Randy was scheduled to read at the July WordFest before Covid-19 ended group events. Alan spoke with him about his novel.

How did you get the idea for this book?

Some of the seeds sprouted from my experiences both as a Marine in Vietnam and as a Lutheran pastor for forty years. My goal was to provide a good action novel, but one that also challenges readers to examine what are morally acceptable responses when faced with soul-destroying wickedness.

The book goes into the very grim and dark territory of human trafficking, especially of children. What prompted you to explore such dark aspects of the human soul?

To stimulate wrestling with ethical questions, I chose a context which any sane person would deem ultimate evil. Character development elucidates how or why anyone could ever perpetrate such horrific actions. The subject also provides a basis for Jedediah, a man of faith, to examine his own values in the face of the sexual exploitation of little girls.

How long did it take to write?

After years of thinking, research, and plotting the story line, it took eleven months, from striking the first keys to the last. I built a little writing shack in my yard and basically disappeared. But another year passed before publication as the manuscript was given to first-readers and then revised. And revised again.

What background or training did you have for writing a novel?

My qualification for writing the book was simply being a lifelong wordsmith and inveterate reader. I have had no formal training in writing, but having read zillions of books and spending a career as a preacher/teacher, I was determined to give it a shot. With this as my first novel, I wondered if I could do it and if I would enjoy it. The answer to both is an emphatic yes. I had more fun than I ever imagined . . . which continues with the sequel, Gunnar.

You write very authoritatively and affectionately about the Ndebele people of Zimbabwe. How are you familiar with their culture?

I have traveled repeatedly throughout southern Africa and met some Ndebele people. After choosing 1940s southern Rhodesia as the place for Jed’s early development, I then simply did extensive online research. My purpose was for Jed Bazo to be raised with the Ndebele values of courage and caring.

What was the process in getting the book published?

Everything I read encouraged self-publishing, so I formed Beartracks Press (www.beartrackspress.com). Siblings contributed to the proofreading and editing, and my son David turned the manuscript into digital and print formats for its availability at Amazon online.

How soon will the sequel be coming out?

Gunnar is in the making and will hopefully be available late this year or early 2021. The COVID-19 scourge is making on-the-ground research more challenging, but the internet helps a lot. There will be a “spoiler alert” at the beginning of the sequel because if it is read prior to Bazo, it will ruin some big surprises in the latter.

How are you marketing Bazo?

David has done professional marketing for another industry and is handling this for me. Our idea for marketing was to segment our potential audiences into the specific groups who the book might appeal to–the general book reading public, readers who identify with a religious faith, and the military–and then create marketing plans aimed at each group. We’ve created video interviews for my YouTube channel and have also created a Facebook page. We are attempting to build a large enough list of subscribers that we can begin a re-marketing campaign through larger media outlets. We are also compiling an email list of organizations, people, and institutions that we feel would have an interest in the themes in the book, and we are sending regular marketing emails to this list. We hope to spend the next few months generating a buzz that lights a fire.

You can watch Randy’s video interviews about the writing of his book and the issues it confronts on his Author’s YouTube Channel here.

Bazo is available at Amazon.com in paperback ($18) or as an e-Book ($4.99)

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Alan asked Joan about her books and their popularity among people interested in researching family histories.

How would you describe your two books?  

Thumbing through them, you would think they were scrapbooks. Semper Fi  and Evidence is Lacking are both “deconstructed” life stories of  young men serving their country. What was it like to be a World War I doughboy in the newly constructed Camp Lewis? We’ve all seen the photos of Marines on Iwo Jima, but what was it like to a private first class in the 27th Division? Both books include primary source materials (diaries, journals, photographs, official documents, newspaper clippings, written histories, etc.) that the reader-detective uses to form a historical narrative about the person. It requires that you read, sort, analyze, and research the sources to make sure the narrative is as exact as it can be, based on the material in the book.

How can the books be helpful to people who are interested in exploring their own family’s history?​

Family history use was not my initial goal for the books, but the reviewer and reader comments have consistently mentioned that reading and working with the books gave them the impetus to find the same kind of sources for their ancestors. 

What prompted you to create these books? 

The US History teachers at RA Long High School were in mourning over my impending retirement, and at conferences, teachers would tell me there was no way they or their librarians could create such a wealth of primary source materials to analyze, so I decided to produce the first book for them. I also created a teacher resource book, and offer teacher workshops and student debriefings online.

What are the similarities and differences between them? 

The formats of the books are the same. The artifacts and documents are in chronological order, and both subjects are honorable, accomplished men. W. Lee Robinson, the subject of the second book, is alive and well. A retired vice president of forestry for Fibre, he just turned 96 and is one of the most amazing persons I have met. He writes poetry for his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. He wrote his own life story from which I liberally quoted. Much of it is about Iwo Jima.

You volunteer with FamilySearch. What resources does the organization provide? 

Do you have a day?  They assist in Family Tree construction and archiving of family photographs, documents, stories, audio recordings, research materials in digital and book formats, and provide advice, assisted by more than 1000 volunteers. They also offer local Family History Centers where people can access help and online genealogy lessons and databases for free. 

You can learn more about Joan’s books and Family Search on her website at www.joanenders.com.

Alan recently spoke with Jan Marie about her new novel.

Where did the idea for this book come from?

At my age I feel as if I have lived many lives and have had good friends from each of those times, special personalities who’ve had a strong and lasting influence on me. Like the main character, Michelle, I wanted to bring these people, who did not know each other, together and share them.

The characters are vividly drawn. Are they based on actual people?

Except for one of the six characters, they are all based on actual friends in my life. One character is based on a friend I wish I’d had, and didn’t. They are not perfect; they all have faults. All have been challenged by life, as all people, even the privileged, are.

How long did it take to write the book?

Approximately two years. Much quicker than my first novel, which took many, many years, with much starting and stopping.

What is your writing process?

When writing this novel, I was meeting with a critique group every two weeks in Longview. We had to submit pages for each meeting, which kept me writing most every day. Now I am in the practice of writing every day, at least from 9 to 10 in the morning, my sacred hour.

What was the process in getting it published?

After hiring two editors and attempts at interesting agents and publishers with my first novel, I realized what a full-time job it is to get published. A writing guide suggested I work with Gorham Printing in Chehalis, and they have been wonderful in helping me publish both novels.

Are you working on a new project?

I’m in the beginning stages of a third novel, this one dealing with the main character’s European and French Canadian ancestry. Though it will be fictional, I’m hoping not to get too bogged down in the constraints of historical fiction, though it will be as accurate as it can.

Readers can order a copy of The Girls from Seattle ($25) by contacting Jan Marie at [email protected], or at 503.319.8033.

In a time of global pandemic, Woodland author Pat Nelson recently published Open Window: The Lake Julia TB Sanatorium, a Community Created by Tuberculosis, providing a look back to a time and community that was defined by a disease.

Alan recently spoke with Pat about her book and about publishing during a new pandemic.

This is quite a change in tone and topic from your earlier humorous works. Where did the idea for this book come from?

I lived on the dairy farm of the Lake Julia Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Minnesota when I was very young, from ages two to four. In spite of my young age, the “San” had a huge influence on my life because it was so important to my parents, who worked there.

I left Minnesota for Washington when I was five. When I returned nearly 30 years later, I was overwhelmed by the sense of community that remained. Everywhere I turned, I was “welcomed home.” When I detect a story, it’s like hearing something faint, then listening as it becomes louder and louder, and so persistent that I can’t dismiss it. When a friend asked me why I wrote Open Window, my reply was, “I didn’t have a choice.”

You call this a “collective biography,” of Dr. Mary Ghostley, of your parents, and one of the long-term residents, Art Holmstrom. But it’s also a kind of biography of the community.

Yes, the sanatorium was located two miles from the small town of Puposky, Minnesota, and was sort of the hub of the community. People who worked at the “San” lived on the grounds or nearby, in Puposky, so I say the sanatorium was a community created by the tubercle bacillus.

Folks didn’t have much money for entertainment in those days, but they worked together, socialized together, and worshipped together at the church they built themselves. They got together for picnics, dances at neighbors’ houses, or church socials, and they helped each other when there was a need. The employees got to know and love the patients as they watched them get well, or linger in bed, or die of the disease. And everyone, patients, employees, and neighbors alike, loved Dr. Mary Ghostley, the superintendent of the San.

How long did it take to write the book?

It took me at least 15 years to publish the book once I made the commitment to myself and to Dr. Ghostley’s son, Jim. He said, “Everyone says they’re going to write a book about Dr. Mary, but no one ever does it.” I vowed to be the one who would get it done.

What was your process?

Doing the research was so much fun, watching the story form and tying the bits of information together.  Jim suggested that I go to International Falls to visit Art Holmstrom, who, while looking forward to graduating from high school as valedictorian, instead had gone to the San for many years. As I listened to Art’s fascinating story, the hook was set.

My husband, Bob, encouraged me to make trips to Minnesota for my research. Eventually, I had recordings, notes, newspaper articles, letters, and even copies of most of the patient records from the Sanatorium.

When I had a rough draft, I sent it to Art Holmstrom and Jim Ghostley. They were pleased with it. In time, Art passed away, and then Jim. I felt sad that I hadn’t finished the book, but I was determined that, one day, I would.

I persisted through frustration, a dead computer, lost passwords, a new computer, new software, software upgrades, and late nights, and I did the formatting myself! I published both the print version and the eBook on schedule. I am still putting my marketing plan together and building my website. I’ve learned that I can move forward even if everything isn’t yet perfect.

In this time of COVID-19, what lessons can we take from Open Window?

Probably one of the most important lessons is that sometimes we have to adjust our daily routines for the good of all.

For years, I told my husband, “Once I finally publish this book, there will probably be a big epidemic, thinking TB, which still infects one person in four in the world. I couldn’t have guessed that the current global pandemic would be called COVID-19.

They have many similarities: there was no cure; it primarily attacks the lungs; people isolate themselves to avoid spreading the disease. It attacks all ages, both male and female, rich and poor. Like tuberculosis, COVID-19 is spread by droplets of saliva through coughing, sneezing, talking, spitting, and singing, and it spreads more easily where large groups gather.

We continue learning from tuberculosis, and we are now learning daily from COVID-19.

Are you working on a new project?

No new project. But who knows? There might be a story just waiting for me. When it’s there, I’ll hear it calling, softly at first and then with a persistence that won’t let me ignore it.

Open Window is available at Amazon.com in both print ($19.50) and as an eBook ($9.50). The print version is 8″ x 10″ and 283 pages and features more than 135 historical photos. For more information, see www.OpenWindowTB.com.

Poet Armin Tolentino discusses his poetry and the difference between writing prose and poems with Book Chat host Alan Rose.