My "Maple Gap" Pinterest Board

A writer friend of mine noted how valuable Pinterest was for coming up with ideas, locales, and people for her novels.  I tried it - and have created a "Maple Gap" board based upon the settings and characters in "The Winter Calf".  It has already inspired some great ideas for the sequel - a story about Charles Funkhauser - that I am completing now. 

The board can be found here: https://www.pinterest.com/michaelnuckols/inspiration-for-the-maple-gap-series-of-books/

Many thanks to my readers who have written words of encouragement to continue this series.  I  am more excited than ever about the sequels (Yes - two books are in the works with a third outlined!).

Now available - "The Last Buffalo Soldier" - For Kindle

In the midst of burning crosses and Jim Crowe,
 a soldier is asked to do the unthinkable. 

After months of editing, I finally finished The Last Buffalo Soldier - a tragic yet uplifting novel now available for Kindle.

After being assigned to Fort Benning in rural Georgia, First-Sergeant Willis Atkins finds that he must fight for the respect that he earned during the war in France. As crosses burn, Truman integrates the Army, and the nation fights for its soul, Willis struggles to reconcile an old passion and a new love.

Win a Free Copy of The Last Buffalo Soldier

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Last Buffalo Soldier

by Michael S. Nuckols

Giveaway ends May 21, 2015.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

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Coming Soon... "The Last Buffalo Soldier"

Something different

A new science fiction short-story
from acclaimed author Michael S. Nuckols

As I work on longer works, occasionally an idea will stick in my head that I have to get onto paper.  This was the case with my newest short story, Primitive. This work is a bit different from my previous writing as it falls firmly within the realm of speculative science fiction.  Primitive tells the story of a man living in a medical utopia in the distant future.  Years earlier, he agreed to live forever; the machines hold him to that promise.

As a thank you to my readers, I am giving Primitive away FREE from September 7th until September 11th.  Available only for Kindle download here.

A Beautiful Fall Day

Every day I am reminded of the sheer power of Alaska. I took this photo yesterday from my farm. A few days earlier, snow covered only the peaks of the mountains.  In a week, the leaves on the trees will be golden. We had our first frost Saturday and it killed everything tender in our garden. I spent yesterday digging potatoes and harvesting the remains of peas and beets.  Kale and cabbage grow sweet with frost - but these too will have to be harvested before hungry moose discover them. Snow is only weeks away.

Autumn is the time of the years that Alaskans rush to tuck everything in the yard away before everything disappears under a blanket of white. Winter arrives quickly in the Great Land and it is crucial to be prepared. Those who linger discover that chores left undone must wait until April when the ground thaws and the world hints at greeness again.

Wolves at 3 am

The other morning I awoke to a strange sound coming from outside my window.  Something large was walking back and forth on some tarps that I had folded up next to our garbage cans.  I looked out the window and, to my surprise, saw two large wolves trying to get at some soup bones buried deep in a metal trash can.  The light was dim - so I put on my glasses to see better.  The animals heard me as I did and ran away in seconds. I regret not having my cellphone camera handy. A friend tells me that wolves used to cross from the Granite Mountains down to the Clearwater River.  Maybe they're returning?

Incidents like these remind me that in spite of broadband internet, satellite television, and food delivered from around the world, Alaska is still a wild and vast place. Just beyond my window lies real danger.  I relish that thought.

Our state is one of extremes.  Many find these extremes too daunting to face and lash out at them unsuccessfully. The peace and quiet here can be overwhelming for some.  Even in the summer, when tourists are filling every roadway and locals scurry to finish painting or laying concrete before the ground freezes, this place reeks of isolation and quiet.  Alaska is best suited for introverts - people happy being by themselves - those who prefer to recharge with their own thoughts.  I am not surprised that Alaska has the highest suicide and sexual assault rates in the nation. Some people are simply not suited to the extreme light, dark, cold, and vast spaces. 

Alaska, however, is a perfect place for a writer.  Writers like to wrap ourselves in our minds for hours on end.  A quiet place to reflect is worth gold. Alaska offers that in multitudes.

Alaska also offers writers inspiration in droves. When I choose to be social, I can meet people from all over the world  on any given day. Our locals are colorful, to say the least. The Alaskan landscape itself is like a character in a novel.  She doesn't budge; Alaska has a will all her own - an angry spouse best appeased rather than ignored.  She certainly is a character in my latest novel, Frozen Highway. She doesn't care who wins in the end, only that she gets her way.

If I can capture even a handful of the stories and characters I've encountered here, I'll consider my time to be well spent. Alaska is a strange but powerful muse.