Call 410.641.0291 to register!

Telling a great story is a composite of magic, craft, and self-control. As writers, we must learn to cull the dull and control the elements of time and space. This workshop explores the seemingly mystical processes of self-editing and revision that apply to all types of writing.

You will gain insight into the five types of editing, know when you need to work with a professional editor, and understand what you and - and should - expect from that relationship. We examine the basic rules of graceful grammar and proper punctuation, discuss when to break them, and probe the use of strong dialogue tags.

You will learn to ask yourself three basic questions about your writing and grasp the importance of developing a personal style sheet early in the writing process. And we will review a few absolute must-have resources that will change your writing life - for the better!

About the Instructor: Bill Cecil began wrangling words as a rookie reporter for a series of small-town newspapers back when fax machines weighed forty pounds and took three minutes to transmit one page. After growing weary of writing about late-night council meetings, he became a new editor and learned the hard way how not to bore readers to death. He has written massive amounts of unread material that dwell in dark corners as government documents and reports. A retired public-school educator, he has taught writing skills to diverse audiences around the country, and currently teaches college writing at an HBCU. Cecil offers editing services at the Wounded Writing Repair Shop.

When Internet conspiracy theorist Sherry Shriner told one of her long-time followers, Steven Mineo, that his new girlfriend Barbara Rogers was a deadly reptilian agent, Steven broke with Shriner's cult. Two months later, he was dead from a gunshot wound to the head, and Barbara had been charged with his murder. Shriner claimed credit for a true prophecy. But the truth was darker.

Journalist Tony Russo's investigation of Mineo's death, along with the earlier suicide of another cult member, led him inside an exotic new form of religion, where true believers assemble in internet chat rooms to stave off the demonic hordes of Lucifer, the New World Order, cell phone towers and reptilian shape-shifters. 

Dragged Into the Light is a look at how conspiracy cults wield surprising power, and what their growth says about deepening religious and political divides in the U.S.

***

Telling compelling stories about ordinary people has been Tony Russo's specialty for the entirety of his journalism career. Whether profiling artists, community leaders, or combat veterans, he has a knack for helping people connect to personal stories.

After nearly 20 years covering news and writing features for local outlets, Tony moved into independent journalism, telling stories about how small events affected the larger culture.

In addition to writing about the craft beer revolution, Tony wrote and hosted "This Is War" a narrative podcast documenting the personal stories of combat veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
His most recent work, Dragged Into the Light: Truthers, Reptilians, Super Soldiers, and Death Inside an Online Cult looks into how one nondescript woman was able to tap into the rising paranoia that birthed the conspiracy theory culture.

Tony lives on Maryland's Eastern Shore with his wife and the only of his four daughters who has yet to move out. Together they keep their dog and cats comfortable.

A story competition sponsored by The Greyhound - An Indie Bookstore.

QUESTIONS:     editor@secantpublishing.com (410) 845-3193

Secant Publishing announces a contest to find the year’s best short stories devoted to the theme of communication between dogs and humans. This is especially apt coming toward the end of a worldwide pandemic in which so many people have been sheltering in place and pets have been more psychologically important than ever to millions.

CASH PRIZES AND BOOK PUBLICATION
One Gold Medal finalist will receive $500 in cash and two Silver Medal finalists will receive $250 each, to be awarded on completion of the contest. The finalists' submissions along with up to 30 winning entries chosen by a panel of independent judges will be published in book anthology format with complimentary copies for contributors. The publication will occur in time for the holiday season, 2021.

CRITERIA
Original pieces of fiction, never before published, 500-3,000 words long. Winners will be, quite simply, highly readable, entertaining, and emotionally affecting. They can be in any genre, from literary and mystery to romance and paranormal. Humor is always welcome. Stories may or may not have conventionally happy endings, but they all must evince understanding of the human-canine connection and illuminate some aspect of communication across our species. Stories featuring gratuitous cruelty or violence to animals will be rejected.

