I recently completed the coursework for my Written Storytelling certificate from Metropolitan Community College and Mid-Continent Public Library.

Marlene Ratledge Buchanan
Southern Humor
Life is hard - Soften It with Laughter is more than title for Marlene's book.  It is her mantra on how to survive when you don't have any more bless your hearts to give. 
Book signing Times:
1pm to 3pm

Kristine Bone
Historical Fiction
Our elders were once young.  We often forget this.  Cecilia discovers this truth when going through her Great Aunts memoirs.  The pages describes a young girl living in the last Calvary fort, meeting General Custard, and loving a man named John.
Book signing Times:
2pm to 4pm

Marlene Ratledge Buchanan is a southern humorist. She draws from a deep well of experience and has a keen eye for observation. Like all truly good humorists, Marlene subtlety sews wisdom with a smile. That rare gift comes through in her interview with alternate arts…

Alternate Arts: Tell us about your book, Life is Hard, Soften it With Laughter. What brought it about and what was your goal in writing it?
Buchanan: I have worked for over 34 years in high school as an art teacher and a counselor.  I rarely got a phone call that was good news.  I found that when you are talking to parents and kids alike, you need to break that hard shell of anger, grief, fear, whatever it is troubling the person.  Humor does that. If I could get a little smile or a giggle out of the person who was so miserable, I knew I could help.
That is my goal–make life a little softer. Life is Hard. We need to do what we can to make our lives happier and easier.  A giggle or two can do that for you...