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HOMER HICKAM QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
Fall '01 Issue,
click here for this issue's photos
Dear Friends:
I believe I must have the nicest, most intelligent fans of any author writing in the United States today. The thousands of letters and e-mails I've received in the last few years have been almost universally inspirational and encouraging. You've told me how much you've loved my books and how they've helped you. You've also told me about your lives and your struggles and the universal truths that echo thematically through my writing and have touched you in some way. For this, I will always be profoundly grateful. In fact, I wish I could answer every one of your letters personally but if I did, I might not be able to find time to write another book! My wife and assistant, Linda, makes a valiant attempt to at least acknowledge each letter in some way but we wish we could do more. One thing she's convinced me to do is to write a quarterly letter to my fans that will attempt to give you some insight into our lives as you've so endearingly given us insight into yours. This is my first attempt at it. I will apologize up front for this first one being a little long. It includes a lot of catch-up stuff for the year I hope you'll enjoy. The next letter will be a bit shorter, I swan! If you'd like to receive the letters via e-mail as they're written (we think no more than quarterly, and short!) please sign up on our Web site. This will also register you for a drawing for a signed book each time we publish. be assured your address will not be used for any other purpose and you can "opt out" at any time.
THE NEW BOOK:
We are excited about the publication of my fifth book Sky of Stone, which will be available in bookstores on October 9. We've already gotten a wonderful review from Kirkus, one of the toughest reviewers out there and some early readers have said they like Sky of Stone even better than October Sky, high praise indeed!
Sky of Stone is my memoir of when I was an eighteen-year old boy and thought I'd left my gritty little hometown of Coalwood, West Virginia, behind me forever. But as my summer vacation from engineering school began in 1961, I was forced back to Coalwood by forces I didn't fully understand. I only knew that my parents had separated, my father, the coal mine superintendent, was accused of causing the death of one of his top mining foremen, and that there was something wrong with Coalwood's "Secret Man" to whom I owed my life. And how was the truth concerning the long-ago disappearance of my mother's pet fox related to everything else? Before long, I was trying to figure it all out while working in the coal mine as a track-layer, one of the most brutal, dangerous jobs underground. I'd also met the lovely and audacious Rita Walicki, an engineer who had vowed to be the first woman in Coalwood's mine. As the threads of the story weave ever tighter, we're all swept along by "Coalwood business," the secretive river of life that ran deep in the hearts of the townspeople. Sky of Stone is the third in my memoir trilogy that began with October Sky (also known as Rocket Boys) and The Coalwood Way and I hope you'll enjoy it.
By the way, the paperback of my best-selling second "Coalwood Book" The Coalwood Way will be available on September 4. For those of you who missed the hard cover version, I hope you'll take a look at this follow-up to October Sky. Not exactly a sequel, The Coalwood Way is what I call an "equal," since it takes place during the same timeframe as the first memoir. The Rocket Boys are back in this one, along with a Rocket Girl or two and our last Christmas as Coalwood boys. It is a great read, especially as the weather turns cooler into fall.
THE WRITER'S LIFE:
This has been a busy year for us. As I write this in my office, she's on the other end of our house in her office (which is also our bedroom), busy at her computer working on promotion, tour schedules, and answering the load of mail that comes into us every day. We both work at home which is both a blessing and a curse. We enjoy it but even when we're home, we're at work!
Sky of Stone was due to, be turned in in February, 2001, in order to make a fall publication date and, as always, I strive to hit my deadlines. Beth Rashbaum, my editor at Delacorte, gave me a couple of weeks extra but to get a book to market in the busy fall requires its completion by at least six months prior to actual publication. Even after a manuscript is turned in, there is still work to be done for several months. Usually, my manuscripts are pretty much ready to be printed when I turn them in. I go over them with a very fine intellectual comb, making certain that not only are little things like my spelling and grammar correct, but also certain logical and timeline problems are ironed out. Still, there's always something that eagle -eyed first editor Linda and I miss.
After the nagging little things in a manuscript are squared away, an advanced reading copy (ARC) is often printed by the publisher. The ARC of Sky of Stone also included the new cover art which Linda and I love. It's done by Tom Hallman, a talented artist, who does many best-selling covers, including many of Stephen King's . He also did the cover of The Coalwood Way and we liked it so much we asked for him to do this one too. In any case, the ARC's are produced to go out to booksellers and potential reviewers and interviewers with an eye on getting them excited about the new book. Linda and I get to read other authors' ARC's from time to time and are always surprised at the typographical, grammatical, timeline, and spelling errors that are in them. We do our best to not let that happen to Homer Hickam books! We respect our readers too much for that. To avoid such errors, however, requires reading the manuscripts over and over again to dig out the problems. We understand why some authors don't do it but think they should.
