Catching up with myself

Maybe it's the old newspaper reporter/editor in me, but I pride myself on making deadlines. Imagine my shock and dismay when I opened my OWN blog today to add a post and read that my last entry was back in October!

I could say there hasn't been much to report, but then I'd be lying. Well, as a writer of fiction, I guess I could be expected to lie ... a little. Truth is, I've been very busy. I finished out a wonderful semester of college teaching, and I landed a marketing communications position with a community college in Pennsylvania. Mind you, I'm in North Carolina. I knew that some day, this "virtual" work world would really, well, work out. It has finally happened, and I'm thrilled. I work remotely for HACC, Central Pennsylvania's Community College, on a part-time basis. This schedule leaves time for family, travel, and writing.

Speaking of which, I have two things in the works now. The first is a novel titled, Deceived. This is story I wrote years ago, but was warned off from seeking publishing because the it is based on a true story, only slightly fictionalized (you could say it's "Faction"). At the time I wrote it, I was warned that someone could get killed for it ... perhaps even me. I dug deep. I researched. I waited. And then, like all novelists do to a certain extent, I lied. I think enough time has passed, and I've rewritten it substantially, so it's now more fiction and less facts. It's being edited now. I'll keep you posted on its release date.

The second story is much less controversial. It's a true story about a young man who made a very difficult decision at the age of 16. After a car wreck mangled him and killed his stepfather, this young man told a surgeon to amputate his crushed and useless leg. What he did after that decision was life-altering and awe-inspiring. I don't think anyone will object to this story. In fact, I hope many will look at Justin Webb as the hero he is becoming. More to come!  

Interesting article in Wall Street Journal

It can be done. Says so, right here.

A self-published author of an e-book (no hard copy) wanted to test the waters with her work. Seems like the water was just fine for her. Surely there's a tip or two in here for the rest of us. Leaving Lukens is available for e-book readers as well as in paperback, and so far, the response from reviewers and readers alike is positive, wonderful "better than your first" kind of stuff.

Now, if you haven't finished all your Christmas shopping yet, I invite you to try out a low-cost option, and buy my e-book (Leaving Lukens) for your favorite person -- or yourself. I'd be happy to autograph a paperback copy, but if Kindle's your thing, go for it. Please, and Thank You. 

Work in Progress: Mystery for Children

I love telling stories of all kinds. I especially love telling stories to my nine-year-old son. So when he asked me to write a book with him for children about children after Leaving Lukens was released, the wheels started turning. He helped me come up with traits for each character, developing each person's background, habits, reasons for acting, likes, fears, etc., until each character seems real enough to touch and talk to like a real child. I expected my son could have fun developing the storyline with me as we went along.

What I didn't expect was that these well-developed characters would "talk" so soon to me. They each have peculiarities we didn't plan, and yet they are as natural as a next door neighbor's kid can be. Putting enough twists and turns into a plot to keep the story interesting (without being too gimmicky) is fun for my son, too -- he's learning not to be too obvious so the clues can unfold one at a time.

I applaud his desire to help with the story, though I wonder if what I'm teaching him will come back to haunt me later when he's making up an alibi for staying out too late one night. I guess we all get to learn it somehow.

Children make a wonderful audience

I had the opportunity to speak to the fourth grade at MCA this week -- what a creative group of children!
http://www.mtairynews.com/view/full_story/15449636/article-Wharton-leads-students-on-writer%E2%80%99s-journey?instance=secondary_stories_left_column

Leaving Lukens Finished

Well, at least the very rough draft of the manuscript is. It took me six months to write -- far better than the six years it took to research and write The Pirate's Bastard. (What a relief!)

The story took a few unexpected turns, and I am quite pleased with the work. The story is a bit of a roller coaster ride of an adventure tale. There's a bit of a love story woven in, too, for readers who like to see how relationships develop -- or don't.  There's an element of mystery, but not in the traditional sense. I wasn't meaning for it to be a mystery. Honestly, I don't know what I intended with this one, other than to tell a good story. That's what I think it is -- a good story set in 1942 coastal North Carolina.

New Bern and Oriental figure prominently, and I hope I've caught the essence of what these wonderful towns were like in 1942. Because New Bern is such an incredibly rich town in terms of history, information is abundant about what it might have been like back then. Oriental has always had a uniqueness about it -- and that continues today.

