They were the darling hits of the “Pins & Needles” book launch

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The clouds opened, and the day started with bright sunshine, illuminating golden oak and red and orange maple.   When we entered the Friendship Hall of the United Methodist Church in Clearwater, Minnesota, the kitchen workers were already there, mixing up chicken salad and cheese and bagel dips.   My sister, friend, and I put final touches on the tables we had decorated the day before.  This included hats, hats, hats.  Soon part of our family arrived, and the granddaughters started to practice their modeling opportunities.  My daughter-in-law and sister took some pretty awesome pictures of the afternoon.  The program went well, the granddaughters, and Grandpa, seemed to get into the act. I saw friends I hadn’t seen for quite awhile.  Food, friends, family, and fellowship–what more could I ever ask for?  Oh, yes, I signed many books, hugged, laughed, and loved.

And the “short style show”–

https://www.facebook.com/toristupnik/videos/10156673513944437/

Pins & Needles, A Novel of Minnesota’s Main Street Women, will be available on Amazon.com soon.  Otherwise, you can buy from me for $25.00 plus tax and s/h.  You can purchase any of my books from me at http://www.cynthiafrankstupnik.com/book.

Send me a note and I’ll come and talk to your book clubs or other events and talk about my writing novels of Main Street Women, those strong women with vision who helped shape our country.

my personal email is cstupnik@outlook.com …

Cindy

No hurricanes, no snow, just food, feathers, fur, flowers, and fun

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Pins & Needles will be available for sale in three days at its book launch in the historic part of Clearwater, Minnesota, downtown at the United Methodist Church on Main Street. (Thank you, Clearwater History Club for the lovely link you started.)

This is the tentative schedule…

 

From 12:30 or so until 1ish–music by son #1 and his wonderful guitar, food, and conversation

1:00–Introductions by son #2 and my blather for a few minutes, some hardy conversation about Maude Porter and Clearwater, a short style show, contest for prizes, and the cutting of the cake!

2:00’ish –book signing

3:00’ish walking-talking tour of my books described in historic Clearwater

Want a better chance on winning a prize at the book launch of Pins & Needles?  A Google search for the United States and world period of 1909-1910 might help. Also, check out one of my blogs  on my webpage, 

  1. What were some of the issues of the day and the future?
  2. What does WCTU stand for?What does the Edwardian period in clothing trends stand for?
  3. What does this mean for women’s styles?
  4. And most of all, what were the latest inventions or trends to hit the world and Clearwater?
  5. Which amendments were ratified before or around 1920 that changed the country?  (A hint:  one was reversed in the 1930’s.)    ……………………………………………………………
  6. For those from the Clearwater area and/or have read my history, memoir, and Scruples & Drams, name some of the founders of Clearwater.
  7. The protagonist of Pins & Needles, Maude Porter,  was the child of a husband and wife team of founders.  Name one thing for which each person was known around the village.  There are a number of them ….
  8. One founder was a brother to a famous Minneapolis founder.

I hope to see you there for this fun and frolicking day to celebrate the Pins & Needles launch into the world.

Fur, feather, flowers, fun, and other falderal

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BOOKS arrived–what a joy to hold in my hand the symbol of all my hard work–researching, writing, editing, editing, more editing, and many, manty rewrites.  Thank you to all my friends and relatives for your input.

I’ve had a few calls and questions about what to wear.  Feel free to wear hats and costume that represent the 1909-10, Edwardian era.  Hats are shoulder width, but here is a link to see other styles

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=edwardian+hats+and+costumes&qpvt=edwardian+hats+and+costumes&FORM=IGRE

Remember! Costumes and hats are optional.  Feel free if you want to represent the era.  Maude Porter,  the novel’s protagonist, and Clearwater’s leading citizen would be overjoyed that we were honoring her. We will have a short style show.

Check list:

  1. Hats are nearly finished and hanging around the house. Here is another sample. Granddaughters are coming to create theirs this weekend–with Grandma’s help.
  2. Invitations and posters sent and placed.  (Feel free to give me some clues to place or send a few more).
  3. Food and cake ordered.
  4. Sister Becky has prepared a story line of pictures–they are adorable.Doesn’t this entice you to want to read the latest novel in the Minnesota Main Street Women series?
  5. “” and others have items of historic ephemera for display.
  6. A few more Sundries to make–special requests?? I have Jennie’s rose cream, bath salts, facial scrub, and body cream to blend up yet–
  7. Cleaning up MY messes next week so company has a clean place to sit around the house–also trying to organize so I can take a couple loads down to the church Friday, the 12th.
  8. Gifts bags for door prizes are getting pulled together…surprise, surprise, surprise. 
  9. Son Todd is practicing songs for the 12:30 time for meet, greet, eat.  We hope to start on time at 1.  I hope to cut the cake at 2:00 so stay for a slice!

What am I forgetting?

See you next week.

