A Book and a Chat with Louise Mae Hoffmann

A Book and a Chat with Louise Mae Hoffmann

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Louise Mae Hoffmann

7 Hours to Sofia: challenges and discoveries of a Peace Corps Volunteer, Louise Mae HoffmannHoffmann makes a powerful point in this book about democracy. Bulgarians struggle to come to terms with their own freedom. After retiring from her career directing a college library, and serving as president of the New Mexico Library Association, she decides to volunteer for the PEACE CORPS. The book tells the story of her tour of duty. Along the way, Hoffmann established a new public library in the city where she was teaching. She travels by train to many Bulgarian towns and cities. She visits the countries near Bulgaria with many friends, and shares letters from and to family members and friends in the U.S. She shares 24 wonderful Bulgarian recipes, which she prepared for students and friends who came to visit. The book reveals people and places we know very little about. Hoffmann is richer for her experiences in the Peace Corps and so are her readers.

Pacific Book Review

As a sixty-five year old Peace Corps Volunteer, Louise Mae Hoffmann doesn’t really know what to expect from her time overseas. However, with her children grown and an extensive career under her belt, she felt as if it was the right time for her to follow her childhood dream.
In her novel, “7 Hours to Sofia,” Hoffmann offers readers a totally uncensored account of her time as a Peace Corps volunteer. The novel is a combination of diary entries, her candid narration, as well as transcribed letters to and from various correspondents. She recounts, her struggles learning a foreign language and alphabet, describes the native dishes she learned to cook and details everyday life in a Bulgarian town. Hoffmann is at all times totally honest in her writing. She details the good, or her UP list, and the ugly, her DOWN list. Some things, such as meeting new and interesting people are UP, while challenges including trying for two days to receive a package from the mail are DOWN.
This level of detail is also Hoffmann’s hamartia. Much of the information is irrelevant; for example, on the drive to her first Peace Corps orientation meeting, Hoffmann describes where she stopped for the night and what she had for dinner. While her memory is impressive, these details don’t feed into the actual story and do little to enhance the readers’ experience. Likewise, the letters she includes from her children are of debatable importance. At this stage in the novel, Hoffmann is battling the loneliness of living on a different continent from her loved ones, surrounded by a language she is only just learning to speak. The letters from her children and friends back home also refer to that loneliness felt by all. At the same time, however, reading about her daughter going to the movies and watering her garden in Boston really adds to the feelings of being removed from her family rather than making her happy to hear the details of their lives, far away.
Many of the small details about life in Bulgaria really are fascinating, and show what kind of culture shock Hoffmann had to acclimate to during her time in a foreign country. For instance, Hoffmann wrote, “The clothes were weighed and are bought by the pound” – as she describes her challenges finding affordable clothing, especially jean pants, while in Bulgaria.
“7 Hours to Sofia” is an interesting and honest account of one volunteer’s time in the Peace Corps. Any person interested in pursuing this dream would do well to read Hoffmann’s novel, as her totally uncensored account is at all times honest and very often entertaining as well. It is obvious Hoffmann’s incredible attention to detail and her passion for her work provided the underlying foundation to her becoming an author.
Overall, “7 Hours to Sofia” is an experience readers can learn about vicariously from the comfort of their own home, and determine if such a bold career change is right for them. With the fluent and factual wealth of wisdom apparent in Hoffmann’s mind, I would be on the lookout for future novels from this talented author.

A Book and a Chat with Cate Montana

 A BOOK AND A CHAT WITH CATE MONTANA

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Cate Montana

The ego is NOT the enemy.

Humans can’t function without one. What messes us up is we’re not taught what the ego is, what it’s for, and how it can be managed for optimum functioning.

Without that information—without knowing exactly how the ego is born, how it thinks and how the perception of separation it feeds us 24/7 is actually 100% ILLUSION—we’re boxed into a pitifully narrow spectrum of living filled with fear, loneliness and dissatisfaction. But once we know what we’re dealing with —once we know how to operate the controls — BAM! It’s a whole new ballgame.

Frankly, if people knew what the ego is and how to expand it (not inflate it!) their lives and the whole world would change for the better overnight.

Hungry for no-nonsense answers to life’s BIG questions? Want a simple guide to the Truth of who you are (and who you aren’t)?  Want to know how to create lasting change in yourself and the world? The E Word is the book for you.