ELIGIBILITY
Anyone 18 and above is eligible to enter. There will be a reading fee of $10 which is payable at the time of submission. Contributors will retain copyright but Secant will reserve first worldwide publication rights in the English language. In addition to the three cash prizes described above, all contributors will receive two complimentary copies of the book upon publication and will be able to buy as many additional copies as they want at the standard author discount of 50%.
 

DEADLINE
Deadline for submissions is May 1, 2021. The finished volume will be published in Fall 2021.
 

HOW TO ENTER
All entries will be taken through the Duosuma submissions platform. Registration (through Duotrope) is free. There is a $10 reading fee.

JUDGES
Initial screening of entries will be done by Ron Sauder, Publisher. A panel of independent judges will read all of the finalists and vote on one Gold Medal and two Silver Medal winners. Any ties following canvass of the judges will be broken by the publisher in conferral with Susan and Maury Wimbrow, owners, The Greyhound – An Indie Bookstore.

The judges are:
Joan Drescher Cooper is the author of Birds Like Me, a poetry collection published by Finishing Line Press, and three novels in the Lilac Hill series through Salt Water Media of Berlin, Maryland. Joan reviews books for The Greyhound – An Indie Bookstore. She is an avid walker of her rescue dog Hopper. See www.joandcooper.com . 

Bonnie Feldstein, writing as Anna Gill, has spent her literary career studying and writing about important vanishing cultures in America. Chesapeake Bay country is where she centers most of her six novels.  She is a public speaker and newsletter editor. Bonnie lives in Rochester, New York.

David Healey has written several novels, including the popular Caje Cole World War II series and a mystery, The House that Went Down with the Ship. His nonfiction books include Great Storms of the Chesapeake and 1812: Rediscovering Chesapeake Bay's Forgotten War. He lives in Chesapeake City, Maryland.

Kenton Kilgore is the author of the post-apocalypse novel Lost Dogs, as well as other science-fiction and fantasy books. He has lived on Kent Island, Maryland since 1998 and has just wrapped up a two-year term as president of the Eastern Shore Writers Association. See www.kentonkilgore.com.  

Judy Reveal is a published author in several genres including mystery, memoir, paranormal, and nonfiction. She is a professional book reviewer and scholarly journal editor based in Greensboro, Maryland. Visit her website at www.justcreativewriting.com. 

Lizanne Waterman spent 32 years as a middle school English teacher in New York State. She and her husband, a falconer, retired near Berlin, Maryland, where she helps walk their three pointers, works part-time for a local winery, and participates in a book club at The Greyhound – An Indie Bookstore.

Novelist and poet, Joan Drescher Cooper teaches high school seniors at Salisbury’s James M. Bennett to enjoy research and wordplay. Her first collection of poetry, Birds Like Me, will debut from Finishing Line Press in October 2019. The collection catalogs life on the Eastern Shore—the natural world, the foibles of people, and the revelations found in rumination. 

Finding Home at Lilac Hill begins a series set in rural West Virginia. The novel was published through Salt Water Media of Berlin in 2014. Based on the lives of two sisters raising their families on a mountainside farm, the series explores themes of working women, the role of family, mental illness, and self-reliance. The following short story collection, Return to Lilac Hill, features the same setting but includes a Dickens-style fable, a journey of discovery, and a fictionalized true-crime story with a supernatural edge. Published in 2016, Lilac Hill Folly extends the theme of the supernatural along with fictionalized true-crime as a prodigal returns home and stirs up ghosts.

My new book, INN BY THE LAKE, was just released in paperback by Champagne Book Group. The book signing at The Greyhound serves as the celebration of my book’s publication. The story of Luke and Amanda meeting at Luke’s parents’ Deep Creek Lake inn. Bad aid brought the lawyer and the innkeeper’s son together. Controversy over the future of the old inn drove them apart. Can the inn’s past promise Amanda and Luke a future?

