Bmmm…Bmmm…Bmmm…Sharkcon approaches!

People learning and having fun at Sharkcon. I’ll be there!

Who hasn’t seen “Jaws?” The ominous music that marks the appearance of the super predator can’t be forgotten. Sharks are in the news currently. Unfortunately, when humans venture into the shark’s domain the results aren’t always so nice. These tigers of the sea fascinate us and create the ultimate fear; that of being eaten! Though a few unfortunate individual humans are attacked each year, most cases are mistaken identity. Sharks don’t have us listed on their menus as a New York Strip. Humans create far more carnage among the shark population than vice versa.

If you have the desire to learn more about these survivors from eons of time in the past (far before humans stood upright) a great opportunity exists for Florida residents. Sharkcon will be held this Saturday and Sunday at the State Fair Grounds in Tampa. Everything you want to know about these finned eating machines will be on display. One of the features will be a special showing of Jaws II and a Q & A session with some of the cast members. The fair grounds are located near I-4 on the eastern extremity of Tampa. Visit the Sharkcon webpage for complete details. Come out…it’s great fun!

One of the exhibits at Sharkcon is the Megalodon, the ancient ancestor of the present-day shark

I’ll be there! Along with over 600 other exhibitors, I’ll have a booth (#624) displaying my books that feature history and mystery. Among the books on display will be Blue Water, Red Blood and The Grave with Greener Grass. Blue Water, Red Blood retells the story of the development of the landing craft used by our US Marines in the Pacific during WWII. It’s a Florida story few know about. The Grave with Greener Grass is my brand-new historical novel published by TouchPoint Press. It captures the mystique of Florida’s cattle days, a Holmesian set of cryptic clues, and the knowledge of a pioneer farming trick to find The Grave with Greener Grass.

My newest mystery! The Grave with Greener Grass ….The 1st of a 3book series by TouchPoint Press

The fascinating story of Florida’s accidental contribution to winning WWII is told in Blue Water, Red Blood

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See you at Sharkcon!

 

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Time to think of Christmas?

Christmas Cookies! The name of the Oak Ridge Boys album & accompanying anthology of short stories…one of mine is included.

I know. I know. It’s late August. No sleighs are skimming the snow. In fact, most places in the northern hemisphere are hotter than hell! So why do I want to talk about Christmas. If you’re in the ‘book business’ now is the time the finishing touches go into the holidays publishing process. Since I have a short story in a book that will be released for this Christmas, naturally, I’m excited. The book my short story will appear in is titled, “Christmas Cookies.” This anthology is a companion piece to the OAK RIDGE BOYS’ album carrying the same name. One of the Oaks has a story included in the book. My story is “Aunt Elvira’s Jewels,” a cozy Christmas mystery. The book is to be published by Ally and pre-pub orders can be placed November 1st. It will be in stores soon after. These will make great gifts; can’t miss music and can’t miss reading.

 

The perfect stocking stuffer for the reader on your gift list!

 

Many of you have asked whether my book ‘A Christmas Story Collection‘ would be available again this year. YES! It is very, very popular! There will be no order size restrictions, last year’s run was limited, for those of you that wish to order as presents for friends, relatives and business associates. YES! There will be a 20% discount for orders of six or more placed directly through my website …  http://www.dlhavlin.com  … and YES, I’ll sign them if you wish.

For those of you that are asking about new books: I don’t have a release date from FlashPoint for the first book of my SLY HARRELL series, ‘The Grave with Greener Grass.” I’m hoping for spring of 2022 with the next two following close behind. The second book of the Harper Sturgis, Iron Lady series should be available by November or before. ‘Out of Italy,’ is a historical novel, set in Tuscany, full of info for WWII readers, that is an on-the-edge-of-your-chair read that has Harper treasure hunting for a nation’s wealth. Check my webpage for availability.

Hey…You only get one life! Enjoy it!

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February…updating the update

Brandi relaxing on the couch. She’s still a pup…at 65 pounds

One of the structures at the Crowley Museum. See you there March 6 & 7!

I have a new critic that enjoys my novels…or at least the manuscripts. The newest member of our household, Brandi, really has sunk her teeth into my work. Literally. She wandered up the circular stairs that go to my writing office in our loft. Several boxes of manuscripts, mostly unpublished, are stored there. Golden Retrievers have a tendency to be “oral” canines, and 8 months-old, Brandi, is dedicated to proving that’s true. Our house is scared from her attempts to eat anything, even walls. She’s a sweetheart and it’s impossible to remain angry long.

Three new books to add to my stack??

The next paragraph falls under the category of slightly premature. My literary agent has, in hand, an offer and contract for book one of my three book Finder Series. It’s with a large house and I’m excited at expanding my publishing base. The series features a redneck light Sherlock Holmes character, Sly Harrell. He’s in the business of recovering treasures, antiquities, and industrial secrets. An ex-DOJ operative, he has a the skills to accept any challenge presented to him. The first book in the series is titled, “The Grave with Greener Grass.” I hope to confirm my signing in the near future.

