Thoughts and Musings for Friday, August 21, 2026

Friday, August 21, 2026 – Orlando, Florida

Hi, everyone.

It’s afternoon on a spectacularly hot and potentially rainy late summer day in Central Florida. Currently, the temperature is a sizzling 94°F (35°C) under partly sunny skies, but with a weak 3 MPH (5 Km/H) breeze blowing from the east southeast and humidity at 58%, it feels like 106°F (42°C). According to the forecast, we might see some light rain showers throughout the afternoon, and the high is expected to reach 95°F (35°C).

I don’t have much news; I’m still on a self-imposed sabbatical from writing fiction, so there are no communiques from that front. The only writing-related update I can offer is that Kindle Direct Payment will soon deposit my modest earnings ($19.72) from July. It’s not exactly what I’d hoped to make, but $19.72 is better than $0.00. It’s certainly a bit more than the estimated $14.67 I will get for August sales. Unless, of course, curious readers buy a few more copies of my books between now and the end of the month.

Ah, well. Hope springs eternal in a writer’s heart.

What Readers Say About the Jim Garraty Books

 Reunion: A Story is a sweet, sometimes bittersweet story of days gone by. It takes the reader back to the last day of high school and tells the tale of teen love and missed opportunities. Several years pass, and success and time don’t always dull those feelings you had as a teen. Mr. Diaz-Granados captures the awkwardness of young love and how it can influence the rest of your life. – Betsy M., Amazon Reviewer

(About Reunion: Coda) Another lyrical book from Mr  Diaz-Granados. A very satisfying sequel to his first novella about high school love and the problems with that. Without giving away too much of the plot, our hero, Jim Garraty, is now a history professor and seems about to find love again after his failed marriage and divorce but there’s something different about this new relationship. Add to this a history student who doesn’t agree with his professor’s way of interpreting events, and you have an explosive mix.

The story gives lots of flashbacks to his time with Marty, Jim’s first love, and we find out a lot more about both. It also shows him expressing his emotions more clearly, both to his mother and his best friend. Music plays a very big part in both stories, singing in the first book, which is how he met Marty; and Orchestral concerts which play a very big part in this new book. – Meg Learner, Amazon UK Reviewer

(About Comings and Goings – The Art of Being Seen) At a party where Jim is more observer than participant, a young woman approaches him and asks him, “You’re not having a good time, are you?” Feeling dejected, disliking his beer, which by now has grown warm, Jim is struck by the confidence of the woman who introduces herself as Kelly. Kelly listens and does not push, mock, or judge (other than to call Budweiser “horse piss ”) She sees, something Jim, invisible up to that point, is grateful for.

The story is not a romance, but rather an enjoyable, insightful journey into empathy and the importance of human connection. It portrays the gift of intimacy set against a backdrop of alienation—college, often one’s first time away from home. The author adds music to the narrative, not only to evoke the 1980s (UGH), but also to enhance the conversation between Jim and Kelly.

I enjoyed reading this brief, lyrical tale. – Denise Longrie, Amazon Reviewer