Live from the Road
by P.C. Zick
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
80,000 words
This title is available from Amazon US and Amazon UK.
Live from the Road takes the reader on an often humorous, yet harrowing, journey as Meg Newton and Sally Sutton seek a change in the mundane routine of their lives. “Is this all there is?” Sally asks Meg after visiting a dying friend in the hospital. That’s when Meg suggests they take a journey to discover the answer. Joined by their daughters, they set off on a journey of salvation enhanced by the glories of the Mother Road. Along the way, they are joined by a Chicago bluesman, a Pakistani liquor storeowner from Illinois, a Marine from Missouri, a gun-toting momma from Oklahoma, and a motel clerk from New Mexico. Meg, mourning for her dead son, learns to share her pain with her daughter CC. When Sally’s husband of almost thirty years leaves a voice mail telling her he’s leaving, both Sally and her daughter Ramona discover some truths about love and independence.
Death, divorce and deception help to reveal the inner journey taking place under the blazing desert sun as a Route 66 motel owner reads the Bhagavad-Gita and an eagle provides the sign they’ve all been seeking. Enlightenment comes tiptoeing in at dawn in a Tucumcari laundromat, while singing karaoke at a bar in Gallup, New Mexico, and during dinner at the Roadkill Café in Seligman, Arizona. The four women’s lives will never be the same after the road leads them to their hearts – the true destination for these road warriors.
P.C., how did you come up with the title for your book? Does it have any special meaning?
I originally titled it Road Warriors, but I vetted the title and received a lukewarm response. I always described the book as “Jack Kerouac meets Martha Stewart on acid” so a salute to On the Road seemed appropriate. The characters are dealing with life and death issues, hence Live from the Road seemed perfect.
Who was your favorite character and why?
There are four main characters. I love them all but perhaps the CC character is my favorite. She’s a composite of my own daughter and the daughter of a friend. Her daughter died in 2002 so I really liked putting her in there and giving her qualities of both young women.
Does your book have any underlying theme, message, or moral?
The book is all about communicating with others. There’s a whole lot of pain for all the characters, mostly because they keep things bottled up. There are plenty of eruptions on the road, and each character expands her capacity for understanding along the way.
What would/could a reader or reviewer say about your writing that shows they “get” you as an author?
Ms. Zick writes stories that entertain and inform at the same time. Through her writing, she offers insight into healing from the wounds inflicted by life’s major tragedies. That’s it – if they “get” my intention to entertain, inform, and heal through the magic of language.
Give us an excerpted quote from your favorite review of this book:
“Ms. Zick hit the nail on the head on so many of her observations, . . . some of the better items I wanted to read again.”
Where can people learn more about your writing?
http://www.pczick.wordpress.com
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