Bob Morris - Caribbean Capers

You’d think the author of books with titles like Bahamarama, Jamaica Me Dead, and Bermuda Schwartz would be a pretty interesting guy, and in the case of Bob Morris, you’d be right.  Morris is a fourth-generation Floridian whose comedy/mysteries have been compared to the works of Carl Hiaasen and Elmore Leonard.  His novels, set in the Caribbean, are quick-moving, hugely entertaining, and almost impossible to put down.

Morris grew up on a fern farm in Lake County. His great-grandfather was the first fern grower in Florida, but young Bob wanted no part of the nursery business. After two unsuccessful bouts with organic chemistry, he spent two years traveling around the world and ultimately changed his major from marine biology to journalism.  He credits his mother with encouraging his writing career. “She told me I wrote such good letters home that she had them laminated and passed them all around Leesburg. I’m still embarrassed to show my face there today.”

 After graduating from the University of Florida, Morris became a newspaper columnist and wrote for the Florida Keys Free Press, the Fort Myers News-Press, the Orlando Sentinel, and the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group.  He also wrote restaurant reviews and spent two years in California where he created AQUA, a magazine for watersport enthusiasts. In 1999, he returned to Florida and took a job as editor-in-chief of Caribbean Travel & Life and Gulfshore Life magazines.  This allowed him to combine his love of writing with his other passion: travel.  It also led him to take the plunge into full-time fiction writing.

 In 2002, while on assignment in the Bahamas, Morris was walking along the beach when he came up with the title for Bahamarama, and the idea for a series of books set in Florida and the Caribbean. He returned to his cottage and wrote the first chapter. When he announced to his wife, Debbie, that he wanted to leave his job and devote himself to writing novels, she gently reminded him that they had two sons in college.  But Morris decided to follow his dream. “I’d always wanted to write mysteries, and I knew I had to do it now or never.” And how did Debbie take it?  “Well,” says Morris, “she’s still my wife.”  Bahamarama was published two years later to rave reviews, and was a finalist for the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best First Mystery Novel.

Morris finds a wealth of story ideas in the Florida newspapers. “The road to hell passes through Florida,” he says. His Zack Chasteen mysteries feature a Florida boy and ex-Miami Dolphins safety with a cynical streak and a wry sense of humor.  According to Morris, “I got tired of reading about deep, dark, brooding heroes who over-thought and were conflicted about their lives. Zack is a good guy who helps people and tries to do the right thing, especially if there’s a pay-off in the end.” Zack’s sidekick, Boggy, is a full-blooded Taino Indian. “The Tainos were the ones that met Columbus,” Morris explains. They were pretty much wiped out, but many Caribbean natives claim to have Taino blood. There are no full-blooded Tainos left. Only Boggy.” 

Morris’s third novel, Bermuda Schwartz, has been described as “Carl Hiaasen meets The DaVinci Code.” Morris got the idea for the story while on assignment in Bermuda for the National Geographic Traveler.  “I’d already come up with the title. I just had to decide who Schwartz was going to be.” While scuba diving one of the many wrecks that ring Bermuda, Morris met Teddy Tucker, a man he describes as “an old-time 1940’s diver, a kind of rogue water guy.  He would dive the wrecks for salvage.”  Schwartz is loosely modeled after Teddy. 

A Deadly Silver Sea, the fourth novel in the Chasteen series, has Zack on a cruise ship that is taken over by gunmen. When Zack goes overboard, he must rely on his wits and Boy Scout training to survive. In the fifth Chasteen novel, Baja Florida, Zack risks his life in a search for the missing daughter of a dying friend. Morris can’t say which of his novels he likes best. “They say you get better with each book, but choosing a favorite is like choosing between my kids.”

In addition to his five mystery novels, Morris has released five e-books: The Man With a Fish on his Foot and Other Tales from a Peculiar Peninsula; The Whole Shebang – Stories of Love & Marriage & Kids & Chaos; Short Road to Hell – Tales of Chronic Misbehavior, Mostly Mine; All Over the Map – Getting Lost in Good Places; and Gut Check – Adventures in Eating, Drinking, and Wretched Excess.

