| This year is nuts. I have published four books in three different genres. Not to mention two anthologies, one of which I edited. Plus my Childless by Marriage blog and a Substack newsletter called “Can I Do It Alone,” which has gone berserk since I started it on April 1. Too much! At least I can die knowing I have published most of what I had to say. I do have other work brewing, and I’m not planning to die any time soon, but if God says, “Time’s Up,” I can go in peace. If a writer could just bask in the glory while someone else handles publicity, marketing, and schlepping books to the post office, it might be okay. But this is like giving birth to quadruplets. Every one of them needs attention, and if I talk about them too much, it sounds like bragging. Not that I’m complaining. There will never be another year like 2024 (for me or the world), and I am grateful. Here’s the state of publishing here: Out now: * Blue Chip Stamp Guitar (The Poetry Box)—poems about my lifelong love affair with my guitar * Dining Al Fresco with My Dog (MoonPath Press)—poems in which an aging widow and her dog figure out life alone in the woods * Between the Bridges (Blue Hydrangea Productions)–the third novel in my Up Beaver Creek series. PD thinks she finally has her life figured out. Ha! * Thriving (Exsolutas Press), an anthology of prose, poetry and art, which includes two of my poems and will fill you with inspiration. * Poetry for the Dementia Journey (AlzAuthors), which includes three of my poems and for which I did much of the nuts-and-bolts editing Out VERY soon: No Way Out of This: Loving a Partner with Alzheimer’s (She Writes Press). Publication date for the memoir about my Alzheimer’s experience with my late husband is June 25, 2024. You can pre-order it now. I already have copies if you need one before that. This is the biggie. I even have a professional publicist working on it. If you see my ads on Amazon, shoot me a screen shot so I can see what they look like. All of these books are available on Amazon AND at your favorite bookseller. If they don’t have them, they can order them, and the more requests they get, the better. Also suggest your local library order them. After you read the books, consider leaving a review at Amazon, Goodreads, Bookbub or on social media. I am available for readings, talks, or discussions online or in-person. Email me at sufalick@gmail.com. Coming up: * June 13, 6:30 p.m. online MoonPath Press book launch reading for my Dining Al Fresco with My Dog and Carol R. Sunde’s Through Pine Shadows. Register at https://www.moonpathpress.com/ReadingInvitation13Jun24.htm * June 19, 10 a.m. PDT online: The Childless Elderwomen will discuss “Couragageous Conversations” on Zoom. Our group of accomplished women without kids will talk about how we handle those awkward times when people just don’t seem to understand how our lives might be different from theirs. Register at https://gateway-women.com/register-now-fireside-wisdom-with-childless-elderwomen-wed-19th-june-2024-courageous-conversations/ Attendees will be anonymous and off-camera, and the event will be recorded for those need to watch it later. * June 23, 2 to 4 p.m. in person: I will join three other poet-songwriters at the Mid-Valley Poetry Society’s “Poet-Songwriters in Conversation and Performance” at The Dye House at The Willamette Heritage Center, 1313 Mill Street SE in Salem, Oregon. Admission is free. Just come! * June 29, noon PDT, online: Jody Day of Gateway-Women will host a book launch webinar for No Way Out of This. All who register at will receive a link to the recording, so if you can’t make that time, sign up anyway. https://gateway-women.com/register-now-gateway-women-masterclass-webinar-an-interview-book-giveaway-with-author-sue-fagalde-lick/ Recently Recorded events you can listen to:Alzheimers Speaks Interview with Lori LaBey Salem Poetry Project—poetry and music Read and loved: Two books by Michael Finkel, The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary of the Last Hermit, about a guy who lived alone in the woods for 27 years before he was caught sneaking out to steal food, and True Story: Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa, the story of Christian Longo who murdered his wife and three kids right here in Lincoln County, Oregon Blank by Zibby Owens. A novelist can’t think of anything to write, so she pitches a book with nothing in it, and it goes viral! This book is not blank, and it’s a lot of fun. Binge-watching: I watched all six seasons of “The Resident,” (Netflix) which stars Matt Czuchry. That led me to “The Good Wife,” (Prime) where he was a regular. I had never been interested in “The Good Wife” before, but now I’m into it. If nothing else, watch it for all the guest actors who subsequently became famous. So far, two of the actors from “This is Us” have turned up as defendants in murder cases. That’s more than enough for one newsletter. It’s still raining off and on here on the Oregon coast. I’m still playing music at St. Anthony’s in Waldport. I’m doing physical therapy for my back, and it is working. I’m still missing my dog, Annie, who passed away in September. The hunt for a new dog begins in July. I’m seeking a healthy, mid-sized, middle-aged female with a mellow personality. Happy summer! |
Tag: Salem Poetry Project
New Book Announcement and More
It’s happening!
