FPINS International

 

Daniel D. Tomcheff.
  

Daniel D. Tomcheff: His first published work, an essay (“The New York  Madness Comes to Chicago”) appeared in Panorama, the weekend supplement of the now-defunct Chicago Daily News, on May 1, 1965. In January 1973, a college English reader (he is one of three co-editors) “Perceptions and Reflections,” was published.

His completed works include a novel, four novellas, dozens of short stories and essays, a nonfiction book, and two screenplays.

He copy-edited the early drafts of John Alexander's book, “Future War:  Non-Lethal Weapons in Twenty-First Century Warfare.” With his wife Erin, he co-authored part of the text for the George Anderson and Andrew Barone book,  “Lessons from the Light:  Extraordinary Messages of Comfort And Hope from the Other Side.” Both books were published in May of 1999.

He has created a column concept, samples of which are ready for submission to newspapers here and abroad.

 		  

  Order form.   back to Home page   Writers  page.   E mail to Writers desk.

 

Frederick Stories:

The following is the Table of Contents for the Frederick stories.

1.)Frederick Arrives—The nature of Frederick's birth determines much of his character; he is one day old.*
2.)Frederick Leaves Home—The first day of school leads to later discoveries of the oddity of life; he is five years old.*
3.)Two Ladies in Bed—Frederick is greatly, sexually aroused for the first time in his life; he is eight years old.*
4.)The Pro Shop—A contradictory mystery is resolved, but evil appears in Frederick's life; he is 10 years old.*
5.)The Curbside Philosophers—Personal mortality is discovered by Frederick as the philosophers talk and play; he is 11 years old.**** (2,832 words).
6.)V-J Day—Frederick learns much from his Father, who learns something about his son; Frederick is 12 years old.**** (3,119 words).
7.)Saturday in October—Frederick experiences fame and love; he is 13 years old.**** (8,948 words).
8.)A Friendly Tea, a Nebraska Football Player, Rachmaninoff, and Black Jack  Pershing—Frederick is a freshman in college and has his first cultural  experiences away from home; he is 17 years old.*
9.)An Incident—Frederick is in basic training in the Army; he is 20 years old.**** (948 words).
10.)Mirror Image: Part One The Promotion—Frederick finds the Army and its  people are more complicated than he thought; he is 21 years old.**** (2,677  words).
11.)Mirror Image: Part Two The Bostonian Warrior—Warrant Officer James Ross finds that persons in the army, like Frederick, are very complicated; same day, same time, and same experience, but told from Ross's point of view.****  (2,140 words).
12.)Mirror Image—This story is identical to the two preceding stories, with minor edits made to the stories to accommodate the integrated version.**** (4,830 words).
13.)Tashkent and Samarkand—Frederick, back home in his village, encounters his culture once again; he is 22 years old.**** (3,858 words).
14.)The Meeting of Soul Mates—Frederick "sees" Katherine at work and loves her "on sight"; he is 23 years old.*

Table of Contents for the Mini-Essays
for "Pebbles in a Pond"

 1.)Pebbles in a Pond.
2.)Crime, Punishment, and Compassion.
3.)An Interesting Word.
4.)Cosmic Oneness.
5.)Letter to a Friend: J-.
6.)Backyard Husbandry.
7.)The Culture of Sports.
8.)Ecology and Technology.
 9.)On the Meaning of Life and Death.
10.)Numbers, Machines, and Social Customs.
11.)A Common Sensibility.
12.)The Unanswerable Question of Questions.
13.)Letter to a Friend: M-.
14.)How We View Celebrities.
15.)Communism, Capitalism, and College Sports.
 16.)Genius.
17.)Nice people.
18.)Fish, Ships, Dams and Us.
19.)Now and Then: Comparing Views I.


15.)Ma Kettle's Kitchen—Frederick learns first-hand the meaning of Joseph  Campbell's The Masks of God; he is 28 years old.*
16.)He and Me—Frederick discovers that we can never know one another and  must remain strangers to all but a few others; he is 30 years old.****  (4,430 words).
17.)Footnotes and Citations—Frederick, now 35, meets his academic hero from his University days, in town for a scholarly convention. Frederick finally sees his hero's humanness, which he did not see as a student and budding writer.**** (1,800 words).
18.)The Meaning of Life—Frederick becomes a Father at age 37; intuitively, he knows that this event, for him, is "the meaning of life."*
19.)Institutions: The Painting "Death's Head" Frederick's Father dies, and Frederick ties together the past, near and far, with the present; he is now 40 years old.*
20.)Another Incident—Frederick becomes a statistic; he is 46 years old.****  (1,082 words) .
21.)The Hostages—Frederick's dilemma is everyone's dilemma; he is 47 years old.**** (4,595 words)
22.)Nontraditional—Again—Frederick returns to the University to complete his  college degree but gets sick instead; he is 55 years old.*
23.)"When I Do Count the Clock"—Frederick looks back at the time he became a  father at age 37; he is now 57 years old.*
24.)Another Saturday in October—Frederick, 60 years old, now experiences another memorable Saturday in October. Though he does not die physically, his life now ends.*
 25.)Suicide or Sacrifice? There Must Never Be Such a Choice—Frederick  broods over his current situation and understands what it means; he is 61 years old.*
26.)Lost in the Light—Frederick, 64 years old, now knows he "cannot learn it  all," as once he thought he could; closer to death now because he is getting older, he finally "knows the light," but he is still lost in it.*
27.)No Longer Here But Not Quite There—Frederick, now 66 years old, finds himself in both worlds—Earth's and what follows life on Earth. He is content.*
28.)In His Own Good Time: Frederick Leaves Us—The death of Frederick; there are three basic ways to die—by accident or illness, suicide, or old age.

Three stories will be written identically, but for the endings. One will be chosen upon Frederick's death.*

Note: * = story conceived only, ** = story conceived and written, *** = story conceived, written, and final draft in computer, **** = story conceived, written, final draft in computer, and ready to publish.








20.)A Universal Concept.
21.)Letter to a Friend: S—.
22.)Reason, Mysticism, and the Mysterious.
23.)Okinawa and the U.S. Federal Budget,   
24.)What's One Person Worth?
25.)Social Customs: What Are They?  
26.)The Near Death Phenomenon.
27.)Letter to a Friend: H—.
28.)Now and Then:  Comparing Views II.
29.)Trees, Birds, Insects, and  Cats.
30.)Historical Perspective: We in the United States Lack One.
31.)Uniqueness and Democracy: A Dilemma.
32.)Do We Really Know 'The Famous'?
33.)Letter to a Friend: J—.