A radio interview with award-winning journalist Jeannie Yandel on NPR station KUOW about the difficulty of returning after years cruising around the Pacific Ocean.

For seven years, Wendy Hinman and her husband Garth Wilcox sailed where they pleased on an open schedule, letting serendipity and the weather dictate their travels. Coming home after such freedom was a challenge, but the voyage opened their eyes to the possibilities of living differently. Learn more about their adventures and the lessons they offered in this thoughtful interview: A new person in an old place

Listen to the segment here. Wendy Hinman with KPTZ at Wooden Boat Festival.

A radio interview with David Cunningham of KPTZ Compass news magazine in Port Townsend.

Their highs and lows and misadventures are preserved in the hit book Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven-Year Pacific Odyssey.

“Some of the most satisfying things in life are that because they were hard to do.”

Listen to the radio interview with David Cunningham of KPTZ Compass news magazine in Port Townsend here.

Listen to the inspiring interview with adventurer Wendy Hinman and life coach and author Lyssa DeHart on her Story Jacking podcast. Their discussion encompasses what makes life worth living.

In their discussion, Wendy notes: “Change is constant in life. If you don’t choose change, it is imposed on you anyway. If you actively choose change, you are in more command of your life. There’s comfort in the predictable but it’s an illusion of safety. Comfort is what we seek as consolation for feeling a little bored. Expanding our comfort zone and leaping into the unknown is what make life exciting. If I’m afraid of something and take some step, those fears seem smaller. Gradually upping the ante to get more comfortable doing bigger things results in significant accomplishments over time. Once you’ve done something you’re not afraid of it anymore. It develops trust in your ability to be aware and react and read the world in new ways and to make conscious choices.

With my husband we bought a 31-foot boat that fit our budget better than it fit my husband’s large frame and set sail for an open-ended voyage, never imagining we’d be gone seven years, or cover 34,000 miles at the pace of a fast walk.

Velella Sailing in New Zealand

Sailing offshore offered me time to reflect and offered me many insights on living for becoming a “human being” rather than just a “human doing.” Stopping and taking stock lets you develop awareness to reflect on your own story in a way that can help you learn and grow. It lets us figure out who we are not just in relation to others. We can then take ownership of our story so we can consciously write our own desired ending.

Being in the moment, actively engaged with all your heart, in pursuit of a goal is what makes us feel alive. Empowerment comes through the process of doing something hard. Lifelong learning is what makes me feel alive. Expanding oneself in myriad ways through a broad range of experiences is thrilling. Sometimes, the only thing I may have control over is my attitude. I’ve realized that failure is not making a mistake but giving up and when I’m struggling, I need to find a way to shift gears to find a more positive way to look at things and take steps to make my situation better.

You never know what you’re capable of accomplishing until you do it, one step at a time. That’s how we can all manifest what we want.”

Get inspired to rewrite your own story. Listen to the interview here.

https://soundcloud.com/lyssadehart/tightwads-on-the-loose-sj-5

Here’s an interview with author Wendy Hinman about her amusing, award-winning book Tightwads on the Loose on KSER FM Sound Living.

This interview shares her signature humor that helped her navigate over 34,000 miles around the Pacific Ocean with her husband over their seven-year voyage. Hear the stories behind the person who wrote the best-selling book.

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.” They make a long-anticipated visit to the island where Garth had been shipwrecked as a teenager, only to find it had become a penal colony. An electronic catastrophe in the Solomon Islands leaves them without navigation equipment, which forces them to trade their free-wheeling lifestyle for one that seems straight out of a ’60s sitcom: jobs at a U.S. Army base in the Marshall Islands. In Asia, they dodge typhoons and ships that threaten to turn their home into kindling. Finally they endure a grueling 49-day nonstop ocean crossing. None of this prepares them for their arrival “home” to a post-9/11 America which leaves them wondering what had changed more, them or the world. Tightwads on the Loose offers a fun read to the armchair adventurer — or anyone afflicted with wanderlust.

