Write On

Murdock Mansion

As mentioned in the past, I have been struggling with my next writing project. I guess the main problem is that there are several projects that I have been working on, but I am not sure any of them is worthy of being made into a book. Yes, that nay-saying critic on my shoulder has been working overtime. As my mind turns towards 2014 and what I would like to accomplish, I realize I need to focus on one thing. But which one to choose?

And then it came to me as I was reading an article about the celebrations that will be taking place in St. Louis next year. The city will be 250 years old in 2014! (If you are interested, here is the website about all the activities that will be taking place.) They say timing is everything with a book launch, so wouldn't it be great to have a book about John J. Murdock ready to go next year? After all, he is a true rags to riches to rags story. He came to St. Louis as a young man and rubbed shoulders with the movers and shakers in the city at that time. His business as an auctioneer and investments in downtown real estate certainly influenced the history of the city.

This is my public declaration that 2014 will be the year of John Murdock. All of my attention will be focused on researching him, his business and the land he owned in St. Louis County. At the end of the day, will there be enough information for a book? I don't know at the moment. But at the least I can write an in depth article about the man and the myths surrounding him. Wish me luck!

A Life in Parts Book Launch

Publisher Nancy Baumann

Last night my husband and I attended the book launch of A Life in Parts at the Hyatt in downtown St. Louis. You know you are having a successful launch when it is so big that it needs to be held in a hotel ballroom! Over 400 people pre-registered for the event and judging by the books on the table when we arrived, many took advantage of the opportunity to purchase the book ahead of time and pick it up at the event. I wanted to attend the launch to show support of fellow St. Louis Publishers Association member Nancy Baumann, owner of Stonebrook Publishing and publisher of this book. But I was also eager to hear the story behind how this book came into fruition. With a Foreword by Heather Mills and back cover endorsements from Cindy Crawford and Sir Paul McCartney, I was very intrigued.

A Life in Parts details the actual life events of Loretta Goebel - an ordinary day when a chance blow to her hand ended up costing her both legs, one hand and most of the fingers of the other hand, and very nearly her life. Given only a 10% chance of survival, Loretta fought back and now shares her extraordinary story of faith, hope and encouragement to others. Her grace and poise along with her exceptional sense of humor make her a wonderful speaker.

I began to read the book last night, and while I am not too far into it yet I can see that it is a well-written and compelling story. I think that everyone who reads it will certainly come to better appreciate their own lives and hopefully learn to embrace each day and take nothing for granted.

Loretta Goebel

Loretta Goebel removes her arm