Northwest Crossing resident Jake Miller’s book, The Fisherwife, or Aquatic Euthanasia, is available at Barnes & Noble, Borders, Amazon.com and Target.com. Courtesy photo

By Meredith Canales
Contributing Writer

Writer Jake Miller is a 52-year-old country boy who now lives in the city. Raised in the small East Texas town of New Caney, Miller has parlayed his outdoorsy upbringing into a humorous new book, The Fisherwife, or Aquatic Euthanasia.

The book, said the Northwest Crossing resident, is a series of short stories that takes an outside-the-box look at the outdoor lifestyle.

“In today’s world everything is so competitive,” he said. “You have to have the fastest boat, newest camouflage, most accurate rifle and titanium golf clubs. These stories remind all of us that it is still about fun. If you look hard enough you can find humor in almost all things and a good laugh never hurt anyone.”

Lisa, Miller’s wife and a sixth grade reading teacher, said almost anyone, regardless of outdoor experience, will enjoy the humor in the stories.

“I think it’s hilarious. [It will be] funny to anybody that has ever done anything outdoors or has pets or even watched some of the shows on television about the outdoors. I think anybody would get a kick out of it,” she said. “Women will [even] get as big a kick out of it as men do.”

Miller said his background lent heavily to the subject matter.

“I started doing outdoor activities when I was eight or nine years old. Things were different back then. It was not unusual to see a kid with a gun, and it sure wasn’t against the law,” he said jokingly.

Miller added that he was motivated to write by those close to him.

“It started because of prodding by friends and family mostly. They were always telling me to write this stuff down and try to put together a book. You see I have always been a storyteller and intentionally look for humor in things that most people don’t see,” he said. “I put together a partial manuscript, got my hands on a copy of “The Writer’s Market” and started sending it out to publishers. Sure there were rejections, but the effort finally paid off.”

Once conceptualized, though, the total product didn’t take long to complete.

“Altogether it took about a year and a half. Writing, submitting, editing and cover art (included),” he said. “It is a long drawn-out process and can be maddening for the writer because you just can’t wait to hold the finish product.”

Miller, who holds a full-time job outside of his writing, said he worked an hour a day every day when he got home from work and continues to do so while he’s producing his second book, “The Got No Dinero Ranch,” which is focused on his time at a ranch.

Miller’s wife said that though it cuts into their time together, the hour every night is very much worth the outcome.

“It’s awesome. I’m really proud of him. It takes time away from evening time, but he’s devoted to trying to write an hour a night, and I’m very supportive of that” she said.

Published by Multi-Media Publications and released in April, “The Fisherwife, or Aquatic Euthanasia” is available on www.Amazon.com, Borders, Barnes & Noble and www.Target.com.