Having finished 7 books on the War of 1812 and the Barbary Wars (6 historical fiction and 1 non-fiction), as well as 2 volumes of historical fiction about the British Royal Navy, I more or less hung up my pen for “formal writing” about four years ago. I have focused on providing interesting maritime news and historical articles on my blog site, Maritime Maunder (starting its 7th year in August), and writing the occasional magazine article. Taking the considerable commitment of penning full-length books out of my day provides time for using my boat, the infrequent round of poor golf, and trying to improve my guitar playing.

That said, I am still committed to the maritime heritage and the effort to instill the importance of maritime history in a wider – and hopefully – younger audience.  I continue my involvement with USS Constitution Museum, NMHS, the Coast Guard Foundation, and (until recently) Tall Ships America.  I have also written articles for local heritage sites and historical art shows (War of 1812 paintings). I see a continued interest in the maritime world from the populace in general and am hopeful that the younger generation will discover not only its importance but also its fascination. Once we are past the current “challenging times,” perhaps more people will enjoy experiencing the excitement of seeing tall ships, learning about their place in the chronology of our country – and indeed, the world – and maybe even witnessing the drama and power of the sea.