 

That which used to call itself Cate Montana dissolved into nothingness. Then she returned to tell the tale in The E Word. Delightful, compelling, and profound.

About 

CATE MONTANA

 

From a young age I wanted answers. REAL answers. Not fabrications and stories and belief systems from other times and other people. I took Jesus’ word for it when he (apparently) said, “The kingdom of heaven lies within” and went looking for it. And I found it. And in the process learned the mechanics of what keeps humans outside the gates.

THIS is what I have to share with you.

If you’ve ever asked the BIG questions like “Who am I? Why am I here? What’s life? What’s God? What’s death?” and been frustrated at the lack of answers, or the fluffy woo-wooness of the answers, or the sheer repetitiveness of the same-old answers, or the confusion of conflicting answers, you’ve come to the right place.

Yes, there’s info on this site about all my books. Enjoy it! But The E Word is where it’s at right now.

The book and all the blogs and videos and workshops (and webinars and online courses to come) are designed to give you no-nonsense information about the ego’s true nature and an understanding as to why the ego and the kingdom of heaven are mutually exclusive territories until we wake up to what the ego is and get a handle on it.

Then the story changes and life changes and we evolve into an exciting new adventure called transpersonal consciousness—the intermediate stage of civilization that will flower when people are no longer ruled by the blind self-absorption and error-fraught perceptions of the personal ego—the great foreseen Golden Age of peace that will reign before the next evolutionary step is taken and the transcendent state of consciousness called the “no ego” state of enlightenment occurs.

So welcome! Dive in!

I hope you find hope here. For despite appearances to the contrary, the 21st century is actually the most hopeful time and age in human evolution yet. We just have to get on the ball, hitch up our Big Girl and Big Boy pants, face the ego and its shadows, kick over the traces of religion and superstition, learn what’s really going on and get on with it.

A Book and a Chat with Bluette Matthey

A Book and a Chat with Bluette Matthey

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 Bluette Matthey

The central character in all the mysteries is Hardy Durkin, a twenty-seven-year old American with dual US and German citizenship, who is a hiking tour outfitter specializing in European treks. Considerable attention is paid to the history, culture, cuisine and character of the milieu and its inhabitants. Hopefully, the novels provide a sensory experience of the region to the reader. If I had to categorize the books I would call them cozy travel mysteries.

About Bluette Matthey

Bluette Matthey is a 3^rd generation Swiss American and an avid lover of European cultures. She has decades of travel and writing experience. She is a keen reader of mysteries, especially those that immerse the reader in the history, inhabitants, culture, and cuisine of new places. Her passion for travel, except airports (where she keeps a mystery to pass the time), is shared by her husband, who owned a tour outfitter business in Europe. Bluette particularly loves to explore regions that are not on the "15 days in Europe" itineraries. She also enjoys little-known discoveries, such as the London Walks, in well-known areas. She firmly believes that walking and hiking bring her closer to the real life of any locale. Bluette maintains a list of hikes and pilgrimages throughout Europe for future exploration. She lives in Le Locle, Switzerland, with her husband and band of loving cats.

Her next novel, Engadine Aerie, due out shortly, is set in the Engadine Valley, Switzerland.

A Book and a Chat with Charlene Ball

A Book and a Chat with Charlene Ball

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Charlene Ball

My historical novel, DARK LADY: A NOVEL OF EMILIA BASSANO LANYER, tells the story of Emilia Lanyer, a spirited, beautiful, and intelligent woman who was Shakespeare’s “Dark Lady,” a poet in her own right, and one of the first women in England to publish a book
.
Daughter of a Court musician and secret Jew, Emilia at a young age becomes the mistress of a much older nobleman, Lord Hunsdon. Through Hunsdon, she meets the brilliant, witty player and poet Will Shakespeare, and they fall in love. Dressed as a boy, Emilia goes on adventures around the city and countryside with Will. But the poet from Stratford has his own secrets, and their liaison ends unhappily.
Emilia, being pregnant, marries her cousin, Alfi Lanyer, and has a son, Henry. She learns from Alfi’s mother, Lucretia, what she has long suspected: that her family are secret Jews. Although she was raised in the English Church, she is drawn by the beauty and spiritual strength of her family’s religion. To help her husband on a sea voyage, she visits the unscrupulous astrologer and magician Simon Forman and through him learns about the secret world of dark magic. She becomes addicted to a potion he gives her. When Emilia breaks her addiction and begins to write poetry, she is encouraged by two friends, very different from one another: Margaret Clifford, Countess of Cumberland and the cross-dressing underworld character, Moll Frith. Emilia publishes her book, Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum, in 1611, becoming one of the first women in England to publish a book.

