Welcome to my newsletter!
I know our inboxes are inundated these days, so I appreciate you taking a peek into my life here.
Every two weeks I will send you three things: What I’m Writing, What I’m Knitting, and What’s On My Mind.
What I’m Writing is an inside look at how I write, what I’m writing, upcoming readings, and events.
What I’m Knitting shares yarns I’m loving, patterns I’m trying, and my knitting catastrophes and successes.
What’s On My Mind is a glimpse into what I’m thinking and doing, places I’m traveling to or dreaming about visiting, and some surprises along the way.
Here are the Early February Three Things!
What I’m Writing:
Fly Girl, my memoir of being a flight attendant for TWA in the late 70s-mid80s, also known as The Golden Age of Flying. Okay, I admit, I wrote it a couple years ago. But something very exciting is happening that I want to share with you.
First, a bit about the book and about me.
I grew up in a big Italian-American family in a small, depressed mill town in Rhode Island. For as long as I can remember, I wanted to go somewhere—anywhere—else. I was that kid with stars in her eyes, a book on her lap, and a story growing in her imagination. When I was 7 or 8, I decided I would become a writer, a dream that no one in my town or my family could help me with. Everyone was supportive, but this blue-collar town didn’t have kids who dreamed about moving to Paris or London or NYC and writing novels.
In 7th grade, I read a book called, How to Become an Airline Stewardess. That book began: “Would you like a boyfriend in every city in the world?” Um…yes! A plan was hatched. I would become an airline stewardess and have enough adventures—“Breakfast in Paris, lunch in Rome, dinner in Madrid,” the book promised—to fill many books. I thought back then that a writer needed adventures to write, but of course I understand now that Eudora Welty was right when she said, “All a writer needs to do is sit on her own front porch.”
But adventures I had when I got hired as a TWA flight attendant (the term stewardess had just been changed to flight attendant) in 1978. When I retired my wings eight years later I’d walked over a million miles in high heels, gone through one of the biggest labor disputes in history, survived the oil crisis and furloughs, and traveled the world.
Why did it take me so long to write about my flight attendant years? As a writer, I didn’t see a story. I just saw a lot of anecdotes that made me a great cocktail party or dinner guest. The guy in Row 24 wearing only his tightie whities? Making an ice cream sundae for Richard Gere? Being told by a male passenger that I looked too dumb to read? I could go on and on.
But it wasn’t until someone pointed out to me how interesting it was that I’d flown during the tail end of the Golden Age and stopped at the very beginning of…well…what we have now that a story started taking shape. Not just a story about the history of aviation, or the history of flight attendants, but a coming-of-age story—mine. I came of age at 35000 feet. The person I am now is in large part because of that job I began as a very naïve twenty-two-year-old.
Apparently, the story of flight attendants is interesting to a lot of people because last year a television producer asked to interview me about the job. I happily spent an afternoon in Brooklyn with her and her crew talking about my experiences. And now that conversation is part of a new PBS documentary, “Fly With Me,” on An American Experience showing February 20 on your local PBS station!
Below is a link to the trailer and links to 3 sneak peeks—in Seattle, NYC, and Washington DC. I’ll be at the one in Seattle so please come and say hello!
And yes, that’s yours truly in her TWA uniform…
Feb 10 - Event at he Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fly-with-me-film-preview-discussion-tickets-800260429487?aff=PAN
Feb 13 - Event at the National Museum of American History, Washington DC - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/history-film-forum-presents-fly-with-me-tickets-800259617057?aff=PBS
Feb 18 - Event at the Schomburg Center, New York, NY - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fly-with-me-film-preview-discussion-tickets-807275912987?aff=PAN
Finally, here’s a link to the trailer: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/fly-with-me/
What I’m Knitting:
Last winter I started noticing that everyone here in NYC was wearing orange knit hats. So much so that I pointed them out to Michael every time I saw one, and he agreed. What is up with the orange hats? We never discovered what started the trend, but not only is it going strong here, I’ve noticed them in other cities too.
I am not trendy. Not at all. But I got a new winter coat—which I love! An Orolay Women’s Thickened Down Jacket in green--and when I saw that the lining was orange, I decided to knit an orange hat. This yarn is so yummy I can almost forget I’m joining the orange knit hat brigade.
The pattern is “Softie” from Laine and it takes 2 skeins of Sandnes Garn Børstet Alpakka. The hat is knitted with two strands of yarn held together.
What’s On My Mind:
The beach! When I was a kid growing up in Rhode Island, the summer meant going to the beach just about every day. My mother and my Auntie Dora would pile us kids into one of their enormous station wagons for a day at Scarborough Beach—body surfing, eating sandy peaches and plums, reading on a scratchy US Navy blanket. As a teenager, going to the beach meant slathering on the Bain de Soleil and stretching out on a blanket with my friend Beth, eating popsicles and discussing boys, boys, boys. I long ago stopped enjoying spending days on the beach in the hot sun, but I love going late afternoons and evenings for long walks, a picnic, and some wine with family and friends.
On a cold, gray NYC February day, thinking about those golden beach days from childhood until now makes me smile. During those dark days of 2020, my family relocated to the beach for several months, finding sunshine and joy. Here are a few pictures from then, on my grown-up favorite beach, Elephant Rock in Westport, MA. I hope they will make you smile too, whether you are in a cold climate or not.
And…
I’m so excited to share that The Stolen Child received a starred review from the Kirkus Review! Kirkus is often the first review for books, and they are known to be tough. For my third novel, my Kirkus was basically a book report followed by “So what?” Ouch! I’ll take this one instead: “A well-crafted, fast-paced story about how a single encounter can shape a person’s whole life.”
Just watched the trailer! Can’t wait to watch the whole show. Love your new substack, a slice of joy to read in the morning
So wonderful to hear your voice, too! I really enjoy Michael’s posts, and am now looking forward to your three-part format. Thank you!
Also, your Kirkus link is this one --
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ann-hood/the-stolen-child-3/