Meaghan is an elementary school librarian who lives on the Eastern Shore of Maryland with her husband and daughter. She loves sharing her love for yoga, meditation, and reading with others. The Power in Words is her second book. Her debut title, The Power in Me, encourages readers to use the power of their breath to diminish their fears and anxieties. She hopes her words will empower children.

The Power in Words: An Empowering Guide to Speaking With Purpose

Words matter--we can use them to lift others up or break them down.

Do you want your child to discover the powerful impact of their words?
Help your child make mindful choices about the way they speak to others and about themselves with this charming narrative. The Power in Words reminds children that they have the ability to choose their words and actions. Through rhyme and thought-provoking illustrations, readers will explore engaging scenes to help them consider the way broken promises, gossip, and unkind words impact others.

Children will be inspired to use their voices to create more beauty, love, and peace in their lives.
"If we all put in effort to be a bit kinder,
our actions will spread and become a reminder,
that our words have the power to make someone's day.
We can lift others up with the words that we say!"

Confident self-talk will increase your child's emotional resilience, self-worth, and happiness. Your child's self-worth will soar as they explore ways their words can spread love and kindness to others. Readers will learn to speak compassionately about themselves and develop confidence with empowering affirmations, or "I am" statements.

Join ZoZo, her family and friends in solving a mystery that involves all of them and in helping her celebrate her 5th birthday. This is Ellen Krawczak's second book, and it highlights the importance of generosity. Her first book, "Ollie Gives a Hoot" highlights the importance of friendship.

Ellen is retired and enjoying the quiet life on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Her work background is varied – she was a paralegal in a New York City Law firm, and a real estate settlement officer and a substitute teacher in Maryland.

Her short story, “Seven Postcards From My Unmarried Aunt Betsy,” was published in “30 Ways to Love Maryland,” a 2019 Maryland Writers' Association Anthology. She has been on the Editorial Board for the Bay to Ocean Anthology for the last two years. “Ollie Gives a Hoot!,” is her first book

Fury: A Soldier’s Journey

Joe Myles recounts his experiences in the US Army during the Vietnam War. This book includes several photographs and stands as his best recollection of the people and events as they happened.

Maria Grosskettler is a lover of the written word. She knows the power and magic it holds. As an elementary teacher, she strives to inspire this same love into young readers and writers. As a writer, she strives to bring that magic into the hands and minds of readers both young and young at heart. 

When not reading, writing or teaching, Maria enjoys spending time with her husband and son seeking adventures everyday. As a family, they enjoy traveling, hiking, biking and kayaking. She lives in Maryland part of the year. The rest of the time, she travels the world creating her own adventures which are often what inspire her stories.

She is excited to announce her debut novel for young readers entitled TRACKS which will be available on Kindle and print format FALL 2020.

The passing of a loved one is never easy. There can be so many words left unsaid or plans still not arranged. It sometimes happens suddenly; sometimes its just a matter of days. Among the many types of relationships that are hardest to face, losing a grandparent can be agonizing. They are the grounding, the bedrock of your family. Your idols suddenly arent physically there anymore. However, the connection doesnt end here on earth.

As a Certified Angel Card Reader and Angelic Life Coach with intuitive abilities, Andrea R. Freeman has encountered her grandparents never-ending messages all around her. She knows that they are well, safe, and guiding her always. You can experience this bond as well. The question is, Are you noticing the signs?

Messages from My Grandparents in Heaven will take you on a spiritual healing journey toward rediscovering your connection with your grandparents that goes way beyond your memories with them on earth. Once you begin, you will distinguish methods in which your grandparents are connecting with you, with the help of your guardian angels; embrace your intuitive abilities to be receptive of your grandparents and guardian angels energies; find clarity, comfort, and restored balance in knowing youre not imagining the messages/signs that you are receiving; and
learn new ways you can enhance the connection with your grandparents.