I was happy with the news that Brilliance Audio was going to do the audio production of the new book. In the past with other producers, I've had to really overhaul the script for the abridged versions of the audio books because they've missed what I consider important aspects of the story that simply shouldn't be cut. On one book, I had to throw away everything and start all over again! For Sky of Stone, however, the abridgement Brilliance sent to me was just perfect! Brilliance is also doing an unabridged version of the book, always the best way to listen to an audio book.
While ironing out problems with the new book, I also began my next one, a novel set during World War II along the Outer Banks of North Carolina. This is a labor of love that I've been eager to get to for some time. Many of my fans may not be familiar with my first book: Torpedo Junction. TJ is a military history best-seller about the bitter battles against the German U-boats along the American east coast during World War II. It also represents the initial research for the new novel.
Unfortunately, I'm not able to spend full-time on the new novel quite yet. With Sky of Stone coming out in October, a lot of my time has to be spent worrying over promotion. Linda and I have been working with Susan Corcoran in Delacorte's publicity department to set up the fall book tour, which is on the home page of my website. Although my Coalwood books are very popular and have the full support of my publisher, the fall book season is a tough one with lots of competition with some of the biggest authors. For me to get my book prominently placed in stores and sales staffs fired up requires lots of hands-on attention. Linda does a lot of this but I have to get involved, too. She's also spending a lot of time this summer preparing material for the many Reading Groups contacting us (also known as Book Clubs). Check our Web site and look for the new Reading Group button for these questions and comments from me. Being an author and an author's assistant means a great deal of work besides the actual writing of books. After five books, we've come to understand that!
FUN STUFF:
Of course, it hasn't been all work. Linda and I went to the Galapagos Islands with friends this past February. We are both scuba instructors (although retired) so we've been looking forward to this trip for some time. It was glorious. We flew into Quito, Ecuador for a night before heading out to the Galapagos. The air is thin in Quito so we spent the night taking deep breaths! After a long plane ride out over the Pacific Ocean, the beautiful but stark islands came into view. We soon boarded the trimaran Lammer Law (see http://www.lammerlaw.com) for a week of island-hopping and diving. Every day saw a new adventure. We loved most of all diving with the sea lions! We've attached a picture of our Galapagos adventure to this letter. (photo 1)
Here's some "Linda" special news. Linda will be in SHAPE fitness magazine again! The article will be in their 20th anniversary October issue on sale the first week in September. It's the third time for her in this fine magazine. I believe the article will be called "Success Story Reunion." It will be a "where are they now?" story about Linda and three other women who were on the cover and featured in 1994 as "success stories." She always cooks healthy meals and we work hard to stay fit. We like to exercise together every day. It sure helps to shake out the tension of sitting in front of a computer all day. See the photo page attached to this letter to see Linda at the SHAPE shoot! (photo 2)
In early March, we went skiing with Frank and Naomi Stewart, our friends in Bozeman, Montana. In July, we had a return trip to Bozeman, this time to attend the Jurassic Park III movie premiere. Joe Johnston, the director of that film, also directed October Sky. Jack Horner, the famous paleontologist and a good friend, is the technical consultant for all the Jurassic Park films, and also lives and works in Bozeman which is why they decided to have the premiere there. Before the movie was shown, we all got together and launched rockets. Frank is a great rocket-builder and so is Jack! We launched a Barbie doll and she did great, deploying perfectly and landing with hairdo and dress intact. Celeste Horner, Jack's wife, was there with her uncle, Ossie Davis, the famous actor. Photos of some of our rocket launchings are attached. (photo 3-5)
After the premiere, Linda and Naomi stayed behind to visit around the lovely little town of Bozeman while Frank and I (along with Bill Hendricks, another friend) headed for Hell Creek, Montana, for our third year of dinosaur-hunting with Jack. The big news is that Frank, Bill, and I found a Tyrannosaurus-Rex, only the 22nd ever found! We're pretty proud of it. It's called the F-Rex, named after Frank who spotted it first. We've attached a photo of our dinosaur-hunting. (photo 6) And for more news on our find of the T-Rex, click here.
When I got back from my dinosaur adventure, Linda went off to the Canyon Ranch Health Spa in Tucson, Arizona for a well-deserved break from working on my books, answering our mail, and coordinating my lectures. She spent a week there with her good friend Ann and they both came back relaxed and ready to work even harder!
PACO:
Thank you for all your prayers and good wishes for Paco, our beloved old cat (and the first cat to meow in space as well as the star of my novel, Back to the Moon). I think they've really helped! He is still with us, although considerably slowed down by some serious old age problems. Still, he obviously has a great love of life and we're proud of him. I'm going to attach a recent photo of the sweet old boy. (photo 7)
COALWOOD:
The real Coalwood lives! I returned to the town of my youth to attend Rocket Boys Day in July. All the surviving boys were there, too On a more serious note, southern West Virginia was hit hard this summer with a series of disastrous floods. Although Coalwood was spared, many of the small communities nearby were almost wiped out. Rocket Boy Billy (Willie) Rose has organized a drive to help provide school supplies to kids in the area who need a helping hand. Readers may recall that Billy was one of the poorest of the Rocket Boys but was an excellent student. His character was combined with Quentin into one character in the movie. His story was told in greater detail in The Coalwood Way. To assist Billy in his efforts to help school kids, you can contact him via e-mail at wrose@inetone.net.
