Kate Maloy | Vermont Storyteller

March 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with Kate Maloy: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Kate Maloy spoke to us today about her novel Every Last Cuckoo, about a 75 year old native Vermonter. We talked about Maloy’s Quaker faith, and about her success with this new book, now in its 3rd printing in the last few months.More reviews about Kate Maloy’s book Every Last Cuckoo from her website http://www.katemaloy.com:

Boston Globe

. . . After losing the beloved husband who shared her nest for many years, Sarah finds herself providing a home for a variety of “cuckoos”–family, friends, and strangers in need. The life she had anticipated as a solitary widow is replaced by new pleasures and frustrations. . . Maloy nicely portrays the long, imperfect, but still lusty marriage of Sarah and husband Charles, moves gracefully through the shock of loss, and charts the steps back into community. But what feels most original and moving is Maloy’s sense of how Sarah sees herself connected to other generations: “How many girls and women she had been–she carried a multitude inside who shared only memory and character traits.” Boston Globe, Sunday, January 20, 2008.

MSNBC.com

In grief, many people withdraw. That may have been Sarah Lucas’ first instinct after the 75-year-old resident of rural Vermont lost her husband, Charles, because of an injury during a tough winter. Instead, Sarah recalled her days growing up during the Depression, when her parents took in boarders and shared what they had. Sarah decides to do the same with a strange collection of misfits in “Every Last Cuckoo,” the debut novel by Kate Maloy. Sarah’s choice to fill up her empty house brings with it some unexpected developments, each making her life richer in some way. Maloy wrote a well-received memoir called “A Stone Bridge North” about her Quaker faith and life in Vermont. “Every Last Cuckoo” is an impressive step in a new literary direction.MSNBC, Sunday, January 20, 2008.

Times-Picayune

Maloy’s novel grabs the reader by the heart — it is rare indeed to find such assured fiction about love that endures over time. As her nest expands to include the cuckoos who have sought refuge, Sarah Lucas grows in wisdom and love, and her heart heals. In this portrait of a long and loving marriage, Maloy gives us a real human family, with all its love and conflict and change, as well as a look at the richness that can come with age. [New Orleans] Times-Picayune, January 23, 2008.

More Magazine

A “Don’t Miss Book,” More Magazine, February, 2008

The Oregonian

In an American fictional tradition that rarely addresses the elderly on any significant level, Oregon writer Kate Maloy’s debut novel stands out with a 75-year-old woman as its centerpiece. . . “Every Last Cuckoo” is mostly a riveting read. Its tenderly wrought portrayal of elderly life has an unexpectedly powerful effect, revealing fictional possibilities we’d either forgotten about or never considered at all. The Oregonian, February 3, 2008.

The Roanoke Times

This heartwarming tale is an excellent read and offers a multitude of illustrations of the power that simple human grace can provide to others.

People

The appeal of Maloy’s debut . . . is not in its subtlety but in its conviction. People, February 4, 2008.

Posted by admin | Filed Under Health, History, Fiction, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

James R. Olson | Politics & Government

March 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with James R. Olson: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We spoke to James R. Olson, a “dyed-in-the-wool patriot” who wrote a fiction book “The Eagle Unchained” about politics and government, and his opinions about how government’s flaws. He is giving his entire book away online at: http://www.booksbyolson.com/eagle.htm More about James R. Olson from his website http://www.booksbyolson.com:

Mr. Olson was first published by the Houghton Mifflin Company in 1973. His fiction has won the Border Regional Library Association fiction award for literary excellence and enriching the cultural heritage of the Southwest, The Evelyn Oppenheimer “Oppie” for best historical novel of the year, and the Council for Wisconsin Writers best novel of the year. His book-length fiction covers both historical fiction and police action thrillers, now general mainstream fiction.. The Chicago Daily News has said, “Olson shows early acquisition of a prose style both dignified and detached; . . .cadenced and somber, well suited to the subject matter. . .”

