I write southern historical fiction, local history, and I've written a devotional book. The two novels I'm writing are set in Virginia and the Carolinas in the 1760s. My weekly blog started out to follow my journey as a writer and a reader, but in 2025 it has been greatly expanded to include current events and politics in the United States as I see our democracy under attack from within. The political science major in me cannot sit idly by and remain silent.
I am excited to tell you that my new book, Traveling Through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories, will be released today as an e-book on Amazon! I thought the paperback would be released today, but there have been some bumps in the road over the last several days. I hope the paperback will be available in a few days.
Traveling Through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories, by Janet Morrison
In a week or two, look for it at your favorite independent bookstore, such as Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC. I will give shout-outs to other bookstores as they let me know they’ve ordered the book.
Here’s a list of the stories in Traveling Through History:
The Tailor’s Shears – A 1600s Scottish Story;
You Couldn’t Help But Like Bob – A Colonial Virginia Short Story;
To Run or Not to Run – George’s Story;
Making the Best of a Tragedy – Elizabeth Steele’s Story;
From Scotland to America – A 1762 Immigration Story;
Whom Can We Trust? – A Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence Short Story;
Go fight, Johnny! – A Story of a Battle of King’s Mountain Veteran;
A Letter from Sharpsburg – An American Civil War Letter;
Slip Sliding Away – A Southern Appalachian Short Story;
A Plott Hound Called Buddy – A Great Depression Era Southern Appalachian Short Story;
Secrets of a Foster Child – Dignity in a Simple Suitcase;
Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse – An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story; and
If This House Could Talk – Recollections of an Old Farmhouse.
Do some of these story titles pique your interest? I certainly hope they do!
Each story is followed by Author’s Notes that give you such information as background information, what inspired the story, and what’s truth and what’s fiction.
Traveling Through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories is available for your Kindle from Amazon.
Since I have published very little historical fiction, you probably haven’t read anything yet that was influenced or inspired by my genealogy; however, I hope to remedy that with the publication of a collection of my short stories in 2024.
I’ll give you an example. People often ask fiction writers where they get their ideas. The answers run the gamut, but I have drawn on research into my family history for at least one historical short story.
Many people like to brag about their Scottish ancestors living in castles. Folks, why would someone leave a castle in Scotland in the 1700s and come to America to start life over as a farmer? Just sayin.’
Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland (Photo credit: Nicholas Beel on Unsplash.com
I brag on most of my ancestors because they were farmers. They were farmers in Scotland and Ireland, and they bought land to farm when they got to America.
Photo Credit: Steven Weeks on Unsplash.com
After having grown up out in the country and worked a vegetable garden, I have immense respect and admiration for anyone who is able to support a family and make a living by farming – especially back in the days before tractors and other mass-produced farm equipment.
Today I’m blogging about one of my immigrant ancestors who inspired me to write a short story.
He left Ireland (we think) and came to Virginia in the early 1700s. He had obviously not lived in a castle. Doing research on him in coastal Virginia was an eye-opening adventure. By following all the government records I could find about him, I learned a great deal of early Virginia history.
His court records made the fact that in colonial Virginia there was no separation of church and state very real to me. When said ancestor found himself on the wrong side of the law, he was fined a certain poundage of tobacco (or “tobo”) to be paid to the Anglican church.
Photo Credit: Rusty Watson on Unsplash.com
I learned that tobacco was as good as money in colonial Virginia. My g-g-g-g-g-grandfather was on the wrong side of the law more than once, and he was always fined a certain number of pounds of tobacco.
Just so you’ll know, he wasn’t a terrible or dangerous person. He was fined for such offenses as playing cards on the Sabbath. You can read what I think will be an entertaining story about him in my (hopefully) upcoming book in 2024, Traveling through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories.
You might want to subscribe to my every-other-month e-Newsletter so you can learn more about the research I do. One thing I love about writing historical fiction is the research it requires.
Visit my website, https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com and click on the “Subscribe” button. You’ll immediately receive a free downloaded copy of my short story, “Slip Sliding Away” – a Southern historical short story set in the Appalachian Mountains in the 1870s.
Since my last blog post
Drumroll! Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina has accepted The Aunts in the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes on consignment for the next six months. Marie and I are excited about this new opportunity.
I appreciate the comments some of you let after reading my blog last Monday about book banning – specifically, Sold, by Patricia McCormick. I’m glad I introduced the book to some of you.
In last Monday’s blog, I indicated that I had submitted a request to the Cabarrus County Public Library for Sold to be ordered. One of the librarians thanked me for bringing it to her attention. It seems that the system used to have a copy. After it was lost, they failed to order a replacement copy. That is now being rectified.
