Janet Alcorn

Janet Alcorn

Suspense | Horror | Romance

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  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Janet Alcorn

Short story “Proof Text” published in Kings River Life

My short story, “Proof Text,” was just published in Kings River Life! “Proof Text” is a short suspense piece about an exhausted farm wife who must finish one essential chore.…

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March 11, 2025

Writing Your Own Destiny (interview on the Mysterious Goings-On podcast)

Want to learn how to start writing fiction and use short stories to further your writing career? In a recent interview I did for the Mysterious Goings-On podcast, I talk…

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December 10, 2023

Books to Help You Write Better: A Writer’s Reading List

Want to learn to write fiction? Want to learn to write better fiction? You’re in the right place. The Writer’s Reading List: Books to Help You Write Better will point…

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October 28, 2023
  • Arizona,  Photos,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Summer in Tucson part 2: more rain, more sunsets, more bats

    August 12, 2022 /

    Monsoon season is in full swing down here in Satan’s Anus. We’ve had rain almost every night this week, including a wall shaker of a thunderstorm Monday night. The mountains are greening up, the weeds are taking over, and we even have mosquitoes and humidity. It’s like Georgia down in here–but with cactus. I love it (well, except for the weeds and mosquitoes). Look at all that green! The Santa Catalinas don’t look like Mount Doom anymore! And there’s even grass! Water truly is life. And then there are the sunsets. These were taken last night in the Catalina foothills. It was a little too dark for my iPhone camera,…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Hosting a write-in and trying to finish a book

    October 14, 2022

    Saguaro National Park East

    February 3, 2023
    Spiny cactus with 2 pink flowers and one red bud emerging from top and sides. Petals are light pink around the edges with a dark pink stripe in the middle. Center of flowers is yellow with a green frond-like thing sprouting from the center.

    Pincushion cactus flower in Sabino Canyon outside Tucson, Arizona (#FOTD)

    August 10, 2021
  • Arizona,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Late summer in Tucson–it’s hot and there are bats

    August 5, 2022 /

    Today I’m going to introspect about late summer and take you on a visit to a local bat colony. Feel free to skim past the narcissistic navel gazing and go right to the bats. But first: Welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! Grab a treat and let’s go bat-watching!

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Hillside studded with prickly pear, saguaros, and other Sonoran Desert vegetation with a dark tan rock formation in the background and a hillside rising on the right

    The desert is in the details: Tucson Mountain Park (Weekend Coffee Share #11)

    October 23, 2021
    Looking down on the US-Mexico Border, a black fence across a desert basin

    2024 is off to a strong start: the January recap

    January 27, 2024

    Flowers and Sunsets–and a Tragedy on my Campus

    October 7, 2022
  • Weekend Coffee Share

    No serial killers this week, because that would be too exciting

    July 29, 2022 /

    This week’s update will be short and serial-killer-free (unlike most of the rest of my July posts–apparently it’s serial killer month here at Camp WTF). I could make a bunch of exciting-sounding excuses: I’m flying to Fiji in an hour! I need to prepare for a call with an agent who wants to represent me! I have an appointment with a financial advisor to help me figure out what to do with my lottery winnings! Right. Uh huh. Here’s the sad truth: Exactly two exciting things happened this week. We bought a new freezer. It rained. Kids, that’s what you have to look forward to when you hit middle age:…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Let’s talk books!

    November 18, 2023

    Joshua Tree Forest, writing news, books, and more pandemic memes (Weekend Coffee Share #30)

    March 18, 2022
    Mural and lettering on side of grey stucco building. Painting of steam train in on tracks in desert landscape writing: "1880, Greetings from Willcox Arizona, Cattle Capital of the World."

    Visiting Willcox, Arizona + a few updates

    August 12, 2023
  • Personal,  Weekend Coffee Share

    A bomb threat and more serial killers

    July 22, 2022 /
    Black background with white text reading, "I wonder how the meteor that was supposed to hit us back in 2012 is doing and if it's interested in hitting us now.

    The title of this week’s post–A Bomb Threat and More Serial Killers–makes my week sound waaaaayyyyyy more exciting than it actually was. In fact, Long-Suffering Husband, Son, and I have all felt lousy all week, so we haven’t done much. Plus–and I know this will come as a huge shock–it’s seriously hot here in Arizona in July, so my goal has been to do as little as possible and avoid going outside. Part of that goal–the not going outside part–was thwarted big time earlier this week, unfortunately. I’ll get to that in a minute, but first: welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! It’s also What’s…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Dispatch from the query trenches

    March 4, 2026

    If it weren’t for COVID, I’d have no news at all

    May 13, 2022
    Black greyhound with white and grey muzzle curled up asleep on a dog bed

    Bisbee pics and saying goodbye (Weekend Coffee Share #10)

    October 15, 2021
  • Books and Reading,  Weekend Coffee Share,  What's On Your Bookshelf

    Of books and serial killers (with gratuitous complaints about the Arizona heat)

    July 15, 2022 /
    Black text on white background: "Boyfriend: Why do you watch so much murder stuff? Me: Just in case you slip up.

