever Girl

Natalie Jones wrote 623 days ago

Love the sarcasm. At least I hope some of your passages were meant to be sarcastic (LOL). I really like your voice in the couple of chapters I read and the probing questions you threw out. Very nicely done. Backed this a few days ago. Sorry, for the late comment.

Good Luck
Nataie

John Warren-Anderson wrote 623 days ago

Well paced, gets right into the story and maintains the focus. You have a good fresh style, and from the syopsis I gather it's going to be a stormy ride. Well done.

Eunice Attwood wrote 626 days ago

Very fast paced. Your use of words and imagery is quite unique. Sometimes it felt almost frantic, but I think that made it all the more exciting. I love delving into the mind to see what makes it tick, and you certainly took me on an interesting journey. Backed. Eunice - The Temple Dancer.

andrew skaife wrote 627 days ago

A real rush of your thought processes to begin with and then a foreshortening of the breathlessness to allow some of the musings to settle in. Something to turn the mind of the reader onto those introspective challenges that face only those with the willingess to face themselves.

BACKED

lulazaki wrote 627 days ago

creations that come from peoples heads and of course the immense talent of those like yourself to animate such colorful characters. I truly wish I had half your talent.

My goodness, what a lovely thing to say! I'll let you all in on my little secret... my writing is a product of not thinking about it too hard. I just write what I think, swear words, vernacular, digressions and metaphors included. I have never taken creative writing, but I suspect this might be the key... just let it flow, don't try to structure it too much, make other passes later for refinement. Use the thesaurus. :-) Well, that works for the stream-of-consciousness memoir anyway!

name falied moderation wrote 628 days ago

Dear L L

I loved your short and long pitch both really sell your book which they are meant too so CONGRATS, and love the way you write. Your ability with words to craft an orginal read is amazing. the characters have decided to take up permanent residence but i will insist they leave soom to go home. ha! I have to wonder on this site at the
creations that come from peoples heads and of course the immense talent of those like yourself to animate
such colorful characters. I truly wish I had half your talent.

BACKED BY ME FOR SURE.
Please take a moment to look, COMMENT which is important to me, and BACK my book. if not that is OK
also

The VERY best of luck to you

Denise
The Letter

lulazaki wrote 628 days ago

May I suggest you just give a hint of the Central Conflict and then carry on as you so well do (there must be a Central Conflict, mustn’t there?).

Thanks for this comment, very constructive! I've been thinking about it, as I have also struggled with my book's 'lack of plot'. I guess what I would say is that it's about my mind's journey, and the conflict is my understanding and acceptance of my life's events, as well as the ambiguity associated with them. I am neither all good, nor all bad, nor are the characters in my (true) story. Freeing myself from pathos and angst, recognizing both tragedy and beauty - these are my conflicts. Curious if other readers think I should be more explicit.

SusieGulick wrote 628 days ago

You are totally fantastic, Lula! :) How can I ever thank you enough for backing my 2 memoir books? :) I am on cloud nine. :) God bless you. :) Love, Susie :)

SusieGulick wrote 628 days ago

Dear Lula, I got so excited when I saw that you had backed my memoir book, "He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not." I really appreciate it. :) I was glad that I could back your 2 books. :) Could you please back my other memoir book, "Tell Me True Love Stories?" That would really make my day :) - I would be estatic. :) Love, Susie :)

Adelina Geisler wrote 628 days ago

YOU CAN'T TAKE THE SKY FROM ME
Brilliant title and pitch. Your prose style is good and there are many passages which are excellent. But I do wonder if it should be cut and shuffled around to make a more cohesive read. It all feels a bit random at the moment (though I haven't read on from Ch 1) but it is enjoyable to read and it's got such potential. Backed with enthusiasm.
I'd be really grateful if you could do a swap read.
Adelina
A Distant Family

A.P. Constantin wrote 633 days ago

There is something in this rapid-fire stream-of-consciousness that will delight the hardy souls willing to persevere through the first few paragraphs, until one gets the hang of the rhythm (we will worry later about catching our breath!). I kept reading for the originality of the style but I suspect a lot of other readers might be less willing to persevere without knowing exactly what this book is about. “My life, of course!” is your answer but, see, these people want to know what it is in your life that makes it worth the surfing over wave after wave of digression. May I suggest you just give a hint of the Central Conflict and then carry on as you so well do (there must be a Central Conflict, mustn’t there?).

