Archives for 2012

Our New Year “Gutsy Creative People” Party

December 31, 2012 by Sonia Marsh 11 Comments

Our "Gutsy Creative People" Party. — Our “Gutsy Creative People” Party.

My husband Duke decided we should have a party with creative people.

“Why not, ” I agreed and said, “Let’s call it a Gutsy Creative People Party.”

So we created a list of all our friends in Duke’s indie movie: The Down Home Alien Blues, my writer friends, PR friends, journalists, editors and so on.

What fun we had between actors, such as Nathalie Biermanns (photo below left) and make-up artist Coco Covarrubias (photo below right.)

Then my good friend Madeline Sharples, author of wrote a “My Gutsy Story” drove from Manhattan Beach to Orange County in the rain with her husband Bob. After reading her memoir, Leaving the Hall Light On, it was wonderful to meet her husband Bob. It’s strange how memoir writers know all about the author’s family, prior to meeting them in person.

Sonia and Madeline Sharples with blue Belizean morpho butterflies on the right and a photo of a boat dock in Belize on the left.

I invited two of my SCWA (Southern California Writers Association) friends. Charla Spence, and Janis Thomas.

Here is Janis and her husband Alex, with Charla.

My friend Janis Thomas, had her novel, Something New, published by Penguin. I am thrilled for her.

Then Tom Blake, a former OC Register columnist, arrived with his friend Gretta. Tom still writes a column about dating over 50 for a local Dana Point, California newspaper, and was generous to host me at his deli, “Tutor and Spunky’s” in Dana Point in September. You can view photos here.

The actors had a good time, including Jay Mitsch, who is the lead man in The Down Home Alien Blues.

We had an amazing evening and here is my friend Dee Fitgerald and his wife, Mary. I met Dee from blogging. You can view his Dr. Eclectic blog here.

Dee also offered me the opportunity to speak at the MOAA (Military Officers Association of America) about my youngest son becoming a soldier. My son is on the top photo, far right.

A wonderful PR lady for authors, Jennifer Heinly, also attended, together with Pam Westcott, a freelance writer and their respective husbands.

Happy New Year to all my friends and may 2013 be the year you accomplish whatever you desire.

Submit your “My Gutsy Story.”

I am collecting new “My Gutsy Story” submissions for 2013. NOW is the time to submit your own “My Gutsy Story” and get published in our Anthology. Please contact sonia@soniamarsh.com for details.

To submit your own, “My Gutsy Story” you can find all the information, and our sponsors on the “My Gutsy Story” contest page. (VIDEO) Submission guidelines here.

Being famous doesn’t guarantee fans will come

December 27, 2012 by Sonia Marsh 6 Comments

John BankofBooksVentura-s — Sonia with John Montz, manager of Bank of Books in Ventura, California

Bank of Books in Ventura, California, is a lovely indie bookstore for book lovers of all genres. It’s the kind of store that attracts those who love to browse and dig into stories. It’s also the kind of store that attracts famous people, such as Sir Anthony Hopkins, according to John Montz, the manager.

Last weekend, during my book event at Bank of Books, John told me an interesting story.

Academy Award winner, Gregory Peck, famous actor in the movie To Kill a Mockingbird, had a book signing at Bank of Books. They advertised his event in all the local newspapers, and set a table inside the store for him to sign his book. Not one person showed up. Not one.

The manager decided to have him stand outside the store, and when people recognized him, they finally formed a line which stretched down Main Street.

So knowing that even famous people don’t always draw a crowd, despite publicity, should make indie authors feel better when they only draw a small number of “fans” to their book events.

SoniaKarinEileenBoB

In my opinion, you always meet one person who makes the whole event worthwhile, and this time, I met a great lady who purchased my book, and we exchanged business cards. The secret is to be “gutsy” and go up to people and chat.

SoniaBankofBooksEvent

Have you had a book signing where no one came? Have you been to many book signings yourself?

Submit your “My Gutsy Story.”

To submit your own, “My Gutsy Story” you can find all the information, and our sponsors on the “My Gutsy Story” contest page. (VIDEO) Submission guidelines here.

Are you Gutsy enough to give a stranger a “Free Hug”?

December 25, 2012 by Sonia Marsh 2 Comments

Free Hug Man

I’m spending a mini-vacation with my husband in Ojai, California, and met this “Gutsy” man at the Farmers’ Market on Sunday morning.

He seemed friendly and gentle, so I had to find out:

Why was he offering “Free Hugs?”

