Introducing Captain’s Boy

Would you believe I wrestled for days with what to write for my blog post? Then I remembered that the reason I was stressed and unprepared was that I have a novel coming out… This is the first chapter of Captain’s Boy, coming April 1st (Monday, aaah!) from Turtleduck Press. As stated in this handy-dandy timeline, it occurs about two years before the events of Knight Errant. Warning for some explicit language. § Donte looked at the sagging awning above him, at the straggly hedge separating the restaurant patio from the graffitied wall next to it, and thought about space and how he’d like to be there. Out there he and Jordan would both be safe, and Jordan might actually learn math. “Yes, Alex is a bully,” he said, interrupting Jordan’s story. “But I’m not fighting him.” Donte shoved his hair back and tapped the notebook. “This answer is wrong,” he said. “Can you see why?” Jordan didn’t even look at the paper, staring instead at Donte in challenge. “Why not?” he demanded. “You could take him! Alex is big, but he’s just a coward. And it’s not just me that he picks on. He stole Cadie’s bundle last week. You know she thinks it’s her baby what died. She was on her knees begging him to be careful and he held it over his head and laughed.” “Math.” Donte tapped the paper again. When he started tutoring Jordan, Donte had bent the mentoring rules to give the boy a…

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Adventures in Fish Parenting

So, about a month before Christmas, hubby and I were looking at the fish at the grocery store and decided that we wanted some.  Well, that was easier said then done, let me tell you. Hubby got an aquarium for Christmas, plus gravel, fake plants, and a few other supplies.  We were hooked up, right?  But when we went to Pet Smart to talk to them about fish, we found out that the fish we wanted (some form of catfish) could not live in our aquarium.  It was too small.  Way too small. You have to allow for growth.  So we had a look around, and fell in love with the guppies.

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Pocket Computers

Well, we can’t all be globe-trotting like Siri, so I find my thoughts lately have been drawn to more mundane topics, such as what to do with my pocket computer, as I prefer to refer to my smartphone. I mean, it really is. It accesses the internet, all my social media platforms, even my IM programs. It plays games and music and videos. Oh, yeah, and makes phone calls. (Which, coincidentally, you can now do on your computer. So.)

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The People We Meet

Hello, it’s Siri Paulson again, your international correspondent for Turtleduck Press. I’m currently travelling through India, a long way from my home country of Canada. One of the most fascinating things about travel, for me, has been talking to people. In this latest trip, my travelling companion and I have run into retired couples who are travelling the world, or who have had travel as part of their lifestyle for years and now have the time to really indulge it – true inspirations for younger wanderlust types like me. We’ve seen plenty of intrepid young backpackers. (When I was backpacking solo, I used to befriend tons of other solo travellers in the hostels.) But the most interesting people are the locals.

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