THE CRONE

 Mt story titled "The Crone" is published in this volume of Downstate Story.

Downstate Story

www.downstatestory.com       www.wiu.edu/users/mfgeh/dss

 

___________________________________________

Elaine Hopkins, publisher ehopkins7@prodigy.net

1825 Maple Ridge, Peoria, IL. 61614

phones: 309/688-1409; 309/231-5758

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Further information:

Elaine Hopkins 309/231-5758

ehopkins7@prodigy.net

 

DOWNSTATE STORY VOL. 30 NOW AVAILABLE FREE ON THE WEB

 

Nine new short stories by Illinois and Midwestern writers are featured in the 2021 edition of Downstate Story, Peoria's only literary magazine for fiction. Downstate Story is now published only on the Web at www.downstatestory.com

 

The writers in this issue are: Jim Wilhelm of Peoria, IL, Pepper Bauer of Mapleton, IL.., Jim Courter of Macomb, IL.;  Jackson Courter of Urbana, IL., Jason Sibert of Maryville, IL.; Laura McPherson of Addison, IL.,  Audrey Carli of Iron River, MI.; Arlene Shovald of Salida, CO.; Elise Warner of Jackson Heights, NY.,  and Natalie Dale of Hillsboro, OR.,

 

Most of these outstanding writers have long lists of publications in other literary magazines, and some have authored books.

 

Published by Downstate Story, Inc., an Illinois not-for-profit corporation, the annual publication aims to present original fiction by Illinois writers and writers with ties to Illinois and the Midwest as a quality alternative to today's mass-market publishing.

 

Downstate Story’s Facebook page can be accessed at www.Facebook.com/downstatestory

 

EDITORS/PRODUCERS NOTE:

The magazine is available free on the Web. Interviews with the authors are encouraged and can be arranged. Contact us, or them. Their email addresses and other information are included below.

 

Please help us notify the public about this unique venture.

 

(continued on p. 2)

DOWNSTATE STORY, Vol. 30, THE FACTS

 

1. Politically correct. Contributors paid for their work. No government funds used.

 

2. Something for everyone. Stories reflect diversity of authors, and include romance, horror, fantasy, sci-fi, mainstream fiction.

 

3. Promotes quality reading. Content realistic but not X-rated.

 

4. Promotes Illinois and Midwestern writers.

 

5. Unusual concept for the arts. Provides outlet for local writers and artists to reach

local audiences free.

 

6. Original work. None ever published before.

 

7. Quality work. Stories and art comparable to work in Harpers, Atlantic, The New Yorker and top literary magazines.

 

8. No poetry.

 

9. No advertising.

 

 

DOWNSTATE STORY, Vol. 30. AUTHORS

.

Authors: (Telephone numbers available on request)

Jason Sibert, Jasonsibert@hotmail.com

Jim Courter, je-courter@wiu.edu

James Wilhelm, IllinoisjamesP@comcast.net

Laura McPherson, lauralmcpherson@gmail.com

Jackson Courter, j.courter3@gmail.com

Elise Warner, elisewarnerb@aol.com

Arlene Shovald, witcharlene@gmail.com

Audrey Carli, audreycarli@yahoo.com

Natalie Dale, nataliedaleauthor@gmail.com

Pepper Bauer, pepperbauer@att.net

                                                       

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Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Hilarious, Heroic, Human Dog Coast to Coast Canines

     

Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Hilarious, Heroic, Human Dog will go on sale at all bookstores beginning Sept. 7th. My story is titled COAST TO COAST CANINES. A loving tribute to our Jackie (a toy poodle) and her canine companions on tour with the National Company of the prize-winning musical Fiorello!

                                                                                    

More info to come.

