Janet Alcorn

Janet Alcorn

Suspense | Horror | Romance

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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
  • 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
    An image of gingerbread houses with stylized mountains in the background and the phrase "Happy Holidays" in a candy cane font in the foreground

    Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

    December 24, 2023

    2023 is off to a weird start

    January 15, 2023
  • 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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    Yellow blossoms that look like calla lillies rising from lily-like green leaves, spattered with raindrops

    Skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus)

    January 20, 2022

    Unknown pink rose (#FOTD)

    May 8, 2022
    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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    Survivors of the first frost

    December 18, 2021

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

    May 21, 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
  • 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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    Yellow blossoms that look like calla lillies rising from lily-like green leaves, spattered with raindrops

    Skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus)

    January 20, 2022

    Garden pix and more COVID memes (Weekend Coffee Share #31)

    March 25, 2022

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

    April 15, 2022
  • 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

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

    December 1, 2021
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    New year, new writing progress

    January 31, 2023
    The Etiquette of Voles by Karen McCoy

    My greatest fear as a writer–and a middle grade Victorian mystery

    May 6, 2025
  • 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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    Fall Color in Sabino Canyon

    December 3, 2022

    Desert flowers and the monthly book roundup

    April 21, 2023

    A Visit to Mission San Xavier del Bac

    July 14, 2023
  • 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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    The weekly update: bobcat sighting, books, garden pix, and a small batch of memes

    May 21, 2022
    Cars on freeway heading into wall of clouds and dust

    Risking my life for new bookcases

    August 19, 2022

    Writing news and the monthly book post

    December 16, 2022
  • 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

    Sentinel Peak, Enchanted Hills, and Valentine’s Day nonsense (Weekend Coffee Share #25)

    February 11, 2022
    Two-lane, curvy road surrounded by green grass and trees, headed into green mountains topped with storm clouds

    A Photo Safari Through Madera Canyon, Arizona, After a Very Rainy Summer

    August 15, 2021
  • Arizona,  Garden,  Photos,  Weekend Coffee Share

    Spring has sprung! (Weekend Coffee Share #33)

    April 8, 2022 /

    Good morning, happy Friday, and welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer! It’s 59F and sunny right now, so let’s chat in the garden. Garden pictures Spring is in full swing out there, so I snapped a few pics before the inevitable hot weather wilts everything. The garden is a work in progress–and looks like it. This area was entirely covered in gravel when we bought the house in fall 2020. As you can see, we’re still constructing and planting, but at least it contains some green things: Some of those green things are actually blooming. The rose covered in flowers is Camille Pissarro. I’ve showed…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Cars on freeway heading into wall of clouds and dust

    Risking my life for new bookcases

    August 19, 2022

    Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum + how the hell did I get this old? (Weekend Coffee Share #28)

    March 4, 2022

    Ironwood National Monument (Weekend Coffee Share #27)

    February 25, 2022
  • IWSG,  Short Stories,  Writing

    My story became an audio drama (#IWSG)

    April 6, 2022 /
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    It’s the first Wednesday of the month, also known as IWSG Day. For those of you who are new to my warped corner of the interwebs, IWSG=Insecure Writers Support Group, a wonderful online community of, well, insecure writers. Once a month we organize our insecure selves into a blog hop, where we (you guessed it) share our insecurities. Or in my case, some of them. If I were to share all my insecurities, I’d fill a warehouse the size of that one at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark: If you’re as impatient as I am, skip to about 1:10 in the video above to see the warehouse…

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    Janet Alcorn

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    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    What literary character would you like to hang out with?

    April 1, 2025
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    Writing through the seasons of life

    June 4, 2024
    Insecure Writer's Support Group badge

    What it’s like to reread my old work

    February 3, 2026
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