As proud as he is of his literary “kids,” Morris is even prouder of his two real sons, Bo, a director of public relations for the Bonnier Corporation, and Dash, an executive with a New York-based digital marketing firm. He considers his family his greatest accomplishment and doesn’t let his writing interfere with family time. “It’s easy for me to stop writing and make time for family fun stuff,” he says. “Writers are easily distracted.  We only finish writing projects out of a deep and abiding guilt.” While he still contributes to a number of publications, including Bon Appetit, Latitudes, National Geographic Traveler, Islands, and Robb Report, Morris has turned much of his attention to Story Farm, the custom publishing company he founded in 2009. It creates collectible, coffee-table style books for a variety of clients including hotels and resorts, restaurants, charitable foundations and notable businesses. Morris has no regrets about his decision to become a writer. “It’s never boring,” he says. “Every day is different.  I get to travel. And I can work in my underwear with my dog at my feet.”  

 

For more about Bob Morris, you can visit his website at www.bobmorris.net or www.story-farm.com or read his blog at surroundedonthreesides.blogspot.com

Next: A Florida Vacation - A Guest Blog by Elaine Viets

 

University of Central Florida Book Festival - A Guest Post by Michael Haskins

This month, Fabulous Florida Writers is pleased to welcome guest blogger Michael Haskins. Michael is the author of the Mick Murphy Key West Mysteries and was our featured writer on September 16, 2012.

Late last year, I applied to be a participant in the fourth annual University of Central Florida’s Book Festival. I submitted a copy of my recently published book, Car Wash Blues, and a bio and on December 10, 2012, I received an email from Sandra McCall that I had been accepted.

The first UCF Book Festival was held in 2010 at the UCF Arena, with Carl Hiaasen as its keynote speaker. There were 30 authors and about 2,000 people in attendance. The festival has grown to more than 60 authors and 3,500 attendees. This year, Lisa Scottoline was the keynote speaker.

When I drove into the hotel in Orlando, I wasn't sure what to expect at the conference. When I served on the Florida chapter of Mystery Writers Association’s board of directors, I saw what it took to put on SleuthFest and we’d been doing it for years.

For a relatively new event, the festival was well organized and events seemed to move along efficiently. With the number of activities, that was no easy job. The arena where the events took place was packed with vendors and sponsor displays, as well as author discussion groups.

It was evident upon entering the arena on Saturday morning, that this was a community event. The setup of the arena had a children’s zone with roaming book characters to keep the children’s attention as well as readings. There was also a zone set aside for young teens.

My first panel, “A Discussion on Journalism,” had fellow journalists-turned-writers, Bruce DeSilva, Eric Deggans, Jeffery Kunerth and me talking about how journalism helped or hindered our fiction/nonfiction writing. We all, in one way or another, still had a toe in the tepid waters of today’s journalism.

Black curtains separated our table from the arena and we faced the bleacher section. Far from what the seats are ordinarily used for – loud sporting event crowds – we were sectioned off into a small, intimate group. There were a number of sections throughout the arena. The mics worked and the audience was able to hear us. When it came to questions from the audience, the moderator brought her mic to them. Questions ranged from journalism to fiction writing. Both Deggans and Kunerth have published non-fiction books, while DeSilva and I have published mystery novels.

The arena was close to full when I arrived at 9:30 a.m. and it was nice to see so many people interested in books. When I looked at theprogram, I wondered how the college was going to fit so much into an eight-hour day. The Orange County Library had a table set up to help people file for library cards. The Stage 2 "Cooking Zone" featured culinary authors and included healthy foods to cupcakes. The cupcakes must have been good, because whenever I came by to taste one, they were gone. Johnny Magic of 106.7 FM hosted "Literary Jeopardy" from 1 – 2 p.m. to get donations of books for local schools.On another stage, Steve Barnes, NY Times bestseller, talked about yoga and ADD in children. Later in the day, he talked about screenwriting. Tananarive Due and Beverly Jenkins discussed black history.

