THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - Karma or Coincidence? Wrap Up with Me (& the Awesome Arlaina Tibensky)

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults, is officially OUT! Like, on Barnes & Noble and Independent bookstore shelves ALL OVER THE PLACE. Also, the lovely and thoughtful 11-question Readers' Guide is up on the Algonquin website... I would like nothing (okay, few things) more than to Skype in with your book club (or sit in if you are local) and mull over the answers with you.

Also, if you don't know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO is also out in audiobook, and Audiofile Magazine says of the narrator, Tara Sands:

"... Sands expresses the terrible anger that Francesca has denied for years. Even stronger than this crescendo of a performance is Sands's portrayal of the active, adorable Frankie Sky. His malapropisms and misunderstandings counteract Francesca's pain--winning her heart and wowing listeners."

You heard em: WOWING LISTENERS!

Anyway, if you don't already know:

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Do you think our lives are random, or do you think there’s “something bigger and magical at work”? Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I have posed that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I hope you will scroll through all of their intriguing posts. Meanwhile, I leave you to answer the question, “Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have the lovely and talented Arlaina Tibensky, talking about her grandpa in her unique and witty Arlaina way.


Arlaina is the author of the witty, poignant and stellar AND THEN THINGS FALL APART.



Her stories and essays have appeared in places like One Story, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and the Madison Review. She is the founding curator of the Pen Parentis Literary Salon in New York City.

My grandpa was kind of an a-hole. 

He was the kind of man who always did whatever he wanted and liked to rattle people’s cages. He rode and repaired motorcycles. He ate French fries with mayonnaise. He liked to smoke and drink. He liked to tell dirty jokes with his mechanic friends, fellow Purple Heart earners from World War II. He had five kids and taught them all to be just like him; fearless, adventurous, to flaunt authority at any opportunity.  

But then he got sick, cancer, and he couldn’t kid his way out of that one. His kids rallied around him with shark cartilage capsules as an experimental cure, homemade soups to warm him up, motorcycle magazines for diversion. The day he died in the hospital after a short stay, his kids- my mom, an uncle, an aunt- and I, sat around his bed. He was yellow and waxy and looked like a life-sized puppet some art school student made of him instead of the actual him. In death, his blue eyes didn’t twinkle, he didn’t tell jokes, he didn’t flirt with the nurses that were half his age. 

That night, five minutes after his line went flat we all sat in the hallway, numb and nauseous with free hospital coffee, too shocked to even talk. Suddenly, all the lights in the hall flickered like a strobe and a fire alarm went off and all the nurses at the station looked surprised, trying to figure out what it was and how to turn it off because as far as most of them could remember, that had never happened before. “Oh, Daddy,” my mother sighed, convinced and delighted that it was him, rattling our cage one last time.

- Arlaina

Anyway, thank you for reading along all month (if you have!). If you haven't, please scroll through the entries. They are really quite touching and intriguing. Oh yes, and please, please, please go out and buy my book. 

xoxo gae

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - The Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Alissa Grosso)

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults, is officially OUT! But our Karma or Coincidence Countdown continues through tomorrow, today with my dear friend and Class of 2K11 cohort, Alissa Grosso, who I was lucky enough to see just this past weekend at NYC Teen Author Festival.

In case you don't yet know. . .

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and/or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have the lovely Alissa Grosso, author of Popular, Ferocity Summer, and Shallow Pond. I love how she tries to humor me here by coming up with a story for this blog feature.

p.s. Alissa, I'm not sure I believe in ghosts or reincarnation either. But I'm always thinking, "ooh, that seems like some magical karmic connection!"

Lovely Alissa. 

I don't like to go into my attic at night

When Gae asked for guest posts on reincarnation and related stuff, I was faced with a bit of a dilemma. On the one hand I wanted to help Gae out because I like her and she's good people. On the other hand, how could I write about something I don't believe in? It's not just reincarnation I have an issue with, but any sort of pseudoscience type thing that exists there at the fringes. Not quite the same thing as reincarnation, but sort of in the same vein is the idea of ghosts.

I consider myself a rational person, have even at times been labeled a skeptic. I don't entirely believe that ghosts exist. It isn't logical. Science can do some pretty amazing things, so it seems they would have figured out this whole ghost thing by now if ghosts were real. Plus there's the fact that I've never seen a ghost, not a single one. I worked in a restored historic village for years. I live in a town that is supposedly built on top of a Native American burial ground and according to locals who are "experts" in such things the whole town is haunted. I mean if ghosts really exist, I should have seen one by now, right?

