FEATURED AUTHOR: STEVE MYERS

ABOUT THE BOOK

Dreaming .400, like baseball itself, exists outside of time. Its 11 short stories are infused with the magic of the game — in the seductive swing of a girl who turns tinsel into gold; in the passion of an orphan on a quest to reach the Astrodome; in a vision of the future in which players are made, not born.

Dreaming .400 spawns pen pal love between friends that grows into poetry; it shrinks the gap between the head and heart of a Brewers’ fan; provides a way out for a teenager stuck in the shadows; inspires a vagabond to an impossible dream to be lived out between the white lines.

INTERVIEW WITH STEVE MYERS

Steve, how did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?” I was a sportswriter in high school, mostly game summaries and a few editorials. I remember a massive letter writing explosion with friends when exiled from my childhood home, to attend University. We asked and discussed the typical existential questions. I kept writing. I traveled. I wrote poetry, short stories and a few reached novel length. I applied for a one year graduate diploma program in journalism. I learned a lot about being precise and focused, but fiction and poetry would not leave me alone. Dreaming .400: Tales of Baseball Redemption is my first book to be published.  

What's your favorite thing about the writing process?
Discovering what I'm trying to say. It's very much a psycho-analytical experience, as my own life and motivations, emotions get splintered into the characters I create, plots weaved and lessons learned.

Can you share some of your marketing strategies with us?

Word of mouth, Amazon, and my wordpress blog.

You have a day job . . . how do you find time to write?
It finds me.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?

Hmmmm, good question. A year is a long time. Whatever station offers movies, sports, and historic/music documentaries at different times. Did I just squiggle out of answering your question?

Yes, pretty sure you did! That's okay. 
How often do you tweet?
Never.


How do you feel about Facebook?
I think it's a brillant and wonderful idea, but it makes me paranoid and self-, I avoid it like an old lover, but all of my wordpress posts get automatically uploaded to my Facebook page, and I did announce my book on Facebook, but I treat it like a shop selling little glass and ceramic chotchkies. I get in and out of there in a hurry.

For what would you like to be remembered?
Integrity.

What scares you the most?
The 12 hours leading up to any surgery.

YouTube is . . . Heaven with a few beers.

What five things would you never want to live without?
My girlfriend, my parents, my brother, baseball, music.

Who would you want to narrate a film about your life?
God.

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
I think I'm addicted to the moon, so both.

Do you spend more on clothes or food?
Food for sure.

What’s the worst thing someone has said about your writing? How did you deal with it?
That I tended to be long-winded. I made a conscious effort to be more concise.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
My girlfriend.



What's your relationship with your cell phone?
I don't have one.



Gasp! How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
Six or seven.

What is your favorite movie?
One of them is The Hustler. Such a great redemption story and the absence of color and special effects almost forces the dialogue to be elemental and it is.

Do you have a favorite book?
In order for a book to be my favorite, I would have to read it more than once. That's the only way I would get caught using superlatives. So let's see. I read Aldous Huxley's Island two times as well as Kerouac's Dharma Bums and also George Plimpton's One for the Record. Did I just squiggle out of a question again?


You're a good squiggler. How about a favorite book that was turned into a movie? Did the movie stink?
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I loved both the book and the movie. It seems silly to me to compare books and movies. It's like walking or riding in a car. When I'm in a car, pedestrians have no respect for us drivers and when I'm walking, “Those damn cars!”

Do you sweat the small stuff?
Absolutely, I'm very uptight.


If you had to choose a cliche about life, what would it be?
Sing, dance, scream. Do whatever it takes, but get yourself feeling good and happy.


What are you working on now?
A new set of short stories, a book of poems, and paintings with my girlfriend, and a novel based on a blog I kept in the summer of 2014.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Steve Myers grew up in Milwaukee, walking distance from Lake Michigan. There was no other side, not visible anyway. The water went on and on. The cliffs were savage. The trees left to die. The abandoned boat houses not bothered.



Steve attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and earned an honers degree in history. He studied in southern Spain, lived in San Francisco, Brooklyn, and for the last eight years Montreal, Canada.



He recently completed a Graduate Diploma in Journalism. He is the author of two blogs. Brewers Baseball and Things is where Steve experiments with baseball and fiction. Broken Bats is home to his poetry.



Connect with Steve:
Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  

GUEST POST BY BOURNE MORRIS

ABOUT THE BOOK

A beautiful journalism student is abducted by a man with unusual and frightening expectations. While searching for her missing student, Red Solaris must contend with a university committee quarreling over the rights of the victims and those accused in sexual assault cases. And, in the midst of all this, a journalism professor brings a gun to school and shoots a colleague. Will Red’s ambition to become dean be destroyed by scandal around her? Will she and Detective Joe Morgan ever acknowledge their true feelings for each other?