After we hugged, I had this burning desire to interview him. I needed to find out the: who, what, where, when and why?

The first thing he said was, “I have the best job in the whole world.”

Sonia receiving a free hug-001 — Sonia getting her “Free Hug” in Ojai, California.

That struck me as odd, and I started thinking, “Is he getting paid to hug?” if so, am I supposed to donate money. I don’t see a hat or a box on the ground for collecting coins, besides it does say, “Free Hugs.”

Something strange happened to me during our hug. I started thinking how one simple hug can connect two strangers. Imagine if we could start a hugging revolution, and transform the world.

There’s something special about a hug; it bonds humanity.

After receiving a warm hug, I asked him more questions.

“I hear so many stories from people I hug,” he said.

“Can you give me one example,” I asked, always looking for a good story.

“This morning a woman collapsed on my shoulder and told me her husband passed away last Wednesday. She said she longed for a human touch.”

I thought about how this man shows up every Sunday from 10am-1pm to comfort lonely people, some who are grieving, others who are longing for a human to show they care. He does have an important “job.”

The man told me there’s a worldwide movement to give, “Free Hugs” and that I can Google it. So I did when I got back to my room at the Blue Iguana Inn.

100_0684 — The Blue Iguana Inn, Ojai, California.

I found this video, and explanation of the “Free Hugs” worldwide movement.

The Free Hugs Campaign is a social movement involving individuals who offer hugs to strangers in public places.^[1] The hugs are meant to be random acts of kindness – selfless acts performed just to make others feel better.

I think you have to be “Gutsy” to stand on a street and offer “Free Hugs.”

Are you Gutsy enough to give a stranger a “Free Hug”?

Merry Christmas to all of you.

My Christmas gift was a nice surprise from the London Book Festival, where my memoir received an honorable mention under Biography/Autobiography

Which is your favorite airport terminal?

December 20, 2012 by Sonia Marsh 12 Comments

Heathrow Airport , LondonTerminal 5 — Heathrow Airport , London
Terminal 5

I love to travel, and have a passion for airports. The thrill of seeing people from all over the world converging into one place, and wondering where they live, and what their life is like, fascinates me.

My father instilled a passion for travel and planes within me at a young age. I remember when I was four, our pilot missed the runway and ended up in a ditch. This is what happened according to my dad.

We were flying to Kano on a Dakota DC 3 of Nigerian Airways. Soon after taking off a pipe blew up and the brake fluid it contained rushed into the passenger cabin. The Captain had no option but to try and return to Ikeja airport which was dangerous because the fuel tanks were full of gasoline. He also had difficulty directing the plane because he could not operate the flaps. The only way he could control the plane was to rev up one engine after the other so that he was facing the runway. But when he touched down he could not operate the brakes and we ended up in a ditch at the end of the runway. All passengers applauded except you who said, “Do it again”.

My father succeeded in turning my fear into a thrill, as though the pilot had done this intentionally for me.

It was a propeller plane similar to this one with 24 passengers on board.

Photo Credit Airspotting.com

Since my dad laughed and made funny wing-flapping gestures whenever we hit severe turbulence, I learned to focus on the butterflies in my tummy rather than fear.

During my recent trip from Los Angeles to Paris and London, I had the chance to spend several hours in each airport terminal. If I had to pick one terminal to spend an entire day in, it would be London’s Heathrow Terminal 5, the international terminal. (See photo above.)

I discovered that chef Gordon Ramsay has a restaurant inside the terminal and offers what he calls, “plane food picnic.” You have a choice of the “healthy heights picnic” or the “regular picnic.” People can call in their order ahead of time, and pick it up at the airport.

Photo Credit

Here’s the blurb for his picnic plane food.

“In a rush and have no time to take a seat? A Plane Food Picnic is the perfect solution. Pick up a delicious take away Gordon Ramsay picnic with everything you need in on small carry on bag and enjoy on board at your leisure.”

You can order a 3 course picnic. Here’s the menu, and this would be my selection:

Starter: Prawn and baby gem cocktail

Main Course: Smoked Scottish salmon with an apple,
celery and walnut salad

Dessert:English cheese selection with quince and berries (yes, I prefer cheese.)

The price for 3 courses £12.95 or $21.00 U.S.

I’ve never seen so many stores in one airport terminal. From Harrod’s to Gucci to Bulgari to WHSmith, to HMV, and the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, Tom Bradley terminal at LAX, is sorely missing in stores, restaurants and good coffee shops for passengers. It’s quite depressing in comparison to Heathrow and Charles de Gaulle.

