Janet Alcorn

Janet Alcorn

Suspense | Horror | Romance

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  • 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

“The Fourth Man” won a prize!

My short story, “The Fourth Man,” won second prize in the Arizona Mystery Writers annual short story contest! The Jim Martin Memorial Short Story Contest recognizes short mystery, suspense, and…

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December 22, 2023

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
  • Arizona,  Photos,  Short Stories,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Uranium Springs postapocalyptic town and pre-enactment site (plus the usual news and memes)

    May 27, 2022 /
    Flatbed truck with missing engine compartment and doors on ridge above Uranium Springs postapocalyptic town. In front and to right of truck is a small building made of plywood scraps and sheet metal with faded sign above boarded-up door

    In this week’s update, we’re going to visit Uranium Springs, a postapocalyptic town outside Holbrook, Arizona. Uranium Springs is the site of the annual Detonation festival, a postapocalyptic “pre-enactment” (read: cosplay) event. Long-Suffering Husband attends every year, along with a few hundred other Mad Max maniacs who are much more optimistic about the postapocalyptic aesthetic than I am. Attendees at Detonation, and its larger, better-known cousin, Wasteland Weekend, make the woman on the left look drab. I’m kind of fascinated by the whole postapocalyptic pre-enactment thing, and I love a good postapocalyptic story. I even wrote one: “Collateral Damage,” first-place winner in the Arizona Authors Association 2020 literary contest (learn…

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    Janet Alcorn

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

    August 12, 2022

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

    August 5, 2022
    meadow of dry grass in front of forested hills

    Lockett Meadow, writing news, memes, and more

    June 25, 2022
  • Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,  Books and Reading,  Flower of the Day,  Garden,  Weekend Coffee Share,  What's On Your Bookshelf

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

    May 21, 2022 /

    Good morning and happy Saturday! This week’s update will be a little short, because we’ve had a distinct lack of excitement here at Camp WTF. After today, I’ll be on vacation for a week, so I’ve spent this week working, working, working to get stuff done. And that’s after spending all weekend cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, because my son has a houseguest this week. This adulthood thing is a thrill a minute, I tell ya. Before we get to all those thrills: This post is part of the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer; Cee’s Flower of the Day photo challenge, hosted by Cee’s Photo Challenges, and the What’s…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Cardboard box sealed with strip of plastic tape

    My poem won a prize!

    November 12, 2022
    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

    Gambel’s quail family returns to my backyard

    July 8, 2022
  • Personal,  Weekend Coffee Share

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

    May 13, 2022 /

    Good morning and happy Friday! It’s been a mostly uneventful week here at Camp WTF. I’ve finally recovered from my trip to New Orleans and am gearing up for my annual spring staycation later this month. The main event this week was a notification that I’ve been exposed to COVID. Did you know iPhones have a built-in feature for detecting COVID exposure? Apparently it’s connected to some public health departments and uses Bluetooth to determine if you’ve been close to someone who has reported a positive COVID test. I had no idea till I got a message on my phone from the Nevada Health Department informing me I’d been exposed.…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    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.

    A bomb threat and more serial killers

    July 22, 2022
    Wreath-shaped ornament on Christmas tree, silver painted with eucalyptus berries glued on. Bottom of candy cane ornament in upper left corner.

    My earliest Christmas memory: meat trays, cardboard, and Krylon

    December 25, 2021
    Closeup of red and white striped rosebud with part of an open striped rose to the right

    New story coming out, bird rescue drama, and more (Weekend Coffee Share #2)

    August 21, 2021
  • Flower of the Day,  Garden

    Ebb Tide rose (#FOTD)

    May 10, 2022 /

    For Cee’s Flower of the Day photo challenge, I present to you: Ebb Tide. This floribunda rose is supposed to be purple (see this catalog picture for reference). Mine isn’t, but it’s still gorgeous and currently so covered in blooms, I worry it will collapse under the weight of them. To my subscribers, I hope you’ll forgive the more frequent posts. It’s such a beautiful time in the garden, and I can’t resist sharing a little of that beauty with the world. Happy Tuesday! What’s beautiful in your world?

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Pink cactus flower with white center

    Saguaro National Park 2: Critters and Flowers

    September 2, 2022
    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
    Closeup of Camille Pissarro rose, red and yellow stripes toward the center, red and pink stripes toward the edges.

