Press Release - March 31, 2010

Debut Novel, Back to the Homeplace, set in the Southern Missouri Ozarks

Vision to Action Publishing announces the release of Back to the Homeplace, the debut novel of William Leverne Smith, a resident of Hollister, MO, on April 1, 2010.

Hollister, MO, March 31, 2010 -- Back to the Homeplace, the debut novel of William Leverne Smith, will be available to the public on April 1, 2010. The novel is set on a farm and in a nearby fictional community located in the southern Missouri Ozark hills and near a fictional western branch of the Current River. The story revolves around a family dilemma following the death of their matriarch and the unusual will she left to insure the continuity of the farm, which has been in her family for over 150 years, intact. 

The year is 1987. The varied background and viewpoints of the adult children coming back to the Homeplace ignite controversy and expose long kept secrets as each family member searches for his or her share of the family legacy. While the older family members stake their claims on land and fortunes, the younger ones search for love and acceptance. Subplots involve AIDS Awareness in 1987 issues and a support group for domestic violence incidents.

At the heart of this family life story is how we do or do not effectively communicate among family members - parents with children, among children and grandchildren and that we must each face the consequences of our individual actions. What happens when they come back to the Homeplace?

See Video Book Trailer at: http://eduscapes.com/v2a/back_to_the_homeplace.html
See Author's Blog at: http://thehomeplaceseries.blogspot.com/

About Vision to Action Publishing:
Vision to Action Publishing designs and develops print, e-book, web, and video materials to support life-long learning and leisure activities. It is a family business with offices in Austin, TX, Teasdale, UT, and Hollister, MO, and does not accept author submissions or outside advertising.

ISBN 978-1451560404


Contact:
William L. Smith, Corporate Secretary
417-336-0692
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/

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A Wednesday Recipe - Banana Bread

A Wednesday Recipe - Banana Bread

Back to the Homeplace begins in the first chapter with a family dinner. It ends with plans for a Homeplace Country Inn. Recipes play an important role in the family life we are sharing. Starting today, a blog post "A Wednesday Recipe" will be added here - sharing recipes from our family, and perhaps adding a few you want to recommend, as well. This will be ordinary farm food, not gourmet food recipes.

We are going to start with our family Banana Bread recipe. I've actually made this one, myself. It was awful, because my wife was out of town, and I used baking soda instead of baking powder. I helped her make it recently, and it was fine - with her calling the shots!

The Homeplace Banana Bread

3 1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 teaspoons cream of tartar
2 cups banana pulp
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup shortening
1 1/3 cup sugar
4 eggs, well beaten

Sift flour, soda, tarter and salt. Cream shortening well & beat in sugar. Add eggs, mixing well. Mash ripe bananas, as soon as peeled with a silver fork - 3 to 4 ripe bananas yield 1 cup. Add flour alternately with banana - mixing well after each addition. Turn into greasing loaf pans & bake in moderate oven (350 degrees F) one hour or until done. Yields 2 loaves.

Yum!



Comments welcomed. Note that you have a recipe you think I should include, as well; we can exchange by email.


"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Just added "Print Friendly" for your use

Note at the bottom of each blog post, now, is a "Print Friendly" button in green.

This allows you to just print, or save in a pdf file, the body of the post, itself - without the header and sidebars of the blog. I think you will really like this. Give it a try.

Let me know, in the comments, how it worked! Thanks!

"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

"Back to the Homeplace" began in 1987

I first created the story, the characters and the setting of Back to the Homeplace in 1987 when I was actively involved with The Author's Resource Center (TARC) in Tucson, Arizona. It was first written in the word processing language WriteNow, one of the early versions, actually. It was saved on the old Mac, several times, transferred to PC, saved in an early Word version, and saved through many versions of Word... to Emporia and then to Hollister. It was in 42+ folders, one chapter per folder, plus a few or character sketches, etc. Some of the later chapters were blanks.

Someone asked about this, so here is the story. When I retired last year, I vowed to rewrite, finish the story, polish the prose, and get it published within a year. In December and January, I sent out the "finished product" to several people I trusted, to get feedback. The feedback suggested some major/minor revisions and a few more chapters.  With that work completed, I felt it was time to get it in print.

