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The result is a new soft cover publication entitled, Hope for Carsonville: A Daughter's Memoir. Artist Jim DeWildt painted the cover portrait of Hope Quinlan from a photo that Hartman showed him.

"I only had three pictures of my mother. I'm her eleventh child and she had ten kids at the time of that photo. I showed it to my friend Jim and he painted it. He did a great job of capturing her," she said.

"There were twelve kids in our family. A baby died before I was born and then my (older) brother, Butch, died when I was nine years old. He was electrocuted. Butch worked as an electric company lineman. Back then they didn't investigate much. To this day we don't know if he leaned on a live wire or if he had a heart attack and died," Hartman recalled.

Hartman is scheduled to sign copies of Hope for Carsonville: A Daughter's Memoir at Fort Gratiot's Barnes & Noble on Sat., Oct. 13, and will be reading and signing books at the Sanilac District Library in Port Sanilac on Mon., Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.

Hartman is one of the children of Bill and Hope Quinlan, who resided in Carsonville during the 1950's and 60's. Her engaging memoir is funny and bittersweet as it harkens back to the family's life in small-town Sanilac County and tough-but mostly happy-times for the Quinlan clan. The stories revolve around Hartman's mother Hope, her sometimes unconventional approach to parenting, and her battle with the bottle.

Hartman's writing saga coincided with a family rite of passage

"As my oldest daughter McKenzie went off to college, I panicked. Did she know enough about my family? I wrote my first story then. I was going to write as many stories as I could, bind them, and give them for Christmas," Hartman said.

Initially, she was concerned about her lack of writing experience.

"Someone can fix your errors and mistakes," a family member told her. After her first few stories were complete, she shared them with her siblings.

"My brother Tony said ÔKeep going.' He felt it was a great story of unconditional love and not just a family book. My brothers and sisters were all supportive. They were excited for me and surprised. They feel like it's an honor to my mom. My oldest brother said, ÔYou're bringing her back.'"

Hope Quinlan passed away 25 years ago.

The writing ended as abruptly as it began.

"One night I woke up and she (the little girl) wasn't there, so I figured I'd emptied my head and there wasn't anything more I needed to write. The story was done. I was 47 when I started and it took me three years to complete. I went back to Carsonville. I could look in the windows and see the great times that happened in that house," Hartman recalled.

Hartman is still completely amazed at how her family's story came to be published.

"I went to a class at Northwest Community College; a writing seminar. At the end was a panel and you asked questions. I said I had a great manuscript and how could I get it published. They said that one hundred rejections was normal," she stated.

Hartman called one of the panelists, editor Susan Bays, the next week.

" Susan said it wasn't a good time; that she was behind. When I sent the manuscript to her she was too busy, but her husband read it." He loved the book and suggested it should be published.

"I thought it was a joke, Hartman said of her reaction to the editor's congratulatory call.

Hartman resides in Suttons Bay where she continues to work as a hairdresser.

The other nine Quinlan "kids" are spread out all over Michigan. Erin's siblings live in Traverse City, Keego Harbor, Grayling, Roscommon, Kalkaska, Fort Gratiot, Kingsley, Bay City, and Interlochen. Her 84-year-old Aunt Eileen, who still resides in Carsonville, said of the memoir, "It's the best of my recollection. You've told the truth. Life is a stadium and we all have a different seat."

Hartman's currently working on another book about growing up in the Thumb Area.

"When I grew up in Carsonville, it was the warmest, friendliest community you could find. Everywhere you went, some adult patted you on the head and actually listened to what you had to say," she added.

The Quinlan family home, which figures so prominently in the memoir, still stands near the Carsonville Hotel.

"We lived at 44 S. Main Street. They just started remodeling it. It has a new front door and new siding, "she noted.

"I attended Carsonville schools until the ninth grade and Deckerville for 10th and 11th grades. My family had moved to Palms and I graduated from Deckerville High School in 1975. I moved to Flint after graduation and attended Mott Community College. On my twentieth birthday, I met my husband Randy Hartman, in Flint.," Hartman explained.

The couple moved to Chicago where she owned a beauty salon.

"I put him through podiatry school. The day he graduated we came back to Michigan. We've been married for 30 years," she said. The Hartmans have three daughters, McKenzie, Bryanne and Morgan.