In addition to novels, Mr. Olson has published numerous short stories and articles in national magazines. With Thomas R. Watson, Ph.D., he has written a non-fiction self help book for those struggling with an excess of debt, From Debt To Wealth.Since his father was a career soldier, Mr. Olson grew up as the proverbial Army Brat. His first excursion into the military world was a two year sojourn in Osaka, Japan where he attended the Osaka American Schools for the sixth and seventh grades. Then he lived a year in Morganfield, Kentucky while his father was stationed at Camp Breckenridge. From there his family moved to Mainz, Germany (where Gutenberg is credited with the invention of a method of printing from movable type - do you suppose this is where he gained his love of books and writing?). The General H.H. Arnold American High School was located across the Rhine River in Wiesbaden, Germany where he enjoyed the pleasures of German hospitality and cuisine until the middle of his senior year, when he returned to the U.S.Mr. Olson credits the opportunity to live in and enjoy diverse cultures with many of his insights into the human condition. The travel and the making of many new friends were an experience he would not trade for any other life style.After High School graduation and a tour in the Marine Corps, Mr. Olson attended Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin where he studied engineering. After college he traveled to Arizona where he bought a horse and went into the mountains to research the locales of his first novel, Ulzana. Eventually he settled in Wisconsin, married, and had twin sons. His writing career was interrupted when he was given custody of his sons and had to devote his time to learning how to be a “housewife” and “mother”. Since his sons have been gown and have gone on with their lives, he has resumed his dedication to writing. For the last several years he has been living in East Texas where he is working on another novel. His latest novel, The Vagabond Healer, the story of a man who becomes a social outcast because he has the ability to heal people’s bodies and souls, was released in March 2007.We look forward to all of his new works, as we’re certain you do.If you are interested in more information about James R. Olson, there is an extended biography in the Media Room.

Posted by admin | Filed Under History, Politics, Fiction, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Caroline Howard-Johnson

March 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with Caroline Howard-Johnson: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We spoke today with Caroline Howard-Johnson, author of two books in the “How to do it frugally” series for authors. She speaks with us about her background, her interest in working with writers, and much more! More about Caroline Howard-Johnson from www.howtodoitfrugally.com:

Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s first novel, This is the Place, and Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered are both award-winners. Her fiction, nonfiction and poems appear in national magazines, anthologies and review journals. She speaks on culture, tolerance, writing and promotion and has appeared on TV and hundreds of radio stations nationwide. She is an instructor for UCLA Extension’s Writers’ Program and has shared her expertise at venues like San Diego State’s world renowned Writers’ Conference, Dayton University’s Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop and SPAN’s (Small Publishers Association of North America) annual conference.Carolyn was recently awarded Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment by the California Legislature; her home town’s Character and Ethics Commission honored her for her work on promoting tolerance and the Pasadena Weekly named her to their list of “San Gabriel Valley women who make life happen” for literary activism. Her nitty-gritty how-to book, The Frugal Book Promoter won USA Book News’ Best Professional Book 2004 and her chapbook of poetry, Tracings, was named to The Compulsive Reader’s Top 10 Best Reads for 2004 and Military Writers’ Society of America honored it for excellence. It is now available from Finishing Line Press and Amazon .Carolyn’s newest book is The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success . Cheryl Wright of Writer2Writer says, “The Frugal Editor will become a well-used reference for writers around the world.”Howard-Johnson loves to travel and has studied writing at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom, UK: Herzen University in St. Petersburg, RU; and Charles University in Prague. Carolyn is the founder of Authors’ Coalition where writers share with other writers and learn from others, too.She edits “Sharing with Writers,” a newsletter associated for that organization as well as a blog that helps authors turn a dull book fair into a sizzling success: Find it at:http://www.AuthorsCoalition.blogspot.com.Her literary website is on part of this site on this page: http://carolynhoward-johnson.com.Her Sharing with Writers Blog is at http://www.sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com .She also blogs athttp://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com where writers can recycle their favorite reviews.http://TheFrugalEditor.blogspot.com where writers can ask questions — any question — on editing, grammar, style choices, and using editing as your first line of offense in your marketing campaign.

http://WarPeaceTolerance.blogspot.com where Carolyn gets to rag and nag about how tolerance relates to war and how we can do more than pay lip service to support our troops.