See? Sometimes all you need to do is ask your local library system to consider adding a book to the collection. In a time when too many people do nothing but criticize “the government” and express their disrespect for government employees, I’m giving a shout-out for the Cabarrus County Public Library System and its dedicated employees
Until my next blog post
I wish my fellow Americans a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday this week. It’s good that we set aside a day every year to stop and think about all we have to be thankful for.
I hope you have a good book and time to read it. If there’s a book you wish you can check out of your local public library but it’s not in the system, request that it be purchased. Your request might be turned down due to monetary restraints or another reason, but you won’t know until you try.
Remember the people of Ukraine and other parts of the world where innocent citizens are suffering due to the actions of dictators and terrorists.
Do you like having Author’s Notes at the end of an historical novel so you’ll know what was true, what was fiction, and what actually happened but was adjusted time-wise or by location to fit the flow of the story?
The Author’s Notes are almost always found at the back of an historical novel. I used to wait and read the Author’s Notes after I had finished reading an historical novel, but now I always read those notes first. The notes not only give insight about the story, but also make clear which parts of the book are based on fact and which parts are fictional.
Do you read the Author’s Notes before or after you read an historical novel?
An example from my ghost story
I thought it only fitting to include Author’s Notes at the end of my short story: Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story. In case you haven’t purchased the short story yet, here is my Author’s Note from the ghost story:
“I’ve never believed in ghosts, but this story is based on the events my sister and her housemate experienced in their condominium in Greensboro, North Carolina in the 1980s. The upstairs commode would flush when no one was upstairs. Cans occasionally fell off the pantry shelf. A house guest was frightened by the sensation that someone had walked into her bedroom and stood at the foot of the bed. In fact, she thought this person had called her by name – Mary. She had no knowledge of the unexplained incidents the residents had experienced.
“Peter Francisco was an actual American soldier in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. At six-feet-six-inches tall and 260 pounds, he was much larger than the average American man during that era. He was credited with being ruthless with his broadsword. There is a visitors’ center on the grounds of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse; however, the rest of the story is fiction.”
After reading my Author’s Note, are you more interested or less interested in reading my ghost story?
Since my last blog post
I’ve edited three of the historical short stories I drafted a few months ago. I took inventory of my historical short stories. I want to write five more from scratch before I publish the collection. Something to look forward to in 2024!
I’ve done more research about the colonial settlement of Bethabara, North Carolina and read more resources about Shallowford on the Yadkin River. This is needed research for my first historical novel. Something else to look forward to!
Until my next blog post
If you haven’t subscribed to my newsletter through my website, https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com, please do so before you miss any more newsletters. The next one will go out around November 1. For subscribing, you’ll receive a free downloadable copy of “Slip Sliding Away: A Southern Historical Short Story,” so you can get a feel for my historical fiction writing. I have a “field trip” planned before October is over, but you’ll have to subscribe to my newsletter to hear about it.
Have you ordered my American Revolution e-ghost story? “Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story” is available from Amazon, along with my other books: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CH7JCP11/. October is the perfect time to read a ghost story!
Anytime is the perfect time to purchase a cookbook! Have you ordered your copy of The Aunts I the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes? Order one for yourself and one for each of your aunts at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJLKFDPR/. (It’s not too early to start your Christmas shopping.)
Make time for your friends and family.
Remember the people of Ukraine and Israel. Terrorism has no place in our world.
Although September gave me 30 days in which to read, I had more books on my list to read than time allowed. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the three novels and the one nonfiction book I managed to squeeze into my schedule.
You Can Run, by Karen Cleveland
You Can Run, by Karen Cleveland
Karen Cleveland is a former CIA analyst. She writes spy thrillers now. You Can Run, like the other books of hers I have read, Need to Know (see my April 2, 2018 blog post: More March 2018 Reading) and The New Neighbor (see my October 10, 2022 blog post: Spy Thriller, WWI Novel, Nonfiction, and Historical Mystery Read Last Month are real page turners. When you read one of her books in bed at night, don’t plan on getting any sleep. You’ll have to read “just one more chapter.”
In You Can Run, the protagonist, Jill, works for the CIA. She is being blackmailed. To save the life of her young son, she does something illegal. She spends the rest of the novel looking over her shoulder. Saying she spends the rest of the novel “looking over her shoulder” hardly does the plot justice. One bad thing after another happens, as she and her family and others get pulled deeper into the spiral and they can’t get out. No matter what you do, do not under any circumstances read the “Epilogue” until you have finished reading the entire book, including the last chapter. The “Epilogue” will ruin the story for you. I didn’t see it coming!
