About
You might say I was born a writer. I began my storytelling career as soon as I could talk. At age six, I discovered "share time" and my imagination was off and running. I persisted in the invention of fantastic stories throughout my childhood. I honed the practice as a teenager, in a most often vain attempt to impress the girls. I grew up in Compton, California. I was nineteen, and trying to distance myself from the gang life, when I met the woman I would marry. Short of my twenty-first birthday we eloped and began a life together that has endured for fifty plus years. Our children came quickly...five in all. The commitment of marriage brought the realities of life into sharp focus for me. I was not able to pursue a college education, but I read, wrote and dreamed nonetheless. I have read voraciously for over fifty years. Twenty years ago, I had the time to take my writing seriously. I have attended adult education classes and completed a course of study with the Long Ridge Writers Group. I continue my education at every opportunity. To date I have completed one novel, soon to be released, and published a collection of short stories. Excerpts from my novel, Hyde's Corner, can be viewed at my website: www.hydescorner.com
Description
<p><span style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">Richard II found himself under siege not once, but twice in his minority. Crowned king at age ten, he was only fourteen when the Peasants' Revolt terrorized London. But he proved himself every bit the Plantagenet successor, facing Wat Tyler and the rebels when all seemed lost. Alas, his triumph was short-lived, and for the next ten years he struggled to assert himself against his uncles and increasingly hostile nobles. Just like in the days of his great-grandfather Edward II, vengeful magnates strove to separate him from his friends and advisors, and even threatened to depose him if he refused to do their bidding. The Lords Appellant, as they came to be known, purged the royal household with the help of the Merciless Parliament. They murdered his closest allies, leaving the King alone and defenseless. He would never forget his humiliation at the hands of his subjects. Richard's inability to protect his adherents would haunt him for the rest of his life, and he vowed that next time, retribution would be his.</span><br /><span class="a-text-bold" style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:700;">B.R.A.G. Medallion honoree!</span></p>
Story Behind The Book
Each story included in Screwing the Pooch was first conceived by author J. B. Bergstad in the context of a novel. It was soon apparent to the author, however, the soul of the story could be told in an abbreviated style. J. B. is not one to throw away a good story, short or not. Soon he had many and decided on this potpourri of eclectic tales to bind up in a collection.
