Official Blog of Candace Simar

Blooming Prairie Book: Fort Juleson
I grew up not far from the old Fort Juleson site near Underwood, Minnesota. In 1876, after Custer’s defeat in Montana, the Upper Midwest braced for a Sioux attack. It was only 14 years after the U.S./Dakota War, and it

Opening Day at Fort Abercrombie Historical Site
I’m invited to Fort Abercrombie’s opening day for their 2023 season. It’s always fun with Civil War reenactors drilling and firing the cannon. Fort historians offer golf-cart tours for a small fee. The museum is filled with artifacts of the

Fort Abercrombie Historical Site Books
Fort Abercrombie is one of my happy places. The historical site is a North Dakota treasure with its rich history and natural beauty. My great grandfather drove the stage to the fort in the 1860’s, and inspired the Abercrombie Trail

Who writes like Ernie Altbacker?
My final and perhaps most surprising match from my SCORE IT! writing style evaluation is my match with Ernie Altbacker, author of The SHARK WARS SERIES for middle-schoolers, plus a long list of screenwriting credits! EJ Altbacker is an Emmy

Who is Tabor Evans?
My Score It! results also matched me with Tabor Evans, a western writer. Tabor Evans’s Longarm series–with its “new slant on the Old West”, remains one of the most popular of all the “adult Westerns” commanding an impressive part of

Who writes like David Baldacci?
The Score It! results are in. The literary analysis measured four areas of writing style for comparison: Authorial Vocabulary (voice); Expressive Complexity (choice and distribution of word lengths and expressive style); Grammar (parts of speech chosen including use of prepositional

Whiskey Creek
The rivers around Fort Abercrombie are beautiful. Known as the “Gateway to the Dakotas,” Fort Abercrombie was built on the Red River of the North.

Grant County Museum in Elbow Lake, Minnesota
I love all museums, but I have a special place in my heart for the museum at Elbow Lake, Minnesota. Although Fort Pomme de Terre

Cold Spring Historical Society Museum
— I love small town museums. Often they inspire stories. I recently visited the Cold Spring Historical Society Museum. They have a wonderful antique quilt

The Grasshopper Chapel in Cold Spring, MN
One of the most dramatic aspects of the Rocky Mountain Locust Plagues of the 1870s was Governor Pillsbury’s call for a day of prayer on

Cold Spring Historical Society and Library Event
On March 8, 2023, I presented a program at Cold Spring, Minnesota, sponsored by the Cold Spring Library and Historical Society. My topic? The Rocky

Writer’s Retreat with Candace Simar
About a dozen writer friends and I spent a delightful three days at the Baymont Inn in Baxter, MN. We accomplished our objective of encouraging

Blooming Prairie Book: Fort Juleson
I grew up not far from the old Fort Juleson site near Underwood, Minnesota. In 1876, after Custer’s defeat in Montana, the Upper Midwest braced

Opening Day at Fort Abercrombie Historical Site
I’m invited to Fort Abercrombie’s opening day for their 2023 season. It’s always fun with Civil War reenactors drilling and firing the cannon. Fort historians

Fort Abercrombie Historical Site Books
Fort Abercrombie is one of my happy places. The historical site is a North Dakota treasure with its rich history and natural beauty. My great

Who writes like Ernie Altbacker?
My final and perhaps most surprising match from my SCORE IT! writing style evaluation is my match with Ernie Altbacker, author of The SHARK WARS

Who is Tabor Evans?
My Score It! results also matched me with Tabor Evans, a western writer. Tabor Evans’s Longarm series–with its “new slant on the Old West”, remains

Who writes like David Baldacci?
The Score It! results are in. The literary analysis measured four areas of writing style for comparison: Authorial Vocabulary (voice); Expressive Complexity (choice and distribution
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