Lakes On Eldridge Residents and Project Azalea
We love living in Lakes on Eldridge! We are New Orleans transplants and first lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Bellaire. At that time, I worked downtown, while my husband, John, worked in the Energy Corridor. We were curious as to what lay beyond Conoco on Dairy Ashford at Eldridge, so one weekend we drove north on Eldridge, enjoyed the beauty of the Addicks Reservoir, and then noticed a gated community just past Clay. We closed on our brand-new home in April 1999. What a wonderful feeling! Never in a million years did we know how much we would come to appreciate this first home that has gotten us through the volatile oil industry over the following decades.
Flash forward about 15 years, John usually dropped off our kids but one day had an early meeting, so I took them instead. However, this particular day when I returned, my husband’s car was in the driveway. This can’t be good. His oil services company, where he had worked for 10 years, was being sold and he was a casualty. I strongly suggested he take advantage of that God-given opportunity to finally write the book he had talked about for nearly 20 years! And because he listens to everything I say (insert laugh track) he soon started writing his first novel, Project Azalea.
So began our new routine, he dropped off the kids, went to La Madeleine, and wrote until his computer lost power. This strategy worked. Thankfully he had contract work, so between that and job searching he kept busy. He completed the book after about two years and was ready to hire an editor. However, I suggested he allow me to edit his book since we were low on funds.
I printed his book, escaped to Barnes & Noble, found a quiet space, and started my review ⎯ not knowing what to expect. I knew he was a strong writer. For our first Valentine’s Day, while still in college, he wrote me a poem that accompanied a single rose and a tiny stuffed bear. I still have the poem and bear, but the rose perished. It was well-written and from the heart. Priceless. I was impressed with his first book draft and felt it would make a great movie! In short, it’s a legal thriller based in New Orleans and was authentically Nola
I respected him and was gentle with my edits. He soon sent it to a genre-specific publisher who did not accept his book yet gave priceless feedback. With more courage, I asked to make more edits, this time not as gentle. So, after more rounds of edits, he sent it back to the same publisher, with similar feedback; great potential but needed more work. John was ready to give up. He spent so much time on Project Azalea and just wanted it completed. I insisted he not give up since I knew in my heart it had great potential. He did and it paid off.
We found a small publisher who was interested in Project Azalea after reading it, so we hired them and as a team with their professional guidance, the book molded into an even more impressive story and truly was a family effort. Early in the process, our daughter, Claire, drew a shotgun-style house similar to what was portrayed in the book. While her drawing did not end up as the cover, it is at the start of each chapter. She also helped create the book cover, which captured the essence of the story. Our son, Ian, helped by giving personal input.
After working with the publisher for a minute, finally, Project Azalea was ready for its debut. As we were driving to New Iberia for John’s first book event, Project Azalea became available as an eBook. What timing! Since that first event, we have attended several others, in addition to book club meetings. The feedback has been very positive. John loves to talk about the book-writing process and answer questions from readers. It’s been an amazing journey for all of us.
John has already started a sequel and is drafting a screenplay for Project Azalea. He has spoken to several producers who are very interested in seeing the book through to the big screen. If we don’t try, it certainly won’t happen; if we try, there’s always a chance for success!
Project Azalea by longtime LOE resident, J.E. Conery, is available in eBook, paperback, and hardcover on Amazon and other online book vendors.