March 30, 2020, "Homeplace Series" Update

March 30, 2020, Homeplace Series Update 

If you have not read it yet, it is new to you!

https://www.amazon.com/Back-Homeplace-William-Leverne-Smith-ebook/dp/B003ELPVUG/

Many people are at home these days, and need something new to read. An $0.11 royalty payment from Japan over the weekend reminded me that I haven’t reached out to you, my readers, for some time. 

“Back to the Homeplace” is part of a family saga set of stories, but it is the one that got it all started. It is still a great read if you have not read this original. Heidi Thorne, our self-publishing guru, would classify it as a ‘unicorn,’ as she discussed in her recent post: “Is Your Self Published Book Too Original?”

I would love to hear your opinion on Heidi’s post - and I would love to have you read my book. Please do one, then the other. Thanks, and be safe!

*     *     *     *     *

DID YOU KNOW?

Each Wednesday and Friday, we are posting, for Patrons, the stories of the growth of Oak Springs from 1876, featuring the Kings and Levi Weston. Join us, today. By joining, you can read each and all of the past postings on ‘The Founding.’ These postings tell the earliest stories of Oak Springs and the people who lived there in the order these events occurred. 

See: https://www.patreon.com/HomeplaceSagas

IT IS NOT TOO LATE -

BECOME A PATRON… of our creative writing. A great gift to yourself and to us here at “The Homepage Saga” series of family-related, historical fiction stories. Only a dollar a month…new material added weekly, along with the Wednesday and Friday posting of early stories… each only available to Patrons.

Come, join us! ;-)

The Patreon program provides a curated (systemized) presentation of our stories and a single content library, over time. Can you support this effort? I’ll be spending a little more time here, as we go forward…

We also have discussions about the stories. I hope you will join us in these conversations. 

By the way, this Blog is worth browsing, too, if you are looking for interesting reading... give it a try!

I hope you continue to enjoy these stories. If you do, leave a note, here or elsewhere…

Enjoy! ;-)

Episode 2 of the Heather Gates story now online

Episode 2 of the Heather Gates story now online

Episode 2 of the Heather Gates saga is now online... http://hub.me/alSkn

This 2nd Episode also includes the 2nd of 5 Introduction segments that provide useful background information on the other major characters in the ongoing "The Homeplace Saga" stories. These will be useful for readers who may not have read "Back to the Homeplace" or "The Homeplace Revisited." We also, of course, hope this will encourage readers to go back and actually read these first novels in the Saga series of stories in the 20th Century. Further, these stories set up all of the 19th Century stories that have now been added to the Saga.

Enjoy your reads,

Dr. Bill ;-)

Update on "The Homeplace Forever" post of last Friday

Update on "The Homeplace Forever" post of last Friday

I did update my post of last Friday, March 2, but here is the essence:

I have now compiled the 56 blog posts that make up "The Homeplace Forever" story, covering the story period of 1997, 1998, and Jan-Feb 1999, into a single PDF file for ease of reading. I have renumbered the episodes and removed the redundant opening and closing material from each blog post. This is rather that having to read the story off the blog posts, though they are still there (here).

If you would like me to send you a FREE copy of the PDF file of this 'book' simply send me an email (billsmith2003 at gmail.com) with subject The Homeplace Forever and I'll be happy to do so by reply.

P.S. My Beyond the Books website, with background information on characters and settings is now on a new site: https://sites.google.com/view/thehomeplacesagabtb

Happy Reading!

Dr. Bill  ;-)

Introducing the Non-Book Book in The Homeplace Saga

Introducing the Non-Book Book in The Homeplace Saga

Both here and in my HubPages writings, I have enjoyed sharing with you, my readers, the writing process as well as the end products in The Homeplace Saga series of family saga, historical fiction stories.

Later this month we will mark the 8th anniversary of the publication of the initial novel in The Homeplace Saga, “Back to the Homeplace.” [If you haven’t read it, it is new to you!] We than added two more novels, “The Homeplace Revisited” and “Christmas at the Homeplace,” along with two murder-mystery novellas, “Murder by the Homeplace” and “Murder, He Figured.” Further, the many original Founding short stories, of the nineteenth century, were compiled into the short-story collection, “American Centennial at the Homeplace: The Founding (1833-1876).” Stories following 1876 in Oak Springs continued on HubPages in many, many more short stories, that have been compiled into 6 ebooks, now, including “The Kings of Oak Springs,” in Volumes 1, 2, 3 and 4, "McDonald Tales," and "Weston Wagons West: Levi Weston, L1-20 (1823-1874)".