After some window shopping at Harrod’s, I decided to buy a Christmas pudding and a jar of brandy butter to bring back childhood memories and share them with my family in California. I remember steaming the pudding, but now you can microwave it; far easier.

As far as book stores, London has the best selection. There are several WHSmith stores in the terminal, and I’m happy to say people are still purchasing books like crazy at Heathrow airport.

I boarded my British Airways flight from London to Paris, CDG (Charles de Gaulle) airport, where I had four more hours to look at stores before my flight to Los Angeles. CDG’s international terminal 2A, has some fancy perfume and liquor stores. What I find unusual, is the location of the cash registers. You have to look hard to find a place to pay for your items.

Do you like to spend time at airports? If so which is your favorite one?

DECEMBER IS DIFFERENT.

I am back in California after a book signing in Paris and a visit to London.

Would you like to submit your “My Gutsy Story” for 2013. NOW is the time to submit your own “My Gutsy Story” and get published in our Anthology. Please contact sonia@soniamarsh.com for details.

To submit your own, “My Gutsy Story” you can find all the information and our sponsors on the “My Gutsy Story” contest page. (VIDEO) Submission guidelines here.

My “Gutsy” Book Signing at WHSmith Paris

December 17, 2012 by Sonia Marsh 9 Comments

Sonia and Delphine (niece) — Sonia and Delphine at WHSmith Paris.

It seems insignificant to talk about my book signing after the senseless act of violence that took place on Friday, December 14th in Newtown, Connecticut.

I am speechless, and know that people around the whole world are feeling their sorrow.

***

Icy roads were predicted on Thursday, December 13th, the day of my WHSmith book signing in Paris. My dad and his wife, Jill, recommended we take the RER and metro to Paris. Thankfully, a light drizzle made the roads frost-free, and Catherine, Jill’s daughter, offered to drive all four of us to Rue de Rivoli, where the largest British bookstore in Paris is located.

L'Arc de Triomphe in rain — L’Arc de Triomphe

It takes French guts to drive around L’Arc de Triomphe, where cars coming from your right side have the right of way. Multiply this by twelve: the number of roads leading to Place de L’Etoile, the focal point where the roads converge.

Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a world-famous street in Paris, known for its cafés, luxury specialty stores and “people-watching.” Several French monuments are also on the street, including the Arc de Triomphe at one end, and the Place de la Concorde at the other.

Parking is always a challenge in Paris, so at a red light, I jumped out of the car, grabbed my carry-on from the trunk, and rolled my books into the cozy store.

WHSmith has a cosmopolitan feel. Everyone who works there speaks English and French, and the feel was busy and exciting. My table was already set up with a poster on a metal stand announcing me as the guest author. Hannah, the marketing and events manager, greeted me and made me feel like a VIP. She asked me to show up early to make sure my book scanned correctly. Too scared to admit that it was indie published, I was terrified that it wouldn’t, and that my event would be canceled at the last minute.

Since my bar code was from the U.S., with $14.95 as the cover price, Hannah converted the price to Euros. I was relieved when she returned from the cash register and informed me that everything scanned properly.

My first customer was a mom with a student studying at a university in San Diego. She wanted me to sign a copy for her daughter. I started talking to some customers in the store, never sure whether to start in English or in French. A couple of Americans living in Paris, chatted with me. One man told me he’d visited Caye Caulker, the beautiful small island known for being a backpackers haven next to Ambergris Caye where we lived for a year.

Another British woman said she knew about Belize because of McAfee on the news. At first I didn’t understand who she was talking about. It’s strange how each country pronounces words differently. No wonder the British think I sound American, after 30 years in the U.S.

Many ex-colleagues from my father’s working days in Paris and Africa showed up to support me. It turned into a giant “party.”

Other photos from WHSmith below.

If you’re an indie-authoor, I’d like to encourage you to call book stores and ask if you can do a book signing. You might be surprised where this will take you. A couple of months ago, I picked up the phone and called WHSmith, and was pleasantly surprised when they said, “yes,” after several e-mails. Good luck and please share your own stories.

DECEMBER IS DIFFERENT.

I’m in London today after leaving Paris yesterday. In a few days I return to California.

To submit your own, “My Gutsy Story” you can find all the information, and our sponsors on the “My Gutsy Story” contest page. (VIDEO) Submission guidelines here.