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Meet Kris Courtney Author of Norm Jean's Sun
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Norm Goldman


Reviewer & Author Interviewer, Norm Goldman. Norm is the Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com.

He has been reviewing books for the past twenty years after retiring from the legal profession.

To read more about Norm Follow Here






 
By Norm Goldman
Published on February 24, 2011
 





Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com interviews Kris Courtney Author of Norm Jean's Sun




Today, Norm Goldman Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com is honored to have as our guest Kris Courtney author of Norma Jean's Sun.


Good day Kris and thanks for participating in our interview

My pleasure Norm, thanks for having me

Norm:


Please tell our readers a little bit about your personal and professional background.

Kris:

My life started on a side note and with a much different entrance than most. I can recall from a very early age the change in attitude, behavior and actions that my Family took as opposed to other kids I saw at school or so. I rarely if ever was in the presence of any other kids like me, except at the Doctors office. And unlike Forrest Gump, my braces never fell off...

My teenage years and early "tween" seemed almost surreal. In fact, those years are part of energy I still draw on today with my artistry. When my mother, Norma Jean divorced my father, we moved to California. It was in the late 60's and early 70's that I grew a different attitude towards life in the free-love generation of southern California. Pot and other forbidden ideas and actions were considered normal, it seemed. The Misfits is a 1961 American drama written by Arthur Miller, directed by John Huston, and starring Clark Gable & Marilyn Monroe was an almost exact duplicate of our lives then. It wasn’t till decades later that I discovered how that parallel would become a pattern to another film, Erin Brockovich. Ironic to reflect back on that time and see with clarity what was not visible at the time.

In my years of destructive and social challenge, I found alcohol and drugs, sex and all other forms of escape from reality an easy method of avoiding the person in the mirror. Eventually that came to an end but not without last effect.


My professional life was short if ever at all and only consisted of a perception.

Norm:

Can you share a little of Norma Jean's Sun with us?

Kris:

Excerpt:

Sound travels far inside a home at night for every child who hears the whispers and tears through the upstairs banister. Just as this ripple in one family’s history grew to a wave of fear, so did the stature of the individuals who had witnessed it. The future carries the scars from the harm done before. One hopes that the past will allow us to shape and control the next step, to avoid the dangers, the foolish errors and mistakes that echo the last generation, and the one before that. But instead, the path, though inviting with its colors of gold and silver and the sounds of laughter and joy, is also shrouded in mystery, obscured in grays. Never in our silent moments of illusion do we sense the dark parallel that lives beside us. Nor do we suspect the carrier.

Norm:

How did you decide you were ready to write Norma Jean's Sun and what do you hope to accomplish with its writing? Whom do you believe will benefit from your book and why? How has the feedback been so far?  

Kris:

This was a book that I knew would be written even when I was 12 years old. For 30 years I would very often write a page or two that contained events or thoughts and experiences. Eventually, as a result of my health and conditions that were predicted or unavoidable, I knew it was time to start the final research in 2004. This was a direct result of seeing the movie Erin Brochovich in 2003 for the first time; it shook me to my core.


After learning from a good source that all I needed to do was start, the process was "a page a day". My final manuscript was 330 pages before editing.

As a result of my limited income, self publish and desire to know firsthand if my story had merit, I released the un-edit version in April of 2009. Through a couple give-aways and feedback, it obviously had struck an emotional cord to the readers. Even the negative feedback that was centered only on the grammar and editing still brought highlights to the surface that warranted the next step.

After researching and speaking to editors across the country, I found a simply pure talent in Heidi Connolly.

After many revisions and long distance calls, Heidi created a final Editors Release that I clearly can say is my voice and message. The message is that no matter what is in your life, there is always a parallel beauty that can be discovered and explored. I was not given all my parts to begin with and struggled on where and how to find that place of rest and belonging. I share that same sense with everyone I have ever met. We all are more alike than different and even though my life has continued to evolve, it is the greatest asset I have or ever will carry.

The very God or world that I was not supposed to be a part of is the very place I find peace, kindness, love and energy to explore each days gift. Today was exactly that a gift and I pray that I can humbly use it to a genuine value of another.

Norm:

As a talented artist, do you feel that some of your artistic skills have helped you in writing your book? If so, how?

Kris:

I don’t know really. People who know me will tell you that when you read my book, they hear me speaking. I personally refer to myself as a complicated simple man. The results of my life experiences have placed me in a position of knowledge and fear. Fear that when all this is over, I would have missed my purpose. Perhaps that is the artist in me speaking when I say that I never like most of my artistry and yet always try to contain a message or image of literalism.

So, I guess the quick answer would be yes, it did help to expand the distortion, distress, discard and discovery...

