Set sail on the high seas with this collection of 21 unforgettable short stories featuring dashing rogues, daring rebels, and wily pirates searching for treasures of all kinds, including a forgotten journal, a heavenly sword, a young girl’s lucky sock, and even the Fountain of Youth. Some pirates are familiar—complete with parrots, peg legs, and eye patches—but most are unique: a twelve-year-old computer hacker, a heroic rabbit on an unusual quest, a clump of cancer cells, and an alien setting sail among the stars. X Marks the Spot: An Anthology of Treasure and Theft is about those men and women who live on the fringes of society, who are beholden to no man, no law, and who always have one eye on the horizon. So grab your map and set your headings. There are adventures to be had, mateys, and treasures to be found. This anthology is the fifth volume produced by the alumni of the Superstars Writing Seminars, and all royalties benefit the Don Hodge Memorial Scholarship Fund.

“This remarkable book is a testament to human perseverance, both personal and professional. It’s also a testament to the healing powers of America’s wild places. Above all, it’s a call to live life on your terms and to savor every bit of it.” —Slaton L. White, Field & Stream contributing editor What’s it like being the only woman in the woods? As a young girl, Kris Millgate was afraid of everything and everyone, but especially strangers with beards. She grew up hiking Utah’s Wasatch Mountains with her father—endless wanders through peppercorn speckled granite crawling up one canyon and red-brown blend spilling down another. Every trek was a lesson in endurance and persistence, two traits that have propelled her journey as a trailblazing wildlife journalist both behind the desk and in the field. Through her career as a voice for the outdoors, she spent countless days in the uncomfortable, challenging—and at times, unbearable—wilderness, learning to overcome all that had held her back. In her memoir, Millgate offers an authoritative and balanced look at history-making environmental stories while lending emotional insight into an industry dominated by men in a time when the shift toward outdoor exploration for all is catching fire. My Place Among Men is the story of how one young woman, brought up in the schoolhouse of the wild, becomes an ultimate force to be reckoned with—a mother, a wife, a journalist whose work leads her to the ultimate discovery: finding her place among men is truly about finding her place in the wild.

If you haven't had the luxury of experiencing a person in presence, conversation, and (mis)adventures simply read their work with an open mind and forgiving spirit. Truth and thought-provoking dialogue are most forthcoming when one is made to write it down and reflect upon it, making it impossible to lie to oneself, or anyone else. This writer finds that autobiographical material is the most honest and unwatered down (or puffed up) when it is the stuff of (sup)planted source details for fiction and poetry work. There it can be found purposefully and subconsciously left at or just below the surface, for the sake of discovery. Other times it is a capture - for personal and scientific study and understanding - and release method. This book's material is no different. It is full of interesting and humorous everyday observations, deep philosophical waxing, honest reflection of current life and times, and relieving exorcising of mental luggage for the sake of inspiring another and offering experiential knowledge.

A treasure map leads a Scottish shop owner to a corpse in small-town Maine in this cozy mystery by the author of Kilt at the Highland Games. The old Chadwick mansion on the edge of Moosetookalook, Maine, has been shrouded in mystery for generations. But when Scottish Emporium owner Liss MacCrimmon uncovers a treasure map at the mansion's estate sale, she never expected her curiosity would lead to a dead body. It's clear Liss isn't alone on this treasure hunt. With her life in real peril and the map at risk of being stolen, she launches into full-scale investigation mode. But as she deciphers clues and inches toward the dangerous culprit, Liss quickly realizes she's only a step away from ending up like the Chadwick clan—permanently wiped out. Praise for X Marks the Scot “Forgotten secrets, a mysterious mansion, a family of thieves, you never know what's coming next in this new Liss MacCrimmon Scottish Mystery. Best advice? Sit back and enjoy the ride.” —Suspense Magazine “Plenty of small-town atmosphere and deliciously dubious suspects lift this entry.” —Kirkus Reviews “Well-paced.” —Publishers Weekly