The Wind Knows My Name, by Isabel Allende
The Wind Knows My Name, by Isabel Allende
I usually don’t enjoy novels that flip back and forth between protagonists, and when I got to page 67 in the large print edition of The Wind Knows My Name, I was so invested in Samuel Adler that I was quite jolted when a turned the page and found myself reading about a new protagonist.
But… Isabel Allende is a masterful writer, and I was soon just as invested in the little girl who illegally crossed the Rio Grande and into the United States on her father’s tired back. The story of that little girl took me directly to the Mexican-US border of today and the desperation the “illegal aliens” experience in their home countries. How desperate must they be to risk their lives to try to get themselves – or even only their children – into the United States?
And how desperate did Samuel Adler’s mother feel when she put her young son on a train to get him away from the clutches of the Nazis and to relative safety in England?
In The Wind Knows My Name, Isabel Allende weaves compelling stories about these individuals and then makes a connection between the characters. I recommend everything that Isabel Allende writes.
And on top of that, she is a very nice person. She donated an autographed copy of one of her novels to the Friends of the Harrisburg Library for our autographed book sale a decade or so ago.
Falling, by T.J. Newman
Falling, by T.J. Newman
Falling is T.J. Newman’s debut novel, and it’s a good one! My sister read it and recommended it to me and our book club.
I recently read that one of the keys to writing good fiction is to give the protagonist an impossible choice. Falling fits that perfectly. In a nutshell, a commercial airline pilot is forced to decide whether to crash the plane and save his wife and children, or not crash the plane and let his wife and children be murdered.
This novel takes you minute-by-minute through the scenario. There are red herrings and there is a surprise twist. The author is a former flight attendant, so she knows the inside of a commercial jet and protocols well.
What will the pilot decide to do?
According to her “About the Author” page on Goodreads.com, Universal Pictures is making a movie based on the novel.
The Author Estate Handbook: How to Organize Your Affairs and Leave a Legacy, by M.L. Ronn
The Author Estate Handbook: How to Organize Your Affairs and Leave a Legacy, by M.L. Ronn
I mention this book in case other writers out there are interested in its topic. By reading the book, I discovered that I have done some things right but I’ve overlooked other things I need to take care of before I die.
The author explains how an author’s estate is different from everyone else’s estate. As an author, you own “intellectual property.” You own copyrights that will live on for 70 years after your death. If those things are not properly addressed in your will, you are leaving a mess for your heirs.
I’m not just talking about published books here. If you blog, your blog posts are “intellectual property,” so you need to tell your heirs what you want done with your blog when you die.
Each chapter lists specific tasks you need to take care of, if you’re a writer. I highly recommend this book to writers.
Since my last blog post
Our first shipment of author copies of The Aunts in the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes arrived and the book is now available at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC as well as on Amazon! Plans are being made to have a book event on November 4 at the bookstore! Stay tuned.
I got the new Covid vaccine and am happy to report I had no ill effects. Those people who insist on belittling Covid 19 have obviously not known someone who has died from the virus or been severely sickened by it. I’m growing weary of Covid jokes by the fortunate few who have escaped it or have not known someone who has or is suffering through it. I thought we had gotten beyond the jokes, but I learned differently last week.
Until my next blog post
Have you ordered my American Revolution e-ghost story? “Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story” is available from Amazon, along with my other books: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CH7JCP11/. Don’t let October slip past you without reading my ghost story!
“Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story,” by Janet Morrison
Have you ordered The Aunts in the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes? I think it would be a wonderful present for a friend’s birthday or other special occasion, but it’s impossible for me to be objective. If you’re in the Charlotte area, it’s available at Second Look Books, 4519 School House Commons in Harrisburg. If not, you can find it at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJLKFDPR/.
The Aunts in the Kitchen: Southern Family Recipes, by Janet Morrison and Marie Morrison
Don’t forget to subscribe to my e-newsletter at https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com and receive a free downloadable copy of my southern historical short story, “Slip Sliding Away.”
Make time for your friends and family.
Remember the people of Ukraine and Israel. Terrorism cannot be tolerated.
Calling all historical fiction fans: I need your help with something!
I mentioned in May 1, 2023 blog post, Some of the Books I Read in April 2023 that I was toying with the idea of writing some historical short stories related to the historical novel I’m working on. I’d read that suggestion in Writing Short Stories to Promote Your Novels, by Rayne Hall as a way to create interest in the characters in one’s novel before that book’s publication.
Since I need to grow my mailing list greatly before I publish the novel, it appears I’ll have plenty of time to write a few short stories. The process should produce various benefits to me and my potential readers.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
In addition to my novel readers getting a head start in learning about some of the book’s characters and the 18th century world in which they live, such writing will help me flesh out the characters and get better acquainted with them. You and I can both get a good grasp on what makes them tick.
