More Austin Memories in Love Lives On

The latest bookmobile novel, Love Lives On, takes place in Austin, Texas, mostly. So why the photo of Bruges, Belgium on the cover? Bruges is where Brian and Karen go for their honeymoon.

I said mostly Austin, because Brian goes back to California a few times to visit his parents. Mainly because the book is about Karen. Also, there are a few scenes in Sunset Valley, which is technically not a part of Austin even though it is surrounded by Austin. The married couple also stop in Hildesheim, Germany for a night.

After the wedding Karen moves into Brian's place on Mt. Bonnell Road near Dry Creek Cafe. If you read Where Love Once Lived, you know this is the place where the Combine rented a cabin when they were students at the University of Texas back in the 1970's.

There are scenes at the Austin History Center, a fictional law office on Congress Avenue, Allandale mall and references to the Austin Public Library, Travis County Courthouse, Wooldridge Park, MoPac, 35th Street, Sun City Texas, Georgetown, Thundercloud Subs and Dr Pepper, a Texas favorite.

Several scenes take place in Clarksville, where Brian's best friend Phil lives with his wife Kay. His dad George, who played a prominent role in Where Love Once Lived, lives in an apartment out back and manages to help Karen in Love Lives On.

Where Love Once Lived Available in Austin History Center

 I told you how I donated two copies of Where Love Once Lived to the Austin History Center in the December 13, 2010 blog. See: http://christianbookmobile.blogspot.com/2010/12/open-letter-to-austin-history-center.html for details.

I corresponded with Brenda Branch, Director of Libraries and Mike Miller, Austin History Center Manager, by email after that blog. I checked for a while after that to see if the book had been cataloged. I gave up after a few weeks. Then last week I thought about it again and checked once more.

One copy of Where Love Once Lived is now shown to be in the Austin History Center, for library use only. I don't know what happened to the other copy. Maybe it'll show up in the main library someday.

An Open Letter to the Austin History Center

As you know, I dropped off two copies of my novel, Where Love Once Lived, last week. As a long-time resident of Austin who is now living in Sun City Texas in Georgetown, I know you have a place for the publications of local authors because my last book, Automated Law Office Systems, is in the Austin History Center according to the online catalog.

What you don’t know is that the idea for Where Love Once Lived came to me when I worked in the building now called the Austin History Center. At that time it was the main library building. This was back in the 1960s when I was a part-time bookmobile driver while going to the University of Texas.

The librarian I rode with most was Jean Siedo. She was outspoken and somewhat unorthodox, and clearly not the typical librarian. However, she was loved by all the patrons. Liz Siedo, the fictional bookmobile librarian in my book is an exaggeration of the real librarian based on my half-century-old memories.

Another thing you don’t know is that my next book, currently called Vengeance Is Mine, also involves Liz and the library. However, in this book, she has been promoted to director of libraries. She likes the old building where the Austin History Center is and has her office there. The manuscript for that book is with a potential publisher, but I’ll make sure you get a copy when it’s published.

I'd like to take this opportunity to apologize to Brenda Branch, the director of libraries in Austin because Ms. Varner, head librarian in my book is a villain. I didn't set out to make her evil, but early readers of the manuscript said it needed more conflict. Everyone loved the Liz character, so getting Ms. Varner fired presented a way to promote Liz. Remember, it is fiction.