NaNoWriMo 2012

Hello!

I'm happy to announce that it's officially National Novel Writing Month (affectionately dubbed "NaNoWriMo"). The goal of writers across the globe is to write an entire 50,000 word novel within the 30 days of November.

This is my second year participating in the event. During November of 2011, I wrote a fun "choose your own adventure" story. I had a blast writing it and I succeeded in reaching all of my NaNo goals.

This year, I'm compiling a collection of short stories about pets and animals. So far so good. I'm just a few days in but I've already written a little over 16,000 words. It's another fun project because many of the stories come from first hand experience. I've had animals entire life. I even spent my early childhood living on a small farm in Connecticut. I'm having fun taking a trip down memory lane and writing about all of the goofy, funny, and touching moments with the many pets that I've owned over the years. I even talked my mother into contributing a few of her own stories-- and I'm working on convincing a few other friends and family members into doing the same.

I've tentatively titled the book "Paw Prints." If all goes well, I intend on self publishing it within the next few months. Wish me well!

As always, thanks for taking the time to visit my blog and help support my writing career. I really appreciate the support!

~~ H. S. Contino

Florence Festival of Books

Hello!

I'm happy to report that the 2nd annual Florence Festival of Books was a big success. The event had an even bigger turn out than last year. I had a great time chatting with visitors and fellow writers. I also sold a few books and got an invitation to speak at a local library next year (I'll post more details at another time).

 

We were fortunate to have much better weather this year. Last year, it rained off and on all day. By the time the event was over and we were all lugging our displays and boxes of books back to our cars it started down pouring. It was insane!  We all got soaked, so for the entire hour drive home I had soggy socks. (chuckle) It certainly made for a memorable experience!

This year, the day of the book festival was gorgeous. We could feel fall in the air, but it was still sunny and clear. I for one was happy to drive home with dry socks on my feet!

Unfortunately, my drive home was not uneventful. Just south of Florence I noticed that all of the cars in front on me had slowed down and were preceding cautiously. At first, I wasn't sure what was going on. I simply followed the others lead by slowing down and keeping an eye out for danger. A few moments later I spotted a green SUV in the northbound lane. The vehicle swerved off the road, hit a dirt embankment, basically bounced, and ended up on it's side blocking the lane. It was insane!

I immediately turned on my hazard lights and pulled over to call 911. I could see that some of the other cars had also stopped and some of the people were approaching the SUV. They had to open the back hatch in order to get the guys out. Fortunately, everyone was alright. One of the passengers had a few scrapes and bumps, but no one had to go to the hospital.

A few of us had to wait around for about an hour since we had witnessed the accident. We were interviewed by a state trooper about what happened and what we saw. One of the other drivers, who was much closer to the accident than myself, said that the SUV had been swerving in and out of it's lane for some time. Another driver claimed that the driver had been drinking. I don't know for sure, but I do know that while we were waiting for the state trooper to come talk to us another officer removed some suspicious items from the overturned car. I suspect that the driver will be facing DUI charges.

In the end, everyone was okay and we were allowed to leave the scene. I'm happy to report that the rest of my drive home was uneventful!

~ H. S. Contino

Coos Bay Fun Festival

Hello!

As many of you already know, I enjoy splitting my time between writing and crafting. This weekend the city of Coos Bay, Oregon will be hosting their annual "Fun Festival." I've rented a booth space and will be there selling my handmade jewelry, hand painted wooden signs, greeting cards, and other small gifts.

My little shop is called "Reprieve's Corner." Our booth will be open on Saturday from 9 am until 6 pm and on Sunday from 10 am until 4 pm.

 

There will be numerous other vendors there selling crafts, produce, and snack foods. Other Fun Festival events include a classic car parade, the Prefontaine run, and more!

For more information, please visit the official web page:

http://bayareafunfestival.com/

I hope to see you there! Please, feel free to stop by my booth to say "hi"!

Florence Festival of Books

Hello all!

I'm happy to announce that I'll be attending the 2nd annual Florence Festival of Books in Florence, Oregon on Saturday, September 29th. The event will be held at the Florence Events Center between 10 am and 4 pm.

For more information please visit the Florence Events Center web page:

http://www.ci.florence.or.us/eventscenter/florence-festival-books


I'll have autographed copies of Shipwrecks of Coos County available for sale and I'll be available to answer questions about local history.

I hope to see you there!

E-book Coming Soon!

I'm happy to announce that my book, Shipwrecks of Coos County, is will be re-released as an e-book. Re-formatting the book will take some time though, so I don't have a release date yet. My publisher, Arcadia Publishing, said it could a few months. I'll post more information as I recieve it.

Thank you for your continued support!

A Brief Update

I apologize for neglecting this blog of late. Unfortunately, I just haven't had any new speaking engagements, author talks, or book fairs to announce. However, summer is fast approaching, so I hope to have new events to announce soon!

Meanwhile, I've been hard at work on some fictional projects. They're all in various stages of completion. I have high hopes for several of them, but it'll be some time before they're ready to submit to publishers or agents. Wish me luck!

As always, thank you for visiting this blog and helping to support my fledgling writing career.

Historically Speaking

Hello again!

I recently gave a talk at the Coos Bay Public Library. The entire event was filmed by the Coos Community Media Center, and you can watch it on the following web page:

http://coosmediacenter.pegcentral.com/player.php?video=2dee7fdc3aac816366b0d65d6aa7a07f


Unfortunately, I had some technical difficulities with the microphone, so the sound quality isn't the best.


The highlight of the evening, for me, was when my brother and his wife walked in the room. They live out of state and decided to surprise me by attending. Thank you, Ben and Mindy! You made my day!

The problem with live performances is that there are no "do overs." When I gave my presentation, I only had the most basic notes with me. I was relying on my memory in order to address any questions from the audience. Unfortunately, my memory often suffers from stage fright.

As the video demonstrates, I made several mistakes while discussing the fire on the steamship, "Congress." It happened while I was discussing the photograph on the bottom of page 111 of my book. First, I made an unplanned comment about the people in the forefront of the photograph (watching the damaged ship being towed into port). I identified the structure that they were standing on as being part of the (then incomplete) south jetty of the Coos Bay. An audience member piped up to correct me. He claimed that the cement structure is actually a breakwater.

Second, I mentioned that after the ship was repaired, she returned to service under another name. An audience member then asked me for the new name. On the spot, I told her that I thought one of the other names was "Gabriel." I mis-spoke. The "Gabriel" was one of the other names for the "George L. Olson" during it's career, not the "Congress." To clarify, the "Congress" had several names during her long career including the "Nanking," "Emma Alexander," and "Empire Woodlarks."


I apologize for making these mistakes. I hope that this clears up any confusion!

~~ H. S. Contino