My interest in polio
My favorite cousin. Ronny. had polio at age 5. We played together as children and his farm was a couple miles from ours. He lived a full and normal life for many years, in spite of wearing braces on his legs for a while. Then 15-20 years ago, Post-Polio Syndrome (PPS) hit his body with vengeance. We now spent a lot of time talking about life, and how polio affected him as a child, being hospitalized far from home and family, and having the famous Sister Kenny do therapy on his legs, to when PPS struck his legs, the same area affected many years earlier.
I became determined to tell Ronny’s story and that of other people who had similar experiences. I wanted to learn how the individuals and their family members were affected when it was happening, and now later in life. In April of 2013, I solicited the first stories, and as my name and interest was passed around, more people contacted me. By August, I had 41 stories submitted, and soon the book was taking shape. “When Polio Came Home: How Ordinary People Overcame Extraordinary Challenges” launched in December 2013 at a celebration for those in the book.
What a learning experience, having strangers tell me such deep and personal feelings of both pain and joy. I feel so honored they trusted their stories to me.
Book is available on Amazon.
Connie as writer and editor
Connie Anderson has edited books in many genres over the years—and in 2013, wrote her first two books. After telling clients what to do and how to do it, it was time to put all her advice to work for her own creative efforts. (See Books section.)
In one year, Connie edited over 20 books, with topics that ranged from needing a heart transplant to oil fracking to speaking to the dead to selling and buying restaurants and bars—and a whole variety of topics in between. She learned a lot of interesting things with each new subject, which fits her curious nature. (Read the comments from the authors about what it is like to work with Connie.)
Editing itself, as a career, is both exciting and rewarding when you can help a writer make their book better, more marketable and focused. The editor has to read every word for accuracy, flow and correct use and to follow the Chicago Manual of Style for that as well as punctuation. When she works with someone who is a good storyteller, that’s exciting, and if the person also is a good writer, it is a bonus. However, she also helps writers become better writers on the next book, teaching them rules and tricks along the way. She also serves as a resource for other aspects of getting a book published, like cover design, interior design, ebooks, intellectual property issues, etc.
