Desperate Journeys

Posted on May 31, 2018 by russtowne

Cover-Final copy

I wanted to give to you the first glimpse of the front and back covers of my latest book, Desperate Journeys. It’s my first book exclusively featuring suspenseful, action-packed crime stories. I plan to release it in softcover format next week.

Cover Image Courtesy of Eugene Triguba via Unsplash.com. Cover Design by Karen M. Smith of Hen House Publishing.

Many thanks to Scott Harris, Yvonne Deane, TM Blayte, Karen Stanford, Pamela Read, Beth Kennedy, and Ute Lark for volunteering to read and provide feedback and suggestions regarding early drafts of every one of these five stories. Your generous efforts proved invaluable.

This labor of love began years ago as five very short stories, also known as microfiction, that I’d written and published over the years. I kept hearing from readers saying they thought the ideas behind these tales had the potential to become full-blown stories or perhaps even their own novels. This book features greatly enhanced and expanded versions of those very short stories of long ago. May you find them worthy of your time.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Action, Book Releases, Cover Design, Cover Reveal, crime, Suspense, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

A Free Sci-Fi Espionage Thriller Story

Posted on May 30, 2018 by russtowne

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The Graduate

My friend T.M. Blayte just released a FREE Young Adult or Teen sci-fi fantasy espionage thriller short story that I believe many adult readers will also enjoy. It’s titled “The Graduate. “I recommend you check it out. I recently read a draft of this tale and enjoyed the experience.

This short story takes place two weeks before the events of Until We Are Free, coming 01 August 2018 from Alban Lake Publishing.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Book Recommendations, free, sci-fi, Thriller, Uncategorized, Young Adult | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

What a Great Idea!

Posted on May 29, 2018 by russtowne

Grandma’s cooking

“Just like grandma used to make.” Instead of hiring chefs, a restauranteur hires real grandmas from around the world, and has them cook authentic regional dishes in his kitchen. Brilliant!

Sources: Gothamist, Now I Know That’s Half the Battle

With Love,

Russ

Posted in food, great ideas, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Posted on May 27, 2018 by russtowne

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Our grandson Thomas aka The Flash participated with his mother Erika in a 5K race today that included elements of the Festival of Color. Runners became moving rainbows as they were softly pelted with various powdered colors (with prior permission from those being powdered.) Thankfully they seemed to be appropriately extra careful with colorizing young children. Thomas had a fun times you can probably tell from this shot at the end of the race. Photo credit: our son Ben Towne

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Children, Family Fun, Fun, Grandparenting & Grandkids, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 13 Comments

Twenty People Relay a Dog 3,000km Home

Posted on May 26, 2018 by russtowne

20 People and a Coonhound

A group of twenty volunteers relayed a coonhound 3,000km back to his home. It’s quite a story. Sources:  Leo @ Not All News is Bad, and nine.com.au.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Dogs & Other Wonderful Creatures, good news, Goodness, Uncategorized, Volunteers | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Heroes

Posted on May 26, 2018 by russtowne

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Over the years, many of my heroes have fallen from the pedestals on which I put them.  But some have withstood the test of time.

The image above is of one of my childhood heroes. I knew him then as “Cheyenne” of the television series of that name. He was the model of a manly man to me. My children gave this autographed photo of Clint Walker in that role. It is one of the favorite gifts I’ve ever received.

As I grew older I heard a story about the actor Clint Walker coming to the rescue of an elderly lady who had a flat tire on the side of a busy road. To help her would mean arriving late for what he thought might be the most important interview of his career. He helped her anyway. That’s a hero in my book. The story has a happy ending. The woman he helped turned out to be the secretary of the man he later met for the interview. He got the role.

That story so impressed me that one of the stories in my latest book, Desperate Journeys, was inspired by what Clint Walker did that day (though my version is a complete work of fiction.)

Desperate Journeys features suspenseful, action-packed crime stories. It’s full of tales of ordinary people who face daunting challenges and find the courage and strength to do extraordinary things. Versions of these stories started as micro fiction I’ve written and published over the years, but they’ve been greatly enhanced and expanded into much deeper and richer tales.

Desperate Journeys is scheduled for release in about three weeks.

With Love,

Russ

 

 

Posted in Action, Book Releases, crime, Suspense, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

“Do You Remember?”

Posted on May 24, 2018 by russtowne
A joke courtesy of www.mikeysFunnies.com:
An older couple was lying in bed one night. The husband was almost asleep when his wife started reflecting on all the love they had shared. The old gentleman is about asleep when she nudges him and says, “Honey, do you remember how we used to hug?”
The old gentleman says, “Yes, dear,” and rolls over and gives her a big hug.”
Then he was almost asleep again, when she nudges him and says “Honey do you remember how we used to kiss?”
“Yes, dear,” and he rolls over and gives her a big kiss.
He was almost asleep when she again nudges him again and says, “Honey, do you remember how you used to nibble on my ear?”
The old guy throws off the covers, somewhat frustrated, sits up in bed, and gets up. The wife says, “What are you doing?” In an exasperated tone he says, “I’m going to go get my teeth.”
Posted in Aging, Humor, Relationships, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

My Interview With Dr. Bunny Vreeland

Posted on May 22, 2018 by russtowne

I recently had the honor and pleasure of being interviewed by Dr. Bunny Vreeland on Mercury Broadcasting’s podcast. The link to the interview is below.

http://mercurybroadcasting.net/ask-dr-bunny-writing-childrens-books-russ-towne-guest/

With Love,

Russ

 

Posted in Interviews | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Fighting Alien Tree Monsters

Posted on May 20, 2018 by russtowne

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I love the imaginations of youngsters. Earlier today during a visit by two of our grandkids and their parents our oldest grandson Thomas was in the backyard playing in our tiny redwood grove and yelled, “I’m fighting some alien tree monsters! A little help?”

I’m not sure which sentence I found funnier. I loved them both.

I’m pretty sure the little big guy won the battle with the alien tree monsters. Then again, it might pay to keep an eye on him to ensure he doesn’t start sprouting bark, roots, and branches.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Children, Grandparenting & Grandkids, Humor, images, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Nature’s Show-Offs

Posted on May 19, 2018 by russtowne

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I love flowers. Their beauty delights and astounds me. It seems that almost every week at our home new flowers take their turn in the spotlight. The top two images are of the plant whose blossoms are on center stage this week. The red duo in the third image are hinting at the coming attraction for next week, and the last image was actually of a plant’s crimson explosion we enjoyed when leaving a restaurant.

With Love,

Russ

Posted in Beauty, flowers, images, Nature, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments