TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF---My full name is Karen Dee Adair Grummell. My husband is Larry. We have been married 46 years and have a son, Mark, who is 29. Mark lives in Denver, Colorado where he works in the Aerospace Industry; Lockheed. My husband and I, upon retirement, left the ice and snow of Indiana for sunny Florida. It was one of the smartest things we have done in our married life. We love it here in Gulf Breeze. It's wonderful to be ten minutes from the beach and have at least seven months of warm temps and sunshine. It's a casual, unencumbered lifestyle which makes it very conducive to relaxing and writing. Inspiration abounds what with this state's natural beauty and impressive, historical significance.
WHAT GENRE DO YOU WRITE AND WHY?---Bio-Memoirs, Personal Interest-I have been so priveleged to meet many interesting and wonderful people who have touched my life significantly. Just as a painter brushes many colors onto his canvas creating a masterpiece of uniqueness and beauty, we color our own living canvases with the experiences we have in our lifetime. Each introduces us to success and failure, but, more importantly, to others who brush on the uniqueness and color that is to be ours. My writing allows me to pay tribute to those I have met along the way and share the goodness and uniqueness that was theirs.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR BOOK---We all know how significant a role parents must play in their children's lives if they are to be successful in school or anything else. My book addresses the many challenges of family life. It is my mother and father's story from their first meeting in 1943 to their deaths in 1991 and 1990 respectively. Their story is one of sacrifice and struggle. You will not only cry with them but rejoice with them when they set aside their young dreams and replace them with a more mature agenda==providing the nurturing and love their three children require if they are to find better lives as adults.
WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION FOR THIS BOOK?---I hoped others might be inspired by my family's story and have the courage to persevere as my parents did. Today, unfortunately, there are many who choose to do so little. They have stopped striving and have lost the brilliance that once was theirs. I am so thankful my mother and father gave Kathie, Bill and I the opportunity to shine brightly.
DID YOU FIND ANYTHING PARTICULARLY DIFFICULT IN WRITING THIS BOOK?---It had been some time since I had entertained thoughts of locking myself in a room somewhere and writing the great American novel what with a child to raise and three family businesses to run. Yet, I found myself in front of my word processor attempting to write my family's story. All the initial concerns regarding my writing capabilities disappeared. The words flooded the page. When I stumbled, there was always encouragement, always direction, always words to convey feelings. I finished in 5 months.
WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?---I just finished my book, I DON'T UNDERSTAND, this past year. It is a true story based on Mirela and Michael, two Romanian orphans, who suffered and survived in the orphanages of Nicolae Ceausescu, the communist dictator who ruled Romania from 1965-1989. This period has often been called the most inhumane period in Romanian history. Children were but a commodity to be built upon to make this dictator more powerful in the eyes of the world. Their story touched me deeply, reminding me that conditions like this still exist, and, if we are not vigilant, children's lives across the globe will continue to be threatened.
DO YOU HAVE ANY INTERESTING WRITING QUIRKS YOU WANT TO TELL US ABOUT?---I don't know whether I would call this quirky, but it is something I persist in doing on every book I write. I put a pad and pen in every room in the house in case I think of something I want to add to the story I am working on. Sometimes I even wake up in the middle of the night with an idea! I always have a pad and pen in the car and in my purse as well. At this age, I have to get them on paper before I forget them.
DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR WRITERS OUT THERE?---1. Write about things that interest you. 2. Set aside a definite writing time each day. 3. Make note of those places that you find yourself writing most prolificly and return to those areas 4. Become as versed as possible on the computer. Those skills are so necessary when self publishing and when doing research. 5. Talk to other writers. If they will share, they can help you immensely. 6. Read and read some more;different authors, different genre. This will help you grow as an author. 7. If there are weaknesses in your writing skills, do something about those areas. Take a class, attend a lecture, etc, anything that will make you that much stronger when you are ready to write that book you've been dreaming about all your life.
WHERE CAN WE FIND YOU? outskirtspress.com/
WHERE CAN WE FIND YOUR BOOK? outskirtspress.com/
*My book is available in paperback, hardback, Kindle and Nook.
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