Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Stranded...with Romalyn Tilghman

Please welcome Romalyn Tilghman, author of To The Stars Through Difficulties as she tackles our Desert Island Interview!




About Romalyn:

Romalyn Tilghman is a freelance writer and consultant in arts management. She earned BA and MS degrees from the University of Kansas and has studied writing through UCLA’s Writers Program. To the Stars through Difficulties is her first novel, inspired by her work as Executive Director of the Association of Community Arts Councils of Kansas, and then as Regional Representative for the National Endowment for the Arts. Since then, she has consulted with private foundations, government agencies, and performing arts groups, and served on national boards and panels. She lives in Southern California. Find her online on her website or FaceBook.



Connect with Romalyn:

Romalyn Tilghman Stranded on a Desert Island

If you could only have one book with you, what would it be?

A Day in Provence. I waited out Hurricane Iniki in a hotel ballroom and envied the man sitting in a beach chair, deep in its pages, as winds pounded outside and chandeliers swung from the ceiling. He was in a sunnier place, full of colorful flowers and delectable tastes.

What one luxury item would you want to be stranded with?

Jo Malone‘s orange blossom body cream, so luscious in texture as well as fragrance. I buy it to celebrate, the way another woman might buy champagne, meaning my most wonderful saleswoman is now a dear friend who’s shared my life’s highest points.

What is the one practical item you would want to have with you to use?

A case of water. It’s the most essential thing, right? And my knitting, with a LOT of multi-colored yarn.

Would you enjoy the solitude, even briefly, or would it drive you crazy?

I could take the solitude. I love solitude. The forced fact of it might drive me crazy. Funny how solitude can become claustrophobic if there are no options.

If you could be stranded with one other person, who would you want it to be?

The world’s best lover, most interesting storyteller, and Eagle Scout able to purify water, wrestle snakes, and build a fire without matches. Fantasy Man.

What modern technology would you miss the most?

No cellphone?! Even with an extra battery pack?! I live on my phone: email, Sudoku, Facebook, texts with an interesting guy, google everything from how strippers make tassels go in opposite directions to the historical significance of Purim. With Audible, I could listen to every book ever recorded; with Netflix, I could binge Grace and Frankie; with Mapquest, I could make my way off that island. Oh yes, with a phone, I might also be able to call for help.

What food or beverage would you miss the most?

McConnell’s double peanut butter chip ice cream. Which I no longer allow myself to eat.

How many days do you think you would cope without rescue?

Two, maybe three if I knew help was on its way.  But we survive, right? I’d expect to sink into my imagination, think up happy endings, endure the endless wait.

What is the first thing you would do when rescued?

Take a long hot bath! To wash away fear, sorrow, and frustration as well as island dust. To make a fresh start!

What would be your first Tweet or Facebook update upon your return?

Miss me? I’m alive, safe at home. But my, do I have a story to tell you…

To The Stars Through Difficulties



Andrew Carnegie funded fifty-nine public libraries in Kansas in the early 20th century―but it was frontier women who organized waffle suppers, minstrel shows, and women's baseball games to buy books to fill them. Now, a century later, Angelina returns to her father's hometown of New Hope to complete her dissertation on the Carnegie libraries, just as Traci and Gayle arrive in town―Traci as an artist-in-residence at the renovated Carnegie Arts Center and Gayle as a refugee whose neighboring town, Prairie Hill, has just been destroyed by a tornado. 

The discovery of an old journal inspires the women to create a library and arts center as the first act of rebuilding Prairie Hill after the tornado. As they work together to raise money for the center, Traci reveals her enormous heart, Angelina discovers that problem-solving is more valuable than her PhD, and Gayle demonstrates that courage is not about waiting out a storm but building a future. Full of Kansas history―from pioneer homesteaders to Carrie Nation to orphan trains―To the Stars through Difficulties is a contemporary story of women changing their world, and finding their own voices, powers, and self-esteem in the process.


Available at:
Amazon Barnes & Noble Kindle Kobo Nook 

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