For Wilshire Baptist Church
In case you didn’t know, I’ve been scheduling Wilshire’s deacons the past few years. That means I line up who serves the Lord’s Supper on each first Sunday of the month. In that process I’m constantly reminded how much this is a family meal – where the entire family is worthy not just to partake but to serve. Continue reading “Family Meal”
This final day of the Aransas Morning Book Blog Tour has me looking back in gratitude and looking forward in anticipation.
The gratitude is for the encouragement and interest in a story that was 10 years in the making and has been one of the biggest adventures of my life. Who would have thought that a chance encounter on the beach would lead to a journey that has provided such joy and hope and introduced me to so many wonderful people.
And gratitude for everyone at Lone Star Literary Life and especially Kristine Hall at Hallways Blog who organized this tour and helped me navigate through my little part of it.
The anticipation is for what is coming because our visit to Port Aransas is far from over.
We close out the blog tour today with a review by Missus Gonzo, who has some interesting things to say about the characters and events in Aransas Morning, but she also comments on my particular writing style:
“When Hampton follows a character, he seems to write in their voice yet maintains that third person perspective. The tone shifts are truly remarkable. When we’re with Sam, sentences are short and details are sparse. Shelly’s first chapter is descriptive and the language flows. Dave’s chapter talks about the present but constantly circles back to Debby, his wife who passed away a year prior. When Sam collides with Dave, which rolls them toward Shelly, everything is set into motion. As the book progresses, it feels like a single voice has taken over the narrative; either Hampton’s alone, or all of the characters as a collective.”
I found that intriguing because I’ve never stopped to analyze my style or my technique. No doubt some of that analysis will be in my head as I continue writing, because as Missus Gonzo states, the story is not over. A sequel, Aransas Evening, is coming and there’s a story behind that story.
Like many who have read Aransas Morning, I didn’t want to say goodbye to the characters when I finished writing the book. Actually, I was ready to let them go, but they wouldn’t let me go. Sam, Shelly, Dave, Allie, Bo — they all kept whispering to me, telling me what they were doing next, pushing me to start writing it all down. So I found myself spending time with them again, writing their story as they shared it with me. They even introduced me to some new friends that I need to introduce to you.
And so I was writing all that down and was just about finished when Hurricane Harvey crashed into Port Aransas. Two things happened on that day in late August 2017. First, I had to stop writing Aransas Evening so that I could get Aransas Morning published and out into the wind. I wanted to share the story and in doing so help raise funds to support the people in Port Aransas who are rebuilding. The response has been great and we’ve been able to send funds to four agencies working in the region. That will continue for the life of the book.
But I also had to stop writing Aransas Evening because I had to let the real town and my fictional characters heal from the devastation of the storm. I had to see what was really happening down there so that I would know how these characters who have become like family would respond. Things are becoming clear and I hope to have Aransas Evening finished this summer, but I can’t make any firm promises on a date. Let’s just say that my friends will let me know when it’s time to share the rest of their story.
And this is the end of mine for now.
The Aransas Morning Book Blog Tour is winding down with a review today and another one tomorrow. It’s been interesting watching the ebb and flow of information and responses over these nine days, and I’ve enjoyed making new connections and getting a better feel for the depth and breadth of the Lone Star Literary Life.
Today’s review is from Momma On The Rocks, who provides some good insight into the cast of characters in Aransas Morning — strangers whose lives become intertwined in unexpected ways. She captures the essence of the story in these words:
“Aransas Morning is a lovely story about community, and how family isn’t always the one you are born into. In fact, sometimes the least likely people end up being the ones who mean the most to us, in all their messy, infuriating, complicated selves.”
And then she seems to feel what many people feel at the end of the book, but then they turn the last page and make a discovery:
“I was sad to see this book end, as I wanted to know what happened next in the lives of these people I had become so invested in. While this book worked wonderfully as a stand alone, I was tickled to learn that a sequel will be following, so I don’t quite have to let go of all these wonderful characters.”
Yes, a sequel is well under way and in fact was almost finished when real life came blowing in and shook things up a little bit. I’ll talk more about that tomorrow, but for now check out the full review of Aransas Morning at Momma On The Rocks and scroll down at that site to sign up for the giveaway if you haven’t already.
See you tomorrow!
