Lagniappe
(pronounced LAN-yap) is a Louisiana term meaning: a little something extra.
1/9/2026 12:34 a.m. - CONTRATULATIOS! You found and figured out the cookies YAAAAAAY!!!
I know, I know, they are technically called Easter Eggs but if you read Sam's Tale, we use confectionary delights for codes, and Greg INSISTED we use COOKIES. I told Greg we'd use cookies to find for hide and seek on the website, but without the ya know, beating up stuff. That seemed to placate him.
The reason for this page is because Sam told me to add it. Yes, my characters talk to me. Usually when the insomnia hits, you know what I mean, when you start rolling those events and conversations in your head as you go to bed. Suddenly all the 'coulda, shoulda, woulda' runs around in your head like a hamster on a wheel? Yeah, you know. Anyway, Sam said we needed to add this as kind of a journal for me to answer questions asked often, why we do certain things in his story, and general thoughts on the process we can't really share on social media. We are after all trying to make some $$ on this gig too. Sam said to just be myself so okey dokey smokey.
Feel free to email me to let me know you found this. In the Subject line just type COOKIES so I know you're legit :) jmwalle.author@gmail.com. As long as you aren't asking for $$ I won't ask you the same. As much as I enjoy writing, at this point it does NOT pay the bills, I will let you know when I make my first gazillion.
Speaking of social media, please don't share the cookies gag. You know Greg likes his hide and seek and let's face it, we all like to find those hidden nuggets we think no one else knows about. Sam said since it is the most common question, we'll start with his and Mary Ann's origins (see tabs below).
1/9/2026 - Sam is not me nor is he anyone I personally know. As I mention in my author notes, Sam's story began while writing his background. I didn't intend to have his mother an abusive acholic, when I began Bradbury Misfits. I just started typing and that's what came out. I thought it odd since Tess and Molly's parents, though they have their own flaws, are good parents. When I finished the chapter with Mary Ann and read it, I scrapped it and started over trying to make her more loving, but she kept coming out this way. After three tries, I realized Sam was telling me something and he wouldn't let it go. So, I reluctantly started the story over and walked the path he led me. All of a sudden, I had several chapters and ideas zipping in my brain. It was like Sam was a real person showing me his world and I had to capture it. He showed me plot lines all over the place and then essentially told me it was my job to connect the dots. Maybe he was real and his spirit tapped into my empathy, I honestly don't know. It's like when I'm writing, I'm watching through his eyes because sometimes, especially the emotional scenes, when I'm done and review it, I'm exhausted and I don't recall the specifics of writing it. I can't explain it any more than that.
The only exception was that fateful Christmas day. I cried writing the whole chapter and had to take the next couple of days off writing. I didn't even include all the details; Sam and I wrestled over this. I did some general research on this subject and when I say it broke my heart, it sounds trite. I don't think law enforcement can face finding these children so broken and not have it impact their psyche. But mostly, I have no idea how the children endure such evil.
1/9/2026 - Mary Ann does not have an origin story; she is, for lack of a better term, a psychopath and was born that way. She was born and raised in Bradbury by two loving parents. The definition for psychopath is: a severe personality disorder characterized by a lack of empathy, remorse, and guilt. They can be charming, which Mary Ann is until she is ready to move on.
I'm sure we've all come across someone like this at least once in our lives, I have. It wasn't physical but the emotional damage it caused nearly broke me. Imagine the emotional equivalent to a tornado's destruction, the complete disregard for anything, or anyone, and leaving a path of emotional debris in the wake. That's Mary Ann, she simply does not care, she never gives her actions a second thought. But like Sam, here I am, years later looking forward, emotionally stronger and following my dream. For those who know me in real life, this was not Bob, he and I had other issues I will not go into.
1/9/2026 - I do design the book covers myself. As with most collections, I wanted the covers to be cohesive. I purposefully don't show Sam's face because I want the reader to imagine Sam being the person they relate him to be. I also didn't want it to look like a romance novel, you know the one, sexy, shirtless man with smoldering eyes grinning like he knows your secrets. I probably could sell more that way, but I didn't want to give that vibe because that isn't what the books are about.
Book one cover is when Sam returns to Bradbury at sixteen. He goes to the treehouse where he spent such happy days with Nan, Molly, and Tess. Only when he gets there, he sees it dilapidated but recoverable. His father Nick built it for Sam to endure so the foundation was strong, and still standing. It would just take time and effort to put it back together. Maybe not exactly the same, but a version of what his father built. I think the tree house is more of a reflection of me.
Book two I purposefully did have him shirtless to show his scars and the physical, emotional, and mental strength he was building. I put him in the boxing ring, well because the loft is over it, but mostly because he is still fighting to become the man he wants to be.
Book three I wanted to show Sam falling, he is after all, human. If you notice he is on his knees, hands fisted in a rage, but he is determined to get back up again. With storms swirling all around him, book three will test everything Sam has in him.
For all three covers it was important to reflect the darkness surrounding him but there is always light for him to follow. This isn't just because of my sexy man reasons, but also because of his memory. Sam has no choice to recall the past in vivid detail, he won't purposefully look back, he keeps looking and moving forward.
1/9/2026 4:22 p.m. - Sam finally quieted and let me go to sleep after I finished this page early this morning. BUT I had shit to do and was up at 6 fretting about it. I scrolled on fb for a while (my cat Baby was fussing at me over that) and I was dragging ass all day. Yeah, I know, I'm a bit of a potty mouth. Sam said to be myself and this is my tab so, well, there ya go.
Something to note, I do my best not to cuss around my mother. Like Nan, she doesn't like it and my dad never allowed anyone to cuss in front of her or us. Nan does have a bit of my mom in her but in my head she's more like Aunt Meg from 1996 movie Twister. I don't know why, it's just the look Lois Smith brought I guess. I don't have anyone specific in mind for the other characters except Mitzie. She has my sister Beth's red hair and sass, but her general personality is a combination of Cher from Clueless and Ling Woo from Alley McBeal in business. IDK, go figure that one out yourself ;)
Oh and yeah, I'm from Louisiana and now reside in Mississippi thus the references to that area. If you haven't figured it out yet, I am Gen-X. If you don't know who Max Headroom was, You Tube it. He was weirdly hilarious back in the 80s. And yes, I know he was played by a real person, but for Ray's purposes, he created an AI knockoff version of the character to deliver his news in book 1.
LATER TATERS
1/9/2026 @3 a.m. - Sam said I had to include a tab for myself, so this is all I have in me for now. It is 3:22 a.m. and I think (hope) he will let me get some sleep. I'll add more another time.
