I’m definitely not one for memoir, but this one felt different.

Football Flyboy by Lisa Reinicke and narrated by Richard Rieman is a historical memoir.

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Not your typical war story. Football Flyboy examines the shaping of a good man, his family, and society under the wing of the messy cleanup as WWII winds down. If you like honest, relatable, no-nonsense people who teach you the threads of building upon relationships while making you laugh and cry, this is a story you’ll enjoy!  

Buster, the football flyboy, was part of the Greatest Generation – a generation that was woven with courage and commitment; an era that wasn’t filled with instant gratification or instant anything for that matter. Human relationships were held tightly with a determination not to give up.  

Old letters seeded Football Flyboy, letters that are a one-sided conversation of a man who lived for someone more important than himself. The struggles of war and his constant change of location kept him from receiving mail regularly, causing frustration and loneliness.  

Each letter has been unedited with grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors preserved to demonstrate the letters’ authenticity.  

You will meet members of the author’s family – in particular, her aunt Ruby. Each chapter opens with “one of the letters” and closes with Aunt Ruby’s poems – highlighting the point of the chapter or just providing the listener with a smile or a tear. 

About the Author: Lisa Reinicke

Lisa Reinicke is the majority holder of Our House Publications and an award-winning, best-selling author of 7 published books for sale on Amazon and independent bookstores. Lisa has been showered with awards including, the 2017 Mom’s Choice Gold Award for lifetime literary excellence for her children’s book Wings and Feet, the 2018 Book Excellence Award for Wings and Feet and Finalist for her book Football Flyboy, 2018 Honorable Mention in the Story Monster Purple Dragon Awards in several categories for Wings and Feet and Bart’s Escape out the Gate, 2019 Mom’s Choice Gold Award for Wilhelmina’s Wish, 2019 Benjamin Franklin award for Football Flyboy Audio book,  and 5 star review from Reader’s Favorites on all her books. She is a storyteller and author of 35 children’s stories appearing on local TV shows, elementary schools, and bookstores. The stories have been published in 3 collective recordings for distribution for A Goodnight Sleep Company. She also produces online (virtual) training for service advisors and technicians. Lisa serves as head writer and on-camera talent in the videos. Her books are entertaining yet focus on social issues that engage children and parents to discuss. Her four children are all uniquely different ranging from physical differences, adoption, and physiological disorders that lead her following experts in each field to help children overcome the stigma around being different. Lisa passionately works raising money for charities that improve children’s lives physically, emotionally, and spiritually, as well as charities who support veterans and historical artifacts (particularly during the WWII era).

Hi Lisa, and thank you for being here today!

Tell us about the process of turning your book into an audiobook. –

  I hired an actor that I was familiar with to do the letters in Dad’s voice. We were able to do the book in tandem rather than record the book separately. This process gave each of us the ability to almost live the story as we recorded. The male voice heard the story with gave him insight to the person behind the letters. I spent several years doing voice over and training videos and take to script pretty fast so we were able to complete in two days in the studio. We did have a “Dirty Rotten Scoundrel- Ham-burg-er” moment. If you haven’t seen the scene it is where Steve Martin tries to say Hamburger. There was one word that I just could not say correctly. We got hung up on it for an hour in the studio and finally the sound engineer just made it work when I got half way close.

Do you believe certain types of writing translate better into audiobook format? – 

I do! Whenever you can break into the “people” part of the story the audio is much more interesting. When there is a big part of the scenery detail – this can get monotonous for the talent and the listener to get through.- I love parts where different people get to speak.  There is one character that was especially fun to do. Gladys had a thick southern accent and was quite a drama queen. She fainted often and I got to live that moment in audio.

Was a possible audiobook recording something you were conscious of while writing?

I didn’t think about it while writing the book but I always knew that I wanted to do the audio book. I also recorded my children’s books. I love being behind the mic to tell stories. I am a better storyteller than a writer, so I write as if I am telling a story. Editors have to correct my in the writing but the method works for me in audio.

How did you select your narrator?- 

I knew him from working on several projects together. I have always loved his voice and how he connects with the characters. I have spent many years doing voice work and film for our company so I wanted to narrate Dad’s life and have the male part read by Richard Reiman.

How closely did you work with your narrator before and during the recording process? Did you give them any pronunciation tips or special insight into the characters? –

 I gave him the background of the character. Where he was from. Accents. Our character had a bravado but a humbleness. Dad was a football star in a little town and then a hot shot pilot so he had a little ego. But there is a turning point where he sees devastation and is changed. We talked about that and how the actor would take on that role. I did give the actor some latitude because when creative people have some room to take on the role, often times it is better than what you can tell them to do. We Googled many of the Chinese words and they were hard to get through.

Were there any real life inspirations behind your writing? – 

Yes there always is in my books. I pull from my childhood, my kids, my grandkids. You will find friends attributes show up in my favorite characters. When I am in a place that I don’t want to forget the scene or feelings- then that will show up somewhere in a story.

How do you manage to avoid burn-out? What do you do to maintain your enthusiasm for writing?

I am an Energizer Bunny. I have immense resources of fuel. I wear my family out. I only crash if I get sick. Then I am down for the count and sleep until I feel better. So the answer is- I am like that Woodwick Candle- I burn a long time. It is how I am built.

Are you an audiobook listener? What about the audiobook format appeals to you? 

Some audiobooks are hard for me to listen to. If the same narrator reads the entire book, then I can’t stay with it. I am more of a theatrical listener. There used to be these historical audiobooks called Uncle Dan and Aunt Sue. I love them because they mixed up the readers and parts.