Backed with great pleasure

A.P. Constantin
The Crystal Butterfly Club

P.S. I totally agree about Monsanto. The right technology in the hands of the wrong people (highway robbers!)

Elizabeth Wolfe wrote 636 days ago

Dear LL,
Your writing has an existential bleakness that defined the beat generation. I find it very attractive. I still don't like the use of the "n" word no matter what. You have a scifi bent that I like. I used to search through SETI too, followed Carl Sagan - have you seen the movie based on his book Contact ? If you have a chance, you might want to read my chapter 21 Moon Landing. Overall, very good writing!

BACKED
Elizabeth Wolfe (MEMORIES OF GLORY)

lamiel wrote 637 days ago

This is a hypnotic read. A style that grabs one by the collar and says, "Listen." This is a scattered monologue of vignettes that are colorful,witty,sometimes sarcastic ... always heart-felt.

Backed because I like.........it.
Miguel
Absentee Bidder

paperbat wrote 637 days ago

Quite a tough read [ch 1], but then flicked to last chapter for the feel-good-factor. Well written. BACKED.
I would appreciate any thoughts on my childrens' book ; paperbat adventures.
Jerry [paperbat]

Sly80 wrote 637 days ago

What a strange place your mind is, LL. As fascinating as the theoretical physics that it mulls over, but not always as rigorously formulated and tested. Imagination has to have its place too. You don't need a shrink to tell you that your grandfather would have benefited from anger management (neat concept: 'hated indiscriminately'). Mother and step-father seemed less than perfect too. BTW love the Dorothy Parker quote. 'I digress. Get used to it', LOL me too. 'I would have been a Ritalin kid', can't disagree there. Then a brief diversion to your real father - married six times - not a good bet then. On to food (and parrots) and an overweight mother, 'We don't have any chairs big enough'. She wasn't all bad by any means, 'She can too be Captain!'

You'll think it daft, but much of this sounds exotic to me, though I've been over there and learnt [learned] what swamp coolers are, watched quilting, seen a soda fountain. Even the notion of trailer parks has a tinge of romance. Added to this is your extraordinary combination of ideas and language: 'walked around, gums ablaze', 'legs that wouldn't quit', 'a strangely pleasing visual cacophony', 'a neon smile', 'I should be pretty much set by 2030 or so', 'Riddance never knew it so good'. The overall effect is a roller-coaster of eye-opening events, massive sympathy, entertainment and plain laugh-out-loud amusement. A hard life, but never a boring one ... backed.

Possible bits: 'by [a?] dude in the 3rd grade'. 'rich man's [men's?] wives'.

Su Dan wrote 637 days ago

l like your book. l don't know why. the style and flow is so original, l think it's brilliant. l must read on- l have put you on my watchlist...
read SEASONS...

nsllee wrote 637 days ago

Hi LL

You put a fresh spin on the old story with your wry free-wheeling voice and it's refreshing how the characters are not shown as all bad or all good. Backed.

Nicole
Chosen

Barry Wenlock wrote 637 days ago

Hi LL,
Hard and unrelenting with a unusual, disjointed yet startling style which is difficult not to like. Gritty humour delivered as dry as Martini.
Congratulations.
Backed with best wishes, Barry
LITTLE KRISNA AND THE BIHAR BOYS

mvw888 wrote 638 days ago

An intriguing look into a unique mind. You definitely have a style of your own, with lots of attention to detail in terms of your memories. I found the style a bit choppy at the start and wondered if I'd ease into it, which I did begin to, in the second chapter. Just not sure I'd be inclined to read a whole book in this fractured style, unless it smooths out and expands a bit more. Also wasn't sure I liked the narrator much in the beginning, which would also be a problem in terms of following a full-length book. These are just my initial thoughts on the first two chapters. Certainly there are memorable moments, given in a deadpan voice that in itself is memorable. Well done.

---Mary
The Qualities of Wood

Walden Carrington wrote 639 days ago

LL,
I certainly wouldn't consider I Swear It Wasn't Me the same old story. It's unlike anything I've ever seen. I applaud the bravery of writers who pen true life accounts and often find them more fascinating than fiction. Backed with pleasure.

lionel25 wrote 639 days ago

LL, I read the first two chapters. Thanks for sharing your take on life. I have absolutely nothing to nitpick in those two sections. Good writing skill and good job overall.

Happy to back your work.

