Letting the Story Fly.
Martha Tod Dudman Launches New Novel, curio, at Northeast Harbor Library.
NORTHEAST HARBOR—Martha Tod Dudman has been a lot of things so far in her life: select person, business owner, mother, fundraiser, friend, mentor, director of the Maine Humanities Council.
She is one of those people who when blessed with a keen intellect and broad vision can couple that with the generosity of grounded advice. That Martha Tod Dudman wisdom infuses itself into her books: Dawn (Puckerbrush Press, 1989); Augusta, Gone (Simon & Schuster, 2001); Expecting to Fly (Simon & Schuster, 2004); Black Olives (Simon & Schuster, 2008); and Sunrise & the Real World (Islandport Press, November 2023). Augusta, Gone was adapted as an award-winning Lifetime production.
Now, there’s another book that brings Martha Tod Dudman wisdom out into the world. On Tuesday, July 22, at 5:30 p.m. the Northeast Harbor Library will host a public book launch event for Tod Dudman’s latest novel, curio.
It’s dedicated to her sister, Iris, but the book begins with Abby, a girl who does not have a guidebook for her journey. It’s an apt metaphor for all of the women, sisters, and humans that share space not just in Tod Dudman’s pages, but in the world as we search our way toward connection and magic and goodness.
Back in 1976, Martha Tod Dudman had been living on Islesford for approximately a year when a piece she wrote “Reflections of a Young Romantic” was published in the New York Times.
“When I was a kid,” the piece begins, “I read Emily Bronte and I believed every word.”
But, the essay continues, “While other children gobbled Cheerios and watched the Mickey Mouse Club, I was fed on sterner stuff: oatmeal and Edgar Allan Poe. My parents didn’t approve of television, so we didn’t have one, except on special occasions. We rented a set during elections and assassinations.”
As the essay ends, Martha Tod Dudman talks of giving children “timeless myths,” stories that will have them hiding in closets under the stairs, under the covers with flashlights, anywhere and everywhere to read and then maybe to make stories of their own.
Martha Tod Dudman has done that, created timeless myths entwined with truths, but not just for children, but for adults, too.
The Northeast Harbor resident will celebrate her newest book at the Northeast Harbor Library next week with a reading and discussion. There will also be some light refreshments. Books will be available for purchase and she will sign them there as well. You can register at nehlibrary.org/events or by calling 207-276-3333.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH MARTHA TOD DUDMAN
We were lucky enough to have Martha answer some of our questions. Our questions are bolded. Martha’s answers are not.
Back in 2023, Islandport Press asked if you have a different routine for writing fiction and nonfiction. You seemed not to. Has that changed?
My writing habits are pretty ingrained: first thing in the morning, phone off, go to the desk, work for a while, take a walk, then back to the desk until I’m done for the day.
What inspired you to write curio?
This book surprised me – it just sprang out of me. And, because I had no idea where it was going, curio was really fun to write.
Curio is billed as a ‘modern fairytale.’ Can you tell us a little bit more about that and how it happened and the need (or not) for modern fairytales in our lives?
As a child, I read a lot of fairy tales: a lot myths and legends and folk tales. I loved the archetypes: the beautiful maiden, the terrible monster, the dark and mysterious forest; and I loved the easy assumption that magic was real, because I thought so, too.
We all need stories, both to escape our lives and make sense of them. Fiction allows us to see ourselves, our dreams, and our disappointments in a broader context: the realm of human experience that’s common to all of us.
You’ve had a lot of interesting life experiences, met some amazing humans, and done a lot of things. You’ve run a company, raised two humans, raised so much money for nonprofits. Right now, you’re on the Mount Desert Select Board. That’s not something a lot of authors do. Do all these people and experiences inform your story or are your stories an escape from all these people and experiences? Or both? There is always both.
Yes! Both! Like any writer, I am always soaking up incidents, impressions, snatches of conversation. You never know when they’re going to come in handy. Also, I like to work, and when I was a single mother raising those two human beings, I had to earn a living!
Like a lot of writers, you gave up writing for a bit and then came back to it. What made you give up? What made you come back?
I went through a bad patch, got discouraged with writing, and tried to give it up altogether. But you can’t escape who you are, and even in those years when I wasn’t publishing, I was always writing.
Covid gave me time and solitude to concentrate on my work. Also, I’m old. At some point, you realize you can’t put things off; you’re on a deadline, and if there’s something you want to do – or say – you better get to it!
In your books, there tends to be this core of truth, of realness, of authenticity in emotions and actions even when it’s a modern fairytale. That probably sounds like a silly way to say that, but there’s just this great unflinching eye toward humans and their actions that’s coupled with a beautiful acceptance for who they are. Is that something that you do intentionally? Is it a conscious part of your authorial voice or is it just who you are? Or maybe just who you are on the page?
Unflinching! I love that! It’s sort of my motto – both in life and on the page. In my memoirs and fiction, I’ve always tried to be honest, even if makes me, or my characters, look bad.
I believe that if one person is willing to stand up and admit the absolute, unvarnished truth, it frees the whole room.
You have an upcoming reading on Tuesday, June 22, which is exciting! What can attendees expect? Are readings nerve wracking for you or lovely? A combination? I always would get stage fright when I had one.
Nerve wracking and exhilarating in equal parts. It’s exciting to introduce my new novel, Curio. I have this image of holding my book like a little bird in my hands and letting it fly out into the world.
ABOUT CURIO
“…but there was something else in the way he regarded me that I didn’t think about until later.”
A girl in a foreign country. A dangerous man. A journey across a stark and alien landscape. Three beautiful sisters with red hair from Dreamwood, Ohio. A magical rose-colored villa, where the girl discovers that everything she once believed was a mirage.
Dudman’s new novel, curio, which she describes as a “modern fairy tale” will be launched at a book party Tuesday, July 22 at 5:30 p.m. at the Northeast Harbor Library. The public is encouraged to attend.
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
Martha Tod Dudman’s website
Northeast Harbor Public Library’s site to register for the event.
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