The Author Guy Blog

25th February 2025 Hello out there, Welcome back. My life as a writer and novelist is truly a journey, not a destination, and I have so much to learn and will continue learning as long as I metaphorically put pen to paper. I was a broadcast journalism (radio and television) major for my undergraduate degree, but I’ve had no formal training as a writer or novelist. I do attend an occasional writer’s conference (they’re fewer opportunities since Covid) and listen to as many novelist speak in public as possible. I take notes, either mental or written, and then transcribe them into a Word document I’ve labeled Write Right. It’s my self-created, ever-evolving MFA (Master of Fine Arts) syllabus. I also have a robust, self-explanatory Word file labeled Words and Phrases to which I refer to constantly when I write, especially to provide more vivid narrative and avoid descriptive repetitions of such things as facial expressions, eye movements and body language. In both books and magazines (my...

18th February 2025 Hello out there, Welcome back. One of the great joys (among a hundred or more) is selecting the names for characters in my novels. Often, with their permission, people who have a special place in my heart or in my memories of times gone by are featured. In all four of my published novels, Dr. Michael McGinley has a brief recurring role as the town’s beloved family doctor, and he keeps alive the memory of my best childhood friend who sadly died of Lou Gehrig’s disease when he was in his early fifties. In my novel Blue by You , the minor character readers write that they “adore” is a teenage girl named Annie Hathaway. That is the name of Suzanne Pleshette’s (I was a huge fan until her passing) character in Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic thriller “ The Birds. ” I’m determined to name a future character Joey Heatherton after the actress, singer and dancer who was very famous during the 1960s and 1970s as I was “growing up.” I’m in the process of writing a Christmas-themed nov...

  Hello out there,  Welcome back. I’m “all in” and fully invested in my later-in-life journey as a writer, poet and novelist. That said, I try to do what I can to help fellow authors, such as attending as many events our library hosts featuring visiting authors. And I promote individual authors and specific books I believe are worthy. A case in point will soon occur. It will be Valentine’s Day the end of this week, and the fully-restored historic train station in my hometown features once/year opportunities with the dining car in the train at the station. This year they have a “Blue Hawaii” theme, and will be showing the movie ahead of each of six dinner settings over two days. I know the RailPark’s executive director, and facilitated an introduction that resulted in an invitation to a fellow author to make presentations and promote her books. Here’s why. Letetia Henley-Kirk is a dear friend living with her husband Barrey in Memphis. Letetia was a close confident of Elvis and ...

 4th February 2025 Hello out there, Welcome back. For those who have read my award-winning novel  Blue by You , you know “Blue” in the title is a dog. Actually, three generations of Australian Shepards owned by my male protagonist who names each of them the same. I love dogs, and have featured them in all four of my novels. Before  Blue by You , each of the dogs was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel because I’ve owned two over the past twenty years, sequentially not consecutively. From the same breeder, they were cousins. My first Cavalier was named Mosby, and he passed away a few months shy of his eleventh birthday. My current little four-legged best buddy is Jackson and we celebrated his eleventh a few weeks ago. Sadly, we’ve learned he has cancer, with perhaps only a few months remaining. I’m sharing this in the context of my blog that will always be author or writing focused because I intend to continue to write a dog into every book I write, be it a novel or a shortene...