Your grandparents are still with you each and every step you take in lifeever patient and always ready as you begin your days of healing. Let them begin today!

Aimee Massey will be signing copies of her new release, “Odric the Bold.”

Book summary: When his village doesn't have enough blue gourds for their annual fall festival, young Odric decides to go searching for them in the forest. It proves to be a challenging task, but Odric is determined to bring back the gourds, and he finds help from some unusual animal friends along the way...

Thomas F. Linehan, Jr. (Tim) began creative writing in 1985. He holds BS and MS degrees in Engineering. He is an Institute of Children’s Literature graduate and member of the Coastal Writers. His YA Civil War historical novel, Drums of Courage was published in 2005.

He will be signing his newest release, Hannah Gould.

Book Summary: In 1942 war-torn Poland, a Jewish family is murdered by the Nazis and Ukrainians, but fifteen-year-old Hannah Gould miraculously escapes. Alone and desperate, Hannah ultimately makes her way to a group of Jewish and Russian partisans between Poland and Russia. She is transformed from an innocent, sheltered Jewish girl from Warsaw to a cold killer in the forests of Belorussia. She meets kind strangers and sadistic enemies on her journey to discovering who she is. Her romantic encounter with a handsome Russian officer gives her hope for the future. But as the German noose is tightening, Hannah makes a daring move to save her group from sure death. Finally, the big Russian counter-offensive to drive the Germans back to Berlin is on. Hannah is mentally exhausted with nagging grief, even unable to cry. She joins the army advance, but struggles with what to do next.

We'll be collaborating with Sister’s Wine Bar for our holiday party at The Greyhound, Wednesday, December 14, 11-2pm. Refreshments will be served during the author signings of three local authors. Joan Drescher Cooper will debut "Birds Like Me, A Collection of Poems," poet Cary Kamarat will debut "American Legends" and playwright Andrew Heller will be reading from his new book "A Bunch of Ellipses."

Ava the Aviator: The Adventure Begins is the story of a young girl who dares to follow her dream. Ava can't wait to go to school and share her dream with her classmates, but when she tells them that she wants to be an aviator when she grows up, the classroom erupts in laughter. When Ava returns home discouraged, her dad steps in to help. Together, they build an airplane so she can follow her dream. But there's just one problem-the mighty little aircraft has a mind of its own! After taking off for a short test flight, they soon realize that the plane has other plans. When they narrowly miss crashing into the Eiffel Tower, they realize that they are far, far from home. Wanting to make the best of an unexpected situation, the father and daughter duo explore some of France's most iconic sights before finally flying home. Soar with Ava as she experiences new countries and cultures. Follow her as the little plane takes her on one amazing adventure after another. Ava's adventures are sure to entertain and educate young readers while showing them that they, too, can achieve anything and that the sky really is the limit when you follow your dreams.

Award winning author, Barbara Lockhart uses the setting of the Eastern Shore of Maryland for her two novels, Requiem for a Summer Cottage, and Elizabeth’s Field, as well as in her collection of short stories, The Night is Young.

With lyrical prose, she captures the flavor of the land and the people, ordinary folk living in small towns and on farms in both the present era and in pre-Civil War history. Her work has been recognized locally and nationally.

Her children’s books celebrate Shore life in such titles as Rambling Raft (on the Choptank River), Once a Pony Time (at Chincoteague), Mosey’s Field (our corn harvest), and Will’s Tractor, (a champion fixer-upper). A kindergarten teacher for 25 years, Lockhart’s interest in children’s literature began with her first publication, Read to me, Talk with me, a manual which was used nationwide to encourage parents to read to their children.

Through workshops, lectures, readings, and book discussion groups, Lockhart’s interest has been to explore Shore life and history, while recognizing and honoring the humanity that links us all.

