Friday, December 25, 2015

Home is where your heart is....


My three sons live far away, anywhere from 3000 to 4000 miles away. I'm grateful that my two daughters live close, one is a mere 70 miles and the other lives right in our little town. But the distance doesn't separate us from the love that we share as a family. We text, skype, and actually even call on the phone and I know that wherever my children make their home, they're happy, safe, and loved.  I think what I miss the most are the hugs, of course, my dear sweet husband is right there with open arms.

So I made a little video of our house for them to enjoy on Christmas. 



My greatest gift to them is love and looking at the world as a magical place, where your dreams come true. I've always told them, Never Lose The Magic!

And my wish for you is the ability to enjoy the world around you through eyes filled with Love, Peace, and Wonder.
  See you next year.

Friday, December 4, 2015

The Old Cape Teapot ebook sale and ...skunk!?

                                           ON SALE  
                                          
                READ The Old Cape Teapot FOR $0.99

                           Friday 12/4/15  to Monday 12/7/15
      
    Regular Price $3.99  ebook $0.99

 

Mystery with a touch of history! Join present-day amateur sleuth Nancy Caldwell in this tale of treasure and a pair of pirates that crisscrosses centuries and locales from Antigua to Cape Cod.

Nancy uncovers a pirate mystery in the historical fiction, The Old Cape House. Was she lucky or a good detective? Now she returns in The Old Cape Teapot, the second in a series, to follow the trails of two survivors from the wreck of the 1717 pirate ship Whydah. Armed with the knowledge that in pirate culture the looted riches were equally shared, she takes us to the tropical island of Antigua and back to Cape Cod searching for clues to more treasure. Using alternating chapters from the 18th to the 21st century, danger and conspiracy follow her at every turn. What will help her this time?

 Amazon

Barnes & Noble 

iBook 


This is such a good sale. But Wait! There's more....

A few weeks ago, Tim and I were settling in for a warm cozy night by the fire. I suggested a movie and some popcorn.

"Great idea," said Tim.
   
I got up off the couch for the remote while Tim retreated into the kitchen to make popcorn. That's when I smelled something other than popcorn. "What's that smell?" I asked over the popping noises in the microwave.
   
"What do you mean?" yelled Tim from the other room.
   
I said, "I think I smell skunk!"

   
"Let me check out the back door," I said opening the porch door to hopefully find that the skunk was outside.
   
Tim responded with, "I'll see if I can smell it in the front on the road."
To our dismay, it was only inside. After airing the house out, we spent the night googling how to get rid of skunks.

The next morning we scoured the foundation of the house and gallery for any signs of entry. We first found only one, it was under the lattice work that hides the bottom of the gallery porch. Then we noticed some furious digging near several other sections. After lifting a few porch floorboards we found their entry. They had gone in by the porch, then dug under the old carriage house, that is now the gallery, then crossed over to an opening by our addition and into one of the bays in our basement.

Then we made a plan. We found that they do not like noise and lights because they are nocturnal animals.    

So...we tried to discourage them.

We put spotlights, dirty kitty litter, and ammonia soaked rags to replicate the presence of a different animal around the hole. We did this for at least two days, then we thought talk radio would do the trick for annoying noise and put a radio on in the basement. 24/7!!!  At night we turned it down a little because we had to sleep.
   
On the third day, Tim decided to stay up and see if he could see them leave for the night. He attached heavy roping to the top of the area they dug so we could see if they went in or out. 

That night, we stayed up and finally heard a thud around 2AM in the basement. We quietly went out into the gallery, looked out the door and down to the foundation for any sign of movement. Two ropes were pushed out signaling the skunk left. As Tim grabbed a shovel to begin digging up the dirt to seal off the opening, a second skunk came out! And went right back in! At that point we went to bed. The next morning we called in the Calvary. 

 Perry LePews. Yes, that's the company's name. It caused us to snicker but then they got down to business.
They set one trap at the entrance of the porch to catch them on their way out and another near the second entrance hole.


After two more days they caught them both, using cat food.

So we asked them what they were going to do with our two furry friends. They said they would release them on the property. 

What!?? Yes. It's the humane way and also a law in Massachusetts. They keep them in the traps for two more days with food and water. The methodology is to make the animals uncomfortable so they never come back. It also gives the homeowner a chance to secure their house.

And so while our two uninvited guests were in jail, they secured the house and closed the entry.

Then they released them back in our woods. But the story doesn't end here. Someone came back and tried to get in again. There was one spot way on the other side of the foundation that was missed when they put the heavy gauge wire in and under the dirt closing off the entry. Yes, you guessed it. They returned. We are now waiting to see, via a camera supplied by LaPews,  to see who is visiting us again. Stay tuned for more.

