Hey, sorry to say I'm in the "Twilight Zone".

My husband has been in the hospital and will still need care when he comes home.

At the moment, I'm not reading much.

On the other hand, my new book Running from Demons has been published in e-form. I haven't had time to get the Print-on-Demand set up. Think it has something about me being an old lady and there being only so many hours in the day. For some reason, my body thinks it has to sleep.

But, I have made sales and have reviews, mostly 5 stars. But, I like the one I used in the banner. I thought going through a teen's learning moments might be dull, Other reviews have said the same thing as the one below. So, I'll heave a sigh of relief.

You can see for yourself at this universal link which will direct you to a universal link to a venue you can use. 

Of course, if you happen to buy the book, I would appreciate a short review.

Should also say, I'm doing a GoodReads Giveaway until 13 October 2018.

Escaping the Bad Guys With a Spiritual Twist

Read Dorothy Gilman's Incident at Badamya this week, a very nice teen, coming of age suspense novel. Still, I got a big laugh out of it for a serious novel set in Asia just before the Korean War. The Communist Chinese are inciting revolt in Burma just as Gen Ferris' missionary father kills himself and tells her to find her way to America via Rangoon. The laugh came when I pulled the book from my to-read pile, a brand new novel with a price of $4.95 on the cover. I'm not even going to guess how long it was gathering dust on my shelf.

Of course, Dorothy Gillman isn't known for her YA books. I've only seen her marketed as adult fiction...with ladies of a "certain" age as her main characters. The adventures of Mrs. Pollifax is her most famous series. I prefer Madam Karitska, the Clarvoyent Countess mysteries. Incident at Badamya is one of her several stand alone novels. Of course, they are all mostly out of print and not in e-format. I think they're worth a little time in digging up a couple if you're looking for well-crafted mystery/suspense/adventure/light romance novel. Not many other books measure up to Gilman's writing.

After her father kills himself, Gen Ferris must find her way through insurgent lines to return to her aunt in America, but she is captured on her way to the river ferry that'd take her to Rangoon. The river ferry doesn't land in her village as usual, but when she tries to catch it coming back down the river, she's captured by the Red Chinese. She is trapped behind enemy lines with some other European captives. Suspense builds as she and her bickering fellow prisoners figured out how to escape. Of course, nothing goes as planned.

The book gives the reader a sense of traditional Burmese country life, before the place became Myanmar. The Buddist mysticisim, though different from her usual European turn, gives a thought provoking and educational aura to the book. You'll also get a feel for the rhythms of Burmese life from her multi-sense descriptions.

Unfortunately, Gilman can't be found in e-format. You can read more about the book on Amazon. Used paperbacks are still available.

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My Writing Rut

Rendezvous surprised me again. Couldn't wait for Britt Kelly and Gillen, the gargoyle, to meet again. Dreamed of this big emotional scene of gore oozing every where. Got it written. Three pages of matter of fact back story, explanation of why Gillen is wounded, and some emotion, but not much. What a let down. But then, Britt's rather stern of purpose, when she isn't mad. 

Today shot down my chance of a big demon fight, but I'm going back to the chapter tomorrow. To see if, the Markham's from Docket's Diggings can fit into the flow. [Noticing Jamilla. Cassy Mae is long gone from the town, and I assume her grandmother is too. Nothing like having life-force sucking demons controlling your town.]

Got another Five Star Review for There Be Demons:

starsThere are no Elf kind here!

ByDavid A Foucheyon May 1, 2018

Format: Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

Whats not to like about a rollicking good story involving Teens teaming with Gargoyles to fight invading Demons? It was fun to see her use Gargoyles as the supernatural helpers of mortals in protecting the Mortal Lands from Demon-kind instead of the usual Elves, Fairies and Dwarves. Was a nice change of pace.

The review kind of made me sad. I'm still thinking of revising one of my Far Isles Half-Elven manuscripts--Dark Solstice. Mariah is still my second-favorite character, and she's been sitting in my computer since I published Vengeance.

When Refugee Colonizers Go Astray, What Must They Do to Survive

Polymath by John Brunner is one of those hidden ScFi classics from back in the day when there was much controversy about calling Science Fiction ScFi. The book, written in 1974,  also illustrates the optimistic viewpoint about democracy: people could rule themselves when guided by wise men. [Of course, the wise men still needed sharp, with-it women as mates.] 

We won't ever talk about how space exploration has been retarded by political decisions. 

But yeah, the social aspects of the book seem dated--almost fifty years later--but Polymath still gives the reader a quick moving, engrossing tale where one cheers for the good guys.

