Anyone who knows me knows that I am a compulsive writer. So, where I have been since April? Not writing any blog postings, that’s obvious.

Let me tell you.

It’s been over a year since I thought I had finished writing the book I’ve been compiling of my Uncle Joe’s stories. Which I started in 2011. But I wasn’t finished. I delved back in to do some adding and deleting, plus a lot of fact checking. As always with anything I write, I keep on fussing with it and fixing it, until I can’t find anything to fix anymore. And that’s how I know it’s done. The title: Lighter than Air: The ‘20s, The ‘30s, The War, and a Marriage Made in Heaven.

The actions begins when Joe Flynn, who served in the US Navy from 1940 to 1946, finds himself aboard USS Redwood berthed at the Portsmouth (NH) Naval Yard on December 7, 1946, Pearl Harbor Day. It ends on the day he is discharged from the Navy. In between, well, let’s just hope I find a publisher, so you can find out. One thing I will explain: the title. Where did in come from? In World War II, the US Navy had countless seagoing vessels, many aircraft that were heavier than air (bombers, fighters, sea planes for rescue and reconnaissance) and also a good number of aircraft that were lighter than air: balloons and blimps. From 1940 to 1943, Joe was a seagoing sailor. From 1943 to 1946 he was a sailor qualified to fly in craft that were lighter than air.

It’s only through a wonderful literary agent (now retired, unfortunately) who was extraordinarily kind to me when I was starting out that I came to understand what I need to do next.

A Book Proposal

For non-fiction, agents and publishers want to see a book proposal:
Overview, Bio, Target Audience, Chapter Summary, Manuscript Specifications, Comparable Titles, Sample Chapters. (Whew!)

Thinking all this through (after doing the necessary homework) and putting it together in a way that demonstrates some literary prowess is a time-consuming task. As I’ve always done when I’m “on assignment” (this time a self-imposed assignment), I don’t let myself get side-tracked into self-indulgent forays of writing what I want. I stick to the task at hand, as I’ve done over decades of meeting deadlines. Finally, the Proposal is completed and I soon will be sending it out.

And More

Putting my Proposal together is  what I’ve been up to these past few months—in addition to deputizing my alter ego, Mrs. Penfire, to write a couple of fiery, forceful, and succinct letters that have been published in the LA Times, entertaining grandchildren over the summer, and as always, driving my Nana-mobile and my geriatric care-wagon on various missions.

Most Exciting of All

In 2012, working with my friend (and longtime collatorator) Nancy Bellantoni to creat a book about her father’s wartime artwork and experiences pushed Uncle Joe to the back burner. We spent a year researching, a couple more years writing/designing, and a few more years finding a publisher. In 2016, The Hoover Institution at Stanford University acquired Nat’s World War II Collection and the Hoover Institution Press contracted with us to publish the book. Finally, in the fall of 2019, we had finished books, illustrated by Nat’s beautiful watercolors, his sketchbooks, and many key items from the Collection.

That was a thrill. In January of 2020, along with Jean Cannon, Hoover’s Curator for North American Collections, we made a presentation and held a book-signing event at the US Navy Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, California.

Then COVID hit. And our opportunities for in-person events to promote the The Battalion Artist evaporated.

Unable to mount a gallery show as they had planned, the exhibitions team at Hoover created a fantastic online exhibit. https://histories.hoover.org/battalion-artist/

In-person events related to The Battalion Artist seemed to be over.

And then…this summer, Nancy and I learned that Hoover had decided to revive their original plan for an exhibition of Nat’s artwork and Collection.

And they did. Beautifully. Expertly. Spectacularly.

Just two weeks ago, Mr. Penfire and I flew from LA to San Jose met to attend the Opening of The Battalion Artist exhibition.