My thanks to Koehler Publishing!

I would like to thank Koehler Books for taking a chance on publishing my memoir, “For the Love of Russian Gold”.  I can’t convey how thrilled I was when they agreed to publish my book.  I have been working on my manuscript for years and finally my dream has come true – I am no longer a writer – I am an author!   The whole process was seamless, exciting and most enjoyable.  The Koehler team was professional, extremely talented, as enthusiastic about the book as I am, and always there for me when I needed them. They jumped on any issue I had and resolved it immediately.  I was also treated with great respect and got along famously with the team members designated to me and John himself. I always felt “in safe hands” and trusted them completely, which is so important when publishing your first book.

I would like to thank Hannah Woodland, the Senior Editor.  Hannah immersed herself in my story, which is an intricate tale of chasing the world’s largest secret gold reserve in Siberia, as well as a personal account of abuse at the hands of the man I loved.  Her questions were pertinent, and the final edit produced a fast-paced, accurate account of my “roller-coaster ride to wealth” in Russia and its good and shocking ramifications. 

My enormous thanks also to the very talented Catherine Herold, Illustrator and Designer.  She persevered with me when I asked her to add text after text to my story due to today’s rapidly evolving events surrounding Trump and Putin.  We also had a great Zoom meeting and Catherine understood the exact cover I was looking for.  She produced four fabulous covers, but the one that won the most votes captured the true essence of my “three-pronged” story – Russia, gold and heartache, all at the hands of puppeteers.   In fact, the cover is so brilliant, I believe it has been submitted for the Kohler awards of “best cover”. Go Cat! 

Big thanks to Adrienne Folkerts, the Publishing Associate.  Adrienne did a tremendous job listing the book for sale on all the platforms and coordinating the book’s publication.  You fixed all my issues quickly and were there for me whenever I needed you. The communication was brilliant.

Finally, an enormous thanks to John Koehler.  You are truly inspirational and my hero.  I thoroughly enjoyed our Zoom meeting (albeit at 6am my time!) and our further communications.  You were very positive and encouraging, although you did offer some constructive criticism of my author website – when you saw my photo, you emphatically exclaimed, “Put some clothes on!”.  We all had a good laugh.  I absolutely adore your sense of humour, as a day without laughter is a day wasted, to quote Charlie Chaplin! 

My image from my website www.ludmilamelnikoff.com.  More or less clothes?  What do you think?

And a special thanks to my co-authors who made time to read my memoir “For the Love of Russian Gold” and write a review.  I chose co-authors who themselves wrote poignant memoirs about their or someone else’s life.  As John said – you are “cool cats” and  your reviews are greatly appreciated.

My co-authors are:

Holly Mares, author of Dream, Girl

Ward V.B. Lassoe, author of Diane: True Survivor

Marie Newman, author of A Life Made From Scratch

Laurinel Owen, author of Strings Attached

Jennifer E. Hassel, author of Badass Grief: Changing Gears, Moving Forward