The Schoharie - A Novel

Quick update. I've entered the world of self publishing and now have my first novel available via soft cover and as an eBook. The book is called The Schoharie. Please check out the sidebar for a link to purchase the book.

Here's an excerpt from the prologue of the book:

Thirty years ago, "Injun Joe" O'Brien took an eighty foot plunge off the side of a half built bridge spanning The Schoharie Creek in the Schoharie Valley. Some say that it coincided with the time he lost his pinkie finger to the first knuckle. He never did explain that. He pleaded with the men of the Sheriff's Department, in particular young deputy Ben Harrigan, as they tried to talk him out of jumping. At gunpoint. He pleaded for their help.

Now, thirty years later, the reasons for Joe's actions remain unclear. Most of the folk in this secluded valley agree that it was the day Joe just snapped. There is a history behind the bridge. But the elders of this valley have been quite content to keep old bones buried deep.

The bridge did get built. And O'Brien miraculously survived the plunge. But he was never the same after that, or for the short five year span of the rest of his life. It broke Mary Bonner's heart. She was the woman who loved him with all her soul. And yet many a nosy resident of this valley believed, in fact knew, that she sought solace in the arms of another.

I hope it proves to be an entertaining read for anyone who is interested. The eBook version is the less expensive option, and can be found at Amazon, Goodreads, Kobo and a number of other ebook selling websites.

Thanks for all of your support! And if you do take the time to check out the eBook, please feel free to  leave a review. Especially if you enjoyed it. Positive reviews are essential to indie authors, so please help us out if you can.

One last note -- Always Keep Writing!

Diane

New Year New Projects. Sort of... (Updated)

New Year New Projects. Sort of... (Updated)

A month has past since the last update, but I have one snippet of newer news to post. The pilot episode of the series I've been obsessed with has garnered a semifinalist status in the 2017 Scriptapalooza TV competition in addition to the quarterfinals nod from The Shore Scripts  competition that I mentioned last month. I discovered this information while cleaning out my SPAM folder, so it pays to do some email house cleaning once in a while.

In other news, I just finished a draft of the 19th episode of the same series, with the beginnings of at least two more episodes in progress. Another month, another copyright to register. I also updated my competition win listings at Moviebytes.com and was surprised to see that three of my short scripts were listed among the top ten of the categories listed on the site. Those scripts are Roadside Picnic, The Body and Blood and Pwned. It's always nice to get a little reminder that your writing doesn't suck.

I continue to look forward to the new year as I continue to expand on the historical drama series I started almost two years ago. I've completed nineteen episodes since starting the pilot in April of 2015. That's a solid two seasons worth of material for those executives who passed on the idea because they couldn't see it sustaining a single season. Yes, I'm a sole, novice writer who is pushing out an average of one episode a month. It makes sense to worry that the quality isn't there. But if I can single handedly carry two seasons worth of material over the course of two years, then maybe this project is a development goldmine! Maybe…

Regardless of the lack of industry movers knocking at my door, I continue to write them. Always keep writing. The practice is good for you.

That's it. I'm out. And again, I wish you all the best of luck in your writing endeavors.

The Chain - Francisco Pizarro

New Year New Projects. Sort of...

Hello, everyone and Happy New Year!

When I last took time to post anything, it was about the pitching process and the headaches that writers experience because of it. Well, I'm still pitching, and you should be too! Keep a bottle of Excedrin handy.

But that's old news. I'm looking forward to the new year as I continue to expand on the historical drama series I started almost two years ago. I was able to garner a quarterfinalist nod for the pilot episode in 2016 from The Shore Scripts competition. Any competition placement is a good thing in my opinion, and the notes I received from their evaluation were mostly favorable.

I've completed seventeen episodes since starting the pilot in April of 2015, and I've got a solid start on three additional episodes as we speak. That's a solid two seasons worth of material for those executives who passed on the idea because they couldn't see it sustaining a single season. Yes, I'm a sole, novice writer who is pushing out an average of one hour long episode a month. It makes sense to worry that the quality isn't there. But if I can single handedly carry two seasons worth of material over the course of two years, then maybe this project is a development goldmine! Maybe…

Regardless of the lack of industry movers knocking at my door, I continue to write them. Always keep writing. The practice is good for you.

That's it. I'm out. I wish you all the best of luck in your writing endeavors.

The Chain - Francisco Pizarro