I don't believe in ghosts, not really, anyway. Except, when I have to go up into my attic at night I get spooked out. So, all you ghost-believing, psychic-believing, reincarnation-believing people I find you utterly incomprehensible. In fact, you are about as incomprehensible as the heebie jeebies that come over me when I venture up my attic stairs after sunset.

- Alissa

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Leslie Pietryzk)

As many of you know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults officially comes out this TUESDAY (3/25) from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (sorry, you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all be coincidences,  but maybe are “something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than just coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and/or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Karma or Coincidence? Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have Leslie Pietryzk, author of Pears on a Willow Tree, about four generations of Polish-American women, and A Year and a Day, about a 15-year-old girl whose mother commits suicide. 

Love this sweet story of a black cat working some magic. . .

My first husband didn’t like cats. At all. His mother was even afraid of them, so he had grown up not trusting them. I had grown up with a cranky but highly-beloved black cat, notorious in the neighborhood for his hunting skills. 

           My husband and I are living in a patio-style apartment complex in the Phoenix area while he goes to graduate school. The phone rings on Sunday afternoon: our family black cat back home is at death’s door. Much, much sobbing ensues and comforting words are spoken with one eye still on the textbook relevant to tomorrow’s exam.

            A sad dinner is pieced together.

            From outside our apartment: “Meow, meow, meow.”

            Washing dishes:  “Meow, meow, meow.”

            Standing on the balcony, looking out:  “Meow, meow, meow.”

            I can’t stand it and bolt out the door, run down the stairs, calling, “Kitty, kitty, kitty?” into the dark.

            Silence.  And then a half-grown, scrawny black cat with too-big ears crawls out from under the stairs and peers up at me as if I am the only answer to a prayer.  “Meow, meow, meow.”

            I grab the leftover chicken breast that is for our dinner tomorrow and pull off chunks to lure the little cat up the open stairs that it’s afraid of and into our safe apartment. My husband sees that black cat and immediately knows there is no way this cat will be sent out into the scary night tonight, not with my family cat dying back in Iowa.  He sighs.  “But you’re putting up signs tomorrow to find an owner,” he said.  “Of course,” I agreed.

            Two days later, he comes home from the grocery store with an expensive toy for “Kitty.” Kitty becomes a member of the family from then on: a loving, but incredibly shy little fellow. Friends and family barely see this cat and make jokes about its existence.

            Ten years later this husband dies, and there are many times during those long, awful days and nights where only the cat understands what I’m feeling.

            Eventually, I start dating, and one night I’m cooking dinner for the first time for a new guy, one who is smart, with an adorable way of winking at the exact right moment. He doesn’t like cats either, but I assure him, “Believe me, you won’t even see this cat.”

            We’re sitting on the couch, drinking some wine, and Kitty strolls in, jumps up on the sofa and cozies in between us, eyes slitted as if keeping up with our conversation.  “I guess he likes me,” this new man says. 

magical black cat? 

            This is the man who cries when we have to take Kitty to the vet for that last time.  This is the man I marry a few years later.

- Leslie

           

Please check out Leslie's books and remember to check out THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO!

The Summer of Letting Go: Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Robert Leland Taylor)

If you've read this intro before, skip down to Robert's post. 

Enjoy!

As some of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Random or something magical at work?” 

- gae

Today I have friend (and talented writer and artist!), Robert Leland Taylor (one of the kookiest, funniest guys I have the pleasure to know.

If you'd like to follow him on twitter or like him on facebook, there you go!)

He's the author of Holy Toledo and the Virgin Shirley.

Here he is with the story of a telltale sewer. Of course he is.

I felt guilty about receiving letters from an ex-girlfriend during my first marriage, but did so anyway. She'd written them all on pink stationery and mailed them to the store I managed, to insure privacy. But, like an idiot, I took them home, hid them in the bottom drawer of my desk.

Then one day they came up missing—all of them—probably seven or eight.

The next few days were torture. I knew who took them, my wife knew I knew who took them, yet neither of us said a word to each other.

The following Sunday I climbed into the car to go to work. It was a beautiful day, bright and clear after days of incessant thunderstorms. The car wouldn't start. So I headed off on-foot toward the store, five bocks away.  About halfway there I stopped in my tracks—a nearby sewer was heaving noisily, bringing up a soggy mix that included pink stationery with hand-written lines.