A “full house” during Covid-19, a presentation at Master the Possibilities. This presentation is on “Florida’s Museums and Historic Places.”

   Now to update, the update. My schedule for the rest of February and beginning of March is as follows:

Wednesday 2/24, King’s Gate ComCenter, Punta Gorda, 10 AM Presentation, “Florida’s contribution to WWII & WWIIs contribution to Florida”

Saturday 2/27, Mixon’s Spring Festival, Bradenton FL10 AM to 3 PM, Meet and greet

Sunday 2/28, Friends of Boca Raton Public Library presentation (Jacqueline Cochran – Florida’s feminist pioneer – rescheduled to Sunday March 21

Friday 3/5, Ft Myers Beach Public Library, 10:30 AM, Presentation, “Florida’s Museums & Historical Places”

Saturday & Sunday, 3/6 & 3/7, 10 AM to 6 PM, Southwest Florida Heritage Days, Crowley Museum, Sarasota Florida, My presentations are at 11:00 AM each day. Saturday “Jake Summerlin & Florida’s Cattle Heritage” Sunday “The Patriot War.” Meet and greet all day. I’ll be at the education center. The Crowley Museum is a preserved late 1800s Florida Town complete with cattle herd.

Spin me up a shirt Ma!

Transportation – 1880’s Florida style. One of a multitude of exhibits (as they were) at the Crowley Museum.

Hope to see you soon!

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February will go fast…

I’ll be back at Master the Possibilities this Wednesday February 3rd. This is a pic from one of my January classes…

I’m ready to get back into the presentation season in earnest. In Florida, the period from Thanksgiving to Easter sees an influx of visitors. Many stay for the winter. The peak portion of that season is in the months of February and March. With Covid in retreat, people educated on avoiding catching it, vaccinations getting into full swing, and people’s longing for social contact becoming acute, the presentation circuit has awakened. While I’m still doing some virtual programs, more and more events are going back to in person or dual presentations.

February will be busy. The kick off is at Master the Possibilities, Wednesday the 3rd. I’ll be presenting three programs. The 9AM class is on Florida’s 400 plus historic sites and museums. The class provides handouts that list most of them with locations and descriptions. I cover the exceptional opportunity Florida provides for a look at our past.  At 11AM, I’ll be discussing one of Florida’s outstanding sons, General Daniel “Chappie” James, America’s first black 4-star General. Part of Florida’s violent past is exposed in Flaming Florida, the perpetual wars and bloodshed from the year 1810 through 1865. These programs are held at “The Top of the World” offices in Ocala, in rooms dedicated to this life long learning program. They are also simultaneously available through virtual programing. Visit www.masterthepossibilities.org  to sign up. Click on the link below to see the flyer.

Presentation flyer-Master the Possibilities 2-03-21

I’ll be doing two private book clubs, then I’ll be doing a meet and greet book signing at Annette’s Book Nook on Fort Myers Beach on Thursday Feb 11. I’m there from 9 to 1. Annette’s is located in the Santini Shopping Center on Estero Blvd.

The next stop is in Port Charlotte and the Charlotte County Cultural Center winter arts event. It’s located on Aaron Street, and will be held Saturday the 13th. It’s from 9 until 3.

Ft Myers Beach Public Library is my next stop. I’ll be doing a combined in-person/virtual there February 18th. My topic…Edison in Florida. The program starts at 10:30 and lasts an hour. Visit the Library’s website http://www.fmb.lib.fl.us for details and to sign up for the “virtual cast.”

Saturday the 20th I’ll be at the Pine Island Garden Club Gala held at Phillips Park (intersection of Pine Island Rd & Stringfellow) for a meet and greet. Come discover Pine Island a remining bit of old Florida. Hours are from 8 until 2.

King’s Gate Community Center will host my historical presentation, Florida’s contribution to WWII and WWII’s contribution to Florida. It’s located in Port Charlotte. That’s on February 24th at 11AM.

February 27 winds up the month. I’ll be in Bradenton for a meet and greet at Mixon’s  from 10 to 3. Mixon’s is located at 252 27th Street East.

Mixon’s at a previous art fest.

 

Hope to see you!

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Back to “Normal” or just “Adjusting?”

Learning about the loyal 14th colony – Florida during the Revolutionary War at Master the Possibilities

Are things getting better or have people had enough of cave dwelling? Or have they become educated on how to protect themselves from the virus and feel comfortable venturing out? Or have they become familiar enough with booming on Zoom and other techie alternatives to enjoy them? I hope it’s a little of all four. Whatever the reason, requests for me to speak have become very active over the last three or four weeks.

