Both forty-something, Mari Anderson and Fritz Damler said no to a safe and scripted midlife and yes to saltwater, sand and the longest consecutive string of bad hair days ever recorded. With the ink barely dry on their marriage certificate, they rescued an old boat, loaded it with building supplies and pointed the bow toward a remote Bahamian island. What could easily have been a blueprint for disaster is instead a story of discovery, resilience and renewal. Plunge is told from both points of view (think Venus and Mars in Paradise) and sparkles with humor even as unexpected, sometimes unwelcome, events occur. It's a testament to what's possible when Why? gets tossed overboard and Why not? steers the course.
About the Author: Mari Anderson is a writer who, when not typing, can frequently be found with a sketch book. In a yoga pose. In a personality test given to volunteers applying to become Big Sisters (www.bigbrothersbigsisters.org), she scored alarmingly high in the "adventuresome" and "risk-taking" categories. Which may help explain why, at age 45, she sold a perfectly nice graphic design biz to sail off to a remote island in the Bahamas with a guy she'd been married to for a week. Besides co-authoring Plunge, Mari is a registered yoga teacher who prefers to think of staring at a blank page as meditation, not writer's block. Up next are two book projects close to her heart - one fiction, one non. Fritz Damler opted for early retirement after high school and has since lead lives as a paramedic, ski instructor, musician and student at the University of New Mexico. He spent the '80s circumnavigating the globe in a 35 ft. classic wooden cutter and has been a guitar maker since 1972. After he nearly severed of the middle finger on his right hand during a sailing misadventure, he felt compelled to write about the incident. It was published by Cruising World in '84. After that, every time something went amiss he purged his negativity with another "How Not To" piece. Throughout the ten years spent circumnavigating the globe he also wrote long missives home to family and friends. These were ultimately published as a booklet cleverly entitled, Letters Home, by Tinkertown Museum near Albuquerque, New Mexico, where his 80 year-old wooden cutter, Theodora R, now resides. He began writing books in 1994 and is the author of three mystery/thrillers: A Rug to Die For, Okavango, and Suvarov. He co-authored Plunge - Midlife with snorkel, with his wife, Mari Anderson, about their radical move to a remote Bahamian island. It is written in two distinct points of view - think Venus and Mars in paradise. 'Ten Years Behind the Mast', is a travel memoir of his ten year circumnavigation - think lost at sea. Suvarov won 1st place for action/adventure at the 1996 Southwest Writers conference and Plunge received an award at the 2012 New York Book Festival. He currently lives with his wife, Mari, on Washington Island, Wisconsin, and on Crooked Island, Bahamas.