Wendy and Garth with Kastam villagers in Vanuatu

Listen to this lighthearted interview with thoughtful questions about living differently by host Ed Bremer.

Interview with KSER’s Ed Bremer on Sound Living about the adventurous woman behind the book Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven-year Pacific Odyssey.

Read Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven-year Pacific Odyssey today.

Here’s an interview with author Wendy Hinman about her award-winning book Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire, along with Garth Wilcox (one of the heroes of the story) on KSER FM Sound Living.

Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire highlights major events from the around-the-world journey the Wilcox family took aboard Vela, their 40-foot Maine Pinky, from 1973-1978. Their voyage occurred during the relative dark ages of sailing when people navigated using a sextant, and long before the days of instant communication. Few undertook such a journey, and limited information was available about outfitting a boat for ocean voyaging or ports along the way. Yet, despite unbelievable obstacles, this pioneering family survived a shipwreck and made it all the way around the world. No small feat.

This interview discusses the dramatic story of the shipwreck a year into their voyage. Despite tremendous odds, they rebuilt their wrecked boat and finished their goal to sail around the globe. Along the way they face storms, typhoons, traveling through hostile waters patrolled by warring nations, scurvy, and more.

Vela on the reef

Listen to this in depth interview with thoughtful questions by host Ed Bremer.

Interview with KSER’s Ed Bremer on Sound Living about the true story behind the book Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire.

Read Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire today.

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

Wendy Hinman is the author of two books: Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire and Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven Year Pacific Odyssey. Sea Trials focuses on her husband’s family’s experiences, while Tightwads on the Loose looks at her and her husband’s travels. Both are now available as audiobooks. Hinman reviews books for Foreword Reviews.

Q: How did writing Sea Trials, about your husband’s family, differ from writing Tightwads on the Loose, a memoir about the adventures you and your husband had in the Pacific?

A: I wrote Tightwads on the Loose first. In some ways it was easier because I was there and didn’t have to do any research.

Initially I started writing scenes that I most wanted to capture—events that stood out during our seven-year journey around the Pacific. I wrote each scene as a stand-alone and in no particular order.

Once I had crafted scenes that highlighted the journey I shaped them as a whole into a cohesive story arc that linked everything together. I think my lighthearted style built on scenes let the reader feel as though they were experiencing the journey for themselves.

One key thing I realized when I began writing was that for any series of events, it’s possible to shape them into various different stories. With an extended adventure such as this, I had to make a lot of decisions about what to include and what not to include.

There were many places where we had encounters with ships or storms that threatened to turn our floating home into kindling and thrilling experiences with nature or foreign cultures.

I kept asking myself “What is the story am I trying to tell?” From there I made choices that supported my themes and the pace of the story. I also figured if it was fun to write, then it’d be fun to read.

The writing of Sea Trials went faster, probably because I had more experience by then and it had a dramatic, clearly defined story arc. While there’s humor in the story, I didn’t feel as free to joke about someone else’s hardships as I was about my own as I did in Tightwads on the Loose so the voice is more serious.

Q: Of the various experiences you’ve written about, do any of them particularly stand out in your mind?

A: The many intimate moments in nature—frolicking in waterfalls, playing in the rain, enjoying a sunset—remind me that nature puts on an amazing show every day if only we stop to appreciate it.

We visited islands so tiny that maps rarely featured them and met native people who live much as they did thousands of years ago—people content with a simple way of life surrounded by family and community. That left a strong impression on me and changed the way I approach life.

I am glad that I wrote Tightwads on the Loose first because the events in Sea Trials were so dramatic, I might otherwise have considered my own sailing adventure less worthy of sharing.

In hindsight, what I realize both books show is how important one’s attitude is in defining one’s experiences and the outcome. That’s a life lesson that sticks with me.

A couple of events come to mind that demonstrate that attitude is key are an incident when I spilled spaghetti marinara all over the interior of our boat; and then a miserable, wet passage from New Zealand to Fiji during a storm. In both circumstances, when I stopped to consider the absurdity of the situations and saw the humor in them, it made everything more bearable and enjoyable.