Is there a particular part of this story that you feel is more resonating in the audiobook performance than in the book format? 

Yes- I don’t want to give too much away but there is quite a bit of humor when Dad’s sisters get a part in the book. They were wild, wild women. The other part would be the ending that is killer. I almost didn’t make it through some of the latter parts without having to turn away from the mic for a bit. There are parts that have you laughing and crying.

If you had the power to time travel, would you use it? If yes, when and where would you go? 

So many places and yes I would use time travel. We visited Pompei this last year and when I closed my eyes I could picture the chariots driving down the streets. The people walking in the streets visualized in my mind. Touching the stones vibrated through me as if they wanted to tell me what happened on that corner. I would not want to stay long if I had that time machine, but I would want to talk to people and hear their stories.

If this title were being made into a TV series or movie, who would you cast to play the  primary roles? 

Well, Dad was good looking!! So that would have to be Bradley Cooper—Ooooolaaaalaaa. He would be great as the young Flyboy.  Margo Martindale would play a great Aunt Gladys. Jamie Lee Curtis for Cleo. Jane Fonda as my Mom ( in the later years- In fact Mom looked a lot like her.

What do you say to those who view listening to audiobooks as “cheating” or as inferior to “real reading”?

Nope- It is just different. In fact, I love reading the book then listening to the audio. They are two very different mediums. Sometimes a good book isn’t a good audiobook and a terrible book is a great audiobook.

How did you celebrate after finishing this novel? 

I cried!!! This was an emotional project. I was so humbled and honored to be able to tell this story. What a blessing to immortalize these wonderful people. The generation of family that built my structure can be properly thanked by showing the reader the good, the bad, and ugly that makes up a rich life.

What gets you out of a writing slump? What about a reading slump? 

To get out of a writing slump, I have to get away to a quiet place and no one can talk to me. The mountains and a walk can revitalize my thoughts. I must be able to have all the voices of the world shut up. No phone, no TV, no music. As far as a reading slump, that happens often with me. I have to make myself get back to it. Putting my phone away helps.

In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of writing a stand-alone novel vs. writing a series? 

I think if you can do a series then you don’t have the temptation to wear out the reader all in one sitting. I do want to do a series but I have severe ADHD and lose focus before I get to the next book. I am making myself do a series because I wanted to have three characters and tell their stories. I tried to fit it all in one and it was too confusing. So I am going to give it a whirl.

Have any of your characters ever appeared in your dreams?

Oh my heck yes!  Bart’s Escape Out the Gate, my children’s picture book. We had lots of animals when my kids were growing up. We lived on 16 acres and my husband was always leaving the gate open and our livestock would go to the neighbors. We had to round them up often. One night I dreamt we had a pet dino and he got out causing much destruction. That is where the book came from.

What’s your favorite:

Food- Salad- That is weird huh? But true.

Song- High Hopes.  The one about the ant moving a rubber tree plant.

Book-That was above- the Heart and the Fist

Television show – I love Lucy!

Movie- I have a really hard time sitting through a movie. I get up a million times. But I didn’t move a muscle in Schindler’s List. So I will pick that one. It was a terrible time in our history, but the movie moved me and changed my view on life.

Band- Elvis !!!

Sports team- I hate sports. Ugggg. Don’t have one. I do like Rodeos

City- Breckenridge Colorado

Are any of those things referenced in appearance in your work? 

No but you just gave me some great ideas!!

What bits of advice would you give to aspiring authors?

Write your book- It is your story. Even if you never publish you need to write your story. My Auntie Rube wrote a book that was never published. It is a steamy romance. I am not a romance writer but I am going to have it edited and produced for her memory one of these days before I die. Somewhere she is beyond the great unknown- she will know I did this for her. When you write you are leaving a piece of yourself for the world to uncover one of these days.

Do you have any tips for authors going through the process of turning their books into audiobooks?

First they must feel  the need to do that. The audio is a passion that not everyone has. Don’t do it if you just feel like you have to. Do it because there is something inside nagging at you to make the characters come alive. You have to think of yourself as Dr Frankenstien making his creation live.

What’s next for you?

I have a few things twirling. I have a How To book at the editor right now. It is a workbook for people who want to write and independently publish a children’s book. I have so many people want information when I am doing a signing and there just isn’t anything simple for them to follow. There are so many webinars, and people wanting them to join this or that. I wanted to give an aspiring children’s writer a place to begin on their own before tackling all the mountains of information that gets thrown at them.  I also have an early reader chapter book at the editor. It is about Harry, the hairy troll who unintentionally adopts a tenderhearted baby dragon. He is a hermit that is thrown into single fatherhood causing all kinds of mishaps. Lastly I am working on a business book that relates back to our Automobile business that we had grown over the last 35 years.

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About the Narrator: Richard Rieman

Richard Rieman of Audiobook Revolution Productions at AudiobookRevolution.com  is known as “The Audiobook Wizard.” Richard is an Audible Approved Producer, an honor given to the top 10% of Audible narrators. He is also the author of “The Author’s Guide to Audiobook Creation,” the Global eBook Awards Gold Medal Winner in the Writing/Publishing category. Richard produces audiobooks for authors voicing their own audiobooks and consults authors and independent book publishers on audiobook production.

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Giveaway:

• $50 Amazon Gift Card

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Audiobook Tour: Football Flyboy by Lisa Reinicke and narrated by Richard Rieman and Meet the Author
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