Yesterday, we posted about four barrels of rum from Lunenburg’s Ironworks Distillery which are being carried around the globe by the barque Picton Castle on its seventh circumnavigation. The sea voyage is expected to nicely age the rum. Of course, distilled spirits being … Continue reading
Category Archives: Seastories
My latest novel, Evening Gray Morning Red, has received not one, but two, wonderful reviews on the Pirates and Privateers blog, by Cindy Vallar and Irwin Bryan, respectively. Excerpts from Cindy Vallar’s review: “Gripping nautical and historical fiction at its best… Spilman deftly brings … Continue reading
If you are in the area next Monday night, January 22nd at 7:30 PM, be sure to stop by the South Street Seaport Museum’s Melville Gallery at 213 Water Street, in lower Manhattan. I will be presenting “From John Hancock’s … Continue reading
A review of Evening Gray Morning Red by George Jepson in the Winter 2018 issue of Quarterdeck: Cracking open Evening Gray Morning Red, Rick Spilman’s new novel, I was hooked by the first paragraph, which took me back four decades to … Continue reading
I am very pleased and grateful that my new novel, Evening Gray Morning Red, has been selected to be on gCaptain‘s list of the Best Nautical Books Of 2017. About the novel: In Evening Gray Morning Red a young American … Continue reading
“The Mercy” is a soon to be released film about Donald Crowhurst‘s attempt to win the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, the first single-handed, non-stop, around-the-world race in 1969. The film stars Colin Firth as Crowhurst and Rachel Weisz as his wife, Clare. Crowhurst was … Continue reading
My short story Bloody Rain — Murder, Madness and the Monsoon, set on a sailing ship in the 1880s, is free as an ebook on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. That’s right — free. Feel free to grab a copy. About … Continue reading
I am pleased to announce that my latest novel Evening Gray Morning Red is now available in print and as an ebook. A little about the novel: In Evening Gray Morning Red, a young American sailor must escape his past and the clutches … Continue reading
My latest novel, Evening Gray Morning Red, will be published on October 15th in print and as an ebook. The Kindle ebook is available for pre-order on Amazon. About the novel: In Evening Gray Morning Red, a young American sailor must escape … Continue reading
Real pirates tended to have very short careers. Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard, was pretty typical, being active for only about two years from 1716 to 1718, before losing his head. Cartoon pirates, however, do generally much better. Captain … Continue reading
I read Dr. Jeffrey Bolster‘s book, Black Jacks: African American Seamen in the Age of Sail, not long after it came out a few years ago. It is a fascinating study of the largely untold story of African-American sailors in … Continue reading
My review of Eric Jay Dolin’s Brilliant Beacons : A History of the American Lighthouse, originally published in gCaptain. Reposted with permission. Next only perhaps to an anchor, lighthouses are symbols of security and safety. Even with modern electronic navigation, there … Continue reading
On the afternoon of December 17th, 1927, the US Navy submarine S-4 was surfacing near Provincetown, MA, when it was run down by US Coast Guard destroyer Pauling, sending the submarine to the bottom. Joseph William’s latest book, “Seventeen Fathoms … Continue reading
On Thursday, September 8th at 6PM. James M. Kendra and Tricia Wachtendorf will discuss and sign copies of their new book, American Dunkirk: The Waterborne Evacuation of Manhattan on 9/11 on the historic ex-Coast Guard Cutter Lilac at Pier 25 … Continue reading
Johann Wilhelm Kinau was one of the more than 8,000 sailors who died in the Battle of Jutland just over 100 years ago. Kinau was 36 when he was killed while serving as a lookout on the German light cruiser … Continue reading
The historic lighthouse tender Lilac is hosting a literary salon to celebrate World Oceans Day. From their press release: One Grand Books has organized a literary evening on board the museum ship Lilac to mark World Oceans Day, a global … Continue reading
When I think of E.B. White I think of the classic children’s books, Stuart Little, Charlotte’s Web, and The Trumpet of the Swan, among others. He was also the co-author of the English language style guide The Elements of Style. … Continue reading
Congratulations to Linda Collison! Her novel Water Ghosts is a Foreword Reviews’ 2015 INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award Finalist. In our review from last May we wrote: In Linda Collison’s new novel, Water Ghosts, seven troubled teenagers embark on a vintage … Continue reading
I am on my way to the Weymouth Leviathan, a maritime literary festival on the south-west coast of England. I am looking forward to seeing old friends, as well as meeting many fine writers who I know only through the … Continue reading
Originally posted in gCaptain by Rick Spilman. Reposted with permission. In Alaric Bond‘s most recent novel, HMS Prometheus, the eighth of his Fighting Sail series, the Mediterranean is a dangerous place for the Royal Navy. In the autumn of 1803, the … Continue reading