Author: V.L. Brunskill

‘Waving Backwards’ Book Launch Reminds that Family is All

/ V.L. Brunskill / Leave a comment

To say I was nervous on Friday July 10th is an understatement. I arrived at the Marriott Riverfront in Savannah a couple of hours early for set up and to  sign dozens of pre-sale books. My niece who was visiting from North Carolina sat in the passenger seat assuring me that it would be a grand success. She was one of many angels who helped me shine that night.

After speaking to spectacular Marriott staffer, Cindy Johnson, about the arrangement of food tables, I was finally able to greet my publisher Terri Gerrell of SYP Publishing. She found me a signing spot at a large table, suggesting that I sit and breath. She reminded me that I was the author.booklaunch5

I watched as the lobby was transformed into a sparkling party place. Musician Greg Williams arrived on time, wearing a guitar and easy smile. The palm rose maker, Peanut (the oldest artisan on River Street) sashayed  in with a shoulder loaded with palm fronds. Plans fell into place. Imaginings became reality.

Like the moment when a storm passes, and a first ray of sunlight appears, the literary launch I had dreamed of was born. Three years prior, as I sat in the same lobby writing Waving Backwards, I had no way of knowing that we would launch the book there. I did not even know if the book would be published.booklaunch9

Perched happily at my very first book signing table on Friday night, I had hardly taken a breath before a stream of well-wishers arrived. Family, friends, new friends, book lovers, tourists, all stopped to say hello; purchase a book; take a photo. When the first reader asked to have her photo taken with me, I glanced over my shoulder wondering if she meant someone else.booklaunch2

An hour or so into the signing, a voice rose above the murmur of party goers. It was instantly recognizable, and transported me back to the age of seven. I said, “That cannot be the voice I think it is.” When I finished signing the book in front of me, I looked up and there stood a woman I had not seen in a dozen years. It was my adoptive mother’s youngest sister. The aunt who taught me about Barbies and The Beatles had traveled from New York to Savannah to attend my book launch.

In rare moments, when I was able to pause from signing and look around that booklaunch6night, I witnessed my biological and adoptive families in a wash of commonality that sent shivers down my spine. My birth mother posed with my adoptive mother. My adoptive and blood brothers discussed movies and shared a toast. My nieces from both sides of the adoption triad chatted, smiled, shared.

I searched thirteen years to find my biological family, and while they have met my adoptive family before, this was the first celebration we shared as one brood, one clan, one bright reminder of the importance of nature and nurture.

My friends too, joined the fray of family that night as they learned who I look like, who I grew with, who I love, and who loves me back. From our local book club; to a group  I spend Sundays with exploring the world via documentaries; the night was a perfect celebration of the ‘Waving Backwards’ message.booklaunchbertice

Family is all. No matter how they come to join you, family is made of the connections that define us. 

Open records for all adoptees at age eighteen, and access to Original Birth Certificates (OBCs) is essential! All adoptees deserve to experience the completeness and co-mingling that permeated my book launch.

The time for adoptee rights is now.

Blessings and thanks to everyone who attended the Waving Backwards book launch. Thank you city of Savannah, friends and family!  I love you!
Hugs, V.L.

——

Twitter- @RockMemoir
Facebook- www.facebook.com/vlbrunskill
Waving Backwards– http://www.syppublishing.com/waving-backwards/
Amazon author page- amazon.com/author/vlbrunskill

Independence Day Giveaway- Autographed Novel ‘Waving Backwards’

/ V.L. Brunskill / Leave a comment

Happy Independence Day!

For adoptees, independence is the finding of biological family. My  independence day was July 1, 1992, when I spoke to my birth mother for the first time. After a daunting 7-year search, that emotional 30-minute conversation revealed more facts about my history then I’d known in my previous 28 years on earth. My blank slate of biological connection was filled. I was whole.

On this 4th of July, in celebration of every adoptee’s right to know who they are and where they come from, I am giving away three (3) autographed copies of my Savannah novel Waving Backwards. The book follows New York native Lara Bonavito on a quest to discover her roots in Savannah, Georgia.

All of us who have searched (or are in search) know the truth of this line from the book-

‘Agreeing to move forward was easier than finding. Setting aside what has always been true to make room for new truths is the most agonizing agreement yet. Searching has been difficult, but finding may destroy every reality she’s ever known.’

