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One Thing or Another: Falling for Autumn
By Mark McNeaseIt’s always One Thing or Another … a lighthearted look at aging, life, and the absurdities of it all.
I’ll admit it, I’m a fall guy. We’ve just endured what I and millions like me believe must have been the hottest, longest, muggiest summer on record. Aren’t they all?
I don’t just dislike summer; I don’t just find it uncomfortable, unsettling and unending. I hate it. Even knowing it would shorten my life by 25 percent, I would gladly get from birth to death without suffering a single July. (The only exception was childhood, when summer was my annual escape from the dullness of compulsory education, sadistic teachers and, to paraphrase Sartre, the hell of other children.)
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6 Questions for Audiobook Narrator Daniela Acitelli
Daniela Acitelli By Mark McNease
I recently had the pleasure of working with audiobook narrator and voiceover artist Daniela Acitelli on my book Death in the Headlights. Daniela was my first and immediate choice, with a voice as rich and clear as her personality is engaging. We’ve since become friends, and she’s been kind enough to give me a glimpse into the life of a professional book narrator. A Californian now living in London, Daniela follows her passions and inspires others to do the same. Enjoy her answers to ‘6 Questions’ below.
You can see Daniela’s website here, and find her many audiobooks here.
MM: You’re an expat living in London, originally from California. Why London, and how did that come about?
DA: I moved for love… well almost. I grew up with a father from Italy and a mother from America travelling back and forth so as a little girl I always assumed I’d move to some exotic country. London had everything and appealed to the ‘city girl’ in me. I’m married to a Glaswegian. I’m working on convincing him to move to Glasgow someday.
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One Thing or Another: Drug Ads You Can Dance To
By Mark McNease
It’s always One Thing or Another … a lighthearted look at aging, life, and the absurdities of it all.
It’s early morning (or late night, take your pick, Big Pharma never sleeps). You’re distracted by a text message from your third best friend on her vacation in Florida. You’re thinking through an especially clever but short reply suitable for tweeting, when suddenly you hear music that demands you get up and dance! You’re still in bed. The morning news plays in the background, something about a salmonella outbreak in Des Moines, when they cut to commercial and that irresistible music begins. Your feet start twitching, first barely, then with a pronounced rhythm in sync with the song you’re hearing. You look up at the TV. You realize it’s not a song after all, but a jingle, those can’t-get-it-out-of-your-head hooks designed for the sole purpose of getting you to buy something just to make it stop.
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6 Questions for Author Ann Aptaker
Ann Aptaker By Mark McNease
Whether you’re new to LGBT mysteries or a longtime fan, the name Ann Aptaker should by now be a familiar one. Author of the Cantor Gold series, Ann recently had the distinction of being the first author to with both the Lambda Literary Award (tied with Victoria Brownworth) and the Golden Crown Society Award for best mystery for the same book.
Considering that winning book, Tarnished Gold, was only the second in the series, you can plan on seeing many more featuring the irrepressible Cantor Gold. Thanks to Ann for taking the time to answer ‘6 Questions,’ offering an inside look at her life and writing.
Read more about Ann below, following the interview.
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One Thing or Another: Midlife Waist Land
By Mark McNease
It’s always One Thing or Another … a lighthearted look at aging, life, and the absurdities of it all.
Whether or not you think 57 still counts as midlife (who doesn’t anticipate celebrating their 114th birthday wheezing out a single candle on a ShopRite cake, flanked by an anxious home health aide and an impatient funeral director), the fact remains that age and width are proportionate for most of us. Not all of us, of course. There are those among us who insist they’re only as old as they feel, despite sharp disagreement from titanium hips and birth certificates. You know who you are: you swear by kale smoothies, you’ve never met an elliptical you didn’t want to mount, and you start each day by posting life-affirming platitudes on Facebook.
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6 Questions for Author Michael Craft
Author Michael Craft By Mark McNease
I had the pleasure of reading a short story author Michael Craft submitted for an anthology I was co-editing a couple years ago. The story, “Frog Legs”, was an immediate yes, and among the best stories in that collection. As it turns out, it was also the first story in his new book, Inside Dumont, a novel-in-stories that centers on characters in Dumont, Wisconsin, and begins with architect Marson Miles falling in love with his nephew over a dinner that includes frog legs.
With advance praise from Patricia Nell Warren and Michael Nava, Inside Dumont presents the story of Marson Miles in his later life from a variety of viewpoints. Each story connects to the others to make a striking, organic whole. It’s a great pleasure to finally have a chance to ask Michael ‘6 Questions,’ and share his wonderfully detailed answers. Read more about Michael after the interview.
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One Thing or Another: Don’t Call It Retirement
By Mark McNeaseI’m very pleased to announce the return of One Thing or Another, my regular Editor’s column here at lgbtSr. I finally have the time to do this properly, now that I’ve entered my, ahem, renaissance (keep reading for more on that …). Look for these biweekly, and if you have any topics to suggest, I’d love to hear them! Just email me at this link. – Mark/Editor
This must be what graduating high school felt like. It’s been awhile so I can’t remember the exact sensations, but I’m sure it came with the same, “Oh my God, I didn’t think that would ever get here” feeling I had when I left my office job for the last time two weeks ago. And with it, the ubiquitous office cubicle that most closely approximates solitary confinement in the modern American workplace. I’d known I wouldn’t miss this particular job for longer than it took me to leave the building, and wasn’t surprised when I felt that way by the time the elevator descended three floors.