Oh, and don't forget, my historical fiction thriller, mystery, THE OLD CAPE TEAPOT, is on sale for $0.99! 
P.S. You can be sure the skunk scenario will be in my fourth novel.

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Read The Old Cape House FREE!

Here's your chance to get an ebook copy of The Old Cape House for FREE from November 9 - 14 Get it FREE on Amazon!




                                                               The Old Cape House

Subscribe to Runaway Goodness, a wonderful site where you can find bargain and FREE ebooks for your reading pleasure. Sign up for free.
You can find The Old Cape House under Historical Fiction on this site. Easy to sign up.


Runaway Goodness

Stay tuned for my next blog, "What smells so good? Skunk!!

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Collections on Cape Cod


Storm clouds blew over the East Coast last week. Crosby Landing Beach, in Brewster, received its share of Mother Nature's fury. It was windy, rainy, and chilly on the morning Tim and I took a walk down the dog path that parallels the coastline. At its end, the narrow path turns left and over a dune for the return to the parking lot on the beach. 



 A smooth sandy drift blocked our passage. As we walked around, we found a surprise.



Someone had found a bottle opener/corkscrew and placed it on the fence post. A remnant of fun from the beach this past summer. Thinking of foot safety, I picked it up for our collection of lost objects we've come across on the beach.



Over the years on Cape Cod, we've collected some unusual objects. 

As you know, I collect other things. Whenever I travel, walk, or explore, I'm always watching and listening.  I find interesting people who tell me their stories, their histories, and memories. I use experiences from my youth.  I incorporate feelings or images that I come across on my daily walks. There are old houses, cranberry bogs, ancient paths, and hidden treasures not yet uncovered on the beach or on a nearby field. All waiting to be discovered, if you only look. And I always look!

When I craft my novels, I pull on everything that comes across my life's journey. 

In my latest novel, The Old Cape Teapot, my contemporary character, Nancy Caldwell, visits her son on Antigua. He's in the Peace Corps on the island.  While there, she meets a direct descendant of a pirate survivor from the pirate ship Whydah that sunk off the coast of Cape Cod in 1717. 

Well...I do have a son who served in the Peace Corp on the island of Antigua and based some of the story on my own experiences when I visited him back in the late nineties.

ANTIGUA 




Did I sleep surrounded in netting to keep the lizards out of my bed? Of course. 


 Did my son, Tim, build an orphanage for special needs children? Yes.


Was there a small cafe at the end of the road by his little house? Yes, and I did eat goat stew!

Have I ever met a real pirate? Have I ever found treasure? The answers to these questions I intend to keep secret.  But I will tell you that I'm always searching. I hope you are too! 

My third historical novel, The Old Cape's Hollywood Secret, will be coming in the summer of 2016. Nancy Caldwell takes you back to1947 in Hollywood and on Cape Cod.  This time it's an adventure/ thriller with a touch of history and the glamour of old Hollywood.

Check out where I'll be over the month of October under EVENTS.






Tuesday, August 18, 2015

 From Pirates to Art, Wine, and Words. I'll be at the Whydah Pirate Museum tomorrow, Wednesday 8/19 from 11–2PM in Provincetown on MacMillan Pier talking about pirates and Sam Bellamy and Maria Hallett.


Then on Tuesday 8/25 from 4–7PM, I'll be at the Cape Cod Museum of Fine Art in a benefit for Dream Day on Cape Cod.

 I hope you will come out and support this fine cause –Dream Day on Cape Cod- and meet nine wonderful authors!


Monday, August 10, 2015


On sale today 8/10/15 through 8/11/15
$3.99   ebook  $0.99




When Nancy Caldwell moves with her family into an old seaside house, she's shocked to find gold coins and a baby's skull hidden in their backyard. So begins a thrilling adventure and romance that intertwines the 18th and 21st centuries.
AMAZON

BARNES & NOBLE

iTunes

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Does your local library have any secrets?

Dumbledore's office/library from Harry Potter. (courtesy of Cineplix.com)



Have you ever wondered how your library came to be? I have, which prompted me to investigate a few. I discovered several of our libraries here on the Cape have some interesting history.

Consider the Brewster Ladies Library on Cape Cod. 

