Bette A. Stevens is an author and retired teacher who received her B.S. in Elementary Education from the University of Maine at Orono before embarking on graduate courses in Curriculum Studies at Chapman University in California. She taught in elementary and middle school classrooms in California and Virginia. Stevens and her husband are now retired and living in Hartland. Stevens has written articles for ECHOES, The Northern Maine Journal of Rural Culture based in Caribou, Maine. Her love of children, of literature and of learning inspired her to write her first children’s book, The Tangram Zoo and Word Puzzles Too! Stevens’s latest award-winning children’s picture book: AMAZING MATILDA, A Monarch’s Tale, is a beautiful story that is sure to inspire readers and listeners alike, not only to reach for their own dreams, but to encourage others to do the same. PURE TRASH, The Story (released July 2013) is Stevens’s first book, a short story, for the Middle-grade/YA/Adult audience. It is a prequel to her upcoming debut. PURE TRASH, The Novel will be a coming of age novel featuring Shawn Daniels, the short story’s protagonist. Novel’s planned for release is Spring 2014) Find out more about the author and her books on her page on Amazon.
Interview with Bette A. Stevens
1.Can you tell us a little about yourself and your journey as a writer?
I am a writer who loves nature, people and literature. I advocate for children, promote childhood literacy and feature authors and their books on my website/blog and social media sites. I have been writing for many years. First, non-fiction, journalistic pieces that featured stories about interesting people. While teaching, I began writing books and stories that I could use in the classroom. I am inspired by nature and often take notes about God’s glorious canvas that surrounds us everywhere and later turn them into short poems. My stories, although fictional, are based upon real people that have entered my life and touched it deeply in some way. Actually, writing fiction was a step-in-faith for me. I have been an avid reader all of my life, but didn’t realize that I could write my own fiction until taking a creative writing course in the 1990s. For me, writing is my way of inspiring people—sometimes revealing the positive, at other times, revealing the negative. In a way, I hope to be a teacher (although I’m now retired from the classroom) to my readers by giving them pause for thought and discussion. I think that is the teacher in me.
2.As an Author, how do you divide your time between your writing and promotional activities?
My ideal would be one-third promoting and two-thirds writing. As a new author, that ideal is pretty much turned upside-down at this point and will likely be revised over time. But, I think that is probably a natural step in the writer’s journey… Just as learning and growing and changing is part of our everyday experience. I’m sure that I’ll find many new and exciting challenges along the way.
3. Describe your writing style in ten words or less.
Hopefully, my writing style is descriptive, accessible, informative and thought-provoking.
4.When you hear from your readers, what do they say? My readers have all been very positive. Reviewers and proof readers have helped me to improve my writing and are invaluable allies. I am blessed in so many ways.
5.How do you use social media to promote your writing? I try to post everything on all of my sites, while highlighting articles of interest and other authors and their books as well as writing tips and helpful ideas to involve families in reading, writing and spending time together.
6.How is this world a better place because of your books?
My goal is to inspire us all (myself included) to be better people―to believe in ourselves, to care for others and our natural world and to meet our challenges in ways that will improve our own lives and the world around us.
7. What are 5 life lessons you have learned that other women should know?
•“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3: 5,6 (NKJV) •Life is short― make the most of every moment •People are more important than things •Be kind to everyone •Be a good listener •Follow your dreams
Books
AMAZING MATILDA: A Monarch’s Tale (Award-winning children’s picture book) MATILDA’s Video debut THE TANGRAM ZOO & WORD PUZZLES TOO! (Children’s activity book) PURE TRASH (1950s short story for YA/adult readers)
Kathleen Pooler is a writer and a retired Family Nurse Practitioner who is working on a memoir and a sequel about how the power of hope through her faith in God has helped her to transform, heal and transcend life’s obstacles and disappointments: domestic abuse, divorce, single parenting, loving and letting go of an alcoholic son, cancer and heart failure to live a life of joy and contentment. She believes that hope matters and that we are all strengthened and enlightened when we share our stories. In her own words: "Along with sharing my writing journey with you, I want to reach out and share how hope works in my life and to hear how it works in your life. We are all strengthened and enlightened when we share our stories. Perhaps, it will help you find your own pathway to hope."
Interview with Kathleen Pooler
1. Where are you from? I was born in Schenectady, New York, home of the General Electric Plant in eastern New York State. My family moved to Corning, New York when I was five. Since then I have lived in three different states-Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Missouri before circling back east to my roots in 1990. I currently live in Amsterdam, New York at the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains.
2. What are the names of your current books?
I have two stories published in anthologies. The first is “The Stone on the Shore” in The Woman I’ve Become: 37 Women Share Their Journeys From Toxic Relationships to Self-Empowerment”(Pat LaPointe, 2012). The second one is “Choices and Chances: A Mother’s Tough Love Saves Her Son’s Life” in My Gutsy Story Anthology ( publication pending 9/13, Sonia Marsh)
3. Tell us your latest news and what projects you are currently working on: I am working on two memoirs. The first memoir,Choice’s and Chances: My Jagged Journey to Self(working title) chronicles my journey into and out of two emotionally-abusive marriages. In a brief phrase it is about “finding and believing in one’s voice.” It is in the final editing stage and I plan to query small publishers in the next few months.
