Hi, everyone. Hope you're having a wonderful summer and you're beating the heat. Praise be to Willis Carrier for inventing a machine to save humid beings.
There is so much to get to from the writing desk this go around that I don't know where to begin. It's not only the heat outside that building, but also my writing projects, upcoming releases, and newly scheduled signings and presentations.
While I work on promoting my latest books, The Pig War and the Pelican Girls and the upcoming Notable Women of Alabama (more on that in a moment), I got back to my freelance roots to research and write an article for the history magazine, Alabama Heritage. The article, The Great Civil War Bread Riots of 1863, appears in the Summer 2025 issue and traces the events that led to Southern women in Richmond, Virginia, and Mobile, Alabama, taking to the streets and violently rioting and ransacking stores to get the food and supplies they needed to keep their families alive. The issue is available online and bookstores. And I have to thank Susan Reynolds and the staff at AH for giving me the opportunity.
I was thrilled to learn this
morning that my short story, Johnson Smith, We Love You, was
selected to be featured in the upcoming issue of the Emerald Coast Review.
For those of you not familiar with my writing career, this is the story that started it all. It was first written in 1980 along with several other humorous stories about growing up, all loosely based on faulty memories. When I began my career in radio broadcasting that same year, in a style reminiscent if Jean Shepard, I read the stories on my overnight radio show. They were a hit.
It was then that I decided to have them published. After dozens of re-writes, rejections, and my first experience with a very expensive and shyster editor to create an eBook, Living in a Banana Dream, I put the stories to bed and haven’t revisited them in a while. A few years ago, I did resurrect them for a series of podcasts called Joe Cuhaj's Shorts, that you can hear on my website.
Long story short, I've decided to dust off the old Johnson Smith and sent it to the Emerald Coast Review, and here we are. I'll keep you posted and let you know when the article is published.
My brand new book, Notable Women of Alabama, is on track and on time for release October 14th. The book traces the lives of 50 women who made a difference not only in Alabama, but the nation and the world as well. You can pre-order the book now. And if you are in the Mobile, Alabama, area in October, I have several signings and presentations on the way. See the calendar below.
If you're looking for a gift to give that reader in your life for the Christmas holidays, right now, Arcadia Publishing is offering 15% off on three of my local Mobile and the Alabama Gulf Coast history titles: Baseball in Mobile, A History Lover's Guide to Mobile and the Alabama Gulf Coast, and Hidden History of Mobile. Click the images above to receive your savings. And thank you!
Okay, that's all the news for now. On to the calendar of events! I hope to see you at one of these venues:
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
October 18: Ink and Insight at Bellingrath Gardens and Home
Joe will be reading selections from his local and regional books and signing copies of his latest book, Notable Women of Alabama, from 10:30am to 11:30am.
October 18: Page and Palette Author Book Signing
Joe will be signing copies of The Pig War and the Pelican Girls and his latest, Notable Women of Alabama from 1pm to 3pm.
October 23: Fairhope Public Library-Presentation & Book Signing, Notable Women of Alabama
Joe will present his new books, Notable Women of Alabama, from 4pm to 5pm followed by a Q&A and signing.
