Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Who is Jack Manson? For those of you old enough or history buffs Jack Manson had nothing to do with Sharon Tate. He was no politician, not an actor, in fact not a celebrity at all. So who is he? The quick answer is, he is a detective in Detroit, Mich. Wait for it, and in fact, a drum roll would be prudent at this point. He is a character I created years ago and to this day he lives in my works titled “Detroit Noir.”

When I was a child my brother and I would pretend one of us was a detective. We created our own and that is the one we used most often. I was always a fan of the comic strip Dick Tracy and devoured the Sherlock Holmes novels. And at the time I was hearing a lot about a guy named Manson. This was in the 1980s. I liked the name, thinking it had a cool solid ring to it, and Jack — well everyone is named Jack. So I put it together and he became my go to character.

Once I was grown I put all of that behind me and then one day while I was making my rounds at Northeast State Community College in the ’90s I decided to try my hand at a book. I wanted to do an old-fashioned detective story, something with fantastic characters, with humor, drama, and a splash of romance. Then I remembered good old Jack and decided to pull the old boy from the mothball of memories and recycle him. And I rough typed a story. However, the internet was still very new so all I had was a giant floppy disk to store it on, which of course has since been lost.

Many years later I decided to try my hand at writing again. I first completed my autobiography and thanks to the internet I was able to get it published fairly easily. Then I wanted to do a Jack Manson story and finally I did. The story is called the “Deathcalling Project.” It is part of a series of books called “The Future.” Now Jack rests in his own ongoing series titled “Noir.” It is a fun read with influences from all over my childhood. It is funny, heartbreaking, and action packed. I know this may seem like a shameless plug for one of my books, but hey! If I don’t tell you about it, how will you know? If you do decide to look it up I would like to humbly suggest audible. The narrator brings the book to life like nothing I have ever seen. It’s like riding down the road watching a movie.

STARTING OVER

Lorie Ann McReynolds

I guess starting over at any age can be scary, but for me at 49, it was extremely scary. For the last few years, I was faced with difficult decisions that had to be made. Those decisions were none I ever thought I would be making. Divorce, refinancing my home and doing everything on my own, just to name a few. So, with a broken heart, I had to “put on my big girl pants” and set out to make sure I would survive. On my own.

When I was married, my husband would take care of most of the finances. Any time we were making a huge purchase like buying a house or a car, he would take care of all the details. I would just obediently sign where I was told and then watch for the payment booklet to come in the mail. I never understood interest rates and closing costs. Trade ins and warranties. I never had to. He took care of all of that, and he was good at “wheeling and dealing.” But then my world came crashing down around me when he told me he wanted a divorce. Not only was I having to make hard decisions that went against everything I believed, but I also had to make financial decisions that I never had to make before. Saying that I was not prepared was an understatement. But with the Grace of God, support from my family and friends, I was able to open my eyes to brighter days. I was able to learn what I needed to be able to take care of myself. God showed me that if I was willing to trust Him, He would take care of me. And He did.

Through a friend of mine, I met Chad Pennington with First Bank and Trust. During the summer, I had met with Chad to discuss my option of selling my home and purchasing another one or maybe refinancing my home. After our meeting, my head was spinning with all the information. I had so much to learn. Unfortunately, during the end of marriage, my credit score took a hit. I was not in the “desired by banks” category. But with perseverance and hard work, I was able to bring my credit score up some. With that, I decided to refinance my home. Chad was amazing to work with. He walked me through the whole process and told me what to expect. He answered my what felt like hundreds of questions with patience and respect. He even was at the closing in case I had any problems. He made a scary, difficult, and somewhat emotional time, a lot easier to go through. I highly recommend reaching out to Chad if you are looking to buy a home or refinance your current home.

So, now I am a homeowner all on my own. I still have the love and support from my family and friends. But I also have the love and support of a wonderful guy, Tim. During the process of refinancing, Tim told me how proud he was of me. He listened to my worries and insecurities when I would tell him how overwhelmed I felt. He helped me to realize there was a strong, confident woman inside of me who could take care of herself. God has truly blessed me with this wonderful man.

Please enjoy one free audio review copy of Jack Manson: The ax man cometh (Detroit Noir Book 1), now available on Audible. Redeem the one-time use code below at https://www.audible.com/acx-promo
AH6PNUBE3Z5N6