Note: This paragraph was updated on March 5

“Christmas at the Homeplace” closed with the year-end holidays of 1996 in Oak Springs. The four titles I originally planned for the series included “The Homeplace Forever.” You may have noticed the cover image on the title page of the video book trailer for “Christmas at the Homeplace.” [Check it out, below right, scroll down, if you care to.] Between February 27, 2015, and May 6, 2016, on most Fridays, I made 56 posts here on this blog that continued the stories of the Bevins and related families in Oak Springs from January 1997 into February 1999 (including portions of the proposed ‘3 threats’ stories). Although I am not going to put them on Amazon or Lulu as a novel, novella or e-book, the 30 thousand (plus) words will be recognized here as “The Homeplace Forever” story, and will be the end of the story (almost) in 1999. 
Added on March 5: I have now compiled a PDF file of the 56 posts in one document, episodes renumbered, and with redundant opening and closing material removed. If you'd like a copy, simply send me an email (billsmith2003 at gmail.com), subject The Homeplace Forever, and I will reply with the PDF attached, free.

“Almost” is found here:

https://hubpages.com/literature/2049-on-Mars-Episode-1-Getting-to-know-you

https://hubpages.com/literature/2049-on-Mars-Episode-2-Dispute-Resolution-Unit-2

Note: I have added Levi Weston stories (L-21 to L-31, so far) in Oak Springs in the 1870s, into the 1880s. Those may continue over on https://hubpages.com/@drbill-wml-smith - along with the other Weston Wagon West stories tied to my personal ancestors stories.

Happy Reading!! ;-)

Have you read the King family stories from early Oak Springs?

Have you read the King family stories from early Oak Springs?

We began this series with the novel "Back to the Homeplace." Over the last few years we have added literally hundreds of short stories taking our characters back through their family history to 1833 and founding of Oak Springs. Along the way, we introduced the King family through whose eyes we could tell the story of the McDonald, Bevins and other of our family members in stories all set in Oak Springs. Here is one of those episodes, that summarizes where the stories were about 100 years ago.


https://hubpages.com/literature/The-Kings-of-Oak-Springs-Episode-60-The-Last-Chapter

Check it out. You can also click around to other related stories here and here.

Enjoy! ;-)

The First E-Book in The Homeplace Series

The First E-Book in The Homeplace Series

Have you read any of this series of stories? (Some say it reminds them of a ‘Little House’ story)

Available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-Arrival-Months-ebook/dp/B00M0117KY/

Book Description:

Settling in Oak Springs, the King Family quickly becomes a part of the ongoing life of this southern Missouri Ozarks community, still recovering from the complete devastation during the late Civil War in 1876. While many of the residents of the Oak Creek valley, including the small town of Oak Springs, are returning residents from before the war, there are an increasing number, like the King family, who are arriving in this community for the first time. Learn more about these characters who are central to the author's "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga historical fiction stories. The Kings stories provide additional insights into the family relationships and the stories of the pioneer families and the new arrivals. Karl, Katherine and their four children, Keith (14), Kate (12), Kent (10), and Karla (5) fit right in as they observe and interact with their new neighbors, especially on "Fourth Sundays."

Now available at Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-Arrival-Months-ebook/dp/B00M0117KY/

All four eBooks in the series is now available at: http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/drbillshares

Latest short story in The Homeplace Saga

Latest short story in The Homeplace Saga

The stories of the "The Homeplace Saga" have moved back and forth between the Nineteenth and the Twentieth Centuries examining more than eight generations of families in a small town in the southern Missouri Ozarks. After a bit of a break in new stories, the 4th of July in 1890 comes to life in the latest episode relating a reunion of the King Family. 

If you have not already read it, here is the link to the newest story:

https://hubpages.com/literature/Meet-the-Folks-Ep-FO16-The-King-Family-on-4th-of-July-1890

Have you read the ebooks in this saga?

Have you read the ebooks in this saga?

They are all eight (8) available at Lulu.com here: 

http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/drbillshares

Most are available at Amazon as well.

My birthday is on Saturday. Treat me by buying a book and reading it...then another...and another...

If you haven't read each one, they are new to you. Enjoy! ;-)

American Centennial at the Homeplace: The Founding

If you haven't read this, it is new to you... enjoy! ;-)

American Centennial at the Homeplace: 

The Founding (1833-1876)

A collection of short stories

http://www.amazon.com/American-Centennial-Homeplace-Founding-1833-1876/dp/1501085026/

This collection of short stories was published in September 2014, compiling each and all of the short stories written to represent this period in the fictional Oak Creek valley and Oak Springs of "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga, historical fiction stories.