GUEST POST BY BOURNE MORRIS

American Universities and sexual assault

This past year, I’ve been doing research on the subject of campus sexual assault because it has been such a hot topic in the media, especially the academic press where I get many of my ideas for the Red Queen series of mysteries.
  
One thing is abundantly clear: no one institution has come up with the perfect policy although many have made valiant efforts. The main problem seems to be one of how to be fair and just to both parties. The survivor needs understanding and comfort, and in the view of many, guaranteed privacy. The accused needs a fair hearing that often conflicts with the survivor’s need for privacy.
   
In my latest academic mystery novel, The Rise of the Red Queen, I try to illustrate the the kind of debates academics are having about this problem. My protagonist Dr. Red Solaris, is an active participant  at her fictional western university and she and the other female members of the committee have a tough time with some of the male committee members who seem to think that sexual assault is just a college fraternity version of rough sex. The women see it as violence.

One argument comes from a male faculty member whose brother was falsely accused and sent to jail. Another view comes from a woman who counsels victims.

Of course, the lawyers on all sides of the issue have a field day and a few unexpected parents show up just to make everything even more complicated than it was before.  While, I’ve endeavored to make the debate lively and dramatic, I also hope to illuminate some dark corners on this subject.

When I was an executive in the New York advertising business in the 1960s, harassment was truly troublesome, but I never expected to see matters reach the stage I read about now in The Chronicle of Higher Education and the general media.

When I was a college professor, harassment seemed to be a major worry among my women colleagues and students. Now, binge drinking has helped bring a whole new set of problems to campuses. And sexual assault is a topic we read about in every other newspaper. Even the federal Government is engaged in telling universities what to do.

Not a cozy topic you might say, but relevant to all of us who have daughters and granddaughters who are in college or plan to go.

I hasten to add, it’s not the only issue I like to write about. I’m still addicted to murder and betrayals of various sorts. I still want my heroines to go through hell to get where they want to be. And, I still have a handsome detective on the scene to provide my Red Queen with some occasional romance.

In ‘The Rise of the Red Queen,” I also included a mystery surrounding the disappearance of a beautiful student and the disturbing man who kidnaps her and presents her with a grim agenda. Red has to balance her tie between arguing with the campus committee and going on a dangerous search for the missing girl.

Writing fiction is my third career and I am having a terrific time inventing my fictional university in northern Nevada and populating it with the vicious, the merely scurrilous and the brave and noble, plus a beautiful Golden Retriever to comfort the occasional lonely lady and generally keep the good guys safe.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After Bennington College, Bourne worked at McCall’s Magazine and then went to Ogilvy&Mather, New York during the Mad Men  era. David Ogilvy and his colleagues treated her wonderfully, promoted her several times and then sent her west to become head of their agency in Los Angeles. She had a splendid run in advertising.

In 1983, she joined the University of Nevada Reno as a full professor in Journalism where she taught until 2009. She learned about campus politics when she served as chair of the faculty senate. She retired to write mysteries in 2009 after a wonderful teaching career.

Bourne lives with her husband of 34 years in a ranch house with a view of tall trees and mountains. They have four children and eight grandchildren. Life is good.

Connect with Bourne:
Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Buy the book:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

FEATURED AUTHOR: RICHARD AUDRY

ABOUT THE KARMA OF KING HARALD

When springtime arrives in picturesque New Bergen, so do the tourists and antiquers. This year, though, there are some unwelcome visitors. Extortion. Arson. And murder.

After his business tanks and his wife leaves him for a Pilates coach, Andy Skyberg flees the big city for the peace and quiet of his hometown. All he wants is a decent job, a steady girlfriend, a flat screen TV with a hundred-plus channels, and one loyal dog. But fate has something else in store for Andy, when his big mutt King Harald starts sniffing out crime.

It’s clear that someone has it in for the town’s New Age retailer, Trudi Bock. And it’s also clear that Trudi wants to rekindle the steamy romance she and Andy enjoyed back in college. Andy has to fend her off, while placating his fiery girlfriend, Deputy Sheriff Cass Conlin. Meanwhile, Harald keeps digging up more mayhem. And it falls to Andy to channel his inner sleuth and make sense of it all.

Throw into this mix one legendary (but lost) ebelskiver recipe . . . a gimlet-eyed church lady…a van full of federal agents . . . a crusty socialist…a beloved iguana . . . and an overabundance of rosemaling . . . And you have all the makings for The Karma of King Harald.

