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Dancing with the Sandman Excerpt: Coyotes

Published by broussardlana on April 3, 2018

I loved to spend the night with Nanny and Granddad on the farm out in the middle of flat nowhere.  It wasn’t as bad as one may think; there was lots to do and lots to wonder about.  It was especially fun when Tandy and I got to spend the night together in order to ponder the universe.

One thing that always did scare me at night was the coyotes.  Of course, everybody knows that these small wolves are more afraid of humans than the other way around.  But when I was young, I was not so sure of that.  They would come out at night and start howling, and Tandy and I would sit by the screen door and listen to them, and it was almost like living in Transylvania for we both truly believed they were bloodthirsty animals that would emerge from the darkness and spring on us like werewolves, rip us to pieces, and drink our blood.  Sometimes Tandy and I would get a flashlight and sit under the covers and shiver as we listened to the coyotes sing their nightly haunting songs.

“Why do they do that every night?” asked Tandy.
“I guess they are hungry,” I said.
“Oh….,” said Tandy.
“Do you think their eyes are red or yellow?” asked Tandy.
“Don’t know,” I said. “And I hope I don’t get to find out!”
“I’m glad the chicken pen is sturdy,” I said.
“Yes,” Tandy replied.
“Why don’t we go watch Johnny Carson with your daddy?” asked Tandy.
“Good idea,” I said.
Then we would get up and tiptoe into the T.V. room where daddy was usually snoring through Johnny’s monologue even though it was funny and all that. Sometimes if he wasn’t snoring, we would find him laughing at Johnny’s humor. The television would invariably wipe out the sound of the bloodthirsty coyotes and we could forget about them for awhile. Then maybe later we would move on to other unexplained phenomena like the Phantom, Bloody Mary, and light switches.

The book is finally out now in hardcover and available on Lulu: Lulu.com

You won’t find Aunt Agnes, Greg Taylor, Adelle, or Jillie, but you will find a few new small town characters that have not appeared on the blog. Look for new stories on the blog soon involving the interesting predicaments that Greg finds himself in and Aunt Agnes discussing the Easter Spell.

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  1. domainofshane23 domainofshane23

    Awesome piece. Coyotes are truly terrifying animals. My wife and I once lived in the country, and we could hear them at night a few hundred feet away howling and fighting amongst themselves. And every time we spoke, saying something like “That sounds scary.”, they would get dead silent, as if they heard our words. Freaky lol

    # April 3, 2018
  3. D. Wallace Peach D. Wallace Peach

    This is awesome, Lana. I love your stories about small-town life. And even though I enjoy the coyotes singing outside my window, I remember how fun it was to be scared as a kid.

    And congrats on the book! Lulu isn’t a place I’ve looked for books before but I’ll check it out. 😀

    # April 4, 2018
  4. The Coastal Crone The Coastal Crone

    Oh, this brought back memories! We lived out in the country and coyotes we a part of going to sleep. Ordering your book is on my list! Looking forward to reading it.

    # April 4, 2018
  5. Iris@poetsmith Iris@poetsmith

    Ah, an ebook to be published… congratulations, Lana! I’ll look forward to that and to reading your interesting stories.

    # April 4, 2018
  7. Just Joan Just Joan

    Congrats on your publication, Lana! Love the name “Tandy” and the mysteries kids ponder, “unexplained phenomena like the Phantom, Bloody Mary, and light switches.” Hee hee. Can’t wait to catch up with Greg and Aunt Agnes. 🙂

    # April 8, 2018
    • L. T. Garvin, Author L. T. Garvin, Author

      Thanks, Joan. Oh yes, Bloody Mary, I’m still leery of light switches, LOL. Greg and Aunt Agnes will be glad to visit with people on the blog again, haha 😀

      # April 9, 2018
  8. dgkaye dgkaye

    Lana, I’m completely engrossed! Congrats on the book! I love your writing. Will you be putting in in ebook form? <3

    # April 10, 2018
  9. Miss Gentileschi Miss Gentileschi

    Many congatulations on the book, Lana!! I’m waiting for Amazon and he e-book since shipping costs would be quite high I fear.
    Love the small brothers of the wolves although I’ve never seen one in real life or heard it which seems to rise goosebumps all around! 😁

    # April 15, 2018
    • L. T. Garvin, Author L. T. Garvin, Author

      Thank you so much, Sarah! Coyotes are pretty resourceful. They can be scary though as we constantly encroach on their territory. They can be particularly haunting when they are howling in the darkness and the distance. 😀

      # April 16, 2018

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