New Book Published: The Castle on the Hill at the Edge of the World (plus an update)

March 14, 2019December 31, 2019Scott William Carter

Continuing my tradition of writing books and stories with really long titles, as well as taking occasional right-angle turns in my choice of projects, I’m pleased to announce that my latest book is available for sale site in paperback and ebook: The Castle on the Hill at the Edge of the World.

While full details about the book are listed below, as well as links to various retailers, let me just say in short that while this middle grade book is aimed at younger readers, I hope adults might give it a shot, too. For me, after I had to temporarily put aside a very ambitious epic I’d been working on for the better part of a year, just to get some perspective on it, I wanted to take on a shorter, more intimate story as a change of pace. I’m hoping some of my adult fans might find it to be a pleasant change of pace, too. I think of it as a mix of Bridge to Terabithia and Coraline, so if you like either of those books, you might like this one, too. If you enjoy it, please say so on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or wherever you bought it. Those online reviews really make a huge difference and are the best way you can show an author you appreciate their work (other than buying their books, that is!).

As for what’s next on tap? Well, you Garrison Gage fans hopefully won’t have to wait too much longer, because I’m closing in on the end of the sixth Gage book now. Nope, can’t tell you exactly when it will be out, but soon. After that? Well, as far as books are concerned, we’ll have to see (that Big Epic is starting to call me back to take another crack at the idea), but speaking of right angle turns, I have another very different kind of project I plan to launch next month:

I’m starting a comic strip.

What? Huh? Come again?

I imagine that’s the reaction of almost everyone except those who’ve known me a very long time. It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was old enough to hold a pencil. I grew up loving Peanuts, Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, Bloom County, The Far Side, and many others, and continue to love strips like Stone Soup, Get Fuzzy, Dilbert, and Luann. One of my first dreams, around the age of eight or nine, was to be a cartoonist. As I got older, I focused more and more on fiction, letting my drawing skills go a bit dormant, but as I started to get back into drawing the past few years (partly as a way to focus on something other than the Nonsense Factory taking over Washington D.C.), the old dream to create a cartoon strip came roaring back.

And I thought, why not now? Sure, my drawing skills may always need more practice and improvement, but I figure I might as well practice in public. Otherwise, I may never quite get over the hump of getting this project off the ground, and I’m fine with people seeing me get better (hopefully) as I go.

No, I’m not going to say anything more about the comic strip at this point except that I’m publishing it independently online, and that the start date will be April 22, 2019. So check back here for more information next month. I’ll have a lot more to say about my plans. Other than that, I’ll just tease you with the little cat named Lily pictured on the right, who will be one of the stars of the show. No, I’m not stopping writing fiction. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll fit it all in, especially with the day job at the university and the family, but I’ll find a way. In fact, lately, as I’ve worked on both the writing and the cartoon strip, I’ve found that switching back and forth has actually energized me and made me more productive overall. Strange, eh? It never ceases to amaze me how you can always find time to do the work you love (even when you don’t always love it — especially then) as long as you really commit to doing the daily work and let the rest sort itself out.

What else is going on? Well, I’m finishing up teaching WR 464: Writing for Publication again. While I enjoy teaching, and do plenty of short term training and presenting in both my university and creative life, I find teaching a four-credit college course like this one both rewarding and exhausting. I always come away glad I did it but also glad I don’t teach college courses full-time.

More soon.

———-

The Castle on the Hill at the Edge of the World

If everybody would just leave Sam alone, she’d be perfectly happy hanging out in The Land Between, the undeveloped forest at the end of the street where she can pretend, at least for a little while, that life is much better than it really is. Then a strange boy moves in next door and all her problems get a lot worse.

Rob (or does he go by Bobby?) insists that his parents are prisoners in a mysterious castle in another world. Others claim the truth of his past is far more tragic. When her new friend vows to rescue his parents or die trying, Sam must make a fateful choice that will change both their lives forever — and reveal just how thin the line between imagination and hope can really be.

