Shutting it Down

April 1, 2014.Reading time 2 minutes.

After six months of writing this blog, I have been issued a court order from The State of New Hampshire to cease and desist using the name Portsong. It seems that an official in the city of Portsmouth got hold of my fictional history book in which I poke a little fun at Yankees during Sherman’s march to the sea. The Honorable Thomas Lankin has taken umbrage with my depiction of Union soldiers from his fair city.

The letter looks official. I haven’t had the chance to get it to a lawyer and quite frankly don’t have the wherewithal to do so. This means a great deal for me, though. I’ve built whatever brand I have around the name Portsong and the characters within. The support I’ve garnered and readership I’ve built will be subject to loss when I rename everything. I find this turn of events quite disheartening.

Until I can sort this all out, I will have to go silent and shut down this blog. Obviously, there are some folks up north who will be happy with this. The Southern boy in me would like to make a Yankee joke about it, but I’m not up to it right now. I find it sad that a little guy in Georgia can’t come up with an idea and build a dream without being prosecuted. Where’s the justice in that?

So, goodbye, friends in my blogging community. Until we meet again, let us hope and pray that some people develop a sense of humor. The world would be a much better place – especially on this, the first day of April……

****Since April 1st is over, I will admit this was a gag. I think a successful one judging by the admissions below. The best was my sister’s text of concern all the way from California where she was vacationing. Once a little brother, always a little brother.

The Real Fiction

March 24, 2014.Reading time 2 minutes.

I got a fourth email about Portsong. This one came from someone who lives in Georgia and tried to find it on a map. So I thought I needed to come clean. You won’t find it on a map unless you pencil it there. Portsong is fictional, simply the setting for a book. I tried to make it a nice Southern place, full of kind people and ample charm – a front porch with rocking chairs on every home kind of place. There are ideals I added that like to think are real – simplicity, community, trust, faith, friendship, and hard work. It is much easier to write in those ideals than find them sometimes. I used the tagline “Halfway between Savannah and Heaven,” and I suppose it is actually closer to Heaven.

The picture I use is one of those old-fashion postcards I got from a very nice gentleman in Hawaii who owns Ye Olde Postcard Shop. It is actually Main Street in Middletown, CT.

So I won’t trick any newcomers who stumble here, I’ve split my About page into two. Now there is an About Me and an About Portsong.

I am the mayor of nothing but dreams – and sometimes those run roughshod over me. I hate politics and wouldn’t win an election because I would assuredly say something stupid in a debate. In real life, I sell stuff and try to herd my family.

There, my disclosure is complete now. I feel much better.