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Offered to show My Other Body to her publishing house in India (an offer I was
not prepared to follow up on). Talked with me at length about publishing
realities in India.
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With the City of Greensboro, gave me excellent tips on locating neighborhoods
near elementary schools where some of the characters in my novel might live.
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My writing co-conspirator! We shared a big cabin on a writer's retreat
weekend, and she's my favorite person to share small spaces with while
writing.
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My brother, who has my eternal thanks and admiration for not needing to be
involved with my book in any way or make it a main event between us.
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Art is the manager of the local Hy-Vee grocery store. I can't walk through the
produce department there without feeling tickled at his reception of the book --
though I couldn't get it into the brick and mortar bookstores, Art thought it
ought to be on the shelves and not only sold a good number of copies for me
but set me up with a booksigning in the store. Want to know a tough pitch?
Morbid obesity and death near the cereal aisle. But Art's enthusiasm never
flags, and I love it when he asks me how things are going.
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Hosted my very first public reading of My Other Body in her home, and set all
the guests completely at ease in what was an intimate setting for an intensely
emotional experience.
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Instrumental in bringing me to her local PEO chapter to speak, Betty also spoke
with me at length about the craft and business of cake decorating as
background for the novel.
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The person I didn't get to meet in Winston-Salem, Mr. Bailey is a living
repository of Winston-Salem history. Though we couldn't make the timing work,
he had offered to gather two or three of the key African-American community's
women leaders to talk with me. He and they were ready to go out of their way
for me, and I'm still sorry that I couldn't reschedule my other appointment in
time to learn from them.
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Becky Faircloth and her
family
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This family lives on the street where I located my character's house. Just back
from a trip to the coast, the entire family was gathered and, on the spur of the
moment, invited me in off the street where I was snapping photos and told me
stories of the neighborhood. The Faircloth boys, Woody and Barry, had been
the age of my youngest character in 1974, and told me about their summertime
games and diversions; Woody's daughter, age 7, told me stories about how
she spends her summers now when she visits the neighborhood. Then Becky
made sure I got a taste of the fresh shrimp cocktail and hot hush-puppies.
Other cities claim to be hospitable; for me, the bench-mark is set fairly high.
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An early reader for the novel, Carolyne brings a wealth of professional and
personal expertise to understanding character motivation.
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What hasn't this woman done to help? Read and critiqued the manuscript
(twice); helped me pack, ship, and haul books from the warehouse; researched
local medical contacts; and showed up at readings, helping run the cash
drawer. Caroline's there for her friends. No exceptions.
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One of the principals of Wildcat Marketing, Corinda talked my book up to her
industry contacts and designed my first media kit.
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Dawn set all the contacts in motion for me to speak at my undergrad alma
mater and got a lot of people local to her excited about the book so they'd
come hear me.
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An encyclopedia of all things related to obesity studies, Debra is an invaluable
touchstone and challenges me to always think of the reader. She's also written
a dynamite manuscript called The Piss and Vinegar Diet that deserves a
champion in the traditional publishing world. I can't wait to see what she
writes next.
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Mr. Butler, with the City of Winston-Salem Parks and Recreation Department,
spent an engaging quarter-hour on the phone with me, telling me about the
parks facilities and swimming pools my characters would have visited in the
early 1970s.
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Dr. Hendricks walked me through the Wake Forest campus and talked with me
for a couple of hours about Wake Forest in the 1970s. He was also kind
enough to give me primary materials for the novel, including a much-prized
leatherette-covered 1974 Howler, the Wake Forest yearbook. Because of his
insights, my main character's personality began to change and sharpen,
becoming a real woman instead of a notion of a woman.
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Director of the Harvard Medical School's obesity conference, Dr. Blackburn
picked my book as one of six to recommend to conference participants. Huge
boost.
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My family doctor, Dr. Curry read and corrected the passages describing medical
conditions.
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Dr. Smith wrote a wonderful blurb for the back jacket and followed up with
encouraging personal e-mails.
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Elaine wrote the first newspaper article about the book, which appeared in the
Overland Park Sun.
