Never a Dull Moment

 

Hello, friends! I hope all of you have been well. Here in the old writing room, there's smoke coming out of my keyboard and my fingers are blistered from all of the writing going on. OK, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but not far off. A lot has been going on.

First, I'm proud to unveil the cover of my new book, Notable Women of Alabama, which is due out October 24th. I think the designers at Arcadia and History Press out did themselves on this one. I'd like to know what you think. Just drop a comment below. This is my 20th book since I began this crazy journey back in 2000. You can pre-order the book now. 

  

Speaking of Arcadia Publishing and History Press, the publisher is now offering 15% off any of my Mobile, Gulf Coast, and Alabama history books. Simply click the link, add the book to your cart, and the discount will be displayed in your cart.

• Baseball in Mobile  
• Hidden History of Mobile 
• A History Lover's Guide to Mobile/Ala. Gulf Coast 
• Notable Women of Alabama (coming soon)

On the writing front, I was thrilled to have been asked to read and review Debra Goldstein's book, "With Our Bellies Full and the Fires Dying." It's a little different than your usual mystery books. It's an anthology of short mysteries, some as little as 800 words in length, but all with a tantalizing twist. Read my review on the Alabama WritersForum website.

I spent last weekend in 1943 visiting some friends, Judy Campbell and Art Foley. I tell you, those two. They are nothing but trouble. Everywhere they go, there is a murder and then they have to solve the mystery for the police.

Yes, I spent the weekend working on book two of the Crystal Bay Mystery series. After taking my final beta reader's advice on "Dead Air" and and did a major tidy up on it to send to the agents who requested it, it was time to work on the second book of the series.

That second book is tentatively titled, "A Wedding to Die For." I was working on it non-stop the last couple of days. Some have called me "obsessive," but I call it "immersion." No, I haven't given up on the history and outdoor rec guides (when I can,) but writing in the cozy mystery genre is liberating and sets the mind free with all of the plotting, character development, banter. I feel literally immersed in the time period and characters making it difficult to pull myself away.

OK, maybe it is a little obsessive. But when you're on a roll....

 I also spent a little time this past week heading down memory lane. There are a couple of 50th anniversaries coming up in my life (more on that in the next edition), but I had fun reliving my radio past and rediscovering a video I created for my book, Waterfalls of Alabama. 

45 years ago last week, I began my dream career in radio broadcasting. I uncovered an old cassette tape with the only aircheck I have left of those days when I worked my dream job from 1980 to the mid-1990s. This was recorded at the last station I worked at, WBCA in Bay Minette, Alabama. It's a collection of bad comedy bits, a few commercials, a sports play-by-play clip, and some ofmy morning show, "The Country Club." It was a country music station, after all. At times you can still hear me talking ninety to nothing like I was still in NJ. You can take the boy out of New Jersey, but....

 

And finally, a memory from 5 years ago when I was researching one of my favorite guidebooks for Falcon Books, Hiking Waterfalls of Alabama. The Auburn area is about as far south in the state you can go to see a decent waterfall. A distinct fall line in the area created one of the best in the region, Great Falls (the last clip in the video.)

 

Wow, this was a long one. If you made it this far, congratulations! :) Thanks for reading and joining me on my writing adventures. There's more to come. Drop me a line if you have any questions of comments. I'd love to hear from you.

Until next time...Cheers!