A poem by John Keats

When I have fears that I may cease to be
Before my pen has glean’d my teeming brain,
Before high-piled books, in charact’ry,
Hold like rich garners the full-ripen’d grain;
When I behold, upon the night’s starr’d face,
Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance,
And think that I may never live to trace
Their shadows, with the magic hand of chance;
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour!
That I shall never look upon thee more,
Never have relish in the faery power
Of unreflecting love!—then on the shore
Of the wide world I stand alone, and think,
Till Love and Fame to nothingness do sink.^[3]-

This is my favorite poem. In fact, I have it memorized. Every time I read it, I think of another facet of my life that makes it even more relevant. Today, I think of my father and how he must have seen his life during and after WWII. Notice the insignia on his sleeve, he was a corpsman and so war must have truly been hell.

I also think of the times we are in now- of the 60s, and how mortal we are, how rational and sane we can and cannot be. THE SHORE OF THE WIDE WORLD  is the title to my next book.

Don’t know if anyone remembers this show, QUEEN FOR A DAY, I vaguely do. But it’s there in my memory. I look back and recall the host asking a husband what his wife weighed, she steps from behind the curtain and is told to step on a scale. She obeys, giggling the whole time. The husband is embarrassed because his wife weighs more than she originally told him.

One became queen for a day after silly humiliations like this and then after recounting all the toils and pains one experienced in their life.  The most miserable woman wins. This show was a product of its time and yes we were subjected to all types of things that embarrassed us. But times change, we evolve. That’s the way it was and yes, baby, we have come a long way. (read further and find that some of us have not)

We all suffer humiliation, defeat, cruelties, pain-it’s not fair. But who said life is fair. THIS IS LIFE!

Now, my most recent humiliation. I have found numerous mistakes in spelling and sentence structure on this very site. Me-a writer shouldn’t have this. I did not write my blog, I paid someone to create it for me and now after many efforts and trials of patience, I’m taking to this very blog to ask the person I hired to please give me my passwords so I can fix this because obviously you are not.  For 2 years I have asked the person who I hired to write my blog to please fix these mistakes, but my calls go unanswered. I’ve been nice about it but have lost my patience.  So now I look like a total idiot and am announcing that I am QUEEN FOR A DAY.

Finally! What a crazy year this has been. But the book is available on Amazon now. I will have copies the end of this month. (see how they treat authors!!!) This is the cover. Hope to have a better rendition of it asap. But had to post anyway. ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS, is the latest in the series. Hope everyone likes it. A little different, (could work as a stand alone, so says my editor) but then I try to make all books a little different while staying basically the same. Same characters, as always, unless I killed them off (ha ha). Love my characters-they offer so much entertainment for me and I hope, you, the reader.

And now it is off to another story THE SHORE OF THE WIDE WORLD. I’m already interviewing for tips and info from sources and am really digging this book. My heart and soul will be in it. Will keep you posted along the way.

I know I have been slack this year so far with posting, but the ways of the world have laid a blanking mess before me. So, things are straightening out-(thank you Jesus) and I promise to be more forthcoming. Thanks for reading and God bless.

This is sorta  what the cover of my new book ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS will look like when it comes out .  I’m proud to say that the fantastic photographer and artist, Sue Benden, is creating my cover this time. Thank you so much, my friend. ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS should be out mid July. Thanks for hanging in readers, and being patient.

Now, on to the next project,  THE SHORE OF THE WIDE WORLD. “SHORE” is set in the 60s on Topsail-I’ve already begun talking with a few folks from that era and digging around for the “facts” I need. I’m very excited about this one-something different after several years of killing people off. 🙂

Our little bridge seems like eons ago. Since the construction of the new high-rise,   traffic has increased,  population has increased, COVID  has certainly not stopped construction– our little beach town has so changed that  I do not recognize it. Let go, let go, let go I keep telling myself and for the most part, I have. One has to do that, let go of the past, to survive. But how I love looking back on those days when life was so much slower and simpler than it is today. I like the brightness of soft and joyful memories-hold on to them, they make life joyous.

