Everyone has a keepsake, and every keepsake has a story to tell.
Want in on a raffle to win free books, prizes, and other items related to Project Keepsake? Enter at http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/6860333/ before March 3.
—One person will win a paperback copy of Project Keepsake
—Five people will win eBook versions of Project Keepsake
—One person will win a bluebird paperweight (like the one on the cover)
—One person will win a writing journal to record his/her own keepsake stories
—One person will win a book lover's tote
Yikes! "The average US nonfiction book sells less than 250 copies per year and less than 3,000 copies over its lifetime." Pulled from http://outthinkgroup.com/the-10-awful-truths-about-book-publishing #OhNo
This morning, Jemille Williams directed me to a photo blog (Mail Online, 2013) showcasing a few of author Tracy Chevalier's keepsakes. For those of you unfamiliar with Ms. Chevalier, she writes brilliant, bestselling books such as Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Last Runaway. So I was very excited to learn that she—like me—is the guardian to many keepsakes.
Under each photo, Ms. Chevalier explained the significance of each keepsake. She mentioned that she is the keeper of a chartreuse, turquoise, and indigo scarf that belonged to her mother who died when she was just eight years old. Chevalier noted in the caption that she wears the scarf a lot.
Author Tracy Chevalier is also a keeper of keepsakes. This is a scarf that belonged to her mother.
I'm reminded of the heart-shaped locket on the front of my book and how it came to be in my own keepsake collection. My grandmother gave it to me for Christmas over forty years ago. Today, it's fashionably outdated, dented, and has scratches on it, yet I wear the clunky piece some days. I love to feel the large metal casing on my chest—near my heart. Every time I feel it, I am reminded of my grandmother. I'm sure that Ms. Chevalier loves to wrap her heirloom around her neck like the loving arms of her mother embracing her once again. It's a feeling I know so well.
She also shared the stories behind a wine bottle named for her book, Girl with a Pearl Earring, a unicorn pendant, and notebooks filled with research scribblings—each one wrapped in fabrics appropriate to the novel's theme. She talked about a pair of artsy earrings she purchased after a successful book reading, a fossil, and her quilts. You can browse Chevalier's keepsakes here.
The subtitle of my book is: Everyone has a keepsake, and every keepsake has a story to tell. It's true. I know you have one. I've never met a person who didn't have something that they've held onto through the years—something that brings a flood of memories to the forefront. What's yours? And why do you keep it?
Every Presidents Day, I remember a trip my husband and I took several years ago to the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia. We expected to see lots of western art that day, and we did, but we eventually wandered into a room full of presidential keepsakes and mementoes. Wow!
The Carolyn and James Millar Presidential Gallery showcases an unbelievable collection of authentic, one-page, signed letters from each president alongside portraits (many by Yousuf Karsh) and interesting pieces of presidential memorabilia. We spent a lot of time in that room reading each letter and thinking about each presidential relic.
A new presidential keepsake that David Aft gave me for Christmas 2013—a sheet of old Carter campaign postcards and a campaign button.
In Project Keepsake's introduction, I mention watching a television special years ago featuring the president and first lady touring a reporter around the White House. They paused in each room and pointed to a vase, a piece of furniture, a painting, and other keepsakes and relayed the history of each object to viewers—where the item came from, what year it was added to the White House collection, its significance, and how it became a part of America’s historical fabric. The stories behind the pieces drew me in.
And the following day, I surveyed my own home and realized that so many of my possessions had stories behind them. I started writing about my keepsakes and telling their stories, and so Project Keepsake was born.
If you haven't visited the Booth Western Art Museum, you should. Browse the pieces in their immense western-themed art collection, take a stroll through the presidential gallery, and take a look at the keepsakes on display. You won't be disappointed. And while you are in Cartersville, indulge yourself at the Appalachian Grill next door.
My friend, David Aft, gave me a Christmas gift a few weeks ago that is presidential in nature and destined to stay in my keepsake collection for many years to come. My close friends and family members know how much I love and admire Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter. David gave me a sheet of old Carter campaign postcards and a Carter-Mondale campaign button. I hung the postcards in a very prominent place next to my desk. They make me smile. Thank you, David, for giving me my very own pieces of presidential memorabilia.
Twenty-seven years ago today, my sweetheart gave me a pair of heart-shaped, garnet earrings. Gene and I had dated long-distance for about five months when Valentine’s Day rolled around, and I was especially happy—and relieved—to have someone to share the day and evening with that year.
Not to sound pathetic, but I was somewhat broken during that time. On the outside, I appeared fine, but I was empty on the inside. My longterm college boyfriend and I had ended our relationship the year before, and I was hesitant about dating again. I surrounded my heart with a fortress and wouldn’t let anyone penetrate its walls.
But Gene was persistent. He made me smile. More importantly, he made me laugh—a lot.
