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Recognitions

Joan McNulty Pulver

Welcome to Recognitions, a column designed to celebrate the writing successes of Writers' Village University members!

Lorraine Little's story, "Jump, Laurie, Jump," will appear in the book, 2Do Before I Die. Writing under the pen name, Laurie Little, she said, “It is a non-fiction memoir I wrote in response to an essay contest sponsored by the 2Do Before I Die website. I learned about the website, and contest, at WVU.” 2Do Before I Die, published by Little-Brown, Inc., will hit bookstores April 15, 2005.

“My round face beamed with delight and I felt all warm and fuzzy inside when I received notification that my essay was chosen for the book. I am still a little stunned by the whole thing and don't think it will all feel real until I see the book in print and my name in it!”

Better known to her Writers’ Village University buddies as Little Laurie, Lorraine is beginning her third year of membership. She participates in the Children's Hour and the Non-fiction study groups, and is group leader of The Time Trading Nortonians Rule study group. “I love WVU, especially the study groups, and have learned a great deal about writing from many of the talented and dedicated WVU members.”

“For years, I said, ‘Someday I am going to write a book’, but never took the idea to heart. I was encouraged to write by a college professor, and even in elementary school, often found my works read aloud by teachers. When I hit my middle-aged crazy years, I decided to give the craft a concentrated effort, and my life has not been the same since!”

Lorraine grew up reading Nancy Drew and Encyclopedia Brown mysteries. She moved onto popular classics like Shakespearean plays, Poe's macabre, and the odes and ballads of the Irish poets. “I became a great fan of romance fiction novels, especially Danielle Steele, during my twenties. I also enjoy works by such greats as Hemingway, Steinbeck, Vonnegut, and anything by Maya Angelou.”

She is a native of Toronto, Canada, but enjoys the southern California sunshine now. Lorraine lives in the middle of a citrus grove with a very supportive significant other, her thirteen-year-old son, and a few dogs, cats, birds, and fish. She works in the hospitality/restaurant industry, but hopes to leave that wacky world to join the even wackier world of professional writing.

Jim Hall’s essay, "What Happens When You Eavesdrop," will be in the April 2005 issue of the Online Journal of Dana Literary Society. “The theme of the essay is that long-term consequences can result from something superficially trivial; for example, a conversation overheard by chance, and the difference it made. This is my first non-fiction writing since my days as a newspaper reporter. And some of that was stranger than fiction.”

He attended Yale where he was the editor of Yale Literary Magazine, after which he taught school for 13 years. He designed, developed, and implemented software for the Federal Judicial Center and the Direct Mail industry. Jim is a lifetime member of WVU and facilitates the Poetry Workshop course.

Jim published Rites of Passage, an e-book of poetry, and A Balcony in Brooklyn, a trade paperback of short fiction, much of which is preliminary to a novel. “My approach to character development is to assume the persona of the character and write his diary periodically. This supplies the material for short stories about the character and his relationships with others in the cast.”

Medici Books, a publisher based in Pueblo, Colorado has offered to produce a print edition of Rites of Passage, as well as another book, Of Words and Webs, which is almost ready. “I do not have a contract in hand, although one has been promised, so this is an iffy proposition. I was to meet with the president of the firm, who is also the editor-in-chief, last week, but something undefined intervened, and I have heard no news since. The chickens are threatening to hatch, but all eggs are still intact.”

Jim publishes the quarterly proceedings of The Pueblo Poetry Project, a group that meets on the second, third and fourth Wednesdays of each month unless some holiday interferes. You can view the first issue on his web site and some other e-books as well.

There has been and is a strong writing community in Pueblo where Jim lives. It was the hometown of Damon Runyon, and The Damon Runyon Repertory Theater there, hosts the Poetry Project twice a month. “They treat us quite well. I have almost completed a one-act play for them, based on my story 'Not On Your Tintype'. That story is viewable on my website also, but the play is only about 95% finished.”

Deana Hoover’s short story, “Cabin on the Bayou,” resides in the anthology, Adumbra, published by Magellan Books. A talented painter as well as an author, her artwork was chosen to be on the cover of the book. When this came to the attention of the Editor in Chief of ePress-online, Deana was asked if she would like to try her hand at cover art for them. She agreed and quickly went to work on Return to UKOO, which was released in December. Her next art project, Cobweb on the Soul, will be released soon.

“When asked to do covers for books at ePress-online, it sounded like fun and a great opportunity. Honestly, book publishing being so elitist bothers me. There are so many restrictions placed on writers and breaking into the business is nearly impossible. The fact that ePress-online allows different genres and doesn't put a formulaic restriction on its writers, while still having guidelines for quality impresses me. Having a part in that is a great opportunity to work together as a writing community and support each other completely outside of the large chains and conglomerations. It’s fun to read a book and recreate the images onto canvas.”

Because of a neurological illness, Deana had to quit her job as a sign language interpreter. She decided to reinvent herself. “Just because I couldn’t work a forty-hour week didn’t mean I was going to give up. I knew there was something in me I could contribute. I knew how to tell stories, but I became determined to learn more about the craft of writing.”

Deana joined Writers’ Village University about two years ago. She fell in love with the format and was hooked right away. She quickly gained practical experience in point of view, self-editing, and other subjects every writer needs to understand. Deana volunteers as a facilitator at WVU. “I have taken so many of the classes and eventually became involved in facilitating. I love that, too. I never could have learned as much for the price anywhere else. I am interested in comedy writing, column writing, novels, mysteries, and science fiction/fantasy. I’m able to apply the lessons I learned at WVU to all of my writing and am not limited to one area.”

Visit Deana at her website to see how this talented author spends her free time, painting mainly in oils but also watercolor and acrylics, in addition to her writing.

Congratulations, Lorraine, Jim and Deana. We wish you continued success in all of your writing endeavors and thank you for sharing your information with us.

We look forward to reading about your writing accomplishments in this column. If you or someone you know received recognition for writing, please send the information to recognitions@wvu.org. Let us know!


About the Author
Joan McNulty Pulver, mother of five and grandmother of five, works as an Administrative Secretary for the State of Florida but considers her writing and editing to be her vocation. She is a columnist for T-Zero: The Writer’s E-Zine, a course developer and facilitator at Writers’ Village University and the Acquisitions Coordinator/Editor for ePress-online. Joan has had two short stories published and is currently working on a non-fiction book and a fantasy novel.