Heather Huffman's Blog, page 31

Friday's Mark: Anna and Modern Day Slavery

This week's Friday's Mark post is a skosh late because, in all honesty, I played hooky with my boys for a while today so we could go see Mirror Mirror. It was a cute movie. My sons and nieces loved it, but I think the adults giggled as much as they did. Julia Roberts rocked her role as the Queen. I've seen conflicting reviews of it, but all that really matters to me is that I enjoyed the movie, my kids enjoyed the movie, and I never had a moment that left me squirming in my seat wishing I hadn't brought my youngest sons.

But… that's not the movie I'm here to write about today. In this particular post, I want to take a few minutes to write about a very cool way one of my friends in Twitter-world is using her talents to make the world a better place.

Her name is Magda M. Olchawska, and she's the founder of BulletFilm, an online resource for film, TV and media. Her current project is a movie called Anna and Modern Day Slavery, about a hacker who uses her unique talents to end human trafficking.

Once the movie is made, Magda plans to enter the movie into various film festivals. After that, she'll eventually make it available online to watch for free to raise awareness for the fight against human trafficking. After watching the movie, the audience will have a chance to make a donation to the cause – 55% of that donation will go to charities helping the victims of human trafficking, and the rest goes towards making the next Anna movie.

When I first found out about it, something about the project struck a chord with me. I knew in my gut I wanted to do what I could to help. So please check out Magda Olchawska's indiegogo campaign to learn more about this project or to make a donation so this movie can come to life.

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What a Difference a Year Makes

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Blake and Hondo, one of our favorite horses at Rollins Ranch, in March 2011

This time last year, I was in Arizona on business. I liked my job well enough but missed my kids and hated being stuck inside so often. We were on the cusp of buying our own farm and had a couple of quarter horses we adored that were boarded at a nearby farm, which we also adored.

There was so much about my life that was rich and full and wonderful. Even the dreams I'd yet to attain felt close enough to touch. I could have never foreseen what was looming on the horizon.

Just before leaving for Arizona, I'd spent a whole day with the boys, soaking up time with them and the horses we loved. I always had to get in as much horse time as possible before and after a business trip to see me through.

So of course, the second I got back in town, I picked the boys up from school and we headed straight for the barn. We were just about to head out for the evening when my mare, Sassy, spooked for reasons I may never know. I won't relive that whole terrifying night in this post – that's not the purpose of my tale – but the short version is that a freak accident left my middle son in a coma for five days. But for the grace of God, we would have lost him. That was March 31, 2011.

He had to re-learn everything. To me, his healing process felt so slow. To the medical world, the speed at which he recovered was nothing short of a miracle. Still, I never left his side. My husband and I didn't question my need to be with him every step of the way. When I ran out of FMLA, Blake still had miles to go in rehab, so I left the safety of my corporate job and leaped into the unknown.

I had no idea where the path we suddenly found ourselves on would take us. The accident flipped our lives upside down in every way, including financially. Credit that had been carefully cultivated so we could buy our farm was destroyed. Horses and alpacas were sold, and chickens were given away. Dinners out came screeching to a halt. Some things we didn't think twice about, some things, like selling my mare and my son's colt, still make me cry if I think about them too long. None of it could dampen my gratitude that my son lived and would recover.

As my family nears the one-year anniversary of that fateful day, I look around my life, a little shell shocked, but also in awe of where we are.

My son is 99.9% healed, and we're not giving up until even that .01% is back. Not one to waste his second chance at life, he jumped right in to help his brothers start 61 Strong this year, a group dedicated to ending human trafficking and fighting social injustice.

Not long after I left my job, I got the publishing contract of my dreams. (Thank you, Booktrope!)

And yesterday, we closed on a little 5-acre piece of land in the Ozarks.

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Dylan, my oldest son, and his new best friend, an Easter Egger chicken he named Yang

It might not be as large of a farm as the one we'd put an offer on pre-accident, and we still have to put a home on it, but to us, there is no place on earth more perfect. This week, I finally caved and let the boys buy more chickens. It was a silly thing to miss, I guess, but having them scurry underfoot brings us joy. It reminds us we're close to recapturing that particular dream.

So much in our world has changed. Some dreams have been lost and can never be reclaimed. Others have been replaced by new adventures. But many things, the ones that matter, have remained. I have three healthy, amazing sons, and our life is filled with wonder and joy. This past year has made quite a difference in our world. I have to admit I'm happy to put it behind us, but I'll take the lessons it taught me, be forever grateful for what I have, and look forward with great anticipation to the year ahead.

