Pearls: Memoir & Fiction

The following authors will be reading excerpts from their work: Carol Anne Douglas, Sara Fleming, Sharon Deevey, Lynn Ames, Paula Martinac, and Ginny Z  Berson.

• Carol Anne Douglas from Sister Matthew and Sister Rose: Novices in Love (fiction),
• Sara Fleming “Pool Talk at the Women’s Resort,”
• Sharon Deevey “Nurse” from The Zebra Reader: A Lesbian NET Cancer Journey,
• Lynn Ames from Extra Innings: The Dot Wilkinson Story,
• Paula Martinac from Testimony (fiction),
• Ginny Z. Berson “Chapter 8” from Olivia on the Record: A Radical Experiment in Women’s Music

Carol Anne Douglas worked on the feminist news journal off our backs for 35 years. She now writes novels and plays. Her latest book is Sister Matthew and Sister Rose: Novices in Love, a story set in 1962. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.

Sara Fleming, after retiring from an adequate career, moved to Carefree Resort in FL, an all-women community. There she enjoys kayaking the numerous Florida waterways, biking, and participating in the community Writers’ Circle. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.

Sharon Deevey is a 77-year-old white lesbian who lives in Westerville, Ohio. Between 1989 and 2011, she published several articles about lesbian health and lesbian self-disclosure in nursing journals.  Her poetry collection, Lesbian Jottings: 1970-2010 is available online at Julie Enszer’s lesbianpoetryarchive.org/node/243. Sharon is the author of a recent memoir, The Zebra Reader: A Lesbian NET Cancer Journey. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.

Lynn Ames is the best-selling author of sixteen books. She also is the writer/director/producer of the history-making documentary, “Extra Innings: The Real Story Behind the Bright Lights of Summer.” This historically important documentary chronicles, for the first time ever in her own words, the real-life story of Hall-of-Famer Dot Wilkinson and the heyday of women’s softball. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.

Paula Martinac is the author of the historical novel Dear Miss Cushman (Bywater Books), and six others, including Testimony; Clio Rising, Gold Medalist, Northeast Region, 2020 Independent Publisher Book Awards; and The Ada Decades, a finalist for the 2018 Ferro-Grumley Award in LGBTQ Fiction. Out of Time, her debut novel, won a Lambda Literary Award. She has received fellowships from North Carolina Arts Council and the Arts and Science Council of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and teaches fiction writing at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.

Ginny Z Berson is the author of Olivia on the Record: A Radical Experiment in Women’s Music(Aunt Lute Books).  She was a principal founder of Olivia Records and a member of The Furies collective, for which she wrote many articles.  She has been a social justice activist since the 1960’s and currently serves as Director of Outreach for World Trust Educational Services which produces documentary films, workshops and trainings on racial equity.  She is a co-founder of Neighbors for Racial Justice which works to make her Oakland, CA neighborhood safe and welcoming for all neighbors and supports alternatives to policing and incarceration. For more information about this author and to view book purchase information, visit the Authors page.