What inspired you to write your memoir?
I am the owner of a world famous biker bar and have always been asked to tell people about its history. I started writing about my life at Johnny’s Bar & Grill years ago but didn’t really know which stories to tell. When my life got turned upside down by my husbands request for a divorce and then God saved his life and our marriage i knew that was the story I had to tell. I’ve always loved to write and now it is my passion. I’ve already been told by codependents and alcoholics alike that my candid story helped them a lot. What a blessing.
About your Book:
Miracles and Grace in an Unlikely Place reveals the story of the Christian woman who owns Johnny’s Bar & Grill-the historic biker bar in Hollister, California, that inspired the 1953 movie The Wild One. After Charisse Tyson spends six years supporting her husband as he nearly drinks himself to death, his request for a divorce blindsides her sending her on a spiritual odyssey that results in a transformed life. Take a journey to the Birth Place of the American biker with a codependent control freak and her alcoholic husband as they find their way back to God and to each other.
How did you decide how to publish your book and where is it published through:
Because I had such a huge built in market for my book through my bar I decided to self-publish and my editor agreed that it was a good idea. After a lot of internet research I decided on Amazon’s Createspace services. It was an experience I could write another book about and I’ve learned a lot. A friend and fellow author formatted my e-book for me and I released the Kindle version a month before the paperback.
How do you see writing a Memoir as different from writing other genres of books?
My memoir is about a Christian woman running a biker bar and in order to show the difference God made in mine and my husbands lives I had to include stories about where we had been. It is not geared toward Christians but it tells a story of God’s redemptive love. I was very candid and some material would not be suitable for a Christian publisher.
Author Bio:
I’m a Christian woman, married to a recovering alcoholic and I own a famous biker bar. When I bought Johnny’s Bar & Grill in Hollister, California in January of 1996 I had no idea the bar I purchased had such a significant place in history. I did, however, know my husband was a functioning alcoholic. It wasn’t long before he was a non-functioning alcoholic who drank up plenty of the bar’s profits.
I am a bona fide, enabling, co-dependent, control freak, thankfully less now than I used to be. With God’s help I have changed a lot. How did a biker bar owner wound up embracing her Christian roots and turning to God for help with her personality disorder? It went something like this:
In January of 2002 my husband, Tommy, asked me for a divorce. Since I was paying all of the bills, including his charge card debts that ran into the thousands, his request floored me. I went into a tailspin that led me to Alanon, and right into the arms of my loving Savior. Even though I had been miserable for many years, the thought of my marriage ending was more than I could take. Deep down, I still loved my husband. By the grace of God I knew that beneath the sickness of alcoholism my husband was still the loving man I married. But I hadn’t seen that man for what seemed like an eternity.
A Joyce Meyer video on co-dependency opened my eyes to the fact that I couldn’t blame all of my problems on my husband. I bought a bar despite being married to an alcoholic. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see the folly in that. With my eyes opened to my culpability in the mess I found myself in I went on a painful journey of self-discovery that changed my world for the better.
It was not an overnight transformation and the journey was no walk in the park, but I am victorious. I celebrated my twentieth wedding anniversary with my husband who is approaching eight years of sobriety. God is so good.
I believe God’s plan was to use Johnny’s Bar & Grill to transform our lives and the lives of others from the start. Owning a business with such a rich history and so much fame has allowed us to share the miracle of our renewal with more people than I could ever have imagined. Miracles and Grace in an Unlikely Place is that story and more. I explain Johnny’s roots in history as the Birthplace of the American Biker and its connection to the Boozefighter Motorcycle Club.
It was important for me to share the stories about the wilder times in our lives because to fully grasp how far we have come, you need to know where we started. Confessing to my many flaws wasn’t easy but it opened the door to the healing process and my prayer is that Miracles and Grace in an Unlikely Place will help others with the same struggles.
Website(s)
Author Home Page Link
Link To Book On Amazon
Link to Book on Barnes and Noble
Link to Book for sale via other sites
Your Social Media Links
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17840534-miracles-and-grace-in-an-unlikely-place?ac=1
https://www.facebook.com/charisse.tyson.9
https://twitter.com/JohnnysCat
