Baby Boomers Plus 2020 Authors

A Wing and A Prayer: Charles Warren has won first prize  in the 2020 Baby Boomers Plus contest. He shares a marvelous tale of a  young British boy’s experience with American pilots during World War II.  The chance interaction between the two has consequences far beyond the  end of the war, lasting a lifetime. Well crafted, told without rancor or  blame. 

Charles has been a UK national newspaper journalist for more than 25 years. He lives in Surrey, southern England, with his wife, two grown-up children and a very small cat. His stories have been published in print in the UK by the Earlyworks Press, Writers’ Forum magazine, Scribble magazine and on competition websites. He’s a big admirer of American fiction, especially writers such as William Gay, Charles Frazier, Kent Haruf, Daniel Woodrell and James Lee Burke. At the end of last year he secured his first US publication when his historical crime story was printed by the Tulip Tree Review literary magazine in Colorado. He is thrilled to make another US appearance with Living Springs Publishers. Go to the book page.

Into the Stormtroopers: This is a must-read story about the tumultuous events that abruptly thrust Don Carter into the international spotlight and an adventure of a lifetime. When a long-forgotten college photography assignment is suddenly linked to a presidential assassination attempt, the Secret Service, FBI and US Assistant District Attorney abruptly show up at the author’s door. Don’t miss this gripping, page-turning mystery about events that every baby-boomer will remember.  Don won second prize with his story. 

Don Carter is a sommelier, wine educator and writer. His humorous, educational writing platform is called WineSnark, The Wise-Ass Guide to Wine Appreciation. After 25 years in the wine trade it’s safe to say that wine gives Don’s life meaning. It’s the reason he gets out of bed every afternoon.

Recently Don ventured out of his wine writing comfort zone and began writing personal memoirs. And why not? When your personal memoirs involve murder, a presidential assassination attempt and infiltration of the American Nazi Party, why not share it with the world. After all, it’s a lot more interesting than telling people that Chardonnay tastes better with chicken.

You can find Don’s other work at Winesnark.com

Go to the book page.

A Silent Victory: In Second Century AD Roman Scotland, Corellia, an abused slave girl, is determined to save a young Roman legionary who she finds near death on the battlefield adjacent to her village. She will need all her strength and intelligence to outwit her cruel slave owners and tend secretly to this young man. Patricia Lee wins third place with her suspenseful story that explores how human persistence and endurance are qualities slavery and disgrace cannot extinguish. 

Patricia Lee is a semi-retired English teacher living on a small farm in the idyllic Southern Highlands of NSW, Australia which she shares with her husband and youngest son. A love of history and the natural environment underpins her novels, short stories and poetry. Her particular historical interest is Roman Britain, a past in which she believes her antecedents lived their lives with the same aspirations as those we have today- freedom, love and fulfillment.

Her published works include a young adult novel ‘History at my Fingertips’, with stories and poems included in numerous newsletters and anthologies. Her best work she believes, two ‘Roman’ novels, are yet to be published. She is currently working on a novel set in rural Australia and a collection of her poetry and art.

As well as writing fiction and poetry, Patricia recounts amusing episodes raising ducks, chickens and turkeys in her blog: amundr@wordpress.com

Go to the book page.

Attack of the Communist Hordes: Brad Bennett shares a marvelous, true story of events on an airbase as a result of the assassination of President John Kennedy. One of those stories that could be funny if it weren’t so incredibly fouled up. It makes you wonder what the people in charge are thinking. Be sure to read this one. 

Brad lives with his wife, Norrie, in Oliver BC, “Canada’s Wine Capital” in the heart of the Okanagan Valley. Since retiring Brad and Norrie have enjoyed the pastoral beauty and friendly existence the area offers. They love having children and grandchildren visit from the Coast. Norrie enjoys touring the vineyards and shopping the local farm markets. When Brad is not playing pool or doing crosswords, he is avidly pursuing his lifelong dream of writing short stories, fiction and non-fiction, by reflecting on life through past encounters.

Brad was born in Oregon and happily roamed the forests growing up. After his stint in the U.S. Air Force as a freelance graphic designer in Dallas Texas, he immigrated to Canada in 1977. Before setting up his own advertising design studio, he was an ad agency creative director in both Calgary and Vancouver, working on major Canadian accounts.

For a writer’s work to be chosen by Living Springs for publication in Stories Through the Ages is truly an honor. He is ecstatic and very thankful for the opportunity. Go to the book page.

Your Mother’s Sock: A poignant story of parents in an assisted living facility. That sentence probably conveys emotions enough but Elizabeth Bobst’s well written account of the heartbreak, angst, tension and even humor of the situation must be experienced. Don’t miss reading this marvelous story.

