As many of my readers know, I am a veteran.  I served for twenty years in the United States Air Force.  I don’t make a big deal out of it.  I don’t have regular contact with other veterans.  I don’t belong to the American Legion or the VFW.  Yet recently…

I’ve said before that inspiration is where you find it.  Inspiration can even be found in adventures provided for a nearly four year old.  All you have to do is keep your senses open to the world around you. Two Fridays ago, five of us, including my granddaughter, Hannah, boarded…

Thanks to my friends at eFiction Magazine’s Book Marketing Group, I’ve transformed my long, unfocused product description into a more dynamic pitch for my eBook, Any Tomorrow: The Calling.  Advice from eFiction editor Doug Lance and group member Richard Sutton helped me rebuild my product description following some simple general…

[Note to the reader: As of post time Tropical Storm Emily is no more.  However, since I already had the post written I decided to go with it.] Depending where and when you are when you read this, Tropical Storm Emily may or may not be a big deal.  If…

He cried in a whisper at some image, at some vision–he cried out twice, a cry that was no more than a breath: `The horror! The horror!’  (Joseph Conrad, The Heart of Darkness, via Link) My wife will not read my books or stories.  She says they are too dark. …

It’s hard to get feedback.  Relatives are prone to either sugar coat their opinions or say nothing, and most strangers won’t be bothered.  For most writers it’s difficult to establish a personal relationship, even virtual, with readers and make them comfortable enough to honestly express their opinions.  Authors of self-published…

Cool!  eFiction Magazine has included a story of mine, “Another Twenty-Five Minutes”, in its August edition.  It’s free to read on-line or download.  Consider getting a free subscription.  eFiction provides a platform for some very creative indie writers. Being included in eFiction is cool for a number of reasons.  The…

This summer has been difficult for me as a writer because, by necessity, I have had to be other focused.  As I have mentioned in several past posts, that whole work-family-sleep thing really gets in the way.  One would think that as you get older, as your children get married…

This past Friday I picked up a newlywed couple at Port Canaveral.  They had just returned from their honeymoon cruise.  The groom was the son of an old friend of ours and my wife let them park in our yard.  It was the safer and cheaper alternative to leaving the…

Yay!  O happy day!  The Oxford English Dictionary on-line (OED) is back as a free service.  I don’t know why they changed to a pay subscription only model, but it is once again free and that’s all that matters. Are you as excited as I am? Maybe Not? If you’re…