Fresh Input for More Output
By the time I finally get a book published, I’m tired of writing. All writing (which unfortunately includes blog posts, hence my irregular updates here). No, after dumping 150,000+ words out of my head, what I want and need is input. So about a month ago I started devouring fresh books. At first it was light and easy stuff, such as trying to find a new middle grade series for my daughter to read. Tried The Beyonders, Fablehaven, and The Unwanteds, but wasn’t impressed with any of those. The only one we enjoyed was the Keeper of the Lost Cities series (or what’s out so far)....
Read MoreThe Slow Trail Home is now available!
I am thrilled to announce that The Slow Trail Home is (finally) available in Kindle and paperback formats! This particular set of stories now has a name: The War and the West. An Uncivilized Yankee begins the sequence, followed by Bittersweet Days and A Great Wide Nowhere. After Nowhere comes Farewell and Goodbye. The Slow Trail Home picks up ten years after the events in Farewell. From the back cover: “You come back, ’kay? Promise?” “I promise.” Katja Black was just five when she waved farewell to the Steeles as they left Fort Ellis. That was a decade ago. Kat has since matured into a...
Read MoreFarewell and Goodbye: A Novella
One of the most exciting–and terrifying–things an author gets to do is announce the arrival of a new work. So, I am pleased to announce (drum-roll, please!) that Farewell and Goodbye is now available for Kindle purchase! This is the “bridge” story that connects A Great Wide Nowhere with The Slow Trail Home (due out Winter 2015-16). A print edition is in the works as well. I will likely be selling that directly, instead of making it available through Amazon (mainly because it is more cost effective for everyone involved to do it that way). *** From the description:...
Read MoreResearch Rant
I pride myself on making my novels as factually accurate as possible (though sometimes I know the facts but end up switching them around a bit to better suit the story). Towards that end, I recently read Empire of Shadows, which covers the early exploration of Yellowstone (before it became a National Park). Not because I’m interested in Yellowstone, per se (though it is a fascinating place, and I’d love to go back there), but rather because a big chunk of the book dealt with the 2nd Cavalry and Fort Ellis, MT, in the 1870s. That’s why I was reading the book in the first...
Read MoreBooks I Was Forced to Read.
I was reading over at The Bookwyrm’s Hoard and she mentioned skipping this coming week’s Top Ten Tuesday, with the topic of Books I Was Forced to Read. My mind immediately began to make a list: I laughingly commented that I would do it for her and quickly wrote down my Top Ten. Then I started giving explanations before finally realizing I had basically written a full blog post in her comment section. So I moved it over here instead. Therefore, while it is not yet Tuesday, here is my list of the Top Ten Books I Was Forced to Read. Though maybe this should be more accurately...
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