Nancy Alvarez, Author Of 'Little Nancy: The Journey Home' Honored As 'Woman Of The Year', Featured In National Association Of Professional Women Newsletter

SHALLOTTE, NC, July 14, 2012 (Press-News.org) Nancy Alvarez, author of 'Little Nancy: The Journey Home', has been chosen as 'Woman Of The Year' by the National Association Of Professional Women. An interview with Ms. Alvarez is featured in the NAPW newsletter.

"When I began talking about 'Little Nancy: The Journey Home'," stated Ms. Alvarez, "I had never done marketing and had no idea what to do. I sent books to various women's organizations. At NAPW, several staff women read the book, passing it from one to another, and then contacted me to see how they could help. Naming me 'Woman of the Year' was the first step, highlighting both me and my work in their newsletter and on the website followed. To be validated in this way has been a thrill. My hope is that the article will send women to the book so that they are able to begin a journey of their own that is as life-changing as mine has been."

'Little Nancy: the Journey Home' is one woman's journey back into the childhood she thought she had left far behind, to find the delighted child she had once been because she feared she had lost her forever. Not only did she find that little girl, she was able to integrate her spirit into the life of the adult woman she had become. To help other women begin the same journey, the author has included a fourteen-page workbook with questions, chapter by chapter, so that other women might walk a similar path.

"One afternoon," Ms. Alvarez continued, "after months of suffering with a painful illness, I noticed a picture of two-year old, curious, vibrant little Nancy and thought to myself, 'I wish I could get her back.' That stopped me in my tracks. I moved into my office and sat down at my computer despite the pain. Two hours later, after completing a twenty-page letter to that little girl, I knew I had a book to write. Once I had finished the manuscript, I asked three colleagues to read it to offer me suggestions. Instead of words of advice, they burst through the door with long-lost memories of their own that had been released by reading some of mine. We shared their stories, laughing, crying and learning more about one another, for hours. It became clear to me that day that my journey spoke to other women; writing the memoir had been worthwhile in ways I hadn't even imagined when I began."

A recent Amazon review stated, "Nancy Alverez takes aim and hits the nail right on the head. Time after time in her fine book, I recognized myself, thoughts I had had, problems I had confronted. She clearly defines the influences and times she grew up in, and how they affected her life as a woman, i.e. the kinds of choices she made because she thought she had to. It is an enlightening and moving read."

Nancy Alvarez is available for media interviews and can be reached using the information below, or by email at info@nancyalvarezwrites.com. The newsletter feature is available at the NAPW website at http://www.napw.com/Newsletters. More information on Nancy Alvarez is available at her website at http://www.NancyAlvarezWrites.com. 'Little Nancy: The Journey Home' is available in paperback, Kindle and Nook at her website, Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Nancy Alvarez began writing at Sarah Lawrence College. After graduate school in Russian History she was hired by the Follett Publishing Company to write a book about alternative high schools. Nancy wrote articles for the New York Times Magazine and Cosmopolitan. After moving to Los Angeles, she was hired to write episodes of 'The Waltons' and 'Movin' On' as well as several television movies, including "Sharon: Portrait of a Mistress". Her first novel, 'Ladycat' was published by Crown in 1980 and purchased by Universal Studios to be made into a movie. She started teaching screen writing at UCLA in 1988, going on to teach in the Masters of Professional Writing at USC as well. After moving to Seattle she taught at Bellevue Community College, North Seattle Community College, and Seattle Central Community College. For more than five years she and videographer Dana Scheurholz facilitated video workshops for adjudicated youth in Jefferson and Clallam Counties, as well as for the Port Townsend Film Festival. She continues to teach private screen writing classes in Port Townsend, Washington. She is currently working on a multi-generational novel set in Austria, Poland, New York and New Jersey.