Some examples – in the last two weeks my PR lady has booked 8 library dates (3 different libraries), a museum date, 2 art events, a book club, a retirement center, and a regional book fair. Granted, these are spread over the next six months, but it certainly is encouraging. The last half of this month, I’ll be speaking at, or doing a virtual presentation, or both on three dates.

The 17th is a closed talk to a book club. I’ve caused some confusion in the past, so I no longer give details on events that aren’t open to all of you.

Speaking at a “closed event” – one the general public can’t attend.

On Saturday the 19th, I’ll be at the On Point Book Fair, held in the Westshore Plaza in Tampa, FL. The fair starts at 10 AM add runs until 6 PM. The address for Google – 250 N. West Shore Blvd. I’ve bee told there will be over 100 regional authors at the event.

DL talking to readers at a book fair in the past.

September 24th, I’ll be presenting both in person and virtually from Master the Possibilities in Ocala, Florida. Master the Possibilities is located at the Top of the World community, in one of their conference rooms (Live Oak, I believe.) The rooms are spacious…social distancing and mask wearing rules are observed. There’s plenty of space to enjoy the presentation in safety. I’ll be doing three presentations that day. From 10 to 12 I’ll present, “Here come the Generals” the stories of James van Fleet and Roy Stanley Geiger and their vital but unheralded contributions to WWII. From 12:30 to 1:30 – “Flaming Florida I” tells the birthright of blood and violence that the state emerged from. The last presentation is titled, “A Look at Hell.” Few Americans are familiar with the horrible consequences of Hitler and Stalin’s actions in Ukraine in 1941. Get an understanding by signing up. You can attend these classes in person or in the comfort of your home. Sign up with the Master the Possibilities group at https://masterthepossibilities.org. Their class offerings are high quality and are priced reasonably.

Master the Possibilities does a great job of insuring attendee safety.

The Brandi progress report: She’s growing like a weed on steroids!

Brandi has grown! Her she is eating our kitchen stools

Brandi just 6 weeks ago!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I invite you to visit my website http://www.dlhavlin.com to get information on my latest books, my speaking schedule, and how to schedule me for your event. Sign up for my quarterly newsletter for information on the latest projects I’m engaged in.

 

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Memorial Day! Time to remember…and preserve what those brave humans died for!

Waving the FLAG Florida style = on the beach

This day is a time we should take to look back and listen to what history is screaming. View the pictures in this blog. Understand what they mean. Each body lying on those beaches was someone’s loved one. That corpse gave its life for all of us. It did this so we can have the freedoms we should enjoy and savor. We must protect what provided for us. They were purchased at such a high cost.

Bravery – a heritage of sacrifice we cannot afford to forget

Today, there are many humans that do not value the sacrifices made and are perfectly willing to sacrifice freedoms for their particular political thought. Many are in Congress. Inflexibility and ignorance are destructive siblings. Some see their view of the world as the only correct one. They join Stalin, Hitler, and Mao in their myopic views and disdain for others. How sad. If a freedom hinders their political view affect they are ready to discard it. Any right a US citizen enjoys that impacts them in the here and now, they devalue.

Let’s see if we can explain that worth more clearly. Look at the picture below. It’s the body of a brave man who died alone. In all probability his death was painful. No one was there to comfort him. Now, look at him a little differently. His unseen face is your brother, your son, your uncle, your father. The price of his sacrifice has just gone up. We should accord all those nameless, faceless heroes the same honor and esteem we would for those of our blood.

A US citizen who sacrificed all for his country on OMAHA BEACH

I was watching a national TV news program two nights ago. It was a channel I normally watch. The volume of inflammatory rhetoric got to the point I flipped the channel… Guess what…I got more of the same…only worse. After repeating the process several more times, I decided I’d go to a local channel to avoid the garbage. Oh, contraire…I was still in the truck, bouncing my way to the landfill.

Memorial Day! A day to honor all those who fought to provide us with the freedoms and lives we enjoy daily. I wondered…what would those who fought…bled…and died think about the two sides in this country trying their best to destroy all that those brave men and women fought to preserve.

Remember

Remember

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today, May 25th, 2020, say a prayer and give thanks to all those who fought…who fought and died…and who fought and were forever changed. In actuality, they are all our blood relatives.

 

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See You Thursday?

DL at Master the Possibilities earlier this year.

Hi all —- I’d like to see you in Ocala, Florida, on Thursday July 18th at Master the Possibilities! It is a lifelong learning organization dedicated to those wish to gain knowledge of the new and the old.

I’ll be teaching a writing class with tips for the novice and established writer called “I’ve met the enemy and he is me.”  In the afternoon, “Flaming Florida and it’s violent birthright” will be one presentation and “A glimpse into Hell,” the Nazi invasion of Ukraine, will be my second historical talk. Go to http://www.masterthepossibilities.org  for sign up information.