Bud will be signing his book, "Dead People From The Attic," a collection of flash fiction pieces. While cleaning out the attic of his childhood home in Berlin, Bud assembled an entire suitcase full of photos with unidentifiable people. These became the inspiration for 52 flash fiction pieces Bud wrote over a one year period.

Veteran Authors Book Signing Event 

Friday, October 11th; 5 pm to 7 pm 

The Greyhound Indie Bookstore 

9 N. Main St., Berlin, MD 21811; 410-641-0291 

The Perdue Veterans Associate Resource Group (VARG) in partnership with The Greyhound Indie Bookstore is hosting a book signing event of Veteran Authors 

Light refreshments will be provided 

Ron Capps—War Veteran, Former Sr Military Intelligence Officer, Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster recipient, Anne Smedinghoff Award recipient, Found-er—Veterans Writing Project, Author of Seriously Not All Right: Five Wars in Ten Years 

Colin D. Halloran—War Veteran, Poet, Photographer, Teacher, Speaker, Edi-tor, Essayist, Instructor/Editor –Veterans Writing Project, Author of Shortly There-after and Icarian Flux 

James Mathews—War Veteran, Instructor/Editor –Veterans Writing Pro-ject, Senior Editor - O-Dark-Thirty Journal, Author of Last Known Position 

Dava Guerin—Author—Unbreakable Bonds: The Mighty Moms and Wound-ed Warriors of Walter Reed; Rebuilding Sergeant Peck: How I Put Body and Soul Back Together Again After Afghanistan; Vets and Pets: Veterans and the Amazing Animals That Help Them Heal 

Jack Freeze — Local Korean War Era Veteran, Retired Navy Missile Engineer and US Naval Academy Adjunct Professor, Author of They Shall Be Remembered, They Left Us Behind and Destination Korea 

Murder In Ocean Pines

CICI KING HAD IT ALL. She married the man of her dreams and has a beautiful waterfront home. She can afford to live as she pleases. But the tide is turning. Cici's marriage is slipping away like sand being swept to sea. Her husband is a successful businessman with a penchant for money and women. Cici wants to find out why Greg s behavior has changed for the worse and hires a private detective. Greg is miserable with the idea of spending the rest of his life with Cici. She s the only impediment in his life, and he wants his freedom. Greg devises a plan to murder Cici and acts on it. Greg is afraid a crafty Detective Crabbe will find him guilty of the crime. He goes to incredible lengths to set up his friend, Merv Grady, as the suspect. Later, he meets his mistress, Della Summer. When she learns Greg has a dark side, she wants to aid Crabbe in arresting him.

Pursuit In Ocean Pines

PAUL SIMMONS WAS ADAMANT TO WIN HIS FORMER GIRLFRIEND BACK NO MATTER WHAT THE CONSEQUENCES.

Amie McCombe wasn't prepared for the chaotic journey ahead. And why should she be? She was young, beautiful, newly married, and beginning a new life with the man she adored, private detective, Patrick McCombe.

Her ex-boyfriend, Paul Simmons, suddenly appeared unexpectedly back into her life. He fervently believed Amie would come back to him. She was the only woman he loved.

SAVING EMMA THE PIG

 New York, NY (April 20, 2019) – Welcome to Apricot Lane Farm, a unique world full of true stories about heartwarming animals’ relationships and the special people who care for them.

When Emma the pig arrives at the Apricot Lane Farm, she is about to give birth to piglets. But she is also sick, and after her seventeen babies arrive, Emma is unable to care for them.

Taking care of seventeen piglets and a sick mama pig are a challenge for Farmer John and his team. But the cure for Emma reminds them what is most important—for pigs and for humans: love and friendship.

About the Event: 

Join farmer, filmmaker, and author, John Chester, for a storytime reading of his debut picture, Saving Emma the Pig at 10am on Saturday, September 21st. Please note, only books purchased at The Greyhound an Indie Bookstore will be signed by the author.

