Get the 20th anniversary edition of Canawlers!
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since Canawlers was released. Not only was it my first foray into historical fiction, it was my first indie published novel. Up to that point, I had had two books published by two different publishers. One was a young adult novel, and the other was a horror novel. (I have the rights back to both, and I will republish them at some point.) A biking trip down the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal inspired me, and it also turned out to challenge me to take my career in a new direction. For the next 15 years, I wrote exclusively in the history and historical fiction. It’s only been in the last few years, I’ve branched out to do horror, fantasy, and YA again. For the 20th anniversary edition, I had new e-book Read more…
Secrets of Washington County coming early next year
I thought I would share an update for my newest Secrets book. Secrets of Washington County was cruising along smoothly earlier this year until COVID hit, and the places I needed to visit for research were closed. With things opening up, I’ve been able to restart the work. It’s about two-thirds complete, and I’ve been finding out some interesting things about the county. Did you know Hancock is earthquake central for Western Maryland? Hagerstown, Williamsport, and Boonsboro were all considered for locations for the national capital. While Fort Ritchie’s soldiers successfully fought Nazis during WWII, a single woodpecker was able to take out the fort’s power. I’ve got a few leads on additional stories I’m trying to track down. I expect the finished book to have about three dozen little-known stories or forgotten history about the county and around 50 Read more…
2 Days left to win a copy of Beyond the Battlefield
My first Goodreads drawing for autographed copies of The Rain Man has ended. Congratulations to the 10 winners randomly by Goodreads from the 1,751 people who entered. I have to say that it was easy enough to do. Goodreads sent me the list of the winners once the giveaway ended. I’ll be sending out the copies tomorrow. The second stage is that, hopefully, these winners will read the book and post reviews on websites and blogs. For anyone interested, I have another giveaway going on for my newest book, Beyond the Battlefield: Stories from Gettysburg’s Rich History. There is still time to enter. The giveaway ends on Wednesday. Just follow this link and enter: Goodreads Book Giveaway Beyond the Battlefield by James Rada Jr. Giveaway ends April 16, 2014. See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter to win
Read about Gettysburg's forgotten history
Home to a U.S. president, Hall of Fame pitcher and a classic automobile inventor, there’s so much more to Gettysburg than just a three-day battle. Sure Gettysburg is best-known for the epic Civil War battle that was fought there in 1863. It tends to overshadow many of the other interesting and important stories that have taken place in Gettysburg and the vicinity. Gettysburg was also home to one of the first tank training camps in the country during World War I. This camp brought a young army officer to Gettysburg who would play a very important role in town but also the world. His name was Dwight David Eisenhower. Hall of Fame pitcher Eddie Plank called Gettysburg home. He even owned a garage in town after he retired. Gettysburg is filled with stories of the famous and the not so Read more…
First draft of "Lock Ready!" complete
I finished the first draft of my latest historical novel and sent it off to my beta readers. It was a relief to have the project finished, at least this first step. I’m surprised it has taken me so long to finish it. “Lock Ready!” is the third book in the Canawlers series. The second book came out in 2003 so it has been 10 years. Wow! Typing that made me realize just how long it has been. It’s not that I’ve haven’t written other things in the interim, but I’ve known the title of the third book in the series since probably 2004. I’ve even had bits and pieces of the story written. Pulling it all together had escaped me, though. Now, I think I’ve finally got it. “Lock Ready!” continues to follow the Fitzgerald family as they boat Read more…
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