City councilman authors book about sunken ship

One picture of a sinking ship piqued Olivier's interest so much, he had to know more.

“I thought, I definitely want to get a book about this ship that sank, the Vestris, and there was no book.  And so I thought, I'll write the book,” said Olivier.

Researching newspaper archives online gave him the facts: Over a hundred people died off the coast of Virginia in 1928.  The ship was leaky and overloaded when it hit a hurricane.  He went a step further, finding songs written about the tragedy as well as old Vestris food menus and luggage tags.  Four years after inspiration, Olivier now has a publication.

“Technology has made it possible for someone like me or anyone to put pen to paper and write something, and get it out there,” said Olivier.

In Detroit, a couple with five children was facing foreclosure.  They used the same tool to publish romance novels.  In less than a year they hit the New York Times Bestseller’s List.

“We're very grateful and humble and we know what a miracle this is,” said self-published author Jasinda Wilder.

Olivier, a former TV news reporter, says he's just glad to continue storytelling, in a different format.

“It's not important for me to get rich off this, it's important for people to hear this story that's never been told before,” said Olivier.

Amazon prints the books as they're ordered and the author makes about 50% of what books are priced.

The “related links” include the create space web site to get started and the link to Olivier’s book.