Authors to Alaska Luncheon

Seated at my table during the luncheon were Claudia Lively and Judy Ferguson, both known in the North Star Borough. Claudia’s local claim to fame is her acting ability and stellar performances in several dramatic productions. Her first picture book, co-authored with her sister Holly, was recently self-published. Judy Ferguson also is self-published so we had an interesting discussion on the difficulty of getting published and the pros and cons of not working with an agent as well as their separate journeys taken through the self-publishing route. I believe Judy's publisher is in an eastern European country!

I think many AkLA members are surprised that the North Star Borough (and interior Alaska) has so many authors of note.

I was so busy making certain the authors were seated and taken care of that I did not take notes on Sneed Collard’s presentation. I do remember that he has had many varied experiences beyond writing, particularly in the world of science. It was also comforting to hear how he has instilled the love of reading in his son and how they both talk about what they are reading.