In 1852, Sarah Augusta Mayo and Mary Louise Cobb felt the need for a library in their town. They began talking to their friends and convinced them to join together and open one in the home of Captain Mayo at 1772 Main Street. In 1853 on January 29,  Brewster opened their first library. Because of the growing demand for more books as years passed, Captain Joseph Nickerson donated $1000 towards a new building fund. In 1868 the current structure was built at 1822 Main Street. (Facts courtesy of Brewster Ladies Library.)

Fun Fact:  Men were allowed to borrow books but had to pay for them, not the women! This rule didn't last very long.

The library was enlarged and included two front parlors with cozy fireplaces added to the front. Today library patrons are invited to use these rooms. Take a stroll to the front of the building where you'll find some creaky floors and comfy chairs to relax in or...



...spread out on a beautiful inlaid work table.

If you travel to the bordering town of Orleans, the Snow Library has a few unique displays inside. It was built in 1877 on a triangle of land at the corner of Route 28 and Main Street. The building burned down during a blizzard in 1952 and was rebuilt across from its original location in 1954.


 What's interesting about this library are the maps on the second floor.


There are two framed maps down a hallway. One is from 1858 and shows the whole of Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket Counties. The other lists all the stores and commercial establishments of these counties during the same time period of 1858.


When I was writing my second historical novel, The Old Cape Teapot, I went in search of old maps from the lower cape as did my fictional character, Nancy Caldwell.


I studied a close–up of Eastham and the area around Doane Rock. It gave me the idea for a plot twist in my second novel, The Old Cape Teapot. The historical chapters in this book take place from 1724 to 1744 on Antigua and Cape Cod.


And I also discovered that the rock was originally called Enoch's Rock, named by Deacon John Doane after one of his son's. You can see the words, 'Enoch's Rock' near the bottom right of image.

Stay safe throughout the summer and make sure you visit your local library for all their secrets, weekly events, and the opportunity to explore with the magic of books! 

What does your library have that's waiting for you to discover?






Thursday, April 2, 2015

Interview: Books on the World – The Old Cape Teapot

Every time I do an interview, I never know what questions I'll be asked but Bob Silverberg from Cape Cod Writers Center surprised me. He kept me laughing as I explained the how and the why of my second historical novel, The Old Cape Teapot on the wonderful show, Books of the World.





Click on the link below to hear the show.


The Old Cape Teapot interview 

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Digging around the Cape

Almost everyone likes to dig in the garden. It feels good to get your hands dirty, to smell the sweet spring soil, and then relish in your efforts of growing tasty vegetables or beautiful fragrant flowers. But sometimes your shovel can uncover some unexpected surprises and not always in the garden.

I found this toy gun buried in the dirt alongside our driveway. I'd worked in this little garden for many years and never saw it. After one summer of heavy storms, I noticed its handle peaking out among the ground cover.
At the time, the discovery frightened me but then I realized it was only a toy. It also prompted me to make use of the incident in my historical fiction, The Old Cape House.

When my first novel, The Old Cape House, was in the process of being edited, the planting of the seed for my second historical novel, The Old Cape Teapot, began to grow. Researching the story of Sam Bellamy, Maria Hallett, and the pirate ship Whydah piqued my imagination further to ponder the fate of the two survivors of the Whydah. Were they actual pirates? Not according to the courts of Boston, who found them innocent by reason of coercion. So what happened to them? I began to craft my second novel.

Several other things pushed me along in the writing process of The Old Cape Teapot.

I joined a group of Cape Codders trying to find the original cornerstone markers of the Cape Cod towns. Sometimes we would sidestep our original hunt and follow other Cape historical mysteries.
One spring afternoon we ventured into the woods of Orleans. We were told to spread out and look for anything that looked odd in the ground, specifically large stones or something that might look like a marker.
I was lucky. I spotted an aberration or mound on the forest floor that had a small, seven inch in diameter, gray circle that was visible at its top.  I began to pull the grassy moss aside.


By the time I was finished pulling, a whale of a rock was exposed. They called it Barbara's Rock! Oftentimes the early Pilgrims would use natural markers when marking off property lines. This rock almost lined up with the Magnetic North. Interesting....
Another day we returned to the same area and discovered the possible site of an old Windmill.
Here's a link to a video posted about the discovery.

Old Windmill – Orleans

While exploring with The Cornerstone Group, my imagination took flight once more and I used the discovery of the Old Windmill as a major plot point in my historical fiction, thriller and mystery, The Old Cape Teapot.
 The circle foundation of the windmill is not perfect but the step stones are clearly visible.

It was fun and exciting. Can you almost make out a large arrow that seems to be carved into the bigger stone?

