We have one more contribution to feature in the Memoir section of our 2023 Creative Writing Showcase.

It is from Martha Graham-Waldon and arrived late yesterday evening UK time. 

Martha explains the background to her story: "This is a true story about when we finally were able to vacation at Yellowstone National Park despite many setbacks and challenges."
 
You can read Yellowstone at Last by clicking here.

Martha Graham-Waldon is a writer, spiritual entrepreneur and mental health advocate who happily resides in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California with her family and a menagerie of pets. Her articles have been published locally in The Santa Cruz Sentinel, The Metro and Press Banner and internationally in the Canadian Dance Connection and several online journals. She is a winner of the 2015 Women’s Memoirs contest for a vignette based on her memoir. Martha loves travel, the outdoors, Jazzercise and music. Her memoir, Nothing Like Normal—Surviving a Sibling’s Schizophrenia was published by Black Opal Books on November 14, 2015. It was selected as a finalist in the 2017 Kindle Book Awards contest. 
Available on Amazon: https://a.co/d/f6GIYLR 
​

With only 5 days left in the 2023 Memoir Showcase, it is a privilege to be able to feature the second part of Jacqui Martin's story of her courageous battle against cancer.

Jacqui shared the following thoughts with me about her latest piece.

"Picking up from where the last piece ended I wanted to share and honest account of the reality of my cancer journey, which was physically and emotionally draining but also so life affirming at times.
 
A Cancer  diagnosis can not fail to change you and those near to you . It leads to irrational thoughts  and feelings that are often difficult to  admit for fear of hurting those around you. I hope in sharing my story and some of these emotions it might help others who are thinking they are the only ones who feel like that. They are not alone, nor are they awful for thinking that way. It’s important they know this. Overall , I hope this gives people a sense of hope."

If you missed the first part of Jacqui's story (Lightning does strike twice), you can catch up with it by clicking here.

I am certain you will be as moved as I was by Jacqui's second contribution Hair Today…Gone Tomorrow! which you can read here.

We are now into the final week of this year's showcase and it is an honour to feature another contribution from a long time supporter of this blog, Susan Mellsopp.

​Susan describes her entry as a "A unique tale of amusing and not so amusing stories of the nearly blind." It is a very powerful piece and made me stop and think about my own attitudes towards those that are visually impaired. It certainly gave me a better understanding of the difficulties they face.  Thank you for sharing your insights Susan.

​You can read Life Unseen by clicking here.

Susan Mellsopp 

Susan lives in Hamilton, New Zealand, with her cream Labrador guide dog Maya. She has always been an avid reader who has two talking and a kindle book on the go at once, as well as a digital magazine. She has often said she must have been born in a library.
 
Susan runs a writing group, and has recently started writing longer memoir essays. She enjoys going to classical music concerts, gardening-mostly roses, knitting and meeting friends at cafes. She has recently purchased a keyboard and is reviving her playing skills. She loves learning about new technology. Travel is a huge passion but this has been halted by covid. She hopes to travel again soon.  
​

With under two weeks left in the 2023 Creative Writing Showcase, it is fantastic to be able to feature two light-hearted memoir pieces from Tina Wagner Mattern.

Tina's first story, which takes us back to her schooldays, is called Geronimo On Skis, and is available to read here.

Her second contribution was written 13 years ago and it is therefore important to point out that as this is not a recent piece it talks about her age/children etc. that are 13 years older now. You can read Flaws in the System by clicking here.

With only a couple of weeks left in this year's Memoir Showcase, it gives me great pleasure to welcome back Mitos Suson with her first contribution this year.

You can read her moving story Blood Calls by clicking here.

Mitos Suson has published ‘A Doorbell, A Dictator, A Dad’, ‘Shards of Time: A Memoir’ and ‘Quarantine Wisdom’. Her writings are also published in anthologies and articles on the web. Mitos hails from the island of Cebu in the Philippines but is a globe trotter. She’s lived in America, Germany, and Chile. Currently she resides in the cool mountain enclaves of the Philippines. She maintains a travel blog, but her chief inspirations are reading and her dogs.

Follow her here:
Website: http://mitossuson.com
FB: https://www.facebook.com/martiallawchild/
Blog: BLOG – Mitos suson

It is a pleasure today to feature a second contribution in the 2023 Memoir Showcase from well-known author Jackie Lambert, along with a wonderful selection of related photos.

​I am sure you will enjoy Jackie's story as much as I have. You can read Ladies Who Launch – My First Ever Windsurfing Race by clicking here.

Jackie Lambert with Ruby in Provence
​

It is a privilege to be able to feature this latest contribution to the 2023 Memoir Showcase from Susan Mellsopp.

You can read Susan's moving story He’s Beautiful and He Knows It here.

Susan Mellsopp 

Susan lives in Hamilton, New Zealand, with her cream Labrador guide dog Maya. She has always been an avid reader who has two talking and a kindle book on the go at once, as well as a digital magazine. She has often said she must have been born in a library.
 
Susan runs a writing group, and has recently started writing longer memoir essays. She enjoys going to classical music concerts, gardening-mostly roses, knitting and meeting friends at cafes. She has recently purchased a keyboard and is reviving her playing skills. She loves learning about new technology. Travel is a huge passion but this has been halted by covid. She hopes to travel again soon.  
​

I'd like to offer a very warm welcome to another newcomer to Fred's Blog, memoir author Dvora Treisman.

You can read Dvora's contribution to the 2023 Memoir Showcase, Inés, here.

The latest contribution to the Memoir Showcase is from Jacqui Martin.

We are especially honoured, as Jacqui is not only a newcomer to this blog, but she has never sent anything for submission before. After having read her story, I am sure you will agree that this should not be the last.

Jacqui has also provided some background to her story, which I am sure she will not mind me sharing, "The chapter of my life in my submission is not one I look back on with much joy or enthusiasm in all honesty but Its been very cathartic doing so at this time when faced with another life changing scenario. It has served as a reminder of how far you can come, even from the bleakest of outlooks, of how there is light even in the deepest valleys and of the hidden strength you don’t even know you possess until tested."

​You can read her moving story Lightning does strike twice by clicking here.

Today's feature in the Memoir Showcase is the third contribution this year from Sue Bavey, and I am particularly honoured to feature this story about her mother's travels to Australia in 1960.

You can read All At Sea here.

Sue Bavey (sometimes writing as S. Bavey) is an English Mum of two, living in Massachusetts since 2003 with her family, a cat named Midnight, a bunny named Nutmeg and a leopard gecko named Ziggy Stardust. She wrote her grandfather’s biography: Lucky Jack (1894-2000) during COVID lockdown and published her late father’s memoirs and poetry in a volume titled: Daydreams & Narcoleptic Nightmares.
​
All At Sea is an excerpt from her upcoming book detailing her mother’s three years spent in Australia and New Zealand during the 1960’s. Working title (this may change): Kookaburras, Cuppas and Kangaroos.
 
Lucky Jack (1894-2000): https://bit.ly/Lucky-Jack
Photos of Lucky Jack here: https://suelbavey.wordpress.com/lucky-jack-photo-gallery
Daydreams & Narcoleptic Nightmares: https://bookgoodies.com/a/B0BFTFJKPR
 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SueBavey
Facebook:​​ https://www.facebook.com/sue.bavey
Email: sue.bavey@gmail.com (Emails welcome)
​