As the Crow Flies

As always, we want our friends and followers knowing how to pray for us. First of all, our hearts are so full of gratitude. Gratitude is one of my 6 Plus Words for 2016. It’s a grand word. Here are needs and opportunities for the coming week: I have two speaking events next weekend.  On Sat. April 30, I’ll be …

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It’s a tree planting day on my Dry Creek land. It’s proposal day on my book, As the Crow Flies. A proposal is the written package sent to an agent/publisher to “sell your book.” I never thought of these two actions as related. Planting pines. Proposing a book. You start with what you have. And you plant it the best …

    Losing a dog, leaving a cap It may not seem like a big thing. But to me it was. Dee and I had spent three years without a dog. It’s the only time in our marriage we didn’t own at least one dog. Or to put it better: the only time a dog didn’t own us. Africa is …

We’re deep into the second draft of our latest novel, As the Crow Flies. I need your help in fleshing out some of the characters, scenes, and storyline. Join our Creekbank Tribe by sharing ideas at the end of this post. Thanks in advance! Today, you’ll meet the narrator of the book, a spunky teen named Missouri. Curt Opening line …

A word from Curt I’m living in 1881 and 1882 today. I’m right at 92,000 words on As the Crow Flies.  My goal is to have 100,000 words by the week’s end. In the second draft, we’ll begin cutting down on words.  My goal is the book to weigh in at about 75,000 words in its final form. What I’m …

I’m working on As the Crow Flies the follow up historical novel after A Good Place.   Here are two openings I’m tinkering with.  Your honest input is appreciated.  No one writes a book alone.  I need your prayer, suggestions, even criticism.  Everything can be improved.  Opening A: Ft. Worth, Texas Christmas Eve 1955 As the crow flies it was …

  November is National Novel Writing Month. It’s an opportunity to write that novel (or family story) that’s been bubbling inside you for years.   You can keep your project quiet if you wish. I simply encourage you to begin. As they say, the journey of a thousand miles begins with one single step … or computer keystroke. The goal …

November is National Novel Writers Month, commonly known as NaNoWriMo. The goal is for folks like you to write a 50,000 word novel in a month. I’m writing a new novel,  As the Crow Flies, and need to add 50,000 words in the coming month. This is an invitation to join together and write. We’ll be sharing ideas and encouragement …

The fun and joy of writing historical fiction is “going back” to a time in the past. With our new draft novel, the year is 1881 on Louisiana’s frontier, commonly called “No Man’s Land.”             It’s important to look at dates, moon phases, weather (when you can find it) and “live in that era.” That’s …

A Word from Curt   Here is the current draft opening line of my current novel, As the Crow Flies:   My name is JANE DOE, and I was born into a family of thieves. It’s how I ended up in the middle of what came to be known as the Westport Fight. This is my story of what happened …