Unfortunately, we don’t have a definitive portrait of Emilia. The people pictured above appear as characters in DARK LADY. Left to right: Margaret, Countess of Cumberland, Emilia’s mentor; Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, Will Shakespeare’s patron and friend; Mary Sidney Herbert, Countess of Pembroke; and Emilia’s lover, William Shakespeare.


 About Charlene Ball

 
Here’s some more information about me and my writing.

I’ve published articles and short stories, some of which have appeared in Sinister Wisdom, The NWSA Journal, The Journal of the Short Story in English, The North Atlantic Review, and other journals. I wrote some plays also, one about Shakespeare and Emilia, and the other about Christopher Marlowe.
In my former life as an academic, I published journal articles and taught writing, English and world literature, and women’s studies.
 I hold a B.A. and M.A. in English and a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature concentrating on Renaissance (early modern) literature. Studying about Shakespeare and other Elizabethan and Jacobean authors gave me an enduring fascination with the Early Modern period.

In 2009, I retired from Georgia State University’s Women’s Studies Institute where I taught and served as program administrator. Since retirement, I spend my time writing, doing community work, digging in my garden, and selling books with my wife Libby Ware, a writer and antiquarian bookseller.

I belong to a writers’ group that I helped found, and I have attended Carol Lee Lorenzo’s writing classes and Fiction Intensives workshops and Rosemary Daniell’s Zona Rosa workshops. I belong to the Atlanta Writers Club and the Georgia Writers Association. I am a Fellow of the Hambidge Center for the Arts and held a residency at the Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico. I’m a member of the First Existentialist Congregation (UUA) of Atlanta where I help arrange for guest speakers and edit the monthly newsletter. I live in Atlanta a mile from my wife Libby Ware.

A Book and a Chat with Pepper Jay

A Book and a Chat with Pepper Jay

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Pepper Jay

About Pepper Jay

Pepper Jay. I like to say that I’m the most beautiful hard-working retired middle-aged speaker, panelist, author, producer, actress (SAG-AFTRA), Bubby, rancher, woman with salt and pepper braids that you’ve ever met in your entire life who looks forward to working with you.

Allow me to tell you a little about myself. I was born in 1949 and, sometimes, I believe I have lived several lifetimes. My Grandmother was my best friend and her best friend was Sophie Tucker (“The Last of the Red Hot Mamas”). I literally spent my childhood and early teens in the Moulin Rouge, Coconut Grove, Brown Derby, and in Vegas casino showrooms watching the Rat Pack and other entertainers of the time.

Growing up in Hollywood, I began my performance career at age 5, performing in local theatre and TV sitcoms, and I tap danced and performed skits for charity events and fund-raisers. 

Entertainment has always been part of my life.

fter graduating from San Diego State University, I obtained a lifetime teaching credential from the State of California and for a decade enjoyed teaching for LA Unified public schools and counseling students and coordinating and producing shows by the 100+ member drill team.

The highlight was interacting with the students and traveling on a regular basis to meet and speak to students in 3 school districts about the power of money.

After graduating with a juris doctorate from the University of San Diego School of Law, I was fortunate to be a successful practicing litigation attorney for 32 years..

In 1991, I formalized my entertainment company, Pepper Jay Productions LLC (“PJP”)    PJP produces music, film, TV, music videos and internet shows.   .PJP also produced and published the Actors Podcast Network, consisting of 15+ informative and entertaining shows on three channels: Actors Reporter, Actors Entertainment, and Actors Radio.

From 1993 through 2008, I created and hosted the Working Actors Group, offering scene study, on-camera and auditioning techniques, including cold reading workshops, to working union actors.

Today, I continue with a few private performance coaching clients. I also enjoy leading performance workshops for lawyers, teachers, business people, actors, singers, public speakers, etc. Even an 8^th grader afraid to give a book report in front of his class can find relief in learning performance skills. The key is “audience psychology!”

