MacGougan at Large
Notes on Other Substacks - 2
Andrea Ezerins - The Magpie’s Quill
Andrea Ezerins is a longtime friend and colleague. For decades, we both worked for a company with the unlikely and Dickensian-sounding name of “The Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company”. She started off as a clerical assistant to the large-account marketing department and ended up being one of the company’s chief underwriters. I started out as a trainee underwriter and ended being one of the company’s new product developers. So we both know a thing or two about commercial lines property and casualty insurance.
Not that you could tell that from either of our Substacks. Apparently we were either both tired of insurance or we deduced that the general public might not be particularly interested in the subject. We both write primarily about other things.
The main character in Andrea’s book, “Again and Again, Back to You” does spend some portion of her life working at an insurance company, but I think it’s fair to say that insurance isn’t integral to the plot in any way.
I have a self-published book on Amazon called “The Promise Behind the Promise - or Pride and Prejudice and Reinsurance”. And Yes, it’s a retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in a reinsurance company. It’s also pretty much an object lesson in the perils of making insurance integral to the plot of a novel. I’ve sold about 14 copies in a world where a mash-up of Pride and Prejudice with anything else - up to and including zombies - pretty much guarantees a best-seller.
Andrea calls her Substack “The Magpie’s Quill” (here’s a link: Andrea Ezerins) and uses her platform to pull back the curtain on her experiences transitioning into a new career as a writer - not just the writing, but all that goes into getting published and getting her book successfully launched.
Andrea is a very smart woman who still manages to write from the heart. Her book and her Substack are well worth reading. She has a second book coming out next year that I’m eagerly awaiting.
I had the privilege of reading a proof copy of “Again and Again, Back to You” and managed to catch a few typos. For my service, Andrea listed me as a co-author told me that I needed to buy the book once it was published at the full market price.
Empathetic novelist, yes - but still in touch with her no-nonsense, corporate underwriter persona.
As someone who has now subscribed to the substacks of both Mark and Andrea and read Andrea’s book, I’m feeling the shiver of new literary horizons. At least I think that’s what I’m feeling.
Having considerable experience with reinsurance (though admittedly none whatsoever with Jane Austen), I’m looking forward to reading Mark’s book. It’s gotta be more interesting than the real thing.
PS to Andrea: The MacGougan Bump sounds a bit like the “dead cat bounce” (i.e., even a dead cat will bounce if it falls from a great enough height). Maybe it’ll be better though.
Oh, absolutely delightful! Another sublime ending. Great job on embedding the link. So easy once you know the secret.