Featured Interview With V.L. Brunskill
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Brooklyn, New York and moved to Savannah, Georgia ten years ago after finding my biological family. I am an adoptee and searched for 13 years for birth father and mother. I live in sunny, romantic Savannah with my bass player husband, above-average daughter and a delightfully bad dog.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
It all started with a polar bear! I was in the fifth grade when I won a poetry contest. The task was to write a poem about a polar bear. I wrote ‘Did you ever see a polar bear, so big, white & furry? I’d hate to be in ones way when it’s in a hurry.’ I won the contest, and was accused of plagiarism. The boy who accused me was jealous. I was proven innocent the next day.
After that icy accomplishment, I went on to become a professional writer. My career started as a national music journalist at Metronome Magazine, CREEM and the Boston Phoenix. I interviewed every musician and band that stopped in Boston from 1989-1998. Poison, Whitesnake, Buddy Guy, Deep Purple, Chicago, Lynyrd Skynyrd….you name a band and I will probably have a story to share.
From rock stars to rocking ions, I went on to become senior editor of an IT magazine, and a technical writer in the ion implantation field. I am now a conference/webinar producer for business management conferences in the law, HR, finance, and healthcare industries.
I am thoroughly enjoying my new role as a traditionally published novelist with Southern Yellow Pine Publishing.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Pat Conroy, Charlotte Bronte, Sue Monk Kidd and Barbara Kingsolver are a few of the authors whom I adore. I fell in love with Bronte when I was living in a shelter for battered women and children at the age of 12. It was summertime, and all of the activities at the shelter were focused on young kids. One of the counselors have me ‘Jane Eyre’ to read, and I was never lonely again.
I had the pleasure of meeting Pat Conroy twice and I believe that he is one of the greatest writers of our time. I nearly swooned each time I touched the hand of the great man. His novels explore family. The good, the bad and the ugly of it. In a recent interview he was quoted as saying, “My fate was to be the memory in my family. It tortures me that I do remember.”
I had him sign that quote and it hangs on the wall in my office. I am also a memory keeper. ‘Waving Backwards’ has quite a few memories scattered through its fictional journey.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
I wrote ‘Waving Backwards’ in 30 days. I used the NaNoWriMo style of writing a certain number of words per day. Three years of rewrites later, I found a publisher.
The tagline for the book is-
Imagine not knowing who you are, until you find yourself in a statue 800 miles from home.
Waving Backwards introduces you to intensely passionate and fiercely independent New York college student Lara Bonavito, and brings you on an unforgettable journey of self-discovery in sigh-worthy Savannah, Georgia. Adopted into an abusive and impoverished home, Lara’s quest to find her roots lands her in the Southern jewel’s historic district. A vivid cast of characters help her unravel clues found in a cryptic letter hidden in the family bible for two decades. “The baby’s roots are with the Southern lady who waves forever.” With the help of mischievously handsome trolley tour guide Robert Taylor, Kipling-quoting florist Abel Bloom, and comically outspoken Louisiana beauty Susan Fletcher, Lara uncovers family secrets wrapped in the mystique of Savannah’s Waving Girl statue. Waving Backwards is a coming-of-age quest that reveals the healing power of family bonds and maternal love.
Beyond the adoption theme, ‘Waving Backwards’ explores what it means to be family, and tells a lot of Savannah’s history. Felix de Weldon, sculptor of the Waving Girl Statue is a character in the book. He also sculpted the USMC Iwo Jima Sculpture in Washington, D.C.
There is something for history buffs, romantics, mystery lovers and all of the world’s memory keepers in ‘Waving Backwards’.
‘Waving Backwards’ is available at Amazon.com, SYPPublishing.com, Barnes & Noble, Savannah Visitor Center Bookstore, EShaver Books in Savannah, and Cadre Shops.
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