Category: Personal Thoughts
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On Writing and Storytelling: Clouds, Corrections, and Canon
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Monday, March 30, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s one of those soggy, gray Central Florida Mondays that feels like the sky hit the snooze button and never quite recovered. The temperature is sitting at 80°F (27°C) under a quilt of mostly cloudy skies. With humidity at 58% and an easterly breeze at 11 MPH (18 km/h),…
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t
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in Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Life in South Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: Coda, South Miami High School in fiction, South Miami Senior High School, Writing a First Novel, Writing and EditingThe Elementary School That REALLY Wasn’t (A Funnier Follow‑Up) So, remember how I said I fixed the Kinloch Park reference in Reunion: Coda, and everything was good and tidy and ready for KDP? Yeah. About that. It turns out Jim and Mark’s elementary school wasn’t just mentioned once in the Prologue. Or twice. Or even…
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Elementary School That Wasn’t
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Life in Miami (1972-2016), On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Reunion Duology, Reunion: Coda, Writing a First Novel, Writing and Editing, Writing as a CraftSaturday, March 28, 2026 – Orlando, Florida The Elementary School That Wasn’t “When you write a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you’re done, you have to step back and look at the forest.”—Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft I woke up not long after 7…
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On Writing and Storytelling: A World I Didn’t Mean to Build (But Did Anyway)
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Brandon Padilla, Bryan Haddock, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, Stefan (Steve) Lee, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two MoviesFriday, March 27, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hey there! Here in Central Florida, another workweek is rolling to a close on a sun‑soaked, muggy spring afternoon that’s auditioning for summer. Right now, it’s a balmy 81°F (27°C), skies are clear, and the humidity’s flexing at 58%. The wind meanders in from the southwest at just 3…
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From Memory to Flash Fiction
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in A Bridge Too Far (1977 film), Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Blogging, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Life in Florida, Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in South Florida, Movies, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Star Wars, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two MoviesHow a 4K Disc of A Bridge Too Far Sparked the Fourth Jim Garraty Story Yesterday, I wrote about finally ordering the 4K UHD release of A Bridge Too Far — a movie that has been part of my personal mythology since the summer of 1977. I thought the post would be nothing more than…
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A Bridge, a Bomb, and a Birthday Treat
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in 4K UHD Blu-rays, A Bridge Too Far (1977 film), Amazon, Blu-ray & DVD Collection, Blu-ray Collection, Films by Stanley Kubrick, Florida Weather, Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in South Florida, Movies, Movies & Television, Personal Thoughts, Spring in FloridaSunday, March 22, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hi there. It’s another warm early‑spring day here in my corner of Orange County. As I write this, it’s 80°F (26°C) under sunny skies. With a west wind at 5 mph (7 km/h) and humidity at 33%, it feels closer to 86°F (30°C). Today’s forecast calls for a high…
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A Goldilocks Saturday in Central Florida
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in 4K UHD Blu-rays, Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Blogging, Blu-ray & DVD Collection, Blu-ray Collection, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in Madison (NH), Movies, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Royalties, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, Weather, Weather in New Hampshire, Winter 2023-2024Saturday, March 21, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hi there. It’s a warm, buttery‑gold afternoon in Central Florida. The temperature sits at 76°F (24°C) under bright, generous sunshine, but with humidity at 36% and a west‑northwest breeze of 8 MPH (12 KmH), it feels closer to 81°F (27°C). It’s one of those rare Goldilocks days in the…
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Remembering the Springs I’ve Known
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Blogging, College Life, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Life in Bogota, Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in Madison (NH), Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in Miami….Again, Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Life in South Florida, Life in the Tampa Bay area, Life in the United States, Miami-Dade Community College, New Hampshire Weather, Personal Thoughts, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring 2024, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, Writing a First NovelRemembering the Springs I’ve Known Friday, March 20, 2026, Orlando, Florida “She turned to the sunlightAnd shook her yellow head,And whispered to her neighbor:‘Winter is dead.’”— A.A. Milne, When We Were Very Young Spring has arrived again, at least according to the astronomical calendar. I turned 63 a little over two weeks ago, just four…
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A Wednesday Reboot
Wednesday, March 18, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s another pleasantly crisp morning in Central Florida as the workweek settles into its comfortable middle. Right now we’re sitting at 64°F (18°C) under generous sunshine. Spring’s chilly cameo is already packing up—today is a full ten degrees warmer than yesterday, so this cold snap won’t be sticking around.…
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Catching the Cool Side of Spring
Tuesday, March 17, 2026, Orlando, Florida Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Spring in Florida is nothing if not indecisive. One day we’re flirting with summer, the next we’re rummaging for sweaters. Just this past weekend we were dealing with heat, humidity, and a round of strong thunderstorms that barreled through on Sunday and Monday — the…
A Certain Point of View, Too 