Yes, they were the very same lines missing from my desk drawer.

Looks like a plain old sewer. . . or is it?

That evening I found the courage to face my wife. “I'm sorry,” I said.

She nodded, smiled pensively. We held each other, feeling a tremendous weight lifting, our lives on track once again.

She told me she'd flushed the letters down the toilet one page at a time the same day she found them. My eyes were the first to see them when they re-emerged. Coincidence? Maybe. But when you consider the odds...

- Robert

Please check out Robert's book and order or buy your copy of THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO today, popping up on bookshelves everywhere.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Amy Ferris)

For Pete's sake, if you've read this intro already, just scroll down to Amy's breathtaking post! 

As many of you know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults officially comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (sorry, you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all just be coincidences, but maybe are “something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Karma or coincidence? Random or something more magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have the stunning, glorious, amazing Amy Ferris (can you tell that I dig her?).

Amy is the author of the poignant and hilarious Marrying George Clooney, Confessions from a Midlife Crisis, and co-editor of Dancing at the Shame Prom, which is making its way up my must-read list so not-fast-enough.

Amy's breathtaking story completely breaks my "make it brief" rules, but there's not a sentence I could cut, so I share it with you in all its Amyesque glory.

Gary didn’t much believe in the afterlife.

He didn’t.

He wasn’t a spiritual type.

He didn't believe much in coincidences.

He played the stock market, and often described events and people in ‘market’ terms.

He believed in living in the moment, being completely and utterly true to his word, and living life fully. He was cool and sexy and rode a motorcycle, and owned a hugely successful bar (actually two) in New York City and had a bunch of young and sexy girlfriends - as in ‘gold bullion digging’ young, sexy girls - who didn’t have a clue how lucky they were that they were with him, because, well, he had a wonderful big gigantic heart. They didn’t care much about that because what they saw was the long hair, and the sexy face, and the gorgeous eyes, and the Harley Davidson that was parked outside the Bar, and of course, they saw the Bar with the cash register that went ca-ching, ca-ching, ca-ching, ca-ching every single minute on every single night, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights when you couldn’t even get into the Bar because it was so crowded. I asked him once, while a few young sexily clad women were draped all over him, what it felt like to be Mick Jagger, he said, “Good, real fucking good. This pays dividends.”

Gary died in a motorcycle accident. 

But before he died in a motorcycle accident, he went to the Caribbean, where his boat capsized and he was all alone, literally, in the middle of the ocean, clinging to both his life for four days, and a new found God, and it appeared that God found him, and he, Gary, said he remembered so much while his skin was literally baking in the sun: every nuance of his life flashed in front of him. He begged for forgiveness, he screamed at injustice, he wept at his horrible relationship with his parents, he was pissed at himself that he let the one girl he loved get away, he was out-loud livid that two of his close friends screwed him out of money, he was grateful that he could build a bar, and refurbish all the rooms in his gorgeous townhouse with his bare hands, he was deeply appreciative that he was generous and kind and that he truly deeply loved life. And he also, while baking in the sun, remembered that a psychic told him that he would die before he was fifty, and that in fact his death would be categorized as two fold, because he would actually “die twice.”

“What fucking bullshit. No one can die twice.”

He swore that the psychic ‘broad’ was completely nuts, “a fucking fruitcake.”

So, while he was both clinging to life and the capsized boat, he made a deal with God, to let him live just a little longer so he could make sure that he said good bye properly to all the folks he loved.

He lived just another year or so.

Big and bright sun, public domain. By Allison Breskin. 

And in that year or so he prayed every day to God, he went to church, he became a born-again, he found peace and faith, he gained weight, and met a woman who was close to his age and had some poundage, and one could even categorize her as an Earth Mother, and what was most beautiful about her was in fact her spirit and her laugh and the lines around her eyes. I told him she was the sexiest woman he had ever been with. “Yeah,” he said, “This one’s a triple AAA rating.”

And in that year or so, he managed to tell everyone he loved that he loved them all dearly and with all his heart. And a few folks who screwed him royally, he told them to rethink their lives. And a couple of the girls who draped themselves over him, he managed to tell them to stop hanging on to men, stand tall, and don’t give it away to some schmuck who has a wad of money, and no intent on ever getting married.

He was killed in a motorcycle accident. Coming home from Long Island on one of those long crazy summer weekends.