ABOUT KING HARALD'S HEIST

As the leaves begin to change color in New Bergen, Andy Skyberg wants to turn his full attention to his sister’s new café and art gallery—and to the beautiful Finnish architect who’s managing the project.

But the good-natured, go-to guy can’t seem to catch a moment’s peace. His next-door neighbors—two elderly sisters—want him to fend off a pushy historian who thinks they had a scandalous past. His parents enlist him to entertain a narcissistic, boring couple they would like to ditch. And his ever-scheming Aunt Bev tricks Andy into seeking an improbable new gig that could land him in the hot seat. 

Even Andy’s big ol’ mutt King Harald has a kennel full of trouble in store for him, beginning with a pilfered thousand-dollar bill and a naughty garden gnome. Before long, New Bergen’s favorite crime-sniffing pooch finds even more deep doo-doo to toss his boss into. 

Havoc and hilarity ensue, as Andy and his happy hound get to the bottom of King Harald’s Heist.

INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD AUDRY

Richard, how did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?”
I planned to become a photojournalist, but got engrossed in writing for the college newspaper. After that, I developed my career as a journalist and later a copywriter. I became an “author,” IMO, when I finished my first novel — an epic fantasy called The Queen of Thrones. This was several years before George R.R. Martin published A Game of Thrones.

How do you feel about Facebook?
Until recently, I hadn’t much use for it. But as I learn its ins and outs, I have to admit that it has a certainly utility for keeping tabs on old friends and new. I’m just now beginning to explore its capacity to help get word out about my books. I’ve set up a Richard Audry author page, and I’m slowly starting to develop it.

For what would you like to be remembered?
As a teller of good tales. After I’m gone, I’d like my books to live on as long as there are online vendors selling ebooks. I’d like to think that a hundred years from now someone will discover a King Harald mystery and be entertained by it.

What five things would you never want to live without?
1. Above all, my wife. I can’t imagine my world without her in it.
2. Good food. It’s not only nutrition, but comfort and pleasure. A nice meal can make a perfect day.
3. A Kindle full of great reads.
4. A nice, fast internet connection.
5. My big library of DVDs and Blu-Ray movies and TV shows. Who needs cable TV or streaming?

True. If you had a swear jar, would it be full?
If it were in my car, definitely. I live in a big city, so I see stupid driver tricks all the time. It seems every time I sally forth in the Toyota, I’m dodging idiots running stop signs or failing to yield or cutting in close or what have you. And then the air in my Camry turns blue and words beginning with “a” and “f” and “s” burst out of my mouth.

Do you spend more on clothes or food?
Definitely on food. My wife and I are pretty capable cooks. We’re constantly making dishes for the freezer and trying out new recipes. I think we both regard clothes as a necessary evil, buying things only when the old items wear out. No one would accuse me of being a fashion plate.

What is the most daring thing you've done?
Investing thousands of hours of my time and not a little money in this venture of writing and publishing fiction. It is easily the most risky thing I have done in my life. But it’s always been my dream over the years. And if I don’t pursue it now, when will I?

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." —Theodore Roosevelt

What would your main character say about you?
“Why does this guy keep sticking me in situations where people are pointing guns at me? I’m just trying to live an ordinary life. And what’s so hard about finding me a nice, steady girlfriend?”

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever had to write?
I’ve written many hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles, and just as many pieces of marketing and corporate communications. But by far the toughest project was the first book in my middle-grade fantasy series, Johnny Graphic and the Etheric Bomb. I had to create an alternate history of the world, make ghosts real and material, wrangle dozens of characters and complicated plot devices, and make it all believable. I worked on it for six years, off and on. It was brutal, but I’m proud of the book it became. In fact, I think it’s the best book I’ve written so far. Sales have been disappointing, but I’m determined to finish the trilogy. I owe it especially to the ghosts, who are the best characters I’ve created. I’ve left them trapped in the ether and I need to free them in the final book.

You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
My favorite fictional character? Travis McGee. He lived on a houseboat in Ft. Lauderdale starting in the mid-‘60s and sallied forth twenty-one times to solve mysteries and right wrongs. I would love to be as smart as him for a day, as tough, as resourceful, as thoughtful. But I don’t think my wife would want me cavorting with the nubile young things in bikinis that populated his boat, the Busted Flush. I even have a blog devoted to McGee.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
I would invite two English actors who have a very long history together — Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. Laurie, of course, is known in these parts as Dr. House. But before that he was Bertie Wooster and Fry’s partner on a classic sketch comedy show. For his part, Fry played Bertie’s valet Jeeves. He is also a marvelous writer and raconteur, and a maker of travel documentaries, not to mention a prolific actor. As soon as we all sat down at the table, I would simply sit back and shut up, and let these two launch into a brilliant and witty dialog.


