Quote of the Week
“We only have one story to tell, and we tell it over and over”
Author Meg Wolitzer
I was 6 years old when I decided I wanted to write a book. Having graded the get-well notes, pictures made with crayons in the space above dotted lines where kids could contribute captions on sheets of newsprint about my tonsillectomy, I felt I was ready to write a story. And so I did. It was short, printed in pencil that smudged when I used the pink eraser that smelled like Jello. But it had a beginning, a middle, and end, and even a breath of drama as the tiny black Poodle who thought himself a golden retriever until he saw himself in a puddle, was the only one small enough to retrieve a kitten from the storm drain.
I’m actually thinking it’s time to resurrect the sweet little story and publish it as a children’s book. I’ve even identified a Maurice Sendak-meets-Hilary Knight-like illustrator for the task.
After my first forays into writing, I abandoned it all, except for school essays and an occasional travel journal. After a decade in fashion buying—Did you know Ralph Lauren kept large art bowls filled with M&Ms in his showrooms?—I launched a freelance feature-writing career, almost by accident, which has resulted in more than 10,000 articles in print. Plus 25 years of teaching writing at the postsecondary level for National College, Monterey Peninsula College, and CSU Monterey Bay.
Still, with every book I read, I was inspired to write one.
Oh, my gosh. The story coming to life on the page. The ability of ink splotches on wood pulp, also known as paper, to teach, to soothe, to inspire, to evoke laugher and, often, tears. Pure magic. Particularly among those who are really skilled at it. And so many are.
Including Danielle Steele. Not because she starts so many sentences with a conjunction, not because her writing is formulaic—the tragic heroine is either palomino blonde or raven haired, and always rescued from her plight by the love of a man—but because she knows how to build a story, create the page turner, capture a big enough audience to earn the title of “the world’s bestselling living author,” living being the operative word.
Then one day, I was hired to write a book. The history of the Carmel Art Association. And then another, the history of Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, through its epic art collection. Next came “The Hidden Architecture of Big Sur,” for which fine-art photographer Douglas Steakley and I spent many Mondays trekking down the coast, always starting with a sip of something steaming from a cup at the now legendary Big Sur Bakery, and then photographing and taking notes on the exceptional architecture and the stories behind it, on the South Coast.
Then came “Legendary Locals of Carmel-by-the-Sea” for Arcadia Publishing. And yes, everyone’s next-door neighbor’s cousin’s brother should be in the book since there are so many more than the 190 “legendary locals” who made it in. And then “Eating with Grace,” a beautiful woman’s story of what compromised her sense of self and triggered her eating disorder, and what lifted her up and out of that, plus delicious, healthy recipes and gorgeous color photos—taken by my husband, photographer Philip Geiger.
Let’s always give credit where credit is due.
My next assignment was to ghost-write a primer on how to become a social entrepreneur—and why—which I use in my critical thinking and ethics classes at the University. Followed by a novel, which wove the dramatic true-life events of a child raised to believe she had to be good enough, smart enough, kind enough, successful enough to warrant the affection of her mother—and resulted in a coming-of-age story of one of the more generous social entrepreneurs in the country.
Only then did I decide I AM A WRITER and that it was time to write my own book. A memoir.
But first I had to live it.
"What We Wished For: An adoption story,” scheduled for publication November 11, is a memoir about good intentions and great expectations, not all of which came to fruition, at least not as we imagined or intended. This is the story of a twin adopting baby twin girls born and abandoned in Sacramento, and raised in Carmel. . .and the consequences of all of it. Ultimately, it's a story of relentless hope.
I am pleased to have signed with Acorn Publishing in Irvine, California, which is already feeling like one of the better decisions I’ve made in my writing life. So, I look forward to escorting you through the process of hybrid publishing, including what that means, why I chose it, what it asks of me, and how it’s going.
I hope you’ll stay tuned. . .
Lisa
Can't wait to buy your memoir - it was so brave of you to write it and it will help and inspire so many others.
I want the poodle story!!