After rejects by two agents I respected the most, from my reserach - and I respect them more now, by the way, I also received contract offers from two mainline publishers. However, they were both "author-subsidized" contracts. I learned a lot from communicating at length with them and researching their business models in detail. One was a large publisher, one was a small publisher. The offers were virtually identical.... hmmm. I went with Vision to Action Publishing, the educational materials publisher with which I have already been associated in the text book business for many years (15+). It is our family business, and within the family we have all the skills the two publishing companies wanted us to pay for. I am very happy with the decision.

I'd be happy to answer any further questions or comment from anyone about the process. It has been very enlightening!


Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Back to the Homeplace - Now on Amazon

As you can see from the widget to far right, Back to the Homeplace is now available on Amazon.com...

We are currently filling out the forms to get good product and author information onto the site. It takes some time to get this all done, but it should be ready in a few days.

However, you can order your copy now, if you have been waiting for Amazon.com, where you normally order. If you like the book, we invite you to add your own Book Review to the site. It is easy to do, and actually helps sales to have good reviews recorded. If you don't like the book, send me an email at: williamlevernesmith@gmail.com so we can discuss your concerns.

I'm working on the followup book, you can see the cover at the right, so feedback is very important to me. Any specific, that concerns you, or that would be helpful to me, will be appreciated.

"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

What were you doing in 1987? What was in the news?

Back to the Homeplace opens in Februay, 1987 - here is what was in the news and on television:

February 16 - 18, 1987

In the news today...

1. The Big Chill: How Heterosexuals Are Coping with AIDS (Time)

2. Higher Rate of Retardation Is Expected From Chernobyl: Scientists Given Updated Estimate of Impact (Washington Post)

3. Who Will Bury Apartheid? (Washington Post)
4. Dean Kleckner, 54, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, on prospects of changes in farm legislation this year: ''When all is said and done, more may be said than done.'' (Fortune)
5. A movement toward safer sex is gathering momentum among heterosexuals, as AIDS and the fear of it infect the nation, which may promise to change male-female relationships and bedroom behavior. (NY Times)
6. A bill to raise the minimum wage is expected to be approved in Congress this year, said the Senate and House Majority Leaders, who added that they would support efforts now underway to raise the minimum wage of $3.35 an hour. (NY Times)
7. U.S.-Soviet ties seem overcome by a strange sense of inertia, apparently immune to the momentum of change and liberalization occurring inside the Soviet Union under Mikhail S. Gorbachev. (NY Times)

On Television…

The Facts of Life, Designing Women, Newhart, Fame, MacGyver, Matlock, Highway to Heaven, St. Elsewhere, Head of the Class

Where would you have been, and what would you have been doing?
What are your thoughts, memories, as you read this post?
Share some comments, below.



"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

More about some of the people in the book

Today, we will be taking a look at some of the key people in the Back to the Homeplace book in two groups. The first is the adult children, they are the ones most directly involved in the will provisions. Then, we will look at the younger folks, and their relationships.

Be sure to see the video book trailer... at the last blog post or here.

The older family members:

Karen is the oldest of the Bevins siblings (the others are Beverly, Bart and Peter). Karen has been married to Jason Winslow for 27 years and they have four children, the youngest about to graduate from high school. Jason is a principal partner in a Financial Planning firm. Karen is a nurse, having worked at a hospital the past 16 years or so. They have lived in the Phoenix, AZ, Valley of the Sun, most of their married lives.

Beverly left home for Jackson, Mississippi, as soon as she graduated from High School in Oak Springs. She has rarely come back; just occasional holidays. She is married to Paul Gates. He is a mechanical engineer. She is administrative assistant at a construction company. They have two pre-teen children. Paul has a nineteen year old daughter, Sheila, by a prior message. Sheila comes to Oak Springs with the family, since she recently lost her department store clerk job.