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Hondo and Blake, still friends, March 2012

 

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Friday's Mark: Bambino's Cafe

This Friday's Mark, I want to take a few minutes to do something a little different: thank Bambino's Cafe for making such a huge difference in my world last night.

I can't begin to say enough about the service (and food!) at Bambino's. From the start, they've gone out of their way to not only accommodate my event, but to help it be a success. The food and coffee they provided was delightful, the atmosphere perfect, and the service beyond compare.

But it was more than service. Every person I encountered overflowed with kindness and a willingness to please. It was a rare and wonderful encounter!

Sometimes, I think we discount the importance of doing our jobs well. I think we forget what a difference it makes in the lives of others when we give our all to our everyday lives.

I know the staff of Bambino's made a difference in my world, and I thank them for it!

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Real Friends

[image error]In a sense, my books are like my children: they are individuals with their own strengths and weaknesses, and there is something about each of them that makes it special to me.

The way the publishing contract happened, with the first four novels being re-released before the launch of the fifth book, it was hard to give the three books after Throwaway their due before it was time to start marketing Ring of Fire. It's been difficult balancing the need to market each book with being fair to my readers who started following me in the indie days – for them, it was a year in between the last indie release and the first publisher-backed release!

So whenever one of those three books between Throwaway and Ring of Fire gets its moment in the sun, it makes me happy. Right now, Ties That Bind is currently free on Amazon, which means it's getting its turn to be read and shared.

This is one of my "lighter" works – they might all share the same sense of humor and belief in things like love and good triumphing over evil, but Ties That Bind has no human trafficking, no prison escapes and there is nary a prostitute in sight. Kate Yager has her share of trials, but if you were to hold her life up to Neena's, you'd say hers has been a walk in the park.

What this book does have, though, is two amazing young women who forever changed my life. The relationship between Kate, Liz and Jessica is patterned closely after the relationship between me and two co-workers from my days in corporate America. Emily and Erica were every bit as beautiful and kind as their fictional counterparts, and our friendship was every bit as instant and binding.

These were the women who first encouraged me to pick up my pen and start writing again. They listened in the break room while I shared some crazy dream or another that I was sure was meant to be a book. They were the first to hear the dream about a prostitute and a cop who were in love. They smiled and nodded supportively when I told them I dreamt I was breaking out of jail and dodging alligators in the process. They were the ones who heard the dream about a young woman with red hair arguing with the father she'd never known.

Emily and Erica were also the first to read my writing and tell me it was worth reading. I depended on their input in those early days – they always let me know if a story was on the right track, and they were the only people I trusted to read it before it was finished. Erica very patiently combed through Tumbleweed, the first completed book, and helped me find the problem spots. She had this incredibly kind way of pinpointing where the story fumbled. It took the sting out of the process.

So it only made sense, in my mind anyway, to work them into Ties That Bind. It also seemed fitting that they both be involved in the production of the book. Emily was the photographer and cover designer on the book, just as she always is. (Side note: I'll be heartbroken if she's ever too busy to work on my book covers. She has this innate ability to see into my brain and give me the exact cover I'm looking for.)

Erica is our foot model. She's holding a borrowed shoe from another of our coworkers, and we did the photo shoot in the parking lot of our corporate building while on break. (Another side note: Erica is also the model for Suddenly a Spy, and she's the editor on Ring of Fire!)

So, while I'm grateful to see Ties That Bind sitting at the top of Amazon's free list, I'm even more grateful for the friendships behind the story. I'll always be thankful for two real friends who inspired me in more ways than they'll ever know.

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Visiting with Jesse James

Yesterday I had the great pleasure of being the guest on Jesse James' blog. He has a laugh out loud sense of humor and an irreverence that at times leaves you shaking your head – and he also asked a combination of the most insightful and amusing interview questions I've had the privilege to answer.

I hope you'll stop by his blog to read the interview!

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Friday's Mark with a LiNK Nomad

[image error]My guest today is Zane, one of the LiNK (Liberty in North Korea) nomads who will be at the screening of The People's Crisis with me this Sunday. I hope you take the time to check out his words of inspiration as he shares just what a Nomad is and why he does what he does. If you live within driving distance of O'Fallon, Missouri, please come out to the screening on Sunday at 6 pm. Information can be found here, along with a trailer for the screening. ~Heather

The Heart of a Nomad

We all dream of somehow impacting the world, whether we decide to live out this aspiration by helping the homeless, going to law school to fend for the civil liberties of our peers, or drop everything we are doing and join a Non-Profit. Our goal as humans is to see this world a better place. As one of 15 college aged kids who decided to live in a van to bring Liberty to the North Korean people, I had no idea what to expect.