How many hours of sleep do you get at night?
I’ve been a poor sleeper since high school. I consider five hours to be adequate and six hours luxurious. I am not sure when the last time was that I slept eight hours. Maybe in 1996.

Do you have a favorite book?
It’s a novel I first read when I was twelve, and I love it as much today as then. It’s Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows. While it was written for children, its depiction of the friendship between Rat and Mole and Toad speaks volumes to the nature of human friendship. I can read passages now that still move me. For example, I read the “Dolce Domum” (“Home Sweet Home”) chapter aloud to my wife every Christmas, and I still get a lump in my throat as poor little Mole smells the scent of his abandoned home in the midst of a snowstorm. He has to see it again. Rat desperately wants to get back to their new digs, but — being a true and good friend — goes with Mole to his old habitation. And as a writer, I am still blown away by Grahame’s flawless prose.

What are you working on now?
I’m just in the process of wrapping up the third book in my Mary MacDougall historical mystery series. It should be out sometime this winter. The first two tales were novellas, but the third installment is full-length. In it, Mary MacDougall — a young heiress of 1902 — takes on her first paying case. She thinks she has the craft of detecting figured out. But discovering the fate of her client’s mother turns out to be far more challenging and dangerous than she ever thought it would be. Complicating things further, she goes sleuthing with her handsome companion Edmond Roy, whom she thinks she hasn’t fallen in love with. For a detective, she’s not very good at uncovering her own emotions.

Lightning round:
Cake or frosting? Cake
Laptop or desktop? Desktop
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Bill Murray
Emailing or texting? Emailing
Indoors or outdoors? Indoors (in winter); outdoors (in summer)
Tea: sweet or unsweet? Unsweet
Plane, train, or automobile? Automobile

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Richard Audry (D. R. Martin) grew up in Duluth, Minnesota, and began his writing career as an arts journalist in Minneapolis. He has specialized in topics ranging from consumer electronics and healthcare to travel and classical music. For many years, he reviewed science fiction and fantasy books for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He is the author of the Johnny Graphic ghost adventure series for kids; the contemporary PI mystery Smoking Ruin; the Mary MacDougall historical mysteries (A Pretty Little Plot, The Stolen Star, and A Mary MacDougall Mystery Duet); and the canine cozy mysteries The Karma of King Harald and King Harald’s Heist.



Connect with Richard:
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Buy the books:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

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FEATURED AUTHOR: THOMAS M.D. BROOKE

ABOUT THE BOOK

Rome AD 9

Augustus Caesar rules Imperial Rome at the height of its power, as the Roman Empire stretches across the known world. Cassius, son of one of her most powerful families, is the personification of Rome's imperial strength: wealthy, popular, a war hero with a decorated military career - none of Rome's fashionable parties are complete without him - except, he hides a secret.


After his nerve is broken in Germany, the thought of genuine armed combat is enough to send him into a cold sweat of fear and shame. But this doesn't dissuade him from living off a false reputation so he can continue a life of casual affairs, wine, and parties, as he is seduced by the many vices of Rome.


However his scandalous life is soon upset by a summons from the Emperor's wife. It ends his happy decadent life and returns him to Germany to assist the Roman legions in their greatest ever trial, and the events that will resound down in history, in the dark forests of the Teutoburg . . .

GUEST POST BY THOMAS BROOKE

Process of building a character

If you want to write a novel, you will need well rounded and believable characters to pull your readers along with the story. For readers to care what happens at the end of a book, you will need to forge a connection between them and your characters.

Different authors will have a variety of different approaches to constructing characters for their novels. Some will take a more ad-hoc approach, and develop them along the way. But for myself, if I am going to create realistic characters, it is important to map out their characteristics at the planning stage of a novel – after all, you wouldn’t start writing a book without knowing what your plot is going to be, so why should the characters be any different? They are just as vital to your novel so it is worthwhile spending some time on character development before you start writing. These are the stages I go through when putting my characters together – you can play around with the order, nothing here is set in stone.
Appearance: Okay, let’s start off with an easy one. I imagine you already have an idea in your mind’s eye what your character looks like, but try and describe him/her in writing now. This will make it easier later on, when you will need to describe them in the novel. Also include as many details as you can, such as colour of eyes, skin complexion, height, and timbre of voice. You might not need all these details for your novel, but it’s good to have them there now to help you imagine them in scenes later on.