What Reviewers have said...

What Reviewers have said...

" ‘Back to the Homeplace’ is a beautiful story of family. I love family sagas and stories about family secrets. Hence this book was a perfect read for me... I could easily identify with the characters. If you've ever had a big family, you would totally relate to them. Every character was so real. Their emotions, their problems were very realistically presented. Each character was so well-defined that I felt like I knew them."

Misha Mathew, "My Love Affair With Books" blog

"This family tree has some branches that do not always seem to come from the same roots. When the limbs are shaken, some surprises fall out. But despite themselves, most members persevere, grow on their new home sites, or return to their former lives to reassess themselves or make peace."

Jack L. Kennedy, Joplin Independent

"This very intimate story of one family, and how they manage to stick together through the thick and thin of every day life, is one story you won't want to miss!”

Cyndi Beane Henry "Texicanwife" - from review on Amazon.com

https://www.amazon.com/Back-Homeplace-William-Leverne-Smith-ebook/dp/B003ELPVUG/

"The characters seem very down to earth and real, with problems that we all face, I found it interesting that a few were addicted to Diet Coke, and would make trips to Walmart to purchase it, for me it doesn't get any more real than that! The descriptions of the birds, landscape and the Homestead in general were so vivid that it is easy to visualize it, and at one point when the author describes a vee of Canadian Geese flying overhead, I could just imagine hearing them honk."

Brenda Casto - from review on Amazon.com

"This is honestly one of the best stories about a family saga that I have read in some time. I also found out that there will be a sequel, which is going straight on my wish list. It's a high-ranking recommendation from me!"

Missy W - from review on Amazon.com

"The concept, the times, the settings were all intriguing."

Laurel-Rain Snow - from review on Amazon.com

"The families are realistic with normal family dynamics, and it is easy to care about what happens to them. The reader understands how each character's personality - the temperamental one, the team players, the loner - influences their role on the property."

L. Brandau - from review on Amazon.com

"I thought this book had an amazing storyline. I started reading it and really couldn't put it down. One of my favorite things about the book was the news blurbs at the beginning of each chapter. I was only 9 in 1987 so I loved seeing what t.v. shows were on and what music was big! It brought back a lot of memories from my youth… The characters were very real in this book. The way their lives all twisted together was captivating. The trials they faced were all very real."

Book Loving Mommy - from review on Amazon.com

Read "Back to the Homeplace" free...

Read "Back to the Homeplace" free...

Read "Back to the Homeplace" free... with Kindle Unlimited at Amazon.com

This is the novel that got The Homeplace Saga stories started. Get a fresh start in 2017. 

Read it, starting today.

https://www.amazon.com/Back-Homeplace-William-Leverne-Smith-ebook/dp/B003ELPVUG/

Where is your Homeplace? ;-)

"McDonald Tales" ebook now on iTunes for $0.99

McDonald Tales ebook now on iTunes for $0.99

Available to Download Now on iTunes: 

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/mcdonald-tales/id1185632978

This ebook is an excellent read for those wanting an overview of the early days of “The Homeplace Saga” stories. It can also serve as an introduction to entire the series of stories. Read it, today.

Description:

These 26 episodes of McDonald Tales re-examine the early days of the McDonald family in the Oak Creek valley of the Southern Missouri Ozarks with an eye toward better understanding the strong commitment the family had to “The Homeplace” over more than a century and a half. It includes how the land was accumulated and consolidated into the farm that was the subject of “Back to the Homeplace,” the first novel of The Homeplace Saga.

Daniel McDonald married Jane Truesdale, a strong and independent woman, and the stories here are told from their perspective and that of their son, William, the grandfather of Mildred (McDonald) Bevins who created the “Back to the Homeplace” novel’s infamous ‘video will.’ We examine their little family closely and share how they related to extended family members as well as members of their community. Along the way, these episodes in their lives add depth to the overall Homeplace Saga series of family saga, historical fiction stories. 

Across the generations of McDonald family, we hope and assume that each reader will find elements of the story that they can relate to their own life experiences. 

Also available at: http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/drbillshares for Download Now

Latest ebook now available

Latest ebook now available

The 4th Volume of "The Kings of Oak Springs" series of short stories is now available in E-Pub format at:

http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/drbillshares

It will be available in Kindle Edition at Amazon.com and in your iTunes store in a matter of days, but I wanted you, my loyal followers, to get first access, if you cared to participate.