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Elisabeth, a book reviewer, wrote the first review of My Other Body to appear
in print.
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Elise, an early reader, asks questions that always come in at an angle and
cause me to think differently about familiar ideas.
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Ellen, who helps people with eating disorders, put her reputation behind me by
writing a blurb for the book jacket.
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Eva, along with Ken at the LA Reynolds nursery in Winston-Salem, answered a
barrage of questions about plants and gardening in the area. Eva helped me
identify a number of trees and shrubs I'd seen around town and, like everyone
I met in Winston-Salem, had an impressive affection for her town and an
openness and helpfulness I've never found anywhere else.
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The people I mentioned by name in My Other Body were, universally, open and
trusting with my portraits of them. It takes some guts to let your friend write
about you when you know your other friends are going to read it.
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Fam is the head librarian in the Winston-Salem room at the Forsyth County
Library. He manages a fantastic collection, a gold mine. I could have spent my
entire visit in the papers, books, and maps he oversees. He took the time to
tell me stories about the downtown neighborhood and Winston-Salem in the
1970s, peopling my understanding of the city with a whole new cast of
mesmerizing characters.
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Was a co-finalist for the POD-dy Mouth Golden Needle Awards, and wrote a
review that's meant a great deal to me. I wish I knew what she knows about
writing natural dialogue.
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The Reverend Ginny Britt is the director of Advocacy for the Poor in
Winston-Salem, and knows where all the bodies are buried. She took me on a
fantastic, pell-mell ride through the streets of Winston-Salem, weaving
together a mile-a-minute tale of personal history, local history, and national
history as she drove. I ran out of tape! This afternoon is one of the most
memorable of my adult life, and I cannot imagine forgetting Ginny's stories, her
face and voice and heart.
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Runs Duck's Cottage Coffee & Bookshop, and was the first bookseller to order
books from me. She gave My Other Body an awfully nice mention on her web
site, too.
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Jan, the head librarian at the Muskogee Public Library, supported my
home-grown book tour with a reading in the library that had been one of the
anchors of my childhood. (My dad, a patron of that library for most of his life,
speaks highly of her, too.)
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Jan, an amazing wedding cake decorator, shared her memories of learning
cake decorating and working in the 1970s. She shared her books and photos
with me and walked me through the supplies in her kitchen. She let me watch
cakes in progress, and at my request, let me taste raw icing shortening.
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Janet invited me, still an unknown quantity, to present two sessions at a
wellness conference with nationally known speakers.
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Jeanne, the Chronic Care Manager for the Iowa/Nebraska Primary Care
Association, has been a book evangelist -- she made sure people around her
knew about the book, ordered copies to use in a nurses scavenger hunt, and
proposed me as a speaker for the Primary Care Association's regional
conference -- one of my favorite presentations ever.
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Jen makes my asymmetrical face look pleasant, even appealing, in head shots.
She's been the smiling face in the back of the room at readings and offers
spot-on marketing advice. She is also a champion listener and has one of the
world's great laughs.
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Jeff introduced me to the novels of Wendell Berry while I was writing My Other
Body. This is possibly the most perceptive and exact book recommendation I
will ever receive.
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Jerry not only did a first-class cover design, but he read the book first to make
sure he'd knock it out of the park.
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Jeter owns the Kopper Kitchen in Winston-Salem. He fed me a tasty breakfast,
then told me stories of downtown in the 1970s and of working his way up from
cook to owner. He brought a piece of history to life for me, telling me about
watching the demolition of the Robert E. Lee.
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Mr. Witherspoon was a previous publisher of the Winston-Salem journal and
over a cup of coffee told me about politics and economic life in Winston-Salem
in the 1970s. He helped me understand some of the city's growth and racial
history and filled in some critical local details, such as the place a character
might most likely have been in an automobile accident.
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Julia, along with Vicki Johnson, welcomed me to the Wake Forest archives. Julia
pulled box after box of information for me, unearthing precious material about
the University Club. Thanks to Julia, I have photographs and detailed reports of
the events my character might have attended -- and was able to collect them
efficiently and quickly. Archival librarians ROCK!
