Any Shiny Thing - Life after 50

Midlife Fiction

Boomer Achieves Lifetime Dream

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After wishin’ and hopin’ and plannin’ and workin’ and prayin’…

After earning a self-created, home-cooked degree in How To Write A Novel (with a minor in How To Build a Platform)…

After writing and throwing away hundreds of pages that just weren’t quite good enough…

After years of answering my friends and family: “Almost!” and “Pretty soon!”

Two big things happened.

I discovered a passion for the topic of aging powerfully, and

On July 17, a date that would have been my mom and dad’s 63rd wedding anniversary,

I published my very first novel!

Dakota Blues is about:

  • midlife reinvention,
  • the quest to find meaning and empowerment in the second half of life,
  • the need to feel a connection with our ancestors,
  • dealing with the issues that hit without warning as we age,
  • whether we’re too old at a certain point to start something new,
  • whether it’s selfish and ungrateful to want more, and
  • finding the courage to change later in life.

Or, putting words into pictures, here’s what you’ll find in Dakota Blues (available now in paperback, and on Kindle in the second week of August, +/-):

I can’t tell you how much this means to me, to have reached this goal, and to have done it at fifty-eight. This is a time when many of us are rethinking our lives, and wondering whether to break through the age limitations placed on us by an earlier set of beliefs.

This is what we’re supposed to be doing, folks: chasing our dreams like there’s no tomorrow, excited as kids, refusing to lie down and let the culture of low expectations steamroll us. This is how to live in the second half. This is how to live, period. That’s what my character, Karen Grace, struggles with, and that’s what Dakota Blues is about.

I hope you buy a copy, and if you do, I hope you love it enough to add a rating to the Dakota Blues page on Amazon or Goodreads. Ratings mean everything in this online, digitized society, where there’s far too material to sort through without help.

Thanks for standing by me while I struggled. I hope I can do the same for you someday.

PS Today is the fourth anniversary of my father’s passing. I hope he can see what I’ve done. I miss him more than I can say.

Love,
Lynne

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Comments

  2. Hey Lynne,

    I know this is mostly a site for women…..not that I feel like a stranger in a strange land (my mother, sister, and wife are all women)…I am of the mind (at 60) that transitions are Jungian in their applicability to human beings regardless of gender…..Thank you for letting me a part of your journey.

    And most importantly….congratulation.

    Grace and Peace,
    H. Stephen

  3. i’m convinced my second half/next phase will be even better…i think i’m a little smarter, wiser, more confident. acturally i am contemplating my next career move and i’m 65, but hey i’m always mixing up my numbers maybe i’m really a 56 yr old hot babe! bought your book today, i know it is going to be inspirational…later girlfriend

    • Wow, Kate, thank you! I hope you love it. The second half really is better. I’m so happy. You know, when I’m not staring at the ceiling at 3am wondering if that’s a lymph node or what 😉

  4. hip hip hooray for you lynne, you deserve all the acolades that are coming your way. you are my inspiration. i’ll buy it, i’ll read it, i’ll write the review. your blog is in “perfect pitch” with our generation of woman. thanks so much.

    • Kate, you are just too kind! Thank you! And I do wonder why more women aren’t talking about this kind of stuff. We have the numbers. We could make the second half of life into the desired, default setting!

  5. Oh Lynne CONGRATULATIONS! I am so excited for you and can’t wait to read your book. What a beautiful way to honor your heartfelt memory of your father. I will definitely be writing a review and adding ratings, but bear with me while I attain a copy. I have been living like a recluse spending time with my folks & recording family stories in Northern Wisconsin at family cabin without internet. Super bravo!!!

  7. WOW Lynne! I am so proud and excited for you. When will you be going on tour? I am so looking forward to buying and reading DB and having it autographed by the author. A dream come true.

    KO

  8. OMG – WOW!!! Lynne – I’m so happy for you! Congratulations!! I just went to Amazon and added Dakota Blues to my cart. You must be on cloud nine right now. Go sis!

  9. It’s an OMG moment!!! Just opened Any Shiny Thing to the best news…
    The prize now will be in getting my own copy, reading the finished product and getting it autographed. Way to go Lynne!

    Pamela

    • Wondered where you’ve been, Ms. Hanks. Good to hear from you! BTW, my jade plant is very happy on the front porch. She reminds me of you every day. Hope you’re well.

