Louisiana Stories

Up to the Task I watch him run around the yard with his cousins. I have one thought: this isn’t fair. Rylan is a precocious tow-headed five-year-old. He is precocious. That’s just a fancy word for full of life. He is precious. That’s special.   Rylan has seen a great deal in his young life. He lost his father through …

East Beauregard Trojans seniors of 2007.  Back L to R:  Michael Maddox, Richie McKay, Terry Iles,  Front   Brady Glaser, Kyle Burk, Tyler Adams        They’ll bury Michael Maddox this morning.  He’ll be wearing his Atlanta Braves cap and shirt. It’s fitting. It may seem shallow talking about baseball when a young man has died. But baseball was …

“The historian tells what happened. The novelist tells how it felt.” -E.L. Doctorow     As many of you know, I’m in the midst of writing our fourth novel, As the Crow Flies. It’s the third book in the Westport Trilogy (the first books are The Wayfaring Stranger and A Good Place). Crow is currently in its third draft weighing …

    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 …

Bo Rein to become next LSU Football Coach The Associated Press has reported that Bo Rein, current North Carolina State coach, has been picked to head up LSU’s Football Program. The LSU Athletic Department has neither confirmed or denied the report. If hired, Rein would replace long-time LSU Coach . . .   Before you get rattled, this is a …

The East Beauregard Trojans head to Oak Grove, Louisiana tonight for the state football quarterfinals.   In honor of the team, and my brother-in-law Coach Gordy Glaser, I’m dedicating this song to the Trojans:  Tony Joe White’s “Saturday Night in Oak Grove, Louisiana.” It’s one of my favorite tunes from Louisiana blues/folk singer Tony Joe White, who is a native …

Turkey Pinecones and cornbread dressing Last week I ate twice at school cafeterias. It was Thanksgiving lunch and we grandparents were invited. I don’t miss a grandchild event if I can help it. One day was with our adopted (truly) African-American granddaughter, Daizy Mae Thomas. The next day was with Luke Iles, aka Chief Wampum. Both meals featured turkey, cornbread …

    Wow. The Life Long Learning journey is the road I want to be on. I call it LLL. Will you pray that DeDe and I will hunger and thirst for learning more? More about God. More above living life. More about how to serve.       This is part of my current reading list. Soul Keeping.  I’m …

Ignore that fancy word. Juxtapositon. It simply means comparing and contrasting. How is an orange like an apple?  How is it different. It’s a big part of how my mind works as I take three steps daily: Being curious Being Amazed. Being Moved to tell a story.     Many times my stories are about these amazing things and how they …

It’s my mantra: Be curious. Be amazed. Tell about it. I arrive at Freedom Baptist Church early. Walking in the auditorium, I stop at a group of photographs on the back wall. I know what it is: black and white photographs of the men and women from this church who served our country.  Most are WWII faces. Most  Ten Mile …

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 …