Elizabeth Bobst is a writer, editor, and educator focusing on ESOL and international education. Currently, she works with adults and families learning English as a second language. Interested in sharing culture as well as language, Elizabeth has taught in several different countries. Currently, Elizabeth lives and writes in North Carolina with her Irish Wolfhound, Lucy. Go to the book page.

Silent Tears: It was 1966 and America was going through unprecedented changes. A young girl lands a coveted job with a local politician only to discover a horrible secret. She is the only one who knows. What should she do? What would you do? Sandra H. Brooks has crafted a magnificent story that leaves the reader with an uncomfortable guilty conscience as though we are all complicit in the cover-up. This is excellent reading. 

Sandra Brooks has reinvented herself several times from entrepreneur, jewelry designer, life coach, realtor and always a seeker of truth and equality for all. Having lived in the South much of her life, she loves the richness of its culture but also strives to expose the deep injustices that continue to lurk in the shadows of its mighty oaks.

Her love of travel introduced her to a world of people, cuisines, customs and languages inviting her to embrace diversity and find joy in the differences as much as the similarities.  Sandra’s writing often reflects experiences gained through her explorations around the world as well as her years as a Southern girl growing up in the Deep South. She worked over 20 years in Manhattan and always felt as much at home strolling the streets of New York as she did picking beans in the family garden back in Mississippi.

Writing is her way of sharing herself and her gratitude for all of life… the good and the bad. Go to the book page.

Fun, Fun, Fun with Dick and Jane: A playful story about a precocious pair of students and the havoc they wreak on a helpless pre-school teacher trying to impart knowledge using, possibly, an old McGuffey Reader. The repetition of words drives poor Ohmie to distraction and the teacher to the telephone to call Ohmie’s mother to come and get him. An entertaining tale from the pen, pen, pen of Wayne Fowler. 

Wayne Fowler wasn’t expected to live, not by anyone who knows him. Upon introduction and acquaintance, his antics are at poisonous opposition to his benign character. None predicted more than six months. Who knew that he had already lived many millennium in the guise of Ohmie, a precocious gambol, springing up un-heralded age after age.

Wayne was a U. S. Marine (1968-1972), a mailman, among other things (USPS 1973-2006), and a businessman (2001-2019). Now he ain’t nothin’ but a happy traveler.

Wayne lives in Arkansas with his wife, Debbie. He can be followed, after a fashion, on Facebook, and in Wayne and Debbie’s blog at: themirthfulroadrunners.tumblr.com/

Go to the book page.

Fins Fatal Flop: Kaye George’s characters are so well crafted you can feel the tension in crisis and share the emotion in tragedy. This story takes place in a strip-tease bar but there is nothing shabby about the people who care for each other and do whatever it takes to protect themselves from the bad guys. Great entertainment, good reading. 

Kaye George is the author of: People of the Wind pre-history mysteries, published by Untreed Reads, the first nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Historical Novel; two traditional series: Cressa Carraway musical mysteries, the first a finalist for the Silver Falchion Award; and the humorous Texas Imogene Duckworthy series, the first nominated for an Agatha for Best First Novel. Cozies: the Fat Cat series (all Barnes & Noble best-sellers) for Penguin (written as Janet Cantrell) and the latest: Vintage Sweets series from Lyrical Press.

More than fifty of her short stories have appeared online, in anthologies, magazines, her own collection, one thrillogy (Wildside Press), and her own anthology of eclipse stories, DAY OF THE DARK, also by Wildside Press. “Handbaskets, Drawers, and a Killer Cold,” nominated for an Agatha for Best Short Story; Austin Mystery Writers’ MURDER ON WHEELS, Silver Falchion Award winner; and recently “Dream Girl” placed second in the BOULD anthology of January 2019.She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Guppies, Authors Guild of TN, Austin Mystery Writers, and lives in Knoxville, TN where she is the co-founder of Smoking Guns, the local Sisters in Crime chapter. She also reviews for Suspense Magazine. Go to the book page.

Deluxe Accom: Author Jim Gish’s tale of a college party gone terribly wrong rings true for those coming of age in the 60’s and 70’s. What started as a normal get together for liberated boys and girls, ended in tragedy for everyone involved. This story is hard-hitting, realistic and well written.  

Jim Gish was born and raised in Western Kentucky in the relentless forge of the Southern Baptist Church. Gish graduated from Murray State University, attended Law School at the University of Dayton and then received a Master’s Degree in Counseling. He has taught high school and college for forty-nine years. He is a writer, a college instructor in psychology and a counselor. His oldest daughter Elizabeth received  her Ph D from Harvard University and his youngest daughter Kathleen received her Ph D from The University of Cincinnati.