Description:

Volume 4 of “The Kings of Oak Springs” ebooks is a compilation of Episodes 41-60 of "The Kings of Oak Springs" series of family saga, historical fiction stories that are a part of "The Homeplace Saga" stories originally published on HubPages, on line. The Episodes have been renumbered Episodes 61-80 in order to follow Vol. 3 numbering conventions. 

Volume 4 returns to stories of the King family and the Oak Springs community, from their viewpoint, for the period of 1882-1885. Particular attention does include the activities of the McDonald family and other founding families of the community, as well.

We hope you will be able to identify with some of the good folks in Oak Springs as you explore your own family history.

The search for the origins of The Homeplace stories and lives...

The search for the origins of The Homeplace stories and lives...

As the story in "Back to the Homeplace" was being created it raised questions as to the motivations behind the love Mildred had for the farm land and why it was so important to keep it all together as their wills were being written.

By 'reverse engineering' the family history of Mildred's ancestors, we discovered the story of The Founding of Oak Springs and the Oak Creek valley community back in 1833, not long after Missouri statehood, in the Southern Missouri Ozark Mountains.

These stories, from 1833 to 1876, are collected in this volume for your reading pleasure:

https://www.amazon.com/American-Centennial-Homeplace-Founding-1833-1876-ebook/dp/B00NJFHPVA/

I hope you enjoy reading the short stories collected here as much as I did creating them.

In the beginning... of the Homeplace Saga

In the beginning...

The core values of "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga, historical fiction stories were included in the novel, "Back the the Homeplace," where a family of four grown children and their children struggle with the loss of their matriarch, Margaret McDonald Bevins. What would become of the farm that had been in the family for more than 150 years?

If you have not read the story, it is new to you, and you will find it engaging.

https://www.amazon.com/Back-Homeplace-William-Leverne-Smith/dp/1451560400/

The core story, of course, raised as many questions as answers, which we explored subsequently - including in this blog. We'll review some os that more, next time.

Happy Reading,

Dr. Bill  ;-)

Volume 3 of “The Kings of Oak Springs” ebook series now on Amazon

Volume 3 of “The Kings of Oak Springs” 

ebook series now on Amazon

Volume 3 of “The Kings of Oak Springs” ebook in “The Homeplace Saga” series of family saga, historical fictions stories is now available on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-1877-Thru-ebook/dp/B01HMZ24PY/

Volume 3 is distinctive in that it takes a broader view of the life in and growth of Oak Springs than just the King family viewpoint. Also, it is actually a month by month chronology of the growth of the community. Here, we really get to see a small town community grow, have growing pains, and prosper through good times as well as difficult times during these months and years.

We hope you will be able to identify with some of the good folks in Oak Springs as you explore your own family history.

Happy Reading,

Dr. Bill  ;-)

"The Kings of Oak Springs" in eBook Kindle Format - Vol. 3 and Vol. 4 coming soon

"The Kings of Oak Springs" in eBook Kindle Format 

My feelings exactly, Oscar:

“I know the world is filled with troubles and many injustices. But reality is as beautiful as it is ugly. I think it is just as important to sing about beautiful mornings as it is to talk about slums. I just don’t write anything without hope in it.”

Oscar Hammerstein 

Many of you have read some or all of the episodes of Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 of "The Kings of Oak Springs. If you have not, I urge you to do so now, because Vol. 3 and Vol. 4 will soon be available, in the coming weeks.

All together, these stories include not only the King family, but the McDonald and Truesdale families, and the detailed stories of how the community of Oak Springs, in the southern Missouri Ozark Mountains, recovered following the devastation of the Civil War to become a thriving small town. You will learn about the formation of the schools, the churches, the businesses as well as the continued growth of the surrounding farming community. You may be able to relate the stories to your own family history as these stories share the relationships among the good folks living there, with births, marriages, deaths, and all of life that each family experiences, both the good and the tragic.

Some people, as they have read these stories, have said they are reminded of the "Little House" stores of Laura Ingalls Wilder. They were certainly partly inspired by her stories, though I'm no Wilder as a writer, but also by my own family history research and interests. I hope you enjoy getting to know the King family, Karl, Katherine, Keith, Kate, Kent and Karla, as you also watch Oak Springs grow.