Traits and oddities: This can be a limp, lisp, or a simple mannerism of your character, such as their general turn of phrase, or the particular way they might flick their hair, or any distinguishing trait. However, be warned, you don’t need to do this section for all your characters! Don’t give all your characters an odd mannerism for the sake of it, or your novel could end up becoming a very strange book indeed!

Strengths and weaknesses: A lot of authors are very good at the first part of this, and can reel off all their main characters strengths – good with a sword or gun, charming and funny, clever and quick-witted. What they are less good at is defining their weaknesses, but it is just as important to concentrate on this aspect as we are all flawed in someway. A large ego, a fear of confrontation, a tendency   to become maudlin when deep in their cups, or an inability to admit when they’re wrong, all can add depth to your character.  If you want to create somebody who appears realistic, you will need to spend just as much time on the darker side of their personality. It will also give your novel so much more scope to develop if you know both sides of their character.

For example, in my novel Roman Mask, I started off by highlighting my main characters weaknesses. Then as the story progresses, and he grows with the story, I could slowly draw more from the strengths of his personality. This means that you can see a progression in his personality, as he slowly recovers from the tragic events that put him in a lowly state.

This can easily work the other way round. For example, you could have a well-meaning politician who starts the book full of idealism and great ideas as his vision and intelligence gives him\her the desire to help people. Later on, their arrogance in thinking that only they are capable of doing the right thing can lead to them being corrupted by the power and prestige of their position. Either way it shows a progression as the character develops and is a useful tool.

Back-story: It is one thing to invent the type of character you need for your novel, but how did they get there?  For example, you may have constructed a taciturn male detective who excels at deductions and visualizing crime scenes, but what made him so adept at this skill? Was it something from his school years?  What was his family background?  Why did he become a detective? Was there a personal tragedy that led him down this path? The more detail you can add at this
stage, the more you will be able to relate to the character as a real person as you write your novel, as well as giving yourself an invaluable pool of information to draw upon when you need inspiration for a sub-plot. One point of warning however, remember that at this stage your readers will not know of this back-story yet as they won’t read the character profiles, so don’t forget to incorporate them into your novel at some point.

Overall impression: No matter how well you define your characters strengths and weaknesses, and their back-story, you will still need to remember why you created this character in the first place. For example, if you originally brought them into your novel to act as a light relief from the seriousness of your main character, you will need to make sure that you are sticking to this trait through your novel, and that they’re not just morphing into a lesser version of your main-lead. Of course your characters can develop in their own direction once you start writing, but be aware that if you originally wanted a cheerful, friendly character who laughs a lot, that you don’t forget this all together.

You may disagree with this entire process, that is completely your prerogative, but it’s good to at least know what works for you and what doesn’t. At the very least, have a method of your own that you use when you create a character. Characters are, for me, the bedrock of great writing, so they deserve as much time and effort you can give them.


Pictures from sheknows.com, imgur.com, cliparthut.com, samsabel.com, operationrainfall.com.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thomas Brooke lives in London where he works in the exciting, and sometimes crazy, fashion world.

He is also a committed writer, and he spends as much time as he can in his beloved Northumbrian hills, where up until recently could be seen walking with his black Labrador Fergus, who sadly passed in January 2015. Fergus was a constant companion to the writing of the novel and prevented many writers’ tantrums.

As well as writing novels, he also writes a blog on both historical and fantasy genre novels. For more information on Thomas M D Brooke, visit www.thomasmdbrooke.com.


Connect with Thomas:
Website  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Buy the book:
Amazon US  |  Amazon UK  |  Apple iBooks  |  Barnes and Noble  |  Kobo

 

FEATURED AUTHOR: R. BREUER STEARNS

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Question invites readers to consider this premise:

If you could have the answer to one question, and only one question, what would you ask . . . and who would try to stop you from asking it?

To what extremes would they go?

The Question is a thriller that explores a new way of thinking, a method powerful enough to answer very complex questions . . . perhaps powerful enough to solve the universe's most fundamental mysteries . . . perhaps powerful enough to resolve religions' most beguiling unknowns.

The Question is an adventure story . . . fiction that you may wish, may believe, may know, is true. The narrative occurs in the present, with scenes in California, Washington, D.C., Paris, Shanghai, New York, and Afghanistan.
 
The story is aimed at high-school and older readers and contains some graphic violence and occasional sexual allusions. The plot is action-oriented with an element of scientific fantasy, similar to Jack Finney's "Time and Again." The prose is crisply written, professionally edited, and organized into movie-scene chapters.

The Question is ideal reading for anyone who is curious . . . for those who gaze into the cosmos at night and wonder . . . for those who look into the mirror and imagine . . . for those whose hearts beat faster when confronting the unknown . . . for readers who enjoy a fast paced, contemporary thriller that inspires them to think.

