About this item
Starting with Goodbye begins with loss and ends with love, as a midlife daughter rediscovers her enigmatic father after his death. Lisa has little time for grief, but when her dead dad drops in for "conversations," his absent presence invites Lisa to examine why the parent she had turned away from in life now holds her spellbound. Lisa reconsiders the affluent upbringing he financed (filled with horses, lavish vacations, bulging closets) , and the emotional distance that grew when he retired to Las Vegas and she remained in New Jersey where she and her husband earn moderate incomes. She also confronts death rituals, navigates new family dynamics, while living both in memory and the unfolding moment. In this brutally honest yet compelling portrayal and tribute, Lisa searches for meaning, reconciling the Italian-American father - self-made textile manufacturer who liked newspapers, smoking, Las Vegas craps tables, and solitude - with the complex man she discovers influenced everything, from career choice to spouse.
About the Author
Starting with Goodbye is Lisa's first full length book, the story of a midlife daughter reconnecting with the deceased father she didn't feel close to in life. Lisa has published hundreds of short memoir pieces, essays, nonfiction narratives, and freelance articles in popular magazines, newspapers, and websites, and in many literary journals and essay anthology collections. Those include work in the New York Times, O The Oprah Magazine, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Brain Child, Inside Jersey, Under the Sun, Longreads, Hippocampus, Brevity, The Chronicle of the Horse, L'Anne Hippique, and many more.
Her work is cited in Best American Essays 2016, and has been nominated several times for both BAE and the Pushcart Prize. Lisa is the recipient of several grants and scholarships, and often speaks at writing conferences. She has taught writing courses online, and works as a writing coach and independent editor, helping other writers polish their manuscripts. Lisa is a founding faculty member and current thesis director in the creative nonfiction MFA program at Bay Path University. She holds an MFA from Stonecoast (University of Southern Maine) , a BS in journalism from Newhouse (Syracuse University) . Previously, Lisa has worked as an equestrian journalist, public relations specialist, real estate trouble-shooter, and horse show judge.
Lisa lives in her native New Jersey with her husband Frank (who was her high school crush) , and their two sons. If she's not writing, teaching, or editing, she can be found reading, cooking, taking walks, or yelling at her menfolk to stop watching football on TV or playing video games.