Treasure can be found in all forms and places, be it diamonds, archeological evidence, or just meeting a new and interesting person. The thrill of the hunt for 'treasure' never gets old, at least not for me. I'll always be ready for the challenge. I hope you are.


The Old Cape Teapot – a historical mystery, thriller, and adventure.
Available on:
 Amazon 
Barnes&Noble
Struna Galleries






Thursday, March 12, 2015

Stone Circles – My Way


What is a stone circle? It's a monument of standing stones arranged in a circle. Like this...

Courtesy of: "Swinside (p4160146)". Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons


 It's beautiful but there's no way I could ever build such a large circle. But I would be able to manage this...


Even though my stones are not standing, nor are they very large, I would call it a stone circle. 

Many years ago I started making these circles on the bay side of the Cape when the tide was out.
I came up with several logical reasons for my behavior.
# 1. I wanted to get my little ones involved in a nature project while playing on the beach.
# 2. I wanted to see if the circle would still be there the next day. 
I'd HAVE to return every day, no matter what, to observe the stones and, of course, replenish the concentric design. It took me to the beach almost every day.
# 3. It was fun.

One summer we were very busy in the gallery and a bit stressed. My fascination with the stone circle became an obsession with me.  I had to go see my creation, even if I was exhausted or it was raining. It forced me to take the time to get in the car, drive to the beach, and check on the progress of the stones. I always encouraged the family to come with me. I'd even drag our summer guests to the beach to assist me in rebuilding the tiny circle. A few times I went alone. By the time August rolled around, the kids had lost interest but Tim and I kept returning. Sometimes to our surprise we'd arrive only to see that another beachcomber had either filled in the circle or built their own right next to mine!

I'm still fascinated with building a stone circle every chance I get. One year I fashioned the stones into a heart. 


This past winter, we visited our son in Juneau, Alaska where we welcomed their new baby and new home. Their house is located on a small inlet from the Pacific Ocean. So what did I do? I built a stone circle with the help of Tim and my granddaughter Casey.


These dark, large rocks are covered with barnacles, very different from our smooth, sandy colored stones in the Atlantic. Tim found one of the largest heart shaped rocks I've ever seen.


We incorporated it into the rock circle. Hopefully Casey, Madison, and little Zack will look out their windows and see Grandma Barbara's circle of love.



Below you'll see the back cover of my second historical novel, The Old Cape Teapot.

That year in 2006, while I was rebuilding my rock circle on the bayside of Brewster, I found a pottery shard. It was beautiful.


I took it home. That fall I visited several antique shops trying to trace its pattern but ended my search with no information. It wasn't disappointing for me because as I traveled the roads of Cape Cod, I began to craft the plot for my second novel with the pottery shard as my inspiration. 




Nancy Caldwell uncovers a pirate mystery that had the Old Salts of Cape Cod wondering for close to 300 years in the historical fiction, The Old Cape House. Was she lucky or a good detective?  Nancy returns in The Old Cape Teapot, the second in a series of historical fiction, to uncover the trails of two survivors from the wreck of the 1717 pirate ship Whydah. Armed with the knowledge that in pirate culture the looted riches were equally shared, she takes us to the tropical island of Antigua and back to Cape Cod searching for clues to more treasure. Using alternating chapters from the 18th to the 21st century, danger and conspiracy follow her at every turn. What will help her this time?

 Click to purchase on Amazon, B&N, iTunes, and Struna Galleries to the right of my blog.
Available as an ebook and paperback.

I eagerly await the disappearance of ice and snow,  so I can begin a new stone circle.





Sunday, January 11, 2015

Historical Blog Tour

So pleased to be a part of this Historical Blog Tour brought to you by the ever-talented author and blogger  Tiffani Burnett-Velez.  

Who are you?   

For those of you who are new to my blog, I write about the history and legends of Cape Cod. I’ve lived on Cape Cod with my family for 27 years.                                                           
Author Barbara Eppich Struna and her husband Tim.
In 1988 my husband and I moved in our forties from Ohio to the Cape with three teenagers. After our arrival to an 1880 house, we proceeded to renovate and rebuild the old beauty, establish my husband’s art career into the arts community, and bring two more children into the world…all within the first two years.  As the three older teens slowly headed off to college, we searched for numerous free things to do and explored almost every inch of Cape Cod. The history of the Cape and its magical, pristine light kept my husband, as an artist, and myself, as a storyteller and lover of history, always looking and happily finding inspiration.  I have written and published two historical fiction novels: The Old Cape House and The Old Cape Teapot. These novels are written using alternating chapters between centuries.
 