(Links to other retailers available soon. Check here for updated information.)

Evening Writing Course in Salem this January, Writing Update, Misc.

November 19, 2018January 8, 2020Scott William Carter

It’s been a few months, hasn’t it? When I start getting emails from readers wondering what I’ve been up to and whether something new will be coming out anytime soon, often with a note of concern for my welfare, I realize I should probably give a little update. And just because we’re nearing Thanksgiving, that’s a picture of my cat, Paisley, enjoying the comfort of the fire on a chilly November evening. See, we’re all fine and cozy here.

Nothing new on the publishing front, alas, though when the dust settles in December this should end up being a very productive writing year. How can that be? It’s been a year and half since I’ve published something, the longest stretch in years. Well, it may be obvious, but it’s still worth pointing out that there’s a big difference between writing and publishing. I very much see writing as a discipline. I get up early and write my daily words. I keep striving to get better. That’s it. That’s all there is. Everything after that — the publishing side of the equation — is just details. Those details can be important, but they tend to sort themselves out as long as I just do my best and keep my primary focus on meeting my daily quota. Some projects take longer than others, some have to be put aside for a while, and some have to put aside for good. It happens. It’s all just part of the discipline.

So that’s a long-winded way of saying yes, I’m writing, quite a bit, actually, but no, there’s nothing new coming out at this time. For you Garrison Gage fans, that’s the book I’m working on now. When will it be done? Who knows. It’s done when it’s done. I realize that’s not exactly helpful to my readers, but having a very Zen-like approach to the craft keeps me sane, especially since I balance the writing and other creative work with a university career and raising two kids. I just don’t want anyone to think that just because nothing has been published lately that nothing has been written.

On another note, I’m teaching WR 464: Writing for Publication again this January for Western Oregon University. A little twist this time: It’s part of a new offering of courses in my hometown (twenty-five minutes away from WOU itself) as the university starts ramping up a Salem, Oregon presence. It’s also offered in a hybrid format, meeting for two hours on Wednesday nights from 7:30-9:30 while the rest of the content is online. For me, I’m focusing on the business aspects of publishing in the face-to-face component, so there’s plenty of opportunity for questions, with the craft part of the class online. (Otherwise the content is much the same as previous times, which you can read more about here.) I’ll be back to post a bit more info soon, but the first session will be Wednesday, January 9, 2019.

If you have a serious interest in writing and selling fiction and creative nonfiction, and you want to learn the nuts and bolts of professional writing, both the traditional and self-publishing routes, I promise you that you will get a lot out of this course. My goal is to clear away the myths and set my students on the right path. If you want to get on that path, take the course. The rest will be up to you, but I will do my best to get you on the path. Use the contact form on this site if you have questions. And no, it’s not going to be offered fully online anytime soon. Perhaps someday, but the hybrid online/evening course approach is what the university is focusing on for the Salem courses for right now. It’s a great opportunity to get upper division college credit as well, if you’re working on finishing your degree.

Back soon. If not, though, remember, I’m still writing . . .

Summer Update: Buying a House, an Eclipse, and Other Writerly Disruptions

September 7, 2017September 7, 2017Scott William Carter

First, a tiny bit of publishing news. A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart, the fifth Garrison Gage book, is now available in audio. You can download it at Audible, Amazon, and elsewhere. Steven Roy Grimsley continues to do a fantastic job narrating the books.

In addition, it seemed like about time for another general update. I know, I know, I’m such a prolific blogger, cranking out posts at a torrid pace of one every month or two. But that’s okay. If nothing else, I’m living proof to my writing students — I taught WR 464: Writing for Publication again this last spring, and promotion is one of the last things we talked about — that it is quite possible for a fiction writer to have a successful writing career and barely be online at all.

Work continues on a new book I’m simply referring to as The Big Epic, though not as fast as I’d like (more on why in a moment), and after wrapping up teaching a one-credit course on publishing for non-writers, we’re in the late summer lull at the university before things pick up in the fall and I start doing a lot of workshops and training for faculty wanting to take advantage of different aspects of digital media in their coursework and scholarship. A good chance to take a breath.