 

Cindy

 

Sneak preview

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I am preparing for my upcoming the book launch of Pins & Needles, A Novel of Minnesota’s Main Street Women.  Since Maude Porter, the protagonist, is a milliner, I am taking up my own pins and needles, along with glue, feathers, ribbons, and flowers to design a few hats that she might have created.  Mind you, I am NOT a sewer so my glue gun and other types of heavy glue are my friends.  I am not that creative with paint brushes, colors, or scissors so these are being used very sparingly.

I think I am pretty good with computers and typing.  SO I am pleased to invite you to save the date for my upcoming event:

 

 

Can’t wait to see all of you.

Cindy Stupnik

AND FINALLY, YOUR INVITATION

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It took a while, but I am so proud of my new book, Pins & Needles.  Here is the information from the back cover:

Maude Porter’s narrative takes place in the Mississippi River town of Clearwater, Minnesota. Daughter of village founders Tom Porter and Abigail Camp Porter, she owns a millinery store upstairs of Boutwell’s Hardware Store. From here, she can keep her eye on the comings and goings of the village. What she sees causes quite a commotion, but what she hears over her newly installed telephone could spell trouble. In this sequel to Scruples & Drams, readers see what life is like in the late 1800 and early 1900’s for the “new women” who were educated, strong-minded, and holding down careers. Women like Maude have concerns about the health and well-being of many women who are overworked, under-educated about their bodies, and become pregnant way too often. While Maude understands that suffrage and equal rights are important, she also sees how the consumption of alcohol ruins families and communities and causes some men to be brutal. At first Maude believes education is the key to ridding the town of the many drunks and their brawls outside Quinn’s Saloon. Ultimately, though, she and others, men and women, come to realize that prohibition is the only answer to setting their world in order.  For Clearwater, the answer is clear: shut down Pat Quinn’s Saloon.

One of my reviewers, Dr. Sally Roesch Wagner,  stated this:  “In this historic novel set in 1909 Maude Porter and Jennie Phillips balance their careers with fighting for women’s basic rights – some openly, others behind the scenes. These old friends, who we met in Cindy Stupnik’s earlier Scruples & Drams, continue to face fearsome adversaries with growing courage and conviction. Along the way, we meet the historic characters who populate the village of Clearwater, Minnesota and get a flavor of early white settlement and its challenges. Stupnik has a gift for drawing us into the time and place, and this book hits the mark.”

Sally Roesch Wagner, Ph.D.
Executive Director, The Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation, Inc.
Adjunct Faculty, The University Honors Program, Syracuse University
Adjunct Faculty, St. John Fisher Executive Leadership Program
Public Scholar, Humanities New York

So come one, come all, to my book launch –Oct. 13, 2018, at the Clearwater United Methodist Church, Clearwater, Minnesota. Starting at 12:30, we will have music, lite snacks, cake, coffee, book signing, and around 3, a walking tour of the locations I write about in my books.

Cindy Stupnik

Shuffling off to Buffalo, an important review, and other important information

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Do you know this song?

“You’ll go home and get your purses,
I’ll go get my niece and nurses,
And away we’ll go.
Mm mm mm…
Off we’re gonna shuffle,
Shuffle off to Buffalo.”

Tomorrow, I head to Buffalo, MN for the annual arts & crafts show. I’ll have my books and announcement of my upcoming book, Pins & Needles. One reviewer, Sally Roesch Wagner, Ph.D.  http://www.matildajoslyngage.org/
Executive Director, The Matilda Joslyn Gage Foundation, Inc.
Adjunct Faculty, The University Honors Program, Syracuse University
Adjunct Faculty, St. John Fisher Executive Leadership Program
Public Scholar, Humanities New York,
wrote this about my sequel to Scruples & Drams:

In this historic novel set in 1909 Maude Porter and Jennie Phillips balance their careers with fighting for women’s basic rights – some openly, others behind the scenes. These old friends, who we met in Cindy Stupnik’s earlier Scruples & Drams, continue to face fearsome adversaries with growing courage and conviction. Along the way, we meet the historic characters who populate the village of Clearwater, Minnesota and get a flavor of early white settlement and its challenges. Stupnik has a gift for drawing us into the time and place, and this book hits the mark.

In addition, if you pre-order Pins & Needles, you will receive a 30% discount when I launch the book in October.

See you tomorrow,
Cindy

http://www.cynthiafrankstupnik.com/books/

Sneak preview of “Pins and Needles” another novel in the Minnesota Main Street Women’s series

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This week, Pins & Needles was wrapped up and sent to the printer.  I am so happy with the cover and the story.  I have had excellent editors along the way.  I hope you enjoy it as well.  It is the second in my Minnesota Main Street Women series.  My next book will be the prequel.  Once you have read Maude Porter’s story in the new novel, you’ll know who the protagonist is in the next story.

