For the Love of Books Podcast

NaNoWriMo special panel advises to keep on writing

Are you up to the 50k-word marathon challenge that starts on Nov.1 aka NaNoWriMo?

The NaNoWriMo special panelists suggest just keep on writing without any interruptions even if you hit the proverbial wall. Make November your writing month.

"This is my writing month," author Jean Davis said.

Davis will be participating in the 18th year of the challenge.

That sentence resonated with all the panelists because as Jane Smiley said, 

"Every first draft is perfect because all the first draft has to do is exist. It's perfect in its existence. The only way it could be imperfect would be to NOT exist." 

Don't be too hard on yourself. Don't punish yourself, and have fun. Enjoy the camaraderie.

"I try to keep the momentum going," author John Winkelman said.

The panelists are authors- Vera West, Emma Palova, Jean Davis, John Winkelman, Andrew Smith, and Ed Bentley.

Listen in for a chance to win some free E books, and mainly to win the challenge.

Sound editing and effects by Douglas Kelly of Evolve Solutions, LLC.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent, Emma Palova, Ed Bentley, John Winkelman, and Andrew Smith.

Author Janice Afman pens memoir SariSari

Jan Afman spent 10 years in Taiwan and six years in the Philippines during a difficult time in her life. She managed to write about it in her memoir SariSari many years later after processing her experience.

"It was hard to pry myself out of my comfort zone," she said. "I had to get over a culture shock."

However, she encourages people not to avoid difficult experiences since they are opportunities to grow.

"I learned to look for good things each day," she said. "I learned about growing from not being a happy camper to contentment."

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of SariSari.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent, authors Hilton Everett Moore and Ed Bentley.

Author Rich Nelson pens This Tender Man - My Father’s Story

In his memoir, This Tender Man-My Father's Story Nelson explores the journey of an ordinary man caught up in the extraordinary circumstances of war. "My father nearly died of malaria in the jungles of WWII New Guinea" is the opening line of the book.

 

Woodrow F. Nelson served in the U.S. Army's 1462nd Engineer Maintenance Company in the tropical Pacific during WWII, coming home damaged by war but committed to leaving the war behind and going back to work, starting a family, and serving his community. 

However, like many veterans, he never shared any of the war stories with his son. Author Rich Nelson embarked on a journey to find out about his father's experience.

The book also delves into Muskegon's colorful historical and cultural tapestry.

 

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of This Tender Man-My Father's Story.

 

Sponsored by Doc Chavent, The Lowell Ledger, and UP author Hilton Everett Moore

 

Shining new U.P. Reader Volume 7 released

Just in time for the unofficial opening of summer, U.P. Reader hit the stands with its shining new volume 7 graced by the beautiful cover of a mining shaft at Painesdale on the Keweenaw constructed in 1902.

The hefty annual publication takes you on a road trip across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula from the Mackinac Bridge to Menominee with nonfiction and fiction pieces by UP authors who embody the life of a Yooper.

“Yoopers are born, not made,” said publisher Victor Volkman. “That’s why I can never be a Yooper.”

The 60 short works in the issue span the entire Upper Peninsula and include imaginative fiction from young winners of the Dandelion Cottage contest.

The cover is by author Mikel Classen.

Listen in for a chance to win a copy of U.P. Reader, Vol. 7

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger

Pearls of My Mind journeys into self-discovery

In Pearls of My Mind, author Preethi Saravanakumar, a software developer and an award-winning poet, takes you on a journey into self-discovery using the symbolism of pearls.

 

Are you a Spiritual Newbie? Are you a Seeker? Or are you a Sage today? Let's find out as we go on a self-reflective journey of pearl harvesting. Pearls Of My Mind is a book that houses my rainbow thoughts. As each of the seven colored pearls brings simple wisdom, dazzling jewelry is cautiously strung. 

This book deals with the connection between colors and emotions and their relationship to the Chakras. Pearls are rightly synonymous with purity, clarity, and longevity. They are wisdom in the true sense! Oh, Rainbow Pearls! Thy vivid prismatic hues, Thy pure poised wisdom, Thy bold mighty endurance, I majestically manifest thy cues! I majestically manifest thy cues!

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of Pearls of My Mind.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger

Author- photographer portrays Detroit’s hidden gems, obscure sites

In her Detroit Revealed: A Different View of the Motor City, author-photographer Leslie Cieplechowicz highlights the obscure and amazing hidden gems of the city which is sometimes portrayed as unapproachable. The imagery highlights places only seen by local people who have created a rich culture and scenery that is veiled from the public eye.

"I wanted to share my view of the city," she said.

Cieplechowicz worked as an EMS paramedic for the Detroit Fire Department. She returned to the sites of former EMS encounters to capture the images, all 4,000 of them. 150 best pictures made it into the book.

"I captured the heart of the city and the people," she said. "I put a positive spin on a city that gets a negative reputation."

