BOOKS BY MY FRIENDS: WENDY HINMAN
Welcome to BOOKS BY MY FRIENDS, Wendy! Let’s set sail and chat about Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven-Year Pacific Odyssey.
JH: What’s the blurb for your book?
WH: Imagine spending 24 hours a day with your spouse in 31 not-so-square feet . . . for years; crossing the Pacific Ocean on two gallons of fuel; and tossing spaghetti marinara around your living room, then cleaning it up while bouncing like ice in a martini shaker. Tightwads on the Loose tells the story of Wendy and Garth, lured to sea by the promise of adventure. They buy a 31-foot boat that fits their budget better than it fits Garth’s large frame and set sail for an open-ended voyage, never imagining they’d be gone seven years, or cover 34,000 miles at the pace of a fast walk. They live without most “necessities” and learn that teamwork and a sense of humor matter most as they face endless “character-building opportunities.” “Tightwads on the Loose offers a fun read to the armchair adventurer — or anyone afflicted with wanderlust.” A readers favorite.
JH: What inspired you to write this book?
WH: I grew up a voracious reader. I devoured books and immersed myself in stories to explore and understand the world and to soothe me when I didn’t. A school project in which we assembled our writing into a book left a strong impression on me at a young age. I always enjoyed writing and secretly yearned to be an author of a story that moved people as books have moved me. Before I wrote my first book, I was a magazine editor, but our voyage gave me a clearly defined story with broad appeal and provided a perfect springboard for my writing career. During our voyage, I shared our adventures with friends and family and discovered the audience kept growing as people shared my posts and updates with friends and family. Upon our return from our voyage, I kept getting invitations to do presentations. Many people who’d read my updates urged me to write a book about our voyage. As I wrote it, I imagined bringing joy, laughter, and insight to people as they read my stories. I initially wrote my book for fans of my blog and my email updates not knowing whether it had a broader appeal. People have fallen in love with the narrative voice, which is full of humor. It has been described as a “cult classic” among sailors but reaches far beyond that audience to dreamers of all sorts, to those in need of a little escapism.
Read the rest here:
Joy E. Held Interview with Wendy Hinman, Author of Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven-Year Pacific Odyssey
https://joyeheld.substack.com/p/books-by-my-friends-wendy-hinman
