An Author’s Kiss shows

AK23-25. Patrick E. Horrigan’s American Scholar, LBTQ novel.

Self Discovery Wisdom Podcast

Authors Kiss with Sara Troy and her guest Patrick E. Horrigan, on air from June 20th

Award-winning author Patrick E. Horrigan on creating complex LGBTQ+ characters amidst the backdrop of the AIDS-ravaged 1980s and the Trump-challenged 2010s, Kirkus Reviews calls his latest historical fiction novel American Scholar, “A haunting, complex look at love, gay history, and the passage of time.” The book is the winner of the 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award for LGBTQ+ Fiction.

Patrick will talk about how he created an emotional story that brews amidst the backdrop of political polarization in today’s America, and reflections on the tumultuous days of AIDS in the late 1980s.

  • The challenges of fictionalizing elements of real-life events and people, balancing the raw truth with fictional license to enlighten, entertain, inform, and inspire others
  • The complexity of story in the lives of the LGBT community – both in the AIDS-ravaged 1980s and the Trump-challenged 2010s
  • The universal themes of love, memory and self-discovery and how we all struggle with confronting our true selves 
  • Why each of his books’ narratives revolve around some type of art medium
  • Why his books offer “French endings,” the way French films often end abruptly, with no resolution or neatness to the story, where characters are left in limbo, often suffering, like life itself
  • Why he tries to create LGBTQ+ characters that are complex and often ambivalent — why he avoids uplifting and overly-idealized characters 
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Patrick E. Horrigan is an award-winning novelist, professor, essayist, and playwright. He is the author of the novel, Pennsylvania Station (Lethe Press; Indie Book Award finalist for best LGB’TQ2 fiction) and the novel Portraits at an Exhibition (Lethe Press; winner of the Dana Award for fiction as well as the Mary Lynn Kotz, Art-in-Literature Award, sponsored by the Library of Virginia and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts).

His other works include the memoir Widescreen Dreams: Growing Up Gay at the Movies, the play Messages for Gary: A Drama in Voicemail, and (with Eduardo Leáñez) the solo show You Are Confused! He has written artists’ catalogue essays for Thion’s Limi-TATE: Drawings of Life and Dreams (cueB Gallery, London) and Ernesto Pujol’s Loss of Faith (Galeria Ramis Barquet, New York).

His essay “The Inner Life of Ordinary People” appears in Anthony Enns and Christopher R. Smit’s Screening Disability: Essays on Cinema and Disability. The winner of Long Island University’s David Newton Award for Excellence in Teaching, Horrigan taught literature for 25 years at LIU Brooklyn. He received his B.A. from The Catholic University of America and his PhD from Columbia University.

He and his husband are the hosts of a recurring variety show called “Actors with Accents,” which they have staged periodically in New York’s Lower East Side for the past decade. They give artists of color and artists with accents an opportunity to perform things they might not have the chance to do in the mainstream art world. Horrigan is currently in training to become a tour guide at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. His hobbies and interests include: piano, opera, arts, classical music, dance, cooking, and traveling.

Born and raised in Reading, Pennsylvania, he now resides in Manhattan. 

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 www.patrickehorrigan.com

https://www.instagram.com/pehorrigan

https://www.facebook.com/pehorrigan

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AK 23-24. Eme McAnam, Freefalling: A Novel of Senior Romance.

Self Discovery Wisdom Podcast

An Authors Kiss with Sara Troy and her guest Eme McAnam, on air from June 13th

Eme McAnam, author of Freefalling: A Novel of Senior Romance, the provocative debut novel exploring senior romance and the challenges of aging. In an interview, she can talk about the issues we face as an aging society, particularly when it comes to relationships, intimacy and romance. Eme will share with your listeners why we need more romantic literature for older readers and why she feels that while aging may have hurdles, it’s not a stop sign.

Dementia. Romance. Love. Aging. A powerful and provocative new senior literary romance novel redefines the notion of fulfillment in one’s Golden Years. Freefalling, by senior Eme McAnam, is a genre-changing story that’s sure to stir deep emotions. 

“My friend suffered from Lewy Body dementia,” shares Eme, referring to the second most common type of progressive dementia after Alzheimer’s disease. “As I assisted him in his struggle, he let me see the turbulence in his mind. It was difficult to know his suffering and to comprehend his emotions. But I listened, as his caregiver and personal advocate. I disclose what I learned from him and others in this novel. Stories are a creative way for me to reconfigure life and share knowledge. While I was writing the senior romance, threads of his dementia crept into my characters, creating a more interesting story. A more real story.”