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An early reader and sharp-eyed editor, Kara has never stopped actively
supporting the book. When it first came out, she even made small handbills
with the book information to give to people she knew! One of my warm
memories, though, is the late night on the couch in York, Nebraska, when Kara
listened while I first talked about the novel and its characters.
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Karen runs Karen's Cakes just outside Winston-Salem, and has been in the
cake business since the 1970s there. She shared her experiences with me and
helped me fill in many practical details of my character's work life as a
decorator. Karen's husband Henry joined us and told me stories of the local
tobacco industry and tobacco farming, invaluable to an understanding of the
generations preceding my characters.
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Karen was the person who suggested that I consider self-publishing. A woman
with a head for business, she countered my objections and started me thinking
differently about my publishing goals and told me to believe in myself.
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An early reader of My Other Body, Katie was my SAG station - I reported my
word count to her in e-mails every day.
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Kelli, a nursing student, met me to have a long and detailed conversation
about her obesity and behavioral research. She also brought me to speak at
KU Med to a group of medical students, one of the most fantastic speaking
experiences I've had because of the overwhelming and earnest compassion of
the students who asked questions.
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An early reader of My Other Body, Kerri's enthusiasm for the book buoyed me
up high on the days when the work seemed hardest.
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Premiere reader of all readers! Kris is magic, an extraordinary reader (and a
fine friend). She knows how to say exactly the thing that makes me want to
keep writing, without ever gushing. She loves to talk about character, and she
has the gift of talking objectively about a work while it's in progress.
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Larry's one of my two oldest friends, both of whom, incidentally, are the people
I look up to in knowledge of literature. Larry's critique of my book meant more
to me than anyone else's -- no matter what he would have said. He also gave
me two of the the nicest introductions anyone's ever given me when I spoke to
the student body at York College.
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Not only an early reader but a respected writing colleague, Laura had my
complete trust to point out bits that might not work well, phrasing that led the
reader astray, and, mm, comma misuse. Every time I talk to her, Laura teaches
me something about humor.
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Linda not only introduced the book to Janet Baker, who in turn invited me to
speak at a wellness conference -- she also talked the book up to Vivian
Jennings at Rainy Day Books, one of the country's best known independent
bookstores.
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Linda's a fourth of July sparkler, ideas and information fizzing all around her.
She did everything she could think of to support the book when it came out;
introduced me to some key people; and as a nurse, medical writer, and
copyeditor, read the draft with a careful and precise eye and ear.
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Lisa gave me my big local media break, writing a full page feature story about
the book and inviting me to speak to the Kansas City Star's weight loss group.
That was one of the most memorable events I've spoken at, partly because
the group was so emotionally focused, but also because Lisa's warmth is
infectious. I don't see how anyone could be around her and not feel more
positive about life.
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Lisa's the prototype of the reliable, smart, funny girlfriend. She's also a sharp
businesswoman who, to my everlasting luck, knows the publishing industry
and also Robin Zecca, to whom she introduced me.
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Liz, along with Stephan at the Winston-Salem Visitor's Bureau, gave me an
outstanding welcome to the city. Before I arrived for my first research trip, Liz
had prepared a list of restaurants in town in 1973 so I could eat in the same
establishments my characters might have. She has a fantastic smile, radiates
enthusiasm, and is the best walking advertisement for her city's hospitality.
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Lori, thank goodness, was the copyeditor for My Other Body. Beyond grammar
and style issues, she corrected the complicated timeline and flagged more than
a couple of metaphors that didn't work. Plus, she is a paragon of cheerful
professionalism, which is an even greater feat to accomplish purely in e-mail.
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Margaret, the everpresent librarian at the Winston-Salem room of the Forsyth
County Library, walked me around to the city records and directories and
helped me at least a dozen resources I wouldn't have dreamed of. She made
sure I got a chance to talk to Fam Brownlee, the head librarian of the room,
and though I always feel at home in a library, she and the room made me feel
like I was being welcomed home
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Mary and I only met once. I had been invited to display my books at the
Women in Medicine symposium, and afterward, Mary and I sat and talked
about the book's story and the story that was forming in my mind for the novel.
