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Fly Like a Girl: Launch Party for Kim Jochl’s Book The Aviatrix Slated for Thursday

By Jessica Isaacs | jessica@highcountrypress.com

Have you ever decided to face your fears head on? That’s exactly what local resident Kim Jochl has done, and she’s written a new book to tell her story of triumph. There’s a launch party happening later this week, and it’s the perfect opportunity for you to hear about her inspiring experience.

Jochl, a wife and mother, is the Vice President of Sugar Mountain Resort and a former member of the U.S. Ski Team. She’s also a certified pilot, and now an author.

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Kim Jochl is pictured with her husband, Gunther.

After years of being scared to fly, she decided to take flying lessons in May of 2013 and become a pilot.

“I was scared to fly, so I thought this would help me conquer my fear, and it has,” she said. “Now I understand what’s going on and I’m focused on flying an airplane rather than being afraid.”

As she began her lessons, she carefully kept a journal about the experience.

“In the process, I wrote things down, and that seemed to be therapeutic for me. After every flight lesson, I would write down everything that happened, physically and emotionally how I felt that day and what we did that day,” she said. “I kept those notes with no intention of writing a book.”

When friends and family wanted to hear more about her experience, Jochl turned those journal entries into a narrative to better explain what she went through. Then, at the urging of those who read her story, she began the process of turning them into a book.

“One of the people who read the story format was constantly encouraging me to write a book. At first I said, that’s silly, I’m not a writer,” said Jochl. “Eventually, I said ‘You find me an editor and I’ll turn it into a book.’ I kind of said that half-heartedly, but she found me an editor.”

Jochl worked with her new editor for nearly two years on the manuscript, which she self-published under Wilfred Lee Books as The Aviatrix: Fly Like a Girl earlier this year.

You can meet Jochl and purchase a signed copy at a launch party for The Aviatrix at the Elk River Airport, 643 Banner Elk Highway in Banner Elk, from 4:30-6 p.m. on Thursday, July 21.

The Aviatrix will be available for purchase through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other local retailers on Wednesday, July 20.

“I think the book is unusual. First of all, there are not a lot of female pilots in the world of aviation. Second of all, there are even fewer people who take on flight lessons who are scared to fly,” said Jochl. “Those two elements are what make it interesting and certainly different.”

Visit kimberleyjochl.com to learn more.

 

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