Magical Memoir Moments
BLUSH Turning Two — Means a Bargain for You
This picture was taken in 1961 when I was in seventh grade and 13 years old. Two years ago this week Herald Press chose it for the cover of my memoir. See the subtle differences? When a baby turns two, people cluck their tongues and wish the parents well. “Enjoy the Terrible Twos,” they say….
How Writing Helps Us Peel Back Meaning and Purpose One Layer at a Time
My publisher, Herald Press, asked me to do a guest blog on their MennoBytes site. Having written lots of guest posts, I decided to answer a different question, one I get a lot when I talk to groups about my memoir Blush: A Mennonite Girl Meets a Glittering World “How does this childhood story relate…
Praising Herald Press: A Birthday Guest Post for Jane Friedman
I’m on my way out the door on my birthday. I’m celebrating in two locations today. First, there was breakfast at the Prince Street Cafe in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Then I discovered that I had a guest post over on Jane Friedman’s blog. So that was another reason to celebrate, and to share with you here….
An Inspiring Gift Leads Me to Ask for Your Memoir Help
Today’s New Beginning just happened to me. And I did nothing to ask for it. It was like grace. Unmerited and free. Did you know that when you pre-order a book on Amazon you can share the news on Facebook and Twitter? Today one of my Facebook friends, Renee Nofzinger Quistorf, did that. Then she…
Tobacco: An Unlikely Mennonite Crop and a Source of a Memoir Excerpt
“Stop,” I cried. “I need to take a picture of that.” My dear husband turned the car around and allowed me to jump out long enough to take the photo above. It brought back some vivid memories. One of the earliest stories I wrote when I started my memoir concerned my early career as a…
You Are Invited to a Cover Reveal!
One of the most important decisions that publishers and authors make about a book is its title and its cover. This decision has been made for my memoir. I used Rosy Cheeks: A Mennonite Childhood as a working title when I proposed the book to Herald Press. But the title has changed. I want to…