I can finally announce that No Way Out of This, my memoir about the Alzheimer’s journey with my late husband Fred, will be published in June 2024 by She Writes Press. It recounts the gnarly parts of Alzheimer’s, including caregiving, nursing homes and the day-by-day losses, but the reader will also enjoy a good dose of music and the canine antics of Annie and her brother Chico. In the end, it’s a love story.
This book has been in the works for years, starting as journal writings when Fred was sick and undergoing many revisions to reach its current state. Am I comfortable exposing this much of our private lives in print? No, but the story begs to be told, especially when everyone I meet has either lost someone to dementia or loves someone who is going through it now.
In the coming months, I will be working with the publicist to draw attention to the book. I will also be reading proofs and seeking “blurbs,” those mini reviews that go on the back cover. Writing is the easy part.
Give a Listen
I enjoyed being a guest on the June 2 edition of The Free Bin, the Toledo, Oregon library’s podcast. You can hear the interview here.
This Wednesday, June 21 at noon PDT, the “Nomo Crones,” aka Childless Elderwomen, will meet again online for a panel discussion. Our topic this time: “Radical Old Women.” Attendance is free. Click https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YWd0_sZNQY-6rF_fCayMXQ#/registration to register.
On Monday, June 26, I will be one of the featured poets reading at the Salem Poetry Project’s new Poetry on the Lawn series, 7 p.m. at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 1770 Baxter Rd. SE, Salem, OR. Road trip!
In the Blogs
https://www.unleashedinoregon.com–“Looking Back for a Novel Set in 2020,” “Old Sheet Music Brings Back Memories”
https://www.childlessbymarriage.com– “When Couples Put Off Having Babies Until It’s Too Late,” “When People Having Babies on TV Make You Cry,” and “Is the ‘Happiest Place on Earth’ Only for People with Children?”
Read and Enjoyed
I spent last month reading books about the COVID-19 pandemic as research for a writing project. I was surprised at how much I had forgotten and how much I never knew. These are my favorites.
Cabin Fever: the Harrowing Journey of a Cruise Ship at the Dawn of a Pandemic by Michael Smith and Jonathan Franklin.
The Emergency: A Year of Healing and Heartbreak in a Chicago ER by Thomas Fisher
And Then We Came Outside and Saw the Stars, an anthology of international writings from March-May 2020, edited by Ilan Stavans.
Watched and Enjoyed
Space Oddity, Amazon Prime, YouTube, AppleTV—I tuned in to this movie because I’m crushing on Kevin Bacon lately, but this story of a young man who is determined to go to Mars is a feel-good flick. Bacon plays his dad.
The Umbrella Academy, Netflix–I don’t usually enjoy science fiction or “action” shows, but this series is so good I can’t stop watching. It’s just weird and wild enough. A crazy rich man adopts seven children, each with a different special power. As adults, they travel through time trying to prevent the end of the world.
Moonlighting, YouTube—Let’s go back to the ‘80s, when Cybil Shepherd and Bruce Willis were young and beautiful and nobody was getting texts on their cell phones, because they didn’t exist. It’s funny, romantic, and full of surprises. A song-and-dance number? Why not? The client turns out to be the killer? You never know.
That’s the news. Annie says hi. She is now 15 years and 4 months old. Moving slowly, but you would too if you were 105+ in dog years.
Happy June!
Sue and Annie Lick
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Unleashed in Oregon 