Off Highway now available on Amazon
 

Off Highway: Journeys of Nova Scotia Writers is now available as paperback and e-book from Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. You should be able to find them by typing Off Highway Journeys of Nova Scotia Writers into the search bar in the books section of either website, or by clicking on these links:

https://www.amazon.ca/Off-Highway-Journeys-Scotia-Writers/dp/0993833810/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1509059328&sr=1-1

https://www.amazon.com/Off-Highway-Journeys-Scotia-Writers/dp/0993833810/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Off Highway: Journeys of Nova Scotia Writers is a 200-page trade paperback with 30 short stories and poems written by 13 members of the Evergreen Writers Group. It contains pieces about journeys real and imagined, many based on events in Nova Scotia. There are historical stories, personal memoirs, fictional stories sparked by personal experiences, and purely speculative ones.

Here is what Lesley Choyce, a prominent Nova Scotia novelist and poet, said about our book.

"This anthology of Nova Scotia authors is a collection of spirited prose and poetry written by a range of writers with diverse and intriguing backgrounds. Here you will find history, poetry, fiction and creative nonfiction by men and women who have been TV writers, animators, genealogists, teachers, playwrights, museum curators, scientists, and more. Many of these writers have travelled far and wide, but they have strong ties and fondness for this province."

(re)ⁿvisions, where n is an integer

My tendency to revise my manuscripts over and over again is out of control. For the novel I’m currently working on, n, in the mathematical expression in the header, has reached eleven. Eleven complete revisions of the manuscript with many more-focused rewrites of individual chapters.

I fear I am now making pointless changes to a manuscript that is as good as I can make it. Why am I doing this? Sadly, the answer is I am reluctant to take the next step.

It is time to bite the bullet! Should I submit it to a publisher or join the modern world and self-publish? Or should I just delete all the files from my computer and be done with the damn thing?

Tom Robson, a colleague in the Evergreen Writers Group (https://evergreenwritersgroup.wordpress.com) has just published his first novel. It’s a romance involving two forty something lovers and their spouses, ex-spouses and various offspring. If you are interested, his book can be found on Amazon by searching for Tom Robson or the title - “Wait and See”. I’m sure he made two or three extensive revisions, and I am starting on #12. I mean what’s with me?

New Evergreen Writers Group anthology

It's been three years since the Evergreen Writers Group published our first anthology, a collection of ghost stories that we titled Out of the Mist. It was an interesting and educational experience for all members that has covered our costs and is poised to make a modest profit.
We are now set to publish our second book. Off Highway: Journeys of Nova Scotia Writers is an eclectic collection of travel stories, some real, some imaginary. Also a few poems. Hopefully, readers will find them interesting.
Here is a picture of the front and back covers.

 It should be available soon on Amazon and other e-book sites. I'll post the links once we have them. In the meantime, we do have a facebook page for the new book. If interested, you should be able to find it by typing Off Highway into the facebook search bar.

Does anyone understand Amazon bestseller rankings? 
Out of the Mist, our (Evergreen Writers Group) anthology of ghost stories had spikes in its e-book bestseller ranking on Amazon.ca on May 5, May 31 when it reached #4 in the short story grouping, and June 8. We also had a spike in our paperback sales on May 22, but I think I understand that one.
During that period we had no e-book sales, nor any free book promotions or anything else that might have generated 'sales' and improved rankings without bringing in any revenue.
So how did we get to number four on the rankings for short stories ahead of Carol Shields, Madeleine Thein, Margaret Atwood and Alice Monroe? I know it was only a few days, but it felt good to be momentarily ahead of those well-known authors.
I just wish I knew how the rankings worked.

The Golden Age of Dystopias
So Brexit has happened. Now if the Donald can win the Presidential election in the US, he and Boris Johnson, two tow-headed examples of humanity's future, can unite to form the core of Oceania. Then if Vladimir Putin (another tow-head?) can use his military might to force the Europeans to replace Britain with Russia in the European Union, we will be two-thirds of the way to Nineteen Eighty-Four.
A glorious example, it will be, not of history repeating itself, but of the world striving to live up to the imaginings of authors of dystopian fiction. The golden age of dystopias could be upon us.

Short story I was actually paid for!

Yesterday, I received a huge double digit payment for short story I submitted to teen suspense/horror anthology to be published by a nanoscopic publisher (nanoscopic is a thousand times smaller than microscopic, but, hey, everyone knows smaller is better). It's the first time I've been paid for a story. I've received free copies of the books before, but never cold hard cash.
The story is titled Bearing Witness and will be appear in Out of the Cave in a month or two. The publisher is MacKenzie Publishing, a local NS publishing venture. Their website is mackenziepublishing.wordpress.com for anyone who is interested.
I'll post another message when the book is finished and shows up for sale on Amazon, etc.

Evergreen Writers Group renewed webpage

As I mentioned in a post I made last summer, the writing group I belong to, the Evergreen Writers Group in Halifax Nova Scotia, joined the modern world and produced a web page. We are a bunch of volunteers with too much too do and too litttle money to devote to this writing group. As a result of time constaints and other considerations responsibility for the website has moved from one member to another. It has now been resurected at a new location. The link for it is now evergreenwritersgroup.wordpress.com  One benefit of our revised site is we now have a blog page for posting short short stories and poems by our members.  The link for the writings blog is evergreenwritersgroup.wordpress.com/ramblings/  and I posted a flash fiction story on it yesterday.  It's a story prepared for a flash fiction contest I did not win. For those too busy to visit our website I will repost it here.

The Saddest Day of the Year

Christmas was the saddest day of the year, the only time he regretted not having a family.

The orphanage taught him about frugality and hard work, but not about love.  Through university, an interesting career as a computer specialist, and three years volunteering for charities, Kevin Anderson worked hard and saved his pennies.  He didn’t lack friends, but after a drink or two, always went home alone.  It had been his choice, what he was comfortable with.  He’d never been on a date or visited the home of a colleague.

Staying alone and aloof from social interaction hadn’t been difficult.  He didn’t have a psychological need to be with others, and the structure of his workplace made it easy to maintain his distance.

After retirement, everything except his work with Meals on Wheels continued as before.  Spending three hours a day, two days a week, delivering meals with fellow volunteer Pamela Barlow led to a closer friendship.

He’d maintained his distance until she invited him to Christmas dinner with her family.  He accepted Pamela’s invitation and ventured forth to buy wine for dinner, and presents for her family.  He discovered that he enjoyed buying things for others.

On Christmas Day, a terrified Kevin Anderson climbed the steps to her modest house, a sixty-four-year-old man on his first date with no idea what to expect.  The door opened and Pamela’s welcoming smile bewitched him.  The joyous noises and warmth from within quelled his fears.  A warm fire, mistletoe and the traditional turkey dinner beckoned.