BookWire - Meet The Author

Mack McConnell was raised on the Flathead Indian Reservation in western Montana. The seventh of eight rambunctious children, Mack's "different" sense of humor is a family trait developed through interaction between inlaws, outlaws and various and sundry family characters. Ranching, logging, lumber mills and small town life were his world during his youth and early adulthood. He and his wife of 38 years married young and now have four grown kids and nine grandchildren. They already had the four children when Mack abandoned to the world of sawdust and cow manure to earn a bachelor's degree in Journalism at the University of Montana-Missoula. He worked for 15 years as a newspaper reporter and editor in Montana and Wisconsin before assuming his present position 14 years ago. He is the editor, writer and columnist for Rural Montana magazine. He is also director of communications for the Montana Electric Cooperatives' Association which represents 26 electric cooperatives in Montana.

Neela Sakaria: Thank you for your time, Mr. McConnell. Your book, NEVER GRAB A COCKATIEL is an interesting and unusual sort of compilation. Can you tell our readers a little bit about the book?

Mack McConnell: The book is a collection of stories for anyone who ever put on mismatched tennis shoes, and wore them, or has crazy, funny relatives, or is one. I have written these little stories for many years, for newspapers and now for the magazine. I find life to be hilarious, especially in the rear view mirror. Apparently my readers do too. It was at their insistence that I compiled and edited the columns and packaged hopefully the funniest of them. I finally quit procrastinating and put the work together when an elderly lady who is particularly fond of my writings asked me, "Would you mind getting that book out before I croak. I'm probably not going to be around long and I want to die laughing."

NS: Tell us about your background in journalism. What made you decide to study journalism?

MM: I was inspired to go into journalism by my high school journalism teacher, the late Norman Weiler. He was funny, tough and kind and he taught how to write and how to think for myself. He also taught me that life is much more livable if you don't take yourself too seriously. I was also inspired by my brother, the late Rusty McConnell, who showed me by example that even with a wife and four kids, I could work my way through the university and eventually do what I really wanted to do for a living. So I logged on the weekends, drove school bus during the week and went to class during the day. My understanding wife Julie took care of others' kids as well as our own to earn a few extra dollars.

NS: When you began studying journalism, did you always intend to write a book some day? Or did that come later?

MM: Publishing a book was something I always wanted to do. I started writing longer works a couple of times but never followed through. This book was easy. It was written over several years. All I had to do was compile it and update it. Writing humor really isn't hard for me. I live the stuff.

NS: Having worked as a reporter in Montana and Wisconsin, would you say that being a member of the media in the Midwest is somehow different than say New York or Los Angeles? Do people view the media differently?

MM: Community journalism, which is what I specialized in at the newspapers is hard to do well but it's rewarding when you do. I was the managing editor of a small five-day-a-week newspaper in Hamilton Montana that published only local news every day. There was no wire service for a crutch. It was a boot camp for journalists. Competition for local news was fierce. A large daily also served the valley. It was much the same in Wisconsin except we were a full-fledged but small daily that competed with a large daily 14 miles away. Good journalism is good journalism regardless of geography.

NS: You are currently the Director of Communications for the Montana Electric Cooperatives' Association, correct? Can you tell us about that position? What kind of writing do you do, and how do you think it differs from your work as a columnist?MM: As director of communications I produce Rural Montana magazine with the help of a half-time person. I also oversee the production of several other annual and biannual publications. I coordinate advertising and exhibits, write press releases and represent the association in a variety of meetings and organizations. In only spend about a half a day a month writing my goofy columns, but it's what I enjoy most. I dream of someday doing it fulltime.

NS: What kind of response has your book been getting?

MM: The book has been selling well in Montana, especially with those familiar with the magazine. The first thousand copies flew out the door and we're beginning to get reorders. It's just beginning to eke its way onto the national market and of course I'm just waiting to be discovered and become rich and famous.

MM: The book's title NEVER GRAB A COCKATIEL was taken from a column in the book. In the column, I wrote about the funny but rather painful process capturing and repatriating an escaped cockatiel in my back yard. Neela: Is there anything else you'd like to share with our readers?

MM: The stories in the book are just the right length for the coffee table, bedside or my favorite reading venue, the bathroom.