INTERVIEW WITH R. BREUER STEARNS

How did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?”
I started writing stories as a teenager. The term “author” sounds very highfalutin, perhaps worthy of significant readership applause. Right now, I consider myself a “writer” . . .  a person who tries to tell a story, convey a message, stimulate an emotional and cerebral response . . . using just the right word at just the right time.
 
What's your favorite thing about the writing process?
I enjoy knowing that  readers’ “get” my work. I try to give readers intense feelings and thoughts . . . and am tremendously gratified and appreciative when my words reward readers for reading my words.

How long is your to-be-read list?
Very long . . . and growing. I do not read fiction when I am writing fiction because I do not want another author’s “voice” to infiltrate, inadvertently, my own. My To-Read List is comprised mostly of biographies, history, and science-related books.

You have a day job . . . how do you find time to write?
Writing is a compulsion. I write when I feel or think that I have something worth writing. I type on my computer . . . or write on scraps of paper, occasionally on napkins . . .   Sometimes, a concept or snippet bubbles up so quickly that I hurry to write it down before I forget it. Other times, I will think and think about an idea or concept and fail to find the right words or the right flow. Writing is sometimes very easy and sometimes excruciatingly difficult.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?
Animal Planet . . . or a channel focused on Science and Nature.

How do you feel about Facebook? 
Facebook is brilliant, conceptually and technologically. It is a wonderful communications and marketing tool because it is simple to use and addictive.

What scares you the most?
Intolerance combined with ignorance. In today’s world, a minuscule number of people with access to highly destructive weaponry can do tremendous harm. My biggest fear is that an intolerant and ignorant few people destroy or injure many innocent lives.

If you had a swear jar, would it be full?
No.  But, it would be a very large jar.

Great answer! What's your favorite treat for movie night?
Popcorn with real butter and salt.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
Mark Twain (paraphrased): It's not what you don’t know that hurts you . . . it’s what you know for sure . . . that just isn’t true.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
I would invite Abraham Lincoln to have dinner with my family and closest friends.

What is your favorite movie?
Any of these movies: Big, Field of Dreams, The Producers (original version), E.T.

Do you sweat the small stuff?
Yes, particularly in writing. Nuance, details . . . the right word . . . are important.  Inattentiveness to the “small stuff” almost always results in problems with the “big stuff.”

How long is your to-do list?
Long, eternally long. Curiosity produces long to-do lists.


Lightning round:

Cake or frosting? Frosting
Laptop or desktop? Laptop
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Chevy Chase
Emailing or texting? Emailing
Indoors or outdoors? Outdoors
Tea: sweet or unsweet? Unsweet
Plane, train, or automobile? Plane

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

R. Breuer Stearns is an investor and author.

Mr. Stearns graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover (1970), Harvard University (AB, 1974), University of Chicago (MBA, 1977), and DePaul University College of Law (JD, 1979). He rapidly ascended on Wall Street in the 1980’s, serving as Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions at Lehman Brothers and Head of Investment Banking (North America) at UBS Securities. While living in New York, he founded “Terrific Teachers, Inc.,” a foundation dedicated to identifying and rewarding the best of the best of the city’s public high school teachers.

Shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Mr. Stearns launched a private investment bank in the former Soviet Union. He spent the early 1990’s seeking to marry emerging science, primarily emanating from Russia’s Defense sector, with Western capital.  During this period, Mr. Stearns made a small fortune, albeit from a larger one. The venture provided a remarkable lesson in hubris, a tremendous reservoir of internal strength, and first-hand source material for Mr. Stearns’ first book, Winning Smart After Losing Big (Encounter Books, Beijing University Press).

Subsequently, Mr. Stearns served as Chief Financial Officer of The Dial Corporation, Chief Financial Officer of Columbia/HCA Corporation, Chief Financial Officer of PacifiCare, Inc., President and Chief Operating Officer of Vascular Genetics, Inc., and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Quepasa Corporation (QPSA:Amex).

Mr. Stearns is a Founder of VestaPoint Capital LLC, a family of investment funds focused on real estate development. He lives in Arizona with his wife, two dogs, two cats, and a horse. He travels extensively and is intensely curious.

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FEATURED AUTHOR: ERIC YATES

ABOUT THE BOOK

In the history of Britain there is a shortage of Second World War stories detailing the lives of ordinary families living in poverty, the children’s games and the black market profiteering that history has forgotten.