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Waving Backwards, A Savannah Novel by V.L. Brunskill

Waving Backwards, A Savannah Novel

by V.L. Brunskill

Giveaway ends July 17, 2015.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

In case FREE is not incentive enough to click above, here’s what a couple of amazing authors had to say about Waving Backwards. Yes, I’m blushing!

“In her debut novel, music journalist to the stars, V.L Brunskill, intricately weaves the very complex issues of a modern day Northern adoption-seeker into the historical quilt and Southern charm of a place I now call home. Brava! Waving Backwards: A Savannah Novel, has something for every reader.” Bertice Berry, PhD., Best-Selling Author of Redemption Song and The Ties That Bind

“Waving Backwards is a compelling reminder of the need we all feel to know who we are and where we came from, and when that quest comes with a cryptic clue, a memorable romance and the charm only a city like Savannah can provide, we rush along with determined Lara Bonavito to uncover the ultimate truths.” John Warley, Author of A Southern Girl, Bethesda’s Child, and The Moralist.

Blessings for a good read and independence for every adoptee,

V.L. Brunskill

—-
Follow me on Twitter- @RockMemoir
Like my Facebook page- www.facebook.com/vlbrunskill
Amazon author page- amazon.com/author/vlbrunskill
Waving Backwards book trailer- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_ufjmq0l-U

Amazon Author Page- Almost as Exciting as a Polar Bear

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World stop spinning, my Amazon author page is live! Every writer who has ever penned a novel must get a secret tingle when their sales shingle is slung up on Amazon.com.  While Amazon has had a few pricing wars with publishing houses, it (along with Barnes & Noble) remain the hub of online book sales.  (Yes, dear readers. I prefer independent book stores.)

More than 36 months have passed since I started writing my debut novel Waving Backwards, and its ‘at-last’ appearance on Amazon.com has me reflecting on my first taste of literary notoriety.

I took to writing in elementary school. I started with a journal, which I addressed to a secret confidant named Lovey. I shared with Lovey my pop-star crushes, and secret wishes. Unlike my friends, a fair amount of my childhood journal was about heaven, hell, and dreams of finding my biological family. The writing was heartfelt and heavy.

However, my first notoriety as a writer was light and lovely. In a suburban New York classroom, I watched as my 4th grade teacher tacked up a poster that would launch me into the dangerous world of elementary school gossip. The shiny poster showed a fierce looking polar bear perched on a glacial plain. All eyes stared when the teacher announced, “Girls and boys, we are having a poetry contest.”

Youthful chatter and enthusiasm bubbled. I was the rhyming queen, and sure that I would win the poster, and colored pencil set. All  I had to do was write a poem about the subject. Easy, peasy! This is what I turned in the following day-

Did you ever see a polar bear,
so big, white and furry?
I’d sure hate to be in one’s way,
when it’s in a hurry.

Not exactly Shakespeare, but it did the trick. In front of the entire class, I was presented with a first place certificate and badge. The teacher had me read my poem (my first public reading). It was a dazzling moment, until…Tommy told a lie.

To my utter disbelief, Tommy Sciarello (name changed to protect the not-so-innocent) raised his hand and said, “Miss Anderson, I read that poem in a magazine.” Glaring he continued, “She copied it.”

In shock, I defended myself. “I did not.” I started to cry. Miss Anderson pried the certificate from my hand saying, ‘Well Tommy, plagiarism is a serious accusation. I will look into it. Please be seated, Vicki-lynn.”

Sideward stares and whispers plagued me for the rest of the day. Lunch was hell. Noone wanted to sit with ‘the cheater’. I went home and cried to my mother. She consoled me, telling me that the teacher had called, and was assured that I had not stolen the poem.

The next day, Miss Anderson reinstated my prize, certificate and badge. She also  posted my name on the bulletin board with a gold emblem that said ‘winner’. She admonished Tommy, and explained to the class the meaning of plagiarism and why it should be taken seriously. I beamed for a week, and waved a colored pencil at Tommy every time I passed his desk.

While my Amazon.com author page is thrilling, the lessons learned from my first (somewhat public) writing accomplishment will always hold a special place in my heart.

Blessings that boys with crushes never try to crush you,

V.L.
Twitter- @RockMemoir
Facebook- www.facebook.com/vlbrunskill
My novel Waving Backwards– http://www.syppublishing.com/waving-backwards/

Curry Conundrum Proves Hilton Hotels have Heart

/ V.L. Brunskill / Leave a comment

We recently took a family vacation to Baltimore, Maryland. We stayed in a hotel close to the Baltimore Convention Center, where a Muslim Convention was underway.  Thousands of men, woman and children in a wide array of Middle Eastern garb milled about our hotel, creating a kaleidoscope of colorful activity.

