I am currently publishing my books to the various available platforms, and soon you’ll find them available in print or ebook form at most booksellers online, and for the asking at your local bookstore!
Worldwide availability predicted by the end of March! Stay tuned!
Working hard on a new novel. I am returning to a genre that seems to like me the best. Actually happy with the way this work is going. Deals with a large number of social issues from the 1870’s in a pioneer setting from the perspective of the people of those times. Love my characters
“It’s amazing how the truth is revealed when you tell only the exact facts when it comes to the mind set of specific eras in history. It’s like turning on a bright light in a dark room. On the other hand, over the years, I’ve watched many people get lost during a sunny day or a full moon night. As a lover of surviving in nature while finding my way out of dark forests it sometimes confuses me but, when I think about it, I often get totally turned around when my truck dares to venture into big cities. In this regard, I suppose it could be said that somewhere to many of us is absolutely nowhere to others. On the other hand, the opposite is also true. People are a strange bunch and it pays to understand the intricacies of exactly how we are put togehter.
I believe that sometimes my mind thinks selfish things. Often it goes through my mind that it would be nice if just the right person would read one of my books then some magic might happen. It’s sort of a natural process because the time factor in the production of a novel is a bit over whelming and a writer cannot help of dreaming of big success. But then my mind gives me a reality check and I have to count my blessings. It is then that I say to myself:
“The right person is reading my book at this moment. Every person is just as important as the next. Be thankful for anyone who buys your books and gives of their time to hopefully enjoy your work.”
At this moment I am in the process of researching just how much power a title and a cover can have upon potential readers. I personally feel that the two books I put the most work into are going unnoticed. This is a hard pill to swallow by times and one must ask themselves the question why? Just what words encompass what it takes to attract a reader? What illustration or picture has to be on the cover to tweak someone’s interest. I used to evaluate advertisements by placing a couple of dozen of them up on a flat wall and then asking people to walk by and tell me which ones they were most attracted to. To my surprise, most of them chose ones which did not work for me simply because I was too close to the subject to evaluate successfully. In other words, my thoughts were too deep and wanted to tell way too much of the story in a picture and a half dozen words.
For example, is the title “Education 1940-2020….Are We In a Crisis” more attractive than just plain “Tragedy”. Is a complicated picture of a frustrated student more powerful than simply “4 x 5 = 19”.
“Is the title “The Legends of Broken Creek” more attractive than “Survival”. Is a simple picture of a young boy taking aim with a primitive home made bow and arrow more appealing than a full page photograph?
It’s obvious that my ideas concerning titles and cover pages need grooming. There is a reason why people go to post secondary schools for years learning the knack of advertising.
My want is simple. I want potential readers to walk up to a shelf full of books and pull one of mine out because of its title or its cover. These two things plus the first page are the things that sell novels to the fullness of the potential they have. I’m trying even though I would rather be writing.
I would love to hear from all people who have read any of my ten novels. Your opinions whether they be positive or negative would be most appreciated. Writing is a progressive thing and it is important to know if you are moving in the right direction or simply typing words on a page. I love writing novels that allow me to talk of the history of North America as well as what it takes to survive in the natural world. Once in a while I wander from this agenda if it involves a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Education and dealing with the curves that life throws at us would be two that might fit this mold. I am in my 49th year of teaching so am interested in what is going on there. At the same time, life has not always been easy. It is also true though, I am functioning as a supply teacher in this modern era so have plenty of time to pursue trapping, hunting, writing, research, grand kids, passing on the torch, shooting, etc.. Some days the body hurts but I keep going simply because to quit could be likened onto death. I often tend to stop and meditate upon the reasons of my existence. I teach because I love kids and it is important to me to do my best in staying connected to all that is going on. I am an outdoorsmen because it is my place of retreat and deep thought. I write to express my heart and share some of the things that I’ve been told young people should know. Every day I learn something new and because of that fact I feel totally blessed.
It’s that simple.
Love to hear from you. .
I am doing everything I can to teach my grandsons the various things about survival these days. They love to go out waundering the forests and creeks with me and I love having them along. Last night we harvested a supper from nature’s grocery store and the youngest of the two learned how to pluck and clean birds. He had watched before but never actually done it. He came through it as a champion. We talked about the responsibility hunters have to take care of their catch so that it will make a fine meal and not be wasted.
I smiled when the oldest of the two came walking across a hay field with a hand full of birds that he had harvested in another field. Hunting upland game birds is much easier when you have good dogs because they tend to find what people cannot see and his retriever Brooke was walking by his side just as she should have been. A boy and a dog are just a special thing to see together. Noses like radar work wonders in thick undercover and a dog in such situations most certainly is a prized friend.
Checked my book sales reports later and was pleased. Sometimes I feel like writing ten books has no reward to it when sales are just not there. But thoughts like that are based upon my desire to make some money at my craft rather than the sheer joy of sharing my experiences and my knowledge of history. My mind wanders back over the years to the thousands of hours spent on practicing shooting, understanding how nature work, history books, my forefathers s and what people are missing when they buy all of their foods in grocery stores.
When I was a boy hunting and fishing were special. My parents appreciated the money my hunting and fishing them. And I felt so special in knowing that they valued my efforts. I tend to always make sure the thought processes of those who came before us are included. They knew so much that we have simply forgotten.
Let me know which books you have read and give me an opinion on them. Readers are the true measure of the worth of a novel and I will treasure your imput.
Have a great day and if you take a kid hunting you will never have to hunt for the kid. It is a world where true friendships and responsibility are fine tuned and carried over into life.
My novel titled “Legends of Broken Creek” was an all out effort to show how adolescent boys tend to think if given the chance to spread their wings and fly. 2020 was a hard one for kids in general and, in the realization of this, I dedicated my writing to produce a children’s book directed toward adolescent boys. As it turned out however, those that have read it have said that it crosses over into the world of adults and brings back memories of when they were young. For others it provides information as to how adolescent boys tend to think. There’s is a world of hope, learning, coping and survival.
My main characters experience a large number of the issues that tend to plague adolescent boys and they work through them as best they can. The setting is rural and takes place outside the small town of Broken Creek. Both Jamie and Billy like being out doors and both love harvesting their meals from nature’s grocery store. One is well to do and the other is abused but fate somehow unites them as friends. Together they face unfair teachers, bullying, murder, drug dealers and the horrors of dealing with a man who is an absolute monster of a human being.
I came to love my characters and the respect that they had for women in general as well as doing the right thing. They have many adventures. In fact, sometimes it seems that every day contains one. But they deal with each in a way which tells so much of the inner character traits that drives them.
The ending was a joy to write because even in the hardest of situations, good can have victory over evil and provide hope for tomorrow.
I lived much of this book as a boy. Although the times were different, the issues were still there. In turn, I made mistakes because my experience bank did not have the knowledge that Jamie and Billy did about life. They use that information extremely well in a world which seems to have gone mad in so many ways. As I look back, my life as a boy was simpler but it also contained some false information which in no way made my life easier. The children of today know a great deal in terms of what is truly right and wrong but it is their duty and responsibility to apply that knowledge.