The story of young Eric and John is here to set the record straight. Two boys growing up in the midst of rationing, with a flair for mischief and a sense of humour history will never see again – what could happen? Quite a lot, apparently, if the exciting family life of Eric and John is anything to go by. Telling of their family life in war torn Birmingham where poverty was rife, Eric’s account is full of wit and the kind of humour history should remember. From the infamous Bread Pudding Incident to the charming children’s games like ‘Penny on the Brick,' you will find laughter and warm memories of time spent in an age before computers, when children had to entertain themselves. Yet there is poignancy here, too, as Eric and John find themselves swept up in the greater tide of war as evacuees, made to travel to the country with no chance of looking back . . .

EXCERPT FROM EPITAPH TO 'NICKLE ECK'

Chapter 4  ‘Grandad’s Hodge’

One Saturday morning in 1943, when we were living in Dalston Road, Acocks Green, John became patriotic.

“We must help the War effort,” he declared.

I looked for the nearest exit, which was an essential element in my survival plans whenever John had an ‘IDEA!’ (He thought in capital letters).

“Urgh, how?” I should have known better; I should have quietly left home and taken up botany.

John looked me up and down – which didn’t take long.

“You’re very small because you haven’t got any brains,” he concluded.

I knew that any retort would only confirm his diagnosis, so I kept quiet.

“We need to make something to sell to buy National Savings Certificates,” John expounded.
“But what can we make?” I queried, timorously.

“Submarines,” John replied.

“But won’t that wake The Babby?” I asked.

“The Babby” was Fred, our first wartime brother, who weighed just over a massive 12lbs following an heroically long birth at home. The midwife commented each day of the long waiting period that the Babby was late. It seemed to me that it had probably forgotten the due date, not having a diary to refer to. Just after Fred was born, the midwife brought him downstairs, sat me in a chair, and carefully put him on my lap; it felt like being smothered by a large fragrant dog.

This, then, was the infant in his pram in the hallway, sleeping off several pints of full-cream milk with sugar added to match his gigantic appetite. Wartime babies qualified for extra rations which John and I helped to consume. John said that Fred couldn’t eat meat or bread, so we were helping him out by eating for him; I hope he was grateful for our gesture as in adult life he became a JP with an MBE.

John glared at me again, so that my small stature shrank even more, and continued.

“Toy submarines – you Granite Swede; we will make a mould out of Plaster-of-Paris and fill it with molten lead,” he explained, as if to a child, and triumphantly produced one of our few toys - a small metal submarine which had a flat bottom.

Plaster-of-Paris was well known and often used to reinforce makeshift splints at First Aid depots during enemy bombing raids. We could easily acquire some from these unguarded First Aid centres. Who’d ever pinch items to be used for the injured? We would – and did! John explained that most of it was wasted anyway, as it was broken off when the casualties reached hospital.

Lead was a different matter. I wisely didn’t ask about obtaining this material, as I had visions of crawling over the church roof hauling off pieces of guttering – pretending to be a gargoyle if anyone noticed me.

“Idea!” John said, ominously.

“Oh, no!” I wailed, racing to the kitchen door.

But John was too quick for me. He dragged me back and grabbed me firmly by the back of the neck as he stared into my eyes like a giant snake, while I awaited the bite of his forked tongue.

“Tennis,” he said.

I relaxed. “That’s alright,” I thought. John released my head.

“It’s a game,” I said.

“Not the game, boiled brain,” John thundered, “the line markings.”

Very confused, but willingly, I followed John as he collected a claw hammer from Dad’s toolbox and strode to a nearby park, which had a semi-derelict tennis court as most of the players were serving in the Armed Forces. I had the job of stripping the lead as I was small enough to squeeze through the rotting fence. We surveyed the scene, John pointed to the old markings and, sure enough, they consisted of thin strips of lead. He handed me the hammer and told me to strip up a yard or so of the base line, while he kept watch.
“Won’t they miss it?” I asked nervously.

“They probably did when it was there,” said John, enigmatically. “Now shurrup and yank.”
I pulled up a section and we carried the weighty piece home. John cut several chunks off with a chisel and put them into a cast iron pot with a lip, originally used for melting wood glue in the garage.

We returned to the kitchen, where we mixed the plaster in a tin and pressed the toy submarine upside down into it.

While waiting for the plaster to set, we put the pot of lead on to the largest burner on the stove to melt, which it soon did – giving off great clouds of smoking fumes. We hurriedly opened the kitchen door and windows, and turned the burner down to ‘simmer.’ The house would not be habitable for several days, but that’s a different story . . .

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Eric did two years' National Service as an Army Education Officer in Cyprus, and seven years with the Kenyan Police in East Africa where, as a Customs & Excise Investigation Officer, he swam in shark-infested waters looking for hidden contraband. Whilst living in Africa, he joined the National Theatre of Nairobi where he performed in Shakespeare, the Classics and drama.