Book Description:

Settling in Oak Springs, the King Family quickly becomes a part of the ongoing life of this southern Missouri Ozarks community, still recovering from the complete devastation during the late Civil War in 1876. While many of the residents of the Oak Creek valley, including the small town of Oak Springs, are returning residents from before the war, there are an increasing number, like the King family, who are arriving in this community for the first time. Learn more about these characters who are central to the author's "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga historical fiction stories. The Kings stories provide additional insights into the family relationships and the stories of the pioneer families and the new arrivals. Karl, Katherine and their four children, Keith (14), Kate (12), Kent (10), and Karla (5) fit right in as they observe and interact with their new neighbors, especially on "Fourth Sundays."

Note: Available at Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-Arrival-Months-ebook/dp/B00M0117KY/

Volume 2 is also now available at:

https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-1876-1877-ebook/dp/B011J4N5TS/

Watch this space, in coming days and weeks, for the availability of Vol. 3 and Vol. 4, in this series.

[Vol. 3 now available at: http://www.lulu.com/shop/dr-bill-smith/the-kings-of-oak-springs-aug-1877-thru-1881-vol-3/ebook/product-22749669.html]
and now Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Oak-Springs-1877-Thru-ebook/dp/B01HMZ24PY/

Happy Reading,

Dr. Bill ;-)

Read the "Founding" stories of The Homeplace Saga, from the beginning...

American Centennial at the Homeplace: 

The Founding (1833-1876)

A collection of short stories

http://www.amazon.com/American-Centennial-Homeplace-Founding-1833-1876/dp/1501085026/

This collection of short stories compiles each and all of the short stories written to represent this period in the fictional Oak Creek valley and Oak Springs of "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga, historical fiction stories.

Many of these stories were once published on this blog, but many others were not. Read them in this collection, in order, with additional explanatory information that is background to the entire "The Homeplace Saga" series of family saga, historical fiction stories.

The ebooks of "The Kings of Oak Springs" pick up the stories of this community where this collection ends.

Happy Reading!! ;-)

Consider reading: "Back to the Homeplace"

Consider reading: Back to the Homeplace, 
set in the Southern Missouri Ozarks

www.amazon.com/Back-Homeplace-William-Leverne-Smith/dp/1451560400/

Back to the Homeplace, the debut novel of William Leverne Smith, is available on Amazon.com and elsewhere, both in print and Kindle editions.

The novel is set on a farm and in a nearby fictional community located in the southern Missouri Ozark hills and near a fictional western branch of the Current River. The story revolves around a family dilemma following the death of their matriarch and the unusual will she left to insure the continuity of the farm, which has been in her family for over 150 years, intact. 

The year is 1987. The varied background and viewpoints of the adult children coming back to the Homeplace ignite controversy and expose long kept secrets as each family member searches for his or her share of the family legacy. While the older family members stake their claims on land and fortunes, the younger ones search for love and acceptance. Subplots involve AIDS Awareness in 1987 issues and a support group for domestic violence incidents.

At the heart of this family life story is how we do or do not effectively communicate among family members - parents with children, among children and grandchildren and that we must each face the consequences of our individual actions. What happens when they come back to the Homeplace?

See Video Book Trailer at: http://eduscapes.com/v2a/back_to_the_homeplace.html

"Christmas at the Homeplace" - Book Blog Tour Upcoming

"Christmas at the Homeplace"
Book Blog Tour Upcoming

[Click image to go directly to Amazon.com]

See what people are saying about this new Christmas book, based on our family history research and life experiences. It is historical fiction in "The Homeplace Saga" series, but you very well may recognized some folks from your own family and the world around you as you get involved with these family activities.

Here is the tentative schedule for the upcoming tour, running from November 15-25:

Thursday, Nov 14 - Tour Schedule at The Homeplace Saga blog

Friday, Nov 15 - Tour Schedule at Dr. Bill's Book Bazaar blog

Monday, Nov 18 - Interview with Jessica at Literaryetc.com 

Tuesday, Nov 19  - Guest Post with Lisa DuVal at I Feel So Unnecessary

Wednesday, Nov 20 - Review with Lisa DuVal at I Feel So Unnecessary

Thursday, Nov 21 - Guest Post with Kayla Emerson at Green Mountain Couple

Friday, Nov 22 - Review with Julie Goucher at Anglers Rest

Saturday, Nov 23 - Review with Mindy Wall at Books, Books, and More Books

Sunday, Nov 24 - Guest Post with Brandee Price at Bookworm Brandee

Monday, Nov 25 - Tour Wrap-Up at Dr. Bill's Book Bazaar blog

Hope you join us on the tour, each day!