I finally found my cupcakes in the children zone at 1:30 p.m. when the Yum! Yum! Cupcake Truck showed up for the read aloud that came with cupcake treats. I was too old to participate but the kids thought I was funny! For the kid in all of us, from 2 – 4 p.m., Star War characters roamed the arena for a read aloud, photo ops and book signings.

I think the success of the festival to get young children interested in books – be it by cupcakes or Star Wars – was admirable. I know that the wave of the future is reading on the computer or some other device, like Kindle, but I hope books hold out as long as I do. I remember a few years back going to my son’s English teacher and asking how Alex was able to get an A in reading when I’d never seen him open a book.The teacher explained that since the first grade Alex and the other students had been taught to read on the computer! Computers for every student, books for no one! I guess going without a cupcake makes me grumpy.

The festival had rooms off the arena set aside for panels. Bruce DeSilva and I had a final panel at 3 p.m. in the Gold Room. Robert Williams was our moderator and the panel was called "Mulligan, Murphy and Murder." Bruce and I had never met before, but we both belong to a small collective of writers and had emailed back and forth on projects. Another nice thing that most conferences offer is a chance for authors from different areas to meet. As it turns out, Bruce and I have a lot in common both personally and with our writing.We were both born outside of Boston. Both our characters are Irish, smoke cigars and like Irish whiskey and are involved in journalism. Bruce’s Mulligan is an active journalist while my Mick Murphy is a recovering, burned out journalist.

The one-day book fair came off well – even without cupcakes – and the university should be proud that it has been able to involve the greater community, not only college students. With its success, and as word spreads between writers, I can only see the event growing and possibly turning into a weekend event. Sometimes writers like me have our heads stuck in the genera of mystery, so when a book festival comes along and reminds us that there are book and books and books out there and that people read them – be it travel, history, cooking, poetry, or mysteries – it is a good thing.

Lisa Black - Fascinating Forensics

When Lisa Black graduated from John Carroll University with a political science degree, she never expected to wind up working in a morgue or becoming a bestselling author. But that’s exactly what fate had in store for this Cape Coral writer.

According to Black, “I didn’t think out my decision to major in political science.  I loved DC, and it just seemed like a good idea at the time.”  But after spending ten years working as a secretary, Black decided to go back to school to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in biology. She was subsequently hired as a forensic scientist for the coroner’s office in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, where she spent what she describes as “the happiest five years of my life” analyzing gunshot residue, DNA, fibers, blood and other forms of trace evidence on murder victims.  Then, 13 years ago, Black’s husband “got fed up with driving in Cleveland snow,” and the couple relocated to Florida, leaving family and friends behind. Black decided to take up writing to help get over her homesickness. After several tries, she landed a publisher for a mystery novel. Trace Evidence was published in 2005 under her real name, Elizabeth Becka.  A second novel, Unknown Means, followed in 2008.

After a change of publishers, Black began writing under a pseudonym. Takeover, published in 2008, introduces Theresa MacLean, a forensic scientist for the city of Cleveland. Black admits that she shares several traits with her protagonist. “Theresa MacLean is basically me, just a stronger, faster, smarter version. She isn’t a cop, so she uses inanimate clues to help solve mysteries.”  MacLean’s exploits continue in Evidence of Murder, a suspense novel based on one of Black’s real-life cases. In it, MacLean searches for clues to prove that a young woman’s apparent suicide actually involved foul play.  Publishers Weekly praised the book as a “fast-paced thriller…with a rip-roaring ending.”

The next novel in the MacLean series, Trail of Blood, is a fiction/true crime hybrid based on Cleveland’s infamous “Torso Killer,” a serial murderer who terrorized the city in the 1930s by decapitating and dismembering his victims. He was never caught. Trail of Blood has MacLean investigating the discoveries of the desiccated body of a long-dead police detective and a newly-murdered woman, both showing eerie similarities to the Torso Killer’s victims. Black moves seamlessly from past to present, merging two investigations into one page-turning thrill ride. Defensive Wounds, published in 2011, pits MacLean against a serial killer who targets defense attorneys.

