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Miscellaneous Monday— What am I doing?

Miscellaneous Monday— What am I doing?

Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay Of all the specific themes we have for the Glimmer of Gold blog, I find Miscellaneous Monday the most difficult to create. Tuesday Tunes are easy, because my love of music is not limited to a few specific genres. I appreciate the power and majesty of Handel’s Messiah, pretty much all of Beethoven’s symphonies, Clair de Lune, and many others. I enjoy a few operas and ballets, Swan Lake especially. Fifties and sixties country is a particular favorite,…

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As promised, an excerpt

As promised, an excerpt

I’m finally making progress on my Hidden Desires rewrite. The process is slow and a bit painful, as my source material has more than a few shortcomings. To confess, when I wrote the novel I suffered from an excess of hubris and actually thought my story was well constructed. For those who read that first edition, I apologize and offer the completed, although unedited, first chapter. Although fairly long, it provides the setting and sets the mood for the remainder of…

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Trivia Thursday – Printing

Trivia Thursday – Printing

I considered making this post about computer trivia, but decided to start instead with printing. After all, I am in the business of publishing novels and the printed word arrived long before Kindle. I found many of the facts listed below on a website called Printing Impressions. https://www.piworld.com/article/unusual-historical-facts-printing-industry/ Although Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, he did not invent printing itself. That distinction goes to Chinese monks, who used pieces of wood dipped in ink to print scrolls, five hundred…

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It’s almost here!

It’s almost here!

I have been working on a novel since April, and I can finally see the light at the end of this particular tunnel. “If Not For the Entail” is my best composition yet, if you believe those who have read it through to the end. The plot revolves around Elizabeth Bennet’s efforts to save the family estate from a fraudulent ownership claim. I sent the manuscript to the editor today, and I plan on publishing somewhere around the third week…

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A Glimmer of Gold for a Holiday Monday

A Glimmer of Gold for a Holiday Monday

Today is Heritage Day here in sunny Alberta, Canada. Although this is not a national holiday, the first Monday in August is a provincial holiday in most of Canada’s ten provinces. The name of the day varies from one province to another, but the day off is a welcome diversion as we pass through the end of the dog days of summer. We had some hot days between 38 and 43 Celsius (100 to 110 Fahrenheit), but it’s cooler now….

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A Glimmer of Gold – Victoria Day in Canada

A Glimmer of Gold – Victoria Day in Canada

Today was Victoria Day here in Canada, or as I and my high school friends always called it, May Two-Four. It was named in honor of England’s Queen Victoria and has been observed in this country since 1845, originally on her birthday, which was May 24, hence the nickname, although now it is always on the Monday immediately preceding May 25. The holiday is a federal statutory holiday, as well as a holiday in six of the country’s 10 provinces…

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Funny Friday—The comic genius of Tim Conway and Harvey Korman

Funny Friday—The comic genius of Tim Conway and Harvey Korman

Rather than lament the paucity of true comedy these days, I decided to treat myself, and everyone reading this, to the comedy gold of Tim Conway and Harvey Korman, two of the funniest actors of the seventies. They were regulars on the Carol Burnett show, a program I watched every week without fail. The entire program was full of laughs, but in my opinion the best sketches were the ones featuring the two of them. When the segment began, I…

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A Glimmer of Gold – Tornado Outbreak

A Glimmer of Gold – Tornado Outbreak

Much of Central Arkansas (and certain other parts of the state) is still reeling from a March 31, 2023, tornado outbreak that produced two EF3 tornadoes in Arkansas, among other tornadoes. The outbreak, which went across several states and continued through part of April 1, produced 132 tornadoes during a 24-hour period. The EF3 tornado in Central Arkansas (where I am) had peak winds of 165 mph – and to my understanding, it would have been rated as an EF4…

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A Glimmer of Gold—To write? Or not to write?

A Glimmer of Gold—To write? Or not to write?

I began my writing career, such as it is, in 2017. My brother, Jann Rowland, was doing well as an author, so why couldn’t I? How hard could it be? I had always been an avid reader, so why not treat the world to my unique humor and sarcastic wit? I won’t describe the rude awakening I had upon publishing my first literary masterpiece, but the reviews were unflattering, to put it mildly. Almost every part of my storytelling was…

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Tuesday Tunes—The Incomparable Franz Joseph Haydn

Tuesday Tunes—The Incomparable Franz Joseph Haydn

Today I want to explore popular music in Jane Austen’s time, specifically Franz Haydn, the composer often referred to as “Father of the Symphony” and “Father of the String Quartet”. He was born in 1732 to a wheelright and a former palace cook. Although neither could read music, his father was an enthusiastic street musician who taught himself to play the harp. In later years Haydn said his family was extremely musical and frequently sang together and with their friends…

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