Like many people, I found the game of golf to be irksome. Actually, it doesn’t take so long for the beginner to reach a level of proficiency that is encouraging. The game is exciting at that point, the challenge clearly defined, and progress positive. But that is the hook. At some point, be it … Continue reading Back To Basics
Author: Rich
DEVIL TOWN
My research of late has taken me to Alta California and the restless pioneering souls who first settled it. I am pursuing links to certain colonial families but as often happens while hunting treasure I stumbled across an entirely unexpected gem. I call this one Devil Town. Here's the story. Along with the Missions … Continue reading DEVIL TOWN
Just For You
It is New Year's Day and as my mind wanders back over the year just past I think of opportunities not seized and words not spoken. With each passing year these omissions grow in importance for me and I resolve to improve. So often it is not the will to seize these opportunities that fails me … Continue reading Just For You
The Demise of Books
Growing up in the late fifties and early sixties, television was not the time consuming activity it is today. Even in New Jersey (western Jersey, y'all!) any household was fortunate to receive one channel clearly, let alone the hundreds of choices available today. As a preschooler, I had just settled into watching Howdy Doody and Roy … Continue reading The Demise of Books
It’s Time to Thank My Reviewers
With the Holiday Season there comes an urge to give thanks. In the Rolodex of my brain I can flip through many names of those who reach out regularly to help make my life and those of others better. As an author, I am particularly beholden to my reviewers. For readers, this is a brave … Continue reading It’s Time to Thank My Reviewers
History is an Artichoke
I am immersed in research. The project began over five years ago out of curiosity and has grown sufficiently to become the infrastructure for a historical novel, or maybe even a biography. History, I've found, is like an artichoke; a cultivated thistle with a flower of tough outer layers that protects a tender heart. My … Continue reading History is an Artichoke
Write Through The Holidays
The Holidays not only creep up on you, they devour you. Really, there are multiple holidays tightly woven into a short span of time. I am declaring Hallowe'en part of the Holiday Season. Admittedly there is no day off from work on that day and yes, we tend to think of it as more of … Continue reading Write Through The Holidays
Six Ways to Start Your Creative Juices Flowing
I share with you some of the my ways to overcome the curse of Creativity Deprivation. 1. Exercise. I run. Not every day, but frequently. And I find that plots and scenarios pop into my head unbidden as I jog along (I don't use an iPod). But I don't believe that creative resurgence is limited … Continue reading Six Ways to Start Your Creative Juices Flowing
The Value Of Research
I write fiction. I've published mystery thrillers. I've created the characters with the hope that they will take on a life of their own. When that seems to happen, as described by my reviewers, I feel I have succeeded. Fictional characters necessarily are born of traits familiar to me, whether they are part of me … Continue reading The Value Of Research
The Unsinkable Davy Brown
The Carriage house of the Santa Ynez Valley Museum was packed last night with people who came to hear about Davy Brown, a man whose greatest renown to most people is the appearance of his name on a bottle of ale from the Figueroa Mountain Brewery*. And that is the point. Although a campground, a creek … Continue reading The Unsinkable Davy Brown
R Lawson Gamble 