Category: The Clove
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A.I. is weird.
In my previous post, I discussed how I sent the Clove draft to the AI beta-reading site AuthorCraft. It supplied me with a HUGE amount of useful information broken down into “Critical”, “Moderate”, and “Minor” suggestions for style, scenario, and characters. I saved the info as a PDF, and it…
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So far, so good!
I am not yet finished with The Clove, but I am getting closer! One reason I haven’t posted here lately is that I am trying to save my writing time for the actual novel rather than the Blog. This Blog is meant for information about my research and experience writing…
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Tuxedo Historical Society
On Feb 15th, 2026, we traveled down to the Tuxedo Historical Society to see the opening of their exhibit “The Continental Road & The Ramapough Pass in the Revolutionary War 1777-1780.” It was great to see the information presented, including a beautiful map of the area with the Taverns highlighted along Clove…
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New List of Posts
Here is a synopsis of all the posts. I was thinking I hadn’t done enough until I saw how many were here.
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American History
Part of “The Clove” follows the Earl Brothers, Ben and Richard, traveling to Ulster County to purchase millstones. They journey through the New Paltz area and witness vast, fertile farmlands owned by the descendants of the founding Huguenots, worked by hundreds of enslaved people. In 1790, New Paltz, 77 slaveholders…
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Just Friends
When I started working on The Clove I had no idea that I would be visiting my family’s Quaker roots to the extent that I have. Part of the book deals with a cross-country journey taken by my 5X GGrandfather Ben Earl and his brother Richard. The trip will take…
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August 8, 1778
The date of the robbery at the Earls (and Woodhulls). Right in the middle of a Hudson Valley summer. Claudius Smith was 43 years old and married to Abigail Rumsey (41). They had married in 1762, and Abigail was not the mother of Claudius’s sons and fellow gang members. James…
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Where’s it at?
I love real, physical maps. The digital, super-accurate versions have placed a wealth of information options at the touch of your phone. To me, they are cold and devoid of personality. There’s nothing like the self importance a kid feels unfolding a three-by-four-foot state map when they are in the…
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Backwoods Butchershop
Many years ago when I was a student at the Culinary Institute of America the scheme was that the newer student/chefs start off learning the basics of all things related to cuisine and by the end of your time there you are designing your own restaurant and cooking in one…
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Licence to Thrill?
“The Clove” is my attempt to retell part of the story of Claudius Smith’s notorious gang of terrorists, the latest and probably not the last of historical fictions to deal with the subject. Over the years, there have been more than a few variations on the story. Most published versions I…