Ordinary to Extraordinary

 

    I want to tell you a quick story: 

    On May 1st, 1994, after a 4-month battle with Leukemia, my 51-year-old mother died at home in her bed. I was 23 years old at the time. After walking out of her room, I sat down in her old recliner and looked around; I saw her address book, her nail file, her slippers, all of it exactly where they’d always been. A bomb dropped on me at that moment; nothing had changed, but everything had changed. Everything was the same in that room, but nothing would ever be the same again. I knew a massive part of my life was in the next room, and I now had to bury her. But to anyone watching, they would have seen a young woman sitting in a tattered recliner, looking around. An ordinary moment to an outside observer. An extraordinary moment for me. 

    Everyone has at least one extraordinary moment. The observer would see ordinary behavior and think nothing of it: a door closing, a car driving away, a dish in the sink, a young woman looking around a room—benign actions of normal people. But the emotional tectonic plates beneath the surface are shifting violently. Molten hot rage, grief, regret, betrayal, loathing, jealousy, and more…all building pressure, threatening to explode. 

    Those extraordinary moments are when you pivot. Your path shifts ever-so slightly, and decisions are made because of those emotions that pulse beneath the surface. You go around or tunnel through, but both dictate the outcome. Writers are tunnel rats. We dig. We enjoy the dark. It sounds morose, but it’s true. 

    When approaching your own memoir, the extraordinary must be part of your project. The beautiful thing about those moments is that they are easy to locate. Just think back to a time when your world stopped spinning, the clocks stopped ticking, everything went silent, and you had to remind yourself to breathe. Those ripples in the fabric of your life became permanent, and they must be honored exactly as they are…heavy, emotional, and complicated. 

    So, what extraordinary moment put you where you are today? Think. Don’t dismiss the idea because it’s there. Our paths forked several times along the way and we had critical decisions to make. “Do I want to take this promotion or move to the new job?” “Do I want to re-enlist and hope I get selected for promotion, or do I get out and accept this civilian job?” “Do we really want more children?” 

    One question will always lead to others when you give yourself enough room to freely think of all possible outcomes and why you chose your current path. Remember, honoring the moments that made you is critical for others who are taking those first tentative steps down the same path.

Where do you begin?

Think back to when you were a child running and laughing at the park or school playground. Making friends was as easy as pulling up a pant leg, pointing at a scab or fresh scrape, and exclaiming, “LOOK AT THIS!” While most appreciated your injury, some gathered to show their own playground wounds.

As adults, we still compare scars. That’s how we build friendships and strengthen bonds. Sharing both success and failure keeps us relatable and reachable. The more successful we become, the more important relatability and reachability are in terms of how we are seen by those who work with us. Knowing your ‘why’ locks you on course. Why did you move? Why did you study engineering? Why did you resign? All of those things affected the trajectory of your life and inevitably altered the fabric of who you are as an individual.

It all begins with your story. Mitch Albom says it so brilliantly in his book For One More Day:

“But there's a story behind everything. How a picture got on a wall. How a scar got on your face. Sometimes, the stories are simple, and sometimes, they are hard and heartbreaking. But behind all your stories is always your mother's story because hers is where yours begins.”

Think of it like this…as we mature and our lives change, so does our ‘why.’ Those events are life’s rip currents where individuals can get trapped. They get pushed and pulled by opposing forces, unsure which direction is best. No matter the person, age, religion, sexual orientation, and education, most obstacles remain the same. That is where your story lives, snuggled between the cracks and dents of perceived perfection. Your story is a road map for others. Yes, you struggled to find your place as the new CFO of a failing company, or maybe you decided it was time to completely change your lifestyle after a scolding from your doctor. But HOW did you turn it around, and HOW did you motivate yourself to keep going when so many others had walked away?

            What seems ordinary to you is extraordinary to others. Making that distinction and honoring the moments that made you is critical to helping others who are taking their first tentative steps down the same path. So, start writing! Write about the bad decisions, good decisions, great moments, and horrible moments. Write about love and sorrow. But remember, there’s always value in learning about writing because a good story won’t save bad writing, but good writing can salvage a bad story.

 

 

Tom Turner has a conversation with Jesus...

The first two books the Proper Publishing team did with Tom Turner, he kept mentioning a manuscript he had been working on for decades. He spoke to us about how it was based on an actual event. We kept wondering if we would ever see the completed interior. 

Lo and behold, Tom finally brought us THE manuscript and to say we were excited is a massive understatement. We were all blown away by this book.

Working with Tom is always fun but this book was something special. It had a life of its own, a purpose and we could all feel it, which we talked with Tom about several times. All of us knew this was a special project and we were so proud that Tom trusted us with a manuscript so special. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If your faith is wavering, or if you're wanting to strengthen your faith, this is a must-read! It's the story of one man getting the opportunity to have a conversation with a deity that he understands is Jesus. He asks questions about faith, about life, about death, and about the world we live in...with Jesus answering each and every one. 

Wondering about the answers to those questions?
Get your copy by clicking HERE 

Pulling into the perfect Port

 Mark Milhoan has written a riveting story about loss, love, and how choices continue to create ripples years later. Working with Mr. Milhoan was a true honor that the entire Proper Publishing team  still talks about. It's rare to come in contact with someone who is so brilliant, they leave you feeling as if you need to go back to school IMMEDIATELY. Thank you for keeping us on our toes, Mr. Milhoan. You are a true gentleman. We highly recommend this man's book. As smart as he is...his storytelling capabilities are incredible. 

To get your copy click HERE

 

Congratulations on your trilogy Mr. Rozelle!

 So, when Mr. Rozelle contacted the Proper Publishing team and first indicated he had an actual trilogy he wanted to release at the same time...we were in shock. Most first-time authors struggle to complete ONE book. But to release THREE for your first journey into the world of publication? Well, that's just being an over-achiever! But he did it! 