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Escaping Skeletons – another look at Operation Paperclip

The individual you see between LBJ & JFK is a Nazi who came to the USA as part of Operation Paperclip

My latest book, Escaping Skeletons, revolves around a part of history that has largely been forgotten and I’m sure many government officials are happy that it is. In the last frantic days of WWII, there was a race between the USA, British, and the Russians to obtain as many German scientists and technology as they could. The US part of the race was managed by Major General William J. (Wild Bill) Donovan. Donovan was head of the OSS or Office of Strategic Services…the predecessor to the CIA. “WIld BIll” was a believer in the ends justifying the means. Finding those scientists wasn’t easy in those chaotic times. Rumors abounded he used SS and Gestapo people who knew their whereabouts to find them. As a result, some of them were allowed to “slip in.”

 

Otto Skorzeny and Wernor von Braun are two of the more famous refuges. Skorzeny was Hitler’s “Super Spy” and was central to many high profile events such as rescuing Mussolini and behind the lines activity during the Battle of the Bulge. He ended up in Argentina and was Eva Peron’s bodyguard for a period of time. Von Braun was the central figure in the Nazi rocketry program (V-1 & V-2) who was a key individual in the US space program. Obviously, von Braun fits the scientist portion of the program. Otto did not!

The pictures you see are taken in Misiones Province in Argentina the destination for many Nazis after the War. Rumors that Hitler somehow faked his death and ended his life there are hard to completely dismiss, particularly when some of the evidence is looked at objectively. Forget looking for any information our government might provide. Everything and everybody has been very skillfully hidden. But consider Klaus Barbie and the like survived in South America for years.

The pictures you see were taken by Archaeologists at a site in the remote province. There’s no doubt this was a Nazi compound.

 

A wall built from native available at the site.

Pictured below is William J. Donovan, the architect of Operation Paperclip. Were the actions he and the US took a needed expediency to shorten the war in the Pacific? Was Paperclip a free pass for some of the most notorious Nazi? Everyone should judge for themselves. Read Escaping Skeletons and examine some possibilities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Come visit me!  I’ll be at the Charlotte County Cultural Center (on Aaron Street) July 12,13, & 14  — I’ll also be at Mango Mania in Cape Coral, a Pine Island Chamber of Commerce event, in the Matlacha Menagerie booth part time on the July 13 & 14.  I’m at Master the possibilities in Ocala, July 18 – I’ll be teaching a writing class and presenting two historical talks. Check with http://www.masterthepossibilities.org  for scheduling and more information.

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New Friends and a New Book

I met lots of new friends during my historical presentation at the Lakes Region Lee County Library.

One good thing about being absent from writing a blog for a while is that you accumulate lots of material. I visited the Lakes Region Library in Ft Myers Florida and did a presentation on Florida the Loyal 14th colony. Lots of people forget that when the Revolutionary War broke out, there were more than 13 colonies. Florida (actually there were two Floridas – East & West) stayed loyal to the English Crown. That decision proved to be a costly one for it made Florida a step child all the way into the Twentieth Century. This was a knowledgeable audience and I really enjoyed my visit. Below are some photos of the event.

There was a large turnout!

historical exhibit & my book propaganda.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was staying at a hotel in Laurel, Mississippi, having breakfast, and looking through a copy of my latest novel, Escaping Skeletons. I’d just received it from my publisher when I left town. I was happy to meet two of my favorite people! They saw the book and ask questions because they are BOTH avid readers! I had an engaging conversation with both of them. See below.

This sweet young lady wants to be a writer someday.

A fantastic young reader! He and his family are dedicated to reading and education!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was in Laurel doing research for an upcoming novel, ‘Summer in the Country, 1965.’ Laurel is a great example of the grace and charm of which the old southern town is capable. Love the town, love its people. If you’re there — don’t miss eating at Pearl’s!

Escaping Skeletons is out! It’s the second in the Chessie Partin archaeology mystery/suspense series. (The Bait Man is number one) The story is built around one of WWII’s least told stories, the tale of Operation Paperclip. If you’re a WWII buff or a conspiracy theorist it is a book you can’t miss. More on it in my next post.

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Back to blogging!

 

 

Hi folks, I’m happy to be posting again

It’s been a while! A combination of things have kept me from adding to my blog. They’re past, or at least far enough in the rear view mirror for me to begin to post again. I hope on a regular basis.  I didn’t realize how much I missed writing my two blogs. (This one and “SandySays1” the one my Golden Retriever dictates to me.) My absence hasn’t been due to health or other negative reasons. I’ve been fortunate to been involved in some fascinating projects that ate my available time and then some!

I’ll be telling you about the many things that have been happening and what’s coming up that might interest you. See you next week.

 

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