Folly Beach Senior Citizens!

At the January meeting of the Folly Beach Senior Citizens, I will speak about the process of writing a novel, specifically my process writing The Graceland Tales. Please join us for fun, food, and a little ukulele music!

Schroon Lake Public Library

The Graceland Tales is now available at the Schoon Lake Public Library. Check it out!

Dwight the Lay Minister's Tale

I posted Dwight the Lay Minister's Tale on my blog, "Be-Lied," so I figured I should post it here, too. It is one of my favorite tales in The Graceland Tales. Enjoy!

One Saturday afternoon, me and another church member were out witnessing in a neighborhood near our church. We go out on Saturdays because people tend to be at home, not at work, and we figure if we talk to them on Saturday, they’re more likely to come to church the next day. We have an old school bus that comes around and picks people up who need a ride or kids if their parents don’t want to come to church themselves. So we were out. As we came up to this one house, a teenager threw open the front door and ran out, bobbling this yappy little dog. Another teenager was right behind him with a pillow case full of stuff. We heard a woman inside yelling, ‘Stop! You come back here with my dog! I’m calling the police! You better bring my Norma back right now!’ Now, I’m not the biggest guy but I was able to trip up the kid with the dog. He fell and dropped the dog. The dog skittered back into the house. The kid rolled a few times and found his feet and ran away. My partner tried to stop the other kid, but he got away, too.

Since the door was open, we stepped right inside. The woman—she was old--had been in one of those chairs that lifts you up when you can’t get up by yourself, and she had just come to standing and started hobbling towards the door. ‘Call the police!’ she yelled at us, so we did. Her husband was sitting in another lifting recliner chair but had not budged. The little dog jumped into his lap. We saw the old man reach over to a side table, pick up a cookie, and start munching, feeding tidbits to the dog. While we waited for the police to show up, the old lady told us this story.

She and her husband had been married for sixty-nine years. Sixty-nine. They didn’t have any kids, just the dog, so the dog, Norma, was pretty special. They were in good enough health that they could still stay in their house by themselves, but they depended on programs like Meals on Wheels or on friends or neighbors to bring them food. They weren’t members of a church, so I knew we could minister to them. That morning, a neighbor brought over some lunch for them—some mac and cheese with wienies in it. They ate their lunch, but the neighbor had put in three chocolate cherry almond cookies—the old folks’ favorite--although the neighbor knew Norma was not supposed to have chocolate. It’s not good for dogs, you know—can kill them. The old lady and the old man each ate one cookie, but for some reason, instead of splitting the third cookie in half and sharing, they made a bet that whoever spoke the first word would not get the extra cookie. They were sitting in their recliners, watching some Saturday afternoon show on the TV—Lawrence Welk or some music show--when someone knocked at the door. Neither one of them said anything because of their bet and the knock came again. Again, neither one spoke. They both wanted that cookie. When they didn’t hear another knock, they assumed whoever was there went away. Instead, a few minutes later, they heard noises at the back of the house. Two thieves had come in the kitchen since the back door was unlocked. The couple heard the intruders ruffling through stuff in their bedroom, but neither one of the old people was quick on their feet and neither one wanted to say anything lose the bet and the cookie, so they just sat and didn’t say anything. The little dog kept yapping the whole time the robbers were there but that didn’t bother those crooks. They didn’t stay long. When they came from the back of the house, they saw the old couple. One nudged the other and said, ‘These old people must be deaf since they didn’t answer the front door and they’re not yelling at us.’ One of the burglars grabbed the dog from the old woman’s lap as they headed out the front door. That’s when the old woman started squawking and pressed the button to raise her chair, but by the time she could get up, the thieves were out the door and we showed up.

She finished her story and turned to the old man. ‘And you!’ she spluttered. ‘You just sat there and let them take our precious Norma! Shame on you!’ ‘Yeah, but that cookie sure was good!’ said the old man as the dog licked the old man’s lips.

Lazy Moose in Brant Lake

Saturday, August 24, I will be selling and signing The Graceland Tales at the Lazy Moose in Brant Lake from 12 until 2 p.m. Kathleen Kelly and Ginger Kuenzel will also be selling and signing copies of their books. Drop by and see us!