Special thanks go to the owner the The Bean in Oriental. He's allowing me to use an image of his delightful coffee shop on the cover as part of a design element. Other places in Oriental are mentioned as well, like Steamers, a great restaurant there. I look forward to enjoying the quiet quirkiness of Oriental in the future. 

That won't be today, though. I'm heading in the opposite direction for a book signing tomorrow in Banner Elk at the Banner Elk Winery. Author and friend Mary Flinn has invited me to this event, and I'm so grateful to be included. I only have a few copies of The Pirate's Bastard left in my "signing" stock -- wonder how many I'll come home with after this event?

Local Paper Covers Book - Nice Article

Well, I finally made the lifestyles section of the Mount Airy News. The article is a profile of my work at Habitat as well, so there is a mix of information. The author did a nice job tying it all together, though I had hoped he would have included my website or at least the local bookstore's name where the book could be purchased, but the angle of where I work seemed to take first place. Oh well. It's publicity.

I've not blogged in awhile, primarily because of my nutty work schedule as of late. The good news is that I hope to see my work hours get to the "normal" range after this week passes, and then I can get back to blogging, promoting, and writing my book. Speaking of which, I've had more great reviews of The Pirate's Bastard, and I've hit nearly 30,000 words of the work in progress. The working title is Leaving Lukens, and I really like the storyline so far. I'll tell you more about it later, but I have so little time to write this week, so I'm going to get to it!

Memories of place gone by

My son has taken a liking to Star Wars. He was so surprised to learn that when I was a kid of 15 or so, I piled into a Toyota Corolla with eight or so friends and we dashed for the downtown theater in Annapolis to see the opening night of Star Wars. It was an event not to be missed.

Now, I've never been a Star Trek fan, and am not really that into SciFi these days; but back then, Star Wars was a major happening, something akin to a Harry Potter release these days, I suppose. The funny thing is, I don't recall the sequels (Clone Wars) having as much fan fare as the sequels to Harry Potter's introduction. Or perhaps I'm not paying attention, anymore.

With an exhausting amount of Lego's around the house, my son can build anything he's seen in books, movies, and life. So, put Star Wars and Lego's together, and you have any number of sand cruisers, star ships, R2D2s, and dashing characters vying for attention. He is saving his money for a $72 kit to build ... Darth Vader's Death Star.

Ah, the days of childhood.

New year, new work

With the start of a new year, I finally sat down to continue working on a project I got really excited about in October. Holidays, life, and other projects found their way into my schedule for the last quarter of the year, and I had to put this project on hold ... until now. With a day off dedicated to writing, I made great progress; the manuscript isn't going the way I thought it would, though.

In fact, the characters I was peddling around with on the handlebars of my bike last fall have morphed, and the outline for the story is nearly upside down from how I "planned" for it to be.

Truly, it's a good thing. I don't want to give the story away, but I'll share with you a few of the surprises I discovered yesterday. My lead character, Ella, is much stronger than I gave her credit for last fall. She's remained calm (to a point) in a most harrowing experience that probably would have caused me to have a heart attack. This is the first story I've written from a woman's point of view -- go figure -- and it's proving insightful on many levels.

This isn't a love story, but there is a love interest or two. There's a mystery to solve, some deep-seated issues to resolve, and of course there's a boat. Set in 1942, the story dips a toe in the waters of the economic stress of the times, the social issues of a small North Carolina coastal town near New Bern, and the war that was encroaching upon the lives of the village's occupants.

With the strong running start I had yesterday, I have a better sense of where to go with the story next -- or rather, Ella is telling me what's going on ... it will be interesting to see how she wants to resolve it.

In this new year, I wish all my friends and family (and those of you reading this who haven't made yourselves known to me yet) a prosperous and productive new year. May the characters in your lives prove insightful to you, as well. 

Winston-Salem NC BookMarks Book Festival Coming September 11

I'll be at the Winston-Salem BookMarks Book Festival on Saturday, Sept. 11 promoting The Pirate's Bastard and the publisher, Second Wind Publishing. The festival has been around for several years, and this year's event wil be held in the arts district near Trade Street -- a great place for an event! If you're in Winston-Salem Saturday, you're in for a treat with loads of authors, publishers, and fun things to do for adults and children. If you love books, this is the place to be!

Check out this link for more information and directions.