A photo showcasing local boats, featured in Bono’s book.
Fisher Poet,” much of the scenery and many
of the characters in the Sylvia Avery series
are drawn from people and places Bono has
encountered in her life, such as finding the
name “Sylvia” while visiting Sylvia Beach
Hotel in Newport.
Bono is at work on the sixth installment
of the Sylvia series. She is also a regular
Jan Bono holds up a sturgeon she caught off the Columbia River.
Continued from Page 6
the area.”
“Fisher Girl, Fisher Wife, Fisher Poet” is
far from Bono’s first piece of writing. This
is Bono’s third collection of poetry and 14th
published book.
“Sometimes, I’ll be talking, and some-
thing will come out of my mouth, and I’ll
think ‘Crap! That’s a poem,’” Bono said.
Years ago, while working as a teacher,
Bono suffered an injury that had her on bed
rest for two weeks.
“I started writing op-eds, just 750 words
each, to send into the Chinook Observer,”
she said.
A few months into writing opinion col-
umns, Bono was challenged by a friend to
submit a 900-word romance story into Star
Magazine. She accepted, wrote the story in
one night, and ended up with a published
piece and check from the publication.
“I’ve been a natural storyteller my whole
life,” Bono said.
From there, Bono was urged by family
and friends to grow her career as a writer
even more.
By 2011, Bono had finished two short
books of poetry and six collection books.
“I remember, my mom asked me,
‘Honey, are you ever going to write a whole
book?’”
Following this, Bono penned the first
installment in her famous Sylvia Avery cozy
mystery series, set on the Washington coast,
which was released the same year.
“I love cozy mysteries,” Bono said.
“Cozy mysteries are a genre that has three
no’s — no graphic violence, explicit sex
scenes or obscene language. But (it has)
five yes components — an amateur sleuth
who works with the police department, it
takes place in a small town, has a quirky
cast of characters and there’s a lot of humor
in it.”
Similar to “Fisher Girl, Fisher Wife,
writer for the “Chicken Soup for the Soul”
series and is one of the series’ top five con-
tributors worldwide.
During the pandemic, Bono has contin-
ued safely selling and shipping books from
her home.
“I call my garage my book warehouse,”
she said.
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