I talked to Bob Keyes about "Hotel California" and ghosts in this article for the Portland Press Herald on 21st CENTURY GHOST STORIES, VOL II from Wyrd Harvest Press. (My story, "The Mission Bell," inspired by Eagles' lyrics, is included.) Congrats to Paul Guernsey, editor, and Andy Paciorek, illustrator! Also mentioned: Leapfrog Press and Celine Dion. #HappyHalloween #onadarkdeserthighway
Full article HERE.
My novel, OFF ISLAND, was a finalist in the Housatonic Book Awards. Congrats to all winners and finalists! It's lovely to be in the company of these writers. Read the full announcement HERE.
Thanks to NEWS CENTER Maine's 207 and Amanda Hill for this feature on 21st Century Ghost Stories, Vol. II. (Great job, Paul Guernsey!) I'm proud to represent Maine (and the Eagles) in the collection with "The Mission Bell." And thanks for calling this story "delightfully creepy." That's what I aim for. Also featured in this segment: Bobby Sweet! (From our performance on 207 a few years back.) Watch the clip HERE.
Thanks to the The Boston Globe's New England Literary News for the mention: "In 'The Mission Bell,' Maine author and musician Lara Tupper offers Lynchian surreality in her twist-up of the Eagles' 'Hotel California.'" Full article HERE.
I'm delighted to be part of this new anthology, 21st Century Ghost Stories, Vol. II (edited by Paul Guernsey), just in time for Halloween. Please find the link to the anthology HERE. So many great and creepy tales within. And all profits from the sale of 21CGS go toward wildlife conservation projects run by the UK charity, The Wildlife Trusts.
It was a joy to present a craft lecture ("But Enough About Me: Autobiographical Urges in Prose") and reading (from AMPHIBIANS) for @FredoniaEnglish at SUNY Fredonia as part of the Mary Louise White Visiting Writers Series. What an engaged group of students and teachers. Thank you, Fredonia! Full article HERE.
"Tupper's writing is both shrewd and intelligent, so it's important for students of writing to see/read international juxtapositions and characters, said Department of English Adjunct Lecturer Rebecca Cuthbert.
"Writing can indeed make the world a larger place and it starts with the stories being told. Her sense of place extends from Maine to New York to Japan to the Emirates and back. There are critical contradictions in her writing, which are worthy for the classroom and greater conversation," Ms. Cuthbert explained.
"These stories will stay with the students well beyond the conversations of the semester. They offer diversity and complex female characters who navigate the world with a sense of adventure – and they are not always safe...
"Lara also brings a range of talent beyond the page, as she is a singer/songwriter who communicates with audiences around the world with her music, where pacing and intonation are integral to the success of the stories that are being conveyed, not unlike the concerns a writer has," Cuthbert said.
I'm thrilled to be a finalist for the Orison Books Fiction Prize (for my novel manuscript, AT THE CENTER). Congrats to the winners and fellow finalists!
Books in Boothbay: Maine's Largest Book Fair at the Boothbay Railway Village, just a few miles from my family home. (I heard the train whistles as a kid.) Thanks to Sherman's Books & Stationery and all who made this such a seamless event. Read about it HERE in the Boothbay Register.
It's a trip to see your name on a sign in your hometown. (I was the bookish, weird kid.) I read on a rainy night at the Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library, where I received my first library card. (Age five?) Thanks to Joanna Breen for sustaining this special place and to Bobby Sweet for providing gorgeous musical interludes. It was good to be home. Read about it HERE in the Boothbay Register.
I'm in the papah! "Boothbay native Lara Tupper – author, songstress, teacher – will be back in town promoting her latest, a collection of short stories, AMPHIBIANS. I have read and thoroughly enjoyed Lara's two novels, A THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS and OFF ISLAND. I'm looking forward to buying AMPHIBIANS at the event." Thanks to Lisa Kristoff and the Boothbay Register for this article about #BooksinBoothbay, Maine's Largest Book Fair, on Sat., Sept. 11 at the Boothbay Railway Village. Can't wait to be back home.
