{"id":54,"date":"2025-08-30T13:48:03","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T19:48:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/?page_id=54"},"modified":"2025-09-01T07:50:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-01T13:50:00","slug":"novels-current-and-wip","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/?page_id=54","title":{"rendered":"Novels: Current and WIP"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Elmer &amp; Leonard <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Top 3 Finalist, Adult Fiction The Word: A Storytelling Sanctuary<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finalist, Carol Houck-Smith Fiction Fellowship<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>O Brother Where Art Thou x True Blood x Sinners<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When a lonely, young Native American widower, Leonard Lusk, encounters a blues playing prodigy with a 160-year old secret, the result is a modern odyssey across the American South-and a journey that will force Leonard to reconcile what love truly means. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Upmarket\/Book Club Fiction<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"586\" height=\"880\" data-id=\"56\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-56\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard-1.jpg 586w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard-1-200x300.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 586px) 100vw, 586px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\" data-id=\"57\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-57\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard2.jpg 480w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard2-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"301\" height=\"167\" data-id=\"58\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-58\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-id=\"59\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-59\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4-1024x576.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4-300x169.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4-768x432.jpg 768w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4-1536x864.jpg 1536w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/elmerleonardmoodboard4.jpg 1664w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>In the Place Where Frank James is Buried, Just North of Here <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Big Moose Novel Prize, Semifinalist <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Salvage This World x Night of the Living Rez x There, There<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When retired rock star Brian Moyer returns to the small town in Alabama where he grew up, his only thought is that it might be a shot at redemption for his troubled, adopted teenage daughter Cheetah and a chance for him to reconcile some of his own demons, including his troubled relationship with his childhood friend Red Baxter. He doesn&#8217;t bargain on the fact that Cheetah&#8217;s path will soon interact with Billy Ray Kemp, a local boy who is a member of the Echota Cherokee tribe but who is as damaged as Cheetah, with a record nearly as long as his seventeen years. When Billy Ray and Cheetah conspire to run away together to the annual Poarch Creek Indian powwow, a tragic chain of events leads to a night of reckoning for all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Magical Realism, Dark Fantasy, Upmarket\/Book Club Fiction<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"526\" height=\"701\" data-id=\"62\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/burial-ground2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-62\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/burial-ground2.jpg 526w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/burial-ground2-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 526px) 100vw, 526px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"356\" height=\"200\" data-id=\"63\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/shadow-couple.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-63\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/shadow-couple.jpg 356w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/shadow-couple-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 356px) 100vw, 356px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Kids of Crossroads<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wednesday x Witchcraft For Wayward Girls <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is 1979 and 15-year-old Lucinda Berry doesn&#8217;t ask for much. As a student who has found herself at the local alternative school for &#8220;Specials&#8221; she mostly just wants to save her widowed father from a life of destruction and to return to the Native circle where she spent her formative years before her mother&#8217;s death. Plagued by the visions she&#8217;s had since childhood, Lucinda discovers she possesses the ability to intercept the spirit and secular worlds and to interact with both her past and future lives. A midnight visit from Charles Edward, the &#8220;creepy vampire kid&#8221; of Crossroads, soon sets Lucinda on a path of self-discovery. Through her obsession with music and her late night marathon sessions listening to WMSL, she discovers a portal that allows her to interact with the dead and to travel through her past and future lives. Determined to save her friends from what she perceives as their doomed future lives, Lucinda sets out on what she believes is a mission to ensure everyone&#8217;s &#8220;happily ever after&#8221;-only to realize that altering the course of a life can exact a heavy price on her own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Young Adult Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Young Adult Historical Fantasy. Upmarket\/Book Club<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"731\" data-id=\"65\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2-1024x731.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-65\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2-1024x731.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2-300x214.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2-768x548.jpg 768w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2-1536x1097.jpg 1536w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/fancy2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"858\" height=\"525\" data-id=\"66\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Lafayette-cememtery-on-Dead-Mans-Alley.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-66\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Lafayette-cememtery-on-Dead-Mans-Alley.jpg 858w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Lafayette-cememtery-on-Dead-Mans-Alley-300x184.