Posts by GarLaSalle
In Search of the Good Doctor
A few weeks ago I had the honor of delivering the 7th Annual James McClellan “Humanities in Medicine” lecture at Whitman College to an audience composed of physicians, academicians and students. Research for the topic, “In Search of the ‘Good Doctor’” allowed me to explore and in many cases, re-acquaint myself with a wide array…
Read MoreHow to Write Bad Guys
I once knew an opera singer who built a successful, very specialized career by exclusively playing the witch in Hansel und Gretel. For two months out of each year during the winter holiday season, she flew around the world, shuttling from performance to performance, singing and artistically seducing kids into her gumdrop house. She was so…
Read MoreThe Fairness of Beasts is Published!
Today is the day! Book III in the Widow Walk Saga is now live on Amazon, and I am thrilled. The team at Solipsis Publishing and I have been working hard for months to get everything ready, and it’s exciting to release the book to the world. Click here to order The Fairness of Beasts…
Read MoreThe Fairness of Beasts Pre-Order Bundles Are Here
Hello everyone, I am thrilled to announce that pre-orders for The Fairness of Beasts, Book III of The Widow Walk Saga, are now available. We are very happy with this book, and reviews are already starting to come in. We are honored that The Midwest Review named it a Reviewer’s Choice as well as selecting it…
Read MoreThe Medallions of the Widow Walk Saga (so far)
Many people have asked about the beautiful medallions that adorn the covers of the first three books in the Widow Walk saga. Who did them? Why did you choose to use them? How were they created? What do they represent? Widow Walk The talented Randy Mott of Mott Graphics (MottGraphics.com) is the designer of…
Read More2017 Artist Trust LaSalle Storyteller Award
I consider it an honor to support the arts, especially in Washington State where I live and work. When I developed this StoryTeller Award with Washington State’s Artist Trust, I wanted to be part of their work supporting regional artists. I named it the “StoryTeller Award” because I believe there is an unacknowledged responsibility of fiction…
Read MoreArtist Chat: Representing Women in Literature
Earlier this summer I had the pleasure of being part of an artist’s chat with to award-winning author Karen Essex. Karen has written many books based on hidden stories behind famous women like Kleopatra, and it was fascinating to hear her insight into how women are represented across the media, and talk with her about…
Read MoreWhen Britannia Ruled the Northwest: April Presentation at Folio
I am happy to announce that I am one of four presenters at an upcoming event at Folio: A Seattle Anthenaeum. For those who don’t know Folio, it’s part of a national community of 21 membership libraries in North America that provides a full schedule of programs and discussion groups, as well as library collections…
Read MoreArtist’s Chat: The Story Behind Widow Walk’s Award-Winning Cover
Creating an amazing book cover While I’m putting the finishing touches on the the manuscript for book III, The Fairness of Beasts and it is making its way through the wilderness that is editing, proofreading, and printing, I wanted to bring together the two gifted artists who worked with me to create all three of…
Read MoreHelp us choose the Book III cover
Designing a great book cover is an intricate project that requires time and craft, and I have always enjoyed the process. For the cover of The Fairness of Beasts, book III in the Widow Walk saga, I am delighted to be working with two of the artists who helped design my previous covers as well.…
Read MoreBattling the Northerners: Stories that Shaped Widow Walk
During the summer of my second year in medical school, at the invitation of a classmate who also was a Pacific Northwest transplant, I had the opportunity to work with him as a salmon fisherman on a “reef net” boat. That summer, I met several Lummi Tribe Native Americans who live in the area right on…
Read MoreWho Were “The Northerners” of the Pacific Northwest?
In 1844, a schooner called “Pigeon” was found adrift, empty and burned out, off of Maury Island in the south part of the Oregon Territory’s Puget Sound. The craft’s seven man crew was never found. Natives in the area attributed the disaster to an early morning attack by the “Northerners” who came on longboats. WHO…
Read MoreDrums of the Castle – Timballo di LaCasella
The following is a recent variation on an ancient recipe, created originally in Valenzano á Bari, by the family of my grandfather, Alfonso. Because the people of his village did not use surnames the way we do now, and because his family had lived within the protected domain of the local castle in Valenzano, when he,…
Read MoreRecipe: Italian Country Bread with Cannellini, Escarole and Olive Oil
Over the past few months it has been my treat to bring together in cooking classes a variety of friends, college, medical school and high school classmates, fellow writers, physicians and long-lost cousins. We remodeled an already beautiful home on Capitol Hill in Seattle by ripping out a small kitchen and creating a huge, modern…
Read More13 Things to Remember When Writing Historical Fiction
Guest post by Avasta Press Kelsye Nelson, the founder of Avasta Press, hosted a webinar with historical fiction author Gar LaSalle. Gar talked about 13 things to remember when writing historical fiction. He answered questions from the audience at the end of the webinar. Our favorite tip is number 13: Villains abound. Gar writes villains…
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