Jo Maeder

Author

Chapter 1 of Zerk ‘Em and Pull the Push Rods: A Wry Squint at Aviation in the Mid-20th Century

by Leave a Comment

“There are many paths into this book, and if you are a human with a heart and a funny bone, one of those paths is for you.” — Clyde Edgerton, aviator and author of Solo: My Adventures in the Air 1 “That tough Marine will live forever.” “Something went terribly wrong,” the stranger said. “Katie’s […]

LEARN MORE

THE TALE OF THE SQUIRREL-PROOF BIRD FEEDER

by 1 Comment

Let me explain why I was so determined to outwit the squirrels stealing birdseed from the wild birds I’d attracted to my yard. Of course they didn’t see it as stealing. It’s their natural right to snarf up anything they can. And boy are they smart. Ultimately though, I won this war. I was having […]

LEARN MORE

Life Works in Mysterious Ways: How losing my last sibling gave me more than just a new perspective

by 3 Comments

I once wrote an essay for AOL about getting through Mother’s Day when Mom is no longer here (the essay is no longer here as well—so much for everything living forever online). Now I’m faced with Mother’s Day without my brother, Art. Every day without him has been hard, but we always shared memories of “Mama […]

LEARN MORE

When A Video of Someone You Know Goes Viral (in a bad way)

by Leave a Comment

It was bound to happen. Someone I knew and consider to be a nice person behaved badly, a bystander made a video, it went viral, this person lost their job and now must mentally wear the scarlet letters IPH (Internet Public Hanging). I don’t want to leave a clue to their identity by saying “he” […]

LEARN MORE

How to leave a book review on Amazon (anonymously or not))

by 4 Comments

When a tech-savvy friend confessed that she loved my book yet had no idea how to leave a review on Amazon, I decided to write this for her and anyone else who may not know. Books depend on word-of-mouth and mouse. It’s part of my job description now to ask readers to leave book reviews the way […]

LEARN MORE

What is the #1 way to increase happiness?

by 4 Comments

Life is not a bowl of cherries for anyone. We must take the bitter with the sweet, we’re told. But some people seem to have an innate melancholy they can never shake. Studies now show that we stay at the same level of happiness our entire life. There’s only one thing that’s been proven to […]

LEARN MORE

Zerk ’em: Another surprise in a pile of old family papers

by Leave a Comment

In honor of Aviation History Month, Veteran’s Day, and my father’s birthday, I’m sharing a peek at a treasure I unearthed when his widow died. I was asked by her executor if I would like his papers. What papers?, I thought. When he passed she became obsessed with ballroom dancing and turned his office into […]

LEARN MORE

Chuck Berry, the author, takes out the trash and dishes it, too

by Leave a Comment

I confess, I probably wouldn’t have read Chuck Berry’s autobiography had I not seen Bob Dylan reading it backstage. I immediately bought it and devoured it. Not long after, Berry played a club in New York City and I was asked to introduce him onstage as part of my DJ duties as “The Rock and […]

LEARN MORE

Behind NAKED DJ, the audiobook

by Leave a Comment

  I’m so thrilled Rachel Butera has been nominated for a SOVAS Voice Arts Awards for her narration of NAKED DJ, as have I for my narration of WHEN I MARRIED MY MOTHER. Known as “The Oscars of Voice Acting” it’s indeed an honor. The awards ceremony is Nov 13, 2016 at the Warner Brothers […]

LEARN MORE