Norm:

What was the most difficult part of writing your book?

Kris:

The pain of Norma Jean's exit and the Discovery of a loving God whom I rejected.

Norm:

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in writing your book?

Kris:

That perhaps my artistic talent is genuine and the message of hope to those, that may still reside in a state of hopeless mind and body, can find a way too. Perhaps, the only way is through a price of pain but the journey has been healing ever since. Although my body and healing is limited, the soul is an expression of what I have today. I have learned that my heart is safe, my deeds are done, and my soul is clean! I could not have said that prior to this book being documented.

Norm:

What did your family and friends think about your book and what were their reactions?

Kris:

As with perhaps most memoirs, there is a risk of disconnect. In my case however, everyone is gone, except for a very distant two or three relatives and my children. Personal relationships, dysfunctional and distorted are a past or perhaps reflective pattern. So I was careful to isolate myself into a single reference when putting this book together to allow the reader to find their own reaction. This book contains moral and basic issues of what some will consider sin. I agree on many levels. But I also found through a private book group to my distant family, that the excitement to learn and know about the book upfront has been met with silence afterwards.

To those whom have known me as I am today, the response has been very positive and I am honored to be a carrier of this experience. If I am not mistaken, at the time of this interview the Amazon rating is around 4.5 out of 5. I am again very appreciative and grateful that readers have found a genuine and sincere reading experience. Bless you & thank you...

Norm:

Can you tell us how you found representation for your book? Did you pitch it to an agent, or query publishers who would most likely publish this type of book? Any rejections? Did you self-publish?

Kris:

As I mentioned before Norm, I did attempt to send out a few of my pre-manuscripts. But because the content of this memoir was so real, perhaps moving and challenging, I really wanted do this on my own first. I have always said that if the story held merit and the response was strong enough, then I am entirely open to the idea of an agent and other marketing ideas that may come my way.


I have delivered and sent out approximately 100 gifts and review books to various locations. I have even sent out copies to celebrities that I felt would make a great part in the film rendition. Jennifer Aniston for my mother for example and Robert Deniro would be an excellent fit for a number of characters. They both have a copy. Although I do admit, I think some of my gifts have ended up on Amazon as resells but I'm Okay with that.

One funny event was when I sent copies to Oprah and the Today Show. I personally signed each one for Matt and Al and the group. I got each one back with a big question mark on the envelope and the word "WHO ?"  LoL, nobody I guess...

Norm:

What has been your overall experience as a published author?

Kris:

Good, I would not change a thing. I’m anxiously waiting for the experience and the promise that everything changes...

Norm:

Any unique ways you'll be marketing your book that is different from how others authors market their books?

Kris:

I don’t know about unique. I have some ideas, but then they wouldn’t be unique if I told you now, would they ? I am limited Norm on what I can do. I live modestly to say the least. I don’t drive long distances anymore and have slowed way down in health and stature. So whatever I do next will be governed by health...

Norm:

What is next for Kris Courtney?

Kris:

I pray that my mind retains a form of sanity for another twenty years. That my ability to walk remains in place for as long as possible and that my artistry is engaging enough to allow the viewer to pause. If these things can be a part of my future, then I will greet you with a smile and be quick with a compliment. I would much rather live my life with kindness than anything I have ever experienced.

Even in my worst of times, I have retained the need to understand that touch of Divine Guidance. This is not to say that I am devoted follower, simply an observer.

Norm:

Where can our readers find out more about you and your book?

Kris:

If they would like to learn more, they can go to www.kriscourtney.com And also search online for Norma Jean's Sun and Kris Courtney. The book is available through Barnes&Noble, LuLu and other media outlets and can be ordered directly to your local bookstore. Just ask for it by name.

Available in Kindle & Paperback

Amazon.Com

Norm:

Is there anything else you wish to add that we have not covered?

Kris:

It matters not that we assign ourselves a religious persuasion; it matters not where we spend our final days. Though this may be something we cannot accept until we accept the inevitability of our own death, what matters is that we leave the way we came into this world, with God by our side.

This is a statement that I could not have made either prior to this book. The God whom I thought left me was with me all along. I will continue to make mistakes, as all do in this world. But those mistakes do not control the next step or action if we can see beyond what is simply our passion and direction. Ironic to that statement, it is by ignoring and looking beyond myself and all the restrictions associated, that I can find the most peace and usefulness. The best I can ever be, Is me -out of Me...

Norm, thank you for interest in my life and book. I greatly appreciate your time and association that we have together. I have enjoyed your questions and this interview and look forward to speaking with you again.

Thanks once again and good luck with all of your future endeavors

 

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