Category: Comings and Goings (Short Story)
-
Mapping the Heart: Navigating the Garratyverse
🔍 Introduction The Garratyverse is not just a series—it’s a recursive emotional journey. Through three interlinked works, readers follow Jim Garraty across decades as he wrestles with memory, intimacy, and the quiet heroism of being seen. 🧠 Emotional Themes 📘 Book-by-Book Breakdown Title Timeframe Emotional Focus Key Motifs Reunion: A Story June 1983 (with 1998…
-
The Garratyverse: Amazon Reviews That Matter
—
by
in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Book Reviews, Books, Comings and Goings (Short Story), Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: CodaThe Garratyverse: Amazon Reviews That Matter. In a literary landscape often dominated by algorithms and fleeting attention, it’s easy to overlook the quiet power of a reader who truly sees you. The Garratyverse—my evolving universe of emotionally intelligent fiction—has always been about memory, intimacy, and the dignity of small moments. So when readers respond not…
-
The Garratyverse: A Life Told in Echoes
—
by
in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Books, Comings and Goings (Short Story), Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, CreateSpace Independent Publishing, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda🧩 The Garratyverse: A Mosaic of Memory and Connection Reunion: A Story “A lyrical tale of regret for chances not taken, told in dreams and memories.” – Denise Longrie The emotional nucleus. Set primarily on one day in June 1983, it captures the ache of unspoken feeling and the quiet fracture of youth. Bookended by…
-
Writing Doesn’t Pay the Movers: An Update from Alex Diaz-Granados
—
by
in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Blogging, Comings and Goings (Short Story), Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, GoFundMe, Insomnia, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Personal History, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, TransitionsFriday Afternoon, August 22, 2025 — Miami, Florida Hi, friends. I wish I could sit down today and write about stories—especially those in the Garratyverse—and the quiet ways they unfold. But clarity eludes me at the moment. It’s Laundry Day, and while I’ve got about half an hour before the dryer cycle ends, my mind…
-
On Writing and Storytelling: When Fiction Finds Its Muse After the Fact
—
by
I didn’t set out to write Leigh E. into Comings and Goings. In fact, I didn’t realize I had until yesterday. Kelly Moore, as she appears in the novella, was always her own person—smart, witty, emotionally fluent, and possessed of that quiet confidence that doesn’t demand space; it simply fits. But as I reread a…
-
On Writing and Storytelling: Reviews Matter! (A Lot! Really!)
—
by
in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Books, Comings and Goings (Short Story), Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion: Coda, Reviews, Writing as a Craft✍️ Echoes and Endings: What Readers Are Saying About Comings and Goings By Alex Diaz-Granados When I released Comings and Goings – The Art of Being Seen, I didn’t expect fanfare. It’s a quiet story — 51 pages long — about a first-time encounter that isn’t quite romance, isn’t quite nostalgia, but something softer, more…
-
On Writing and Storytelling: Kelly, Jim, and the Quiet Art of Being Chosen
🕯️ Author’s Note: The Quiet Bravery of Being Chosen There’s a moment in Comings and Goings—just after the party, just before the kiss—where Jim steps into Kelly’s apartment and into something quieter, more deliberate. It’s not just a change of setting. It’s a shift in emotional gravity. When she opened the door, I stepped into…
-
On Writing and Storytelling: Writing First-Time Intimacy with Emotional Grace
—
by
in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Love and Sex, Love, Sex, & Relationships, Personal History, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Sex, Writing as a Craft📝 Soft Light, Quiet Courage: Writing First-Time Intimacy with Emotional Grace There’s a moment in Comings and Goings—quiet, unadorned—where Jim confesses to Kelly that his first time didn’t last long. He’s not ashamed. Just honest. And Kelly, in turn, doesn’t flinch, correct, or console. She simply says: “Then it was perfect. You were kind. You…
-
Typos, Royalties, and the Indie Hustle
Midmonth Musings from the Garratyverse Late Afternoon, Saturday, August 16, 2025 – Miami, Florida Hi, everyone. Here’s a little update on my writing life and book sales for August—such as they are. I’m not exactly launching a new project at the moment, and honestly, my royalties this month will barely cover the spare change Stephen…
-
Garratyverse Motif Map: Memory, Music, and Emotional Echo
Introduction to My Motif Map Understanding the Threads That Weave My Stories When I begin to dive into a story, I often find myself tracing patterns—recurring symbols, images, or themes—that act as connective tissue running through the narrative. I call this intricate web a “motif map.” For me, a motif map is more than just…
A Certain Point of View, Too 