Category: RABBIT TRAILS

I would have my kids bring their sacks to the dining room I would have them dump their Halloween bounty onto the table. I would then proceed to search through it for unsealed packaging, foreign substances, or anything looking out of the ordinary. Anything falling into that category went into a separate pile to be discarded. Any candy that looked spoiled or tainted went into another pile (notice the infected tip on the candy corn…

Comments closed

“Wonky & whimsical” -New York Times. “It’s what really does go bump in the night…” San Francisco Chronicle. That’s what the media is saying now, but before I had found my voice, I remember the *crickets.* I eventually decided to run an advertisement in the classified section of the Nashville Newspaper. CLICK TO READ THE REST OF THIS STORY FREE…

1 Comment

This is an easy thought. This can and should be done more frequently by most new writers, and all writers who feel discouraged. Short and sweet… Copy. I did not say plagiarize. Copy. Imitate. Find a writer you like and admire, one you would judge to be currently successful. Look at the way he or she writes. The way he starts and the way he ends stories. Look at the subjects and topics. Look at the structure.…

Comments closed

Your Pretend Newsletter Is Here Now Pretend you subscribed, and pretend nobody else can see it. Photo by Roman Kraft on Unsplash   OK, everybody knows by now that I am not doing well with the various newsletter platforms. But I’m proud to have come up with an interim solution. This will be a Medium-based communication especially designed for Medium readers. It will be on the honor system. Soon, I intend to offer another, off-Medium…

Comments closed

I am giving some thought to starting a free newsletter with my Medium stories, maybe like a couple on Mondays. Would that be something you guys would be interested in? You wouldn’t have to pay a Medium fee if you didn’t want to. It would help me too. Sometimes when I talk to a publication about my stories I get asked how many newsletter subscribers I have. Thanks, Don click here…  

Comments closed

Quietly, while you aren’t looking. When I like something and start a project, I give it all. I go all the way before I can talk myself out of something. That’s how I accomplish any start-up. And, I admit, many of you guys know how much I like shiny things, too. The rediscovery of writing For me, the rediscovery of writing in my life was distracting. The discovery that I could make money at it…

Comments closed

Says the superhero as he searches for a wormhole to ANOTHER alternate universe. It’s not easy being a superhero. Long hours, lousy pay. But it can also be a rewarding life. Like when the mayor says “you saved us all from the bloodthirsty Gila Monsters!” Wow, it can feel good. And it’s equally tough to write about. When your editor tells you “I can’t see where this story is going…” you have to understand that…

Comments closed

And vice versa? Photo by Vardan Papikyan on Unsplash And can they both live in harmony in this Medium environment? This may be a kind of a “Cowboys dance with the farmers’ daughters, farmers dance with the ranchers’ gals” thing that territory folks just do. Speaking from the archaic days when humans used to be rule followers, here are a couple that will promote peaceful coexistence between authors and fans. Rule One for Readers Rule one. Fans and…

Comments closed