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Eme McAnam has worn many hats: She certified fitness instructors, was a financial advisor, ran an assisted living facility, and even had a song on The Top 100 Country Billboard chart. But above all, she has lived life passionately and now has a critically-acclaimed debut novel that captures some of her life’s experiences in Freefalling, a poignant and provocative work of senior romance literary fiction.

Forty years ago, she was on the Billboard Country Top 100. She was singing for thousands of people at large events. Not long after that, life took her on a detour and she entered the world of more traditional business, where she certified fitness teachers around the country. Next, it was the financial services sector, where she became an advisor and professional speaker. Eme later ran an assisted living facility for a decade.  

Restless to see more of the country, she sold her home of 37 years and traveled for a year before landing in her artist’s loft in Minneapolis. Eme hiked, painted, wrote, took pictures, and made new friends. It was a transformative experience.

Blessed with time and perspective, she resurfaced into her life as an artist and photographer. She writes about romance, life, and reality blended with life’s messy parts. Romance allows difficult stories to have hopeful endings. She has been interviewed on several podcasts, including Sexy Senior Romance the Read My Lips podcast. 

Born and raised in New Ulm, Minnesota, she is one of nine children. Eager to have a chance at city life, she moved to Minneapolis to attend college. Now a grandmother, she resides in Minneapolis. 

ABOUT THE BOOK: 
Charlotte, the owner and operator of a successful five-star hotel, has always put her work first. As she enters the autumn of her life, she realizes her dedication to her career has left a void in her heart – she never found true love. Despite the complications that come with finding romance at her age, Charlotte sets out on a journey to fill that emptiness. Through challenges and obstacles, Charlotte discovers that the Golden Years of her life can still hold happiness and fulfillment. Senior romance might come with its own set of hurdles, but ultimately, Charlotte experiences true contentment for the first time. Her greatest battle comes when she is diagnosed with dementia.

AMAZON

www.EmeSpirit.com

https://www.facebook.com/Eme.Spirit

https://www.instagram.com/emelennick2018

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AK23-22. Cathy Derksen, Authoring Your Life

Self Discovery Wisdom Podcast

An Authors Kiss with Sara TROY and her guest Cathy Derksen, on air form May 30th

Bring life back to your life!

If you’ve been feeling stuck and experiencing procrastination, self-doubt, depletion, or are generally feeling uninspired and unmotivated about your future… you’re not alone, so many of us are feeling this way. Let us guide you through this midlife awakening.

After working in Medical Genetics for 25 years, and 10 years as a financial planner, I decided to start my own business and create global impact. I support midlife women to rediscover their brilliance and to step into new possibilities in their life. I offer platforms for women to clarify and share their journey through collaborative book projects and building community. Creating a ripple effect of impact through sharing our stories and wisdom

I have dedicated my work to helping women around the world tap into their own greatness. I believe that we owe it to ourselves and each other to create lives that fill us with genuine joy and inspiration. My company, Inspired Tenacity, was born from my desire to make these life-changing tools and strategies accessible to women everywhere. Whether you’re facing major personal milestones, levelling up your finances or exploring a new career, these programs are designed to support you to navigate big shifts with confidence. One of these life-changing tools involves sharing your stories in collaborative book projects. I create these collaborative book projects to give my clients the platform to share their stories, inspire the readers and become an international bestselling author.

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Cathy is the founder of her company, Inspired Tenacity. She is dedicated to improving the lives of the women in her community and around the world. Cathy is an international speaker and 10x #1 bestselling author with stories that inspire the readers to take a leap of faith into reaching for their big goals. She has created a platform supporting women to share their own inspiring stories in collaborative books. In her program, Cathy takes you from chapter concept to published bestselling author in a simple, exciting process.

With her unique combination of intuition and world-class training, Cathy has helped hundreds of women transform their lives.  Cathy’s experience in writing and publishing positions her well for supporting her clients in their dreams of sharing their wisdom in published books. 

Inspired Tenacity was born from Cathy’s desire to make these life-changing tools and strategies accessible to women everywhere. Whether you’re facing major personal milestones, levelling up your finances or exploring a new career, these programs are designed to teach you how to navigate big shifts with confidence. 

Find the courage—take the leap. Bring life to your life.  

She has the tools and understanding to help you to create the life you imagine and get a renewed sense of self.  

In my late 40s I came to the realization that I was feeling stuck and numb, living a depressing life which had evolved over decades of living in an abusive marriage and working in a toxic environment. In 2008 my family was involved in a fatal car accident. Luckily for us, everyone in my vehicle was physically unharmed, but the shock of witnessing the sudden death of another driver was the wakeup call that sparked the massive changes I’ve created in my life since then. Life is too short and too precious to stay stuck and numb. 