Gish lives in a hundred-year-old farm house in Arcanum, Ohio, with his fiancé Teri and their two cats, Buttons and Annabelle.  Go to the book page.

A Day with 3D: New Zealand, in 1970, had a very romantic appeal to our young heroine, coveting the opportunity of a job in a far-away land. Leaving the safety of her native Florida with a new teaching degree and a job in the teacher starved unknown over 8,000 miles away, author Anne Hill has created a compelling adventure that is both poignant and gratifying. 

Anne Hill lives in the vibrant college town of Gainesville, Florida, with her beloved rescue dog, Daphne. She is the proud mother of a daughter who works for the University of Florida and a son who is an army colonel and physician.

During her years in New Zealand, she taught theatre and speech in her home, directed children’s plays, and helped run a theatre program at Waikato University on New Zealand’s North Island.

Returning to the United States, she taught speech in a community college while embracing the drama of life as a hospital social worker.

 Currently, while working on a memoir, she enjoys being part of a community health initiative, an active writer’s alliance in Gainesville, and a joyfully challenging dance class.   Go to the book page.

Welcome to Vietnam: Chuck Jackson shares his incredible story of life as a Special Forces member of an Air Force Pararescue Team, Da Nang, 1968. Another of those stories that should never be lost to the caprices of time. These men and women deserve to be remembered for the champions that they were and are.

Chuck Jackson is a retired accountant living in Southeast Florida. He was an ‘Air Force Brat’ and followed his dad’s 33-year military career by also serving four years in the Air Force.

He is an extensive reader and since retirement; he has spent much of his time studying and enhancing his love for writing. This story is taken in part from his published memoir. He is a two-time cancer survivor and draws his strength from his faith and church activity.

For years, he spoke little of his Vietnam experience, suffering similarly as many Vietnam Veterans anguished in silence. With this writing, he wants to help return the honor and dignity of those that served with him. He dedicates this story to those men that proudly served as PJs. Go to the book page.

Thanks Mussolini: Richard Key has shared a memoir of a family trip to Italy in 1996. The story reminds us what travel in a foreign country could be like in the old days, before the internet and cell phones. We follow the author’s family to Bari, the city where his wife was born, and relive the train ride where things go south as the family heads north to Venice.

Richard was born in Jacksonville, Florida and grew up in Mississippi. He currently lives in Alabama with his wife, Laurie, a skilled potter. He attended medical school at the University of Mississippi, and his real job is surgical pathologist. He has been writing essays and short stories for about twelve years and several pieces have been published. One piece, The Last Hundred Days, about turning sixty, was nominated by Hawaii Pacific Review for a Pushcart Prize. His author website is: richardkeyauthor.com. Richard’s other interests include playing the piano, traveling, reading, and biking, although his bicycle was recently stolen. He deserved it. He had a lock and didn’t use it, choosing naively to trust his fellow humans to be decent. Last time for that. Go to the book page.

Ahmed the Tailor: An extremely well fashioned story of the unlikely relationship of an Iraqi tailor and a young Marine Lieutenant. With enduring patience our hero bridges the gap between two cultures and creates a small victory in a very human, personal way. Excellent writing by author Barbara Mujica.   

Barbara Mujica, professor emerita at Georgetown University, is a novelist, short story writer, and essayist. Her novel Frida (Overlook Press, 2001) was an international bestseller that appeared in eighteen languages and was a Book-of-the-Month Club alternate. Her novel Sister Teresa (Overlook Press, 2007) was adapted for the stage by Coco Blignaut of the Actors’ Studio in Los Angeles. The play premiered in November 2013. Her novels, I Am Venus (Overlook 2013) and Lola in Paradise (in progress) were both prize-winners in the Maryland Writers Association National Fiction Competition. I Am Venus was a quarter-finalist in the 2020 ScreenCraft Cinematic Novel competition. Mujica has also won several prizes for her short stories, including the E. L. Doctorow International Fiction Competition, the Pangolin Prize, and the Theodore Christian Hoepfner Award for short fiction. Her story “Jason’s Cap” won first prize in the 2015 Maryland Writers’ Association national fiction competition. “Imagining Iraq” and “Ox” won prizes in previous years. Two of her stories were adapted for the stage by the Jewish Women’s Theater in Los Angeles. At Georgetown, Mujica taught early modern Spanish literature. Her most recent scholarly books are Religious Women and Epistolary Culture in the Discalced Carmelite Reform: The Disciples of Teresa de Avila (Amsterdam University Press, 2020) and Collateral Damage: Women Write about War (University of Virginia Press, 2021). The mother of a Marine, Mujica was faculty adviser of the GU Student Veterans Association and co-chair of the Veterans Support Team. Her articles on veterans’ issues have appeared in numerous publications. In 2015, she received a Presidential Medal from Georgetown University for her work on behalf of student veterans. Go to the book page.