About John Chester:

John Chester spent the first twenty years of his career making documentary films. In addition to running their 214-acre regenerative farm, serving as farm manager with his wife, Molly Chester, John wrote and directed The Biggest Little Farm, an award-winning documentary about his and Molly’s move from city life to Apricot Lane Farms, and the Emmy Award–winning short films about the farm that have appeared on Oprah’s “Super Soul Sunday.” He and Molly live with their son, Beauden, on the farm, which is located outside of Santa Barbara, California. Visit them at Apricotlanefarms.com

About Macmillan:

Macmillan Publishers is a global trade book publishing company with prominent imprints around the world. Macmillan publishes a broad range of award-winning books for children and adults in all categories and formats. US publishers include Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Flatiron Books, Henry Holt and Company, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Picador, St. Martin’s Press, and Tor/Forge. In the UK, Australia, India, and South Africa, Macmillan publishes under the Pan Macmillan name. The German company, Holtzbrinck Deutsche Buchverlage, includes among its imprints S. Fischer, Kiepenheuer & Witsch, Rowohlt, and Droemer Knaur. Macmillan Publishers is a division of the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group, a large family-owned media company headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany.

William Burnette was born and raised in the Northern Virginia area. He is a former IT professional where he was a Programmer, Analyst, and Product Manager. 

 He started writing while working by building customer communications, and learned about readability the hard way. Once he escaped the day to day grind, technical writing combined with his love of fiction and soon gave birth to his novels. 

 He now works on his writing and travels when he is not spending time with his family.

Jellyfish Blues

 This is the story of an everyman who is thrust into a heroic role. It takes a different tack in that our main character, Bill Phillips, does not want to be a hero. Luckily for him, he meets Jack Cavendish who takes on the role, while helping Bill along. They team up to deal with aliens, assassins, and traffic to save themselves and maybe humanity.

Saving Sasquatch

 A new story that features Jack Cavendish. He is asked to find a Bigfoot that has gotten himself into trouble. He navigates a new girlfriend and an old friend-turned enemy to find the legendary creature and then attempt to save him. 

While using the some of the same characters, it is a stand alone story that can be read without the first novel.

All of Walter F. Curran’s stories are based on his life at sea and on the waterfront. Both his first novel, “Young Mariner” and the second “On to Africa” uses his background in the merchant marine for setting and are the first two books of a trilogy.

Born in South Boston, Walt developed a love for all things maritime in his early teens and followed that love. Graduating from Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 1966, he sailed for four years as a Third Mate in the Merchant Marine. Coming ashore in 1970, he worked at a number of Stevedore & Marine Terminal companies in Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Jacksonville and San Juan, P.R.

Walt started writing poetry in 1997 after returning from Ireland and discovering blarney was an innate trait. His first book of poems “Slices of Life-Cerebral spasms of the soul” were composed for the most part riding Amtrak from New Carrollton, MD to Philadelphia.

Walt is retired, currently resides in Ocean View DE, is a member of the Rehoboth Beach Writer’s Guild (RBWG), the Eastern Shore Writer’s Association (ESWA), and the Maryland Writer’s Association (MWA). He is also the current mayor of Ocean View.

***

Set in the era of the Vietnam War, Bombs Aweigh-On to Vietnam is a coming of age novel. William Connolly, a young sailor fresh out of the Merchant Marine Academy is hired as a third mate on an aged cargo ship carrying bombs and weapons to Vietnam and Thailand. Crewed by drunks, druggies and borderline psychotics, the desperate ship's captain, himself a recovering alcoholic, turns to Connolly to restore order. Confronting violent and unpredictable crew members at every turn, Connolly is forced to assume greater responsibilities and face greater consequences than he ever imagined.

As the summer wraps up, we’re hosting an assortment of artists from Salt Water Media.

Andrew Heller is the author of the Samuel Smythe,, a young adult fiction series. If Harry Potter had been a Hardy Boy who found out his dad was James Bond summarizes the excitement of the Samuel Smythe Trilogy.

