This is the fourth episode of an abridged version of my novella Alice. You can read the whole thing here over the next weeks or buy a...

So, the computer fried Monday, April 15. On that Friday I got a SATA cord and was happy to find my data still on the hard drive - since I...

We only had one television; Mom was weird about that. She thought it was almost all a waste of time. I even had to promise not to watch...

Due to technical difficulties, this is the only blog this week. If you really want me to continue Alice, please leave a comment to that...

It was like ninety degrees and humid that day Jack arrived, and air conditioning wasn’t in our new budget. But I figured the old guy...

Hope Clark's Funds for Writers has been on Writer's Digest's yearly list of 101 Best Writing Websites for 18 years in a row. I recommend...

As always, you are welcome to share this link, but please respect copyright by contacting me for permission if you want to publish or use the material. Even if you’re making it into a school skit, I’d like to know where my story has traveled. Thank you. Alice – The Arrival This is the story of my mother, Alice McKenna. You know her as the Rosa Parks of the Taxpayers Civil Rights Movement. When she refused to give up her seat on that bus, Rosa Parks moved working people to sta

Written 3/27/2019 I was going to post the first installment of a piece of fiction this week, but I got a tweet this morning from...

Warped Tales – be warned. As a child I read piles of books filled with short stories – the complete works of Poe, stories from the...

Carla King’s 4th Edition of Self-Publishing Boot Camp, Guide for Independent Authors is available tomorrow (2/1/19). Check it out here. Disclosure: as an Amazon affiliate, I get a few cents if you buy anything after going there from here. But whether you do that or look later, this is my primary resource as a book coach and when publishing my own work. The best part? She stays on top of all the changes in the industry and provides free updates. Now, the story: “Defining Mome

Marvin unplugged his computer for the fourth time as yet another thunderstorm rolled through. He worked on battery, trying to meet his...

Okay – we’re back to fiction. This one’s a stand-alone story from my dark side. “Your girlfriend’s here.” Miguel grinned over the counter as he passed Frank two lunch specials. Frank turned his head and saw Angie slide into her booth in the back corner of Oak Street Diner. “She’s not my girlfriend, Miguel.” “Yeah, right.” “Keep it up and I’ll start letting people know you’re the owner.” “You’re not that crazy,” Miguel quipped. Miguel liked cooking. The first thing he did when

I’ll be back to short stories next week, but a year ago I was blogging primarily for writers, talking about reasonable expectations,...

A stand-alone story, first published in The Maverick, Show Low AZ. Glaring sunlight intruded on Alec’s dreams. He rolled over, willing...

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the novel, sometimes it’s not. This is from Alice – her father Jack telling us about the moment he became her father. Please comment. Thanks. I had one Christmas with Sunshine. We’d been together since August, though sex and drugs flowed pretty easy on the farm, so there was no way to be sure whose bun was in her oven. But now her belly button was insi

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the novel, sometimes it’s not. This story is from Tough Times. Michael Dolan McCarthy's little sister Missy talking to us after a conversation with Michael in which he reminded her of Christmas in Tahoe. Please comment. Thanks. I remember the last Christmas we were all together. I didn’t used to, cuz I was only in kindergarten back then, not second gr

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the novel, sometimes it’s not – this one is not. Maria’s husband is Joe in Running Away and Peg’s Story (soon to be released). Please comment. Thanks. “Peggy Sue, Peggy Sue” – Buddy Holly’s song haunts my husband. Every time it plays, Joe’s gaze turns inward and saddens. I know he’s thinking of Peg, a girl he knew briefly as I planned flowers and musi

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the book, sometimes it’s not – this is from Tough Times, which is written in Michael’s voice. This story is his little brother’s point of view in the opening chapters. Please comment. Thanks. Fast as the wind. That’s me. At nine, I’m the youngest player on our team, but I’m the best. The ball dances between my feet as I race to the goal. Andy’s a good

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the novel, sometimes it’s not. Nina is Alice’s daughter and narrator of the book, Alice. This is a Thanksgiving when she was younger, before the events in Alice. Please comment. Thanks. Mom pulls the oven rack out enough to poke the withered orange lumps with a fork. “Done!” She pulls the pans out and puts them on top of the stove. Eight halves of thos

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Sometimes the story is straight from the novel, sometimes it’s not. In this case, it may be part of a new novel. Lizzie is sister to Maggie, daughter of Peg. This is the part of Lizzie's story. Please comment. Thanks. Lizzie's Story John Swanson has only been in our class for a week. I think he’s trying to be noticed by playing devil’s advocate. Mr. Ludes doesn’t mind. He likes any class

Novel Echos are short stories from the perspective of secondary characters in my novels. Running Away is narrated by fifteen-year old Maggie and her mother in alternating chapters. Here we get to know CJ better and hear his perspective on this scene and the entire situation. CJ You didn’t come home last night.” Uncle Joe’s not angry and he’s not specifically asking where I spent the night. After all, I’m eighteen. But it’s clear he’d like to know. He figured out I smoke weed

The house is so small that the sound of brush against teeth carries down the hallway to the bed where I’ve been lying on my back,...

It was the damned dogs that caused all the trouble. If they hadn’t barked all the time, we wouldn’t have gotten evicted, which the wife said was the last straw. Well, it was the camping out to avoid being served with the formal eviction notice that got to her, to be specific. Things had already been tense, even before we had to move out of the house, what with the electric and water being shut off just because the checks kept getting lost in the mail.

I’m a salesman—spend half my life driving from one pitch to the next. It gives me time to think. That night I was driving through the...