My wife and I met twenty-five years ago, as of this December. She was literally the teacher, and I the student when I took a week-long UNIX system administration course just before the Christmas holiday in 1988, mostly because my co-worker friend Mark signed up, but decided at the very last minute that he didn't want to attend. I was looking for someplace to hide so my boss couldn't send me to another yet customer site. The single "fly-and-fix" debugging expert in my group,I'd been on the road for almost eight straight months, six of which I spent living in Hong Kong. I just wanted to stay close to home, so I took Mark's place, even though I had no interest or need to take the class. It seemed that Lisa and I were destined to meet, fall in love, and get married. Both of us were "on the rebound" as they say...Lisa came as a package deal from her divorce that hadn't even been finalized, with an adorable three-year-old daughter who is now the mother of our three grandchildren, and I remained a little gun-shy after a failed international romance. Needless to say, we were advised to slow things down after I announced our wedding date had moved forward from September to May, less than six months after we first met. We didn't listen. If I had any lingering personal doubts about my bride-to-be, it was that she seemed too good to be true. However, I wasn't completely sure that I trusted my own judgment. Perhaps a few of the naysayers advising unnecessary caution had some subtle influence on my thinking at the time, or perhaps it was fact I'd been burned … [Read more...]
The Movie Test
Arguing with atheists
My friend Fred described a weak atheist as a person who simply doesn't believe any sort of God exists, while a strong atheist wants to get in your face and tell you why you're stupid for believing in an invisible man in the sky, or some such nonsense. I liked those helpful definitions, and knowing the distinction. You might believe that, having written a book titled Counterargument for God, I relish every opportunity I get to argue with every atheist who I might happen to encounter. But you would be wrong. In fact, you couldn't be more wrong, and always remember that there are gradations of wrong. There's simply no reason to argue with a weak atheist. He or she isn't spoiling for a fight, and it would be rude to goad them into one by insulting them or calling them names. I have no interest in flaunting my faith, and it most certainly isn't my place to judge somebody else and tell them they're going to Hell for not believing exactly as I do. Isn't that fun to hear! For that reason among others, I'm still quite reluctant to invite strangers to church because I don't want weak atheists to feel like I'm trying to shove my God down their throat. In my opinion, it requires the mutual interest of two people to maintain a dialogue, and my interests are far from limited to theological discussions. Now, if someone is interested in polite conversation about what I personally believe and why I wrote the book, I'm more than capable and happy to accommodate, if returning three times to the same radio show to be interviewed by the same atheist friend serves as … [Read more...]
The TV commercial for Secondhand Sight
There's a pretty good chance you won't see it anywhere else, so I thought I'd show you the television commercial for Secondhand Sight, a finalist for the 2013 Readers' Choice Award for Fiction/Horror. For a limited time, you can visit this website for a FREE copy, in exchange for a fair review of the book of Amazon. Love it or hate it, just give your honest opinion of my novel. That's all I can ask. So without further ado, here's the commercial on YouTube. … [Read more...]
Secondhand Sight: 2013 Readers’ Favorite finalist
Secondhand Sight, my second novel as "Rocky" Leonard, has been named one of six finalists in the Fiction/Horror category in the 2013 Readers' Favorite International Awards. This honor would not be possible without the efforts and skill of my editors, proof readers, copy editors, cover designers, and all those who helped me produce these three books that have been deemed worthy of finalist recognition. This year I'm blessed to have three books remaining in competition in three different categories, with Secondhand Sight joining Always a Next One and Counterargument for God! One Readers' Favorite reviewer wrote about this novel: The plot is deceptively simple because it is so ingenious. Dan’s descent into a manic paranoia is skillfully documented, and one feels for him in the mental confusion that accompanies his visions. The author also includes some interesting thoughts on the nature of dreams, hallucinations, psychometry (psychic revelations via touching objects), and the power of the mind. Murder mystery and paranormal fans will love this book. Last year I learned the hard way that a five-star review doesn't guarantee a novel will become a finalist. I know that I'm very fortunate for this opportunity. Coastal Empire never made it this far. … [Read more...]
Counterargument for God: 2013 Readers’ Favorite finalist
Truly, my cup overflows. My book Counterargument for God has been named one of six finalists for in the 2013 Readers' Favorite International Awards contest in the Non Fiction category Religion/Philosophy. One very kind reviewer said: As I review this book, I find myself wanting to quote the author. His presentation is tactful, eloquent and stated in a logical manner. John Leonard has extensively researched the scientific arguments he discusses in this book...The author states his own personal beliefs in a non-threatening logical manner. I find this book well-written and documented. It is very easy to highly recommend this book. On a somewhat related note, Dr. Robert Rose will be interviewing me on Wednesday, July 10th. This will be my third visit to "Rewiring Your Brain." The first two interviews took place earlier this year, on April 5th and then again on April 17th where I offered my "positive" counterargument for God using the best scientific evidence the current experts in their respective fields have given us. I was very pleased when Dr. Rose invited me back for a third hour, this time to discuss how Christianity affected my life. Dr. Rose is one of the most interesting and open-minded atheists I've met on my faith journey. It should be a very interesting conversation. Best of all, I've doubled my odds of earning that trip to Miami! … [Read more...]