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A Nod from the Network of the National Library of Medicine!

Plus, what's next for me....

Author

Yasmine S. Ali, MD
July 20, 2023

Hello again!

I’m so excited to share with you that, last week, I was informed by the Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM) that my book, Walk through Fire: The Train Disaster that Changed America, is one of their September 2023 Reading Club selections, in support of their theme of disaster preparedness!

And here’s some more exciting news related to the remembrance of the Waverly Train Disaster: our fundraising efforts for the restoration of the train museum have resulted in just over $10,000 raised! Patti Damesworth and Pam Gunn plan on presenting the funds to the city for this purpose by the end of the month, and I’ll post the exact amount on Facebook (and in next month’s newsletter). Many thanks to everyone who pitched in and helped make this fundraiser such a success!!

In other book news, I’ll know next week whether or not Walk through Fire has been selected for presentation at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville this October. Of course I will let you know!

Incredibly, Walk through Fire remains a bestseller in at least 2 Amazon categories—it has been a bestseller for about 9 months now! That is due to YOU, my readers, and I am so grateful to you.

Below, you’ll find a link to a recording of the Tennessee State Museum event (from April 2023), in case you weren’t able to attend in person. You’ll also find details on my next act(s) as an author!

‘Til next time,

Yasmine

In Case You Missed It

April 8, 2023, at the TN State Museum (streaming video):

TN Writers | TN Stories: Yasmine S. Ali, MD: Walk Through Fire

A gripping and meticulously crafted work of narrative nonfiction, Walk Through Fire: The Train Disaster That Changed America (on-sale February 21, 2023) reconstructs the events of a horrific explosion in 1978 that can still be felt today. The explosion of a tank car full of liquid propane devastated the small town of Waverly, Tennessee, shocked the nation, and led to the creation of transformational laws and regulations which have since been adopted by countries around the world as a template for disaster management. This horrendous conflagration – the result of multiple errors, missteps, miscommunications, and poor regulations – prompted the immediate overhauling of the US railroad industry from top to bottom; resulted in the implementation of new standards for hazmat handling, containment, and training; and served as a new model for firefighter and first-responder training across the globe. Yasmine S. Ali, MD, is a cardiologist and former president of the Vanderbilt History of Medicine Society. She graduated summa cum laude from Vanderbilt University’s College of Arts and Science with a BA in molecular biology and history, and graduated with multiple honors from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Dr. Ali grew up in Waverly, Tennessee, and still lives nearby. She personally knows the survivors of the Waverly Train Disaster.

tsm.streamingvideo.tn.gov/Mediasite/Play/70ef77ee30d44b619e798b21b41377531d

And Now for Something Completely Different … My Next Act(s)

Those who know me well know that I can’t ever be doing just one thing at a time. I always have multiple projects going, in different stages of completion. My creative writing is no exception.

Here are some of the other book projects I’m working on:

  • The View from the Cliffs: A Novel. My next full-length book will be entirely fictional, although with a very good dose of historical research thrown in. The tagline for this book is: Three physicians. Three continents. Two decades. One love story.

    I’ll be writing more about this book in future newsletters, and plan to have it published next year, hopefully in Spring 2024.

One of the settings in The View from the Cliffs:

Ireland’s Macgillycuddy’s Reeks (mountain range) in the background, Sept. 2015

  • Quotes for Dog Lovers: A Celebration of Our Very Best Friends. Y’all who have known me for a while also know how much I love, love, love collecting quotes. I’ve been doing so since I was 12 or 13 years old! So I have a vast quote collection, many volumes now, and I’m going to begin compiling those into gift books with different themes.

    Since I also love, love, love dogs, it was a no-brainer to start this series (which I’m calling Quintessential Quote Collections) with quotes about dogs and all they bring to our lives!

    The draft for this one is almost complete, and next I’ll have to find a book cover designer and experiment with the proper formatting for a book of this nature. I’ll be sure to keep you updated as this project moves along!

Photo I am planning on incorporating into the book cover:

Our darling dog, Bear, when she was 3 years old (she is now 7). Photo by Keith M. Sturges.

Don’t worry, those of you who are fans of my German Shepherd Dog, Wyatt! He will be making an appearance within the book, too! ;)

  • The Rosevale Country Doctor: A Novel. The title of this one may change, as I have just started sketching it out, and drafted the first couple of chapters very recently. I envision it will be the first in a series set in the fictional town of Rosevale, which, in turn, I envision placing in the real location of Tennessee’s beautiful Cumberland Plateau.

    Think of this as All Creatures Great and Small meets Doc Martin, but with a female doctor (for humans) at the center of it.

Proposed setting for The Rosevale Country Doctor:

Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau (photo by Eleanor Bortnick, from fineartamerica.com)

  • An Irish-themed romantic thriller. I have had the idea for this one in my head for a long time now, and have even written the prologue and one of the chapters, but I’m not sure whether or not I will complete this one next or work on the Rosevale Country Doctor first. I do know the title of this, but am keeping that under wraps until I’ve done more work on this project.

  • I also continue to write health-and-wellness articles for my Speak for the Heart blog and newsletter, and may write some health books under this brand in the future. If you’d like to subscribe to that newsletter and keep up with that news, you can do so here.

So tell me, what do you think?? Which of these would you be most interested in reading? Just reply to this email and let me know.

Facebook Author Page

You can find more frequent updates on my official Facebook Author Page! I’ll be posting about author and creative writing news, including future books and events, quote collections, various writing-related musings, and more. You can follow my author page at: https://www.facebook.com/yasmine.s.ali.md.author/

Pinterest Author Page

I’ve also just set up an Author Page on Pinterest, so if you’re on that platform, you can find me at: https://www.pinterest.com/YasmineAliAuthor/

Quote of the Month

❝

“Never let the odds keep you from doing what you know in your heart you were meant to do.”

-H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

(Photo by Tennessee State Museum