For almost 20 years he worked for Bass Charrington, controlling licensed premises throughout the Midlands, and also for Mitchells & Butlers in Birmingham, during which time he was with the Hall Green Little Theatre and became a stalwart member of the Blossomfield Club in Solihull, where for many years he performed, directed and was co-writer of original musical comedies produced and performed there.

At one time a presenter for BBC Radio Birmingham, Eric spent ten years with the Monitoring Section of the BBC World Service in Berkshire, becoming well-known locally for his acting talent, especially mimicry and humour, winning numerous awards over the years.

Eric was married twice and met his second wife in Henley-on-Thames, when she directed him in J.B. Priestley's When We Are Married. At that time he was semi-retired working as a warden at Windsor Castle, where he endeared himself to his colleagues but was often reprimanded for displaying his unique brand of humour to the general public.

Retiring to Devon in 2001, Eric enjoyed boat restoration, brewing very strong cider, cultivating rare trees and plants and reading. He began writing his stories in 2004 - and also began tales from his adult life, regrettably unfinished. He and his wife performed in Salcombe, where he is celebrated in the South Hams for his performance in the famous music hall sketch 'Dinner for One' (YouTube - Dinner for One, Eric).

His final memorable performance was at the 2011 Dartmouth Drama Festival, five months before he died, where he brought the house down in the two miming sketches from Michael Frayn's Alarms & Excursions, directed by his wife. His expertise was as sharp as ever and, as always, he received tumultuous applause.

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FEATURED AUTHOR: WAVERLY CURTIS

ABOUT THE BOOK

“Savvy sleuths come in small packages…”

Pepe, aspiring P.I. Geri Sullivan’s muy clever Chihuahua, has stopped talking. But why now, with Geri’s best friend Brad missing and her ditzy sister in grave danger? Geri’s lost without Pepe’s dogged detective work, especially when a client of Brad’s expires under very murky circumstances.

Luckily, Pepe turns out to be an excelente blogger, and his nose for clues soon has the detective duo chasing down leads. But they’ll have to put a bite on crime quickly, because danger’s afoot – and it’s making tracks in their direction . . .

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Waverly Curtis is the joint pseudonym for mystery writing team Wavery Fitzgerald and Curtis Colbert.

Curt Colbert is the author of the Jake Rossiter and Miss Jenkins mysteries, a series of hardboiled, private detective novels set in 1940’s Seattle. The first book, Rat City, was nominated for a Shamus Award in 2001. A Seattle native, Curt is also a poet and an avid history buff. He is the editor of Seattle Noir, a collection of crime stories published in 2009. He was a judge for the Edgars in 2008 and is a member of the Mystery Writers of America. Curt and his wife, Stephanie, live in a Seattle suburb under the thrall of their cat, Esmeralda.

Waverly Fitzgerald is the author of three historical romances set in Victorian London under the name of Nancy Fitzgerald. Ever since her first novel was published in 1981, she has been teaching writing classes for adults at various venues including the UCLA Writers Program, the University of Washington Extension, and regional conferences. She currently teaches at and works for Richard Hugo House, the literary arts center in Seattle. Waverly also writes non-fiction, and has published a book called Slow Time: Recovering the Natural Rhythms of Life. She lives in an apartment in the heart of Seattle with her daughter, Shaw, and Shaw’s Chihuahua, Pepe.

Waverly and Curt met in a writing class in the late 1980s and have been working together ever since. Curt took Waverly’s novel writing class while he was writing his first novel. Waverly was his writing coach while he wrote his trio of historical mysteries set in Seattle. For about a year, they worked on twin novels in which Waverly’s protagonist, a female P.I. appeared as a sidekick in Curt’s novel about a hard-boiled Vietnam vet and vice versa. When Curt came up with the idea of a mystery featuring a talking Chihuahua named Pepe, Waverly asked if she could help and the collaboration began.

Pepe is an eight-year old Chihuahua, adopted by Waverly’s daughter Shaw, when he was a puppy. He likes stuffed toys, especially if they  squeak. He hates the rain, which is unfortunate since he lives in Seattle. Like his namesake character, he hates being dressed up and thinks he is much bigger than he is. Unlike his namesake, he has a sweet disposition and doesn’t talk much, but he does have his own Facebook page.

Curt loves to start chapters; Waverly finishes them. Curt loves to elaborate and Waverly likes to edit. Curt’s humor is broader while Waverly’s humor is more situational. Together they are an unstoppable mystery novel writing team. Visit them on Facebook on at www.thepepenovels.com.

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