Posted by admin | Filed Under Motivation, Business, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Jimmy Scott Transcript

March 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Kent: Welcome back to “Sound Authors.” On the fourth part of each show we like to feature an author of sound and it’s my pleasure today to welcome one of the great authors of sound, Jimmy Scott. He got his start in the Lionel Hampton band quite a long time ago, the 1940s.He’s signed the Ray Charles Tangerine Record Label. In the ’60s he faded out of the music scene and worked in a hospital as an elevator operator. And came back in the ’90s and has put out several albums since.Welcome so much to the show “Little” Jimmy Scott.

Jimmy Scott: My pleasure.

Kent: Now, I saw you sing out here in Stony Brook, New York. You sang at the University and that was a real pleasure. You have so much soul. I shouldn’t say that you’re getting up in years, but it seems like you have still got the same soul that you’ve always had.

Jimmy: Well, thank you. Thank you.

Kent: And do you sing every day?

Jimmy: Ah, yeah, just about. I do a little silent singing to myself that’s my way of reviewing certain tones and I do that within myself.

Kent: In your head?

Jimmy: Yes.

Kent: Where are you talking to us from? Do you live in Las Vegas now?

Jimmy: Yes.

Kent: How’s that?

Jimmy: Oh, wonderful. Well, for me, healthwise, it’s good. I couldn’t take winters anymore in Cleveland.

Kent: I hear you.

Jimmy: So getting terrible, you know, for me physically. So, I decided that I’d find somewhere where it was warm and that I could still survive.

Kent: You’ve recorded with Charlie Parker, Lionel Hampton, Charles Mingus…

Jimmy: Yeah, Lionel, Charlie Parker…

Kent: What was Charlie Parker like?

Jimmy: Oh, Charlie was fabulous man. He was a really strong educator, I believe. Now that’s my belief about him. I felt that I was being educated by whatever he would play or do. And he put it in life to you, you know. The way he expressed it all, it was lifelike.

Kent: Yep. And now, your voice is… we’re going to listen to a song called “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child” from an album that was never released until 2001, I believe, “The Source.”But you recorded it back in the ’60s.

Jimmy: Huh, yes.

Kent: And it’s a beautiful song. Your sound is so much like the jazz greats we love. You know, Billie Holliday an….

Jimmy: Oh, yes. Well, I’ve had many tell me that.

Kent: Did you interact with all of them back in the ’50s and ’60s?

Jimmy: Huh?

Kent: Did you go on tour with these people and interact with them after the shows and…

Jimmy: Did I interact with them? Yes.

Kent: And did you know Billie? Did you know…

Jimmy: Oh, definitely. Billie was a kin to my second wife. That came about because her mother was a cousin to Louis McKay, you know?

Kent: Right.

Jimmy: And, when they would come to Cleveland, sometimes they would stay with Mrs. Gates. Her name was Mrs. Gates, my mother-in-law, Mrs. Bessie Gates. Yeah. And that was Louis’ cousin. They were cousins.So, that was how I sort of became related to her. That was of course late in her career, not too long before she died. But I had the honor of knowing that in some way I had contact with her. That even raised and encouraged my idea of singing more and more.She was another one that, when she told the story in a song, it was truth. Miss that song that she you’d hear thing. She lived that. She went through that.

Kent: And that’s something that…

Jimmy: … and knowing this I say hey this is fabulous because it was just strange for her to be so close, you know. And it was amazing to me.

Kent: And your music, too, is so emotional. We’re going to listen to just a little bit of “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child” from the source.[music]

Jimmy: all right.”I feel like a motherless child.Sometimes I feel like a motherless child.Sometimes I feel like a motherless child,A long way from home. A long way from home.This world out here is lonely and cold.This world out here is….”

Kent: That’s a beautiful tune. There is so much soul in your voice. Jimmy Scott is our guest.

Jimmy: That’s one of my favorite songs.

