Hey all… time for another monthly column. 🙂

They say you should write what you know. I don’t always think that’s true – I write a lot of sci fi and fantasy, and take readers places I have never been.

But sometimes I really do write what I know.

I was born in Southern California, and grew up in Tucson, Arizona. But I’ve spent the last fifteen years in my adopted hometown of Sacramento, California.

Sacramento is a bit of a cow town. It’s in the Central Valley, and although it’s the state capital, it still thinks it’s a small town. Since I’ve been here, though, it has grown and changed, slowly, sometimes imperceptibly. But change nonetheless.

Midtown has gone from a concept to an actual thing, with a great farmers market, amazing restaurants and its own sense of place and culture. Speaking of culture, several waves of immigrants from the Bay Area have brought some of it with them. And the food scene has blossomed as the farm-to-fork movement has taken root.

A couple years ago, I decided I wanted to write a serial tale for my blog. For my jumping off point, I chose “Between the Lines,” my Sacramento magical realism tale featuring the romance between a political chief of staff and his intern.

I added a handful of characters, populating them with the essence of people I know. Friends of mine will recognize themselves in some of my characters, and it was really fun to infuse bits of them into the story.

“The River City Chronicles” is also full of places real and imagined in Sacramento, and experiences that native and transplanted Sacramentens will recognize. But I hope it’s also chock full of things any reader will enjoy.

So yeah, sometimes you really should write what you know – because other people know and will love it too!