He would tell you, if he were alive, that yes, that was in fact called two fold, and the first time he died – clinging to life on a capsized boat – that in fact it was he who saved himself, but he gave all the credit to God, because he made a deal, and Gary never reneged on a deal.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Frank Kopet)

Have you read this intro already more than once? 
If so, skip down to Frank!
And please scroll through the rest of of the entries so far! 
They're all wonderful. 

As some of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today's post is from wonderful writer friend Frank Kopet.

Frank is one of the most energetic, inspirational guys I know. He's the author of the Tomorrow trilogy plus his connected YA story, Sarah's Tomorrow, a number of plays and other written works of art.

Here's Frank, with a staggering and heart-tugging moment of magical connection:

It was June 2006 and we traveled from Connecticut to our Georgia home.  Our family was still mourning the loss of our eldest son Christopher and we arrived at our favorite retreat with very heavy hearts. Chris lived in Alabama, about hundred miles west of our Georgia property. He suffered for over a year with Leukemia and equally so from the various forms of treatment. He died in February 2006.

We pulled into the garage and did the usual unloading, robotically, and settled in. This was the Friday before Father’s Day.

On Father’s Day the wonderful telephone calls came. We rejoiced and laughed and yet the void of another voice tugged at our hearts.  

Just an old folder, right? 

I don’t know the reason why but I went into the garage and a manila folder rested on top of some moving boxes.  It did not belong there. Our files were located in the house. The moment I touched the simple folder, a paper fell out. 

It was a child’s drawing celebrating Father’s Day. It was a handmade card that I received a long time ago from Chris. 

- Frank Kopet

Please check out Frank's books, and don't forget to order your copy of THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO from your favorite indie bookstore or brick & mortar. 

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Grant Jerkins)

If you've read this intro more than twice, I forbid you to read it again. Just go straight to ordering my book. ;) 

As some of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults officially comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and/or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Karma or coincidence? Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Ah, today I have my friend Grant Jerkins, author of the seriously page-turning crime novels, A Very Simple Crime, The End of the Road, The Ninth Step, and a forthcoming one in January 2015.  If you've missed any of them, what is wrong with you?

At any rate, Grant has his own interpretation of this topic (and so, I may have felt the need to chime in at times. . . that's me in red. . . and, um, I may have added a footnote or two. Grant knows why. . . ) Anyway, here he is:

Gae asked me to contribute some kind of spook story to her blog. 

(Gae: That is a LIE. Nobody said "spook story," but whatever).

Well, okay. I’ll share a story. This story is not going to end with the words, “And it was the ghost of Abraham Lincoln!” though. I can tell you that much.

(Ahem. Fine. Whose did? Whatever. Just share!)

The thing is, I don’t really believe in all that crap. Except I kind of do. I don’t have some big drawn out story about how the spirit of my aunt Edna intervened from beyond the grave and saved my life.

(For a guy without a big drawn out story, you sure are talking a lot. But, seriously, Grant, who does? Have a drawn out story, I mean. We ALL have an aunt Edna, don't we? fn1. The stories shared thus far have been short and sweet and subtle, right?)

could this be a sign of Grant's mother?

But I do have little things I’ve experienced over the years. Like walking into an empty room to find that it smells strongly of a man’s cologne, and my immediate thought being that my long-dead grandfather was in the room with me.

Or watching a tiny fluffy feather float down and land at my feet, and for some reason believing that my mother just wanted to let me know that she was still with me. That she watched over me. 

Or how sometimes a Cardinal will alight on the handrail of my back deck, its deep red plumage demanding my attention. The bird seems to be watching me. And I always think the Cardinal has been sent by a friend who, in life, took great pride in dressing up in bright colors and making herself beautiful.

See? That's all I meant. No "spook stories."

So maybe all that stuff is real, and maybe it’s not. More important, I think, is if we choose to make it real. Because we can do that, you know. We can make it real.

We can choose to believe.fn2 Whether it’s really real is beside the point. Are you feeling me?

(I believe it is you, feeling me).

If a feather floats down through the air and lands at your feet, and your first thought is, “That’s Aunt Edna,” then go with that. Feel the love.

Or if someone close to you passed away and you feel guilty because there were bad feelings between you, and that feather makes you feel like the person is trying to tell you that you’re forgiven, then go with it. Feel the forgiveness. Because the feeling—that love or that forgiveness—it’s real.

(Yay, you're with me, Grant! You are with me! See?!) 