I’ve been brainstorming ideas for the stories. If it all works out like I envision, I will self-publish the stories in an ebook collection. My timeline is written in pencil with a big eraser nearby. If nothing else in the last year of self-publishing two local history books and trying to self-publish a family cookbook, I’ve learned that flexibility is a necessity.
Readers, what do you think? If you’re a fan of historical fiction, let me know what you think of this project. Would you enjoy getting acquainted with some of the characters in my novel(s) and the world in which they live in the 1760s and 1770s before getting to read the novel(s)?
Characters such as Elizabeth Steele who had tavern in Salisbury, North Carolina? George, who was a slave in The Waxhaws in South Carolina? Oliver McNair, who was educated at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and ended up in The Waxhaws? Betty Jackson’s story of family obligations in The Waxhaws?
Would you be interested in reading such short stories while I continue to work on my novels?
In the meantime… if you haven’t subscribed to my newsletter yet, please visit my website at https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com and click on the “subscribe” button. In return, you’ll receive a free downloadable copy of my first historical short story, “Slip Sliding Away” and you’ll receive my e-newsletter every other month. Do it right now!
Since my last blog post
My research last week for my historical fiction writing focused on how food was cooked in the southern colonies in the 1760s and 1770s. I have a growing appreciation for how time consuming it was to prepare a meal then.
A funny thing happened to me at the public library the other day. I had been given some soft mountain mint and was eager to find a book with good information about how to root it. I typed, “how to grow mint” in the library system’s search engine. The response I received was, “Nothing found for how to grow mint. Did you mean ‘how to grow marijuana’? View 13 results.” It’s sort of a sad commentary that the system has no books about how to grow mint, but 13 books on how to grow marijuana. a sign of the times, I suppose. (Before you try to enlighten me, yes, the library had plenty of books about growing herbs. I just started by looking for one specifically about mint.)
Until my next blog post
Take time on this Memorial Day in the United States to remember and give thanks for those who gave their lives in the military service of our country.
I hope you have a great book to read.
Take time to enjoy friends and family.
Remember the people of Ukraine.
Don’t forget to give me some feedback about my short story plan!
In celebration of the unveiling of my newly-redesigned website, I’m announcing a giveaway! Who can pass up free stuff?
Today’s blog post will be short because I want you to spend some time exploring my website.
The home page of my redesigned website!
What’s free?
Just for visiting my website and clicking on the “Subscribe” button, I’ll send you a FREE E-Copy of one of my short stories: “Slip Sliding Away: A Southern Historical Short Story.” It’s set in the southern Appalachian Mountains in 1875. I hope you’ll enjoy it.
This is the cover of the short story if you prefer to purchase it on Amazon.
Please rate or review the short story
If you like the story, please consider going on Amazon.com and rating it or even leaving a brief review. That would be great and I would truly appreciate it!
History in Photographs
History in Photographs page on my redesigned website!
One particular page on my website that I want to draw your attention to is “History in Photographs.” On that page you’ll find pictures of various historical sites and items that are representative of the 1700-1900 era of American history I’m most drawn to and prompted to write about.
Since my last blog post
In addition to my newly-designed website going “live,” I finally received a refund for the damaged copies of Harrisburg, Did You Know? Cabarrus History, Book 1 that I received in December. I emailed the company again and my request finally landed with the right person!
It was a great week!
Until my next blog post
Please visit https://www.janetmorrisonbooks.com and subscribe to my newsletter! I anticipate sending out the first newsletter in March and follow a schedule of every other month.
I hope you have a good book (or short story!) to read.
Thank you for reading my blog and for visiting my website. Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to my newsletter to get my free short story!
And as always, remember the suffering people in Ukraine, Turkey, and Syria.
As usual, I enjoyed reading a variety of books in October. By reading my blog post today, I hope you’ll discover a new book or new author to add to your TBR (To Be Read list.) There’s something here for almost everyone.
Under the Southern Sky, by Kristy Woodson Harvey
Under the Southern Sky, by Kristy Woodson Harvey
Right off the bat, this novel got into the hot button topic of frozen embryos. Parker’s wife, Greer, with whom he’d frozen those embryos has died of cancer.
Their marriage appeared to be a match made in heaven. Amelia, the proverbial girl next door during their childhoods, is a reporter researching frozen embryos for a story.
Will Amelia and Parker get together? Can Amelia overcome the idea in her head that Greer was perfect? Surely, she can’t compete with Parker’s memory of his perfect deceased wife. Or can she?
