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The Art of Fishing
9/23/2023 Guest Blog by Jill Loewer – When Jill sent me this blog, I immediately thought my readers would enjoy it. It is the story of my best day over the summer.
“Once you have it in your hands, hold it way out in front of you and closer to the camera. This will make it look much larger when the photo is taken.” I was in a fly fishing class and the instructor was wryly explaining the proper technique for showing off your ‘catch’.
I wasn’t an avid fisher, but when offered a class in fly fishing I jumped at the chance to learn something new. It was an art form we were learning on a picture-perfect fall day in Vermont – the various techniques and materials used to create artificial flies and the casting techniques which required a patient, light touch as we flicked the rods left then right and then forward in a long arc.
I heard another fish story recently from a family friend – something of a different sort than the stories told at the elite fly fishing class I had attended. This story starts on a recent July morning on a lake in Maine. The sky was blue and the lake’s surface smooth when nine-year-old Amaya and her younger cousin, Miles, awoke before the rest of the household for their fishing lesson. They were eager to join their grandfather, Ned, at the lake house dock for the annual family fishing day. This summer day, the sunfish were clearly visible near the dock and Ned was there to show his grandchildren how to bait a hook, cast the line, and wait for a bite. The family tackle boxes with the fancy lures were forgotten as wiggly worm after worm were added to the lines. The sunfish were hungry that morning and it was difficult to keep up with the constant sunfish bites. Ned was kept very busy removing the hook from the small fishes’ mouths and tossing them back into the lake.
Ned convinced Amaya to let him use one of her smaller sunfish to bait his fancier casting rod but that rod was mostly forgotten with all the activity helping the grandchildren – until his line vibrated. Ned let out a scream of recognition – it was something bigger after the bait on his fishing rod. After a battle with this bigger fish, which seemed to go on for several minutes, Ned’s rod bending over almost double, the fish was reeled in and lifted out of the water. Another struggle ensued as Ned tried to capture the slippery, flopping fish. Reaching into the fish’s mouth and grabbing the gills, the battle was over. A seventeen-inch, three pound large-mouth bass lay at their feet. Amaya was ecstatic that her four-inch ‘sunny’ caught the biggest fish of the day. “Should we bring it home for dinner?” Ned asked. Amaya and Miles agreed and they brought the day’s big catch to the lake house kitchen.
The grandchildren watched eagerly as grandfather gutted the fish. This final prep step revealed a big surprise… a four inch, still intact, sunfish within the larger fish’s belly. The children had forgotten about the sunfish used as bait. They were amazed at this discovery and wanted to use the sunfish again, claiming they had caught the bass because their “bait” fish had been what attracted the big fish. The bass was cooked on the outdoor grill and the family enjoyed their fresh-catch meal.
Fishing with custom-made flies and expensive rods is a passionate hobby pursued by many, but a grandfather patiently teaching his grandchildren how to bait a hook with a simple worm and casting a light-weight spinning rod into a crystal-clear lake is perhaps the more rewarding goal for a multi-generation outing….and the better ‘big fish’ story.
For more from Jill – go to https://jillloewer.substack.com/
Add this Harford historical novel to your summer beach reads | READER COMMENTARY
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Book Launch – attended by over 85 people
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See LPR Interview with Ned Tillman
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First round of reviews
Here are a list of book reviews that I have received on my just released historical novel, Good Endeavour. For more detail visit Amazon.com or my webpage.
Liz Bobo – In reading the historical novel, Good Endeavour, by Ned Tillman, I am reminded of the tale of my Mom’s family from France, “The Monnett’s of Ancient Poiteau”. Her written account of their Maryland family’s history is on file in the Maryland historical society in downtown Baltimore.
Ned’s description of his “family’s, turbulent history” conjures up very clear images of what life was like during those times in our nation here, just west of the Chesapeake Bay.
I highly recommend this book as an enjoyable and enlightening read.
Lys Fulda – The ghosts of our past are trapped in the earth beneath our feet. This book explores just that. One homestead’s history reveals things both sweet and scary. But by looking at a history we can break cycles. A well-crafted story.
Tracey Manning – Reminiscent of Edward Rutherford’s or James Michener’s books but on a shorter, more accessible scale, Good Endeavour brings American history to life from colonial to modern times. Through the eyes, actions, and reactions of engaging characters and their Maryland land, Tillman vividly captures how the United States has been shaped by regional challenges, national experiences, and world events – and by the individuals living through them.
I enjoyed so much about Good Endeavour by Ned Tillman, a fast-moving story of how well-developed characters set in a vividly described landscape/environment experience and react to the cultural/political events of their times. His protagonists deal so plausibly with their settings, whether untamed wilderness, burgeoning industry, or racial tensions, and with the moral issues of their day, that they felt real.
Good Endeavour is a great read, hard to put down, drawing the reader in to care about the characters and be intrigued and educated by the issues they deal with. I highly recommend it.
