Official Website of Author & Photographer
An introduction
The question I am most frequently asked is
“Where do you get the ideas for your stories?”
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The answer is simple: everywhere. Most frequently, the stories grow from things I have seen or experienced in everyday life. A pair of wornout, broken work boots lying on the sidewalk in front of a state capitol building became a component in the wardrobe of the main character in “Bosco Jones.”
A small family cemetery that dated from the 1700s, located in the middle of a windswept field of corn stubble, became the final resting place for a pair of sisters in “Patty and Gert.”
Leaving an interstate highway via an exit marked No Services — and betting that there really was a gas station nearby — gave me the opening scene of “The Gasman’s Tale.”
A derelict mansion in the heart of a once-vibrant city became the setting of “The Arlington Club.”
An old man I encountered salvaging shipping pallets behind a restaurant before sunup one Saturday morning became “Pallet Jack.”
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Each of these provided me with a mental image, a starting point,
from which a story grew. Occasionally, the story seems to take on a life of its own, to almost write itself while I am merely along for the ride. It’s like finding a ruby in a box of rocks. Those have proven to be my best works.
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So, pour yourself your favorite beverage, settle back, and come along for the ride.
There’s no telling where these stories may take you.