My First Post for The International Thriller Writers.

Being a debut writer with ITW I was asked to write a post for their weekly magazine The Thrill Begins. What was I to write I wondered? But with my recently cancelled middle-grade book, and all the work writing and editing that went into it before the rug was pulled out from under me, I found my subject: Taking the Time for Life. 

Writing, writing and more writing.

I did it every day. I woke early as possible to savor those few quiet hours of my day job before customers came clamoring for coffee. I woke earlier on the weekends than my children did. I wrote after cooking dinner, or researched scientific details through the evening. I spent nearly every minute of every day last year writing, editing, and revising three projects while helping my college-bound dyslexic son prepare to audition for four Shakespeare plays. Read more.

Bower Boys Survival Tips: Pine (Nut) Trees.

In The Unmoving Sky, Jackson Bower while lost in the woods, looks around for what he and his brother might eat nearby. He sees many pine trees, but it’s April and they're no pine nuts in the cones this time of year.

However, the pine bristle is high in Vitamin C. Which the boys could grind, or chew and add to a bottle of water for nourishment. You can make a tea with the bristles. Chop and boil for a couple of minutes. The water should turn light yellow. Add honey.

But Jackson and Artie are without a bottle of water. There’s water running everywhere. There’s a torrential, constant downpour, and streams flowing underfoot. Jackson’s primary focus is shelter, and the mighty pine tree shelters them, but in the morning … a stranger finds them. He takes the brothers back to his cave.  

Here’s a great resource for learning more about eating pine trees! 

 How to Eat a Pine Tree.  

Apparently, you can also eat the bark.  Enjoy!

The Unmoving Sky    Coming Soon!  pub's May 16, 2016.  

Last Week's Blog Interviews for The Unmoving Sky

Last week over on Resch Reads, I answered a few questions about my Thriller,
THE UNMOVING SKY. If you'd like to read the rest of the interview click on over.

Did you edit anything out of The Unmoving Sky that you wished would have made it to print?

It wasn’t edited out, but I would have liked to bring Jackson’s girlfriend, Brianna’s thoughts and history into The Unmoving Sky, and really dig into her experience. Maybe one day? I wrote out some of her POV in drafts, to really see where she was coming from.

And over on Girls *heart* Books, you can have a peek at my writing studio. 

A corner of a dark basement that transforms into a Swing Era Jazz Club.  If you're wondering, yes, I've written a YA, Swing Era whodunnit.  I cannot wait to dive back into that ms.

You can add The Unmoving Sky on Goodreads  or Smashwords. 

Watch the book trailer.

Jackson Bower has a lot on his mind lately. His younger brother hasn’t been the same since his mother’s death. His father’s drinking is out of control. Then there’s Jackson’s girlfriend and the grief that ties them together even as it threatens to drive them apart.

He distances himself, hoping for a little perspective at the family lodge. But when their father gets drunk and dangerous, he and his brother escape into the woods.

Night creeps in, and the rains come fast. Artie slips down a ravine. He’s wounded and the brothers seek shelter in a cave, only to find someone else already taking refuge there.

A desperate man with plans to destroy their town.

Jackson must get him and his wounded brother out of the cave and over the mountain to warn everyone in time. Without getting them both killed first.