Still Life Musings: A Small Haiga Collection

Yes, I have just published, via Lulu Press, a coffee-table type book that is a collection of Haiga that I have done over the years. Haiga are photos or art work with embedded Haiku. All but three of the photos in my book are mine, and all of the Haiku are mine and written for the picture – or the picture was done for the Haiku. Most of the pictures are straight photos, but I have “artified” some of the photos. Because of the color, fancy paper, size (8.5″x11″), and being hard-backed, the book is on the expensive side – $33 USD. Also, it is only available from the Lulu Bookstore, or directly from me – that’s the result of problems with Lulu’s Global Community of booksellers’ constraints on size.

Here’s the cover and the Haiga from the title page.

Book’s cover

Book’s Title page Haiga

My kid’s book, Dear Jennifer: The Jenny Princess Letters, is available at the Lulu Bookstore. It should be available at a bunch of other bookstores in the very near future. This book is suitable for readers in the third and fourth grades The letters were originally written to encourage my youngest daughter to read more. I have subsequently added some stories and illustrations which I had no way to do when I wrote the original letters.

It is my hope that the stories will be enjoyed by young people, especially girls. I hope the stories will inspire them to be the best that they can be and to take advantage of opportunities to move ahead.

The Jaguar Drum, sporting a new cover and subtitle – A Mayan Boy and the Spanish Entrada – is now available as both Kindle eBook and paperback on Amazon. This second edition has a few editing changes to go along with the new cover, but it is the same Middle Reader novel that received praise form reviewers of the first edition.

It will be available as an Amazon Freebie from March 14 to March 18, 2023.

Here’s the new cover.

Just published La Llorona – Carol Montgomery Mystery #3. It’ll be available as an Amazon freebie from March 2-6, 2023. I have a book signing in Las Cruces at COAS Books on March 4. We’ll see how well the new book moves. My Carol Montgomery series, overall, seems to be moving well – probably because it’s a series of stories dealing with places that are familiar to local folks. Featuring a witch and a telepathic cat familiar might also be playing a role.

Trying something new for me – just submitted three of my books (The Jaguar Drum, Eye of Newt, Skin of Toad, and A Piano in the Night) and a poem ( Tiempo) to national-level writing contests. It’ll be interesting to see what, if anything, results from the effort.

I’m about half way or a little less through the newest O’Flaithearta Biological Consultants Mystery, Of Rats and Drones. Rather slow going right now – too many other distractions and I’m having a tough time getting the story-line moving where I want it to be. Ah well, that’s life in the peanut butter factory, eh, wot?

My youngest grandson, Etienne, just turned two. Here’s a picture of him. He’s a cutie – at least we all think so.

Etienne Ray, two years old – Feb -2023

Legendary weeping woman wraith on walking path in La Llorona Park?

A young woman in white, dead in the Rio Grande?

A Bali mynah as a familiar?

What have Carol and Rogue gotten themselves into this time?

Writing novels; whether mysteries, romances, thrillers, fantasies, Sci-fi, or whatever; tends to be a lonely, introspective exercise. I read how-to books on writing, and they recommend reading and going to conferences or getting into writing groups or training sessions. I don’t disagree with the intent of all of that advice; clearly, it worked for those best-selling authors that are giving it. However, when one sits down to write/type/dictate a book, one’s focus becomes wholly turned inside their head. A scene forms, a picture develops, and words pour out onto the working surface. Right words, wrong words, good words, mediocre words, a tale unfolds. Characters take shape and become rounded and full or remain flat and motionless until that vagary breeze lifts them to some action, or a heroic or happenchance occurrence tests their strength and durability. The writer lives in that world, those scenes, until something clicks – then back to the mundane -— all those other people coming out of their reveries.

“Hello — What? Oh, umm, yes, I did finish chapter one.”

Fenton R. Kay

Chipmunk Jumped Over Him: A Coming of Age Story

The Jaguar Drum

Carol Montgomery Mystery #1

Carol Montgomery Mystery #2

Carol Montgomery Mystery #3 – Coming Soon