In the course of cleaning out my files and putting together some marketing letters I’ve compiled a list of my works to date. They include:

• one novel of 64,000 words, about a camping trip to the annual gathering of hippies and misfits known as the Rainbow Family.
• One novella, of 32,000 words, about a road trip and vacation to Yellowstone National Park, and the associated encounters with bears, rangers, ranchers and tourists.
• 73 finished short stories, ranging in size from 800 to 9,000 words and in topic from adult erotica to adventures with the Boy Scouts.
• And about 40 half-baked stories that I might actually finish some day.

      I've been working on a new collection of stories about Boy Scouts and all the antics Scouts get into (my favorite story so far involves burning down a tent). I intend this to be another novel/book project; I’ve finished 11 Boy Scout Stories so far, and have ideas for a half-dozen more. I've sent samples off to some literary agents in an attempt to drum up interest, but judging by the form letters I've been getting back there isn't any interest to drum up. The problem seems to be that these aren't really kids' stories; they're intended for adults who remember being kids. Still, I'll keep trying--I think it will be an interesting read when it's done.

      After soliciting publishers directly over the past year and being told by many of them that they only review work submitted through a literary agent, I’ve finally begun sending material to literary agents. This rankles me quite a bit, since I consider literary agents to be parasites. It’s quite a racket— the publishers insist you need to go through an agent, and since most agents are former employees of publishing houses what they’re really doing is guaranteeing their own future job prospects. The agents, meanwhile, collect a 15-20% commission merely for marketing the work you’ve done to their former coworkers. If the agents actually helped edit and polish your work that might be different, but they’ll only do that for an additional fee up front—I sent a letter to one agent and within a week got a stack of fliers and brochures advertising all their writing classes and editing services; for fees starting at $500. Of course, no mention was made of the work I’d submitted or whether they would represent it. Still, in the interests of getting into print I’ve broken down and started to send out letters and samples to agents. We’ll see how that works out.

Here are the Stories I've published so far....
      (Only one story, but hopefully soon to be more!)
"The Score" Published in the April/May 2005 issue of PKA Advocate.

      Recently I’ve revised and polished my novel manuscript, and have been sending it out to publishers and literary agents, trying to drum up some interest and get it published. No luck so far, but since I’ve sent out many copies of the first few chapters I’ve decided to break down and post Chapter One here, to tantalize and entertain visitors to my site. If you’re a publisher or agent, or know someone who is, and want to see more, by all means e-mail me...not that I’m shilling or anything.

At the Edge of the Rainbow:
Chapter One

Since I still haven't gotten that magical acceptance letter, and have now sent the first few chapters out to approximately 130 publishers and 80 literary agents, I might as well put up Chapter #2:
At the Edge of the Rainbow:
Chapter Two

Hope you enjoyed reading my work!