HELP FOR THE LIBRARY OF THE ROCKET BOYS:
Last year, the public library in War, West Virginia, was destroyed by fire. War is the town where Big Creek High School is located, the high school of the Rocket Boys. It is also located in one of the poorest counties in the nation. To help out, some great ladies in Texas If you'd like to directly assist the library with cash or book contributions, please contact Frances Blankenship, Librarian, War Public Library, PO. Box 68, War, WV 24892, telephone # 304- 875-4622, or e-mail at frances@raleigh.lib.wv.us.
In general, the library welcomes any new or gently used book suitable for a public library (paperbacks are OK). Some specific needs include auto repair, African-American history, biographies, children's' stories/poems, current best-sellers, English lit reference, general law, psychology, sports, puppets and "story hour" props and materials. The library DOES NOT NEED Reader's Digest Condensed Books or large numbers of classroom textbooks.
FAVORITE LETTERS OF 2001:
I have the authors' permission to share these - see the Letters button on our website for many other letters there about the inspiring ways the books and movie have touched so many people... thanks to all of you for letting Homer know.
Aim High, Linda T. Hickam
My favorite students email still is:
Homer... you inspierd me and i hope you can keep on inspiring kids my age because of u i drop out of a gang thank you homer victor
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Waking up with a smile on my face
Mr. Hickam, I'm in the Armed Forces and I just had to make time to thank you for writing about your experiences growing up. As I'm sure you've been told by many people, your books (Rocket Boys and the Coalwood Way) both inspired me greatly.
Like you I am from a mining town. It's a small town, and many of my high-school friends still live there, mining for a living. I knew growing up that I wanted to make something out of myself other than a miner. I joined the military and have been stationed all over the world. I realized in Germany that I was an alcoholic and my first marriage, subsequently, ended because of it. I thought I was at the end of my rope. I remember thinking to myself, "I've gotten out of that dang town, but really moved nowhere at all." I was really down on life.
That's when I found your books. Your stories moved me and made me realize that there was a future for me - a future without alcohol where I could give something back. Thanks to your books I've given up drinking and in six months I will leave the military to attend college, where I will major in secondary education. I'll be sure to convey to children what your story meant to me and how in the darkest of times, others can help show us the light.
I could never really thank you for what you've done for me. Every morning I wake up with a smile on my face and a love for life that I can't put into words. I want to show everyone what that feels like. And I just wanted to say thank you.
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Religion teacher uses required reading of "October Sky"
Dear Mr. Hickam, Thank you for taking the time to write Rocket Boys (October Sky). Your book is required summer-break reading for our students. I am a religion teacher and decided to read what was on the reading list.
I was deeply touched by your desire to not only talk about building rockets but also to honor those people whom you describe in your book. The very last paragraph of your text beautifully summarized much of what you wanted to say about the experiences of your youth. Your book qualifies as an ode about love.
I am the moderator of an after-school activity, a computer and amateur radio club. Instead of sending rockets to the sky, we try to contact the ones that are there, via amateur radio. Our best success was contacting the MIR space station laptop computer via 2 meter packet radio.
Having read your book I am inspired to do even more to learn, to persevere, and to enjoy the adventure of discovery. My students in class will, no doubt, sense my enthusiasm in all I do.
Father Dan McLaughlin, O.S.A.
Monsignor Bonner High School
Drexel Hill PA 19026
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I'll fail and leave school...
Dear Homer, I'm 15 and live in Sydney Australia, I would just like to say thank you for all that you have done for me.
Let me explain, at school I was a D average student - I never did home work I never paid any thought to what was going on at school until I saw "October Sky." You see for science we had a project to do which was worth our year 10 grade so I was going to try to cross breed two plants, but after finding no information on the subject I thought "to heck with it I'll fail and leave school" but later on I saw your movie and that inspired me to try rocketry.
Now I'm hooked and so are my friends who where going down the same path as I was. Our first flight was awesome and we want to keep going with it but some how one of my teachers found out and asked us to do a demo for the WHOLE school, so we did. Now every Monday after school we get at least 500 kids coming out just to watch us, but the only downfall is that every body calls us "the rocket boys" (I guess they saw it also) but now I've found I'm starting to enjoy maths & science, however I still hate P.E.
Words nor actions can express how much I thank you, you basically saved my life. :) Glen
SUMMING UP:
Well, I told you there was a lot to cover. I hope you've enjoyed this first newsletter. I'll be writing another letter to you after the fall book tour - come see me! Check the schedule on the home page and see photo 8 of me in action. Until then, keep reading and enjoying life!
Sincerely,
Homer Hickam
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