Kent: Ah, it is so stunning.

Jimmy: Yes, because I think people maybe they don’t realize it but I think everyone goes through that period in their life. Feel like they are lost. And no one cares. You know?Not that it always has to be true, but it’s just a slight moment of feeling alone.

Kent: It’s a beautiful song. It’s been such an honor speaking with Jimmy Scott. I could speak to you for weeks. This has been a great honor. We’re going to listen to just a little bit of “Embraceable You” from Rhino Records High Five, Jimmy Scott.Thank you so much for being on the show and for everything you have done for jazz.

Jimmy: My pleasure.

Kent: Let’s listen to a little bit of “Embraceable You.”[jazz music]”Embrace me, my sweet embraceable you.Embrace me, you irreplaceable you.Just one look at you, my heart grows tipsy in me…”

Kent: Thank you so much to my guest today, Jimmy Scott, with the most beautiful voice in jazz. Jessica Keqorak with video production book and talk to you with this fascinating story in full circle came from Baghdad and the return.Thank you to Anthony sir and everybody at World Talk radio. Be safe. Let’s listen to a little more of Jimmy Scott singing on the way out.[music]”Those many charms about you.And above all I want my arms about you.Don’t be a naughty baby, some to daddy, do.My sweet embraceable…”

Posted by admin | Filed Under TRANSCRIPTS, Jazz, MUSICIAN INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Jessica Kizorek Transcript

March 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Dr. Kent Gustavson: Welcome back to Sound Authors. My next guest on the show is Jessica Kizorek, am I pronouncing that correctly?

Jessica Kizorek: Yes, you are.

Dr. Kent: I’m pretty good that way, what can I say? Her website is showmethebook.com. She is an industry speaker on the subject of video marketing and the Internet. She was featured on CNN’s series “Young People Who Rock” for documenting the impact of humanitarian efforts around the globe. This is going to be a fascinating discussion. Tell me a little bit about your book to start off.

Jessica: Well the book emerged from; as a video producer, about two years ago I realized that I was going to need to put all the videos that I made for my clients on the Internet. So I started researching, “How do I do this as a businesswoman?” The information was so scattered on the Internet. There wasn’t a solid, comprehensive source for what I was looking for. So my additional research for my business is what became and evolved as the book.

Dr. Kent: Tell me about the nonprofit work you do.

Jessica: The nonprofit work we do? I love taking my skills and expertise in storytelling through video, using video as a very influential and impactful medium. Giving my nonprofit clients a resource to communicate and effectively show what they’re doing in the world.Because there’s just so many organizations that are making a tremendous impact; be it with a community of 20 people or a community of 200,000 people in Western Africa. How do they show people what they’re doing on the ground? That is what I’ve developed an expertise in providing nonprofit organizations.

Dr. Kent: So your book itself is about marketing with video. I’ve seen images of, perhaps what the Internet might look like in ten years. We might not be even looking at text. We might be touching the screen and manipulating it that way. Where’s the Internet going? Where is this going?

Jessica: Right now as we see video, it evolved from television and film. Which is a flat screen, it’s not interactive per se. It’s a flat, motion and audio medium. I think what we’re going to start seeing, even next year, is a lot of interactivity layers upon the video. You may be watching a video that has a Gucci pair of sunglasses in it. You can actually click on the sunglasses, which takes you to a website that sells those sunglasses.So you can immediately purchase things. It’s really going to become a seamless user experience. Specifically, video will just be a foundational element upon which a lot of different motion, graphics, and e-commerce will be built on top of.

Dr. Kent: And what is your role in that?

Jessica: My role in that is producing the video content, it’s working with people from the conceptualization of the idea. “OK, this is what we want to show, this is what we want to communicate.” And then shooting the video, planning it out, storyboarding it, shooting it, editing it and providing it in appropriate formats.Whether that’s Flash files for the Internet or mastering DVDs for physical distribution or giving them files for broadcast television. That’s what I do.

Dr. Kent: Who is the audience specifically for your book “Show Me: Marketing with Video on the Internet”?