For copies of this exciting mystery:

Part I click HERE

Part II click HERE

Part III click HERE 

 

--With edgy characters and a story that twists and turns, absolutely NOTHING is predictable in these three books. Settle in with your favorite drink and prepare to be happily transported. Order yours today!

Hollywood calling...

 At the beginning of June, the owner of our company, Mrs. Lewis, received an interview request from The History Channel. The producer/head writer of William Shatner's show, The UnXplained called and spoke with her, stating he had read her book, Bury your Dead. They spoke about a possible on-camera interview to be aired on an upcoming episode about burial rituals. After several emails back and forth, they eventually informed Mrs. Lewis that they had enough interviewee's for the episode and would complete shooting near the end of August, beginning of September. 

September 19th, Mrs. Lewis received notification from the producer that filming had been wrapped on the episode, titled Last Rites. He informed her "your book was very helpful in establishing a foundation for the unexplained aspects of this very dense topic."

To say we are proud of her is an understatement. Mrs. Lewis is one to lift others up without wanting the spotlight on herself. She doesn't know we are posting this on the company site but we all agree it's important we celebrate the woman that celebrates everyone else daily.

If you'd like to buy her amazing little book, click HERE. 

Newest best seller for S. Lewis

Sharing over two decades of writing and publishing knowledge, which includes tips on tackling your life story, and step-by-step guidance on every aspect of compiling a manuscript for publication or legacy. It also includes writing prompts and 365 days of morning pages to help you work your writing muscles. This is the fledgling writers guide for all things pertaining to writing and publication. Perfect for first time solo projects, workshops, writing or critique classes, elderly/VFW/DAV groups and any other individuals interested in recording their life story. An absolute must for writers considering publication.
Order by clicking HERE

Silent but BEYOND busy!

 We realize that our site has been silent for several months and it might appear to an outside observer that our business might be struggling. However, nothing could be further from the truth. We have come to the startling realization that we must turn clients away due to a staggering workload. 

If COVID19 has proven anything, it is that an isolated artist is a busy artist, which means WE are now almost literally drowning in work. Which, in turn, has led to a critical shutdown of all things non-essential (especially ironic given our circumstances) one of which has been regular site posts. 

Please forgive the silence but we hope you understand that it has been done for our own emotional wellness. We must prioritize and our loyal clients come first. Once we get them taken care of, we will open our services up, once again, to new clients and will update the site.

If you have questions that need to be answered now, please reach out via email (theproperpublisher@yahoo.com) and we'll respond as soon as possible. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your patience and kind messages of concern. We adore you all and keep writing and reading! 

"Spinning Insights" by Brenda Coleman

Congratulations to Brenda on the release of her first book, Spinning Insights. It was a true honor to work with such a tender soul. 

If you are searching for words to soothe a scarred heart, or balm for a tattered spirit, this book is exactly what you need and can be purchased HERE! 

"Talking to the Night" by Ora Wills

The majority of our clients publish stories that leave you in awe, however there is one client in particular that continues to make us so proud to simply be associated with her name.

Ora Wills is that client.

Aptly named the 'patron saint of the arts' in Pensacola, she has left an indelible mark on hundreds, if not thousands of young writers during her decades teaching English at Tate High School and her volunteer projects throughout the city, including Arts Quest.

Her latest book is a poetic journey from a young girls perspective, HER perspective in the South during the Jim Crow years. Heartbreaking while being both bitter and bittersweet, she chronicles in the most beautifully tender way, a child's innocence shattered by the murder of a family member. This is a MUST HAVE for every household struggling to find a way to teach young adults about tolerance. Order your copy HERE.

National Young Writers Contest "BLACK AND BLUE"

            Proper Publishing is proud to host the first national writing contest for Middle and High School students.

            Students have the opportunity to submit poetry (32 line max), flash fiction (500 word max), short story (3000 word max) or essay (1200 word max) but may only enter the contest once. NO MULTIPLE GENRE SUBMISSIONS!

            Submissions will be accepted via both email and post. Email submissions MUST be sent as attachment, containing the included necessary information as a separate page with all fields complete. Submissions written in the body of the email or missing contact information will be deleted. Handwritten submissions will not be accepted. Submissions by post must be printed on standard, white copy paper, black printer ink. Please ensure students name is not on the entry. All submissions sent via post must contain one cover letter for every student entered.

            Contest submission window is October 1-November 1. Submit your students best work, encourage experimentation and uniqueness. The theme is BLACK AND BLUE. Our Editor-in-Chief, Susan Lewis, wants to see raw talent, creativity with the theme and writing in its purest form.

            Students chosen by Mrs. Lewis will be published in an anthology available on Amazon Worldwide and Kindle Worldwide. They will also receive a free copy of the book.  We are planning to have the book published before Christmas.

            We hope you see this as a wonderful opportunity to encourage artistic growth and self-esteem in your students because that is our only goal.

Include with each entry.  PRINT VERY CLEARLY!

Student Name  _____________________________________________________

Address   __________________________________________________________

City   _________________________ State_______   Zip code   ______________

Parent/Guardian phone number   _____________________________________

Parent/Guardian Name(s)   ___________________________________________

Parent/Guardian E-mail   _____________________________________________

School   _____________________________________________________________

English/Language Arts Teacher’s Name________________________________

English/Language Arts Teacher’s Phone________________________________

English/Language Arts Teacher’s E-mail________________________________

Grade   ________

Poem Title and Form: ________________________________________________

Mail submissions to:

Proper Publishing

P.O. Box 634

Cantonment, FL 32533

Email submissions to:

theproperpublisher@yahoo.com