    No, this post isn’t about our resident backyard serial killer of tomatoes. That little beast has disappeared, because it’s now too hot here in Satan’s Anus for the tomatoes to produce fruit. Instead, they’re wilted and sad, hoping desperately for temperatures below 100F. Kind of like me. But the plants and I shall hope in vain, because our forecast for the weekend looks like this: At least we might get some rain. Maybe. But don’t worry, I’m not going to spend the rest of this post complaining about the weather. I’m saving that topic for next week. This week it’s time for the monthly What’s on Your Bookshelf Challenge, hosted…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Stack of books to help you write better, including Bird by Bird, Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, Thanks, But This Isn't For Us, Structuring Your Novel, Stephen King's On Writing, and Revision & Self-Editing

    Books to Help You Write Better: A Writer’s Reading List

    October 28, 2023
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    What literary character would you like to hang out with?

    April 1, 2025

    Podcast appearance, Michigan trip, and books

    June 17, 2023
  • Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,  Garden,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Gambel’s quail family returns to my backyard

    July 8, 2022 /

    After last week’s excitement, this week has been quiet. After scrambling to meet a couple of submission deadlines, I’ve been slacking recovering this week and focusing more attention on a work-related writing project (a colleague and I are editing a book). I also co-hosted the Insecure Writer’s Support Group blog hop this month. My post is called, No, I Don’t Want to Live in a Fictional World. I think it’s funny, but I’m one of those dorks who laughs at her own jokes, so… Another bit of news: I’m starting a newsletter to support my nascent author business. To subscribe, drop your email in the subscription box at the top…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    The weekly update: bobcat sighting, books, garden pix, and a small batch of memes

    May 21, 2022

    More Snow in Tucson!

    March 3, 2023
    Blue sign with white letters reading, "POISONOUS SNAKES AND INSECTS INHABIT THE AREA," followed by drawings of a scorpion and snake

    I got a story accepted! Plus other news and a few local laughs (Weekend Coffee Share #17)

    December 3, 2021
  • IWSG

    No, I don’t want to live in a fictional world

    July 5, 2022 /
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    I’m so excited to be co-hosting the IWSG monthly blog hop, along with my wonderful co-hosts, J Lenni Dorner, PJ Colando, Jenni Enzor, and Diane Burton! Please stop by their blogs and show them some comment love. Also, this is my 30th IWSG post. How the heck did that happen? (If you’re really bored, you can go here to read the first 29). In this month’s post, I’ll answer the optional question, If you could live in any book world, which one would you choose? But first, a couple of things. I have a newsletter! After spending several quality hours with MailerLite, I have a newsletter! If you’d like to see my nonsense witty commentary…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    November: A month of stress and delight in writing (#IWSG)

    December 1, 2021
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Author Envy, or Damn, I Wish I’d Written That

    February 28, 2023
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Dispatch from the query trenches

    March 4, 2026
  • Garden,  Weekend Coffee Share,  Writing

    Long-Suffering Husband catches a backyard serial killer, and I meet some deadlines

    July 1, 2022 /

    It’s been a busy week here at Camp WTF. Long-Suffering Husband caught a serial killer* in the act, and I met a couple of writing deadlines. But before we get to those thrilling tales: Welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! Grab a treat, pull up a seat, and let’s chat. * Note: a nonstandard definition of, “serial killer,” is used in this post.

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Paying the price for my procrastination

    June 3, 2022

    Flowers and birds and whining about the heat

    June 24, 2023

    Sweetwater Trail, flower pics, and a fresh batch of memes (Weekend Coffee Share #34)

    April 15, 2022
  • Arizona,  Photos,  Short Stories,  Weekend Coffee Share,  Writing

    Lockett Meadow, writing news, memes, and more

    June 25, 2022 /
    meadow of dry grass in front of forested hills

    Good afternoon, and happy Saturday! It’s a balmy 100F here in Satan’s Anus, which is a helluva lot better than the 108 we endured yesterday. In this week’s missive, I bring you some pretty pictures of Lockett Meadow in the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff, my writing progress (such as it is), a few interesting dribs and drabs I found on the internet when I should have been writing, and a fresh batch of memes I also found on the internet when I should have been writing. But first: Welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! Grab a treat, pull up a seat, and let’s get…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Your intrepid blogger with a large man with curly blond rocker hair who insists he's her husband, rocks and Sonoran Desert vegetation in the background

    A post-Thanksgiving hike in Sabino Canyon

    November 26, 2023
    Creosote, teddy bear cholla, ocotillo, and saguaros in foreground with rust-brown colored mountain in background in late afternoon light

    New story published, Organ Pipe Cactus trip, blog recap, recap, and New Years memes (Weekend Coffee Share #20)

    January 8, 2022

    Late summer in Tucson–it’s hot and there are bats

    August 5, 2022
  • Books and Reading,  Weekend Coffee Share,  What's On Your Bookshelf

    Fire near my old neighborhood, books, and more memes

    June 18, 2022 /

    As some of you know, I used to live in the country outside Flagstaff, Arizona. We lived on 2.5 acres a half mile or so from the Coconino National Forest, with a view of the San Francisco Peaks from our driveway. It was the most beautiful place I’ve ever lived. This week my former neighborhood was evacuated because that beautiful place is on fire. This fire, the Pipeline Fire, is the second major fire in the area. The Tunnel Fire blazed through in April. According to the current map, this fire burned to within about a half mile of our former home. So far the neighborhood has been spared, but…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Website woes, garden pics and books

    April 24, 2022
    Green box with white silhouette of woman on phone and text reading, "I decided staying up all night and finishing my book was more important than being mentally present today."

    The monthly book post–and a great tool for readers

    November 18, 2022

    Writing news and the monthly book post

    December 16, 2022
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