Although she has a full-time job as a latent fingerprint analyst for the Cape Coral police department, Black has managed to finish her fifth MacLean novel. Blunt Impact, which hit bookstores on April 1, has MacLean investigating a series of murders surrounding the construction of a Cleveland skyscraper. The first to die is Samantha, a young, sexy concrete worker who is thrown from the 23rd floor. The only witness is her 11-year-old daughter Anna, nicknamed Ghost. Ghost will stop at nothing to find her mom's killer, and MacLean will stop at nothing to keep Ghost safe. Black has also entered the world of e-publishing with a Kindle e-book, The Prague Project, written under the name Beth Cheylan. In this stand-alone novel, a death in West Virginia sends FBI agent Ellie Gardner and NYPD counterterrorism lieutenant Michael Stewart on a chase across Europe as they track stolen nukes and lost Nazi gold, hoping to avert the deaths of millions of people.

Black describes her novels as “forensic suspense, a combination of police procedural and amateur sleuth.” She pulls from her personal experiences to give readers a feel for how forensics works in the real world. “I’d like them to know that it’s not always the pretty version you see on TV,” she explains.  “You don’t have to be young, single, sexy and angst-ridden to do a good job.”

How Julie Got Her Groove Back - A Guest Blog by Julie Compton



This month, Fabulous Florida Writers is pleased to welcome guest blogger Julie Compton. Julie is the internationally published author of TELL NO LIES, a legal thriller set in her original hometown of St. Louis; RESCUING OLIVIA, a romantic, contemporary thriller set in Florida; and the just released KEEP NO SECRETS, the sequel to TELL NO LIES. Her novels combine the suspense of thrillers with the drama of human relationships. Julie was our featured author on February 3, 2012.

When I became a published author, I lost my voice.

How can that be? you might ask. I'd written a book and suddenly it was printed and bound and packaged prettily and shipped to bookstores across the world. Imagine how many people would read the words I'd written. Think of all those readers who would curl up in their favorite chair and dive into a story that once existed only in my head. No voice? How can I say that?

Let me clarify. I didn't lose my "writer" voice, the one that likes to create stories and put them on paper for others to read. No, that voice grew louder and stronger.

Instead, I lost my "Julie" voice. The voice that forms a large part of the woman I am. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am not—excuse the cliché—a shrinking violet. I didn't go to law school for three years only to keep my opinions to myself.

But that's, in effect, what I did after I signed my first book contract with a traditional publisher. Without even realizing it myself, I began to tamp down my usually assertive personality. I became a mouse, afraid to speak up about anything for fear I might offend someone—my publisher, my editor, my agent, another author, booksellers, librarians, a potential reader, even an existing reader. Heaven forbid someone might not like what I had to say or got angry with me. I couldn't risk pissing off any of these people, I thought. I didn't want to be seen as the "difficult" or "unappreciative" author. The publisher might not want to publish me again; the agent might not want to represent me. The other author might not be willing to blurb my book. The bookseller or librarian won't stock my book, or they might pan it. The reader might not buy any more of them. I subconsciously censored myself at every turn, all in the name of the next book contract or a possible book sale.

 Somewhere along the way I noticed the change in myself. I also noticed that it didn't matter to my book sales, but it did matter to my mental heath. I began to accept what I'd known all along—that publishing is a business, and my books were commodities. Products. What drives book sales isn't how "nice" or "accommodating" the creator of the product is, but rather, involves a combination of factors relevant to the sale of any product. For books, quality of the product (the story) is a primary factor and is dependent on the author, but other factors, such as packaging, pricing, and marketing, are, for the most part, out of an author's control once she signs over the rights to a publisher. After two published novels, I realized that I didn't like giving up that control, because for me, giving up control somehow translated into giving up my voice. And with the explosion of self-publishing options now available to authors, I no longer had to.

In December, after getting the rights back to my first two novels (and after several years of carefully watching other authors who had taken the leap), I tested the waters by re-releasing my debut novel, Tell No Lies, through the Kindle Direct Publishing program. In January, I did the same with my second title, Rescuing Olivia. I had a blast doing it. I learned how to format e-books, and my daughter, an art student at Savannah College of Art & Design, designed new covers that rival any I've seen from the big guys.