For the next couple weeks, I am offering my author’s discount for anyone wanting to place a pre-order with me.  From 28.99 down to $20 and 1/2 price  shipping (for a total of $22)  unless you come to the book launch in mid-October in Clearwater, Minnesota, at the Clearwater United Methodist Church when and where shipping is free.  AND this is where I’d love to see you to help launch this new book, have some fun, and eat cake.   Unfortunately, I can’t give a positive launch date, but the book is at the publisher/printer.

I heard that there is rain and humidity in the forecast for this weekend’s big events in Clearwater. Clearwater Heritage Days and Clearwater Rendezvous down at the Clearwater Dam, right off Highway 75.   Get out of the heat/damp weather for a while and come see and hear me at Clearwater’s Great River Regional

Library on Saturday at 11 until 12. Before and after this, I’ll be at the dam Saturday and Sunday. I’d love to see you.  I will be bringing most of my books— to sell and sign.  We will have some of our “SUNDRIES” to sell as well–soaps, bathroom sprays, lotions, face creams.

 

 

 

Cindy

 

 

 

Upcoming Events and Updates for Clearwater, Minnesota, author books and events.

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Pins & Needles is in the hands of the publisher after many editing projects.  I am thankful to friends, relatives, and my editor from Heritage Books for doing such a good job.  Writers are mostly the worst editors ever. Publisher/editor is working on the cover.  We should know soon when the launch date is!!!  We are still thinking Oct 13, 2018, at the historic Clearwater United Methodist Church on Main Street, Clearwater.  Maude’s home sat kitty-corner of the church.   Thank you, Clearwater History Group for doing such a wonderful job on your new webpage!!!

Hopefully, we will have a cover design to share asap.

The article, “Mary MacNicholl: A Woman With Vision,” is out being edited and approved by contributors.  So far good comments.  I am happy.  I am proud to have had such an excellent role model during my teen years.  She was that, as well, to so many others.  Her power of influence lives on.  She broke through the ceiling for others as the first woman to be ordained Methodist in Minnesota.

I am excited to tell you about a number of event dates coming up.

August 4-5: 1st I’ll be attending Clearwater’s Heritage Days and Rendezvous, in Clearwater, Minnesota.  I’ll be there from 9:30 a.m. (or so) until 3 or 4 p.m. on Saturday, and on Sunday 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

You’ll find me at the Clearwater Dam where the village history began .

I’ll be up at the Great River Regional Library–Clearwater--at 11 a.m. on Saturday

Clearwater Author Cynthia Frank-Stupnik

Presentation Branch: Clearwater
Date: Sat Aug 4, 2018
Age groups: All Ages
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

A special visit for Heritage Days in Clearwater will be author Cynthia Frank-Stupnik. Her latest book, “Around Clearwater” among other books will be discussed. Join us and learn more about the history of our river town.

740 Clearwater Center
Box 335
Clearwater, MN 55320
320-558-6001
August 18:  9 am – 3:30 pm  Buffalo, Minnesota,  Arts & Crafts, downtown:  SELLING all and any of my books.
For more than 30 years, every August, the streets of downtown Buffalo are filled with Artisans as Buffalo hosts their annual Art Fair. You will find over 150 vendors showing their wares and sharing their talents.
Sept 4: Robbinsdale Book Club at 1:00 at the City Hall–Discussing Jennie Phillips and Scruples & Drams.  Previewing  Maude Porter and Pins & Needles
Sept 6:  Koronis Ministries at 5 p.m. in Paynesville, Minnesota.  Bringing award-winning story of Reverend Mary MacNIcholl, first woman to be fully-ordained in Minnesota Methodism,  to life.
Oct. 13:  Pins & Needles book launch.  Clearwater United Methodist Church, Main Street, Clearwater, Minnesota
Date is tentative; Cover is tentative; Cindy is waiting!!!!  Join the gang:Come to the book launch!  MORE TO COME SOON!  I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE ALL OF YOU!
Cindy

PRESS RELEASE

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http://www.gcah.org/resources/gcah-distributes-12000-in-grants-awards-and-scholarships

Very nice press release put out by General Commission on Archives and History for the United Methodist Church ….

Cynthia Stupnik stated, “I am grateful for the Women in United Methodist History Research Grant that will help me bring to fruition my research and writing project on Reverend Mary MacNicholl. The first woman to receive full-clergy rights in the Minnesota Methodist Conference in 1958, MacNicholl’s vision of becoming a Methodist minister came to her when she was in kindergarten.  Throughout her life, she followed a narrow path to reach that goal. Mary MacNicholl’s spiritual journey took bends and turns.  She faced daunting challenges, especially when she had to defend herself from male bias. By understanding how she forged a path for mothers to follow, one can truly understand God’s place for women in His church. Mary MacNicholl died in 1979 from a rare form of blood disease.  If she were alive today, she would be proud of the many women who have fought the good fight not to be identified as a ‘woman minister’ but simply to be identified as a minister, a reverend, or a pastor.”