Montgomery Herald
August 11, 2004

Book Signing Welcomes Local Author Back Home
By Sarah Price

Jeannie Reynolds Page was amazed to see a large crowd gathered in the First Bank conference room Monday night for a book signing of her novel, "A Blessed Event" which was published in March. "I had expected to see a little room at the library and a dozen chairs," she told them.

It was a homecoming for Page, who grew up in Troy and graduated form West Montgomery High School in 1978. She now lives in Seattle with her husband and three children. The crowd included family and old friends like Kathy Thompson and high school English teacher Hilda Lee, who remarked, "I'm so proud I could burst!"
The book signing, which was sponsored by Friends of the Library, First Bank and Quik Check, was a fund-raiser for the library. Donna Windish, director of the library, said that the proceeds would go toward the purchase of a microfilm reader and printer that will provide access to the state's past for researchers and genealogy buffs.

Page read from her new novel, "Accidental Happiness," which will be published in January. She left her listeners anxiously waiting for the book's publication to find out if the seven-year-old girl whom the heroine had accidentally shot was dead. Page said that "Accidental Happiness" revolves around the relationship between Gina, a young widow, her deceased husband's first wife and the seven-year-old daughter Gina had not known he had.

She wouldn't give away the ending of her new book but did tell fans, "I don't think I could write a book that didn't have hope. You can count on the characters persevering."

Reynolds began writing fiction by writing short vignettes that were character studies. When she began writing novels, the plots emerged from the interaction between characters. "If I'm trying to manipulate characters into unnatural situations, it sounds like a wrong note on the piano," she said. When she is driving or walking the dog, she will hear full scenes in her head. Page said that her husband, a doctor, had joked, "Honey, I'd be careful who I told about those voices in your head. We medicate people for that."

"Accidental Happiness" is Page's fourth novel. Her first, which she describes as "terrible, full of southern stereotypes," went into a drawer. Her second found an agent but no publisher. "A Blessed Event" is her third novel. She contracted with Ballentine books, a division of Random House, to publish two novels. "This book ("Accidental Happiness") has been more intrusive than the first one," Page told the crowd. "There's something about being told, 'We'll pay for this second one up front.' I didn't realize it was such a business. I've had to tell the kids, 'Call me if you're bleeding.'"

She told audience members who had asked questions about how she had her writing published that most writers need an agent and that it is more difficult to find an agent than a publisher. She advised potential writers to sign up for writing workshops where they could make connections with people who could help them find an agent.

With Page at the book signing were her three children, Franklin, 18, Gillian, 16, and Edward 13 and husband, Dr Richard Page (Rick). The family is visiting Page's stepfather H.V. Massingill. Her mother, Grace Reynolds Massingill, died last spring.

From Troy, they will go to Seabrook Island near Charleston, where "Accidental Happiness" is set. Rick's family has rented a house there since 1988.

The teens say they are proud of their mother. Not much has changed for them since the publication of "A Blessed Event," says Edward.

However, Franklin says that the time pressure of meeting publisher's deadlines for her new novel had been stressful for his mother. "I've never seen her stress out having to finish something before," he says. "It's a little grating in the summer when the kids are home and Mom's trying to work."

"The fridge gets empty sometimes," Gillian adds.

Having a family member as a published author is nothing new to Rick. His brother, Tim Page, classical music critic for the Washington Post, has written several books and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997 for distinguished criticism. "I've read a lot of journalism over the years," Rick says, "but I'm a very poor critic of Jeannie's work. I love everything she writes. Her instincts are great. I have very little input. My main job is to support her."

"She can't stop writing," he says. "I had hoped she'd be successful. But I realized no matter what,she'd write forever."

Edward agrees, "Writing is what makes her happy. We're really proud of her."

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