Likewise, I think it was humor and optimism among the family members that pulled them through challenging times when they were shipwrecked, sinking, or suffering from scurvy. I don’t think any of us realize what we are capable of achieving until we push ourselves and that’s what makes life exciting.

Whenever I feel dissatisfied with life, I find I need to ask myself whether I just need to readjust my attitude to embrace a challenge. I think of a friend and fellow writer who jokes “Plot twist!” whenever life gets hard.

Read more about Wendy’s inpiration and writing process here as well as discover other great books and authors:
https://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/2022/09/q-with-wendy-hinman.html

Joy E. Held, Nov 29, 2022 publication

Welcome to Books By My Friends, Wendy! Happy to have an adventurer on board today! *grin*

JH: What’s the blurb for your book Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire? (That title is an attention grabber!)

WH: Sea Trials is the story of a family’s epic journey around the globe. Together they overcome daunting challenges–from shipwreck and wild weather to threats from pirates, gunboats, mines and thieves, a broken rig, scurvy and starvation. Glimpses of the fascinating cultures they encounter along the way enhances the suspense and keeps readers of all ages hooked until the “nail-biting” end. * A multi-award winner with rave reviews, including a Kirkus starred review.

JH: What inspired you to write Sea Trials?

WH: Over the years I’d been hearing snippets of the epic voyage my husband had taken with his family sailing around the world and their shipwreck when he was fourteen. Family dinners had been filled with “you remember the time when …

• gunboats forced us to sail across mines in the Red Sea?

• when our pilot Abdul got lost in the Suez Canal?

• the boat starting sinking in Israel?

• mom tried to poison us?

• we ran out of food and nearly starved?”

Such tantalizing anecdotes intrigued me. Then I got possession of the famous letters the family mailed home during the voyage. Hundreds of them. In them was more detail than any writer could hope for. Too much, sometimes. But by combing through them I fleshed out the outline of the story that I’d developed in my mind of the voyage. I asked a lot of questions of family members and took copious notes. What I uncovered was an even more dramatic story than I already knew, and I could hardly believe anyone had truly lived through it. Especially people I knew so intimately. Their story featured pirates, gunboats, mines, thieves, starvation and scurvy in addition to a shipwreck. I also couldn’t believe there wasn’t already a book written about it, since their shipwreck and arrival home hit the papers around the globe. To flesh out their story, I consulted guide books and sailing directions, maps, weather data, and the ship’s log to ferret out the finer details. I read the newspaper articles, listened to the interviews with the family. I started writing and double-checking details with the people who had lived through it. Once I began writing I found my draft came really fast, probably because I’d been thinking about this story for so long beforehand and had so much material. With a rough draft completed, I had them read every word to check for inaccuracies or things that didn’t seem true to their experience. It was a great family bonding experience to write Sea Trials about their journey.

Read more about Wendy’s inpiration and writing process here as well as discover other great books and authors:
https://joyeheld.substack.com/p/books-by-my-friends-9ff

Wendy Hinman is the author of the books Sea Trials: Around the World with Duct Tape and Bailing Wire and Tightwads on the Loose: A Seven Year Pacific Odyssey. Sea Trials focuses on her husband’s family’s experiences, while Tightwads on the Loose looks at her and her husband’s travels. Both are now available as audiobooks. Hinman reviews books for Foreword Reviews.

Q: How did writing Sea Trials, about your husband’s family, differ from writing Tightwads on the Loose, a memoir about the adventures you and your husband had in the Pacific?

A: I wrote Tightwads on the Loose first. In some ways it was easier because I was there and didn’t have to do any research.

Initially I started writing scenes that I most wanted to capture—events that stood out during our seven-year journey around the Pacific. I wrote each scene as a stand-alone and in no particular order.

Once I had crafted scenes that highlighted the journey I shaped them as a whole into a cohesive story arc that linked everything together. I think my lighthearted style built on scenes let the reader feel as though they were experiencing the journey for themselves.