I remember one time, I was walking through the parking lot of our local Big Lots, and I looked down. There was a penny on the asphalt. Bright and shiny and glinting in the sun. It caught my eye.

I reached down for the penny. It was face-up. And so I stopped and wondered who would have put that penny in my path so that it would be there for me at that time on that day. And it was the ghost of Abraham Lincoln.

- Grant

(and, gae).

footnotes:

1. I don't really have an aunt Edna, don't tell anyone.

2. Actually, when I talk about THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, this is one of the things I talk about... that I didn't necessarily set out to answer the big questions of reincarnation in the story, so much as explore how we are open to magic and connections when we need them the most, and so, in the end, whether those connections are real or perceived is actually beside the point. So, good work here, Grant. ;) 


Please check out THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO and all of Grant's books including his newest, THE NINTH STEP. 

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO: Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Stacy Overman Morrison)

If you've read this intro before, feel free to skip down to Stacy's post!

As many of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults officially comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all just be coincidences, but maybe are “something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and/or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Karma or Coincidence? Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have Stacy Overman Morrison, author of Comfort of Fences. Her story is so compelling and poignant.

I was raised in a speaking-in-tongues, hellfire-and-brimstone home. God wasn’t to be loved as much as feared, so when I left home, I left any relationship with the Divine, too. For years I professed Atheism but there was still a yearning for something more, the belief of something bigger than myself that unites us all. Like any good autodidact, I turned to books for my salvation and encountered the idea of talking aloud to the Divine, of asking for signs. So I asked for Skeeter to tell me that there is something more after this life.

Skeeter was my older, brilliant, kind cousin. He lived with us one summer and he gave me the stars above and the rocks below. Carrying me on his back, he pointed out constellations and sitting at the table he read me geology books while feeding me popcorn popped on the stove in the little tented aluminum pans. He gave me his time. Then he left to go back to finish his degree, get married, get a job, become a man. He never accomplished that last part. He was killed on an oil rig. The contraption that carries the pipe came loose, hit him in the neck and killed him instantly. He was 21.

Skeeter on his wedding day. 

When I decided to start talking to Spirit, I talked to Skeeter most. It took a while before I was brave enough to ask for that sign, the one that confirmed for me that we still go on. I was on the way to our grandparents’ 60th wedding anniversary and I thought, Skeeter, I’m ready. If there is something more, I’m ready for you to show me. My three year old daughter sitting next to me spoke up: “Momma, you know that show Doug? My favorite in that show is Skeeter.” 

I have never doubted an afterlife since. I still search for meaning, for my path, for answers, and that searching is its own religion of sorts. And I still speak aloud to those who have passed. I do not have to be certain how it all works; I just trust it does. 

- Stacy 

Please remember to check out THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO and COMFORT OF FENCES, and please share your own Karma or Coincidence story in the comments if you'd like! 

- gae

The Summer of Letting Go - Karmic Countdown (Elana Johnson)

SKIP, skip, skip this intro if you've read it five times before! 

As some of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all be coincidences, “but something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Random or something magical at work?” 

I hope you find these stories as intriguing and lovely as I do.

- gae

Today I have Elana Johnson, author of Possession, Surrender and Abandon, and a brand new contemporary, Elevated, released for Kindle, February 18th.  

Here's the write-up for the story, which I think sort of fits the whole karma or coincidence theme:

The last person seventeen-year-old Eleanor Livingston wants to see on the elevator--let alone get stuck with--is her ex-boyfriend Travis, the guy she's been avoiding for five months.

Plagued with the belief that when she speaks the truth, bad things happen, Elly hasn't told Trav anything. Not why she broke up with him and cut off all contact. Not what happened the day her father returned from his deployment to Afghanistan. And certainly not that she misses him and still thinks about him everyday.

But with nowhere to hide and Travis so close it hurts, Elly's worried she won't be able to contain her secrets for long. She's terrified of finally revealing the truth, because she can't bear to watch a tragedy befall the boy she still loves.

Here's Elana, with a lovely, simple moment triggered by a celestial view:

I definitely do not think our lives are random. I do believe there is “something bigger and magical at work.” I have had many experiences in my life that strengthen my belief in this, but one happened when I was a teenager. I grew up in a very rural community (not even a gas station in town!), and the night sky was brilliant.

I had just attended a youth activity for a church I was not a member of. I was riding my bike home, admiring the stars and moon in the deep black sky that you can only find in parts of the world where there are no city lights to mar it.

