Book 3 (The Peerless Seer's War) Includes an Ohio Location - Why?

In the first and second books in The Emaleen Andarsan Series, Emaleen has lived in locations in New York State.You might guess that I live in New York State and if you did, you are correct.

In the third book, Emaleen relocates temporarily to a hidden location outside Cincinnati, Ohio. Why would I choose this location, you might ask? I did so for two different reasons. One is that when I was very young, I lived in a small rural area outside this city and I have fond memories of that time. The other reason is that when I review my sales by geography, this city appears as one of my biggest markets (after my hometown area). In that I used to live just outside this city and readers are located there, it seems destined for me to include a location from this area in the book.

Just thinking about Cincinnati also brings back many memories. I recall my days as a tomboy there. I would climb trees and wade in a nearby creek with my pant legs rolled up. I would pull clay out of the creek bed and mold it into figures. (Sound familiar? It would if you've read The Peerless Seer.😊) I also recall walking down the country road in the middle of a summer heat wave when the pavement would bubble up. Silly me - I used to pop the bubbles with my toes because I was barefoot, of course. But I don't recommend popping hot, bubbling pavement with your toes. It was a wonder that I didn't burn them.

My fondest memory, though, is of attending Cincinnati Reds games with my brother and my father in the mid-1970s, especially 1976. We used to sit up high in the stadium behind the outfield - often right behind Cesar Geronimo. It was the time of The Big Red Machine.

My favorite player was Pete Rose. Now, I know some of you might only remember Pete Rose for the mistakes that he made later on his in his baseball career. But I remember a different Pete Rose. I remember him as "Charlie Hustle" - the nickname Pete Rose earned for showing all of us that if you want something bad enough, and you are willing to work as hard as it takes to achieve it, that dreams can come true. Pete Rose was known for his success arising more from his hard work, dedication, and refusal to give up than from natural talent, although I fully believe he had amazing talent, too.

I was just as impressed and inspired by such dedication and hard work to achieve then as I am as an adult now. I am a firm believer of these notions and I am personally dedicated to working to be the best writer that I can be. I hope also to inspire others to work hard to make their dreams come true.

 Here are photos of my bat with an engraved Pete Rose autograph. I received this at a game on "Bat Day."