I'm in the Paper!

I was in the local paper, the Newberg Graphic! It's interesting to read the reporter's take on it but what is more interesting is that he said I was participating in the art walk (which I was still vascillating about) and I didn't have any books left (gave them all away) so I had to get books FAST for Friday. Here is the article below or you can go to http://www.newberggraphic.com/NBGArts1.shtml

Novel recounts an unusual friendship

Christine Thackeray’s ‘The Crayon Messages’ loosely based on community outreach work
By David Sale For Newberg resident Christine Thackeray, faith not only supports her, it's an ongoing source of inspiration. Thackeray, 48, a member of the Church of Latter-day Saints, was inspired to write a novel loosely based on her experiences with "teaching assignments," or community outreach work. Titled "The Crayon Messages," the novel recounts an unusual friendship between a church volunteer and an elderly woman who suffers from a sleeping sickness, falling unconscious for days or weeks at a time. Ignored by the nursing home staff, the pair are able to communicate through messages written on the walls in crayon.

"It's actually based on a woman I knew who had a similar condition," Thackeray said. "Others in our church would go to visit her and tell me about these wonderful conversations they had, but she was always asleep when it was my turn to visit." Thackeray, who studied English at Brigham Young University, didn't set out to become an author, but found herself bit by the writing bug. "I think there's events in life we'd like to re-script and writing is a way to do that," she said. "Originally, I had set out to write a murder mystery set among a church congregation - I had been living in Minnesota and got a rather cool reception when I joined the church there. It came out to be about 600 pages and no one wanted to publish it. So, I took one of the side stories to make this novel."

Turning aside from mystery to inspirational fiction, Thackeray said she is already planning a sequel "that's also about people who have adventures when they reach out to others." Meanwhile, she is collaborating with her sister, a professor, on a non-fiction guide to the Christian symbolism of C.S. Lewis' "Narnia" series. "The Crayon Messages" is published by the small press Cedar Fort, and is available online at www.cedarfort.com or from Deseret Bookstore in Lake Oswego. Thackeray will be selling copies of her book at Chapters Bookstore during the First Friday Art Walk in May.