I wasn’t sure about the youth group, or if I would go back, but as I rode home that night, I realized how happy I was, and how there was something out there – I remember thinking, In the universe, maybe? – that was bigger (and more magical) than me. I felt small and insignificant, but I knew going to the youth group would be good for me. So I continued to attend. 

- Elana

Please check out Elevated and all of Elana's books, and, of course, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, which should be popping up on shelves everywhere any day now. :) 

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO - Karma or Coincidence? Countdown (Alyse Carlson a/k/a Hart Johnson)

If you've read this intro already, you can skip right down to the guest post!

As some of you may know, THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, my second novel for young adults comes out March 25th from Algonquin Young Readers.

THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO tells the story of almost-16-yr-old Francesca “Beans” “Frankie” Schnell who, four years ago witnessed her baby brother, Simon, drown. Guilty and broken, Francesca has hunkered down in the shadows of her life, resolved to play second fiddle to her dead brother’s memory and to her best friend Lisette, a blonde bubbly beauty Francesca lives vicariously through. That is, until she meets a young boy named Frankie Sky who bears an uncanny resemblance to her brother. Frankie brings humor and hope to Francesca’s life, but are all the similarities between Frankie and Simon merely wishful coincidences, or could he be Simon’s reincarnation?

Curious coincidences abound in THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO —not only the overlaps between Simon and Frankie Sky, but also Bradley’s gift to Francesca, Bradley’s bird sighting, and the ties to the statue of  Saint Florian (you'll have to read to know what these are ;)). Midway through the story Francesca starts to think these events can’t really all just be coincidences, but maybe are “something bigger and magical at work.”

Have you ever experienced strange events that seemed like more than coincidence and made you wonder if fate was at work or that soul and or reincarnation exist?

Throughout the month, I've decided to pose that question to friends, some writers, others bearing other artistic talents, for a brief account of their own experience with karma, kismet or a mystical connection. I leave you to answer the question, “Karma or coincidence? Random or something magical at work?” 

- gae

Today I'm excited to have my friend Hart Johnson (a/k/a Alyse Carlson) author of The Garden Society Mysteries, here, which is doubly exciting because TODAY the third book in the series, Keeping Mum, releases! Happy book birthday, Hart!

You can follow her blog tour HERE where she's the amazingly witty, lovely, and naked  (okay, fake naked maybe. . . maybe . . .) blogger over at Confessions of a Watery Tart. Here's Hart's story:


Is That You, Dad?

I had the odd good fortune to be the oldest of an oldest, and three of my grandparents were second oldest, so when I was born I had 6 or 7 great grandparents. I remember all my great grandmothers and only one great grandfather, but I'm pretty sure there were more of them. What this means that has relevance to my tale is that as a child little-known old people died with some regularity. In the course of things, I think it's made me more philosophical and less catastrophizing where death is concerned. It happens to us all.

Who it shouldn't happen to is a vital young man. My dad was thirty-one. He was a loud, somewhat wild outdoorsman outwardly, at least when the beer flowed. He liked to hunt and whitewater raft. He had obnoxious dart-fart contests with my Uncle Bruce. He taught me some sports, but also couldn't be counted on to be home for dinner because he was still at the bar with the boys. There was never any doubt he loved my mom and me, but he never did grow up—he died driving drunk when I was ten years old.

Hart and her handsome dad. . . frozen in time. 

In my tween and early teen years I had daydreams about him showing up again—fantasies. But my first real blast, and it preceded me ever learning anything about reincarnation (I grew up in a small 98% Protestant town) was sitting on a swing at the park when I was in my mid teens. I spent a fair bit of time there, mostly because it was a good destination to ensure I walked past the house of a particular cute boy a couple times a week. As I sat on the swing watching smaller kids a little boy who'd been running and laughing ran up in front of me and stopped short. He stared at me for the longest time with recognition, and I saw it, too. We just looked at each other and I had the craziest feeling. It felt like my dad. His mom called him over, but I couldn't shake it and he kept looking back at me.

I don't know how all that really works. I believe it is all energy-based, but whether life energy stays cohesive enough to pass fully into another being, I doubt I'll ever know, but the couple encounters I've had like that since then have been oddly comforting. Like people aren't really gone and they will make themselves known now and then.

- Alyse a/k/a Hart

Please check out THE SUMMER OF LETTING GO, Keeping Mum and all the GARDEN SOCIETY MYSTERIES by Alyse Carlson. And please share your karma or coincidence stories in the comments if you want!