One of the most rewarding things about working with people to publish their books is that I’m helping them achieve a goal. In this case, a mother’s desire to publish her daughter’s poetry. It was a labor of love for her, and I was able to help her bring it to fruition. Keep reading to understand why it matters to her, and why I feel privileged to help birth this gift from a mother to her beloved but challenged adult child.
The Wildflowers Within Her Heart
Tara Elizabeth Benedetti has written poetry since she was a young girl. Tara wrote a poem when she was 10 years old, in the 5th grade, and it was published when she was 12, in the 7th grade.
The poem “My Windows” was published in the 1993 Edition of the book “Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans.”
Tara was encouraged by her teachers beginning in the 5th grade, and it was always pointed out that she had a profound and rich imagination – the part that can’t be taught.
Tara graduated from Summit High School, in Summit, New Jersey. She obtained a B.A. Degree in Creative Writing and Photo Journalism, at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts. She has a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing from Fairleigh Dickenson University in Madison, New Jersey.
Tara was diagnosed with schizophrenia when she was 28 years old, while teaching English in Boston. It has been 16 ½ years of a struggle for Tara. She is now 44 years old. All of her poetry was written before Tara was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Halcyon Day: Seven Summers a Cabana Boy, by A. Sacco
A. Sacco delves into the deep recesses of mind and memory to share anecdotes from the best job he ever had. Indelible memories and unforgettable characters—with all the mores and folkways—are chronologically recalled from events taking place more than 50 years ago.
A native New Yorker, A. Sacco worked for 32 years as a Sales Representative in the insurance and related financial services business. He also served as New York City Human Rights Commissioner for 8 years. He was a member of the Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Task Force on Police and Community Relations. Retired, he now lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
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Did I mention I love my job? Another client satisfied!
A Normal American Life, by Robert Montagnese
If the currency of life is time, then the currency of truly living is making decisions.
Meet Katie and Claire, two young girls living in the Midwest who are about to graduate high school. On that one warm Spring Day, they decide to skip classes to go to the lake; a rumor spreads not based on any facts but rather a perception. It is the end of innocence as previously embraced and the start of truly living, and the clock ticks. There is an enormous world to discover beyond small-town people and their gossip.
A Normal American Life is a bar set high by how deeply you can go within to define yourself and live by those standards. It is a story about people using words to demonize and promote their own skewed beliefs. It’s also a tale about small-town traditions and beliefs, both good and bad. The characters are universal, and they all come from Elkhart, Indiana. Welcome to this America, the land of the free, if you look, talk, and live your life like a “normal” American.
The author, Robert Montagnese, brings a unique perspective to this narrative. Growing up in a small town in Connecticut, he remembers the turbulent late 1960s and the rapid changes of the 1970s. A bell-bottom boy in platform shoes, he ventured out to explore the world, learning quickly that what sometimes feels normal may not be normal to others.
This is Robert’s 4th novel. His career in beauty marketing provided a deeper insight into women and their worth, which is the heart of this new novel. Robert moved to NYC to start his career as an OR Nurse at New York Hospital and completed it as the Global Brand Director for L’Oréal years later. Along the way, his interest in writing became a reality with his first collection of short stories about influential women in his life, Lucky 7. Praise for Lucky 7 encouraged him to continue with a new-found passion for storytelling, leading to his latest, A Normal American Life. Robert happily resides in NYC with his partner John, of 30-plus years, and a new puppy, Patrick II.
Mystery Writers of America-NY Library Pane in Hoboken: How to Start and Sustain a Series
I recently (November 11) moderated a panel on writing a series. Panelists included Annamaria Alfeiri, Tom Coffey, Gerry Lewis, and Peggy Erhhart. Topics included continuity, where our ideas come from, character creation, and when to let go.
Self-Publishing Workshop at Hunterdon County Library a Big Success
Big thanks to the 14 participants who came to my workshop on self-publishing last night at the Hunterdon Country Library, including fellow Mystery Writers of America-NY board member (and president) Nev March. It was so rewarding to engage with everyone, and hear so many of them say how much they liked the workshop. Onward!
Writers Group at New Hope Library Off to a Great Start
This was the group’s first monthly meeting and it was so rewarding. Everyone was engaged, lots of good conversation, and it promises to grow from there. As the facilitator, I could not have been happier.
Update: We’re now meeting twice monthly, on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday.