On March 27th, I was honored to be the guest author of the First Church Congregational, Fairfield "One Book One Congregation" for their Racial Justice Pathway program. We discussed my novel The Girl Who Stole J.E.B. Stuart and participated in some meaningful conversation on this very important topic. Thanks to those who read the book and came with questions and comments, and to Rev. David W. Spollett for putting the event together.
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Last week I had the pleasure of co-starring with author Patricia Gallo Stenman on the Tomorrow Never Knows video podcast. Hosts Warren Brown and Bob Wilson interviewed us on the similarities between my historical fiction novel 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story and her memoir Diary of a Beatlemaniac.
I had a great time talking to the guys and my dear friend Patti. Click on the link below to see the interview. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRtoud-MfRs I hope you will enjoy this interview I did with The Table Read in the UK. It not only discusses my newest T.J. Jackson Mystery, Terror in the Tower, but also covers my other books, and how I got into this writing thing in the first place. Hard to believe we are up to 10!! Remember that the gift of reading is the best Holiday present. Have a happy and healthy Holiday and New Year! https://thetableread.co.uk/author-interview-paul-ferrante-terror-in-the-tower/?fbclid=IwAR3bShuMoXSEJ8cNq7YcxdIJA5-b6sL1WPGrAgwMRcVPK3D02VQWpt5vaC8
This past weekend the T.J. Jackson Mysteries were front and center at ParaConn, Connecticut’s first ever paranormal convention. Both days were sellouts, with patrons enjoying a bevy of booths featuring paranormal experts and ghost hunters, spooky memorabilia dealers, artisans, authors, and more. I’m happy to say that EACH DAY our sales far exceeded any other event we’ve ever done. It was also cool speaking to a packed audience about T.J. and his adventures. We even ran a contest where anyone who purchased a book was entered in a drawing to have a character in my next book named after them (Congrats to winner Amanda Lisnow!). What made ParaConn even more fun was having my daughter Caroline and her husband Sean McCabe at the table next to us for their popular podcast Ain’t it Scary with Sean and Carrie. We met so many great folks and can’t wait to do this again. Special thanks to promoter Charles Rosenay and co-producer Nick Grossman for putting on a first-class event. We hope you enjoy the photos from the weekend; also, click on the provided link to the Connecticut Post’s article on ParaConn which includes many more images, including us! https://www.ctpost.com/seen/slideshow/SEEN-The-first-ParaConn-224456.php?fbclid=IwAR1FwncgHq0ytIjBk-oHmItPDXGXRa13M8-Huz07OcRlEjV4ZvKEmUZHzY4 On Saturday, July 10, we had the pleasure of pitching our author tent at the Fab 4 Beatles Festival at Nolan Field in Ansonia, CT, our largest appearance venue ever. Just a day after Tropical storm Elsa hit Connecticut, the sun was shining on the many hundreds of concert goers and the 10 cover bands who rocked on throughout the day and evening. I'm happy to say that sales of 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story were steady all day long, and we had fun connecting with Beatles fans of all ages. I was even interviewed about the book by WERB 107.5 Global Radio at their tent. So to sum up, "A splendid time was guaranteed for all." Our thanks to super promoter Charles Rosenay for the invite. We hope to be there next year! We were very happy to see that 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story earned a perfect four in a review from Beatles Freak Reviews.
Click on this link to read the review: https://beatles-freak.com/2021/03/21/book-review-30-minutes-in-memphis-a-beatles-story-by-paul-ferrante/ Last week I had the pleasure of being interviewed live about 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story, by Meagan Paese on her great radio show, The History of Rock and Roll, which is broadcast on Knight Radio from the studios of Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida. We chatted about the book and Meagan spun some Beatles tunes from the 1965-1966 era, when the book takes place. To hear this entertaining and informative show, go to the website www.thehistoryofrockandroll.net. You can also check out past shows such as the one I contributed to. Thanks, Meagan!
This week I had the pleasure of being a guest on Teaflix Tuesdays, a live video show hosted by Dr. Angie McCartney, Sir Paul's stepmom, and his stepsister Ruth. We chatted about the Beatles thread that runs through all of the T.J. Jackson Mysteries, and the thought process behind 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story, which I'm happy to say the ladies thoroughly enjoyed. Their show is light and entertaining, and I was made to feel most welcome. So, thanks to the McCartneys - I think you're brilliant!
Here's the link to the show: https://www.facebook.com/drangiemccartney/videos/3871192786234341 Recently I had the pleasure of being a guest on two fantastic podcasts which centered on my novel 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story (Ionian Press) and my continuing Beatles thread in the T.J. Jackson Mysteries series (Fire & Ice Books).
First, The Talkback with Adam Mace is "a show about ordinary people and their extraordinary passions." Hosted by NYC-based theater director and playwright Adam Mace, the show provides fresh guests, topics, entertainment and inspiration. We had a great time discussing my books and all things Beatles in Episode 75, entitled "John Lennon: 40 Years Later." Then, I appeared on the Get Back to the Beatles podcast on the Boston Podcast Network, co-hosted by Boston radio personality Chachi Loprete and Prof. David Gallant of Suffolk University. These guys are Beatles experts on every level, and David even teaches a Beatles college course! Along with fellow Beatles author Mark Brickley, we had fun comparing Mark's nonfiction book Postcards from Liverpool to my historical fiction, and explored the challenges/rewards of working in these genres when applied to the Fab Four. Here are the links to both podcasts, and I hope you become a fan of the shows, as I have! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-75-john-lennon-40-years-later-with-guest-paul-ferrante/id1439915773?i=1000501706805 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-write-album-beatles-scribes/id1381447348 Recently I did my first-ever author exchange, with my book, 30 Minutes in Memphis: A Beatles Story, going to Texas, for Patricia Gallo Stenman’s Diary of a Beatlemaniac. All things considered, I think I got the best of the deal!
Patti’s book is her actual diary which she kept from 1963-1967. Besides giving insight into the complex workings of a teenage girl’s mind, it is a chronicle of the Beatles’ conquering of America from the Ed Sullivan Show in February of ’64 to the groundbreaking Sgt. Pepper album in ’67(BTW, she saw them live THREE times). As the years progress Patti grows up, finding her way in a blue-collar Italian family in Philadelphia, while attending a restrictive all-girls Catholic high school. There are too many poignant moments in the story to count, but I can tell you that although she was a few years ahead of me in school, I laughed out loud at some of our shared Catholic school experiences. I also found many similarities between Patti and her “Beatle Buddy” girlfriends at the time and my Marnie Culpeper character in 30 Minutes. We’re talking total Beatle devotion here, folks. But as the reader will see, Patti was no fantasy-crazed airhead. Her entries are insightful, and it’s fascinating to see her naïveté slowly fall away as she matures. One can also understand why a career in journalism was ultimately in the cards for this introspective young lady, and how her determination and ingenuity would lead her to not only befriend a member of the Beatles’ circle (actor Victor Spinetti, who appeared in all three Beatles films) but to have a published column in the Philadelphia Daily News while still a teen. When I guess I’m saying here is that if you really want to know (or remember) what it was like growing up during Beatlemania, you’ve got to check out Diary of a Beatlemaniac (Cynren Press, available on Amazon. Also visit the website diaryofabeatlemaniac.com). You will not be disappointed. I’m glad I’ve gotten to make the acquaintance of this fantastic author and fellow Beatles fan! |
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