Schroon Lake Library reading

Once again fun was had at the reading from The Graceland Tales at the Schroon Lake Public Library. Thanks to all who enjoyed the event with Elvis and me!

Reading Reminder

Friends in the Schroon Lake area: Remember, I will be reading on Wednesday, July 31, 2019, at the Schroon Lake Public Library at 2:30, complete with ukulele accompaniment. Hope to see you there!

Town of Chester Library reading

A good time was had at the Town of Chester Public Library reading this afternoon!

Change of date!

Schroon Lake friends: the date of my reading/signing (ukulele playing) at the Schroon Lake Public Library has changed. It is now Wednesday, July 31, at 2:30. My reading/signing (ukulele playing) will still follow the Schroon Lake Book Club discussion. See you there!

Book House reading

Another successful (and FUN) reading--at the Book House! Thanks to all who attended.

New vendors for The Graceland Tales

Great news! The Graceland Tales is now available for sale at Northshire Saratoga in the Local Authors section. It is also available at LARAC (Lower Adirondack Regional Arts Council) in Glens Falls. Spread the news!

Book Report

The Graceland Tales has been added to the holdings of the Crandall Library in Glens Falls, New York. Check it out!

New Reading

Mark your calendars for June 22. I am scheduled for an author reading/signing at The Book House in Stuyvesant Plaza in Albany at mid-afternoon. I will provide the exact time once it is set.

The Folly Beach Library Book Club is reading my book! What an honor!

Upstate New York Book Tour coming soon!

Elvis leaves the building in Low Country South Carolina to enter the building in the Southern Adirondacks next week! Stay tuned for fun-filled readings complete with ukulele accompaniment coming soon to a bookstore or library near you--Albany, Saratoga, Glens Falls, Schroon Lake!

First Author Reading

The first author reading from The Graceland Tales occurred this afternoon at the Folly Beach Public Library. A good time was had, and Elvis was in the building!

E-book now available!

The Graceland Tales is now available as an e-book from Barnes and Noble, from Amazon, and from other purveyors of e-books.

Folly Beach reading!

For those who haven't heard yet, I will be reading from The Graceland Tales on Wednesday, April 17, at 4:00 p.m. at the Folly Beach Public Library, complete with ukulele accompaniment. A good time should be had. If you are in the area, stop by.

Preface

The idea for The Graceland Tales first bubbled up in the late 1980’s in the living room of friends in Hammond, Louisiana. I had recently completed doctoral studies in medieval English language and literature, including a dissertation on Chaucer’s use of Old French fabliaux—dirty stories—in The Canterbury Tales. My friends suggested that I combine my love of Elvis with my newly-minted proficiency in Chaucerian studies by writing a modern version of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, except have the modern pilgrims head to Graceland. The pilgrimage of penning this novel has reached its destination—finally.

I intend for the novel to work on two levels. For readers unfamiliar with The Canterbury Tales, I hope that they are able to enjoy or appreciate the group of travelers, the issues which the tales reflect, and the camaraderie or lack thereof among the pilgrims. For readers familiar with The Canterbury Tales, I hope that they are able to appreciate how the issues that touched the lives of Chaucer’s medieval group still touch the lives of people in the 21^st century and how the spirit of Chaucer’s tales can hold true in today’s world. I did not intend to rewrite or completely adapt The Canterbury Tales, but to pull relevant aspects of medieval society forward to today’s world. At the end of the novel, the reader will find a key explaining the correlations between my tales and their medieval antecedents.

The Graceland Tales

In late 14^th Century London, a group of pilgrims meet at the Tabard Inn to embark upon a pilgrimage on horseback to Canterbury Cathedral to visit the shrine of “the holy blissful martyr,” Thomas à Becket. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales details the tales they tell to pass the time along the way. In early 21^st Century Chicago, a group of pilgrims meet at Union Station to embark upon a pilgrimage by train to Memphis to visit Graceland during “the rock and roll blissful martyr” Elvis’s Death Week. In The Graceland Tales, experience the camaraderie or lack thereof among these modern-day pilgrims as they tell their tales of community, of love, of exploits and sexploits, some whimsical, some profound.