Bests,

Elise

THE AMERICAN CEMETERY

ON MEMORIAL DAY On the west side of the Greve river, approximately 7.5 miles south of Florence, Italy,set against a backdrop of hills dense with London Plane trees, headstones belonging to 4,402 American Military Dead stand on 70 acres of foreign soil. Pine, cypress, willow, oak and cedar trees enclose the section along with oleander, crepe myrtle and laurel-cherry shrubs. A bridge set between the cemetery office and the visitor’s center at the entrance to the cemetery leads us to row after row of crosses and stars of David. The cemetery is hushed except for the occasional rustle of a leaf or a bird’s fragment of song. We wander among the headstones that bear the names and dates of birth of the servicemen and women who were lost to friends, loved ones and our nation. Here and there, we see a pebble placed on a stone; a way to say “We are here. We came to see you. We will never forget you.” Americans,traveling through the area,stop at the cemetery, on the west side of the Via Cassia,a major highway that links Florence with Rome and Sienna, to pay their respects to the heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice in World War II.The majority died in the fighting that occurred after the liberation of Rome in June 1944 and during the fierce battles in the Apennines right before the end of the war. The cemetery is one of 14 permanent memorials built by the American Battle Monuments Commission. The site (liberated on August 3, 1944 by the South African 6th Armored Division) and the stone used to construct the chapel and headstones was supplied by Italy. On the highest of three terraces located in back of the burial site are two open sections partially enclosed by walls; to the east is the American flag. Tablets of the Missing, constructed of Travertine stone, connect the two sections. Visitors barely breathe as they read the Baveno granite panels; on the tablets are inscribed the names of 1,409 Americans (United States Army and Air Forces and the United States Navy) who died in our nation’s service and rest in nameless graves. They came from every state in our union but Alaska and Hawaii. Men study the north section’s west wall where two marble operations maps tell the story of the American Forces in the area. Inscriptions in English and Italian provide an explanation for the maps and the military operations. A forecourt at the south end of the tablets leads to a marble and mosaic chapel; a place to meditate and pray for the peace represented in a sculpture that rests on a pylon. The Florence American Cemetery and Memorial is open daily from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm from April 16 to September 30 and from 8:00am to 5:00pm from October 1 to April 15. Staff members in the visitors’ building will accompany family members to the graves and memorial sites. In remembrance, Elise

THE PACK HORSE LIBRARY

 

My article titled, "THE PACK HORSE LIBRARY PROGRAM OF DEPRESSION ERA KENTUCKY" is featured in the February issue of the Elks magazine.

Women living in rural communities were hired to bring books to schools and homes in extremely hard to reach communities under terrible conditions. They brought education, entertainment and a bit of knowledge of the outside world with them. After FDR became President, he set up the WPA--which brought jobs to young men and veterans. I hope that through urban renewal and the construction of bridges and tunnels will soon bring jobs and a better economy to our country.

Scene Stealer is available wherever Ebooks are sold.

Bests,

Elise

GROVES OF GOLD CITRUS FRUIT IN AMERICA

The Elks Magazine is featuring my article on citrus. Enjoyed the research and writing of this one. Imagine all writers have favorite "children." Two of my favorites from a number of years ago were one about gelaterias in Rome and another about touring the Peruginia chocolate factory in Perugia, Italy. My husband's favorite was testing the gelato. Of course, we had to taste what I wrote about. I tend to think beginning with a title you love makes the writing go much more smoothly although editors do have a tendency to change them. Do you have a favorite? Bests, Elise

"Brush Up Your Shakespeare"

What do writers do during quarantines? Why we write, scrub our hands to the tune of "Happy Birthday," and write and write and write. For non-fiction we research, often finding other pieces of information that inspires us to write and write and write. Taking a few minutes--here and there--to visit Facebook and Twitter and check our emails to see if any of our queries have been accepted. Then it's back to the keyboard to write and write and write. It's one of the few positives to come out of this horrific pandemic.

From singer Rosanne Cash, "Just a reminder that when Shakespeare was quarantined because of the plague, he wrote King Lear." Something to strive for...

Bests,

Elise

Scene Stealer is available at Barnes & Noble and wherever eBooks are sold.

FEET of CLAY

Daniel in the Book of Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon’s dream. The king dreams of a sculpture made of gold, silver, brass and iron—seemingly strong but flawed because his feet are made of both iron and clay. The clay will cause the sculpture to topple. Recently newspapers talked of Michelangelo’s David and the unexpected weakness of his feet. Feet of Clay has been employed for millenniums to refer to a person’s weakness of character. Today we talk of Achilles Heel as a failing that can cause a powerful figure to perform ineffectively. Greek mythology relates the prophesy that the baby Achilles would die at a young age. Thetis, his mother, took her child to the River Styx, believing its magical powers would shield Achilles from harm. Thetis immersed the baby in the water holding him by his heel—the water bathed every part of his body except his heel—a physical failure. Achilles lived through many battles but during the Trojan War died from a poisoned arrow shot by Paris that become fixed in the one weak spot his mother could not protect. In folklore, a Golem is created from inanimate matter—clay or mud. Raw material that leads to an unfinished human. It is often employed today to describe someone blundering, and dense who may carry out man’s orders under some conditions but is hostile and destructive under others. I don’t read many biographies anymore. Bios often show the feet of clay, the Achilles heel, the sometimes destructive artist I had previously respected and admired and I find it affects my enjoyment of their work. It’s hard for me to separate the shallow, often despicable person described in the page of a book from my personal image of the painter, actor, or author whose work I once treasured. Many people can compartmentalize and separate the artist’s work from his or her behavior, I find it difficult. How about you?