Breakfast Crisis: A heart-wrenching story of a teenager’s rapidly deteriorating relationship with his father. David Parish’s tale of a father’s betrayal and his son’s attempt to understand and come to grips with the emotional fallout is a must read for everyone who enjoys a well written account of the anguish of growing up. 

Having transitioned over thirty years from psychology professor to tech entrepreneur to executive recruiter, David has pivoted once again to focus on writing short stories while tinkering with a novel. Other interests include reading (constantly), playing guitar (enthusiastically), meditating (aspiring) and learning Italian (passionately). He and his wife split time between home bases in Minneapolis, overlooking the Mississippi River, and Steamboat Springs, with a view of northern Colorado’s stunning Yampa Valley. As time and pandemic restrictions allow, they would otherwise be traveling to visit their scattered children and to explore the world. Go to the book page.

The Ping-Pong War: If you doubt that a sports contest in a United Nations International School in New York, doesn’t have far-reaching implications, think again. Eric Rosenbaum shares a fantastic account of negotiating the halls of a school where none of the students speak like you, look like you or come from the same place as you. A spectacular story, well written and timely. Thank you Eric. 

Eric Rosenbaum has taught writing, adult literacy and English as a Second Language and Citizenship served as a program manager at several campuses of the City University of New York, at the New York Public Library, the 1199SEIU Health Care Workers Union and elsewhere. He received an MFA in Creative Writing (Fiction) from Brooklyn College. He has published flash fiction in several internet magazines. and in a feminist textbook for English language learners. He speaks three languages and has forgotten another three. He lives in Yonkers, New York with his wife, Manuela, with whom he speaks fluent Spanglish.

After working in 108 different jobs, he has recently retired. He is now besieged by the cries of legions of impatient stories waiting in his computer to be finished and brought out into the light of day. Otherwise, he spends his time communicating with fellow writers via Zoom, playing minor key harmonicas, laundering, and hanging out with his 2 year-old granddaughter.

You can follow his daily brief postings of observations and questions on Instagram: @mincedwords1. Go to the book page.

Smoke from Indian Fires: David Tarpenning has gifted us a marvelous story about idyllic life on the farm when the only hint of war was in far off lands, overseas; no threat to us. Life wasn’t always easy, but one could live it as seen fit. Then December 7, 1941 that life ended forever. This is a well-crafted story that should be read in every classroom in America. 

With a Journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma in his coat pocket, David Tarpenning stepped off a bus at 3 a.m. August 18, 1956 into adulthood at the U.S. Naval Officer’s Candidate School in Newport, R.I. Six years later, his service as a Navy Public Information Officer over, he entered the real world as an advertising practitioner. Soon there was a family (two beautiful daughters and now seven incredible grandchildren!) With only his journalism degree and bravado, he opened his own advertising agency and for two decades, it was a satisfying career. 

When he was asked to teach advertising full time at OU, it presented an opportunity to make a difference in charting the career path of bright, eager students. Twenty-one years and almost 10,000 graduates later, he retired–with the opportunity to exercise his passion for writing. He has now been published in the 2019 Stories Through the Ages anthology, Chronicles of the West, Catholic Digest, Columbia Student Press Review, Computer Bytes, American Educational Journal…and a 2018 Honorable Mention for his novella, What Have We Become, in Glimmer Train’s fiction contest.

Contact information: dtarpenning@gmail.com, ddtarpenning.com 

Go to the book page.

The Illustrated Man: Appearances aren’t always what they seem to be. This story takes place on an airplane but could happen anywhere. A situation seen as a dire threat to our very existence turns out to be something entirely different. Jim Tritten’s tale of one such threat misinterpretation makes for excellent reading.  

Jim Tritten retired after a forty-four-year career with the Department of Defense, including duty as a carrier-based naval aviator. He holds advanced degrees from the University of Southern California and formerly served as a faculty member and National Security Affairs department chair at the Naval Postgraduate School. Dr. Tritten’s publications have won him forty-three writing awards, including the Alfred Thayer Mahan Award from the Navy League of the U.S. He has published six books and over three hundred chapters, short stories, essays, articles, and government technical reports. Jim was a frequent speaker at many military, arms control, and international conferences and has seen his work translated into Russian, French, Spanish, and Portuguese. Go to the book page.