Which came first, the chicken or the egg? (Actually, that’s finally been resolved, but that’s another story.) 

Which came first: the idea for the challenge, or the idea for the book? 

Kurt Hoelting is the author of The Circumference of Home: One Man’s Yearlong Quest for a Radically Local Life. What would it be like to stay within 100 kilometers of Whidbey and yet never get behind the wheel of a car? What would that book look like? 

The need to tackle the challenge was greater than the need to write the book. Each author works from a unique inspiration. In this podcast, Kurt was nice enough to discuss both the process of enjoying and basically living within this disc of the world, as well as the process of writing and publishing his first work. The two were intertwined.

Read the book for the details, of course, but he describes the fascinating positioning that put his house at the center of a circle that touches many of the area’s significant mountain peaks, and encompasses home for several million people. With walking, bicycling, mass transit and a bit of help from his friends he demonstrated the ease and effort required to live in modern society without a car. 

Listen to Kurt for his insights about the challenge but also about how his history and community helped him complete a book that is unique and hyper-local. Writing a book, particularly a first book, doesn’t have to be done alone. Life experiences help. So does the expertise within a person’s social network, and professional literary help too, of course.

Listen in, but also keep in mind that Kurt has other skills and stories that may be best explored by contacting him, directly.

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Writing on Whidbey Island (WOWI) episode 28 – Kurt Hoelting, adventurer, philosopher, author

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Links:

Kurt’s Amazon page – The Circumference of Home – www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003HO5UWO/

Thoughtful Adventure Travel – Inside Passages – www.insidepassages.com/

Big Purple Undies. That’s a fine way to start an interview with Suzanne Kelman, a writer of books and screenplays, who walked the Red Carpet at Cannes, and who is also memorable for her laugh. 

Suzanne’s writing career entered its most recent era when she moved to the island more than a decade ago. She’s gregarious and funny, which is why folks can be distracted enough to miss her large collection of books and screenplays. 

One of her earlier works was “Big Purple Undies” a story that became a performance that she showed around the US, as well as on Whidbey. That makes her a performer, too. 

Her more recent list of historical novels describe life during World War II. Her productivity continues. As she points out in the interview, she continues to write, has recently completed another for publication, and already has the next one lined up. 

As it says on her Amazon Author Page;

“Suzanne Kelman is an Amazon international bestselling author in America, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia and her books have sold over 250,000 copies worldwide and have been translated into six languages.”

She’s been busy.

Another favorite title is “The Rejected Writers’ Book Club”, the first book in the Southlea Bay series. A great title, and proof that she can handle several genres. 

Writers might find it useful to listen to how she found training, resources, as well as her process. 

Adding to the rest, she also had a podcast, “Blondie and the Brit”. She’s the Brit. 

Listen in for stories, laughter, and a splash of reality. We’re back to remote interviews for our podcast (in-person was short lived, alas), so please pardon the inevitable connectivity issues. 

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Writing on Whidbey Island (WOWI) episode 27 – Suzanne Kelman, writer of novels and screenplays

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Links:

Her main site – http://suzannekelmanauthor.blogspot.com/

Her blog – https://www.blondieandbrit.com/

Her Amazon Author Page – https://www.amazon.com/Suzanne-Kelman/e/B00JH1V3HW