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Lafayette-cememtery-on-Dead-Mans-Alley-768x470.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-6 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"900\" data-id=\"67\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/bank-street-radio-tower-decatur-alabama-thomas-garner-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-67\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/bank-street-radio-tower-decatur-alabama-thomas-garner-1.jpg 600w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/bank-street-radio-tower-decatur-alabama-thomas-garner-1-200x300.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Ghost Band <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Daisy Jones and the Six x Field of Dreams <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For 70&#8217;s rock band S&#8217;aint Augustine, life couldn&#8217;t get much sweeter-or higher. That is, until a fatal plane crash takes out most of its members on their way to what was promised to be their career defining concert. The members who survive the initial crash are doomed to a slow and painful death across decades of guilt and suffering. Now, after having languished for nearly fifty years in Purgatory as punishment from Saint Augustine (who didn&#8217;t have a sense of humor about his name being appropriated) and after years of helpless standing by as they&#8217;ve watched their loved ones&#8217; lives spiral out of control, their name and legacy appropriated by greedy music moguls and their music watered down by inferior tribute bands, the members of S&#8217;aint Augustine realize they must put aside their festered wounds, their long standing animosities, and break out of Purgatory so they can deliver the long promised final concert to their fans. But the &#8220;putting aside&#8221; part is easier said than done. As the clock ticks down to curtain time, the biggest challenge for S&#8217;aint Augustine may not be whether a ghost band can return from the dead and still kick ass, but whether they can kick ass without managing to kill each other-all over again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Horror Comedy, Dark Fantasy, Book Club<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"459\" height=\"612\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-images.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-68\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-images.jpg 459w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-images-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 459px) 100vw, 459px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Electric Guitar in fire Isolated on Black Background. Computer Graphics.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-8 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"691\" data-id=\"69\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-1024x691.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-69\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-1024x691.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-300x202.jpg 300w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-768x518.jpg 768w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band-1536x1036.jpg 1536w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"686\" height=\"386\" data-id=\"70\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-70\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band3.jpg 686w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ghost-band3-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 686px) 100vw, 686px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A River Diverted: The Essence of a Life<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a Day&#8217;s Work x Dear Editor x Love Letters to the Dead <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As the thirtieth year death anniversary of River Phoenix draws near, a middle-aged PhD student decides to undertake the completion of a verse novel based on Phoenix&#8217;s short, turbulent and ultimately tragic life as her seminar project. But Cassie soon finds herself obsessed with uncovering what she perceives as the truth about Phoenix&#8217;s death. As the project begins to consume her life, she realizes it is a journey compelling her to reevaluate everything-not just what it means to die, but also what it means to be born. And to live. At once both love letter to Generation X and an indictment of celebrity culture, A River Diverted is a novel that chronicles the joys and seismic shocks of self-discovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Verse Novel, Poetry, Memoir <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-9 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"612\" height=\"387\" data-id=\"71\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/river12.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-71\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/river12.jpg 612w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/river12-300x190.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A colorful sunset over the Tennessee river near Decatur Al.  Also a train crossing the lift bridge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1010\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"72\" src=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/River-Phoenix-1010x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-72\" srcset=\"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/River-Phoenix-1010x1024.jpg 1010w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/River-Phoenix-296x300.jpg 296w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/River-Phoenix-768x779.jpg 768w, http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/River-Phoenix.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1010px) 100vw, 1010px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-10 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-11 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-12 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-13 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Elmer &amp; Leonard Top 3 Finalist, Adult Fiction The Word: A Storytelling Sanctuary Finalist, Carol Houck-Smith Fiction Fellowship O Brother Where Art Thou x True Blood x Sinners When a lonely, young Native American widower, Leonard Lusk, encounters a blues playing prodigy with a 160-year old secret, the result is a modern odyssey across the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-54","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/54","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/54\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79,"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/54\/revisions\/79"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.deathangelblues.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}