Jessica: The audience is fairly broad. Video producers, people that are in a similar position to myself. A lot of advertising and marketing people are very hungry for the information because they know that marketing spend is moving away from television. It’s moving away from print. All the eyeballs are online. People are online watching videos. People are online searching for information.It’s particularly people who are looking to expand their business through marketing on the Internet. Those are the people are looking for and reading my book.

Dr. Kent: And do you find, just out of curiosity, your own website– showmethebook.com; that’s a clever title by the way–do you find that you have to keep that cutting-edge looking in order to impress people that come visit you?

Jessica: Yes and no. I mean I have–right now I have up there hosted is my CNN video. If you go to my corporate website which is twoparrot.com, you’ll see different video interfaces where all the videos are available.So I definitely think that having a portfolio of everything I produce is immediately online, it’s transferable, it’s easily distributed. So yeah, I think that me being a demonstration of what I provide my clients with is absolutely very important.

Dr. Kent: Now do you have any trade secrets that you can reveal to us?

Jessica: Trade secrets?

Dr. Kent: Things we’re not supposed to know about marketing.

Jessica: [laughs] I don’t know that there’s anything you’re not supposed to know. The big thing is right now the market is so saturated by–consumers are constantly–they have spam blockers. They see advertisements or see marketing messages and they immediately turn away.So the whole industry is turning towards–instead of pushing something at consumers, it’s really like providing consumers with something that they’re interested in. So there’s really a shift in messaging and how do you have the consumer walk towards your brand rather than just be talked at or told what to do.

Dr. Kent: If someone visits a website online and they see a video, how do you get people to convert?

Jessica: It’s providing specific steps. A clear course of action. So if you have a video lots of times you want to put–you can’t really talk about video on the Internet without talking about the interface in which viewers interact with the videos. So converting really comes down to do you provide them with a clear course of action as to how to purchase your product or subscribe or–another thing with conversion, too–and we’re getting into a lot of this as people explore mobile platforms–so cell phones.It’s a function of knowing your audience. For instance, grocery stores are starting to do couponing through mobile devices. So basically you wouldn’t necessarily send a mother a coupon at three o’clock in the afternoon. Because that’s when they’re picking up their kids or they’re rushing to do things. You send them a coupon at a specific time of day when you know they’re going to be grocery shopping.When you know that they’re on their way to the store or about to cook dinner. So converting is knowing your audience, knowing what stage in the purchase cycle they are, providing different videos, whether it be brand awareness or a video later on down the line that has specific call to action.

Dr. Kent: Hmm. So what is it like for you to speak about all of this, to write about all of this, to become an author, I guess?

Jessica: Well one of the things that’s been very interesting to me is I’m 27. So I’m just a total baby when it comes to interacting with these people who have been in the advertising industry for the last 20 or 30 years. So for me to be a speaker and an author–the book has given me a tremendous amount of credibility. Somebody that’s 27 wouldn’t necessarily be taken seriously with the people that I’m playing with.The advertising industry is actually looking towards the younger generation. So people like me who grew up inside of a digital environment. People who have their own personal MySpace page and Face Book page and they understand social networking. They throw up YouTube videos on their mobile phone, just like in their private life.Marketers are hungry for people that are my age, that are in their early 30s because that’s where the best and most effective ideas are coming from. So for me being an author in this time period is really exciting. Because there’s very much an openness to the kinds of ideas that I have to offer.

Dr. Kent: This is fascinating. In your book for a very small price, folks can check all of your expert solutions to marketing and video and all of this. We’ll visit you on the web at twoparrot.com and showmethebook.com. It’s been a real pleasure speaking with Jessica Kizorek.

Jessica: Thank you very much for having me.

Dr. Kent: Absolutely. My next guest is Jimmy Scott, sometimes known as Little Jimmy Scott. A legend in jazz. And it’s going to be my pleasure to speak with him in a few minutes. Come on back.

Posted by admin | Filed Under TRANSCRIPTS, Business, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

« Previous Page — Next Page »