This new clarity set me on a path to reimagine what my life could be. Over that next year I found the strength and resources to leave my abusive marriage and take on a complete career transformation. I reassessed my experience and skills. I looked deep within to expose layers of my interests and passions. Up until that point, I had spent 25 years working in Medical Genetics. Although the fields of biology and genetics will always be passions of mine, the isolated, toxic work environment was not a good fit for me. My self reflection process had allowed me to see that my innate gifts were centred around being of service to others and building connection. I felt a calling to focus on supporting women to create a better life for themselves. Through courage and tenacity, I took on the challenge of reimagining and reinventing my life. 

I have been blessed with the intuition and confidence to know that I can take on any challenge. I trust that I will figure things out. I threw my life up in the air and reinvented it on the way down, I started my life as a single mom with two teenagers, left my toxic workplace and completely changed my career from medical genetics to financial planning. My mission, as I went all-in with this change, was to create positive impact on the lives of women by supporting them in creating financial success for themselves. 

The process of reimagining life involves ongoing reassessment and review. After a decade of working in the big banks and investment companies, although I had assisted many people in improving their life situation, I did not feel I was having the massive impact I felt called to create. I had supported my clients in understanding their accounts and building wealth but there were so many aspects of understanding how to create true financial success that I was not able to address in these jobs. The time limits and compliance details of this professional environment did not allow me to support people in truly understanding the critical factors in their relationships with money and the deep stories that keep so many of us stuck in our current situation in finance and in life. I knew it was time to reimagine my life again.

Now in my late 50s, I dug deeper into the process of listening to my intuition and asking myself the critical questions around my own gifts and passions. What am I capable of? What is the impact I want to have? What is the legacy I want to create? Who am I here to serve and what do they need from me?

My dedication to helping women create a life that they love has stayed strong and I began to imagine doing this on a global scale. As my abilities to connect easily with people all over the world has unfolded, I find myself building a global community of women who are keen to shift the world in a positive direction. I allowed myself to think big and step into the vision of new possibilities ahead of me. Knowing that I could not fulfill my vision while working in my role as a financial planner, I summed up the courage to take the leap into entrepreneurship. This adventure has been filled with many ups and downs, challenges and thrills, and it has given me the freedom to solidify how to bring my vision into reality. 

Connect with her if you would like to become a bestselling author.

https://inspiredtenacity.now.site/my_books

AMAZON

https://inspiredtenacity.com

https://inspiredtenacity.com

facebook.com/cathy.derksen.3

facebook.com/inspiredtenacity

linkedin.com/in/cathyderkseninspiredtenacity

instagram.com/inspired_tenacity

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All of our shows/interviews are done by donation, if you enjoyed this show please support us here with either a one-time donation or subscribe and support on Patreon.

All of our shows/interviews are done by donation, if you enjoyed this show please support us here.

AK23-19. BASHERT, by Larry G. Goldsmith

Sara Troy

An Authors Kiss with Sara Troy and her guest Larry Goldsmith, on air from May 9th

Forensic accountant Larry G. Goldsmith, author of the historical fiction novel  BASHERT, a courtroom drama, surrounding a Jewish love story. He lives in Chicago. His professional experiences are woven into believable and authentic storylines. He applies his real life occupation of courtroom dramas and negotiating with the IRS into many of his novels. 

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ABOUT THE BOOK: In the late sixties, the world is experiencing a counter revolution, rebelling against the  devastating war in Vietnam and cultural norms. During these days of rage, the Soviets and U.S. seek to end the nuclear arms race. As a bargaining chip, the Nixon administration promises to support a free trade agreement while ignoring Soviet human and religious abuses.
In New York City, a young criminal attorney enters the fray after his shotgun wedding to the Rebbe’s daughter. His father-in-law is a world renowned clandestine leader seeking religious freedom for millions of Soviet citizens. The White House prosecutes the Rebbe as their scapegoat so the U.S. Soviet trade agreement passes Congress. The Nixon administration will use every legal tool orchestrated by an unscrupulous U.S. prosecuting attorney to imprison the Rebbe and destroy the credibility of his movement. 

Millions of lives rest on the outcome of the trial. The world watches, waiting for a courtroom verdict, as two young lovers and an old Rebbe battle two world superpowers.

BASHERT Book Jacket.jpg

In the late sixties, the world experiences a counter revolution, rebelling against the devasting war in Vietnam and cultural norms. During these days of rage, the Soviets and U.S. seek to end the nuclear arms race. As a bargaining chip, the Nixon administration promises to support a free trade agreement while ignoring Soviet human and religious abuses.

