Two Tails, Tall Tales: Nippers and Bobby Possum Say Hello

by Molly Jo Realy (@MollyJoRealy)

Two Tails and Tall Tales: Nippers and Bobby Possum Say Hello

These guys go (almost) everywhere with me.

 

I first found Nippers when my then-teenage daughter was cleaning out her room. She wanted to donate him.

I said, “Donate him to my desktop!“

So she did. Back then we named him La Grenouille as an homage to an NCIS arc. And our French heritage.

He quickly became the mascot for New Inklings Press – my indie pub company. Casually referred to as N.I.P., it didn’t take long before the frog renamed himself Nippers.

That was quite some time ago. Flash forward to 2015 when I attended my first Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference, and felt wanted needed a security totem, and conversation starter. Nippers fit.

Flash forward to now and as soon as I announce my yearly attendance at any conference/meeting/writerly event, the first and main question I get is,

“You’re bringing the frog, right?”

Nippers has been with me for more than a decade as I write, coach, teach, and do all the writerly things like “research” (read: travel, eat delicious local fare and drink tantalizing coffee or cocktails).

Two years ago, we drove over to Columbus, Mississippi for the Spring Pilgrimage. That’s also the home of Tennessee Williams. You know: the playwright who gave us Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, A Streetcar Named Desire, and many more.

Is it backstory if the book isn’t written yet? Oh. Right. You need context.

Denton Chase, one of NOLA‘s secondary characters, is from Columbus, MS. But he’s a primary protagonist in the sequel-in-progress, FRIENDLY, which will take place part in New Orleans and part in Columbus, MS. A new character for FRIENDLY is named Bobby. And let me tell you, he and Denton do not get along.

I’m rewriting NOLA to release as a second edition later this summer. This gives the characters a chance to develop more, and gives NOLA the opportunity to reach a fresh audience before FRIENDLY comes out next year.

Are ya tracking all that?

• NOLA first edition: published six years ago
• NOLA second edition (NOLA : Undeaux): in process, to be released this summer
• FRIENDLY: sequel, to be published next year

What’s this got to do with the possum?

So glad you asked.

Columbus, MS is known as Friendly City. 
It’s also known as Possumtown. 

Turns out, when the settlers first got there, they looked a little, uhm … interesting. They had very long noses and thin faces, so the indigenous groups nicknamed them “Possum People,” and the town nickname stuck.

So of course I visited the popular local indie bookstore, Friendly City Books, where I perused the heavenly stacks and picked up my book mascot.

 

So when you see me around town with my laptop, you can bet the “kids” are close by.

TELL ME MORE:
What creative mascots keep you company?

What #creative mascots keep you company? Molly Jo's Journals: Two Tails and Tall Tales: Nippers and Bobby Possum Say Hello #writing #SouthernWriter #NOLA #NewOrleans Share on X

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Come alive, stay wild, and always, savor the journey,
~M. 

A Southern hippiechick at heart, Molly Jo Realy is author of the romantic location mystery novel, NOLA, and creator of the Book Builder Workbook. Also an editor and coach, she encourages people to embrace their unique talents to share their stories as only they can. Addicted to God, cats, tea, planners, and pens, in no particular order. Follow her on X (Twitter), Instagram and join her Facebook Community Mojo Swarm for more fun!

 

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To learn more about the NOLA rewrite and FRIENDLY sequel, check out my crowdfund campaign.

Click here for more details: NOLA:Undeaux : An Amplified Retelling of Love and Murder