When Amelia approaches Parker with her idea of being the surrogate to give birth to one or more of those frozen embryos how will he respond? How will their families react? How will Greer’s father react?
I enjoyed the frozen embryos aspect of the novel. The on again, off again friendship and romance of Amelia and Parker was sappier than what I like to read, but that’s just me. The dynamics of their relationship are complex and they have to grapple with a lot of emotional baggage.
If you’re looking for a southern beachy story with a hefty dose of what happens to forgotten or abandoned frozen embryos, I think you’ll love this novel by Salisbury, North Carolina native Kristy Woodson Harvey.
I read this novel for the October 24th meeting of Rocky River Readers Book Club at Rocky River Presbyterian Church. We had a good discussion. Everyone read the entire book, which is a good sign. We were in agreement that the ending was predictable, but it was a good book club selection.
The Second Husband, by Kate White
The Second Husband, by Kate White
This is a murder mystery with a chilling twist. Did Emma’s second husband kill her first husband?
Emma’s 37-year-old husband is killed in an alley in the Soho section of New York City. The crime is not solved.
A few months later, Emma meets Tom through a work connection. They marry. Life is good. In fact, it’s perfect until the day a police detective shows up to ask some leading questions.
Suddenly, Emma feels like she’s Suspect #1 in Derrick’s murder. But she knows she’s innocent. She didn’t kill him and she didn’t hire a hitman.
I think this novel would be a good choice for a book club.
Your First 1,000 Copies, by Tim Grahl
Your First 1000 Copies, by Tim Grahl
I give this nonfiction book about marketing for writers 10 stars on a scale of 1 to 5. I took copious notes. There are so many pointers in this book for someone in my position as I’m anticipating releasing several books in the coming 12 months.
Mr. Grahl has helped many authors launch their books. He’s been through the process enough times and recently enough that he knows what works and what doesn’t work. If you’re a writer hoping to publish a book – whether via the traditional publisher route or by self-publishing – you can benefit from reading this book.
Distant Flickers: Stories of Identity and Loss
Distant Flickers: Stories of Identity & Loss
Eight writers contributed short stories for this special anthology about identity and loss.
The book includes two short stories by Elizabeth Gauffreau, whose website and blog I wrote about in my September 26, 2022 blog post, Do you know about these 5 book bloggers?
Other authors featured in Distant Flickers are Donna Koros-Stramella, Keith Madsen, Carol LaHines, Jim Metzner, Joyce Yarrow, Rita Baker, and Amy E. Wallen.
Distant Flickers grew out of a spark of inspiration provided by a group of writers known as Telltale Authors. Each story ties into the subtitle. The topics are varied. There are secrets, loss, and identity issues. Each author writes in a way to pull you into the story. Soon you find yourself empathizing with the main character.
The name of that group gives me a perfect segway into the name of the other book of short stories I read in October….
Tell Tale, by Jeffrey Archer
Tell Tale: Stories, by Jeffrey Archer
Since I’m putting together a book of historical short stories, I’ve wanted to get back to reading more short stories. I need to get a handle on just what makes a good short story, right?
Although Jeffrey Archer is better known for his novels, I wanted to read some of his short stories. I found his stories in Tell Tale to be very entertaining.
My favorite stories in the collection were “The Road to Damascus,” “Who Killed the Mayor?” and “The Holiday of a Lifetime.”
Mr. Archer used a clever literary device in “The Holiday of a Lifetime.” He wrote three different endings for the story and encouraged the readers to select the one they preferred. What fun!
Until my next blog post
Thank you for taking the time to read my blog post today!
I hope you have a good book to read and will find time to read it. If you have nieces, nephews, children, or grandchildren, it’s important for them to know you enjoy reading. They want to be like you.
If you live in the USA, vote tomorrow, unless you voted early. Our very democracy is on the ballot.
My reading was sporadic again in June. Perhaps it’s the nice
summer weather that’s pulling me outside and into other activities. I listened
to one complete book, finished reading a book I’d started reading in May, and I
read a short story by Ron Rash. I started several other books, but you’ll have
to wait and hear about them in August (if I finish reading them in July.)
Here are my impressions of what I did read.
Iron House, by John Hart
Iron House, by John Hart
In my June 17, 2019 blog post, https://janetswritingblog.com/2019/06/17/delving-deeper-into-dialects-and-accents-in-fiction/, I wrote about listening to Iron House, by John Hart and being distracted by the exaggerated Southern accent used by the professional reader on the audio edition of the novel. Since then, I looked at a print edition of the book to see how the dialogue was written. As I expected, it was written properly – not like it was portrayed on the audio. I should have read the book and skipped the audio edition.
