In the Author Spotlight ...
Aldora Larkins, Author of
Boomer's Worst Nightmare Ike,
A Little of This - A Little of That, and
Grandma's Memories and Misty's Invisible Friends
“Aldora E. Larkins, who has been my patient for almost three years is a gifted, functional person diagnosed with schizophrenia. She has always dreamt of writing and publishing children’s books and books of poems. I have encouraged her to bring to freedom this dream; this is the result of that dream.
It has been a pleasure and a learning experience for me to be working with Aldora.”
- Dr. Gregorio L. Diokno
Author Aldora E. Larkins has lead quite the life - twenty years in the air force, numerous college degrees and now published author - all while living with schizophrenia. An "automatic writer", she now shares her creativity in books of poetry, children's stories and novels.
Aldora spent twenty years in the air force, her first six working as a medical technician. "I was very good at what I did," she says. "My superiors had me working in every department the hospital. I worked in the emergency room and studied to become an emergency medical technician (emt). I also worked on a military aircraft that took care of the sick until the aircraft reached its' destination."
After six years of working in the medical field, the military decided to move Aldora to an aircraft avionic supervisor. "I was in charge of people working on the communications, navigation and radar systems," she explains. This change also allowed her to travel half way around the world.
During her twenty years in the military, Aldora earned an Associate Degree in Nursing and an Associate Degree in Aircraft Avionics Navigation Systems. She also earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. "I have about ten years of college and university credits. I also took some courses in journalism where I found out that I was not a person to write inside of a box. I also worked in in the University of West Florida newsroom as a reporter."
Aldora's children's book, Boomer's Worst Nightmare, Ike, hits on a common problem faced by many children of today - bullying. "In my book, I try to give a child a way out from the bullies and through them that they can face up to bullies without using guns," she says. "There is a dog named Ike, a bull dog, and his two friends - Beeper, a very smart little bird, and Boomer, a dog. The problem is that Ike the bully keeps taking Boomer's food and Boomer is afraid of Ike. Boomer is very sad that a bully is taking his food but he doesn't know what to do about it because he feels helpless. Boomer's friend Beeper sees that something is wrong with his friend because Boomer is getting skinny and he is sad all the time. Finally Boomer tells Beeper that Ike takes his food all the time and that he is afraid of Ike. Beeper tries to help Boomer by giving him some suggestions to help him with Ike the bully."
A Little of This, A Little of That is a book of one hundred and fifty-four poems. "Some of the poems are in abstract writing, Aldora explains. "Abstract writing, to me, is just like looking at an abstract picture. It is up to the individual to think as he/she see fit. Most of my poems deal or speak about love either by nature or physical form."
Aldora has have written over forty plus children books and has almost completed three adult books. "Writing helps me a lot because I am a thinker and thinkers think about everything. With me, I start thinking a lot about nine o'clock at night. I try to think about every solution to the world problems. Writing calms me," she says. She is presently working on her next literary piece called “Mommy Pick Me”.
To purchase any of Aldora Larkins' titles, visit
http://www.atlasbooks.com/marktplc/03203.htm
Return to the Author Spotlight index