This has been an extreme week when it comes to North Korea—extreme political tension, extreme possible consequences and extreme differences in communications strategy, tone and messages. Furious rhetoric There’s no shortage of reaction to and analysis of the continuing verbal exchange between the Trump White House and the leadership in Pyongyang. I’ll let others debate […]
Review of Place of Skulls by Caleb Pirtle III One of the most satisfying literary discoveries is a truly unique story. This is particularly rare in the mystery-thriller genre. Many thrillers seem to be emulating another derivative book, trying to ride a bandwagon to market success. Far too many read as if the author were trying to write […]
I’m thrilled to announce that the cover of the third book in the Eastern Front trilogy, Walking Out of War, has won first place in the East Texas Writers Guild 2017 Blue Ribbon Book Cover Contest for Nonfiction/Memoir. The contest drew entries from across the U.S.A., as well as from the U.K, Australia and Canada. A […]
The seventh and final season of Game of Thrones begins tonight. It’s one of the least predictable plots in television history, but as the show starts, I’d like to try to predict what’s going to happen. This kind of prediction would not be possible were the final season based on a book by George RR […]
Elmore Leonard said “never open with the weather.” But he never said anything about opening with his admonition against opening with the weather. Another writer’s rule is to avoid clichés like the plague. I guess I’m going to break that rule, too. Opening with the weather Last month, my wife and I travelled to the […]
And Happy Independence Day, USA Today is the 150th anniversary of the Confederation of Canada, the day when three British colonies in North America became the first four provinces of Canada. Ultimately, after a lot of arguing and angst, it led to what the world now sees as Canada, stretching across the top half […]
People often say travel broadens you. It opens your mind and your heart to new ideas, exposes you to different cultures and people, and tends to make you more accepting of differences. For me, travel is also inspiring—literally. When I travel, I often get new ideas for stories and novels. These can be sparked by […]