Contact me to do a book reading and/or program at your book store or library.

Checkout my Garden BLOG at
http://www.mainlinegardening.com/about/
You'll find my blog posts under the heading, Learn.

Author event/book signing
Saturday May 8, 2010, 1:00pm to 4:30pm
Quad Cities Book Fair
River Music Experience
Davenport, IA
Click here for Updates

Reading/Discussion of Blind Faith
Tuesday, June 8th, 7:00 PM
People's Book Co-op
2122 E. Locust St.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211
414-962-0575

Iowa Book Festival at Adel, May 2009: Hanging out with Clifford and the Cat
  

Other recent book events: I was the featured Iowa Author at the Kendall Young Public Library in Webster City, Iowa, on January 26, 2009. We had a great time, and I was impressed with the number of people who came out on a cold winter evening. Must have been Cynthia's kringle! Thanks to Cynthia Weiss, who is the head librarian and the one who puts these programs together. It's a beautiful library. Speaking of beautiful buildings, in February I was at the Book Vault in Oskaloosa, Iowa. I spoke with a smaller group, but we had a very good discussion on this challenging topic, and I think we all learned from our exchange. Nancy Simpson, owner, is a strong promoter of Iowan authors. Also, I was one of the Fort Dodge authors signing books at our Home and Garden Show, and participated in book events at Barnes and Noble in Sioux City, the Iowa Book Fair in Adel, and a book signing at Hastings in Ames.

In 2008, I did a book event at Amazon Book Cooperative, the country's oldest feminist book store, located in Minneapolis. Also, I shared a book table with my friend, author Dee Miller, at the SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) Conference in Chicago in July. And I did book events at the River Lights Bookstore in Dubuque, at Barnes and Noble in Davenport, at the Joice Public Library, and I participated in An Evening with Iowa Authors at the Barnes and Noble in Des Moines. I also met with two book clubs at Friendship Haven, a retirement community in Fort Dodge. These ladies kept me on my toes with their insightful questions and commentary. I had a wonderful time.

Blind Faith was released in March 2007 with a launch at the Fort Dodge Public Library. Our library director, Larry Koeninger, is very supportive: in addition to letting me do a book signing, he purchased 15 copies of Blind Faith for book clubs, which are available to groups around the state. I later did a program at Bethany House. Carolyn Joselyn, Bethany House Director, was welcoming and receptive, as were the ladies who gathered there, which was extremely helpful as this was the first book event where I did any speaking. In December, I joined other Iowa authors at the Midwest Writing Center in Davenport, located downtown in the Bucktown Center for the Arts.

In late March of 2009 I completed an online writing class through the University of Wisconsin. The class was 'Take Your Characters to Dinner,' taught by Laurel A. Yourke. This class really stretched me~ it was not easy by any means, and I felt it was very worthwhile. Laurel, who also wrote the text, holds students to a high standard and doesn't let them get away with any careless writing habits. Which is exactly what you want from a writing class. And in July I spent a weekend at the Iowa Writing Festival in Iowa City. Marilyn Abildskov, who teaches at St. Mary's College in the San Francisco Bay Area, taught the class~ A Simple Matter:Prose Rhythm. I'm still a little giddy from the experience: all the wonderful information she gave us, working with so many talented writers, Indian food just a few blocks up the hill from where I stayed. I'm already looking forward to next year.