The 4th annual "Write by the River" Writer's Retreat sponsored by Mill Park Publishing will be Saturday, September 29, 2012 in Garden Valley.  The focus will be on publishing: getting published, self-publishing, and how to produce a book that people (in addition to your mother) will want to read.

Stay tuned for details...

Idaho authors Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner share their talents for storytelling in a sassy new book about 16 famous dead women writers.

Most early female writers used pen names because women weren’t regarded as competent writers. Margaret Mitchell wrote only one published novel in her lifetime, but *Gone with the Wind *won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937 and sold more than 30 million copies. Emily Dickinson was so paranoid that she only spoke to people from behind a door. Carson McCullers wrote The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter at age 22. Her husband wanted them to commit suicide in the French countryside, but she refused. Ambrose and Turner explore these and other intriguing facts about the most famous women in literary history.

“I was completely enthralled by DRINKING WITH DEAD WOMEN WRITERS, as Elaine Ambrose and AK Turner took turns in a fantastical romp through literature and drink, tossing back cocktails with some of the greatest female voices in literary history, cracking wise, prodding for answers to insightful questions, allowing us to know these writers and their minds in essays both hilarious and thoughtful. A rare mix of cleverness and intellect, and a total blast to read.”

-Alan Heathcock, award winning author of VOLT

Ambrose is the author of Menopause Sucks and an author of five other books. Her short stories and feature articles appear in several anthologies and magazines. Turner is the creator of “The Writers’ Block” on Radio Boise. She writes a humor column for the Boise City Revue and served as a Writer-in-Residence.

Drinking with Dead Women Writers is available from Mill Park Publishing, local book sellers and Amazon.com in paperback or ebook format.

Cowboy Poet Ernie Sites brought his energy, humor, and talent to Boise over the weekend,
and Mill Park Publishing sponsored his workshop titled “Writing the Songs of the West.” Participants were entertained and enlightened as he discussed the various ways to write and recite
poetry. He added some lively guitar playing to demonstrate how he turns his stories into songs.

For one exercise, he showed the group various western paintings: agitated horses in a corral, a medicine woman, a Conestoga wagon crossing a river.  Then he allowed 15 minutes for the attendees to write a poem. We all were amazed as each one stood to recite her or his poetry. Clearly, the assignment sparked some creative writing within the group.

Ernie instructed us to use free verse or rhyme, and I chose to write a poem about the
river crossing. I wrote in iambic tetrameter, a style I have used since my high
schools days (which happened about the same time as the wagon trains coming
west on the Oregon Trail.) Here’s my poem:

Crossing Over

The raging river shoved the wagon.

Pa yelled at us to hang on tight

but Samuel fell into the water.

He screamed and then slipped out of sight.

My mama held the baby close

and glared at Pa to save their child

but he was struggling with the horses

to get across the river wild.

We reached the bank, he jumped back in

but all he found was Samuel’s shirt.

My mama didn’t smile for years

‘cause life was hard, and she was hurt.

Mill Park Publishing of Eagle recently donated $3,000 to organizations that promote
writing, music, and job placement for disadvantaged women. The donations resulted from proceeds earned from the sales of three books published in 2011.

Mill Park Publishing, owned by author Elaine Ambrose, focuses on books written by
and for women. The Backyard Chicken Fight by Gretchen Anderson is in the second printing, and Mother Knows Best compiled by Patti Murphy is fifty percent sold. Little White Dress edited by Liza Long features 25 women authors and was written and produced in six weeks. That book is almost sold out.

“Mill Park Publishing provides opportunities for women to write their stories,” said
Ambrose. “Our books offer authentic, captivating, often humorous writing in a quality product. We’re excited to give back to the community through the proceeds.”

Dress for Success Treasure Valley received $1,000. The organization provides job placement services, career counseling, and professional attire for women looking for work.  The Idaho Writers Guild received $1,000 as seed money to create a writers conference in Boise in May.  Ambrose is a member of the group’s advisory board and is assisting with logistics for the conference. The third recipient is the University of Idaho School of Music. Ambrose is on the advisory board for the University’s College of Letters, Arts, and Social Sciences. As a student, she sang with the Vandaleer Concert Choir and the Jazz Choir.

Mill Park Publishing intends to publish more books in 2012 and donate the proceeds
to organizations that promote the arts and support disadvantaged women and children. Find more details on the web site, www.MillParkPublishing.com

Mill Park Publishing presents

A Workshop with Cowboy Poet Ernie Sites

“Writing the Songs of the West”

Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012

The Cabin – 801 S. Capitol, Boise, Idaho

9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

$50

Includes writing workshop, time for readings from participants, lunch, materials, and foot-stomping musical performance.

Ernie Sites recently completed a residency in the schools in New York and is coming through Boise on his way to another national Cowboy Poet Festival. Ernie combines traditional and original western singing, songwriting, storytelling and cowboy poetry with his own brand of country humor to enlighten, educate and motivate audiences of all ages. Ernie is a hit at corporate functions, guest ranches, schools, Cowboy Poet gatherings, and festivals throughout the country. Don’t miss this opportunity to lasso your inner cowboy (or cowgirl) poet! Ernie’s books and CDs will be available for purchase.

Registration Form

“Writing the Songs of the West”

Featuring Cowboy Poet Ernie Sites

Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012

The Cabin – 801 S. Capitol, Boise, Idaho

9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.



