Category: Books
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On Writing and Storytelling: Back at the Desk, One Restart Later
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Computers, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Lenovo C560 All-in-One PC, Lenovo IdeaCentre (PC), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, The Jim Garraty ChroniclesFriday, April 17, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hi, everyone. I’m writing today’s update from my new Lenovo IdeaCentre, which arrived yesterday morning right on schedule. With help from my landlady, Nina, I had it unboxed and set up in no time. Like my previous two Lenovo desktops, it’s an all‑in‑one machine — no tower, no cable…
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Books I Love to Read: Harold Coyle’s ‘Trial by Fire: A Novel’ (1992)
Sadly Out of Print: My Review of Trial by Fire: A Novel Trial by Fire (Book 3 of the Scott Dixon series) Author: Harold Coyle Publisher: Simon & Schuster Publication Date (Hardcover): April 15. 1992 Genre: Military Fiction/Post-Cold War technothriller Trial by Fire, Harold Coyle’s fourth novel—and the third to feature Lt. Col. Scott Dixon—marks…
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On Writing and Storytelling: When the Spark Won’t Catch
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in ACX, Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Audible, Audiobooks, Books, Brandon Padilla, Bryan Haddock, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in the United States, 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 MoviesTuesday, April 7, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s a gray, sodden spring day in Central Florida, the kind that feels more like November than April. As I write this, it’s just shy of noon. The temperature sits at 66°F (19°C), a light rain drifting across the neighborhood like a half-hearted curtain. The forecast promises more of…
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Thoughts Upon a Hot, Humid Spring Day in Central Florida (April 2026)
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two Movies, Writing and Editing, Writing as a CraftMonday, April 6, 2026, Orlando, Florida It’s a muggy, cloud-thick spring afternoon here in Central Florida, the kind that feels more like early summer than April. We’ve already reached today’s forecast high of 82°F (28°C), but with humidity hovering at 63% and a lazy southwesterly breeze drifting through at 5 MPH (9 km/h), the air…
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A Case of Literary Serendipity: Two Writers, Two Novels – One Year Apart
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, All the Words I Kept Inside, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Book Reviews, Books, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Perfect, Personal Thoughts, Poetry, Pooja (P.J.) Gudka, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring 2026, Spring in Florida, Writing a First NovelSunday, April 5, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hello, everyone—and Happy Easter to all who celebrate! I hope your day is filled with chocolate eggs, laughter, and good company. It’s another hot, sticky spring morning here in Central Florida. The sun is playing peekaboo behind the clouds, and the thermometer already reads 82 ° F (28 °…
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On Writing and Storytelling: A Small Review, a Small Joy
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, All the Words I Kept Inside, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Book Reviews, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Perfect, Pooja (P.J.) Gudka, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two MoviesFriday, April 3, 2026, Orlando, Florida A Small Review, a Small Joy Some days, the creative life hands you a small, unexpected kindness. Today’s arrived in the form of a review — not of a book, not of something newly published on Amazon, but of a little flash fiction piece I posted on my blog…
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On Writing and Storytelling: A Dispatch from the Battle of the Errant Subheads
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Life in Central Florida, Life in Florida, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Spring in Florida, The Jim Garraty Chronicles, The Summer of Two Movies, Writing a First Novel, Writing and EditingWednesday, April 1, 2026, Orlando, Florida Hi there! Today in Central Florida, we appear to have skipped spring altogether and leapt straight into a steamy prelude to summer. As I write, it’s just before noon on April Fool’s Day 2026, but the weather isn’t joking around—79 ° F (26 ° C), mostly sunny, and humid…
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Sunday Drizzle, Story Edits
Sunday, March 29, 2026 – Orlando, Florida Hi, everyone. It’s a warm, gray‑shrouded early spring Sunday here in my corner of Orange County on this last weekend of March 2026. The kind of day that feels like it’s holding its breath — not quite bright, not quite gloomy, just wrapped in a soft, humid hush.…
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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…