I can't explain it, and I'm sure she had no idea at the time, how powerfully her
spirit moved me to keep writing and to do so with humility and respect.
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My aunt Mary, also known as my East Texas distribution arm, made sure that
every person in my extended family bought my book or had my book bought for
them. She's also a truly good woman, and every time I think of her I want to
hug someone.
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Mary, introduced to me by Tom Wilson, is an incredible writer and fiction editor.
She solicited my work for her journal and invited me to read to groups, but
much more than that, has been a window for me into the possibilities of
working as a writer and living a life centered on literature.
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My aunt Mickey and my cousin Maritha, both of whom are fine and relaxing
conversationalists, helped me feel better after my sister's death. I was almost
finished writing the book, and they told me about the time they had spent with
Joyce, confirming my memories and, by remembering her to me, making my
unspent love less painful.
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After meeting Mike at The Covington Group, any other printer would have had
to come at 2/3 of the price to even be considered. (And Covington had the best
bid.) Mike's always been there to help, from showing me comparable volumes
and helping make design decisions to making sure I had the first boxes of
books in time for the launch party. He's a straight shooter.
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Molly, the photographic librarian at the Winston-Salem room of the Forsyth
County library, offered continuing assistance with research from a distance,
giving me a quick overview of the collection so I'd know what to ask for. She
carries a visual history of Winston-Salem in her memory, which even if she
weren't so incredibly nice would demand my respect for her.
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You all bought books. You all read them. Those with first-hand knowledge took
the time to tell me I got things right. Some of you bought second copies. Maybe
it seemed like a small thing to you but it was huge to me.
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Executive Director of the Second Harvest Food Bank in Winston-Salem, Nan met
me for coffee at Chelsee's on the next-to-last morning of my research trip. She
confirmed and corrected many impressions of 1970s Winston-Salem and the
likely life and family experiences of a young, educated woman in that time and
place. I also now often hear my narrator in her voice.
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Director of First Impressions at the Second Harvest Food Bank in
Winston-Salem, Nelie told me wonderful stories about being a girl in high
school in the 1970s.
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I could write a whole page about you, my sweetheart. Instead, I'll tell people
that your work made it possible for me to cut back my work hours and pursue
writing, and that doing so when I did was your suggestion. I'll also tell spouses
of other writers that it is possible to follow your example and never once
pressure your writer spouse to write faster or show pages to prove the time is
being invested well. You've never asked me to show you a progress report to
justify our investment. Thank you.
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My dad is my friend. He read this book about his two daughters' pain, including
some thoughts that children never tell their parents and was able to tell me
that I did well and made him proud. I continue to learn from his stability in our
ongoing conversation; I continue to learn from his integrity.
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Pamela Ottaway is the first printer's rep I ever worked with; I went to her
company for business cards and flyers. Her attention to detail and her
friendliness set a standard for all the people I'll do business with in the future.
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Pat and Bill live on the street where my character lives. Though I'll be imagining
the interior -- I didn't want to ask for a tour! -- Pat and Bill welcomed me to
walk around the house, garden, and yards for photos and told me about living
on the street. Pat also wrote me a lovely note later. Winston-Salem people are
the most friendly people anywhere.
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Peggy taught the creative writing and technical writing courses I took in
college. After college, the few conversations I've had with her have always
made me feel I could make new choices, explore new roads, never lose sharp
new interest. They certainly made me wish I could talk to her more often about
books and hear stories of her travels. When I think about teaching, she's the
kind of teacher I want to be. She also moved a couple of small mountains so I
could come back to my alma mater and speak to the entire student body at
chapel.
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An early reader of My Other Body, Peggy asked insightful questions and
brought her training as a nurse to the reading. She also was kind enough to
never mention that I misspelled her last name on the acknowledgments page
of the printed book.
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She's retired her blog, but POD Girl was deeply respected in the
publishing/agenting industry and she reviewed print-on-demand and some
self-published titles. She listed My Other Body as one of her top titles for 2006,
bringing me to the attention of a half-dozen wonderful agents.