  11. Oh, and I’m working on an Amazon review that I hope will help you sell a gazillion copies. I’m so happy for you to have realized your dream, Lynne.

  13. Joyce, you asked how much Dakota Blues is based in my life. I have to admit, much of it is: Mom is from North Dakota immigrant stock, and many of the stories of what our American forbears endured are based in Mom’s stories of her family. My own HR history plays a part, because my love and not-love for the profession comes through as well. Ultimately, though, I think the biggest autobiographical aspect about the book is that Karen’s questions are mine: are we ever too old to start over? Should we kick back and be grateful? Are we hurting ourselves by following the rules, and who should make those rules? How much should we sacrifice for others? How much of a role does / should family play in our lives? And of course, there’s the fact that I have always wanted to do a road trip in a Roadtrek 190!

  15. Congratulations and thank you for being so inspiring. I’m gonna buy it for sure! I wish you big time commercial success, but I also believe that the achievement of your lifetime goal is a huge success in itself.

  17. Wonderful, congratulations, and we knew you could do it. The journey and the challenges that you faced and overcame will always be your reminder of commitment and dedication. Dakota Blues is on my to buy and read list.

  18. Lynne, again, Congrats….and all the best of Luck!

    Everyone, you can also get this book through Barnes&Noble.Com, and they do encourage you to write a review for their books. I will be. There is also a link on this page, that I’ve given you below, to notify the “Publisher” if you want their e-reader, Nook, version. The Nook is B&N’s counterpart to Amazon’s Kindle.

    http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dakota-blues-lynne-spreen/1112170545?ean=9781475191332

    Also, Lynne, I’ll promote your book on B&N, and If at any time you’d like to be the featured author, and book, on our General Fiction Board discussion group, and would be willing to join us in that discussion, I’d be more than happy to try and make that happen.
    ♥
    Kathy

    • Kathy S, thanks for everything in your email. BTW, I’m working to get the ebook version out there; it’ll be on Nook and Kindle eventually. And I would love to be in the GFB discussion. I’ll ask you how to go about that when I see you next Thursday.

  20. Lynne, I can’t tell you how thrilled I am for you! I recall our parting words in the lobby in Cincy- as you grabbed your suitcase to catch your cab- having to do with your pitch for Dakota Blues. I met you in your “pregnancy” and when I held your book in my hands yesterday,I felt like I’d just witnessed the birth of something wonderful, your beautiful baby. Your Daddy is cheering you from above,along with Debbie’s Dad and my Dad who are now waiting for Debbie and I to deliver.:-) I’m so excited and proud for you and I know you’ve only just begun. You show how Boomers rock! Hugs and cheers, Sistah!

  22. Ah, Lynne, you know I can’t say Congrats loud or often enough!! I’m proud of your accomplishment, proud to know you. Yes, I definitely plan to get a copy of Dakota Blues and read it — I’ve been hearing about it for years now (ever since we all went to Cincy), and I’m thrilled to see you accomplish your dream. This is just one of many, my friend — keep ’em coming!! And yes, I suspect your dad is nudging my dad and saying, ‘My daughter beat yours to publication!’

  23. Congratulations, Lynn!! I’ve been following you on facebook and your blog and when I read this post, it brought tears to my eyes! Really!! It is SO my story, too! I’m also 58 years old…have always wanted to write a novel (my dream since I was a teenager) and right now I’m going through some major life changing “stuff.” It’s been a rough year. I can’t wait to read your book! I need to be inspired. Going to order it right now. Congrats, again! Hugs, Cindy

  26. I have known you a long time and always knew that you were a very special person… articulate, witty, compassionate, passionate, motivated and motivating and very smart. I loved being your friend, but I didn’t know for a long time that you were a writer. It doesn’t surprise me that you would achieve your dreams, but I am so tickled that I am here as a witness. I can hardly wait to read Dakota Blues. Huge Congrats, my friend.

    • Nanci, you knew me when I was The Suit! the Terminator! the Queen of BS! do you realize we go back almost 30 years? I love that! Thank you for all your kind words. I hope you find DB to be an enjoyable and inspiring read (I’ll let you know when the Kindle version comes out.) xoxo

  28. I’ll be buying your book today, Lynne. Can’t wait to read it. I’m sure your father is watching over you this very minute and shares in your triumphs!

  29. I admire your drive and resolve Lynne, and your follow through provides a model for the rest of us. I started the book last night and am getting to know Karen.

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