American Kingdom Day 53 — Previous chapter: Gulf American Kingdom Day 51medium.com I tried to get some sleep, honest. The last thing I remember was laying my happy head down on the pillow and wondering if the Palace observed the morning and evening quiet times. The next thing in my memory was an incredibly loud alert siren noise and the…

Yes. And No. — A long time ago — when I was still in the Army — I was doing some course for promotion and we were looking at leadership. “What about popularity?” …

American Kingdom Day 51 — Previous chapter: Palace American Kingdom Day 43medium.com Prince David opened a couple of glass doors onto a wide deck, darkness beyond. The moon behind us showed an expanse of water, hills rising on the far side. Off to the left a glow behind a ridgeline hinted at a sizeable city. He led me to the…

American Kingdom Day 43 — Previous chapter: High in the Sky American Kingdom Day 40medium.com The Regent’s Palace was not as I had expected it. We were met at a landing zone; a private heliport in the middle of nowhere, going by what little I could see in the darkness. …

Looking back on two months of frenzied writing — October I joined Medium and laid out my plan: to write a 50,000 word novel during National Novel Writing Month, publishing on Medium as I went. I had only the barest outline of a theme and very little idea of a plot. …

American Kingdom Day 48 — I was seduced. Simple as that. Somehow I saw an advert for a kickstarter project: a glorious illustrated edition of the first Sherlock Holmes novel. This caught me, firing up my imagination, intruding into the thoughtspace I needed for my ongoing novel. I had finished the madness of November…

American Kingdom Day 40 — Previous chapter: Holy Land American Kingdom Day 37medium.com Our plane to Tel Aviv was a lot smaller than our flight from Texas. In fact, I am sure that Business Class on this airbus was pretty much the same as Economy a few rows back with the exception that each middle seat was blocked off, leaving four…

American Kingdom Day 37 — Previous chapter: Secrets American Kingdom Day 35medium.com “One thing I will say,” Seth, Viscount Washington, went on, “is that Duke Francis contacted the Palace yesterday, using an unusual method of communication. Or rather, he contacted the Regent, not the Palace. The subject of his communication, like the previous one, was you. …

American Kingdom Day 35 — Previous chapter: And Place it in My Heart American Kingdom Day 33medium.com I had to surrender my boarding pass at the reception desk to gain access to the shower area. Luckily the staff spoke English; my Spanish is pretty basic: I can smile and nod. The key unlocked a private bathroom. Sparkling clean, fresh towel, branded lotions and amenities, plenty…