With our daughter off with a friend at a concert, my husband and I stopped by the Baltimore Hilton to a have a drink. Upon entering the hotel, we inhaled an overwhelming scent of Indian spice. Approaching the bar with my usual wide smile, I said to the bartender, “Smells like curry in here.”curry-powder.s600x600

The African-American bartender’s face twisted in shock. He looked me in my still smiling eyes and said, “With a racist comment like that, I don’t have to serve you.”

My husband thought he was joking and continued toward a bar stool. I looked up at the bartender’s twisted expression and said to my husband, “He wasn’t joking.” The bartender repeated the racist accusation.  Well, you could have blown me over with an exhale.

I have been accused of a few things in my life, but being a racist is not one them. I am a staunch defender of equality. I believe from the bottom of my ambitious boots to the top of my hard-earned graying roots, that to judge a person by their color, lifestyle choice, or religion is the purest form of ignorance.

My curry comment was an observation. (P.S.- I love curry.) Yet, it was turned against me in Baltimore, a city lambasted in the media for its recent handling of racial issues. I left the Hilton outraged, angry and insulted. Back in Savannah, I e-mailed Hilton’s CEO, Managing Director and Public Relations Director.

Hilton’s management replied quickly via phone and e-mail. They offered apologies, re-training of its Baltimore staff, and a free stay at the hotel. I mulled the offer over for a few days, deciding that the incident (which is hilarious to those who know me well) should end with a positive. I was determined to create love in hate’s backyard.

This was my reply to Hilton.

“Thank you for your response. I appreciate that Hilton has handled the issue, and your offer to stay as your guest in your hotel. I have been thinking about the offer, and would like to turn this negative experience into something positive.

I would like to accept the complimentary hotel stay and donate it to the Believe in Tomorrow Children’s Foundation. This organization runs a house across from Dana Farber Children’s Hospital in Baltimore. It is place for families to stay while their children undergo treatment. During the summer months the house is often full with a long waiting list.

There is a lot of ugliness in this world and my experience at the Hilton was hurtful. However, there are people who hurt from much heavier burdens.”

I am happy to report that Hilton has opened its heart and will donate my ‘curry comment’ stay to the Believe In Tomorrow Children’s Foundation.

So what have I learned from this experience?

  • Where assumptions and hate reside, love can prosper.
  • Turning the page past anger takes power from the unjust, and frees a spirit of giving.
  • Curry is one powerful spice.

Blessings for a day seasoned with love and justice,
V.L. Brunskill

Twitter- @RockMemoir
Facebook- www.facebook.com/vlbrunskill
Pre-order a personalized copy of my novel Waving Backwards – http://www.syppublishing.com/waving-backwards

A Post Mother’s Day Tribute to Two Mothers

/ V.L. Brunskill / 4 Comments

As Mother’s Day is folded and tucked away like a treasured quilt, it is hard for me to imagine a more blessed weekend. I had the good fortune of engaging in a day of celebration with each of my mothers.

The mothers in my life wear labels cast upon them by society and the process that brought them to, and removed them from, my life. They are my birth mother and adoptive mother.  No matter what the labels, they reside in my heart with an enormity so wondrous that at times I feel it will burst.mom

While some take the existence of a maternal figure for granted, I count both of my mothers as blessings hard won, and hard kept. I was born into a world that was not ready, and in her desperate need to see me well, my birth mother made a tortured exit from the hospital with empty arms.

After foster care, I was placed for adoption seven months later. While my adoptive family was not the safe haven my birth mother envisioned, my home was survivable because of the heartfelt love of a woman who never once questioned her role as my caregiver. She lifted me from the crib at the adoption agency and never looked back. In sickness, in health, in torture, in want, in love, she became my mother.Nana

During the seven-year search for my birth mother, I was not looking for a replacement mother. I wanted roots, a face and name to stitch myself too. I was never content to just be. I felt an existential craving to know the place from which I came. I could not move on in life without a biological connection, without touching the face of the woman on whose belly I rested after being born.

I hold in my soul a deep bond with both of my mothers. Their fragility, endurance, and lifelong search for happiness, are life lessons that allow me to smile and forge on.  No industry label can fairly represent the way in which these women became the nurture, and nature of who I am.

