It’s time for a major website makeover. Love, Obsession, and Consequences is now DEERLAND.
To many of you, my website’s previous title must have seemed puzzling. My blog posts were about nature, the environment, the outdoors, and even hunting. What did any of that have to do with “love, obsession, and consequences?”
I could tell from my search stats that I was often a dead end for lovelorn souls who desperately needed help with important personal decisions. They arrived at my website after Googling questions like “Is it love or obsession?” and “How to get over a love obsession?” To them, I apologize. If you’re one of them, and if you happen to return and read this, I sincerely hope things are going better by now.
To the rest of you, I can explain everything. It’s all about the deer. You see, our complex relationship with deer truly does make for a twisted tale of love, obsession, and consequences. First comes love and obsession, then consequences.
That’s the story I’m working on now. And today, on July 4, it’s official. The working title of my next book is DEERLAND.
It will be published by Lyons Press, and is represented by Laurie Abkemeier. She’s a great agent, one of the best in the business, and I feel tremendously fortunate to be working with her. Without her patient coaching and guidance, I never could have made it this far.
It’s been a long road. I’ve already drafted a couple chapters, and I’ve learned a lot about both the publishing business and the deer business. In both cases, however, I’m still learning. There’s a long road ahead, both figuratively and literally.
As I research this story, I’ll be driving down freeways, back roads, old logging roads, and even suburban side streets. I’ll also wear out a couple pair of hiking boots. During the months to come, I’ll be sharing some of my experiences right here on my blog.
Out in the woods, new stories are waiting to be told. The deer are out there. I’m going to tell their story—and ours, too.
We do, after all, live in DEERLAND. It’s easy to underestimate, especially if you live somewhere like LA or NYC, just how huge a role deer play in the environment, our culture, and even our economy. To learn a bit more, please check out my new Home page as soon as you’re done here. For now, let’s just say our complex relationship with deer reveals a great deal about America—and also about us Americans.
Yes, this is a story about deer. Most of all, however, it’s a story about us.
CONGRATULATIONS on the book deal! (As you say, Laurie is fantastic.)
I’m really looking forward to your book. It will live on my shelf right beside Nelson’s HEART AND BLOOD.
Why, thank you!!!! I’m excited. But now the work really begins…
Indeed, it does. If your research takes you as far east as New England, do let me know!
I will do that. Seems like a part of the country to visit, and I’ll definitely plan to swing by if I get up your way. To research the lyme disease angle of this story, I’m thinking I should at the very least visit Lyme, CT and lay down in the grass for a while until I find some deer ticks. Or… Maybe not.
You’ll only have to lie down for a very short while.
Congrats, Al!
Thanks! As you can tell, I’ve been scheming on this for a while. But now it’s finally happening…
Al, that’s super-duper great news! My heartfelt congratulations. Now I can look forward to both your book and Tovar’s.
It’s a serious accomplishment, to sell a book. I’m very pleased for you.
Why, thank you, Tamar! Yes, I’m pretty excited. Been working toward this for a while. But still lots of work to do.
I’m looking forward to Tovar’s book, too. It just kind of happened that we both ended up working with Laurie. But I have a feeling he and I will be telling stories that are very complementary. I think his will be a very interesting read, too. Should arrive this winter, right when I have some long evenings to fill….
Congrats on the book! Excited to see how it comes together, and if you ever need a quote, a story or any help, let me know!
Thanks, Mark! At some point, I may do that.
I feel very humbled. I’m one of those rare “adult-onset hunters.” I started late in life, and I still have something of an outsider’s perspective. I love hunting, I love venison, I love deer, and I care about the ecosystems in which deer live. So as much as I want to see deer when I go hunting, there are times and places when fewer deer might be a good thing. (To both hunters and non-hunters, all this may sound perplexing. But all those things are simultaneously true.)
I understand American deer hunting culture more than any non-hunter could, but I’m still new to it. I want to really tell this story well, wherever that takes me. (It’s already taken me to Buffalo County, WI. Next? Who knows?) Some of that story is positive, and maybe some of it isn’t. But I’m not one of those people who say “We should never criticize each other. It just gives the ‘antis’ ammunition.” (So to speak.) I think it’s really worth examining where American deer hunting culture has been, where it is, and where it’s going. I think that’s going to be a really key part of this broader story. So thank you for that offer.