Dixon native plans local launch of her first novel
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| Courtney Walsh, a Dixon native, is planning a launch party for her newest book, "A Sweethaven Summer," Feb. 11 at The Next Picture Show in Dixon. She graduated from Dixon High School in 1994, then earned her degree in journalism and theater at Bradley University in Peoria. (Submitted photo) |
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DIXON – Dixon native Courtney Walsh has found a way to combine her love of scrapbooking with her passion for writing, and she will come home next month to share that love with others.
Walsh, 36, the daughter of lifelong Dixon residents Bob and Cindy Fassler, will have a launch party for her newest book, “A Sweethaven Summer,” Feb. 11 at The Next Picture Show.
She graduated from Dixon High School in 1994, then earned a degree in journalism and theater at Bradley University in Peoria. She now lives in Colorado with her husband, Adam, and their children Sophia, 10, Ethan, 8 and Sam, 4.
Walsh began scrapbooking and submitting her work to magazines in 2003. The world of scrapbooking is a really fun one to get into and share with others, she said.
“It’s amazing,” she said of others who share her passion for collecting and displaying memories. “There are a lot of us. Now I see a lot of younger people getting into scrapbooking. Grandmas, too, will get into it.
“I also see people who just want to see their stories.”
She channeled her passion for the craft into two books: “Scrapbooking Your Faith” and “The Busy Scrapper.”
She always has liked the idea of a group of women scrapbooking together.
“When you have that common thread, there is something special about that,” she said.
Recently, she decided to try her hand at a fictional story about friendship and her paper-crafting hobby. That became “A Sweethaven Summer.”
“It’s a book about a girl who finds an old scrapbook after her mom passes away,” Walsh said. “The story and picture and images are of a town in Michigan. The daughter doesn’t know about this. She is going to have to put the pieces together.”
The story follows the girl on her journey as she meets her mom’s old friends and learns the secrets and reasons that they have been estranged, Walsh said.
“It’s a story about friendship and the scrapbooking element in me,” she said.
Walsh said she wanted to return to the area for the book launch, and she fell in love with The Next Picture show during a visit with family.
“This is home,” she said. “I want to do it with these people.”
Her book also prominently features a gallery, which is one reason Bonnie Kime, executive director of the Dixon gallery, is so excited about the launch.
“We have held book signings before, but this one is more special because it is a Dixon native and the story line has to do with a gallery,” Kime said. “It’s very exciting for us.”
“A Sweethaven Summer” is the first in a trilogy. She expects to release the second book in May and the third in November.
She also is working on another paper-crafting book that she hopes to release in February 2013.
She also wants to continue writing fiction.
“It’s a ton of work, but so worth it,” Walsh said. “I’m really excited about that prospect.”
To attend
Courtney Walsh will have a book launch party from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Feb. 11 at The Next Picture Show, 113 W. First St. in Dixon. There will be appetizers and live music, and Courtney will talk about and sign her books.
She plans a book-signing earlier in the day at Cherryvale Mall in Rockford.
Call The Next Picture Show, 815-285-4924, for more information.
Go to www.courtneywalsh.typepad.com to learn more about the author.
Her books are available at Book World in Sterling’s Northland Mall, 2900 E. Lincolnway, and at www.barnesandnoble.com and www.christianbook.com online.
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