He pulled his rifle and rucksack from the trunk of his Buick, then stepped out of the abandoned cattle shed and into the sunlight. To the south, a rusty barbed-wire fence separated ranch land from public domain. He scanned the hills beyond the fence. A local rancher had told him mule deer grazed just a […]
The sunset shrouded the bay in a mantle of gold. Ben scanned the horizon from his second-floor balcony and then leaned forward in his chair to gain a clearer view of his front yard. The jacaranda trees were in full bloom, their lush petals a purple canopy for anyone strolling up the path to his
Man Martin’s third novel will appear in May, 2017 from Unbridled Books. The book suggests a corollary to James A. Michener’s quote, “If your book doesn’t keep you up nights when you are writing it, it won’t keep anyone up nights reading it.” The corollary is that if your book doesn’t keep you chuckling writing it, don’t
The Shandean Spirit Lives on—Man Martin’s The Lemon Jell-o Syndrome Read More »
With my novel, The Sureness of Horses, available now, twelve years after I started, in hardcover, softback, and eBook forms, I took a few minutes to look back at some of the things I’d heard about writing that helped me finish the process. I’ve divided it into Beginnings, Middles, and Endings. Beginnings: “How is writing
How to Throw a Novel Together in Twelve Years or Less Read More »
Link to a Summary of the First Nine Chapters 10 The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, in the middle of the morning, Jorge showed up in my office. “I thought you were working from home today,” he said. “I wanted to,” I said. “Ray’s up in San Francisco with bankers. But I have this report due Monday.
The Sureness of Horses, Chapters 10, 11, and 12 Read More »
Gina sat alone at a patio table of a restaurant with a book in her hands and watched a small fire truck and ambulance pull up a half a block away. A group of emergency responders entered the front door of a small business. Within a few minutes, they rolled an unconscious woman out on
Living with Depression Read More »