Category Archives: Scratch Pad

Presentations on May 17 and May 18, 2017

Posted on May 19, 2017 by Allen Mesch

I had two interesting and enjoyable presentations this week. On Wednesday, I spoke to a writing group, Writer’s Block, about the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet. I read some sections from my political thriller novel, The Analyst, and explained how I … Continue reading →

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The Civil War Round Table of St. Louis

Posted on May 17, 2017 by Allen Mesch

I am looking forward to speaking to The Civil War Round Table of St. Louis on May 24, 2017. Please check the round table site for details. I hope to have time to visit several Civil War sites in the … Continue reading →

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Presentation at the Civil War Roundtable of Little Rock, Arkansas

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Allen Mesch

A big thank you to the Civil War Roundtable of Little Rock, Arkansas. Sharlyn and I really appreciated your hospitality and help.  It was great meeting all of you. A special thanks to Lonnie Spikes for all of his help … Continue reading →

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Aging Photographs of Ebenezer Allen

Posted on April 11, 2017 by Allen Mesch

I had some more fun with the pictures of me as Ebenezer Allen. With the help of my Photoshop-savvy granddaughter Nikky, we made the images of Ebenezer Allen look antique. The instructions for doing this came from a Youtube clip. … Continue reading →

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Ebenezer Allen Visits Collin College

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Allen Mesch

On March 29, 2017, I presented my class on “Ebenezer Allen – Statesman, Entrepreneur, and Spy” to students in the SAIL program at Collin College. I departed from the usual format in my classes and taught the class as a … Continue reading →

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Civil War Photography

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Allen Mesch

I just completed a class on Civil War Photography for the SAIL program at Collin College. The first class presented the following topics: In 1837 the first successful photographs was created by the daguerreotype process The technology of wet plate … Continue reading →

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19th Century Photographs

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Allen Mesch

I have been searching for an elusive picture of Ebenezer Allen for my biography on Republic of Texas and State of Texas attorney general. Alas, so far my search has come up empty. During my efforts, I discovered numerous sources … Continue reading →

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Classless Students Interrupt Best-Selling Author

Posted on February 27, 2017 by Allen Mesch

On February 23, 2017, best-selling author Jamie Ford was in Highland Park to speak at the town’s literary festival. Earlier that day, he spoke to an assembly of freshman and sophomore students at High Park High School. About halfway through … Continue reading →

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Evans Biography Awards

Posted on February 15, 2017 by Allen Mesch

On Valentine’s Day, I received a request to submit Your Affectionate Father, Charles F. Smith to the Mountain West Center for consideration for the Evans Biography Awards. We are extremely pleased to be asked to apply for these awards. The Evans … Continue reading →

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A Question from David

Posted on February 7, 2017 by Allen Mesch

Last week, my grandson David asked me why I didn’t get more questions even though I travel “everywhere.” That’s a good question. People ask questions to learn new things and obtain answers. Some folks want to have their beliefs validated … Continue reading →

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