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I'd recommend Pola to any small-press or self-published author who needs
help planning a marketing campaign. Pola knows PR and knows small-press
books, and helped me build a marketing plan that was not only feasible for my
resources but that would be durable over time.
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One of the principals of Wildcat Marketing, Robin put My Other Body in the
hands of POD Girl and explained why it should be reviewed. Robin also did her
best to teach me to master my apology reflex.
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Sharla counsels people dealing with eating disorders. Her response and
feedback to the book were encouraging, and I'll always be thankful for her
willingness to meet with me and share specific ways that stories like mine and
my sister's could help others. I continue to rely on the insights she shared with
me.
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Sister Annie is the Executive Director of the House of Menuha in Kansas City,
an organization that sponsors meditative events for women. She invited me to
speak to a group of women there, and her presence and attitude taught me
much in a short time about how physical spaces can encourage a quiet heart
and listening spirit.
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Sophie is a literary agent in Australia. She read the book and began a brief
correspondence with me. I treasure the response of each and every reader,
but as you can imagine, it is particularly validating when a literary agent reads
you for pleasure and then praises your work. I appreciate her taking the time.
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This is the Small Publishers Association of North America, of which I am a
member. The leadership and membership of this association make me proud to
have chosen self-publishing as a way to spend a considerable chunk of my life.
In the online list and in the publications, SPAN members are knowledgeable,
practical, and have small tolerance for frivolous ego. If it weren't for this group
I doubt I'd have sold more than 50 copies. I wouldn't have known how. I think
every author who has to market his or her own work should be a member.
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Stacy never fails to ask how the books and writing are going and is one of the
few people who means that question to cover both the creative and business
dimensions of the work.
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Susan, executive director of Solace House, opened up the Solace House space
to host one of two book launch parties as a co-benefit and invited Solace
House donors to come learn about the book. I met a lot of wonderful people --
at least one other person on this list -- at this event.
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This wonderful family -- mom, dad, and four kids -- came to Loose Park on a hot
day in August so the two amazing, generous, energetic, and attentive girls
could skip up a hill repeatedly, recreating perfectly the visual relationship
between me and my sister at the same ages.
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Thomas Zvi Wilson and
Jeanie Wilson
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Tom and Jeanie welcomed me to the poet's community in Kansas City by
inviting me to read in a series they moderate at the Johnson County public
library, granting me a measure of credibility.
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Tim, with the City of Winston-Salem, connected me to most of the people I
interviewed there to prepare for the novel. He also steered me toward the
neighborhood where "Lila Holland" lives so I could find a house to make hers.
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My mother and my most valued advisor. Mama heard about every story I was
writing in My Other Body and never censored anything. She's also my top
expert on young, married womanhood in the 1970s, in fact on all things in
home culture in the 1970s, which is central to the novel.
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Tracy's my oldest friend and has read most of what I've written since I was
seventeen. One of the best gifts he's ever given me is to respond to My Other
Body as if it were a personal revelation rather than a literary work to be
judged (which he could do professionally and with surgical precision). It was so
important to me to share this story with him not as an achievement or an
artifact but as my story. He's the only person who has this context.
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Introduced me to Pola Firestone, judging rightly that Pola was exactly the kind
of expert I needed to jump-start my then-flagging marketing efforts.
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Vivian owns Rainy Day Books in Kansas City, one of the country's top
independent bookstores. She gave my book a chance on her shelves and was
wonderful to work with when seminars sold my book on the Rainy Day book
table. Best of all, though, she and Roger at Rainy Day have found and built a
staff who read books, know books, and are unfailingly polite, professional, and
welcoming to readers and authors.
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Wendy was my case manager when I volunteered with Big Brothers Big
Sisters, and invited me to speak to groups of girls about body image. More
than that, she's a role model for me in passion and dedication to her chosen
work.
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Will, the proprietor of Prospero's Bookstore in Kansas City, has done more than
anyone can calculate to build the community of writers in this city. He runs a
small press publishing local poets, hosts readings and music, and knows his
way around 20th century poetry. How many events has Will given me a voice
at? I've lost count. Thanks, Will.
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