The tale of a bridge, the father of Pocahontas and second chances

Sometimes you do get a second chance. A couple of years ago, I discovered the existence of letters in family records written by a young Civil War soldier who was killed on the battlefield in Virginia. John Williamson lived and worked in Eckley, a coal mining town in northeastern Pennsylvania, and he wrote dozens of … More The tale of a bridge, the father of Pocahontas and second chances

“Coal Country Connections” & “You Dream Every Night That I am Home” are now available in bookshops

I’ve now written two nonfiction books about the coal region of northeastern Pennsylvania. The first, “Coal Country Connections” is based on the over 70 signatures in an autograph album from the 1880s owned by a woman from the region, and the book is about the lives of the signers of the album. The second book, … More “Coal Country Connections” & “You Dream Every Night That I am Home” are now available in bookshops

Writing prognostiphobia–yes, it’s a thing

I’m just full of announcements. Back around the holidays I announced that I would be imminently unpublishing my book This, Their Friendship’s Monument (TTFM) on Amazon and publishing a new and improved version of it called Coal Country Connections (C3). A quick recap—I had decided that I wanted to change the black and white images … More Writing prognostiphobia–yes, it’s a thing

Best. Present. Ever.

On Christmas, I got the best present ever. I’ve had other best presents ever, including a shoebox crammed full of wonderful paperback books when I was a preteen, sweaters, afghans, wall art and other beautiful handcrafted items, and other gifts that weren’t handmade but were incredibly thoughtful. As we all know, this is Christmas #2 … More Best. Present. Ever.

My book will soon be unpublished & republished with a new name on Amazon–read on to discover why

It should have been easy. All I wanted to do was change the photos in my book on Amazon from black and white (B&W) to color. Simple, right? Nope. This cautionary tale is being told for two reasons–to let my readers know that my old book will soon become a new book (sort of), and … More My book will soon be unpublished & republished with a new name on Amazon–read on to discover why

From Procrastination Station to Conjunction Junction: writing is hard

I’m writing a book. My second one, actually (the first one This, Their Friendship’s Monument can be found on Amazon). Writing my first book taught me how hard writing a first book can be. And because I self-published using Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), I know how complicated that is too. In some of my previous … More From Procrastination Station to Conjunction Junction: writing is hard

If You Self-Publish on Amazon, Are you Considered a “real” Author?

A few years ago, I began writing a book. It’s about the lives of the people who signed my great-times-three Aunt Mary’s autograph/friendship album. Aunt Mary was the daughter of Scots-Irish immigrants and lived in a coal town in northeastern Pennsylvania. The Civil War, massive coal mine strikes and disasters, and the 1918 flu pandemic … More If You Self-Publish on Amazon, Are you Considered a “real” Author?