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Shel Damsky 1927 - 2010 |
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HOME BOOKS Murder and the Comprehensive Plan
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IT"S NEVER TOO LATE! Hi, I’m Shel Damsky, author of "Saranac Lake Requiem," a story of the long-ago days when Saranac Lake was a beacon of hope for those suffering from the White Plague – tuberculosis. Thousands of people, from all over the world, the rich, the poor, the famous, the infamous, the gangsters, the movie stars, the heads of state, all flocked to the small village high in the Adirondack Mountains. They lived in sanitoriums, private homes, known as "cure cottages" were opened to them, they lived in tents. They all came for that one desperate reason – to be cured of the dread disease that was killing one of every six people around the world. They found a new world and a new life, the endured the cure, they made fast friends, they fell in love and too often they died. But in later years many said that their time in Saranac Lake was the happiest of their lives. When I moved to Saranac Lake, I was a semi-retired zoning and land-use lawyer. I graduated from Colgate University and Cornell law School. I have authored or co-authored a book about zoning, "All You Ever Wanted To Know About Zoning . . . ", and a number of articles on the subject. I have taught at SUNY at Albany and Pace University and lectured widely. BUT My first love was always writing. I have always wanted to write fiction. Tried it a few time over the years, but it just didn’t work. Then I moved to Saranac Lake, became one of many library volunteers who keep those days alive and became fascinated by the history. So I started to write. I had something to write about, people from my own past to put into my book and my stories and have never enjoyed myself more. Novel Books, Inc., is publishing "Saranac lake" Requiem and one of my stories, "Le Gare D’Austerlitz," and I’ve never been happier. The great sports writer, Red Smith, once said that "Writing is easy – you just sit down and stare at a blank piece of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead." Maybe that’s true, but it’s also more fun than anything I’ve ever done. I just celebrated, if that’s the word, my 74th birthday. I’m working on another book and some stories. I never enjoyed anything more. If you want to write, my advice is – damnit, sit down and
write. We all have stories to tell. And it’s never too late to tell them. |
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Dorice Nelson
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