I was so thrilled with the results on those backlist titles—titles that until then had all but disappeared from the radar—that I decided to self-publish my newest novel, Keep No Secrets, a sequel to Tell No Lies. This decision was the riskiest—I wouldn't have advance reviews or bookstore distribution or any of the other few remaining perks of traditional publishing—but I loved the idea of keeping control over the process.

Keep No Secrets released on March 12. With my daughter's design assistance, I chose the cover. I picked the format. I decided the pricing and retain the flexibility to adjust it as I see fit. The novel's success or failure rests with me, and that's just the way I like it. But most of all, I've kept my voice.

 For more about Julie Compton, visit her website at www.juliecompton.com





Doug Eadie - A Light in the Darkness

When Doug Eadie met Virginia Jacko, CEO of the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, he felt an instant rapport. Eadie, the president of Doug Eadie & Company, a Florida consulting firm, had years of experience working in the non-profit sector.  Although he had met many executives in the course of his career, he was captivated by this dynamic woman with her sunny smile and “can-do” attitude. Jacko was in a unique position to lead an organization whose primary goal was to help the visually challenged. Diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa in 1998, Virginia Jacko had gradually lost her sight and become totally blind.  

Eadie, a self-described “Board Mechanic” who specializes in building non-profit board-CEO partnerships, spent several months working with Jacko and the Miami Lighthouse. During that time, he became close friends with this remarkable woman. “It was a great partnership,” Eadie says. “I loved working with her. It wasn’t always easy because we both have strong personalities, but we developed a deep mutual respect.” When the project concluded in 2006, the two continued to stay in touch.

Eadie, the author of 18 books on non-profit leadership, began to think about channeling his writing in a new direction. In the summer of 2008, he decided to write a book chronicling Jacko’s amazing story. “It was scary to me,” he recalls. “I’m a person who likes structure. I was convinced we had a book; I just wasn’t sure what kind. But I knew it was too good a story to package as a management book.” After discussing the idea with Jacko, Eadie flew to Miami in late December to conduct the first of several interview sessions with her. He then spent the next year organizing the information and putting the ideas together while Jacko, his co-author, reviewed and fact-checked all the material. Working on the book was a surprisingly emotional experience for Eadie, who often had to stop writing because he became so moved by Jacko’s words. Finally, in January, 2010, The Blind Visionary was published.

The Blind Visionary traces Virginia Jacko’s personal journey from her days as a successful executive at Purdue University through the ordeal of her gradual loss of sight. The story  culminates with her new beginning as a vocational rehabilitation student who eventually rose to the top position at Miami Lighthouse. Eadie hopes her example will be an inspiration to readers as they deal with the difficulties in their own lives. “The lesson in Virginia’s experience is that whatever your challenge, you can face it,” Eadie explains. “I hope people will be energized and motivated by Virginia’s story. I also want it to be a tool to help people realize that, whatever their challenges may be, they can bring something meaningful to their lives through their actions.”

Over the past 25 years, Eadie had worked with over 500 nonprofit and public organizations of every shape and size in a wide variety of fields, including association management, public education, economic development, and public transportation. Although he had an established reputation as an author in his field of expertise, writing The Blind Visionary was such a profound experience for him that he intends to continue writing in this more personal view.  Recently he has created a new blog, “Entwined Lives,” (www.entwinedlives.com) which chronicles his and his former students’ experiences during his three years as a Peace Corps teacher in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. “My three years  teaching English and ancient history at Tafari Makonnen School, one of the finest public schools in Addis Ababa, not only transformed my life, but also resulted in lifelong friendships that I celebrate in my “Entwined Lives” blog,” he says. “As a writer, I envision these blog posts as a rich reservoir I can draw on in writing my next book.”

For more information on “The Blind Visionary,” go to www.theblindvisionary.com.

