Greensboro Woman Publishes First Novel

Greensboro resident, Maureen Alley, has published her first novel -- Merlins Tales. Merlins Tales is available through a variety of online bookstores including Barnes and Nobles (www.bn.com), Amazon.com (www.amazon.com), and Books a Million (www.booksamillion.com). The book should be available through most local bookstores in the coming months. Retail price is approximately $19.99.

Greensboro resident, Maureen Alley, has published her first novel -- Merlins Tales. Merlins Tales is available through a variety of online bookstores including Barnes and Nobles (www.bn.com), Amazon.com (www.amazon.com), and Books a Million (www.booksamillion.com). The book should be available through most local bookstores in the coming months. Retail price is approximately $19.99.

Alley, a native of Indiana, has resided in Greensboro for the past 35 years. In the fall of 2000, she undertook a life long desire to write a novel and completed Merlins Tales in the spring of 2002. Shortly after distributing her manuscript to a variety of publishers, Publish America selected her novel for publication.

It was overwhelming to have my first book published. You expect it to take years of refining your techniques and revamping your story for a publisher to select your book. The shock of seeing my book in print it just not starting to wear off but my smile gets wider every time someone congratulates me," said Alley.

Merlins Tales is a take on the classic story of King Authur, Guinevere, and Lancelot. With a modern day twist, the story follows the trio through the centuries reaching the present day. It is an account of the all too familiar setting of a husband who is overly committed to his job, a wife who is shouldering too many responsibilities alone, and a best friend who finds himself torn between lust and loyalty.

Gently led by Merlins guidance, the trio relive a few well-chosen tales from their past to discover that following your heart and trusting in friendship can still repair the worst of situation.

With three grown children and three grandchildren, Maureen has managed to say young at heart and busy. After years of work in industries as diverse as pharmaceuticals, cellular technology, and retail management, Maureen allowed her life long desire to write to blossom.

Even though I am a film/movie fanatic, Ive always found that your imagination is more fully satisfied by a written story. When my children were young, I loved to tell them 'personalized bedtime stories and that was the true catalyst to my wanting to write novels. I always thought I would write a fairy tale book. I guess you could say Ive taken the best of both worlds and written a fairy tale for adults," said Alley.

For further information, please call 919-906-1509, email mfalley920@msn.com, or visit http://www.geocities.com/merlinstales/merlin.html