Five of my favorite things at age 68: 1. Spend time with my grand-children. 2. Spend time with my animals. 3. Produce music with my production partner, John Michael Ferrari. 4. Make people’s lives easier through dynamic performance skills. 5. I Volunteer as I continue as an

Ambassador for the Art 4 Peace Awards organization and I sit on the Board of the U.S.S. Emmons Association.

Proud and humbled in 2016 to be the recipient of the 2016 Diamond Rose Award in Entertainment by the Multicultural Motion Picture Association, the Braveheart Lifetime Achievement Award by Art 5 Peace, and commended by the City of Los Angles and City of Beverly Hills, California.

A Book and a Chat with Austiage

A Book and a Chat with Austiage

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A Book and a Chat with Austiage

In her motivational self-help book, THE MIRROR SAID, "YOU'RE BE-YOU-TIFUL," former elite athlete Austiage offers readers a foundation for embracing their unique beauty in a world that doesn't always value diversity and individuality. Writing in a welcoming, conversational style, Austiage outlines a plan for embracing a positive self-image that develops from the inside out.

An unexpected question ("Does the mirror make you feel ugly?") was the spark that led Austiage to pen THE MIRROR SAID, "YOU'RE BE-YOU-TIFUL." She met the young girl, Julianne, who posed the question while donating supplies to a children's hospital. After talking with the girl about beauty and what it means, the author felt moved to share her thoughts with others on this delicate subject, which many people—young and old, male and female—frequently struggle with. The book has a powerful message that begins by focusing on the individual.

Austiage asserts that beauty is much more than aesthetic. She emphasizes that character is an essential component of beauty and encourages readers to bolster their character by being positive and kind to themselves and others. The author repeatedly stresses the importance of having a strong belief in one's self and explains how this belief affects how people see themselves, the type of people they invite into their lives, and the manner in which they take care of themselves and pursue their goals.

THE MIRROR SAID, "YOU'RE BE-YOU-TIFUL" takes an in-depth look at the necessity of self-care including eating well without foregoing pleasure, incorporating fitness and relaxation in one's daily life, using makeup to highlight and enhance one's beauty, discarding fear and doubt to follow opportunities to find one's passion, and reevaluating relationships to make conscious decisions about the people in one's life.

Austiage says, "In my point of view, my book is about helping those who are at the point in their lives that they want to feel better about themselves. I think my book will help people understand that they aren't the only contributing factor in feeling good or bad about themselves. Rather, the everyday lifestyle choices they make, the people they surround themselves with, and the words they use all merge to develop a feeling unique to how they feel about their identity. Learning how to break down different aspects of daily life and to reevaluate them will dramatically change the way they perceive themselves."

Austiage wrote THE MIRROR SAID, "YOU'RE BE-YOU-TIFUL" "to help everyone understand that they have the ability to feel beautiful. Ultimately, I want readers to step away from my book feeling happiness, beauty, and pride from the inside out."

About the Author

Austiage is a former national-level champion fencer who was born in Washington, DC. She speaks seven languages, attended American University, and is the founder of the Star Individuality Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports youths in developing their unique individuality. Her book The Mirror Said, "You're Be-You-Tiful" explores the societal pressures that many people are faced with today and offers a game plan for nurturing individuality and owning one's beauty.

Austiage is best known for her uplifting smile, contagious laugh, and ability to solve almost every problem by finding the light in dark situation. Most people underestimate Austiage because of her age, but do not be fooled by a simple number: She is engaging, dedicated, focused, and hard working far beyond her years—all this while being an energetic, exciting, and humorous presence.

Austiage knows 7 languages, allowing her to communicate with most people she meets. After she graduated high school she decided to take some time off to grow, learn, and broaden her horizons. She traveled all over the country and the world, using her knowledge of languages she started conversations with people, and she realized we all have the same problems, concerns, and worries—regardless of age, race, income, color, gender, everything. We are more alike than we are different. Coming back with a new perspective, Austiage wanted to take her new knowledge and put it to good use.

She launched Star Individuality, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping the upcoming generation growing up with a strong sense of individuality through self-expression, creativity, and motion. The foundation represents Austiage’s passions and experience as an artist and an elite athlete. In 2015 Austiage was delighted to announce that she and her organization were launching the Star Individuality Scholarship to give everyone an equal opportunity to find and embrace their individuality. Austiage has been blessed with the opportunity to learn so much about different aspects of life, but she knows the power and importance of sharing her wisdom with others.

Austiage currently runs the Star Individuality Foundation full time and studies at American University.