Listening to King, Billy summers Audio Book
With more time in the car, I’ve been listening to more audiobooks. I have unexpectedly become a fan of Stephen King. I am not a horror reader. I never made it all the way through IT. But I did make it all the way through Billy Summers, the audiobook. King is not just a horror writer, and maybe you already knew that. I mean this is person that wrote the short story that led to the classic The Shawshank Redemption and Stand By Me. The Audiobook is read by Paul Sparks. The story of a man named Billy Summers who was a gifted sniper in the military who is now…
Making videos for elementary school again
I’m not teaching virtually anymore, I am back in a building again. Consequently, I don’t have as much time to create content/videos for my class and others. For the first time this year, I finally made a video for class. For those that need it, here is a quick video on the wh- digraph.
Becoming more of a listener
Over the past year I have become more of a lister, an audiobook listener. I arrogantly used to think that listening wasn’t truly reading. But I have read, listened to more books, more stories than could have before. One of the unexpected benefits of a long commute to work. My first novel I listened to was Neil Gaiman’s Graveyard book with full cast recording. I’ve listened to it twice all the way through, there is a recording with just Neil reading it. I first listened to it several years ago when traveling to New Jersey to do a book show at a local elementary school. (It’s a long trip from…
New Book, Quinton, now ready for preorder
New book is ready for preorder. It is set for October 1, but I plan on getting it out sooner. I give myself sometime to make sure the formatting is right. I started this book way back in November 2017 for National Novel Writing Month. Got about half-way through and put a pause in it to finish up Charlotte Morgan and the Great Big Math problem. And then life sort of derailed there for a little bit as a difficult separation and divorce happened, and I had had to go back to fulltime teaching as a result. It’s a different story from me, but in many ways similar, to my…
Cover reveal for my next book
So to jump right to it. This is the cover. I started writing Quinton for NaNoMo in November of 2017. Trying to get the whole novel done then. Didn’t make it, but that is okay. A divorce and other life issues got in the way. And there is nothing wrong with that. I also wrote other books in the in between time. But this is a new type of book from me. More sci-fi. Technically Dolbin school is sci-fi, so I guess this is sci-fi for an older readers. This is a definitely a more PG-13 level story. So fair warning there. Pre-order information coming soon.
First chapter of my next book–Quinton
I started this book four and half years ago for National Novel Writing Month. I didn’t finish it then. Which is okay, even if I didn’t finish NaNoMo I still had the skeleton for a new story. I wanted to finish this earlier. Like much earlier. But sometimes life interferes. This book is a departure for me. The main characters are still children, but this is my first PG-13 novel. Do with that as you will. But the main chapters are still children that feel left out and use friends and community to solve problems. I don’t set out to write books with that theme. The books just appear and…
Happy Birthday Bono, thanks for all the songs.
Bono turned 62 today. You may not care. But when your heros get old you are getting old. When your heros get old then they won’t be with you much longer to give you the experiences that you have come to expect from them. I have followed U2 since 1988 when I was a freshman cross country runner. It was pretty much a requirement to like U2 and be on the team. We watched Rattle and Hum, the VHS tape thank you very much just about everyday during our week long summer camp. The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum era of 1987-88 is what introduced me to U2. I…
Three new books coming in 2022
In my last post I talked about how the longer I go through life the more growth minded as opposed to goal focused I become. Goals just stress me out. If you miss them you just feel depressed. Hit them and the feeling of success fades very quickly. So I am trying this year to just focus on improving. But having said that I hope to have out three books this year, Number Investigators #4. a yet untitled Christmas picture book, and my first middle grade novel called Quinton, a novel that’s been sitting on my desk way…too…long. It’s time for it to be free. But these are all books…
Happy 2022. Growth verses goals.
It’s 2022. what the heck. Over the last few years I’ve dealt with a separation, a divorce, becoming a single dad and a move to a house that needs a lot of TLC, new school district, new job, broken arm so it’s been…more than normal. Oh yeah, and a pandemic–the Covid–the Rona. Can’t forget that. All of that put together have been road bumps in my goals. At least in my goals previously I had hope to hit in previous years. But goals break your heart. They hurt. They remind you of your short comings. And if you do hit a goal the dopamine hit is short lived. Whoo hoo!…
Come and see me at JR Tucker high school in on Saturday, November 20. Come by for signed copies of my books.
I am finally getting back to it. Getting out there and selling books in person. If you’re in the Richmond/Henrico area come on by and see me and pick up some signed books. The show is to support the J.R. Tucker Theatre Department in their journey to perform at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland in August of 2022. So come on by! Click here to find out more on their Facebook page. Come on out and pick up a signed copy of any of my books!