I reread much of the book in printed form and got a lot more
out of it than I did when trying to listen to it. The story is set in North
Carolina. Iron House is the name of a reformatory school for boys. The story is
primarily about the lives of two boys who were sent to Iron House.
Enough background is included for the reader to get a feel
for the dreadful place, but then follows the one who got away, how his years at
Iron House damaged him and turned him into a killer. He wants to turn his life
around, but he soon finds out how difficult it will be to rid himself of the
lowlifes he has associated with.
It is not a pleasant read. So far, it is my least favorite
of John Hart’s novels. I will continue to give everything he writes a try,
though. This hasn’t turned me against his writing. I just won’t listen to any of his future books.
The
First Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill George Washington, by Brad Meltzer and Josh
Mensch
The First Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill George Washington, by Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch
I read 70% of this nonfiction book in May, then had to get
on the waitlist at the public library in order to finish reading it in June. I
have a habit of trying to read too many books, so this happens more often than
I’d like.
If you missed my comments about this book in my June 3, 2019 blog post, https://janetswritingblog.com/2019/06/03/4-or-5-books-i-read-in-may-2019/ , I invite you to click on this link and read it if this true story interests you. I really liked this book. It filled in some gaps in my American history education.
Until I read this book, I had no idea there was a conspiracy within the ranks of the Continental Army to kill General Washington in the early summer of 1776! To tell you how far that conspiracy reached within the ranks of the army would give too much away. You’ll have to read it for yourself.
“My Father Like a River,” a short story by Ron
Rash
This short story by Ron Rash grabbed my attention from the
opening line and held it to the end. In this story, Mr. Rash recalls a
frightful day of fishing in the New River in Watauga County, North Carolina in
1962 with his father and brother.
Ron’s brother got caught up in the river’s currents. It is
the story of how his father reacted and the example his father gave to his
family in this horrifying event and throughout his life as he lost a
good-paying management job and rebuilt a life for his family on a much lower
income.
Since my last blog
I submitted two true stories for possible publication in
future Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Writing fiction and writing real life
are quite different. The writing I did last week proved to me that I prefer
writing fiction. It will be months before I know if either of my submissions
will be published, but you know I will announce the verdicts in my blog.
Until my next blog
I hope you have a good book to read. In addition to other
books, I’m still reading Montauk,
by Nicola Harrison.
If you’re a writer, I hope you have quality writing time.
Thank you for reading my blog. You
could have spent the last few minutes doing something else, but you chose to read
my blog.
Let’s continue the
conversation
What are you reading? Would you recommend it?
While I still have your attention, please tell one other
person about my blog either in person or via social media. Thank you!
Diane Chamberlain broke away from her usual form of writing novels and did a great job with time travel in The Dream Daughterr. The book begins in 1970 with a pregnant woman, Caroline Sears, finding out that her unborn baby has a heart defect.
The Dream Daughter, by Diane Chamberlain
It turns out that Caroline’s
brother-in-law has come to 1970 from the future. He knows that if Caroline can
find her way to the future, her unborn daughter can have fetal surgery – the
unthinkable in 1970.
I won’t give away any details of
Caroline’s journey. I’ll just say things don’t go smoothly. This trip across
decades will keep you turning pages.
There Was an Old Woman, by Hallie
Ephron
The title of this book caught by
attention and immediately took me back 60 years to nursery rhymes about the old
woman who lived in a shoe and the old woman who swallowed a fly. I’d never read
anything by Hallie Ephron, so I decided to give There Was an Old Woman a try.
The story involves multiple
generations, with an emphasis on several independent-living octogenarians.
Things in the neighborhood keep disappearing. What’s happening? Who is doing
this? Is it the strange man across the street?
There Was an Old Woman, by Hallie Ephron
Thrown into the mix is a subplot
about the B-25 Mitchell bomber that crashed into the Empire State Building on
July 28, 1945. Ms. Ephron sheds a light on that much-forgotten event by making
one of the main characters in the book be a survivor of that plane crash. I
must admit, I did not know about that tragedy in which 14 people were killed.
There Was an Old Woman
is categorized as a thriller, but it did not come across to me as such. It’s
more like a neighborhood mystery in which the daughter of one of the
80+-year-olds is forced to come home and deal with her mother’s illness and
neglected house. The book has received an interesting mix of 1-star and 5-star
reviews, with most reviews falling into the 3- or 4-star categories.
Undaunted: Surviving Jonestown,
Summoning Courage, and Fighting Back, by Jackie Speier
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this
memoir by United States Representative Jackie Speier of California’s 14th
congressional district. I was not aware that Ms. Speier survived the Jonestown
Massacre, so that fact alone drew me to this memoir.