Joffrey (The Silver Spoon Effect)

Margaret Anthony wrote 642 days ago

Your writing has its own unique rythmn and it took me a minute or two to get into the pace of it. Then I was away reading madly and totally absorbed.
You are brutally hard on yourself at times, sometimes abrasive and always honest. What a remarkable writer you are with a humour that saves this story from being melancholy and a candour which is admirable.
I need, I must read on but meanwhile backed with respect. Margaret.

zan wrote 644 days ago

I Swear It Wasn't Me

LL Galarneau

Creative, unique style of writing. Awareness, understanding, acceptance that life can often amount to hurtful, often shocking, meaningless crap - the wit you apply to cauterize makes this unconventional to me - and so it stands out from among the more depressing ones I've read on the site. You report some "major drama" on these very readable pages - with a style of writing which makes the tragic seem comic. Perhaps it really is. Congrats on a piece well-written.

K.Z. Freeman wrote 644 days ago

Nice title, had to check it out and I'm glad I did, a good read.

Daniel Delacy wrote 646 days ago

Immediate immersion into a world that, I confess, is alien to me. Not an easy read but a quality one none the less.

writerwithacause wrote 649 days ago

This is a very unique way of writing. I have not seen any other books on the site written with such candor. I really enjoy your direct writing style. Backed. Lisa

scorselo wrote 655 days ago

Intense story and good earthy writing. Talkin' Blues

Best of luck with, I Swear It Wasn't Me
Happily Backed
Scorselo-the Communicator

Andrew Burans wrote 656 days ago

It took courage to write your story and open yourself to the world. Your straight forward writing approach clearly brings your messages across and is perfect for this genre. Backed.

Andrew Burans
The Reluctant Warrior: The Beginning

delhui wrote 657 days ago

Dear LL --

It took us a few paras to become used to the almost fragmented style in which you tell your story, but we were hooked that quickly too, so our main suggestion is to stop apologizing for the digressions. Those apologies are the only thing that stop the narrative, and for us, they seem unnecessary. We love the way you whirl the information like a centrifuge and all the important bits rise to the top as you take us along on your journey. There's a school of thought that writing should only go forward from the point of the story's beginning to its end -- no flashbacks, in other words -- but I Swear It Wasn't Me is proof that our whole lives are being lived in every moment, accessible as needed. Thank you for sharing your story with us, and for sharing it with candor and style. Backed with admiration and pleasure. -- Delhui, The Long Black Veil

andrew skaife wrote 661 days ago

I am backing this book on the strength of the read which I found impressive enough to back. The problem is that while my Talent spotter ranking sank below one hundred I have been inundated with requests to read. If you require detailed comments please message me otherwise I was proud to back you and will watch with interest. Cheers for now. BACKED.

CarolinaAl wrote 661 days ago

Your opening line hooked me. Your story is witty, gritty and inspirational. And it's crafted with imaginative writing that boils with energy. Backed.

lynn clayton wrote 661 days ago

It's as if you're talking and I could listen to you for hours. Your characters live, far more so than if you'd given them dialogue. 'Gums ablaze'- wonderful. Backed. Lynn

livid wrote 661 days ago

Hi. After six days on this site I am (unbelievably) still running to catch up with the people who have been kind enough to back me. Every time I log on I have thirty people to thank and review in return before I even get a chance to read some that I have picked myself from the book list. So, and I do not mean to be unhelpful, I am BACKING this on the read because I think it is every bit good enough to be in print (I think that is the criteria I should be using) but, although I have made written comments, I have no time to type up my thoughts. If you want them just message me and I promise to get to them ASAP. Otherwise, BACKED.

livid wrote 661 days ago

Hi. After six days on this site I am (unbelievably) still running to catch up with the people who have been kind enough to back me. Every time I log on I have thirty people to thank and review in return before I even get a chance to read some that I have picked myself from the book list. So, and I do not mean to be unhelpful, I am BACKING this on the read because I think it is every bit good enough to be in print (I think that is the criteria I should be using) but, although I have made written comments, I have no time to type up my thoughts. If you want them just message me and I promise to get to them ASAP. Otherwise, BACKED.

Elizabeth Wolfe wrote 684 days ago

A gigantic leap of humor and faith that the world can be a decent place despite the horrors the life can bring. I give you full credit for coming out alive, well, and witty. BACKED -Elizabeth Wolfe (Memories of Glory)

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