I have been down in Texas over the last several days and returned on Monday. I didn’t get much writing done, though my wife took a few snapshots of me working my sci-fi novel at an IHOP in Midland about 11:00 pm.
I had named the book originally Jacob’s Ladder as a working title, then decided on Shadows and Stars, but have decided on Shadows and Stars Lying Down, as the protagonist’s name is Daryn Tsela Jacob. He is a Navajo, whose middle name means “stars lying down”. I gave him the middle name Tsela out of coincidence, not recognizing the connection with the book’s title (I just wanted
an obviously Navajo name), but which my wife recognized and thus suggested the expanded title. I liked it, because it gives the novel a mysterious connotation. I hope it will intrigue the public and make them pick up a copy to examine it.
My wife, Fran, picked up a few books from the local library book exchange, two of which I immediately latched onto and started reading: Kerouac’s Desolation Angels and Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart.
Here’s photos of she and I having dinner.
Phil Slattery, Writer, Publisher 