On a recent visit to Provincetown, my husband and I walked through the Province Lands. The sand sculpted dunes brooded under a grey sky, a steady wind whisked the ocean into frothy whitecaps. In the distance, a lighthouse guided ships to safe harbor. It seemed the perfect setting for a mystery, or a ghost story perhaps. Someday I might write such a book—set back in time in along a lonely stretch of sand at the edge of the world
I have written a book set in Provincetown, though the story I wrote is far from brooding and dramatic. It’s a comedy with a cast of offbeat, slightly kooky and all-too-human characters. This is the other face of Provincetown—colorful and bodacious, unapologetic in its attitude while still holding to something older, something timeless as the dunes that surround harbor and village.
Fishing boats dock alongside the wharf, rust stained by age and salt, decks worn by the work at sea. The smell of today’s catch lingers on the breeze, so strong it can be tasted. Tourists stroll by licking ice cream cones bought from the take-out window of a local food joint at the wharf’s entrance. A block away, on Commercial, shops hug the narrow street, selling everything from salt water taffy to sex toys. In front of town hall, near a stretch of green, a guitarist in drag sits on a stool and strums torch songs, her guitar case open for donations.
It was the nature of this place that inspired me to write the P-Town Queen. The characters jumped from the page as I wrote. It’s a rare treat when characters arrive on the page fully formed, but such was the case with this book. It was this little town, it’s diversity, it’s traditions, and its unabashed spirit that formed them as surely as the wind sculpted sand into dune hills.
I like to think on this tiny village surrounded on three sides by water. I can imagine Nikki and Parker walking along the pier, ice cream cones in hand. I can see Jeremy and Billy sitting on the bench, Jeremy’s hands flying about as he talks about his latest scheme. In a nearby coffee shop, Ella pours coffee into Nick’s cup. Aboard the Two Sons, Harry and Pete ready the ship to sail out for the day’s catch. Picturing them makes me smile. I love these quirky folks as much as I love their town.
The P-Town Queen is available through most e-book distributors. For a limited time, you can enter to win a copy on Amazon.
I have written a book set in Provincetown, though the story I wrote is far from brooding and dramatic. It’s a comedy with a cast of offbeat, slightly kooky and all-too-human characters. This is the other face of Provincetown—colorful and bodacious, unapologetic in its attitude while still holding to something older, something timeless as the dunes that surround harbor and village.
Fishing boats dock alongside the wharf, rust stained by age and salt, decks worn by the work at sea. The smell of today’s catch lingers on the breeze, so strong it can be tasted. Tourists stroll by licking ice cream cones bought from the take-out window of a local food joint at the wharf’s entrance. A block away, on Commercial, shops hug the narrow street, selling everything from salt water taffy to sex toys. In front of town hall, near a stretch of green, a guitarist in drag sits on a stool and strums torch songs, her guitar case open for donations.
It was the nature of this place that inspired me to write the P-Town Queen. The characters jumped from the page as I wrote. It’s a rare treat when characters arrive on the page fully formed, but such was the case with this book. It was this little town, it’s diversity, it’s traditions, and its unabashed spirit that formed them as surely as the wind sculpted sand into dune hills.
I like to think on this tiny village surrounded on three sides by water. I can imagine Nikki and Parker walking along the pier, ice cream cones in hand. I can see Jeremy and Billy sitting on the bench, Jeremy’s hands flying about as he talks about his latest scheme. In a nearby coffee shop, Ella pours coffee into Nick’s cup. Aboard the Two Sons, Harry and Pete ready the ship to sail out for the day’s catch. Picturing them makes me smile. I love these quirky folks as much as I love their town.
The P-Town Queen is available through most e-book distributors. For a limited time, you can enter to win a copy on Amazon.
RSS Feed
