Clinton, South Carolina, Sunday, April 1, 2018, 4:48 p.m. On Saturday morning, I left a couple small crises behind me as I drove down U.S. 76 to Newberry College, there to join my friends Brent and Sharon Sanders to watch their daughter, Hailey, play women’s lacrosse for Tusculum College against the Wolves. This was my …
Author: wastedpilgrim
I'm a writer.
Blogs. Novels. Journalism. Songs.
It's all I know how to do well.
The Eighth Novel Is Out!
Clinton, South Carolina, Sunday, April 1, 2018, 12:24 p.m. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell will make some readers angry. What doesn’t? This novel is either my best or my best mess. I did my best. I put lots of effort into it. No one is objective about oneself. The readers decide for themselves, and their verdict …
Johnny Comes Lately
Clinton, South Carolina, Friday, March 30, 2018, 1:32 p.m. Hindsight is supposedly 20/20, though I’ve often found memories to be considerably photoshopped. For instance, it just occurred to me that I have something in common with John Steinbeck. Hint: It’s not talent. I’m not particularly modest. In fact, I’m not remotely modest. I think it’s …
Don’t Ask; I’m About to Tell
Clinton, South Carolina, Saturday, March 24, 2018, 4:46 p.m. Surprise, surprise. I awakened this morning to discover that a close friend’s edit of my next novel, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, had arrived via email. Last night I arrived home from a free-lance assignment to discover that my stock car racing novel, Lightning in a Bottle, …
A Matter of Convenience
Clinton, South Carolina, Thursday, March 22, 2018, 11:30 a.m. Science fiction is hardly my field of expertise. I just happened to dream up this scenario overnight and felt compelled to write it all down in the form of a short story. Dagwood Brandt made a fine living preaching against preaching. The executive director of AFG …
The Greatest Movies Ever by No One’s Measure but My Own
Clinton, South Carolina, Sunday, March 18, 2018, 10:08 a.m. My favorite movie hasn’t changed since I saw it. I vaguely remember seeing it at the Broadway Theatre when I was very young. It occurred to me that I should make a decision on my top 10 movies of all-time. Most have been in place for …
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Run Along, Nothing to See Here: Just Random Thoughts
Clinton, South Carolina, Friday, March 16, 2018, 4:15 p.m. Trial and error. Risk and reward. Deadlines and commitments. Random meetings. A few nights ago, I bumped into a man I grew up with at Dollar General. I bought some soap and a box of Raisin Bran. Even though I live in a small town, and …
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My Mind Is Tired and Incapable of Suitable Organization and Motivation
Clinton, South Carolina, Saturday, March 10, 2018, 11:57 a.m. It's been a busy week. I got more done on Friday than any day in quite a while. Everything worked. Interview subjects called me back promptly. By the time I got finished writing about a soccer game and talking on a radio show while it was …
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A Cold Pastime So Far
Clinton, South Carolina, Thursday, March 8, 2018, 1:41 p.m. I've written about my first two baseball games of the spring. The home team won both. Both were in dramatic fashion. Both had runners cut down on the basepaths with disastrous consequences. One was a bit of a long shot, and the other was damned near …
Adventure Among the Ruins
Clinton, South Carolina, Thursday, March 8, 2018, 9:03 a.m. Imagine Professor Indiana Jones, only damaged by the trauma of the Great War. Imagine the alternative "Indy," deeply neurotic and wearing a half-mask to hide the part of his face disfigured fighting the Germans, for whom he understandably bears a grudge. He moves to Cairo, purchases …
Nightrider's Lament 