Joan Cooper has published multiple poetry books as well as a fiction series “Lilac Hill”. She recently released a poetry collection “Birds Like Me” and will be on hand to autograph all of her work.

Stephanie Fowler will be signing copies of her short story collection “Crossings” which was the winner of the Sophie Kerr Prize in 2001. She will also be reading a selection from her upcoming book “Chasing Alice.”

Patty Gregorio isn’t a writer but she likes to make writing instruments. She is the artist behind Black Dog Pens and will have a full assortment of pens and letter openers. She creates The Greyhound’s signature Riddle Farm Man o’ War pens displayed at the shop.

Diana wrote her first novel, Stuck in the Onesies over a ten year period while working for Ecolab. She retired after 26 years to follow her passion for writing. She published Stuck in the Onesies in January, 2017. Stuck in the Onesies is loosely based on a true story about her mother and best friends raising kids in the Donna Reed era of the 1960s in the Washington, D.C. suburbs.

Stuck in the Onesies will give your spirit a lift, your face a good laugh, and your history-buff side a tap on the shoulder.

You’ll fall in love with Barb and Ellie, two housewives raising kids in the tumultuous 60’s in the D.C. suburbs. Their antics make Lucy and Ethel look tame. The husbands, Jake and Will, are also as close as brothers and the friendship becomes more like family than friends. It’s the story of their close relationships, and how they evolve along with the times without taking part in the bra-burning activities that swirl around them.

Stuck in the Onesies is more than just a story of two families. The issues of the 60’s are intertwined, racism, women’s rights, the Viet Nam war, just to name a few. Southern roots ran deep and in the ‘60’s (even north of the Mason Dixon line) and those roots were dug up and exposed. The story shows some of its evolution through its characters as well as the events of the decade. Stuck in the Onesies will help you to understand the struggles on both sides and how as a society, we tried to bring equality to everyone. Sometimes we succeeded, and sometimes not. You decide.

Diana is the mother of three children and Grandy of eleven. She has recently released her second novel, My Mother's Apprentice, which is the sequel to Stuck in the Onesies.

Frank E. Hopkins attended Hofstra University in the 1960s. He became involved in writing while earning his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Maryland. He held the position of associate professor at the State University of New York at Binghamton in the 1970s, where he published numerous academic peer refereed journal articles and a monograph on industrial location. He continued technical writing while working at the Department of Energy in the late 1970s and as a government and business development consultant since 1980. He moved to Ocean View, Delaware, in 2001 where, as a consultant, he managed or participated in writing large winning proposals in response to federal government solicitations. The settings for "Abandoned Homes: Vietnam Revenge Murders", his latest novel, include the University of Maryland in the 1970s and Sussex County, DE in 2008. "Unplanned Choices" Frank’s first novel, is a historical romantic drama set in the late 1960s and early 1970s in New York City and Long Island during the turbulent period of the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights struggle, the sexual revolution, the women’s movement, and the struggle for legalizing abortion. "The Opportunity" is Frank’s second novel. It is a suspenseful crime novel set in the high powered competitive environment of federal governmental contracting in Washington DC and the high paced professional networking social life of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware in the beginning of the twenty-first century. "First Time," a collection of ten short stories is his third book of fiction. Each story contains an event that usually happens to everyone, that happens for the first time to the main character of each story. His most recent book release, “The Billion Dollar Embezzlement Murders” takes place in Greece and Delaware. It’s a suspenseful novel about love, crime, and greed.

Frank is active in the Rehoboth Bay Writers Guild, the Eastern Shore Writers Association and the Berlin chapter of the Maryland Writers Association. His website may be found at: http://www.frankehopkins.com. His Facebook profile is http://facebook.com/hopkinsfe In addition to writing, he plays golf and tennis, skis, sails on the Chesapeake Bay, and enjoys the ocean and inland bays of southern Delaware.