Authentic Setting
The move from Virginia to Beaufort, discussed in my last blog, brought many changes. Almost all were positive. One change I never...
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Blog & News
- Feb 6
Beaufort People
In my previous blog, I discussed a relocation from Virginia to South Carolina in 2005. The reasons for the move seemed fully justified by...
- Feb 6
The beginning of "Jury of One"
An essential element of the plot of Jury of One is Judge Dan Borders’s innovative and controversial proposal to allow convicted felons,...
- Mar 3, 2019
Publication Day
Publication Day!! A rare event in any writer’s life, as all of us--no matter how prolific-- have only a finite number of books in us. The...
- Feb 16, 2019
”Free at last, free at last . . .”
On Three Pines, the cotton plantation adjoining the hunting lodge which becomes Carter’s and Missma’s retreat, a family of slaves must...
- Feb 9, 2019
A Child of War
Carter Barnwell, the protagonist in The Home Guard, is twelve years old when his world is turned on its head on November 7, 1861. As the...
- Feb 3, 2019
It's All About the Blurb
I’m so pleased with the blurbs that will accompany the publication of The Home Guard on March 4, 2019. Here is one from the incomparable...
- Jan 23, 2019
A Hobson’s Choice, or not.
As discussed in the previous blog, The Home Guard opens when Carter Barnwell and his grandmother “Missma” escape to the family hunting...
- Jan 17, 2019
A Nod to the Elderly
A central character in The Home Guard is Martha “Missma” Gibbes Barnwell, Carter Barnwell’s eighty year old grandmother. It is, after...
- Jan 8, 2019
Channeling Faulkner
William Faulkner famously said, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” We in the South may have a greater appreciation for that...
- Jan 3, 2019
Plotting the Plot
In my prior blog, I wrote about inspiration. Today, the subject is plot. The Home Guard, a Novel of the Civil War, is a coming-of-age...
- Dec 27, 2018
The Journey Begins
First, a writer must be inspired. Publication of The Home Guard, a Novel of the Civil War, marks the end of a nine year effort to...
- Feb 24, 2018
My College Wasn't Like Your College
Unless you attended The Citadel, VMI, or one of the service academies, your college experience was radically different. To learn what...
- Jul 14, 2017
The Pulpwood Queens
Every writer has milestones by which they measure success. Certainly, that first “yes” from an agent or publisher is one. Holding your...
- May 10, 2017
The Citadel's Class of 1967
On Friday, October 27, 2017, The Citadel's Class of 1967, my class, will gather in Charleston for our fiftieth reunion. As our legacy...
- Feb 21, 2017
Parting the Seas
The photo was taken by my daughter, MaryBeth Warley Lockwood, at Point Loma in San Diego on a recent visit. My hands are raised. Is that...
- Oct 10, 2016
Mining Gold on Crystal Mountain
I came to this mountain-top community to give a talk to a book club that lacks a name but not dedicated readers. One of those is Leslie...
- Jun 28, 2016
A Southern Girl: Format #4
As thousands of you already know, since its publication in 2014 A Southern Girl has been available in hardcover and e-book formats. In...
- Apr 9, 2016
A New Challenge
As a writer, I’ve put a premium on exploring a variety of genres. My first novel, Bethesda’s Child, blended politics and genetics, an...
- Nov 27, 2014
Happy Thanksgiving!
As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, my mind is on . . . turkey? Don’t make me laugh, or even chuckle. Yes, of course I’m looking...
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