By Kimberly Gasuras, Freelance Journalist | FreeWire – Your News, Your Voice
GALION — Noel (Chase) Lizotte began writing stories when she was still in elementary school.
“I don’t have clear memories of what I might have written then, but my mom used to encourage me to write like Erma Bombeck,” said Lizotte.
Noel loves writing so much, she didn’t even mind the essay questions on her tests throughout high school and college.
“I was in my favorite subject with English class. I had a weekly column in the college newspaper,” said Lizotte, who began writing short stories in the year 2000.
But Lizotte did not stop there. Not only did she continue with her writing to create a cooking blog in 2013 while also writing for the local newspaper, she started writing a series of books.
“My first published book was Apron Free Cooking, a set of family recipes that were time-proven, kid-tested, and husband-approved. I wanted to capture my family’s favorite recipes from my grandmothers, aunts, cousins, and sisters for future generations,” said Lizotte.
She said her family has always followed a convenience cooking approach.
“No handmade biscuits and gravy from scratch here. We used all the shortcuts that were available. Honestly, my grandmother was a huge fan of boxed goods and Jell-O salads in any form,” said Lizotte.
In her career, she has written what seems to her like a million reference guides and tip sheets for staff.
“Nonfiction writing is natural to me, and it’s always a challenge to take a complex dish and turn it into a recipe that anyone can make on a Tuesday night using easy-to-find grocery store ingredients,” said Lizotte.
She said fiction writing, though, helps her get the stories out of her head.
“They float around up there gathering characters, dialogue, plot, and settings until I sit down and get it all on paper. I don’t have any published fiction at this time, but there are a couple works-in-progress on my laptop,” said Lizotte.
In addition to Apron Free Cooking, Lizotte has penned three other cookbooks, including 30 Freezer Recipes for Your Slow Cooker, Good Dog! Pet Cookbook, and Cooking for Cats.
She has also created an array of beautiful and functional journals and planners along with her cookbooks.
“The planners and journals are fun! I love the creative process of finding a theme, creating some artwork, making a checklist or writing prompt, and turning it all into a useful tool,” said Lizotte. “The rage journals are a great example; write that stuff down and get it all out of your system. You’ll feel better venting whatever it is, and you won’t harm any humans in the process.”
Like many people, Lizotte always loves a fresh new planner.
“There’s an excitement about the opportunity planners bring to get my life organized. Do they always work? Well, like my dad used to say, you get out of it what you put into it,” said Lizotte.
All of Lizotte’s books are self-published.
“I’ve used a couple different methods for printing my books, but find that Amazon’s Kindle Publishing is easiest for me right now. I absolutely rely on my circle for proofreading and overcoming creative blocks,” said Lizotte. “Perhaps one day I’ll work with a traditional publisher. We’ll see.”
When Lizotte is not writing or working at her full-time corporate job, she is assisting her husband, John, with their special needs dog rescue, Rescued Rollers.
“I haven’t yet figured out the magic balance to keep everything going, but I sure keep trying,” said Lizotte, who is also a mom and grandmother of five.
Lizotte will kick off a series of author appearances at RavensCloak Reiki and Treasures, 120 Harding Way West, in downtown Galion, from noon to 4 p.m. on Jan. 24. https://www.facebook.com/RavensCloakTreasures
“I’m really looking forward to meeting new people and seeing old friends. I love chatting with people about books and helping them find one that really fits a need they have,” said Lizotte.
Lizotte will have copies of all of her cookbooks, journals, and planners at the event.
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