Chapters 15-16 of News from Dead Mule Swamp

The West Side Gang writers' group meets tonight and I want to have a chapter of News from Dead Mule Swamp to read. After lunch I got down to work, and actually wrote two chapters. This is too much to share at one meeting, but I feel really good about making progress on the story.

Chapter 15 gives more insight into rural life, which is really the tongue-in-cheek sub-theme of the book. In Chapter 16, the plot begins to move along again.

Here's an excerpt from Chapter 15:

    I followed her through the porch into a kitchen that probably hadn’t changed since the 1950s. A wooden table and chairs, painted white, occupied the center floor space. A one-piece cast, enameled sink and drainboard filled a corner, and flowered chintz hid the pipes and whatever was stored beneath. Open shelves were neatly lined with flowered paper and stacked with dishes, pans, books and knick-knacks. A round-topped refrigerator hummed in the adjacent corner. The one anomaly was a brand-new cooktop range. Cora had been following my eyes. “Had to do it,” she said. “The old oven just up and died one day."

If the West Side Gang has interesting things to say, I'll report tomorrow.

Spirit of the Woods Program and Book Sales

Last night I gave my program "The North Country Trail and the Kitchen Sink" for our local chapter of the North Country Trail Association. There were quite a few guests there, so that was fun- to educate a lot more people about the trail.

I thought that the group was pretty well saturated with book sales, but I sold two copies of North Country Cache, so that's always a good thing.

Also, there was one ordered through Amazon this week.

I have no bookings coming up until spring, and that date is not firm yet. If you are in the Midwest and would like a great program at a reasonable cost, let me know! You can see the flyer of my offerings and prices at Books Leaving Footprints. (Click on Meet the Author, see lower left corner)

Book Review- Spin the Plate

I am participating today in Jennifer Walker's Book Tour. To do so, I'm reviewing the book Spin the Plate

Spin the Plate was a surprisingly interesting read. Donna Anastasi weaves a tale of two people who do not fit well into society and brings them together in a believable way.

Jo is a victim of sexual child abuse at the hand of her father, which she can not forgive. Not a small woman, she has become tough and reclusive. She earns a living as a tattoo artist and roams the streets at night rescuing and avenging hurt and abandoned animals.

Francis is a small man, who was bullied as a child because of his size and shy nature. He is drawn to Jo so much that he seeks out a way to make her acquaintance and win her confidence.

This unlikely duo build a relationship that works for them, and along the way surprising things happen.

Spin the Plate is the 2011 Living Now Books Gold Medal winner. If you are familiar with this award, you will suspect before you begin reading that there is going to be a positive outcome. Living Now Books are “designed to improve and enhance our lives through creative ideas, [or] inspiring advice.” The core philosophy of the book is Christian. Yet the inevitable presentation of the Christian message is not forced or hackneyed. It simply grows out of Francis’ sharing of his life story. Yet, not all Christians will be comfortable with some of the actions of the characters. They are “real” people, not all good or all bad.

Any author is going to bring in his or her own world view, and secular authors feel free to hint at or expound on their philosophies. Anastasi's world view is Christian, and it shows, but is not forced on the reader as coming from outside the story. I found this refreshing in a Christian book.

The one false note in the book is a long soliloquy by Francis about a charity he has founded that gains visibility by being featured on American Idol. It’s an interesting concept, but Anastasi has Francis talk about it for several pages. It breaks the flow of the story, and just becomes an advertisement for an idea

At 194 pages, this is an easy read, and will leave you with positive feelings about the world rather than the general angst of “literary fiction.” Published by Black Rose Writing. Order Spin the Plate

Working on "Fall Off the Couch Laughing"

I'm hopeful that this eBook will take a lot less time than the first one. For one thing, the seemingly complex steps you need to follow to format a book for Smashwords doesn't seem so daunting this time.

Also, I know what I need to do with the pictures to incorporate them. E-books don't deal very will with images, but they are an important part of my essays. And they do load in all formats except the plain text version. From my first experience, I learned that I need to make the caption a part of the image itself.

So, I'm working on getting the ten essays collected into one document, and choosing the order. Then I'll put the pictures in.

Ludington Daily News Column- September 2011

Wow! I don't know what happened to September. Consequently, I turned my column in late. Not good, but they will probably print it when they get a chance. In the fall months, the deer hunters' trophies take up most of the Recreation Section, anyway.

This time I wrote about the economic value of the Manistee National Forest, based on a report issued by the Forest Service. As a factual article, it's perhaps not as entertaining as some columns, but here's an excerpt anyway:

The primary expenditures on these trips were at gas stations, restaurants, and grocery stores. Non-locals spent an average of $277 each time they came. Even local folks averaged $139 a trip. That’s a fair chunk of change. The study shows that local folks like to stay overnight in or near the Forest almost as much as those who travel to the area. And they... we... spend money when we do it.

These columns are not available on-line, unless you subscribe to the Ludington Daily News. One collection of columns is currently available as an e-book, called Get Off the Couch with Joan, at Smashwords. I recently reduced the price to $1.89. It's really difficult to price e-books- they range is all over the map.

I'm formatting a second volume of humorous essays entitled Fall Off the Couch Laughing. It will be available soon.

Short Story Collection Idea

I know that ideas are cheap, but no completed project happens without an idea that started it.

One of my pet peeves is the idea that for a story to have value, it must be filled with angst and tragedy. I call it the "life is a sad enigma" genre. So I sort of decided a few months ago to keep in mind a short story collection based on the opposite of the Seven Deadly Sins, that is, the Seven Virtues.

Although I've found a couple of lists, I think I like this one best: four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, restraint or temperance, and courage or fortitude, and three theological virtues of faith, hope, and love.

Then I would write a short story on each of those themes. I already have one done for hope. It was written for another contest but didn't win. I think that might be because is it a rather straightforward interpretation of the idea. There aren't any fancy twists. It's very, well.... hopeful.

So, the other night, I couldn't sleep. It made me groggy all the next day. In one way, I should be thankful for those nights because I often think up story ideas as I toss and turn. And, that is just what happened. I came up with what I think is a viable idea on the theme of justice.

Yes, I made notes so I won't forget until I get time to actually work on it.

It's in the e-Mail

The short story is sent off to the Star City Blog Short Story Contest.

Another writer friend read it as well, and she thinks it's pretty good. Now it's up to the judges. I have no delusions of greatness. I know that contest judges are looking for wahtever they are looking for which may not have any relationship to what I wrote.

But, I did my best, and if it doesn't get me anything, at least I have another short story that could go in a collection.