Margie Patlak: More Than Meets the Eye—Exploring Nature and Loss on the Coast of Maine

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

Maine

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE:
EXPLORING NATURE AND LOSS ON THE COAST OF MAINE
Margie Patlak
Down East Books, an imprint of Rowman and Littlefield,
May 1, 2021, Paperback, $19.95; Kindle, $13.99
ISBN-10: 1608937534, ISBN-13: 9781608937530
ASIN: B08XWQM7LV

Patlak reports:

As a science writer with an environmental studies degree, I set out to write about the environment of my new abode on the coast of Maine. But at the time I was mourning the loss of my family of origin, including a sole sibling who died prematurely from ALS, and anticipating an empty nest, with my youngest child about to go off to college. So soon the book also became about what the nature of Maine taught me about the nature of life.

The three generations it takes for monarch butterflies to make their way from Mexico to Maine revealed the limits of an individual life and what is passed on from generation to generation. The dramatic tides taught me how fleeting time is and the ephemeral nature of raising a child. And knowledge about the clouds and weather made me appreciate the forces greater than ourselves that take away all illusions of control.

Margie Patlak

The book also explores the continental collisions that thrust up and fractured Maine’s mountains, digs into the latest scientific thinking on how animals navigate, and exults in the dizzy dance of plankton under the microscope. Even moose, foxes, and fishers reveal more than meets the eye. These facets of the natural world speak a hidden language I translate with scientific knowledge gathered from multiple sources and my own reflection.

I developed my proposal with the help of a writing consultant. An agent I consulted at a writers conference advised me to submit my proposal to a small publisher. After querying several agents with no luck, I submitted it directly to Down East Books, which specializes in publishing books about Maine and gave me a publishing contract.

My advice to aspiring authors is to be persistent, in the writing and rewriting process, and in the querying process. If, like me, you aspire to more lyrical creative nonfiction writing, as opposed to journalistic writing, take classes and workshops on such writing and get feedback on your writing from a writers’ group. Writing a book, especially a memoir, isn’t the same as writing a series of articles!

Contact info:

Margie Patlak, 215-694-8257, margiepatlak@gmail.com, http://www.margiepatlak.com, margiepatlak@instagram
Book: http://www.margiepatlak.com/Books.html, https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781608937547/More-Than-Meets-the-Eye-Exploring-Nature-and-Loss-on-the-Coast-of-Maine
Publicist: Alyssa Messenger, amessenger@rlpgbooks.com

NASW members: will your book be published soon? Take advantage of this opportunity for shameless self-promotion. Submit your report for Advance Copy.

Tell your fellow NASW members how you came up with the idea for your book, developed a proposal, found an agent and publisher, funded and conducted research, and put the book together. Include what you wish you had known before you began working on your book, or had done differently.

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Thinking of writing a book? If you are a NASW member, you may access a list of more than 200 books and online resources to help you craft your book proposal, find an agent and funding sources, negotiate your contract, learn about self-publishing, publicize and market your book, and more at https://www.nasw.org/article/write-book.

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Advance Copy

The path from idea to book may take myriad routes. The Advance Copy column, started in 2000 by NASW volunteer book editor Lynne Lamberg, features NASW authors telling the stories behind their books. Authors are asked to report how they got their idea, honed it into a proposal, found an agent and a publisher, funded and conducted their research, and organized their writing process. They also are asked to share what they wish they’d known when they started or would do differently next time, and what advice they can offer aspiring authors. Lamberg edits the authors’ answers to produce the Advance Copy reports.

NASW members: Will your book be published soon? Visit www.nasw.org/advance-copy-submission-guidelines for information on submitting your report.

Publication of NASW author reports in Advance Copy does not constitute NASW's endorsement of any publication or the ideas, values, or material contained within or espoused by authors or their books. We hope this column stimulates productive discussions on important topics now and in the future as both science and societies progress. We welcome your discussion in the comments section below.