Meet Our Newest Author: Lori Oliver-Tierney!
We were extraordinarily lucky to meet Lori in person at the Southern California Writers' Conference. The moment we heard her read from her memoir we knew it was gold. Not to mention, she's just the most lovable person. We tried to hold it inside, but we reeeeeaaaaallly wanted her to sign with us, and we are SOOO happy that she did!! Lori had many many options available to her, and at Acorn, we truly want what is best for every author out there. We're authors ourselves, so we know how hard it can be to commit one way or the other. That being said, we are thrilled to give Lori's book a home.
When Lori was 19 years old she started working summers as a waitress in Yosemite National Park and doing short backpacks on her days off. She was blown away by the beauty of the High Sierra and looked forward every week to the time she got to spend away from the tourists and breathe the clean mountain air. People often spoke of the beautiful John Muir Trail and it became a dream of hers to hike it. But then life got in the way.
Lori has always loved to read and that made her love to write. As a child she would stay up reading with a flashlight under her covers into the wee hours of the morning, promising herself, someday she’d travel to far off places and write about them.
In 2004 she kept that promise. At fifty years old, she gave herself the gift of hiking the John Muir Trail. It was a life-changing experience. TRUDGE: A mid-life crisis on the John Muir Trail is her memoir documenting that journey.
Lori's novel, TRUDGE, will be released through Acorn in 2018.
Lori Oliver-Tierney is every woman with a dream. She is fifty asthmatic, overweight, with arthritic knees. And like most married women with children, she’s lost herself.
When she decides to hike the John Muir Trail, considered by many to be the most challenging and beautiful part of the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail, she’s sure it will help her reconnect with the adventurous girl inside.
But by the end of the first day, Lori realizes she may have made a huge mistake.
Monstrous bleeding blisters oozing with pus line the backs of her heels. It soon becomes painfully apparent her hiking partner, Debra, can hardly stand her. She can’t breathe and is using her asthma inhaler with alarming frequency. Trudging along, Lori walks most of the trail alone, and eventually loses her way.
Lost on the trail Lori is forced to dig deep into her soul to find the strength to go on. But will inner strength be enough? Given her grim circumstances she chooses to believe her husband’s words: even ordinary people can do extraordinary things.
For more info on Lori's release, sign up for our Acorn Publishing newsletter!
