by D. L. Koontz | Apr 26, 2023 | Journal
Four years ago. Western North Carolina. “Clara* liked your books and wants to write to you.” My writer friend Jenna* from Colorado tells me this with a smile on her face. We’ve met up again on our last day at a writing conference in North Carolina. I’m touched....
by D. L. Koontz | Apr 6, 2023 | Journal
I’m rocking with my friend, Becca*. By “rocking” I don’t mean ‘girls gone wild’. What we’re doing is a more satisfying (and maybe age-revealing?) undertaking at this early morning hour: sitting in rocking chairs on my front porch. We face east. The dawning sun is a...
by D. L. Koontz | Mar 23, 2023 | Journal
…and I’m Always Happy to Listen These are other people’s stories. I’m telling them anyway. Because I’m a storyteller. And, my first book included ghosts. People assume I’m fascinated with the topic. The owners of each of these stories swear they are true. First...
by D. L. Koontz | Mar 7, 2023 | Journal
He slumped into the crowded barbecue like he had arrived at his own funeral. Early twenties. Medium height. Wrinkled pants. Scuffed shoes. Glazed eyes. Scowl that stood out stronger than the colorful tattoo peeking out from his sloppily cuffed sleeves. Another guy...
by D. L. Koontz | Mar 1, 2023 | Journal
Our local small town. A map dot in coastal Georgia. In a county with an average of 6.6739 acres of pine trees per person. (Seriously, a statistician counted.) Early morning. My favorite time of the day. Around me, movers and shakers chug coffee and clamber to action....
by D. L. Koontz | Feb 20, 2023 | Journal
They say life is made of special moments. I don’t know who “they” are, but I’ve lived enough to know their thinking is correct. One of my favorite moments occurred on Cadillac Mountain near Bar Harbor, Maine. For about twenty years of my professional life, I lectured...