The second memoir, Hope Matters: A Memoir of Faith (working title) is about how the simultaneous battles of a cancer diagnosis (Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma) and my teenaged son’s descent into alcoholism which brought me to my knees and deepen my faith. In a phrase, it's “a story of how the power of hope helps overcome life’s obstacles.” It is in the first draft stage, 75% completed.
4. When and why did you begin writing?
For years, like many others, I have felt I had a book inside me. I have enjoyed writing since I was about ten years old when I wrote plays for my maternal grandmother, Nan and all her little Italian lady friends. I can still recall seeing them gathered in the living room sipping coffee and chattering on in Italian. I never understood a word, but I can still feel their fascination and loving attention as they hushed each other when I stood at the archway to announce the play would begin.
As I grew older and began facing life with all its complications, I found myself journaling my way through the heartaches of relationship failures, the searing pain of divorce, the exhaustion of being a single parent, the terror of loving and living with an alcoholic son, the deaths of my best friend, Judy as well as Nan, my father as well as facing my own cancer diagnosis. Journaling became my pathway to healing, capturing moments of need, longing, passion, creativity—my life.
5. What inspired you to write your first book?
In 2000, I started out writing about being the mother of an alcoholic son, a topic that was foremost in my mind. As I began to write, I realized I couldn't tell his story until I told my own. In 2009, I began taking workshops in memoir writing through The National Association of Memoir Writers with Linda Joy Myers. After three years of continuous workshops, I had piles of vignettes to shape into a story. The story I had started writing in 2000 is not the story I have ended up with in 2013. It has been through the writing that I have found my story, which has morphed into two memoirs.
6. Do you have a specific writing style?
Journaling has helped me to find the seeds of my stories. I like to free write with no editing then go back and revise. I try to journal daily and I always journal when I have reached a point of difficulty or frustration, either in my life or in my writing.
7. Is there a message in your book that you want readers to grasp?
Yes, with Memoir #1, I want to inspire others who have found themselves in abusive relationships to look at their role in enabling abuse and to find their own way out.
With Memoir #2, in sharing how the power of hope through my faith in God has helped me to overcome life’s challenges, I want to encourage others to find their own source of strength in their life challenges. Hope matters.
8. Do you see writing as a career?
Absolutely! When I “retired” from my beloved nursing profession as a family nurse practitioner in 2011, I wanted to focus on my writing. It hasn't taken long to realize I did not “retire”, but I had “transitioned” into another career. There is no greater gift than to be doing what you love to do.
9. Can you share a little of your current books with us?
Here is the logline for Memoir # 1, Choices and Chances: “How does a young woman who comes from a loving, stable family make so many wise decisions when it comes to career, but so many wrong choices when it comes to love, so that she ends up sacrificing career and having to flee with her children from an abusive second marriage? What is getting in her way and why does she keep taking so many self-defeating detours?”
10. Here is the logline for Memoir #2, Hope Matters: A Memoir of Faith: "When a cancer diagnosis meets her teen son’s spiral into alcoholism, a woman, twice-divorced and alone, is forced to dig deeply to find the faith that has always been there. This sends her on a journey of self-discovery about her life, her faith and her hope for a second chance..."
11. Have you designed the covers as yet?
This is on my to-do list. I have explored several options, including contracting with a book designer ( 1106 Design).
12. What was the hardest part of writing your books?
I think the hardest part has been uncovering the layers of my story and facing the pain of my own self-defeating choices. I’ve had to work on self-forgiveness and compassion so I can tell my story in a way that conveys lessons learned. When I realize I would make different choices today, I feel the growth and transformation. Memoir writing is a long, deliberative process. Often times I've had to put it all aside and let it simmer before I revisit it.
13. Do you have any advice for other writers?
Being connected to our own purpose for writing will help to propel you through the challenges of writing. When I looked around at my current life of peace and contentment, I realized I wanted to share my journey through the pain to hope so as to inspire others.
Our stories matter. We are all enriched, inspired and empowered when we share them. The only way to do this is to write even if it’s not for publication. Write for yourself first and be open to where the process takes you. Show up!
Emotional distance from your story helps you to see it as a story so you can reflect on the meaning behind the events rather than use your writing to process your feelings. That you can do in a private journal, which can be the seeds for your story. If you are going to write for publication, never ever do so to disparage another. When we present ourselves as fully human and vulnerable, our reader will be able to connect and find their own story in our story.
If you are writing for publication, commit to excellence in every phase of the process—learn your craft, hire professional editors, book cover designers,etc. Develop your audience and establish your platform via social media, market yourself and your message before you publish.
14. Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
I want to invite you, my readers, into my story in a way that will help you identify with your own stories. You have not been alone. I hope you will find your own strength within and believe that you can find your own source of peace and joy in your own lives. Mostly, I want to have the time we spend together be enjoyable and life-affirming.
Blog:
Kathleen Pooler blogs weekly at: Memoir Writer’s Journey: Sharing Hope One Story At A Time
Vlog:
Watch Kathleen Pooler & Subscribe To Her YouTube Channel:
Published Works:
One of her stories “The Stone on the Shore” is published in the anthology: “The Woman I've Become: 37 Women Share Their Journeys From Toxic Relationships to Self-Empowerment” by Pat LaPointe, 2012.
Another story: “Choices and Chances” is published in the mini-anthology: “My Gutsy Story” by Sonia Marsh, 2012.
