Occasionally I’ll post nature images to this site. Here’s one of the latest, an up close look at a bald eagle in Glacier National Park.
Category Archives: Ruminations
Adventure in Glacier
I was lucky to get up to Glacier National Park from October 4-5th. On this shot, we had just emerged from miles of fog on the east side of Logan Pass. The west side felt tropical in comparison.
Ruminations on Miscon
….it was amazing.
Dear friends, family, and fans, thank you for your incredible support at Miscon this weekend! “The Puller” had a record signing, and I was thrilled to be on ballroom panels with authors like Christopher Paolini and and Todd Lockwood. I cannot thank you all enough. Your support of my art is crucial.
Best,
-Michael
The Dry Lake
It’s almost been one year since I moved to the great state of Montana.
Living here has always been a dream of mine. I love the space, the majestic variety of megafauna, the forested slopes and the clear streams.
It’s been great for my writing career. I launched my debut novel in the friendly arts town of Missoula, and the media was supportive. Along with the debut novel, I scored a Hollywood movie deal.
However, it hasn’t exactly been good for my writing. While in the Chicago suburbs, I felt the crush of overpopulation, of 10 million people bearing down on me. I saw nothing but endless strip malls and too many cars to count. This crush propelled an anxiousness that produced eight novels…most about trapped people (not surprising).
But Montana removed all that, and therefore my “inspiration”. I don’t feel trapped here. I don’t feel squeezed in. Even on Brooks and Reserve I can see the Lolo National Forest. Lesser national forests are six hours from Chicago. This acts as a release valve, and I don’t feel as compelled to sit down at the keyboard like I used to.
Until now.
This past week, I started a new novel called “Dry Lake”. It’s based in Missoula, as it should be. A long time ago Missoula was an enormous lake, but no more.
Sometimes things come back….
The Mission Mountains
Okay, I admit it: I’ve become horribly spoiled since moving to Missoula from Chicago. This scene, which I filmed yesterday is a mere 40 minutes from my town home in the South Hills.
This is unprecedented for me. Sure, I’m used to camping for weeks at a time in the Rockies, but to actually live there, wake up one morning and decide to visit a place like this is simply not possible in Chicagoland.
The Mission Mountains are perhaps the most majestic range in the Rockies. While not the tallest mountains (McDonald Peak tops out at 9,820 feet), the valley-to-peak ratio is almost 7,000 feet…and no foothills. Few ranges in the lower 48 can compete with this.
Not only are the Missions stunning, but they boast a rich tapestry of megafauna like grizzly bears, wolverine, and lynx (although trappers are doing their best to hammer the wolverine and lynx populations).
I did not want to leave this scene. At all. However, I was comforted by the fact that yeah, I now live here. I guess, deep inside, this has always been my home. But now my body rises and sleeps beneath the peaks.
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Stay tuned for a writing update. It’s a big one.