The book serves as a city guide for both locals and visitors with its stunning imagery, history of the sites, and addresses.

"You can visit all the places," she said.

Walk along the radiant blue riverfront of the Detroit River and view the beautiful structures glittering in the sunlight. Hang out at the hole-in-the-wall local bar and absorb the glow from the antique fixture that bathes the vintage decor in a warm light.

Head to the streets in a snowstorm, and peer through a broken window down Jefferson Avenue at a city shrouded in swirling white flakes. Or check out an old, dimly lit industrial center that has been turned into an enclave for local singers and artists to hone their talent, whose studios are a splash of faded records, flashing neon lights, and vibrant flags.

 

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of this book.

 

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author Janet Vormittag pens Cat Women of West Michigan

Janet Vormittag of West Michigan calls herself 'A Crazy Cat Lady,' and thus the name of her book series with the newest book out just in time for the holidays. Cat Women of West Michigan tells 30 compelling stories of passionate women who do cat rescue in many different forms from the actual rescue to Happy Cat Cafe in Grand Rapids.

Vormittag became the self-proclaimed  'A Crazy Cat Lady' in the mid-80s with the rescue of an injured kitten Lucy in Saugatuck that lived 10 years.

"They're not crazy cat ladies," she said. "Just compassionate women."

She connected with these women through her quarterly magazine Cats and Dogs.

"I was struck by women rescuing cats," she said.

And the number of euthanized cats went down from 8,000 to 189 over the last 15 years since the publication started.

"It's a community problem," she said.

Listen in for a chance to win a signed copy of Vormittag's Cat Women of West Michigan.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger.

Lowell author Gladys Fletcher pens memoir My Garden of Stones

How would you respond if told by your parents you could not marry the love of your life… That special someone you had known since the age of seven?

 

 

Fletcher's book is an autobiography, a memoir, and a biography of her husband Al to whom she was a caregiver for 59 years. This is a journey of two determined people through their garden of stones overcoming hurdles that could have destroyed a marriage, but God was good, always, even performing miracles.

 

From eloping to living happily ever after with Al, the forbidden love of her life, Fletcher captures significant moments with a dose of nostalgia and a bit of humor.

At the age of 85, Gladys Fletcher published her first book after taking a few memoir writing classes at Calvin University in Grand Rapids.

"At 80, I decided to do something," she said. "At first I just wanted to leave a legacy for my children, but the instructor encouraged me to write a book."

"You've got more to share than just with your family," the instructor said.

Fletcher shut the door and meditated while sitting in front of the computer for hours. In two years, she had a book.

"I had to write it chronologically," she said. "I was honest. It's all true."

Listen in to Fletcher's great feats together with Al who was handicapped with rheumatoid arthritis and graduated from Lowell High School at Mary Free Bed in 1941.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger

Author Deborah Frontiera pens Superior Tapestry

In Superior Tapestry, author Deborah Frontiera combines fiction with non-fiction to create a fun fact read for adults and children. Frontiera picked 27 artifacts from UP history and gave them personality.

"The stories are told from the point of view of objects," she said. "I had a lot of fun with it."

In the first story Birch Bark (B. B.) Canoe, Frontiera portrays the canoe as a female traveling from St. Ignace across Soo to Duluth. The objective was to show how native Americans used a canoe for travel. 

Frontiera aimed to strike a balance between the genders of the objects in her personification of artifacts such as the cliffs and the stone in Portrait of Pictured Rocks.

Bishop Baraga appears in several different stories thus weaving a tapestry throughout the book. The idea for personification of objects occurred to Frontiera while writing the article Estabad Pines from the POV of a pine tree.

For details of the book giveaway visit Frontiera's website www.SuperiorTapestry.com www.SuperiorTapestry.com

Authors’ Tent at Palmer Park Art Fair in Detroit presents variety of genres on June 4 & 5

The Authors' Tent no. 140 at the Palmer Park Art Fair in Detroit will feature 18 authors representing different genres plus poetry this weekend, June 4 & 5.

"Most of the authors will have readings," said Mark Loeb, Integrity Shows director said. "We'll have poets in between."

The Palmer Park Art Fair is a recreation of an event popular in the 70s & 80s.

"We will have a limited edition poster," he said. "It's stunning."

Signs from Woodward Street direct visitors into the huge park, one mile by 0.5 miles, surrounded by upscale historic district neighborhoods and low-income apartments.

"We are a great melting pot," Loeb said. "It's a joy to be there."

The unique event will have 135 to 140 vendors including food vendors such as Southern Heritage of Detroit.

"I expect a lot of people," Loeb said.

Author and podcast host and producer Emma Palova will be inside the Authors' Tent at 140e. Stop by. Emma will be signing her books including Greenwich Meridian Memoir about the Konecny family immigration saga from Czechoslovakia.

Sponsored by Doc Chavent and The Lowell Ledger