    Camille Pissarro Rose (#FOTD)

    October 17, 2021
  • Flower of the Day,  Garden

    Unknown pink rose (#FOTD)

    May 8, 2022 /

    I bought this rose last summer as a rooted cutting from a guy selling them on a street corner here in Tucson. He said he and his wife brought the mother plant from Ohio decades ago. It struggled last year, probably because I planted it in the summer, but now it’s thriving and just bloomed for the first time. Shared as part of Cee’s Flower of the Day photo challenge. What’s blooming in your garden on this lovely Mother’s Day?

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    Janet Alcorn

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    We love our striped roses (#FOTD)

    August 11, 2021
    Rose with red, yellow, and white stripes, yellow closer to the center and whiter at the edges

    Maurice Utrillo rose in my Tucson garden (#FOTD)

    March 29, 2022

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

    May 21, 2022
  • Garden,  Photos,  Travel,  Weekend Coffee Share

    New Orleans and Spring in the Garden

    May 7, 2022 /

    Good morning! Happy Saturday! I’m still trying to clear the fog after a whirlwind 3 days in New Orleans for my first in-person work conference since the before times. It was wonderful! It was exhausting! And, me being me, I ate my weight in beignets, because: And: But before we get to my New Orleans gluttony travel photos, welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! Grab a drink, pull up a seat, and let’s visit the Big Easy.

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Gambel’s quail family returns to my backyard

    July 8, 2022
    Yellow blossoms that look like calla lillies rising from lily-like green leaves, spattered with raindrops

    Skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus)

    January 20, 2022

    Snow in Tucson and the monthly book round-up

    February 17, 2023
  • IWSG,  Writing

    How to receive feedback on your writing without letting it crush your soul

    May 4, 2022 /
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Letting people read and comment on my work is terrifying. It’s like I’m offering another human a piece of my soul to critique. (Jeez, overdramatic much?) But if we want to become better writers, we have to put our work out there and ask for feedback–and not let that feedback crush us. It’s IWSG Day! But before we get into that: Happy IWSG Day! In case you’re new here, I participate in the monthly IWSG (a/k/a Insecure Writers Support Group) Blog Hop, which happens on the first Wednesday of each month. We offer words of encouragement to our fellow writers and share our doubts, fears, struggles, and triumphs. Some of…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    What if I stopped writing?

    June 6, 2023
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Finding balance as an author

    August 1, 2023
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    How to keep writing when the writing gets tough

    June 1, 2022
  • Arizona,  Photos,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Tucson Botanical Gardens + April review + a fresh batch of memes

    April 30, 2022 /

    Good morning and happy Saturday! It’s the last day of April, a good time to look back at the month that was. Also on tap: art and blooms from Tucson Botanical Gardens, memes, and various bits of personal news. But first: welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! Pull up a seat, grab a drink, and let’s chat.

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Spring has sprung! (Weekend Coffee Share #33)

    April 8, 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

    A visit to Sweetwater Wetlands, Tucson, Arizona

    December 9, 2022
  • Books and Reading,  Garden,  Weekend Coffee Share,  What's On Your Bookshelf

    Website woes, garden pics and books

    April 24, 2022 /

    Good evening! I’m a couple of days late getting this post up, because Friday morning my website decided to stop loading. I finally made time to contact tech support this morning–after verifying that no, the site still wouldn’t load. The support analyst said it loaded for him. I tested again, and of course it worked perfectly. I remember when I used to do tech support in libraries, and staff would ask me to stand next to their computer so it would start working again. Apparently I’ve either lost my tech support devil magic, or it doesn’t work with cloud-hosted websites. Dammit. Update: right after I typed that paragraph, the site…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Let’s talk books!

    November 18, 2023
    Bookshelves with books, photos, and knick-knacks

    Books, book memes, writing news and more

    September 16, 2022

    Podcast appearance, Michigan trip, and books

    June 17, 2023
  • Arizona,  Garden,  Weekend Coffee Share

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

    April 15, 2022 /

    Good morning and happy Friday! It’s an abso-freakin-lutely gorgeous morning down here in Satan’s Anus–54 and sunny, heading for a high of 88. But it looks like Weather Bragging Season is just about over–we’re supposed to hit 96 on Monday. *sigh* I’ve had a pretty routine week so nothing exciting to share, just the usual: desert pics, garden pics, and a steaming hot pile of memes. But before we get to all that: Welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer. She has flower pix this week too, and they are *gorgeous*! Grab a drink, pull up a seat, and let’s get to it.

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Desert flowers and the monthly book roundup

    April 21, 2023
    meadow of dry grass in front of forested hills

    Lockett Meadow, writing news, memes, and more

    June 25, 2022

    Saguaro National Park East

    February 3, 2023
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