We are called Nomads, and we work for the organization LiNK: Liberty in North Korea. We travel around the United States in groups of 3 living in a van, going to High School, Churches, College and anyone in between who will let us come through their doors and tell them about the real crisis in North Korea.  Far too often we see the news focus on the North Korean Nuclear Issues, or the security issues. We are here to refocus people eyes to the real crisis, the People Crisis.  Too many people's eyes and ears are unaware of the repression of the people, and we want to change that. We want to inspire our generation and the generations before us and after us to take a stance, to use our mouths and know that we can make change. We are the most connected generation, and we need to use this gift we have been given to make change. To take a stand.

Living on the road can teach you a lot. As I said before, there are three who live in the van together: Me (Zane), Abbey, and Kayla. Together we make up the Heartland Nomad Team. We travel through Texas, all the way up to Michigan and Wisconsin, and back down through Kansas and Colorado hitting every place in between. It's safe to say we do a lot of driving, and all of this is done in a short 10 weeks. We make over 80 stops and calk with thousands of people.  Our goal is simple: Awareness.

One thing I must mention is that we are volunteers. We do not get paid to go on the road trip, but our passion to see Liberty come to North Korea fires us to keep going. We sleep where we can find floor space (or van space), we eat when we can (or when someone is gracious enough to cook for us… and if you have cooked for us and are reading this, Thank You so much!) and we spend time trying to get to know every person we can. It's not often you get a chance to travel like this, and we try to take full advantage of the chance we have been given.

Passion can burn out though. We all must learn to find ways to fuel our passion and make it sustainable. We must give out passion a name.

And that is what I challenge you with. Find your passion and run with it. Whether your passion comes from anger, hurt, love, caring or a mixture of any emotion; find a way to make that passion last. Don't be afraid of perusing what you believe in and standing up for it.

I want to leave you with the knowledge that you may not tangibly see the work you are doing changing lives, but I can assure you that it will be. The work we do to make change will make change whether we see it or not, so do not be discouraged!

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Ozark-ese

[image error]The release of Tumbleweed has me so eager to get back to my country roots that my family is actively land hunting in the Missouri Ozarks. Between looking for the perfect place for our little homestead and preparing for Tumbleweed's launch next week, my little Corolla has made a lot of trips up and down Interstate 44 over the past few weeks!

An amusing side effect from all of these trips is that my husband is now finding himself immersed in Ozark-ese. Quirky sayings he once thought to be isolated to my family now abound. On more than one occasion, I've found myself stopping to translate Ozark-ese into English for him. Here are just a few examples:

Holler – a narrow valley or deep depression in the terrain

Holler – to yell at someone

Waller – to roll about enthusiastically. Some say the word originated from farmers who used the term to describe the pigs "wallering" in the mud. I use it when the kids are being rough on the furniture.

 Work Brickle – having a good work ethic. Usually used in the negative, as in, "That boy ain't work brickle."

Weatherin' – used as a verb, as in "It's weatherin' down here, so ya'll be careful." (Note: I've been told that my use of "ya'll" isn't true Ozark-ese, but rather a throwback to my days in the Florida panhandle.)

Madder than an old, wet hen – this one is self explanatory, but it's important to note that one should say it quickly, so the person you're talking to does a double take.

Haint – a ghost

Gumption – boldness, initiative, nerve

Heatherns – unruly children or someone who doesn't attend church and spends their time carousin'.

Shake a leg – get moving

Cuter than a bug's ear – another one that self explanatory but leaves my husband questioning if bugs have ears.

Tallywhacker – I'm not going to define it, just note that I giggled at the look on my husband's face the first time he heard it.

In Tumbleweed, I did my best to capture the feel of speech patterns in the Ozarks without adding a glossary. Even more importantly, I hope I was able to in some fashion capture the spirit of the feisty but loveable people who make their home in the ruggedly beautiful Ozark Mountains!

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Friday's Mark with Marni Mann

I'm so happy to welcome today's Friday's Mark blogger: Marni Mann, the talented author of Memoirs Aren't Fairytales, a book that shines a light on a worldwide epidemic as a means of offering hope to those impacted by it. In today's post, she offers up a blend of her own insight and excerpts from her novel.