They are my earth link, and angels. They are loved far beyond Mother’s Day dinners and swapping of gifts. Without either, I would be so much less.
Love you ladies!

Blessings that all mothers know their worth,

V.L. Brunskill

———————-
~SAVE THE DATE~
SYP Publishing cordially invites you to the launch party for
Waving Backwards, a Savannah novel by V.L. Brunskill
Imagine not knowing who you are,
until you find yourself in a statue 800-miles from home.
July 10, 2015 6-9PM ET at the Savannah Marriott Riverfront.

Pre-orders now available at  Southern Yellow Pine Publishing /Waving Backwards.

 

 

You’re Invited to the ‘Waving Backwards’ Book Launch Party

/ V.L. Brunskill / Leave a comment

You have never experienced an adoption search mystery like this.
Adoptionfind readers, it is with great pleasure that I invite you to the book launch party for my Savannah Novel Waving Backwards.

invitation
To learn more about the book,
or pre-order,
and get your copy personalized by me,
visit

 

Hope to meet you there in July!
Blessings for a shared Savannah adventure,
V.L. Brunskill

Suicide and Adoption: We Need to Stop Whispering

/ V.L. Brunskill / 1 Comment

Unknown's avatarLight of Day Stories

Just this morning, as I was getting ready to post this, I read on my Facebook feed about a 28-year-old Korean adoptee who died by suicide two days ago. I did not know her. She was the same age as my oldest son, and she had a daughter about the age of my granddaughter. May she rest in peace.

I am holding in my heart a 20-something-year-old adoptee, adopted with a biological sibling into a huge adoptive family (more than 25 kids). He is overwhelmed all the time these days, as a result of things he has done and has had done to him. He wants to go home, though he’s not sure any longer where “home” is. He is in great need of mental health services, and is intently resisting help. He is teetering on the edge of suicide.

Yes, I know most adoptees do well. But this one…

View original post 1,051 more words

Where Books Meet Brawn- Author Pat Conroy Opens Fitness Center

/ V.L. Brunskill / 1 Comment

What does one wear to the grand opening of a fitness center? Sweatpants? A tidy leotard and tights? Perhaps in ordinary circumstances,  but this was the opening of an extraordinary venue by an extraordinary man.

It was a literary event. In attendance wMinaConroy_Logo-300x300ere a smorgasbord of smart folks, some lean, some (like myself) a tad round due to countless hours spent sitting, suffering and searching for inspired prose.  No matter our fitness level or girth, we all held in common a deep adoration of the 69-year-old, southern author at the helm of the proceedings.

On April 3, 2015, I dragged my flabby fiction-writing self to the opening of the Mina & Conroy Fitness center at 832 Paris Avenue in Port Royal, South Carolina.  Pat Conroy, author of such masterful literary works as Beach Music, The Great Santini, South of Broad, The Water is Wide, Prince of Tides, and The Lords of Discipline, co-owns the center with Japan native Mina Truong, his former YMCA trainer.conroy2

Conroy blogged about the healthful inspiration for opening a fitness center in this blog entry, which is written as if Japanese goddess Benzaiten smiled upon on every flowing, hilarious word. Read it, you will be glad you did.

Nestled amid quaint cottage shops on Port Royal’s picturesque Paris Avenue, the studio is a small, but mighty, exercise venue with walls of sparkling new equipment, designed to make even the most stubborn, desk-dwelling author break a sweat.

Pat Conroy and his wife Cassandra King (author of Moonrise, Queen of Broken Hearts, The Same Sweet Girls, The Sunday Wife, and Making Waves) signed books at the party. While studio space was tight, there was nary a complaint, as rapt friends and fans stood in line clutching cute book signing number cards (which were ditched at #42 when crowd control was deemed unnecessary). Apparently, we literary fitness fans are a polite bunch.

In case you’re wondering, I wore a skirt; had two beloved books signed; garnered priceless writing encouragement; and nearly swooned when Pat kissed me on the cheek.

To learn more about the studio, or sign up for a session check out the Mina & Conroy Facebook page, or give them a give them a call (843) 263-0548.

Blessings for a state of supreme literary fitness,

V.L.

——————————————————————
~SAVE THE DATE~
SYP Publishing cordially invites you to the launch party for
Waving Backwards, a Savannah novel by V.L. Brunskill
Imagine not knowing who you are,
until you find yourself in a statue 800-miles from home.
July 10, 2015 6-9PM ET at the Savannah Marriott Riverfront.