For my readers, ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS,  the 6th in the series, is presently at the editor’s and should be out by mid July. After that look for something from the good old days.

I’ve just joined a new site called Bublish. Stay tuned for “bubbles” of information about various books.

https://bubli.sh/FH08dAs

It’s been a while since I’ve posted something here, been getting my ducks in a row. They look pretty straight now, so here goes–Work on ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS, is progressing. Not as quickly as I would have liked, but it is doing so. The premise here–oh my, even bad guys are human. Now think of how frail we are all, how susceptible we are to…everything. This story has been fun in a twisted sort of way. I do hope my readers like this book, finishing it up now and getting ready to send it to my editor. So I’m looking at  June /July for the release. Heck! With the coronavirus,  I don’t even now if stores will be open or if we’ll even have markets, but that doesn’t stop the writer whose head is constantly building scenarios. Stay well out there my dears. God bless and to quote Charlie Chaplin, “smile…you’ll see the sun come shining through if you just smile.

QUOTE: “For every minute you are angry, you lose 60 seconds of happiness.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

WRITING TIP: Do you smile when you are writing something funny? You should.

Nearing completion, I thought I’d offer a little snippet of what the new book has to offer. Hope you like it. Hopefully it will be out by mid JUne.

Rae pushed past the empty crate boxes stacked willy nilly among the marsh grasses and softly spewed curse words as she progressed beyond old fishing buoys and decaying nets. Eyeing the one armed crabs scurrying from hole to hole, hiding as a foot neared, raising their one claw in defense, she cursed again, “What the frigging’ hell are all these little things?” Rae kicked at the tiny crustaceans and moved forward toward the waters of the sound………………….. Spying an oar-the oar, swollen from high tide waters, an oarlock welded by time jutted from the wood. Its spike rusted yet still sharp. Rae picked up the pace, careful to keep balanced in the muck. “Man oh man, I’d hate to fall on that thing,” Rae muttered. “And it being under the water at high tide, man that could really hurt somebody.”
The oar lay Just as the instructions had noted; across a cinder block and dipped into the oncoming tide. A discolored, rusty looking rope was tied to the long pole and then between the holes of the block. A length of rope led away into the oaks and myrtle bushes thickly lining the perimeter of the marshy sound-line.
Yes, it was the right place and the right time. Rae’s eyes followed the fraying rope attached to the block into the wooded area. For a moment the pungent aroma of marijuana filled the air. Rae dismissed the odor, smiled and continued following the rope.

Yooza, Yooza, Yooza. Finally made it in to this, been trying for a while. The 21st and 22nd…y’all come now. Lots of vendors from all over our area, many you’ve never seen before. All kinds of stuff by artisans talented beyond belief. Make a day of it in downtown Wilmington!

  The above picture is of the CLOUD NINE, my father’s fishing boat. The one I worked on for a few years..great times! I use those times often in my writing, they take me to a place I’ll never forget. Yes, the past was a great place-a place I personally like to visit but not live.

I’m presently finishing the last (at least for a while) book in my murder mystery series-ALL THESE LITTLE THINGS, and have been doing some research into my  next novel. It will be set in the 60s and so that’s where my head will be for a while. I sort of dread it because though I think I had an extremely cool childhood, I do not want to live there. I’m a little scared about going in that direction, but am compelled to do so. Drat and damn the life of a writer…these feelings of being compelled to do something drive me nuts.

QUOTES:  I realize there’s something incredibly honest about trees in winter, how they’re experts at letting things go..Jeffrey McDaniel

The past is a great place and I don’t want to erase it or to regret it, but I don’t want to be its prisoner either..Mick Jagger

WRITING TIP: Everything is fodder. Do not be afraid to explore and use it.