Our Featured Book for September 2025
We all journey through time marking its passing in seconds, hours, weeks, years ... But what is the true nature of time?
What is it really? If you would like to explore the nature of time, join this workshop led by Prof Paul Wyndfield.
Open to all students and community, continuing until we understand Time.Students and faculty at a small college discuss aspects of time, while at a local pub. The puzzling group, known as the Thirstday Cognizance Brigade, or Tatton College's Best, are led by a Professor of Illogical Theory, a tenured professor known for inspiring students to think "outside the box." The tavern discussion turns into a workshop involving students from across campus and members of the local community. The one topic declared by their Provost as "off limits" is time travel; they do, however, discover how to manipulate time by altering memories.
Story behind the book
While camping at Morrow Mtn State Park, NC, in October 2013 I was struck by one of my "ideas." A group of college kids study the structure of time and somehow manage to corrupt time as we know it. I let this idea simmer for six years, while I worked on other projects, and finally began building pieces in December, 2019. This story developed slowly as I got to know the different characters and developed six different concepts of time. It was finally published, with great difficulty, in July, 2023. I had major cancer surgery and my bride and I moved during the course of developing this saga. Then, I actually changed the cover less than a week before release date (still have copies of the original cover).
Here's a hidden gem from this book. A unique clock is displayed on the first page of each chapter. The time on the clock indicates the chapter number and the clock itself reveals the main location of that chapter - pub, classroom, board room, around campus (pocket watch), and the silhouette for everywhere else.
Selected quotes from The Thirstday Cognizance Brigade
Leah looked to Bob, her eyes pleading for him to answer. Bob sighed and responded. "Memories lead us through our past, events that have already happened. Dreams, however, lead us into our future, which has not yet happened. Both memories and dreams can be examined, however you must understand that just because you saw a dream does not mean it will happen. The future has not yet been written and until it actually happens, it can go in any direction. Just because you saw a dream as a memory does not mean it will happen."
Purchase your own copies, click on your preferred link:
(Note: if you don't have a favorite book shop, click HERE before clicking Bookshop.ORG.)
Note: When we feature a book we also offer it at a "feature price." From Thursday, Sept 18 through Sunday, Sept 21 you can get the Kindle version for $0.99 (normally $3.99) by clicking on the Amazon link above during those days OR you can order the print version directly from Speurach Press for $16.45 (a big savings off the $24.95 list price) by clicking HERE. These special prices are good only from Sept 18 - 21. Thank you for your support.
Other conjurings from this old author
I often tell folks that I began writing when my bride, then my fiance, told me "I love Christmas, get over it!" You see I had a multiple problems with Christmas, going back to my childhood. How do you get over something so important? I wrote a story. "A Birthday Story," to be precise. Now, while this was a key piece in my writing career, is it my best? I don't know if I have written my best story yet, but if I had to pick one story from my past (over 250 and growing) it would probably be from my senior year in high school. My English teacher put up a water color of a bowl of fruit on an old kitchen table and told us "write the story you see." My story didn't have anything to do with the bowl of fruit, though it was mentioned. My story was about the little boy who was running out the screen door behind the table; he wanted to go fishing. I am sure you have all heard Mom's last words, "Don't let the screen door slam." My grandfather put it differently, "You let that door slam one more time, I'll kick you in the slats!" I got an A+ for the story, B- for grammar (I still argue with my computer about grammar).
What are you working on?
Beyond Books -
As I mentioned before, my wife and I moved not too long ago. Well, December 2021. We sold the house in Raleigh, where we lived for 32 years, and purchased an old brick ranch. By footage we went up by about 30%, wall space down by 30%. This house has been remodeled two or three times and has its quirks. Christy just finished painting the living room and dining room - which involved removing a wall of shutters. I don't like to paint but did a lot of patch work on the walls so my bride could paint. Other projects I have been "enjoying" include a rack to hold over 400 vinyl records, repairing holes in the wall where previous owner had run cables, and cleaning soot from the fireplace. I have been working on a plan to recover a blind cabinet in the kitchen and also install rails on drawers that were built in place. Oh, we have also been planting trees around the yard, which makes mowing a bit more challenging, and I need to clean and paint louvered walls in the carport - fun. The beauty of all these projects is I will probably never get them all done - the list goes on. Purpose is one of the secrets to a happy life.
Tidbits of lost information
A wise man, Mister Cliff Snider, once told me that two key elements can determine the success of any book. The cover and the back text. If you can't catch them there, they won't look inside. Recognizing the importance of the cover, I have spent hours upon hours upon hours studying covers of different books and developing my own covers. With one exception, I have tried to portray something about the story in the image on the cover. I believe my most beautiful cover is "Finding Nicholas," while my simplest and possibly most effective is "Wrong Forest." "Treasured Adversaries" is probably the most complicated the most difficult to create. The worst cover I have ever created was for "The Thirstday Cognizance Brigade." The original cover featured an hourglass and clip-art images. While visiting a bookstore just days before the release date I was blown away when the owner of the bookstore said she would not feature the book because of the cover. I spent HOURS trying to create an image of "Victor Hall," a stone walled pub, going to bed frustrated. The next morning I stumbled across a picture my daughter, Jordan Davis, took in Scotland. Minutes later I had the new cover. A beautiful cover.
So, is it better to struggle through creating your own covers or hire a professional cover creator? I have studied hundreds of covers and to be honest, those professional covers look great but they seem to lack a bit of soul. I have also talked with a number of independent authors and virtually every one creates their own covers, and almost every one has sparkle and reflects the author. I guess next month I should reveal where my back texts come from.
Next month's featured book: A Quiet Service
www.woodsmanstories.com
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Copyright 2025 by E. Gale Buck
September 3,2025