Much activity since my last communique. Work with distributing An Unholy Alliance continues. An uncomfortable heat wave has had Portland under its thumb for a week now. It was most fortunate that Cheryl and I planned our research caper to Bandon, Oregon during two of the worst days. The day we left Portland, official high temperature was 106 degrees–and it’s always cooler out at the airport.
Bandon is a small town on the southern Oregon coast. Were it not for Old Town, it would be just another one of the usual strip mall coastal towns, but Old Town is a village, and as such a perfect setting for my next novel.
I had gotten to the stage where it was difficult to continue without going there and spending more time. We walked on the beach, learned the legend of Face Rock, and ate crab at every juncture. We “discovered” restaurants and coffee shops, talked to people in the shops, at our motel, and at the visitors’ center. We investigated “hollers” off the main roads, drove up the Elk River to a special place where parts of the novel take place, and we talked about it a lot.
Cheryl is one of those friends who is up for a good adventure. Fortunately all of ours were of a positive nature on this trip. When Melody and Emma made their journey there, things did not go so well. But you will learn more about this in the goodness of time.