Bart Bevins is third in order of age. He and his wife, Diane, live on and work the farm at the Homeplace. Diane is also the Oak Springs High School English teacher. They expected to be able to continue farming the farm indefinitely into the future, for the family. Their oldest child, Donnie, is in his first of two years at the Ozarks Community College studying Farm Operations, expecting to marry his girl friend, Melanie Ogden, and become the next generation farmer on the Homeplace. Their daughter, Jennifer, is a Junior in High School.

Peter is the youngest of the children of Frank and Mildred Bevins. Peter was about to graduate from the State University when his father died in an auto accident returning from a visit to the University. Rather than returning home for the funeral, Peter left for Oregon, and has lived their since that time.

Some of the younger family members:

Donnie, as noted above, has been dating Melanie Ogden for some time. Melanie is a year younger, a senior in High School. She and her younger brother, Christopher, are the children of Carter and LInda Ogden. Carter is the attorney for the Bevins estate. Donnie and Christopher have been athletic teammates and good friends. Based on these relationships, Christopher and Jennifer, Donnie's sister, have become very good friends. The foursome frequently go out together socially. The appearance of Sheila Gates into this mix creates sparks and conflict in several directions.

Now, they would like you to get you to know them even better, and follow them through the spring and summer of 1987, into the summer and fall. Read more about them in Back to the Homeplace.



"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
Order the book directly at: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Video Book Trailer for Back to the Homeplace

Here is the Video Book Trailer for Back to the Homplace:



It can also be seen at: http://eduscapes.com/v2a/back_to_the_homeplace.html

where you can now order autographed copies of the book, sent directly to your address.

"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
See: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Meet My People - Back to the Homeplace - Characters

Today, I would like to introduce you to some of the people in the Back to the Homeplace story.

This is based on information on page 3 and 4 of the novel (with some additions):

THE FAMILY:

Frank and Mildred (McDonald) Bevins, deceased - their children:

Karen (Bevins) and Jason Winslow; they have four children

Beverly (Bevins) and Paul Gates; children Scott and Heather - Sheila Gates (Paul's daughter by a previous marriage)

Bart and Diane Bevins; children Donnie and Jennifer

Peter Bevins

FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS:

Carter (he is an attorney) and Linda Ogden; children, Christopher and Melanie

Harry (he is a banker) and Sarah Flanders; daughter Lisa, engaged to Doug Johnson

George Chambers - long time friend of Frank and Mildred Bevins

Virginia Hollingsworth - long time friend of Frank and Mildred Bevins and closet neighbor


I want you to get to know these folks, and become their friends. Their story is very much like your story and mine, with some unusual twists and turns, for your pleasure. The four Bevins siblings, children of the late Frank and Mildred Bevins, have made their own lives that are now being interrupted by the will Mildred has left. Mildred died in November of 1986 leaving a will that, among other provisions, requires that the four children decide whether they want to come back to a February 1987 gathering, making a two year commitment to stay and work on the Homeplace, in order to be eligible to benefit from further bequests. What would you do, if this were your parent's farm, and your inheritance? I welcome your comments and questions.

"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
See: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Back Cover Blurb - Back to the Homeplace

At the heart of this story is communications among family members: communication and lack of communication; parents with children, among children.

An extended family in crisis following the death of their matriarch must cope with this new environment. The year is 1987. The terms of an unusual will left by their parents bring four grown children, spouses, and other family members, back to the Missouri Ozarks farm where they grew up - the Homeplace. Varied backgrounds and viewpoints ignite controversy and expose long kept secrets as each family member searches for his or her share of the family legacy. While the older family members stake their claims to land and fortunes, the younger ones search for love and acceptance.

"Seriously communicate with family members regularly."

"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
See: https://www.createspace.com/3441320

Back to the Homeplace

This blog is the companion to the fiction novel series starting with my debut novel: Back to the Homeplace, which will be available to the public in a few weeks. The next book in the series is in the research stage, The Homeplace Revisited, and will be released in late Spring of 2011. Both titles are being released by Vision to Action Publishing.


"May each of us have a Homeplace to hold onto, if only in our minds."

Bill ;-)

William Leverne Smith
http://eduscapes.com/v2a/william_leverne_smith.html
See: https://www.createspace.com/3441320