Last Best News (https://montana-mint.com/lastbestnews/tag/craig-lancaster/)
I met Craig Lancaster almost as soon as he came to Billings nearly 12 years ago, shortly after he was hired to work at the Billings Gazette, where I’d already been for more than 15 years. He quit the newspaper in 2013, about six months before I did, to try his hand at writing novels and freelancing full-time. Now, he’s on the cusp of another big change — moving at the end of this month to Boothbay, on the coast of Maine, with his wife, the novelist Elisa Lorello. (more…) Continue Reading →
I have been to a world’s fair, the Grand Canyon and a rodeo. But until the last week, I had never seen a same-sex wedding or attended a book signing at which I was one of the signers. (more…) Continue Reading →
Billings novelist Craig Lancaster is just out with his latest book, “Julep Street,” about Carson McCullough, a lifelong journalist whose world is shattered when the small daily newspaper he works for is suddenly and unceremoniously closed down. In a hilariously unsuccessful attempt to deal with his new reality, Carson embarks on a road trip in a Mustang convertible, freshly purchased with his severance check. Accompanied by his best friend, Hector, an old yellow Lab with a diminished appetite for adventure, Carson goes off to chase job prospects, visiting old friends and one old flame. (more…) Continue Reading →
My older brother, Keith, would have been 51 years old today, if he’d made it this far. He died exactly two months ago, on Feb. 21. I got the news in a motel room in Minot, N.D., and my emotions splayed out in all directions. Sadness, certainly, for the all-too-short life of someone in my family. Continue Reading →
When Craig Lancaster was still working on his first novel, which would eventually bear the title “600 Hours of Edward,” I went to hear him do a reading at Off the Leaf coffee shop. He was there as part of a writers group, with each of the writers taking a turn to read from his or her work. It was a tough setting. The place was crowded, mostly with teenage girls, and the din of conversation nearly drowned out the readings. (more…) Continue Reading →
When I pitched my new novel, “Edward Unspooled,” to the publishing house with which I’ve been in business for five books, I was struck by a profound difference in our focus. I’d followed passion and emotion—that fire to get up every day and dive into the manuscript, maybe the only thing that makes the enterprise bearable. Here it is, I’d said. I wrote my whole heart into this thing. My publisher talked about the numbers. Continue Reading →
Elisa Lorello has been a published author for less than a decade, but her writing career has already been surprisingly varied. She self-published her first book, “Faking It,” and then self-published a sequel, “Ordinary World,” shortly after, in 2009. In the face of slow sales, she released both books on Kindle. Sales were still slow—until she lowered the price on them from $1.99 to 99 cents, and they caught fire. (more…) Continue Reading →
The longtime owner of a popular bookstore in Red Lodge has been hired to manage a cooperative bookstore that supporters hope to open this summer in downtown Billings. The Billings Bookstore Cooperative is also buying the entire inventory of Gary Robson’s Red Lodge Books & Tea, which should greatly accelerate plans for the Billings store. (more…) Continue Reading →
Step by step, plans for a cooperative bookstore in downtown Billings are moving forward. Last week, the project got a certificate of filing from the Montana secretary of state, which allows it to begin selling stock for the venture. Organizers have commitments for more than $24,000 worth of stock and can now begin invoicing to collect on those pledges, said Carrie La Seur, one of three initial board members selected at a recent general meeting of the Billings Bookstore Cooperative. (more…) Continue Reading →
After Craig Lancaster wrote last month about a reading by the novelist Richard S. Wheeler in Livingston, I thought it was high time I finally cracked one of Wheeler’s many, many books. (They fill seven pages on Amazon!) (more…) Continue Reading →
