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           "Part Annie Dillard, part Anne Lamott."- L.A. Times  

 

"Lende writes emotionally but never sentimentally, giving us the best Alaska memoir of late, maybe the best ever." -Booklist 

 

“The genuineness of Heather Lende’s experience and her thoughtfulness about life’s bad breaks and unexpected gifts—expressed so well in her fine funny writing- make me want to ordain her as the goddess of good sense and song.” - Nancy Lord, Alaska Writer Laureate

Thanks for Stopping By!

Welcome to my world here in Haines, Alaska (pop.2400), where I have written two books, If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name (Algonquin 2005) about real life in this small-town through my perspective as the obituary writer, and Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs (Algonquin 2010), about recovering from an accident thanks to community, family, and faith. I am writing a third non-fiction book for Algonquin today. (Well, make that today and everyday for a while...) You may know me from my long running column in the Anchorage Daily News, I also contributed to NPR's Morning Edition for a couple of years, and still contribute occasionally to the Alaska Dispatch. I now write a monthly column for Woman's Day Magazine -- and I also continue to write the obituaries for the local weekly Chilkat Valley News. 

We own a retail lumberyard, Lutak Lumber, here in Haines, where I'm pretty much known as Chip's wife, and Eliza, Sarah, Christian, Joanna (JJ), and Stojanka's (Stoli) mom, although now I'm also Caroline and Lani's grandmother "Mimi," which is pretty great. (Lani is brand new, born March 1.) I also coached the cross country running team for 17 years and am an outdoorsy dog person, a library and hospice volunteer, and a regular at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Mission and the Morning Muscles excercise class, all of which influence my life my writing.

This is kind of  a long way of saying welcome to my web world, which includes news about my writing as well as my blog, where I chat about daily life in Haines and post a lot of pictures of my family, home, and this beautiful Southeast Alaska community where the mountains meet the sea. I also have a  facebook page if you want to see more pictures,  or stop in and say hi, and the blog is linked to it for easy access.

 In other news, I recently completed my MFA in creative writing at the University of Alaska Anchorage in fiction, and am revising my first novel. (It and my thesis essay on Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings won the UAA Jason Wenger Award for Literary Excellence.) I'll be presenting my essay at the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Society Conference in Ocala, Florida the weekend after Easter (April 13-14). Maybe I'll see you there?   

I do my best to answer your emails and letters, and know that they all make my day. If I missed answering one, try me again, I sometimes lose emails between devices (I am a bit of a Luddite.) It amazes me how many people read what I write, and how many friends I have whom I've never met-- how great is that? Thank you very, very much. 

 If you'd like a personalized copy of either of my books and can't make it to Haines, Tom and Liz Heywood at The Babbling Book store here are happy to mail you one. Just email them at babblingbook@aptalaska.net for the details. 

 Please shop for my books first at your local bookstore. Supporting independent stores and businesses in towns across the country is a very good thing.  (The books are both available at most libraries, too.)

Algonquin Books has just launched a new ebook division, so if you  have a Kindle or iPad or whatever, shop Algonquin  first (they have a lot of great titles. )

If you want to know more about the many talented Alaska writers and the literary arts that are thriving in Alaska, check out the 49 Writers.

Finally, I've posted Haines and  Chilkat Valley area links so you can learn more about the places and people I love and write about --or to plan your visit here.  If you do, look me up. I'm easy to find. 

Thanks very much, again, for stopping by, for reading my books and columns, and for sharing them with your friends.  I hope you'll check in with the blog often, as well. It is a work in progress, mostly informal and local, but folks seem to enjoy reading it, and I enjoy writing it.

Heather

March 12, 2012