Undaunted, by Jackie Speier
What a life Ms. Speier has had! When
she was 28 years old, she worked for California Congressman Leo Ryan. She and
others accompanied Ryan to Jim Jones’ Peoples Temple in Jonestown, Guyana on
November 14, 1978 to rescue individuals being held there against their will.
Those who are old enough to remember that fateful event know that things rapidly soured upon the delegation’s arrival. Congressman Ryan was murdered and Jackie Speier was shot five times and nearly died.
For someone like me who is a history
and political “junkie,” this memoir was compelling and inspiring. Ms. Speier
writes about her widowhood, motherhood, her lifelong work in politics, and her
40-year determination to overcome the scars she has from her Jonestown
experience.
Since my last blog post
I continue to receive encouraging comments in response to my December 17, 2018 blog post, https://janetswritingblog.com/2018/12/17/to-write-or-not-to-write/. I appreciate each and every one of them and each and every one of my blog readers. I have a more positive attitude about my novel in progress since being bolstered up by so many of you over the last three weeks.
The holidays turned out not to be
conducive to my getting back to putting words on paper (or the computer screen,
as the case may be.) I’ve mulled the story over and over in my mind, though,
and I intend to get back to writing that book this week. I need my blog readers
to hold me accountable!
I’ve read many helpful blog posts
and articles this week about the various facets of writing. One in particular
hit a chord with me, but I’ve misplaced the link to it. The piece recommends
that an aspiring novelist publish one or more short story collections in order
to build readership. I’m kicking around that idea. It makes sense. The theory
is that more people will want to buy my novel if they have read and liked my
short stories. I needed one more project!
Call me a klutz if you want to,
because I think I qualify. In the last four or five days I’ve broken a toe on
both feet, but not at the same time. Don’t laugh; broken toes are painful.
Until
my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read. I’m reading The Reckoning, by John Grisham.
If
you’re a writer, I hope you have quality writing
time. I hope I do, too!
Thank you for reading my blog. You could have
spent the last few minutes doing something else, but you chose to read my blog.
I appreciate it! I welcome your comments.
Let’s
continue the conversation.
Have you read any books recently that you’d recommend
to me and my blog readers?
Have any of you writers had experience – good or bad –
in publishing short stories to build readership prior to publishing your first
novel?
March brought a return of cooler weather than we had in February in North Carolina. It also brought a stack of good books. I blogged about some of them last Monday (Some March Reading), and today I’m blogging about the rest of those that I read last month.
Four Short Stories: In Need of Assistance, Saving the Unicorn, Faerie Blues, and Trophy Hunting, by Chris Andrews
Four Short Stories: In Need of Assistance, Saving the Unicorn, Faerie Blues, and Trophy Hunting — by Chris Andrews
Science fiction and fantasy are not my reading genres of choice, but Chris Andrews and I connected with each other in the blogosphere as two struggling writers. (Actually, I’m struggling. I’m not so sure about Chris.) We live in different hemispheres but I have learned a great deal from him about writing. He recently published an e-book of four short stories and I was eager to read them.
“In Need of Assistance” leads off the short story collection. Well written and suspenseful, this person (me) who never reads sci-fi got pulled into the story and thought it ended too soon. In other words, I wanted to know what happened next.
The second story in this e-book is “Saving the Unicorn.” It is about a magician who travels 4,000 years back in time to free the last unicorn…. or is it?
“Faerie Blues” is the third story in Chris’ book. The identity of the faerie is a surprise.
The fourth and last story in the book is “Trophy Hunting.” This story is survival of the fittest with a twist.
Following the four short stories are the first seven chapters of Chris’ novel, Divine Prey, which is due for release in May 2018.
The Atomic City Girls, by Janet Beard
The Atomic City Girls, by Janet Beard
This historical novel was inspired by the creation of Oak Ridge, Tennessee during World War II and the top-secret work carried on there in the development of the atomic bomb.
Ms. Beard invented characters from all walks of like and guides the reader to like most of them and identify with them as much as is possible for we who live in a different time. I liked that she included the black people as well as the white people who lived and worked at Oak Ridge because, as much as they had in common, their housing and treatment by the US Army was quite different. It was in the racially segregated South and the book stands as witness to the prejudice and unequal treatment that existed legally at that time.
The author included not only Christians but an atheist and a Jewish physicist. This book’s cast of characters runs the gamut from redneck bigot to the Jewish scientist whose family had surely died in Germany during the War. True to the history of the facility at Oak Ridge, some characters are poorly educated while others are highly educated, but the emphasis is on the everyday people who worked there and did not know what they were working on.
