For Bill Copeland, writing the novel was the easy part. Finding a reputable publisher to present his work to the world was something else.
The Atlanta native conducted research online, networked and joined writer's groups. He came across a small independent publisher in Spain that expressed interested in "Ashes to Vistula," a fictional tale of friends during the Holocaust.
In 2007, Libros International released the 288-page work as well as his second novel about Native Americans, "The Desert People's Trilogy," the following year. Southern author Sandra J. Cropsey praised his debut in a review that appeared on amazon.com.
"Mr. Copeland could have bombarded his readers with one atrocity after another," she wrote, "but instead he carefully controls the story while at the same time giving his readers a glimpse into the misery and inhumanity of the Holocaust enough to remind us that we should never forget history, lest we surely repeat it."
Kathy Copeland, his wife of 32 years, said her husband was particularly proud of one thing.
"He was published, not self-published," she said. "He was thinking all the time and had plenty of stories to tell."
Tuesday, William "Bill" Copeland of Lilburn died from complications of liver failure at Landmark Hospital of Athens. He was 64. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Lawrenceville Presbyterian Church. SouthCare Cremation Society and Memorial Centers of Marietta is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Copeland was born in Emory University Hospital and raised in DeKalb County. His father ran a country store located off Covington Highway. The store was called the "Rock Store" because it was built with granite and the family lived on the top floor.
In the 1970s, Mr. Copeland earned a master's degree in rehabilitation counseling from the University of Georgia. He served as a counselor for probation and parole in Augusta and as an Atlanta-based disability adjudicator for people seeking Social Security benefits. He went into private practice before retirement in 1995.
In 2008, Mr. Copeland won the Taran Family Memorial Award for historical fiction, presented by the Georgia Writer's Association. That same year, the classical music lover was also designated by the association as an author of the year nominee.
Nancy Amestoy used to facilitate a writer's group in Snellville that Mr. Copeland attended.
"I think he's one of the most brilliant people I ever met," she said. "There was never a topic he couldn't talk about. As for his writing, it was so detailed and made you feel as if you were there."
Mr. Copeland didn't start writing until his retirement. However, it had been something he'd talked about since the 1970s.
"It was something that went by the wayside, but 10 years ago he decided to get into it," his wife said. "He went online, met with other writers and learned about publishing."
Additional survivors include a daughter, Lily Copeland of Houston, Texas.
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