Name________________________________________________________

 Address______________________________________________________

City ____________________________State___________Zip Code______

 Email________________________________________________________

Vegetarian meal?  Please select one:  _____Yes     _____No

Registration includes writing workshop, time for readings from participants, lunch, materials, and foot-stomping musical performances. 

Please print, complete and mail with $50 check payable to Mill Park Publishing. No refunds after February 6, 2012. Gift certificates are available.

Mill Park Publishing

PO Box 1931

Eagle, ID 83616

For more details, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Workshop for Amanda Turner,

Idaho Writer-in-Residence



Grassroots Celebrity: Making a Name for Yourself from Scratch

Guest Speaker: Elaine Ambrose,
Author, Owner, Mill Park Publishing

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

1. 1. Platform is Key
   1. a.If you have to ask “What’s a platform?” please go research and then come back.
   2. b.Wrong platform: I write for everyone! This week,I’ll try children’s books!
   3. c.Right platform: Readers like my books for middle-age women. Bingo.
   4. d.List the genre that most captivates your reading and writing:

1. 2. How to Build on Your Platform
   1. a.Write regularly.
   2. b.Join writing groups and associations. Volunteer for their activities. Blog and update.
   3. c. Establish a Facebook page, a logo, and a web site. Twitter is optional. Don’t waste time.
   4. d. Continue your education about computers, cell phones, classes, the latest resources.
   5. e.Understand print options: e-book, self-publish, promotional materials, wine labels.
   6. f. Attend writing events, conferences, workshops,social functions. Hang out with writers.
   7. g. Listen to and get on Amanda Turner’s radio show. Try on-line writing activities.
   8. h. Become media savvy: News Releases, promotional events, keynote speeches, signings.
   9. i. Prepare to invest in yourself: time, money, book proposal marketing, book trailers.
   10. j. Yes, you need an editor. Yes, you need an editor. Repeat.
   11. k. List how many of the above you have done – and will do:

1. 3. Write your 50-word bio for introductions and author identity:

 

Elaine Ambrose left the family potato farm in southern Idaho to travel the world, write and publish books, and encourage lively reading and writing. She is an author of six books, and her national bestseller is Menopause Sucks. Her author web site is www.elaineambrose.com  and her business web site is www.MillParkPublishing.com.

1. 4.Believe that you are (or will become) a recognizable and dynamic personality.
   1. a.List why not:
   2. b.List why:
   3. c.List how:
   4. d.Go home, write, and practice Googling yourself….

A simple message on Facebook about observing used wedding dresses at thrift shops captured the attention and creative skills of 25 women who spontaneously gathered in one day to write their stories about "The Dress." Six weeks later, Mill Park Publishing had compiled the stories into a book.

Award-winning author Alan Heathcock wrote this review for the back cover: “If I learned something about women from this awesome little book, it’s that each has her own dress, her own story; some of hopes fulfilled, some tragic, some funny, all compelling. Little White Dress holds the truths of humanity stitched into every poem and story. It sometimes made me laugh, sometimes made me somber, but always made me consider how the value of the dress has little to do with the fabric.”

The book is available for $10.00 (plus Idaho sales tax) from Mill Park Publishing, Amazon.com, and some Boise stores.

A simple message on Facebook captured the attention and creative skills of 25 women who spontaneously gathered on August 8th to write their stories about “The Dress.” Mill Park Publishing of Eagle compiled the stories into a book titled Little White Dress – Women Explore the Myth and Meaning of Wedding Dresses. The published book took six weeks to produce and premieres at a festive party and reading with the authors on Thursday, October 20, 20ll at Hillcrest Country Club in Boise from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. The public is invited to attend, and proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to Dress for Success Boise Valley®.

            “My friend Liza Long wrote a brief but poignant message on Facebook about observing used wedding dresses in thrift shops,” said Elaine Ambrose, owner of Mill Park Publishing. “The message prompted immediate responses from women who wanted to share their own thoughts about their dresses. The result, six weeks later, is a book full of tender, funny, heart-breaking, and irreverent stories.”

            Long, a college professor and single mother of four, designed the cover, edited the stories, and wrote the Foreword to the book. She noted that the little white dress is a symbol of self, and that if a man really wanted to know a woman, he should try to understand her relationship to her wedding dress. Award-winning author Alan Heathcock agreed and wrote this review for the back cover:

            “If I learned something about women from this awesome little book, it’s that each has her own dress, her own story; some of hopes fulfilled, some tragic, some funny, all compelling. Little White Dress holds the truths of humanity stitched into every poem and story. It sometimes made me laugh, sometimes made me somber, but always made me consider how the value of the dress has little to do with the fabric.”

            The book’s 25 contributors include physicians, photographers, television producers, best-selling authors, filmmakers, professors, stay-at-home moms. They are never-married women, happily married women, divorced women, conservatives, liberals, and a few who regularly change their minds. They range in age from a teenager to grandmothers. Some preserved their dresses in museum-quality, acid-free, pH neutral boxes. Others eagerly donated them to thrift shops. The 120-page book sells for $10 and is available from Mill Park Publishing, Amazon.com and local stores. Some of the authors are available for readings and social functions. For more information, contact Elaine Ambrose at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .