 Linda Collison’s writing has appeared in a variety of magazines over the decades, beginning in fifth grade when her article about General Mordecai Gist won the Maryland Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution essay contest. Linda and her husband Bob Russell have written two guidebooks and have sailed thousands of nautical miles aboard their sailboat. The three weeks they served as voyage crewmembers aboard HM Bark Endeavour inspired the acclaimed YA historical novel Star-Crossed. Her short fiction has won awards from Honolulu Magazine, Southwest Writers, and the former Maui Writers Conference. Her creative nonfiction received an award from the National Student Nurses Association.
Blue Moon Luck (Maui Writers Grand Prize) Water Ghosts Foreword Reviews Indie Book of the Year finalist 2015) Looking for Redfeather (Foreword Reviews Indie Book of the Year finalist 2013) Star-Crossed (NYPL Books for the Teen Age – 2007) Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure Series (Adult Historical Fiction) Barbados Bound; Book 1 Surgeon’s Mate; Book 2 Rhode Island Rendezvous; Book 3 Colorado Kids; a statewide family outdoor adventure guide (with Bob Russell) Rocky Mountain Wineries; a travel guide to the wayside vineyards (with Bob Russell) Short fiction: Friday Night Knife & Gun Club (a dystopian fictional memoir from the night shift) Saturday Night Knife & Gun Club
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“I was born in Baltimore but I keep moving westward. These days I call Colorado and Hawaii home. I’ve raised children, worked more than a decade as a registered nurse, taught skydiving, studied history, and sailed many nautical miles with Bob, my husband.
I first knew I wanted to be a writer in second grade. But then again I wanted to be a lot of things — including a musician, an actress, an oceanographer, a horse trainer, a dancer. My mother warned me against being a jack of all trades! The cool thing about being a novelist is you can be anything you want, you can try on different lives and have a go at different careers — all through your fictional characters.
With my husband Bob Russell I wrote two guidebooks: Rocky Mountain Wineries; a guide to the wayside vineyards, and Colorado Kids; a statewide family outdoor adventure guide (Pruett Publishing, 1994 and 1997). Rocky Mountain Wineries was my first published book; we had a blast researching it! We traveled all over the Rocky Mountain states one summer, in Bob’s 1984 Corvette, seeking out wineries and tasting hundreds of hand-crafted wines.
I began writing for publication just out of high school. I sold my first article in college and have had a fair number of articles, essays, and short stories published over the years. Like other writers I’ve gotten my share of rejections but I’ve also received some writing awards from Honolulu Magazine, Southwest Writers Workshop, National Student Nurses Association, and Daughters of the American Revolution. In 1996 I was awarded the grand prize from the erstwhile Maui Writers Conference for my contemporary novel, With a Little Luck (which, ironically, had no luck at all) My articles, essays, short fiction and poetry have appeared in a wide variety of magazines and literary journals, but I’ve always had my “day job”. Or night job, in my case…
I spent more than 13 years as a registered nurse, mostly in Emergency and Critical Care (with a stint in psychiatric nursing and oncology), teaching skydiving on the weekends, pursuing a second degree in History, studying French, traveling whenever possible, and writing for magazines as a sideline. I’ve also worked as a waitress, shoemaker, film processor, gas station attendant, volunteer firefighter — and I spent two weeks skinning tomatoes with migrant workers in Carroll County Maryland. Time travel I learned on my own!
I met Bob Russell skydiving, a sport we enjoyed for many years. Together Bob and I have sailed many nautical miles on tall ships as well as aboard our own 36 ‘ sailboat Topaz. I like writing about the life I’m living at the moment — and the many different lives I imagine.”
I’ve always been a writer. Whatever I’ve done in my life, I’ve written about it. As you can see, it’s been a composite career, a patchwork, entrepreneurial life. Through it all I’ve written. And still I write.
Publications
Collison, Linda. Rhode Island Rendezvous; Book Three of the Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure Series. Jersey City: Old Salt Press, 2017. Historical fiction.
Collison, Linda. Surgeon’s Mate; Book Two of the Patricia MacPherson Nautical Adventure Series. Tucson: Fireship Press, 2011. Historical fiction.
Collison, Linda. Water Ghosts. Jersey City; Old Salt Press, 2015. Fiction.
Collison, Linda. Looking for Redfeather. Steamboat Springs: Fiction House, Ltd., 2013. Fiction.
Collison, Linda. Doin’ Hard Time in Raiatea. Cruising World; March, 2009.
Memoir.
Collison, Linda. Star-Crossed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006.
Mass market paperback edition; Laurel Leaf, 2008.
Historical novel, chosen by New York Public Library to be among the
Books for the Teen Age – 2007.
Collison, L.S. “Paradise: On the edge and slipping.” Short story. Awarded runner-up in
Honolulu Magazine’s 22nd annual fiction contest. March, 2005.
Collison, Linda. Close Encounters. Sail; September, 2005.
Memoir.
Collison, Linda. Back to Tikehau. Sailing; March, 2002.
Memoir.
Collison, Linda. Miles to Windward. Sailing; October, 2001.
Memoir.
Collison, Linda. Three Weeks Before the Mast. Sailing; February, 2001.
Memoir.
Collison, Linda. New World Eden. Chaminade Literary Review; Spring/Fall 1999/2000.
Narrative poem.
Collison, Linda. Perfect Stranger.
Awarded second place in Literary Short Story Category Southwest Writers Workshop
16th annual conference; September 18, 1998.
Collison, Linda and Russell, Bob. Colorado Kids; a statewide family outdoor adventure
guide. Boulder: Pruett Publishing, 1997. Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. “With a Little Luck” Fiction. Awarded grand prize at the Maui Writer’s
Conference, 1996.
Collison, Linda and Russell, Bob. Rocky Mountain Wineries; a travel guide to the
wayside vineyards. Boulder; Pruett Publishing, 1994. Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. Surviving Mauna Loa. Hawaii Magazine; February, 1994. Memoir.
Collison, Linda, R.N. What Nurses Know (and doctors don’t tell you.)
Ladies Home Journal; Dec. 1994. Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda R.N. Hyperbarics; When pressuring patients helps. RN; March, 1993.
Technical.
Collison, Linda, R.N. Was Mrs. Jimenez Bewitched – Or Just a Crazy Old Lady?
Nursing93; April, 1993. Essay.
Collison, Linda. Confessions of a DZ Manager. Parachutist; January, 1992. Essay.
Collison, Linda. Paradise Found. Caribbean Travel and Life; March/April, 1991.
Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. Belize City Sanctuary. Caribbean Travel and Life; Sept./Oct., 1991.
Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda, R.N. When to Take Your Baby to the Emergency Room.
American Baby; November, 1990. Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. Surviving the AFF Jumpmaster Course. Parachutist; March, 1990.
Non-fiction. How-to.
Collison, Linda. A Common Ground. Woman’s World; July 25, 1989. Short story.
Collison, Linda. Skydiving in Tandem; the newest way to learn.
Rocky Mountain Sports and Fitness; July, 1988. Non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. Brazil Hosts First Tropical Boogie. Skydiving; January, 1987.
news article.
Collison, Linda, R.N. Heartbeats, and Scanner II; a publication for the employees of
Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Medical Center. Numerous articles and essays 1985-1991.
Collison, Linda, R.N. So You’re Working Nights… RN; July, 1984. Essay.
Collison Campbell, Linda. Rite of Passage. Imprint.
National Student Nurses’ Association; April, 1982. Awarded 3rd place
Creative non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. Diabetes – a Challenge for the nurse & client. Accepted for publication in Caring Practices, the Newsletter on Nursing the Elderly Patient. NY; Procter & Gamble.
Collison, Linda. Touch Me! Nursing Assistant; National Newsletter for Nursing
Assistants; December, 1981.
Collison Campbell, L. introspection. Westering; vol. IV; Spring, 1981.
(Eastern Wyoming College; Torrington, WY.) poem.
Collison Campbell, L. playground. Westering; vol. IV; Spring, 1981. poem.
Collison Campbell, L. En Route to Rock Springs. Owen Wister Review
(University of Wyoming) Spring, 1980; Vol. III number 2. poem.
Collison Campbell, L. Great Frontier. Owen Wister Review.
Spring, 1980; Vol. III number 2. poem.
Collison Campbell, Linda. The Message. Grab a Nickel; fiction and poetry from
Barbour County Writers’ Workshop; Spring, 1978. short story.
Campbell, Linda and Phil. Wildlife is where you look for it. Wyoming Wildlife;
Wyoming Game and Fish Commission Publication; June, 1978. non-fiction.
Collison, Linda. A Grocery Store is No Place for a Cat. The Acorn. Fall 1976
Volume 1, number 2. children’s story.