While there was only one brief trip this summer —a quick foray to Astoria, Oregon over the July 4th weekend — it’s been the most intense few months we’ve had in years. The reason? We bought a new house. Actually, we bought an old house that’s new to us, a charming 1930 home in the “Tudor Rival” style, with two stories and a basement. While a few things have been updated over the years, it still needs a bit of work and TLC, but it’s such a lovely old house that we’re okay with all that. It’s also just a few blocks away from both of the kids’ schools and just a few more blocks from the best park in town, so the advantages to us go beyond the house itself. Still, we lived in the previous house for sixteen years, so there are a lot of good memories there.

But boy, this whole process has been exhausting! As we contemplated starting down this road a few months ago, when we were deciding whether to make an offer on the house, I told Heidi that this process (buying/selling/repairs/moving/etc) would consume our lives for six months at least, and I think my prediction has proven fairly accurate. We’re about four months through that six months now — if you consider the beginning point when we first thought about moving.

What else? Oh, the eclipse. We were right in the path of totality and experienced it from our front yard. What else can be said other than it was amazing? I expected it to be amazing, but what I didn’t expect was to have such a powerful emotional response to it, to spontaneously whoop and burst into cheers when the fun finally disappeared behind the moon. We wanted to experience it at our house partly to mark our start there (we’d only been in it a few weeks at that point), and I’m glad we did.

This week, I saw my daughter off to her first day of high school. My son started middle school last week. It’s a time of change. It’s been a hectic summer, and I’ve let my creative output suffer because of it. I’ve also, despite my best efforts, let the Nonsense Factory located in Washington D.C. get into my head more than usual, and I’m determined to channel that energy into more productive things. We’ll see how it goes.

New Book Published: A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart (a Garrison Gage Mystery)

May 23, 2017May 23, 2017Scott William Carter

A new book! As I mentioned to my intrepid newsletter subscribers yesterday (over 3200 strong now!), A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart is now available in both ebook and paperback. The audio should follow in a few months, as usual.

While releasing another book into the wild may not be quite as exciting as the first few times I did it, it never gets old. There’s always this mix of giddy anticipation and mild trepidation. How many am I up to now? Well, it depends on how you count, I guess, but my bibliography says this is number 15. That’s fifteen published, mind you, not written. There are a few books which served their purpose as practice and hopefully will never see the light of day. Hear that, kids? Please don’t publish those books after I’m gone.

Anyway, whatever number it is overall, A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart is the fifth Garrison Gage mystery. It’s always fun to return to my curmudgeonly private investigator and the extended cast of characters that inhabit my Oregon coast town of Barnacle Bluffs. Zoe, Alex, Chief Quinn — we get to catch up with all of them. Poor Gage really is put through the ringer this time, though, and not just by having to confront the usual assortment of baddies. He’s dealing with a loss of a different kind.

The cover and the description are below. Links to retailers can be found on the book’s page on my site. One little bit of trivia? The lighthouse pictured on the cover really is Heceta Head, located a few miles north of Florence, Oregon. As far as I know, however, no one has died there recently . . .

A Lighthouse for the Lonely Heart
A Garrison Gage Mystery

They find his body at the bottom of Heceta Head Lighthouse—Ed Boone, a longtime volunteer who commits suicide rather than see his grim diagnosis to its bitter end. The strangeness of the old man’s death makes the local news, but Garrison Gage thinks little of it until the famous Nora West sneaks into town with an unsettling letter in hand.

Professing he wants to go to his grave with a clear conscience, Ed claims to be Nora’s biological father. But the revelation stirs up all kinds of complicated emotions for the talented but troubled musician, who hires Gage to find out the truth.

Yet the truth may be a lot more disturbing — and dangerous — than either of them expect.

Available in both Paperback and Ebook at Retailers Everywhere