Tips and Flying

“The three pilots showed no emotion as the court clerk read the verdicts. But some family members in the courtroom began quietly sobbing. Each pilot faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.”
This is a segment from a New York Times article—Northwest Pilots are found guilty of Drunken Flying (August 21, 1990)—about the first ever drunken flying conviction of professional pilots. A bar patron had notified Federal officials that he had seen the three drinking heavily the night before in a bar in Moorhead, Minn., near Fargo (the flight was from Fargo, North Dakota to Minneapolis).

Joseph Balzer, the plane's 35-year-old flight engineer, vowed to fly again. ''It's hard to keep a good pilot on the ground,'' Balzer offered. “That's kind of like asking Picasso if he will ever paint again.''
Balzer, after fully redeeming himself, not only fulfilled his vow (he has been flying for many years with American Airlines), but has published an account of his journey to sobriety.

And we, Savas Beatie, are the proud publishers of this bittersweet memoir, Flying Drunk: The True Story of a Northwest Airlines Flight, Three Northwest Pilots, and one Man's Fight for Redemption (July 25, 2009).

Today, while checking our website for link validation, I came across this incredible story (and my assumption that Savas Beatie only published Civil War / military books went out the window). Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting new release throughout the summer.

Sales Tip: Mark Hughes, author of The New Civil War Handbook, had a book signing last Saturday at Books-A-Million. He mentioned that his first signing earlier in the month did not go nearly as well as this one. Why? This time, Mark made a poster. You know, one of those big folding types that 4th graders slap pictures on before giving a presentation about George Washington.

Well, Mark said his visual addition attracted a great many customers. It’s simple: He blew up pictures from his book, used the captions, and placed the poster board on his table. Violá, a buzz of interest, more customers, and . . . better book sales!

That’s all I’ve got to say today. Check back on Wednesday (my schedule is now Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) for my next post. For those of you who have heard enough from me and want to know a little more about the rest of the crew, I’m going to start posting weekly interviews with members of the Savas Beatie staff!