The Old Cape House was a recent recipient of the 2014 Royal Dragonfly Awards - First Place in Historical Fiction. It's a story about contemporary Nancy Caldwell who moves into an old Cape Cod house and in her backyard at the bottom of a root cellar finds evidence that links her land to 18th century Maria Hallett and the pirate Sam Bellamy.

What is your latest historical fiction piece?


In my second historical novel, The Old Cape Teapot, my contemporary character, Nancy Caldwell, finds an old map of Cape Cod on the tropical island of Antigua. After returning home to the Cape and armed with clues from the map, she follows the trails of two pirate survivors from the 1717 wreck Whydah that sunk off the coast of Marconi Beach. Nancy knows from her previous adventure in The Old Cape House that in pirate culture...everything is equally shared and there must be more treasure.

Why did you choose to write it?

I wanted to develop my contemporary character, Nancy Caldwell, into a series exploring history and present day. I also wanted to give my reader an awareness of their present day surroundings on the Cape and how it connects to local history.

Evidence of wagon wheels and horses retrieving peat or salt hay on Nauset Beach at low tide.

 What about that era appeals to you?

Across Cape Cod, there are many locations that have remained untouched or have been thankfully kept historic over the centuries. I can walk down old fire roads and paths that date back to the 1700s.  I find it fascinating that the land, known as Cape Cod, played such a significant role in the development of present day North America. 

On a path looking for the remains of Fresh Brook Village in Wellfleet.

Are your characters real or fictional?  If they’re real, how did you fictionalize them?

My contemporary character, Nancy Caldwell, will experience similar adventures and a few life events that I've gone through, that's the nature of writing novels. In fact, I think every writer sprinkles a little of themselves throughout their stories. Small occurrences that I encounter in everyday life will sometimes blossom and develop into full–blown story-lines of mystery and danger.
For example: I did find, under ten inches of dirt, a pattern of red bricks behind our barn. I did not find a complete root cellar like Nancy did in The Old Cape House.
I also found a blue–flowered pottery shard on the tidal flats and tried to locate its pattern in an old antique shop. Unlike Nancy in The Old Cape Teapot who found a shard, my search led me to a dead end, where as Nancy made a connection that placed her into a life–threatening situation.

Blue–flowered shard found on Brewster flats.

When crafting my stories, I use the documented and known facts of historical characters and then fictionalize, through research, what surrounded them based on my findings.

What kind of research is involved in writing your novel?

I research through libraries, old journals, oral histories, old newspapers, and of course the Internet.  Sometimes I’ll search for hours to find information that will become only one sentence in the book.

How do you organize the fictional aspects of your writing vs. the historical facts?

I take tons of notes and organize them into historical fact categories, for example: travel, housing, clothing, food, events, names, and many more depending on what the story is about. The fictional aspects may be noted to the side of the category if I want to remember something important.

How does the historical timeline move your plot along or influence the actions of your characters?

It’s very important to me that I get my facts correct. My historical characters cannot stay at an inn, if there were no documented inns in an area. Nor could they travel quickly if on a long journey, estimating travel time is always difficult.

How do you feel about writers taking creative license with historical events? Or, does it bother you when facts are changed to fit the story in a movie or a book?

I’m a firm believer of keeping to the facts as much as possible. In my first novel, The Old Cape House, I knew that the story of the pirate, Sam Bellamy, and his ship, Whydah, was real. The remains of the wrecked ship were discovered in 1986 off the coast of Cape Cod. But where the story becomes muddy is the part about his lover, young Maria Hallett. I researched for several years trying to find evidence of her connection to Bellamy but found nothing.  She seemed to exist only in people’s imaginations and on a few street signs, but that was all. So I took that uncertainty and ran with it, creating a whole new story for her and her lover Sam Bellamy using the known facts. In fact, I gave her a better ending.
The bell of the pirate ship Whydah. Image courtesy of Historic Shipwrecks.

What’s next for you after this present work?

Currently I’m researching another adventure for Nancy Caldwell. This time I alternate chapters between 1947 and present day in Hollywood and on Cape Cod to solve another mystery. 




Next stop on the historical blog tour, for your enjoyment, I would like to introduce Eleanor Parker Sapia, a Puerto Rican-born novelist, who was raised in the US, Europe, and the colonial city of Ponce, Puerto Rico and where she got the idea for her debut novel, A Decent Woman. She has lived in France, Greece, Austria, Brussels, and Belgium, where she spent 13 years. Ellie has degrees from Marymount University in Virginia and Philippi Trust Counseling and Training Center, Blackpool, UK. She makes her home in West Virginia.