The culture conflict discussed in the last blog is a thread that runs throughout END OF THE RACE, a sub-plot but not the novel’s central focus. That came while idly reading a news article about a missing man and wondering “Why?” “What’s the story?” Those questions drive the story, but the content and depth arise […]
Another View: WHY WE’RE POLARIZED, by Ezra Klein
In the last post, I talked about how fiction transforms my conflicts and struggles into story, and that is probably why I’ve found my home in contemporary fiction. However, occasionally non-fiction strikes home, too, and Ezra Klein’s, WHY WE’RE POLARIZED, examines an issue I’ve struggled with all my adult life. The culture conflict that divides […]
The inner Life of END OF THE RACE
But once triggered, every story takes it shape from the mysterious convergence of many strands, conscious and unconscious, so it is always a source of amazement, to me, that the result is a coherent whole.
Opening END OF THE RACE
In my opening blog last week, I promised more about End of the Race, my new contemporary mystery, coming May 5th and now available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes and Noble . Talking about a book is always a poor substitute for opening it, so here is a taste. Chapter 1 2007 Annika […]
Introducing END OF THE RACE!
Greetings, everyone, I’m delighted to introduce my new contemporary mystery, END OF THE RACE, a family drama surrounding an Olympic hopeful swimmer whose husband and coach mysteriously disappears in the midst of training for the China Olympics. Progress on this novel has been slowed by the turmoils of the national scene, which consumed my head […]
Thank You Chanticleer Reviews!
My many thanks to Chanticleer Reviews for honoring my novels among their Somerset Prize winners, especially because, though many times a finalist, I’ve never won the grand prize. Let me also give thanks for the help and encouragement they’ve given me and so many aspiring others. If you are a writer and haven’t discovered their […]
VOTE! What for?
If you’re wondering why vote, you don’t understand what’s going on in this country. If you’re sick of politicians and consider them a bunch of crooks, your negative judgment is contributing to a problem that is consuming the democracy you take for granted. Democracies die of apathy and cynicism. Wake up and look at […]
STOP! THINK! REMEMBER!
Are we all so caught up in mobocracy we can’t change course? Is hatred really so much fun?
Updating The Camera’s Eye
The Camera’s Eye has to be one of the best thriller/suspense novels I have ever had the pleasure of reading …
The Second Mrs. Price: A Beautiful Read
“In the Midwest, in the spring, there are a few days so warm and soft, so gently in motion, so tenderly inviting, that we forget the ravages of the winter just behind us, the heavy breathless summer days just ahead; we accept that we are home, that we are where we belong.” Thus Toni Fuhrman […]
The God of Small Things: a Story That Grows On You
Arundhati Roy, in his tale of “two-egg twins,” weaves a story that will stay with you and grow long after you’ve put it down. Roy brings the Indian valley around Ayemenem to life with a power and depth that reminds me of Steinbeck’s descriptions of the Salinas Valley. Its heat, smells, wildlife suck you with […]
Democracy in America
I’ve always been fascinated by America, the American experiment, the American experience. In college, I found my place in the sociology, anthropology, political science and literature of the American people, their values and ideals. My novels are born of the culture of merging, conflicting cultures we, as Americans, were born into and from my conviction […]