John Caughey – In this original, well written, and important book, Tillman offers one version of American History by telling the lives of his Maryland ancestors on their family farm, one generation after another, from 1695-2002. Using an engaging mix of historical sources, family stories, and creative fiction, he brings the individuals of each generation vividly to life in ways unavailable in conventional history. The ancestors he recreates are interesting and believable as portrays them reflecting about and struggling with the contemporary concerns and moral issues they had to deal with. The book is inspiring as well as informative because it encourages us to reconsider what we know about our own family ancestors and how they – and now we – are caught up in responding to the issues of the time.
I would like to give a big thank you to these reviewers for all the time and thought they put into their contributions to the rest of us. Other Reviews will show up on the book’s Amazon and Goodreads pages and in future blogs.
First Book Reviews are Coming in
Readers are finishing Good Endeavour and sending in their reviews. Here is a sample of what we have received so far:
“I am enjoying the hell out of your book!” B. Muller
“I’m loving reading the book! Ned’s style really shines in the history telling, and it is also full of good information about the natural world.” A. Suhr
“The ghosts of our past are trapped in the Earth beneath our feet. This book explores just that. One homesteads history reveals things both sweet and scary. But by looking at a history we can break cycles. A well crafted story.” E. Fulda
“I’m really enjoying your new book.” B. England
“The stories are not just entertaining but are beautifully told and very informative, the product of significant research and deep interest in the area. Good Endeavor is a YA/Adult book that can be enjoyed by several generations. I know I would have loved it when I was 13, and I certainly enjoyed reading it now.” A. Boyter
I want to thank everyone who has bought the book. And even more thanks to those who have taken the time to comment, rate, and review it. Reviews on Amazon and other sites really do help readers find books that they want to read – which really helps get the message out there.
To order Good Endeavour – Click Here
Nature Center yesterday
Howard County Historical Society Video
Howard County Historical Society Video of Ned Tillman Talk on April 7, 2023
Amazon: https://rb.gy/c9ioo
This is a talk modified to meet the interests of the Historical Society. The house was full and there were many great questions before and after my talk. I always seem to learn something at these presentations.
Readers Respond to Ned’s New Novel – Good Endeavour
After the initial excitement of having a copy of the book in my hands, there has been a slew of thoughts that have passed through my brain as I await word back from the reading public. There is always that period of time when a book is first released, that the author is sitting on his hands waiting for feedback. Of course, it’s not the first feedback that I have received. There were alpha and beta readers as well as the editorial team. All sorts of help and suggestions came my way over the past three years and they all helped make the book better and more exciting to read.
I will let you all in on what I hear. So far its been rewarding. Some people love the history, others love the feisty characters and their lives, loves and losses. Others like the perspective they gained as to how the past can inform the present. The book is full of examples of how we have been dealing with many of the same issues today as our ancestors did over the past three centuries.
I look forward to sharing it all with you. My website has been updated – check out the home page and the Good Endeavour book page. http://www.SavingThePlaces.com
Feel free to go there as well as on my social media accounts. I also have a couple of talks coming up, so I will share those videos with you too.
I will be at the Howard Community College’s GreenFest this Saturday, April 15, from 10 to 3 at table 77 – so stop by and see me. Always happy to sign a copy of the book for you. Bring your friends.
Ned
Tillman. ned@sustainable.us
Patapsco Heritage Greenway Video
So the rodeo has begun! Most writers dont like to think about what happens after the book is published. They hate to admit that there is just as much effort ‘getting the book out there” than there is in writing the book. Much of this effort deals with social media, which is not my favorite way to communicate – but I am learning. Much of my effort goes into giving talks, which is a lot more fun because you get to meet and talk with your readers. And no matter how big the audience may be, I always do my best to try to reach, engage, and inspire as many people as possible to care about the past and our environment, no matter if they buy my book or not. After all, I don’t keep any of the revenues from the sales of my books – it all goes to non profits who share my ideals. I just want to empower people.
My first talk was at the Miller Branch of the HOCO Library System. I was hosted by the Patapsco Heritage Greenway which is doing a wonderful job trying to preserve the history and the natural setting of the River and its surroundings. They would love your interest and your support. This video is an hour long so watch as little or as much as you wish. Please let me know if you woud like me to present to a group that you are affiliated with.
Ned Tillman
ned@sustainable.us
Ned’s new book has arrived! Another journey has begun.
- During the pandemic, Ned hunkered down, collected a slew of family stories, conducted extensive research on Central Maryland, and created an engaging historical novel of the lives, loves, and losses of five generations of a family living on a Maryland farm first built in 1695.
- Good Endeavour is a great addition to the Saving the Places We Love Campaign. This novel expands our preservation efforts from just natural places to family homesteads and surrounding lands. We encourage you to read it and share it with others. We think you will be inspired to take even more steps to save or preserve the places you love.
- Click on any of the book covers on this page to go to more detailed descriptions of the book or click directly on Amazon.com when you are ready to buy it.
Saving The Places 