As a writer, I couldn't help feeling envious. Today, Polymath would be considered a novella.  [Both my books are twice that long.] Today, it ends at where the false conclusion starts.  Yeah, there's no hint that the human vermin are destroying the ecology of the planet. The reader is left to assume that things will be done wisely, according to the Americal Way. [The reader must remember that the AW was not so explotive and predatory back then.]

Settling an alien planet is a common theme in Science Fiction.  The problem in Polymath happens when the colonizers land in the wrong place, far off the established space lanes. Two different space ship landings offer two possible solutions to the dilemma. Granted the AW wins, but Brunner gives the reader a suspenseful ride. I would have liked to have read Brunner's take  on what happened after the  steering rules were set up.

The characters made the book for me. All were multi-dimensional, especially the main character, Lex, a polymath being trainned to organize newly settled planets. But, the villians have more than one trait, too, as well as providing some comic relief.

You can read a sample and more reviews on

Amazon        Nook        kobo/Rakuten

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Other Interesting Reading

Writer, Writer, how does your garden grow? Oh. You write. Here's an interesting take on editing your manuscripts by Kristen Lamb: The Dangers of Premature Editing.Pruning Our Stories vs Pillaging Them. You might want to take a look.

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My Writing Rut

Still doing content edits of On the Run. Here's Pillar's reaction to the demon battle at the end:

"A scattering of drips splashed against Pillar’s face from the trees overhead. Without knowing it, she had stepped back into their shelter after the explosion of light. Ears ringing and muscles trembling, Pillar blinked, but the world was slow to come in focus. Everything had gone silent. Pillar coughed to clear her lungs as she fought to return to the world. Lefferson’s books had hinted that power could explode rather than just light fires, but she hadn’t taken the notebooks seriously."

Surviving the Layers of a Mystery Until the Puzzle Disappears

The Prairie Grass Murders by Patricia Stoltey starts as a straight forward mystery, simplistic even. Nam vet discovers corpse at his family's old farm while on vacation. When he runs afoul a corrupt cop, his little sister, who happens to be a judge in another jurisdiction, comes to the rescue. Stoltey piles the clues as the perps do their best to silence the sister/brother sleuths. But as in the best mysteries, nothing is as it first seems. There're plenty of red herrings to chase, but the best parts come after the reader learns who-done-it.

What makes this book so engrossing is the well-rounded characters. Sure some of the bad guys are telegraphed from the git-go, but Stolety is deft at adding motivational twists to the action that keep the reader guessing. When you think the story line has settled onto a well-trod path, Stoltey lurches off in another direction that adds a new interpretation of the facts.

The above isn't a criticism. Most mysteries are linear: A influences B, B influences C, etc. The Prairie Grass Murders' storyline twists and turns like any good mystery, but Stoltey takes it one step further. Reading her plotline is more like peeling an onion or opening a set of nesting dolls. You never quite know what you're going to find even though you have a fair idea about where the story is going.

Read sample and other reviews at

Amazon       Barnes & Noble 

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More Interesting Reading

Against some writing advice, I always have a thesarus behind the manuscript as I write/revise. There always seems to be a page link to the origins of "bad words". When I finally looked at the page, I was amazed at the staying power of curse words. You might be too. 

Were you as amused as I was when I saw most were related to bodily functions rather than actual curses?

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Life is another subject that present layers and layers of experience. Author Kristine Kathryn Rusch wrote a blog about the important writing influences in her life, including Ursula K. LeGuin--Business Musings. It's a long blog, but thought-provoking. Think everyone has similar experiences between mentors and hinderers.

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My Writing Rut

Am feeling old. Have been trying to write new stuff for a third book in my trilogy while editing/revising On the Run, the second book. It was supposedly ready to copy edit, but I sent it back to the content editor. Result? More suggested changes. Worse, she said my chapter hooks were too weak.

Here's a look at a revision:

The PA system belched news of another arriving bus, adding to the racket bouncing off the station walls. The garbled words made no sense. Pillar ignored the announcement as she licked her fingers clean. The tenor of the air shifted. The hair on her nape rose. Pillar glanced back towards the benches in the lobby.

Taking another bite of her gooey sandwich, Pillar licked her lips as she searched for the disturbance in the station’s energy. The power became so intense even Pillar’s weak talent felt the rising pulse. A chill crawled across her shoulders and down her back. Pillar turned around. Her eyes locked on a tangled-haired girl, clutching a backpack in her hands and using the wall by the platform doors to protect her back. The girl's eyes grew wider as she scanned the station.