Next: Guest post by Julie Compton

Writing What You Know - A Guest Post by Joanna Campbell Slan

This month, Fabulous Florida Writers welcomes guest blogger Joanna Campbell Slan. Joanna is the award-winning author of twenty books, including three mystery series. Her new book, Wave Good-Bye, will be released in March. Joanna  was our featured writer on August 9, 2012.

When my agent asked me if I’d be interested in working on an existing series and writing under the pen name of “Lila Dare,” I hesitated.  I was already busy with two series—the Kiki Lowenstein Mysteries and The Jane Eyre Chronicles. But that said, I’m always up for a challenge. So I gave my agent a firm, “Maybe.”
That “maybe” quickly turned into a “yes” when I heard more about the Southern Beauty Shop mystery series. The books are set in fictional St. Elizabeth, Georgia. The protagonist, Grace Ann Terhune, is a sassy, thirty-something divorcée who works for her mother, Violetta, owner of the eponymous Violetta’s. Grace Ann is the very definition of a GRITS, a Girl Raised In The South.

Grace Ann and Violetta struck a familiar chord in me. My mother grew up in Georgia. When I close my eyes, I can hear Mom talking as I write dialog for the Terhunes. I learned how Southerners think at my mother’s knee. And I live in Florida, which I consider the South, even though some people don’t.

Researching the beauty business wasn’t a problem. My grandmother owned a beauty shop in rural Illinois. I loved visiting it. The whirl of activity in the salon always intrigued me. The atmosphere was uniquely feminine. I tried to evoke that intense feeling of female camaraderie in the book.

Capturing the essence of Grace Ann was easy because I come from a family of three girls, and I’ve always written about strong women. We’re six books into my Kiki Lowenstein Mysteries and two into The Jane Eyre Chronicles; both series feature women of substance. I don’t believe in victimhood, although I do like my characters to have both flaws and a backbone. Grace Ann is much more assertive than Jane Eyre or Kiki Lowenstein, but she also has her doubts about herself.

I think the toughest part of my new identity will be signing books under an assumed name. Or responding if readers call me “Lila.” I hope to get a lot of practice with both at the launch party for Wave Good-Bye. Fittingly, we’re holding the event in a hair salon!

What seemed like a challenge at first has turned out to be a lot of fun. Recently, my accountant gave me another reason to be pleased with my decision to morph into “Lila Dare”--now I can write off all my hair appointments!

 For more about Joanna, visit www.JoannaSlan.com or http://www.tinyurl.com/JCSlan

Next: Doug Eadie - A Light in the Darkness

Joseph Eger - Universal Music

Note: Sadly, Joseph Eger passed away suddenly in December at the age of 93. He was not only a Fabulous Florida Writer but a wonderful humanitarian and exceptional human being.

Joseph Eger’s life was shaped by two overriding passions: his transcendent love of music and his fascination with the science of physics. This may seem like an unusual combination, but it mirrors Eger’s extraordinary life and serves as the inspiration for his fascinating book, Einstein’s Violin.

Eger, a resident of Pompano Beach, grew up in an Orthodox Jewish family in New York City.  Even as a young boy, he had an insatiable curiosity about the world around him and a strong sense of justice and injustice. He studied horn at the renowned Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, living what he called “la vie Boheme” with three other music students in a one-room apartment. It was during his student days that Eger was introduced to the world of progressive politics and became a social activist. This began what Eger described as “a lifetime quest toward finding ways to harness the mysterious power of music and related arts for social change… To my delight, I found that music, physics, and social change are inexorably locked arm-in-arm.”

After graduating from Curtis, Eger took a position as first French horn for the summer season of the National Symphony in Washington, DC. He then played the same position in the New York Philharmonic and later the Los Angeles Philharmonic before embarking on a career as a solo artist. He spent several years touring the world, and was lauded by the New York Times as “the greatest horn player alive.” Then came the event that proved to be a turning point in Eger’s career. He enrolled in a conducting class under the direction of Pierre Monteux, one of the greatest conductors of the twentieth century. After seeing Eger’s performance, Monteux said, “Give me a few years with him, and he will become a great conductor.”