Ms. Beard follows each character and through them she allows the reader to experience World War II on the home front in the USA and through the stress and struggles of the people who worked in complete secrecy at Oak Ridge. She brings to life the inevitable inner conflicts experienced by some of the scientists who worked there and at Los Alamos, New Mexico as they were simultaneously excited by the physics of the atomic bomb and yet horrified by the realities of what the unleashing of such a weapon would mean and the suffering it would cause for thousands of innocent people.
I never had really thought about how conflicted some of those scientists must have felt. I’d also never given much thought to how many thousands of people worked at Oak Ridge and the majority not knowing they were working on developing an atomic bomb until the day the first one was dropped on Hiroshima.
Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland
Need to Know, by Karen Cleveland
This is a debut novel by Karen Cleveland. It has received rave reviews from highly-respected authors, so I was eager to read this espionage thriller. After having read it, all I can say is, “Wow!”
Written by a former CIA analyst, this novel has a female CIA analyst working in a division studying Russia and looking for Russian sleeper cells in the USA. I don’t want to spoil the story for you, so I’ll just say her marriage and work ethic are tested to the limit.
This novel will make you wonder who you can trust. It is the story of betrayal on many levels, and it will keep you turning pages and wishing you didn’t have to stop to eat, sleep, or work. If you like to read espionage thrillers, you will love this book.
A Piece of the World, by Kristina Baker Kline
A Piece of the World, by Christina Baker Kline
We’re all familiar with Andrew Wyeth’s most famous painting, “Kristina’s World.” This historical novel is based on the imaginary life of the woman lying in a semi-prone position in the grass on the hillside below the house in that painting.
The author, who also wrote The Orphan Train, did a beautiful job developing the characters in A Piece of the World. They were so believable, the reader will forget the book is fiction. The woman in the painting, Kristina, becomes increasingly disabled due to an unknown condition affecting her legs. She lives in the grey clapboard house on the hill as depicted in the painting. Unable and unwilling to empathize with their daughter, Kristina’s parents do little to try to get her help.
Drawn to the feel and essence of the old house, Andrew, the son of artist N.C. Wyeth comes and asks if he can paint. He sketches and paints Kristina’s brother, but the brother has little patience for posing so Kristina becomes his most consistent model. He continues his work for years.
Kristina falls in love, but is it with Andrew? I’ll leave that for you to discover if you choose to read the book.
Another Ocean to Cross, by Ann Griffin
Another Ocean to Cross, by Ann Griffin
After reading Ann Griffin’s guest blog post on Writers in the Storm about how to or how not to use family history in your fiction (http://writersinthestormblog.com/2017/12/writing-fiction-using-family-history/), I pre-ordered her debut historical novel, Another Ocean to Cross. I followed her blog and she, subsequently, followed mine.
In Another Ocean to Cross, Ann Griffin weaves a compelling story about 18-year-old Renata Lowenthal, a Jewish woman desperate to escape Germany in 1938 as Hitler makes life ever-more tenuous for the Jewish population. Renata is an artist and her gentile boyfriend is in the military. He has to leave Munich, but he is smuggling Renata’s renderings of the Third Reich’s mistreatment of Jews to journalists in Switzerland.
No matter what the world throws at Renata, she meets the challenge.
The descriptions in this book are vivid and draw on all the senses. Being about the Jews who escaped to Egypt, this book enlightened me about an aspect of World War II that I hadn’t known much about.
Renata struggles to convince her parents that it is imperative that they get out of Germany and try to get to Palestine before it’s too late to escape. The tale Ms. Griffin spins will keep you turning the pages of this book and staying up at night to read just one more chapter. I will not give more details because you will want to read this novel and I don’t want to take away any suspense for you. It will take you and Renata to some surprising locations.
Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them, by Francine Prose
In case your eyes have glazed over, I’ll save my comments about this book until next Monday’s blog post.
Since my last blog post
I have continued to read about writing and study areas I need help with. I have worked on my outline for The Spanish Coin, the working title for what I hope will be my first novel.
One of my readers reported difficulty in getting my comments section below to work. If you have trouble with it, too, please send me a message through the contact form/newsletter sign-up sheet below. I’m sorry for any inconvenience.
My blog steadily attracts more readers and followers, which is gratifying. One new reader and follower, Neil, also signed up for my sometime-in-the-future newsletters. Thank you, Neil.
Until my next blog post
I hope you have a good book to read. I’m reading The Last Child, by John Hart, so I’ll be ready to read The Hush in a few weeks.
If you’re a writer, I hope you have productive writing time
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