"A single heart-shaped, garnet earring contains so many memories and emotions." —Amber
And so by Valentine’s Day in 1987, I had started to let my guard down, and he seized the moment. He drove the 105 miles in his little white Honda CRX to see me after my classes, stopping on Piedmont Avenue to buy a dozen yellow roses from one of those street vendors who walk up and down the road in the median. He gave me the bouquet followed by a tiny box containing the heart-shaped, garnet earrings—a symbol of his love.
And that was that. We continued to date and married in 1990.
The earrings were my favorite pieces of jewelry until I lost one a few years later. What can you do with one earring? Nothing. Gene rushed to the jewelry store and bought me another pair of garnet hearts, but it just wasn’t the same.
I refused to discard the lone earring—there were too many memories associated with it.
And so, I keep it in my jewelry box as a keepsake. I pick it up from time to time and remember, and smile, and thank the universe for persistence.
Happy Valentine’s Day! May your day be filled with love, kindness, and keepsakes!
Where has the time gone? It was just a few months ago that I partnered with Native Ink Press to publish Project Keepsake, a collection of fifty-five stories about keepsakes. The official book release date is February 27th—just eighteen days away. Again, where has the time gone?
To celebrate the upcoming book release, my publisher is hosting a Project Keepsake Book Release Giveaway (ends on March 3).
—One person will win a free paperback book, Project Keepsake
—Five people will win eBook versions of Project Keepsake
—One person will win a bluebird paperweight (like the one on the cover)
—One person will win a writing journal to record his/her own keepsake stories
—One person will win a book lover's tote
Join the countdown to Project Keepsake. Enter the giveaway today and be entered to win free books and great prizes. There are several ways to enter: You can tweet daily about the giveaway; You can post on your blog about the giveaway; Or you can navigate directly to the entry at http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/6860333/ .
In the next week, I'll post links to order Project Keepsake and lots of other relevent information. Please stay tuned.
I met Donna Sutton a few years ago while I was writing an article about trained therapy dogs and how they give young children the courage to read aloud in front of their peers.
Donna Sutton with her fiddle. Photo taken by Matt Baxter (Just Shoot Me Photography in Chattanooga).
I was instantly drawn to Donna's Soddy Daisy charm and personality.
I visited her school on several occasions and witnessed the miracle of Read Aloud Chattanooga, a nonprofit group that promotes reading and learning among elementary school children. During one of my visits, I told Donna about Project Keepsake. She paused, then said, "Well, I have a keepsake story for you."
And then Donna eagerly told me the story behind a violin that she keeps in a glass case at her home. Like so many keepsakes, Donna's violin—or fiddle, as she calls it—connects her to memories of her father and her grandfather. She looks at the violin every day on her way out the door, and she remembers them.
I'm grateful that I met Donna Sutton, and I'm delighted that her story is in the book.
Grandaddy could make the fiddle sing. He played it to entertain himself, family members, and friends. When I close my eyes, I can see him stroking the strings of his fiddle with his bow, and I can hear its music in my mind.
"On Saturday nights, he’d say, ‘Let’s go to the neighbor’s house and make music,’” Daddy remembered. “He’d play Under the Double Eagle and I’ll Fly Away. He loved to play country and gospel music.” —Donna Sutton
Native Ink Press will release Project Keepsake at the end of February, and I'm starting to get nervous.
The holidays were busy and emotionally draining for me. I had hoped to have more down time to prepare for the launch, but the universe had different plans for me.
At this point in the publishing process, I've reviewed the manuscript dozens of times. I've continued to stress about the book's cover and whether readers will find it appealing. I've had professional-quality photos made (thanks to the kindness of my gifted sister who understands composition and lighting). I've started scheduling events. My husband—software boy extraordinaire—developed this new website for me. And I've started promoting.
Two weeks ago, I sat at a small table at Panera Bread Company in Dalton, Georgia across from a lovely writer from Chatter Magazine. It was a surreal experience for me. I've always been the interviewer. On that particular day, I was the interviewee. I was a fish out of water.
I told Sunny Montgomery about the Chattanooga Writers Guild and how becoming a member and networking with other writers made me feel alive—made me feel like a writer for the first time in my career. I told her about the story contributors and how encouraging and supportive they have been throughout this long journey. And then I started talking about my love of keepsakes.
"Everyone has a keepsake, and every keepsake has a story to tell," I remarked to Sunny that day.
One by one, I picked up keepsakes from a large cardboard box and told her why each item is significant to me. I gave her the condensed version of my stories.
A few minutes into our conversation, she smiled and said, "I just realized that I have some keepsakes that I could write about."
She seemed excited about writing her own keepsake story, and that made me happy. Part of my mission has always been to motivate others to share their stories by writing them down. Project Keepsake provides an outlet to celebrate these stories and memories.
I will use this blog to promote Project Keepsake and spotlight the many memories and stories that transform everyday objects into treasured keepsakes and mementoes.
Thank you for your interest in Project Keepsake. I hope you find value in the blog, the book, and the project. Stay tuned.