When Eger returned to New York City, he began searching Julliard and other music conservatories for students who might be interested in joining his orchestra. Eger’s Westside Symphony (which later became the New York Orchestral Society) performed its debut concert to rave reviews. From then on, he was hooked. In 1974, the group morphed into one of Eger’s proudest accomplishments– the Symphony for United Nations (SUN).  Dedicated to “harnessing the power of music for constructive global change,” SUN is a non-profit organization that holds concerts, festivals, and concert-seminars which have raised substantial funds for humanitarian causes. The list of participants in SUN events reads like a “Who’s Who” of the entertainment world – Marvin Hamlisch, Bianca Jagger, Peter Gabriel, Bette Midler, Tony Randall, Ellen Burstyn, Michael Moriarity, and Eli Wallach, to name a few.  In 1994, Eger’s contributions to music and social causes earned him the Eleanor Roosevelt “Man of Vision Award” (one of only two worldwide).

Despite his stellar musical talent, Eger’s career path was sometimes rocky. His political activism caused him to be blacklisted during the McCarthy era. During these difficult times, Eger found inspiration in one of his heroes – Albert Einstein. “Einstein’s example of a man who was at once a scientist, musician, and principled citizen gave me encouragement,” he explained. Eger found it ironic that the very thing that threatened his career in the 1950s was something he was later congratulated for.  But it is this same commitment to social change that inspired his most radical idea yet.

Eger had a longstanding interest in physics. Although he never studied it formally, he admits that books on relativity and quantum physics were often included in his bedtime reading. He began to discern connections between these subjects and his feelings about music and society. Old ideas were being challenged by discoveries in quantum physics and string theories. He realized that the outdated Newtonian concept of a fragmented universe was making people lose sight of the connections between them. “Everything in the universe is made of exactly the same stuff, and that stuff, believe it or not, is music," he explained. "The only difference between you, a stone, and the king of Saudi Arabia are variations in the configuration of the wave frequencies of which we are constructed. The universe is one, but we have divided it. Music has the wonderful facility of bringing it back together.” When an editor heard about Eger’s theory, he approached the conductor about writing a book. Eger was pleased with the opportunity to share his ideas about the power of music, and Einstein’s Violin was born.

Part memoir, part scientific journal, and part collection of historical vignettes, this eminently readable book outlines the experiences and ideas that led Eger to his revolutionary insight about music as an agent for social change. He presents the symphony orchestra as a metaphor for both society and the entire universe. According to Eger, “Music is an ‘open sesame’ to people and their souls. In an orchestra, whatever personal differences may arise are set aside in the interest of harmony. Music brings people together. There is something fundamental about music that is essential to being human. My book is a polemic for a better, more caring, just world; hence, a more peaceful world.” In Einstein’s Violin, readers are treated to an intimate portrait of the two men Eger admire most: Einstein and Beethoven. They are also given a fascinating glimpse of some of the celebrated figures that have crossed Eger’s path - people like John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Leonard Bernstein, Keith Emerson, Queen Noor, Yehudi Menuin, Arthur Rubinstein, and Leopold Stokowski. The Pittsburg Post-Gazette praised Einstein’s Violin as a book that “harmonizes music, science and humanity.”

Although Maestro Eger was in his ninth decade of life, his commitment to music and social issues showed no signs of diminishing. He was Music Director/Conductor of the Symphony for United Nations (SUN) in New York and Florida, and Guest Conductor for Life in Beijing, China. In 2010, he was named Director of Music and Cultural Affairs for the International Agency for Economic Development, an organization dedicated to improving the economies and standards of living in developing countries through intelligent charitable, economic and social projects. He also kept busy writing essays and articles that promoted his dream of music as a force for unity. “My hope would be that readers would realize they’re living as part of a huge symphony orchestra,” he said “To make beautiful music for themselves and their families, they have to find ways to get along with their brothers and sisters, since we are all one.”

To read Joseph Eger's obituary, go to http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/newsobserver/obituary.aspx?pid=162364183

Next: Guest post by Joanna Campbell Slan