Kent Rasmussen’s Late-Blooming Tale of Mark Twain
In his late 40s, Kent Rasmussen looked upon the dark night of the soul. He obsessively read Mark Twain to raise his spirits. Now he’s one of the world’s foremost Twain authorities.
2012
Go Granny! Two Marathoners Speed Past 90
Need inspiration to get off the couch? Guinness World Book just named Gladys Burrill, age 92, the Oldest Female Marathon Finisher.
When Truth Is Truly Stranger Than Fiction
Two of Anne R. Allen’s novels play off real-life episodes. One involves a Hollywood scandal and the other, her first publishing experience with an erotica company trying to go mainstream. I interview her over at Write It Sideways.
Margaret Dunning Drives to College—At 102!
Born in 1910, Margaret Dunning learned to drive at age 8 and lived next door to Henry Ford. She still drives her 1930 Packard Roadster to car shows and just received a college scholarship!
Shirley S. Allen: Beyond Publish or Perish
After her children left home, Shirley Allen became a college professor. In her 80s, she started writing fiction, including the first-class cozy mystery, Academic Body.
Frank McCourt: How a Brooklyn High School Teacher Published “Angela’s Ashes” at Age 66
Frank McCourt taught English in New York high schools for 27 years before writing his Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir, Angela’s Ashes, at age 66. “I refused to settle for a one-act existence.”