I turn sixty-five in two weeks. I like to write the number in Roman alphabet instead of numerically because, well, in letter form it doesn’t look like a number. Kid America, my first young adult novel, will be released November 3. Yes, I’ll be publishing my first novel at age sixty-five and a few months.

Sixty-five is old for a debut novelist. Some might question, though, whether I can call myself a first-time author. I have buried in my past and probably in a few people’s academics stacks...

Check out my guest blog post at "Dr. Bickmore's YA Wednesday," a website about all things young adult literature.

Here is the first paragraph to get you started:

Not every business in my neighborhood has "Keep Out ICE" signs, but many do. Summer is here, and I'm on the streets, taking urban hikes daily. Operation Midway Blitz ended in October. Its repercussions live on. Still, the signs are everywhere.

Some days, I think I might count them, but then again, I don't want to have to focus only on them. So I take photographs instead. My guess is that upwards of half the businesses still bear witness to the invasion. Of course, those owned by corporations,...