Ginger Howard

I started submitting poetry to national contests while in high school, with several honorable mentions and inclusions in anthologies published for libraries. During this time, I started writing short stories, and completed my first novel “Beyond the Horizon”. I attended San Diego State University with a major in Comparative Literature - my hope to make a career out of writing. A talent for singing and my penchant for poetry segued into a musical collaboration wherein I met my husband. We later formed a band called Saratoga Park and recorded a couple of CD's. During this time, I submitted that first novel to a YA Scholastic Book contest, with no glory so I set it aside and didn’t pursue it further. For fun, after we had our first son, I wrote a children's novel, that my graphic artist husband illustrated, entitled "French Fries in the Fountain”. Fast forward through jobs that paid the bills and raising two boys, to this last decade where I found myself knee deep in genealogical research. I pursued writing again by way of a blog called Ancestral Tides, where I published my findings through historical narratives. This passionate endeavor led me to the discovery of a family trauma that really touched me. In regards to sharing this story somehow, the Covid-19 quarantine had me asking myself, “If not NOW, when?” That, combined with some fascinating local historical finds, spurred me on to write the ghost story, "Under the Tracks" - the first novel in The Douglas Town Chronicles. Since then I’ve published two more in the series. While I hammer away on book four, my co-worker Mae, a 5 yr. old Yorkie mix, is in charge of promotion and advertising. She does her best to keep up with social media, but because she is willing to work for squeaky toys, she is also easily distracted.