I'm sure you'll find her novel as gripping as Marni is charming, so at the end of the post, I've included all the information you'll need to find out more about Marni and to find her debut novel, Memoirs Aren't Fairytales.

~Heather

Heroin leaves a mark on its victims. Whether it's track marks that scar a junkie's arms, the windowless hole they fall into, or nightmares from when they were using. While in the midst of their addiction, an addict isn't living. Breathing, eating, sleeping, yes. But when something claims your mind, when you can't function without that drug inside you, spend every hour of the day searching, ingesting, or being high, that isn't living. That's a disease.

I had convinced myself I could stop using, like dope was something simple like chocolate. But heroin was my air. It had a hold of me like we were chained together. And those shackles weren't just around my wrists, they were tied around my brain too. Once that powder was injected, I forgot about the puking, diarrhea, sweats, chills, and all the fun I used to have before dope, like none of it had ever happened. At the end of the high, all I could think about was getting my next fix.

The rush and the nod weren't the only things I was addicted to. It was scoring the dope and riding home on the train, knowing those bags were in my purse. It was dumping the powder onto the spoon and watching it turn to liquid. It was taking the orange cap off the rig and filling it. It was seeing the flash—my blood creeping into the chamber—and emptying the chamber into my vein. I'd fallen in love with the steady rhythm of working, buying, and shooting.

The realities and risks are as dark as their drug of choice. There are no limits. There's nothing that will stop them. Words won't be heard. Tears won't be noticed. Money is just a means, a pathway, and it will be found no matter what the addict has to sacrifice, steal, lie, or cheat. Those are the mental consequences. Then there are the physical.

If it weren't for my blue eyes, the scar under my chin, and my nose, I wouldn't have recognized myself. My skin had turned gray, and there were brown smudges under my eyes from yesterday's markers. Boils, scabs, whiteheads, and blackheads covered my face. My teeth were yellow, and my gums were caked with plaque. Sections of my hair were dreaded. My lips were dry and cracked. I was twenty-four today. Damn, I looked worse than the morning after I was raped.

My purpose of writing Memoirs Aren't Fairytales was to expose the depth of addiction, what addicts are willing to sacrifice, and the amount of people affected by their disease. For those in recovery, ignore the voice of your addiction and continue fighting your disease. For the families of the addicted, let me assure you you're not alone, I understand your pain, and I can feel your heartache. For those of you who are interested in this lifestyle, run. Run away as fast as you can from those desires, because this book will show you the consequences and they're extreme.

Addiction was once considered taboo. It was whispered about behind closed doors, implied in group settings, downplayed even, because no one wanted to admit they or their loved ones had a problem. It's not just a problem. It's a worldwide epidemic that has a name, face, and voice. Don't be afraid to say it out loud. Don't be weary to admit your husband, mother, or best friend is an addict. There's help available for families, treatment centers for the addicted, meetings and pre and post-clinic care. I hope this novel raises awareness of a disease that's killing our nation. I hope families and friends of the addicted learn the difference between love and enabling, and stop the latter. Most of all, I hope my readers learn that addiction isn't a choice. It's a disease.

About Marni: 

A New Englander at heart, Marni Mann, now a Floridian is inspired by the sandy beaches and hot pink sunsets of Sarasota. A writer of literary fiction, she taps a mainstream appeal and shakes worldwide taboos, taking her readers on a dark, harrowing, and gritty journey.

When she's not nose deep in her laptop, she's scouring for chocolate, traveling, reading, or walking her four-legged children.

Her debut novel, Memoirs Aren't Fairytales, was published by Booktrope in December 2011.

Connect with Marni online

Website: marnismann.com

Twitter: @MarniMann

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mcbmann

Goodreads: Memoirs Aren't Fairytales

 

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Visiting 61 Strong

I'm the guest blogger today over at 61 Strong - a group started by some fantastic children and young adults to fight human trafficking and social injustice. Please stop by to check it out when you have a minute!

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Visiting Marni Mann

Many thanks to the delightful Marni Mann for having me as a guest on her blog today! Be sure to stop by to check out the interview, where I talk about my books, the role addiction plays in human trafficking, and a fun fact about my new release, Tumbleweed.

Marni is the author of the gripping novel Memoirs Aren't Fairytales and will be a guest on my blog this Friday!

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