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For decades Persis (“Perky”) Granger of Thurman was
“gonna write” a book, and when it finally happened, it mushroomed into
writing more books and articles and presenting programs and hosting
writers’ retreats. It took her stepmother’s descent into Alzheimer’s
disease to push Perky to publication. As she pondered the
craziness of dealing with her mom’s dementia, she wondered out loud if
all family members of Alzheimer’s victims feel as stressed and confused
by the changes the disease effects as she did. That wondering led
her to recruit ten other women to tell their stories in Shared
Stories from Daughters of Alzheimer’s: Writing a Path to Peace.
When the women reported that the writing of the chapters had given them
a sense of healing and closure, Perky began researching the therapeutic
value of writing and decided to incorporate that information into the
book. Kathleen Adams, author of the best-selling Journal to the
Self: Twenty-two Paths to Personal Growth and the granddaughter of
an Alzheimer’s patient, agreed to write the introduction, offering
guidance to those who wish to journal about Alzheimer’s.
The anthology was published in 2002 by iUniverse, as both a paperback
book and an e-book and was republished in 2004 as an iUniverse Star
edition. The momentum achieved by completing Shared Stories
propelled Perky to complete and self-publish her first work of fiction
in 2003, with the help of a LARAC individual artist grant. Her
young adult historical novel called Adirondack Gold was
accompanied by a Teacher’s Guide, written to facilitate use of the
novel in the classroom. She is now working on a sequel to
Adirondack Gold, expecting to have it on bookstore shelves by next
summer.
She attributes her love of Adirondack history to the work
of the John Thurman Historical Society, an organization whose magazine,
“The Quarterly” she now co-edits and helps write. She presents
writing and living history programs for youth and also does book and
Alzheimer’s awareness programs for adults. Perky does freelance
writing, having articles published in "Adirondack Family", "Backroads",
and "The North Creek News-Enterprise", and she has an article appearing
in the September-October issue of "Adirondack Life". She is now
busily preparing to co-host two retreats for women fiction writers,
called “Fiction Among Friends”. The first is scheduled for St.
George Island, Florida, in November, and the second will be held in
Thurman in 2007. Of the former, a brochure description says,
“Designed to inspire creativity and foster personal growth, the St.
George Island Writers' Retreat for Women offers the unique opportunity
to work alongside published authors in a nurturing environment.
With a focus on fictional works-in-progress, we will hone creative
techniques, draw on peer critique and explore individual writing styles
to enhance skills and facilitate personal development as writers.”
The St. George Island retreat will offer workshops and one-on-one
consultation with outstanding author of young adult fiction, Adrian
Fogelin. Workshops will be tailored to the needs of the
participants with large blocks of time scheduled for participants to
work on their own individual writing projects.
Full details of the retreats and Perky’s other projects
can be found on her web site. She welcomes emails
to chat about the projects, programs, or freelance assignments.
Since 1976 Perky has
lived in Thurman, where she and her husband raised two
daughters, large gardens, as well as numerous chickens pigs and cows. They
renovated several vintage houses and built five log cabins “from
scratch”. Says Granger, “Writing is easier”. |