In New York city, a young criminal attorney enters the fray after his shotgun wedding to the Rebbe’s daughter. His father-in-law is a world renowned clandestine leader seeking religious freedom for millions of Soviet citizens. The White House prosecutes the Rebbe as their scapegoat so the U.S. Soviet trade agreement passes Congress.

AMAZON

Bestselling author Larry Goldsmith has created a story of a morally strong-willed woman much like the biblical character Joseph in that she survives her fateful situation to become a heroine. Hanna is a coming-of-age college student who must face a life-threatening situation.

AMAZON

Devastated by the sudden death of his parents, eighteen-year-old Marc is suddenly alone in the world. To cope with his grief, he travels to Europe where he hopes to find himself. His road to self-discovery, however, is not how he envisaged it. Twists and turns throughout the next decade add dimension and character to a passage he never imagined.
Initially, new friends, the nightlife of London and sudden trauma lead him to his biggest discovery; that he is happier as a she. As Marc becomes Marci, she adjusts to living as a woman while embracing all the highs and lows that life flings at her.
Marc M

AMAZON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 

Larry G. Goldsmith is an author, financial sleuth (forensic CPA) and an attorney. His professional experiences are woven into believable and authentic storylines. He applies his real life occupation of courtroom dramas and negotiating with the IRS into many of his novels. Goldsmith has published two novels, Bashert and Marc Marci.
He is happily married, living with his wife in Chicago. Being a baseball fan, every novel contains a baseball tidbit woven into each story. When not working or writing, he is riding his bicycle or recalling younger days when he kayaked down dangerous whitewater rivers and played volleyball. For more information on Larry, visit: 

https://larrygoldsmithauthor.com

linkedin.com/in/larry-goldsmith-cpa-jd-maff

goodreads.com/user/show/123641786-larry-goldsmith

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All of our shows/interviews are done by donation, if you enjoyed this show please support us here

AK23-19. Artist, Musician Sam Weis noval “Abstraction”

Sara Troy

An Authors Kiss with Sara Troy and her guest Sam Weis, on air from May 9th

Abstraction, the new novel by Sam Weis  It’s a quirky, fast-paced story of artists, villains, and accidental heroes.

 A famous artist abruptly changes her painting style and finds her art has an eerie impact on people. Wren Willow Hendrix’s new work provokes inexplicable personality changes in those who view it…

With the lush Pacific Northwest as a backdrop, a famous artist abruptly changes her painting style and finds her art has an eerie impact on people. Wren Willow Hendrix’s new work provokes inexplicable personality changes in those who view it, with often hilarious results. All too soon, Wren finds herself the center of unwanted attention.

With Homeland Security hot on her trail and a hate-spewing cult preacher gunning for her, Wren needs all the help she can get. Unfortunately, her best friend has hatched a plot of her own—one that will not only put her in the line of danger, but will pull Wren onto the stage of world events. Will the dubious protection of a meddling journalist, a battle-scarred veteran, and a reclusive pot farmer be enough to keep Wren out of the clutches of those who would abuse her art—or worse?

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Sam Weis is an accomplished abstract painter, a 12-string guitarist/recording artist, and an award-winning songwriter. She grew up in Eastern Iowa and studied Fine Arts at The University of Iowa. Sam has toured as a guitarist with two rock bands and enjoys a successful solo music career. Sam currently lives in Iowa. Abstraction is her first novel. 

With the lush Pacific Northwest as a backdrop, a famous artist abruptly changes her painting style and finds her art has an eerie impact on people. Wren Willow Hendrix’s new work provokes inexplicable personality changes in those who view it, with often hilarious results. All too soon, Wren finds herself the center of unwanted attention.

With Homeland Security hot on her trail and a hate-spewing cult preacher gunning for her, Wren needs all the help she can get. Unfortunately, her best friend has hatched a plot of her own—one that will not only put her in the line of danger, but will pull Wren onto the stage of world events. Will the dubious protection of a meddling journalist, a battle-scarred veteran, and a reclusive pot farmer be enough to keep Wren out of the clutches of those who would abuse her art—or worse?

BUY HERE

AMAZON

SOME OF SAM’S ART FOUND HERE

www.samweis1.net

samweis1@mac.com

SAM’S MUSIC

facebook.com/sam.weis.3

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All of our shows/interviews are done by donation, if you enjoyed this show please support us here with either a one-time donation or subscribe and support on Patreon.

All of our shows/interviews are done by donation, if you enjoyed this show please support us here.