Author: Katie Slattery
Finding My Jewish Story
I EXPERIENCED EUROPE for the first time on a family trip in the summer of 1960. My seventeen-year-old romantic heart fell in love with Venice with its pastel buildings, sparkling water, twisting alleyways, and spires gleaming in the sun. Even the presence of my mother with her rules and judgements and my little sister with…
Creating a Book Cover that Works.
MARKETING A BOOK is probably one of the most difficult, complex, and challenging things a self-publishing author must tackle. An important component of the marketing effort is the book cover. As readers browse shelves or scroll on the web, a book has only a few seconds to catch their eye and make them reach for…
Finding the Women’s Story Buried in Immigrant Soldier
A Mother and Daughter Relationship Revealed. ________________________________________________________________________________________ I WAS COMPELLED TO WRITE my first novel, Immigrant Soldier, because the true story of my uncle’s role in Patton’s Third Army grabbed me and would not let me go. Herman’s Jewish blood branded him in Nazi eyes, forced him to flee his homeland, and landed him in the…
Origins of a Novel
EVERY TIME I HOLD one of the silver spoons in my hand, I remember. My thumb strokes the simple design on the handle, the capital L and the flat, crossed ribbons. I admire the elegant shape of the spoon, and I remember. It is not even my memory. It is my grandmother’s. I grew up…
A Personal Space
Wherever the Word Leads · Do you love reading and books? · Are you fascinated with WWII or the 1930s and 40s? · Are you interested in the process of writing and publishing? · Is travel your passion? Or reading about travel in your lounge chair? · Do you like trying new recipes and eating…
A Lifetime of Travel
In a previous blog I shared my collection of passports —a long line of documents that began when I was sixteen. These booklets, with their photos that reveal my gradually aging face and random visa stamps in red, green, and blue, represent a lifetime of travel. I also have a large box of travel journals,…
Balanced Memoirs of the Un-famous
Celebrity memoirs frequently appear on best seller lists, but what of the memoirs of the unfamous? If your name is well-known in the arts or politics, publishers will clamor for anything you might write. But, when a regular person with an interesting story writes a memoir, one of the first dilemmas they encounter is how…
Travel Photos to Bring Back Memories
Travel photos can help you remember highlights of your journey long after you are home again. They can remind you of special experiences and people you met along the way. Nothing beats a significant photo for bringing back memories. Too often, travelers limit themselves to photos of tourist views and selfies taken in front of…
Four Books about the Silk Road
For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by the Silk Road. Before adoption of the magnetic compass and advances in ship design in the early 1500s, this overland journey, also known as the Spice Road, served as the main trade route between China and Europe. Visions of camel caravans crossing the…
On the Hippie Trail with Two Brits
Some time ago, John found me through my web-site and emailed me in response to my interest in stories of about the Hippie Trail overland to India. Recently, he and I visited on Zoom. His story follows.