Ten Golden Fields

Ten Golden Fields is a melody of ten unrelated tales. Each story harbors very different characters who generally find themselves having to solve unexpected complex problems with devilish solutions. And yet each character, if he could speak, would declare he/she is nothing special. Certainly how they go about dealing with their various conundrums, sometimes growing or falling back, always trying hard to advance to some forward point, makes the plot entertaining and hard to predict.

Each story contains the special dialogue of the characters. It’s the way they talk. The reader can sense it, absorb the words, know that no one else in literature or the world talks, speaks, acts just that way. Thus it’s easy to become very empathetic with every person you meet in your readings here. You may not like what they do, but it’s easy to like them.
The genres vary. Even within a story, there may be two or even three genres. For example, in Old Farts Marriage Parlor which is gently futuristic, nobody would call it science fiction. And with sprinkles of comedy, romance and a very, very special cast of characters, it’s an open question as to what if any, genre the story fits in. Shouldn’t it be that way if we want to read something special, that can catch us by surprise?

There are two stories that have the backdrop of war thoroughly embedded. And yet nobody would say they are war stories. I want to explore the psychology of what fighting does to people, how it can not only wreck and destroy the physical body, but harm and impede the very bed of our soul. So while the characters are facing extreme physical harm in the face of possible death, we can be transported there, exchanging places with them, coming away with conclusions that may be obvious or not. So in Fishville, it’s the U.S. Civil War, in the very last days of it in the deep Southern wreck of states, that the tale is placed in. And in Play Toys I explore how a second Korean War could begin. The characters who are affected are people we know deeply. We might even find ourselves feeling some empathy for the two North Korean soldiers, one officer and one Sergeant. Certainly, we can take in the sight of war as it demolishes a major megalopolis, through the eyes of Sarah Shim and Seth Sykes.

Three stories have mystery/suspense components. Each is totally different from the other; the characters are their own people in no wise similar from story to story. In Coronado Casket Company Alfred Cash would like to forget what he used to be. But something comes up that sucks him into a whirlwind of interplay with things he never would have thought about in his wildest dreams. August Rose puts forth an alternative history premise that may have spun the Deep South into turmoil at the worst possible time in our history. The church characters find themselves becoming the same kind of people they most abhor. The country Sheriff is at the heart of things. We may get the idea that Sheriff Juniper McHewn not only wants to do his job the right way, he wants everybody around him to be as good as they can be. But it’s not an easy job with the Golden Cross right there under their noses, refusing to reveal the mystery of its being. In Burr Man Rising, LLC, we get to see the evolution of a young woman, Sophie Sader. At the heart of the story is a powerful paranormal element and the introduction of a new word I hope the world appreciates: After Death Spiritual Entity.

So what is Ten Golden Fields? It’s a not ordinary, unusual, riveting collection of ten tales from the imagination of the author. It took more than ten years to get these stories together, and refined to this point. If all goes well, the reading public gets a break-a fresh, relaxing way to read fiction that fits in with their time schedules, and gives their tired minds something new to dream about at night.