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6 Questions for Author Joe Okonkwo
Author Joe Okonkwo By Mark McNease/Editor
I’ve had the great pleasure of getting to know author Joe Okonkwo this year, including the privilege of sharing his 2015 Puschart Prize-nominated short story Cleo here at lgbtSr. Joe’s debut novel Jazz Moon was recently released to deserved acclaim. He’s the Prose Editor for Newtown Literary, a journal featuring work by writers from Queens, New York, and in In 2017 he will take the reins as Editor of the annual Best Gay Stories anthology published by Lethe Press. Following are Joe’s answers to a ‘6 Questions’ interview.
MM: Please tell us a little about yourself, your journey from there to here (you went to school in Houston so I’m guessing you’re not a native New Yorker, few of us are, but I could be wrong …)
JO: I am a native New Yorker—if you’re talking about New York state. I was born in Syracuse, then moved around a great deal: New Jersey, Michigan, Nigeria, Mississippi. I ended up in Houston at age 11 and lived there till I moved to NYC in 2000. Since I was born in Syracuse and have now lived in NYC for sixteen years, it’s fair to say that New York is my home state. Even so, because I grew up in so many places, it’s challenging to figure out if I’m actually from anywhere.
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From the Interview Archives: Joy Silver, MA, Principal for SilverSenior Living (Podcast)
Join me as I welcome Joy Silver to this week’s podcast. Joy is the principal for SilverSenior Living, consulting for Diverse and Sustainable Aging Communities, headquartered in Rancho Mirage, CA. Until January 2015, she served as Chief Strategy Officer at Choices Women’s Medical Center, Inc., a New York State Article 28 Ambulatory Surgery Center, in Jamaica, New York.
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From the Interview Archives: A Conversation with Author Patricia Nell Warren
One of the benefits of having a website in its 6th year is that we have lots (and lots) of great archive interviews and columns. The following interview with iconic author and activist Patricia Nell Warren first appeared December 27, 2011.
By Mark McNease
I came out at 16 in a small Indiana city of 30,000 people. It was 1974, and I was deeply hungry for images of myself as a gay person. There wasn’t much available then, aside from books I ordered from the Psychology Today book club, some of which did more harm than good. Then came a novel called “The Front Runner” about the love story between a young college athlete and his coach. The book gave me hope and, along with the few others I could find, let me know I was not alone in the world.
Patricia Nell Warren has never stopped writing. At 75 she has a new non-fiction collection out, titled “My West,” that presents her personal impressions of the American West, a book she describes as, “a collection of blogs, commentaries, historical essays and other personal writings… past, present and future.” It was a privilege to interview her and very much a reminder that passion has no shelf life.
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From the Interview Archives: Karen Wolfer of Dog Ear Audio
One of the benefits of having a website in its 6th year is that we have lots (and lots) of great archive interviews and columns. I’ll be sharing them weekly. Here is a fabulous interview from 2012 with Karen Wolfer, founder of Dog Ear Audio, a wonderful production company that specializes in lesbian literature.
By Mark McNease/Editor
I recently became aware of Karen Wolfer and her audio book production company located 9,000 miles above sea level in the Rocky Mountains. Dog Ear Audio specializes in lesbian fiction and currently has a project on Kickstarter to bring the book ‘Safe Harbor’ by Radclyffe to a listening audience. Karen was kind enough to give me the following interview, shedding light on the process of audio recording, living with solar energy, and generally being one of those interviewees I’ve been privileged to pose a few questions to.
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Commencing Countdown: ‘Stop the Car’ Audiobook Scheduled to Land in Early June
First came the Kindle Single, and now the audiobook. Stop the Car will be landing on Audible, iTunes and Amazon in just a week or so. You can listen to the teaser here. Will they stop the car? And what will the find if they do?
1977. Three teenagers on an Indiana back road, heading home away from the highway, away from prying eyes and traffic cops. One behind the driver’s wheel, two in the back seat sampling the merchandise that could get them all jailed. And then, as the car careens along beneath a black sky lit only by a million stars, they see it. The boys demand they stop the car. The driver refuses. Whatever it is they see makes the decision for them and stops the car in its tracks. What happens next to them could be real or imagined, but it will never be forgotten.
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6 Questions for Author Kate Walter
Author Kate Walter Kate Walter’s recent book, Looking for a Kiss: A Chronicle of Downtown Heartbreak and Healing, is a deep examination of despair and recovery from a relationship that ended after 25 years. Not legally married at the time, she found herself single again, dealing with bewilderment and uncertainty, and ultimately on a road to healing. The memoir is her journey through that experience and her emergence on the other side. Following are Kate’s answers to ‘6 Questions’ about the book, her life and her plans for the future. – Mark McNease/Editor
MM: It was nice to meet you in person at the Rainbow Book Fair. You’re a fellow New Yorker (I’ve been here since 1993). Can you talk about your journey from there to here, wherever there was?
KW: I was born and raised in Paterson, New Jersey. As a teenager, I was influenced by Allen Ginsberg, home town celebrity, who used to return to read at the local public library. I graduated from a conservative Catholic women’s college in New Jersey, one of the few hippies on campus.