Pillar's frizzy hair stood at attention. A strange odor, the like of which she'd never smelled in Osseran, wafted from the outside doors. Her stomach churned, and Pillar dropped her no longer appetizing sandwich. 

Marketing is still my biggest pain in the behind. Below is one of my more recent tweets. I keep trying to come up with something that'd encourage people to sample my short stories, novellas, and book. So far, I'm falling on my face.

A land

Where mages rule in the name of a king 

Where people without magic are scum

Where demons prowl

Visit Andor where There Be Demons

#kindle  myBook.to/ThereBeDemons

#kobo  http://ow.ly/79nz30fmm9e   

#iTunes  http://ow.ly/KeZk30glC3x

Midnight Lines: Reaching for a Simple Stopping Point

I can just imagine it. Hundreds and hundreads of people staying up past midnight, searching for a dull spot to place a bookmark until tomorrow. Finding stopping spots is hard to do with a Lee Child Reacher novel, and the newest, The Midnight Line, is no exception.

Child's minimilist writing style is fascinating. You read one line sentence after one line sentence. Yet, he creates images that stick in your mind for days afterwards. He also doesn't loose you as the plot twists in and out, and round about. Oh, Child writes paragraphs too, but all his writing is as spare as a long-distance runner. He gets from the starting blocks to the finish line with few or any loose-ends dangling.

Complicated things can happen by doing simple things. In this case, Reacher finds a West Pointer's ring in a pawn shop and decides to return it to the officer. He soon gets a target on his back for being a "complication". He also lands in the middle of our opiod crisis and the lousy treatment our wounded veterans all too often get. The reader gets a lovely roller coaster ride along some back country roads.

Remember the Shadow who was always asking: "What evil lurks in the hearts of men?"

Well, Child keeps asking what evil can Reacher find along US highways and roads. This time he explores back-country, dirt roads, not the highways. That the setting was over the mountains from me was a added bonus. I always wondered what might happen up in the hills away from the firewords emporium. Used to hike in the mountains on the other side of the ridge, and Child's descriptions felt real.

Child made his name dishing out action and more action. If you're an action junkie, this may not be the book for you. As Reacher grows older, he's thinking more and more, even philosophizing. Read a sample and more reviews:

Amazon          Barnes & Noble          Rankuten kobo

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Other Interesting Reading

The local writing group, Northern Colorado Writers, has an interesting blog, The Writing Bug. I like it because writing usually bugs me. Besides, I know many of the writers. Any way, David Sharp recently wrote of blog on the importance of a writer's voice. You can check it out here: In search of Voice.

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My Writing Rut

Rendezvous with Demons is finally lurching forward. Have be writing around 750 new words a day, an improvement on the old 500 words a day if I was lucky. Another plus, is I haven't yet reached the episodic descriptions I wrote during NaNoWriMo. Am guessing that's a good thing.

Here's a sample--my tentative opening:

            A party. A party? You're going to a stupid party?
            An invitation to a post-exam party from a future Kingscourt flunky had goaded Britt Kelly to visit the posh northern neighborhood where she now stood, hands on her narrow hips and shaking her head in disbelief.  The dark morning silence the suburban river-bend park rang in her ears. Empty swings drifted back and forth on the early morning breeze as mist rose from the river that flowed through Trebridge.

            The banks of the river in her neighborhood were more likely to be filled with warehouses or garbage strewn lots than groomed grass and trees. That's where she belonged. Not among the neat rows of single houses, separated by groomed yards, that surrounded the park.

            But she had been invited, and she was curious. Mostly, about how her life might have been if her father hadn't abandoned his family for another woman when she was a teen.

            Not that I'm unhappy about how my life turned out. Wish Cahal had stayed in Trebridge, but you can't have everything you wish for.

There Be Demons is still getting decent Amazon and GoodReads reviews, but I'm rewriting and rewriting the book blurb. Effort so far: [Any body have any comments?]

Britt Kelly doesn't have time to be a demon fighter. After her parents' divorce, Britt Kelly's posh suburban life turns upside down. Not only must she cope with a new high school. But she learns she's an Angeli Chosen--picked to fight invading demons at the side Trebridge's four Gargoyle Guardians. Her family's main babysitter, Britt just wants to get grades good enough to escape the projects. Dreaming about her new crush, Cahal, takes even more of her time.

.

Gillen, the leader of the gargoyles, races to teach the four teens under his command enough magic to survive the coming demon battles. But he soon learns that teaching the four teens is like herding cats.

 Britt must learn to follow orders if her loved ones are to survive the coming fight between good vs evil.

You can see the old stuff at Amazon and Rakuten kobo.