One of the fictional characters in my forthcoming novel Bycatch is Anh Truong, a young woman who came to America as a tiny girl during the collapse of South Vietnam... Continue Reading →
Diaspora
Writing Inspiration
Inspiration for my debut novel Bycatch flowed from many sources, including my childhood memories of the Vietnam War, time in service with the Air Force, acquaintances in the Biloxi seafood... Continue Reading →
Cousin Ida’s Biloxi Dress
In 1936, my mother, Barbara Drake, age twenty months, was photographed in North Dakota in a dress she received from her great aunt, Ida May Detwieller Leiter, who lived in... Continue Reading →
How a Shrimp Trawler Works – Video
Friends, my debut novel, Bycatch, is coming out early 2022. The book features shrimp fishermen in Biloxi, Mississippi. To get you up to speed, I have posted this seven-minute video... Continue Reading →
Our Lady of La Vang
For centuries, Biloxi has been a melting pot of cultures and peoples from all over the world. This statue of Đức Mẹ La Vang (Our Lady of La Vang), the... Continue Reading →
White Shrimp
The fall white shrimp season has just peaked in the Gulf waters near Biloxi, Mississippi. Captain Nam of the Lady’s Y, a 95-foot trawler, readied his vessel this morning in... Continue Reading →
Spoils of My First Book
More about this later . .
Red-Lined
I almost let the 19th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack pass unnoticed. What with the pandemic, upcoming elections, fires in California, and seven tropical systems spinning in the Atlantic,... Continue Reading →
To the Point – Short Story
Chris began to question the wisdom of his trip. It had been just three days since Hurricane Katrina struck the Mississippi Gulf Coast, leaving more destruction than he had anticipated.... Continue Reading →
Hiking the Mississippi Gulf Coast – Part Five
We met again at Sharkheads in Biloxi to begin the fifth leg of our hike across the Mississippi Gulf Coast and were joined by Sue, a friend of Gail’s, who... Continue Reading →