WHEN LEAVES FALL UPON THE WINDING ROAD Poems in this anthology are inspired by a love of history, geography, and astronomy as well as a fascination with trains, preference for small town life, and recollection of personal experiences. While many voice optimism and occasional humor, some lament the current state of the human condition.

These short stories differ from my earlier work both in terms of destinations and templates to get there. Time travelers arrive in late 18th century Ecuador to warn of an earthquake that will destroy a village, in late 19th century Michigan to help an inventor fly before the Wright Brothers, in late 20th century Poland […]

A second printing of my first short story collection (SMALL TOWN MICHIGAN TALES) published nearly a decade ago is now available on Amazon.com. My sincere thanks to readers, friends, and fellow writers who have encouraged this updated edition.

An intriguing aspect of time travel plots is how the trip happens: time machine? interdimensional space-time portal? instant teleportation? awakening from a deep sleep? This collection of short stories explores different templates for getting there as well as what happens upon arrival. It also addresses in some hopefully innovative ways to what extent existing events […]

Book Festival weekend this year was even more spectacular than last year (despite the heat and humidity)! Big name authors (headlined by Meg Gardiner, Michael Hurd, Dan Rather, Tom Hanks, Olga Campos-Benz, Jennifer Ziegler, and many others) from across the country were featured. It was an honor to volunteer at the booth of the Writers […]

Poems explore nature in both its grandeur and anomalies, locations that offer contentment or anxiety, historical events and their cast of characters, plus unusual experiences. PARTIAL CONTENTS: Colossal Cosmos / When Time Inverted / Michigan Winter / The Black Snake at Standing Rock / Wanted! A Rational Explanation / Self-Absorbed and Device Obsessed / What […]

A mix of humor and poignant drama, this collection of short stories touches on myriad facets of human achievement and folly. Childhood innocence, benign mischief, prudent trepidation, uncommon heroism, complex family dynamics, and the art of making crucial decisions are all portrayed with wit and candor. Real and fictional characters come together to shed new […]

Our granddaughter, Mira Naomi, is 6 months old today! When she sits on my lap and I read to her, she often does not take her eyes off of the book for twenty minutes. Apparently, she already has a longer attention span than some of my former college students. If I sound like an obnoxious […]

Mira Naomi Simmons was born on January 24, 2017. The proud parents are our daughter Kate and her husband Todd. The ecstatic grandparents are Margo and Joe Pluta. As you can see from the photos, Mira is a beautiful happy healthy alert child and she is now at home with her very happy parents.

The poems will explore varied themes: fantasies ranging from time travel to the endless quest for happiness, nature in both its grandeur and anomalies, what passes for progress, legacies of the famous and infamous, locations that offer contentment or anxiety, and a retrospective on meaningful experiences. Some poems will examine historical events and their cast […]