Author helps writers bring memories to life
Maybe it's the aroma of cinnamon coffee, or the call of gulls soaring over the ocean. Perhaps it's a pair of deep green eyes, or a ghostly melody. Each of us has sights, scents and sounds that trigger early memories, whether joyful, painful or in some hazy place in between. Come and learn how to gather the unique fragments of your life into a memoir for yourself or to share with family by attending "Your Life: A Kaleidoscope of Memories" from 7-9 p.m., Wednesday, May 13, in the Adult Classroom of the Schaumburg Township District Library, 130 S. Roselle Road.
Patti Lacy, author of "An Irishwoman's Tale" and "What the Bayou Saw" (just released) will help you craft priceless memories into creative nonfiction.
"Think of your life as a kaleidoscope of color and form to be captured on paper," Lacy says."
In this interactive seminar that includes writing prompts, song lyrics and snippets of her zany life as a dorm director's daughter, college instructor and author, Lacy will help you gather pieces of your history as an outline for your memoir.
What is your first memory? Lacy will explore the question that prompted her writing career and instigated a trip 5,000 miles across the ocean to County Clare, Ireland. She will weave music, folklore and photographs into her presentation. What should you bring? Memories, enthusiasm, pens and paper. Laptops are optional.
Participants are welcome to enter a drawing for a tote bag full of Irish goodies and an autographed copy of "An Irishwoman's Tale." Limited copies of her books will be available for purchase and signing, and attendees may bring their own copies to be autographed. Registration for "Your Life: A Kaleidoscope of Memories" is free. To register, call (847) 923-3347.
Lacy's first book, "An Irishwoman's Tale," features Mary, a red-haired wife, caretaker and mother, desperately trying to shove her first memories of County Clare, Ireland, into the lockbox of her mind. When her daughter dabbles with substance abuse, the dam of secrets breaks wide open. Mary and her new friend Sally Stevens, a chatty Southerner, head back to the mystical cliffs of Ireland, where God shows Mary how to deal with her present, past and future.
Her second novel, "What the Bayou Saw," just released from Kregel Publications, grapples with racism's ruinous stain, rape's emotional and physical aftermath, and the high cost of lies and repressed memories. In the story, segregation and a chain link fence separate 12-year-old Sally Flowers from her best friend, Ella Ward. Yet a brutal assault bound them together forever. Thirty-eight years later, Sally dredges up childhood secrets long buried beneath the waters of a Louisiana bayou in order to help one of her students. Fragments of spirituals, gospel songs and images of a Katrina-ravaged New Orleans are woven into the story.
Both books are available from Amazon.com and bookstores. To find out more about Patti Lacy and her books, go online to www.pattilacy.com.