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  Blog November 2024 What are you up to? That is a typical comment when old friends gather for dinner, drinks, and the simple enjoyment of companionship.  I “retired” three times—one each from the City of Tucson, the City of Lubbock, and the Lubbock Independent School District. However, after each one, I knew I still had gas in my tank and miles to go. Using skills I learned from a broad formal education, and over my fifty-year police career, I turned to writing for pleasure: writing what I wanted when I wanted and, hopefully, opening up a new late-in-life career. It wasn’t and isn't easy, and certainly not for the fainthearted. It is not for casually coasting through my old memories and spilling out a story everyone has been waiting a lifetime to hear.  That is not real life. Nevertheless, having dealt with editors, publishers, booksellers, critics, and scam artists, I have found my “retirement” to be a full-time job but a labor of love. With eight published novels, two of which a
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  Blog August 2024 Where All the Roads Come Together August! Summertime is almost spent: the first hint of fall is just over the horizon. One more quick weekend for everyone to get in one move vacation; malls fill with families and back-to-school purchases. We’re ready for whatever lies ahead. Or are we ? Sometimes it happens when least expected. This summer had been perfect. We enjoyed a Viking Cruise along the eastern seaboard and the St. Lawrence River—New York, Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Halifax, Gaspe, and much more.    Our book business jelled. MGM Amazon Prime Video turned full speed ahead with Color of the Prism, and The Russian as movie projects for Amazon Prime. The groundwork has been laid, producers have come forward, trailers have been filmed, the first draft of the screenplay for Prism is complete, and business is moving forward steadily.                             Suddenly, without notice or fanfare, the Covid Grinch visited our home. This is my second go-
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  Blog May 2024 A Long Road Ahead All of us have done it at least once in our lives. Regardless of how well we planned, checked, and double-checked our route, resources, and schedule, we found ourselves on a long, narrow road. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. We were supposed to be on an Interstate or an Autobahn, but somehow, this is where we found ourselves. Now, we must look at Plan B if we thought about a backup plan. Welcome to Writing 101. To reach our goal, we must have a Plan B and a C or D. That’s real life in the publishing world. Such was the case in my first novel, “Color of the Prism." We have gone through three publishers and are on our fourth. The story itself sails  well through smooth and rough seas; the same cannot be said for publishing houses.  Some go out of business; others are swallowed up by larger houses, and one or two  run astray of financial crimes and are closed. “Color of the Prism” has had its share of ups and downs, but the story always rises
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