One key thing I realized when I began writing was that for any series of events, it’s possible to shape them into various different stories. With an extended adventure such as this, I had to make a lot of decisions about what to include and what not to include.

There were many places where we had encounters with ships or storms that threatened to turn our floating home into kindling and thrilling experiences with nature or foreign cultures.

I kept asking myself “What is the story am I trying to tell?” From there I made choices that supported my themes and the pace of the story. I also figured if it was fun to write, then it’d be fun to read.

The writing of Sea Trials went faster, probably because I had more experience by then and it had a dramatic, clearly defined story arc. While there’s humor in the story, I didn’t feel as free to joke about someone else’s hardships as I was about my own as I did in Tightwads on the Loose so the voice is more serious.

Q: Of the various experiences you’ve written about, do any of them particularly stand out in your mind?

A: The many intimate moments in nature—frolicking in waterfalls, playing in the rain, enjoying a sunset—remind me that nature puts on an amazing show every day if only we stop to appreciate it.

We visited islands so tiny that maps rarely featured them and met native people who live much as they did thousands of years ago—people content with a simple way of life surrounded by family and community. That left a strong impression on me and changed the way I approach life.

I am glad that I wrote Tightwads on the Loose first because the events in Sea Trials were so dramatic, I might otherwise have considered my own sailing adventure less worthy of sharing.

In hindsight, what I realize both books show is how important one’s attitude is in defining one’s experiences and the outcome. That’s a life lesson that sticks with me.

A couple of events come to mind that demonstrate that attitude is key are an incident when I spilled spaghetti marinara all over the interior of our boat; and then a miserable, wet passage from New Zealand to Fiji during a storm. In both circumstances, when I stopped to consider the absurdity of the situations and saw the humor in them, it made everything more bearable and enjoyable.

Likewise, I think it was humor and optimism among the family members that pulled them through challenging times when they were shipwrecked, sinking, or suffering from scurvy. I don’t think any of us realize what we are capable of achieving until we push ourselves and that’s what makes life exciting.

Whenever I feel dissatisfied with life, I find I need to ask myself whether I just need to readjust my attitude to embrace a challenge. I think of a friend and fellow writer who jokes “Plot twist!” whenever life gets hard.

Q: What do your family members think of the books?

A: My family is pretty excited about my books. In Tightwads on the Loose I poked a little fun at my dad, who taught me a lot about how to tell a good story, and I’m touched that he was so proud to be featured in it. I lost him recently and I take great comfort in that.

I always thought Sea Trials was too good a story not to share and am honored the family trusted me with it and are so pleased with the outcome. My mother-in-law is so delighted to have her story out in the world, she has personally been responsible for an impressive number of book sales herself.

What I’ve loved best was being able to have them join me for a few book events and seeing how cathartic it’s been for them to experience the interest and enthusiasm for these stories.

Q: What are you working on now?

A: I’m currently at work on historical fiction inspired by my relations. I have some wonderful scrapbooks and photo albums that have sparked some story ideas.

I’m a big fan of history and think seeing history through the eyes of people who lived it helps us understand the past and how it’s shaped the present. It also helps us see how people have faced what appeared to be insurmountable obstacles and found a way to overcome them.

There is so much we can learn from the experiences of the past that can help us cope with difficulties we face now. I love the challenge of working in a new genre and figuring out how to tell a new story from my imagination.

Q: Anything else we should know?

A: I’m delighted at the warm reception these books have gotten and I’ve been approached about making them into a movie or mini-series. Who knows what will come of that interest; regardless, I feel so lucky to get to create stories and share them with the world. It’s rewarding to meet readers who’ve found these stories to be riveting, amusing or inspiring.

As a lover of books, I know how important books have been in shaping the person I’ve become and helping me cope with the trials and tribulations of life.

Thanks for the interview!

To read more visit:

https://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/2022/09/q-with-wendy-hinman.html