Sisters: A Short Story By Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Julie’s short story, Sisters, is now available.
To view Sisters by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on this link:
Sisters by Julie Showalter - View
To download a PDF version of Sisters by Julie Showalter, right-click on this link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
Sisters - Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie Showalter was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Julie’s Journal: September 1997
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Julie’s Journal
I spent much of this morning reading one of the documents I discovered among Julie’s computer files long after her death. I know it is a journal but only because the name of the document is “Journal.”2 There are only a handful of entries, less than twenty in all. None of the items are more than four or five paragraphs and most could be easily contained in one screen of this blog’s column.
They appear to be written with an eye toward using them in her writing, and, indeed, I recognize some of the scenes from having read their finished versions in her short stories.
Some parts of the journal describe episodes that took place contemporaneously with or within a few days of Julie’s recording them, others occurred many years previously, and some appear to be ideas for stories rather than accounts of actual events.
The September 1997 Entry
One of the entries, concerning a part of our lives relevant to the time it was written (September 1997), is particularly poignant, presaging the difficulties our older son (AKA The Prodigal, AKA Sam) has experienced during the last three years, beginning fully four years after his mother died and seven years after she wrote these words.
As one might imagine, the Journal notes, including this one, are scribbles (if one can scribble with a keyboard) that contain misspellings, punctuation errors, complete sentences, and other violations of grammatical niceties. I’ve reprinted her words exactly as I found them, preserving the errors Julie would inevitably have corrected. I have added both at the top of this post and at the top of the page containing her text, a photo of the painting, Campesinos Atitlán by Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay, that hangs on our bedroom wall and is mentioned in this Journal entry. (Click on thumbnail for view of larger image.)
In any case, the few lines are easy to follow, and, especially for those who know our family, convey an unexpectedly deep-felt emotional impact.
This entry from Julie’s Journal can be found at Julie’s Journal Entry 9/97
Footnotes
- Julie was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
- Julie also had a few handwritten journals with comparable content ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Purple: A Short Story By Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Julie’s short story, Purple, is now available.
To view Purple by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on this link:
Purple by Julie Showalter - View
To download a PDF version of Purple by Julie Showalter, right-click on this link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
Purple - Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie Showalter was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
The Cuckoo: A Short Story By Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Julie’s short story, The Cuckoo, is now available.
To view The Cuckoo by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on this link:
The Cuckoo By Julie Showalter - View
To download a PDF version of The Cuckoo by Julie Showalter, right-click on this link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
The Cuckoo - Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie Showalter was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness: A Short Story By Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
In yesterday’s search for Julie’s thoughts about climbing Mount Kuchumaa , I found one of her short stories, Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness, that I had not previously read.
Consequently, if you are the cynical sort who find the sexual shenanigans that erupt in academia between faculty and students2 more often an occasion for snickers than a cause for pity (and I am), you have a treat awaiting this Sunday morning.
To view Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on this link:
Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness By Julie Showalter - View
To download a PDF version of Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness by Julie Showalter, right-click on this link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness - Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie Showalter was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
- Some readers familiar with Julie’s history may think that there are certain parallels between this story and a relationship in Julie’s life. I must inform you, however, that I am confident that such suppositions are absolutely accurate. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Julie and The Mountain
Mount Kuchumaa
Julie1 Does Rancho La Puerta
Last night, talking with friends on their return from a week at a spa reminded me that Julie had once written something about a specific experience at Rancho La Puerta, a spa located near Tecate, Mexico2 an hour south of San Diego that opened in 1940. After some digging, I found this brief note she had written, I believe, in response to a request from the Ranch3 for accounts of memorable experiences guests had there.
The mountain Julie mentions is Mount Kuchumaa.4 Every morning, just at sunrise, we, along with many of the other guests and two staff members, would spend an hour hiking up the mountain and back. The top photo is the full view of Mount Kuchumaa, which overlooks Rancho La Puerta. I included the photo at the bottom for a sense of the climb and descent.
In March 1991 I was diagnosed with metastatic bone cancer.5 I couldn’t walk without aid. My treatment included chemotherapy, radiation, and visualization. Twice a day, I spent an hour climbing your mountain, climbing toward the sun, toward health and wellness and the new day. Some days everyone I loved waited at the top of the mountain. Others, I reached it alone and sat with the sun in my face.
Six years later, I am alive, I am well. I can climb that mountain again, not just in my mind, but with my body.
Footnotes
- Julie Showalter was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife and prize-winning writer, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. There are many other posts about her and her writing in this blog. For information, see Julie Showalter FAQ ~back~
- It somehow seems fitting that the town nearest the spa is also the home of Tecate Beer ~back~
- We aficionados referred to Rancho La Puerta as “The Ranch.” Yes, I was so besotted with Julie that I spent not one but two weeks at a Mexican spa with her. ~back~
- It is in keeping with the character of the place that the spa’s literature typically refers to Mount Kuchumaa as “Mystic Mount Kuchumaa.” ~back~
- To clarify, Julie’s breast cancer had been diagnosed years earlier. The first evidence of bone metastases was found in 1991. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Evil: A Piece By Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Evil, is the newest piece available in this series of Julie’s unpublished writings.
To view Evil by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on the first link below:
Evil — View
To download a PDF version of Evil by Julie Showalter, right-click on the next link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
Evil — Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~
Possibly Related Posts:
Becky: A Short Story by Julie Showalter
Julie Showalter: Unpublished Writings1
Becky is the second in this short series of Julie’s unpublished pieces now available.
To view Becky by Julie Showalter in manuscript form, click on the first link below:
Becky — View
To download a PDF version of Becky by Julie Showalter, right-click on the next link, and choose “Save Link As … ” or “Save Target As …” from the context menu:
Becky– Download PDF
Footnotes
- Julie was my much-beloved, fiercely smart, extraordinarily sexy wife, who died in 1999 from cancer diagnosed the week of our wedding nearly 20 years earlier. She was also a prize-winning writer. This blog includes many other posts about her and the unlikely but true story of our romance (See Julie FAQ) as well as several of her short stories and other pieces. Most of Julie’s fully edited and buffed literary efforts are already available under the heading, Julie’s Writings, in “Categories.” Unpublished Julie is a group of pieces I’ve found on her computer or in her office that range from workshop exercises to story fragments to projects set aside to finish at a later day to work that appears, at least to me, to be fully as polished and effective as her published stories. ~back~