Becky Condon
They won’t give it to you, you have to go get it.
Becky Condon is a recently retired airline pilot after over 34 years and more than 21,000 flight hours, a veteran Naval Aviatrix for over 8 years before that, and a longtime wannabe writer.
Becky joined Navy ROTC in college, drawn by a hereditary zeal for patriotism as well as the recruiting slogan, “Join the Navy, See the World.” She loved that image. While searching for her niche in the Navy, she quickly noted that the really cool guys were “going aviation.” Just as this was crystallizing in her mind that first fall semester, the first woman in the world was awarded the Navy Wings of Gold. Becky was done thinking about it and threw all her chips in towards that goal. Asked years later why she wanted to be a pilot, she answered, “Because I thought it would be cool.” For the record, it was.
A full Navy career wasn’t meant to be, so she switched to the airline business. She was lucky in her company choice and her timing. Unlike many professional aviators, she flew steadily for 43 years. She loved every second of every flight hour.
Becky and her husband own and operate a small farm on the side. They’re out of the cattle ranching business for now, but still very much enjoy their space and being stewards of the land.
Since the third grade, where her wonderful teacher was into creative writing, she was encouraged and praised for her skills in that area. All through grade school, junior high, high school, and college, Becky’s grades well-reflected some apparent gifts in that area. When she expressed that she would like to be a writer, she was discouraged about pursuing it as a career, and encouraged that she would need a “day job.” Her dream of becoming a famous writer was put to the back burner while she figured out what to do to pay the bills. She amused herself through the years acing papers for grades, but also writing long letters to family and friends, and contributing to newsletters and such for different groups where she was a participant. Her writing was well-received in the Navy through the many recommendations for her sailors for awards or advancement, writing or rewriting manuals, and many other jobs like those that she was asked to perform.
Becky comes from a large and very close extended family, and what they do for fun at any gathering is sit around and tell stories. In between visits, they write letters that get passed around the entire family who, by her generation, are scattered all over the country. Storytelling is a family tradition. She loves hearing them and she loves telling them. As she got older, she was more and more motivated to write down her stories, mainly by her people remarking, “You really should write a book.”
Her first novel is a legal thriller about neighbors-from-hell who menace a young family who moved to the country. It’s called City Slicker’s Guide To Country Living.
She Flies is her second novel and features a heroine who happens to be a pilot.
Becky has ideas buzzing in her head for other novels, but only a few notes so far. There is a flurry after publication of a new novel, so writing takes a short backseat to launch the new masterpiece, along with reminding readers about the first one. She still has much to learn about marketing and promoting her work, but little by little she tries to get her work out there. While fully and completely retired from her “day job,” she is diving full-time into her first career choice.
It really is possible to have it all. Becky’s advice to youngsters wanting any piece of what she did? “Go get it. They won’t give it to you, you have to go get it.”
You can find Becky on Instagram, Facebook, and at her website: www.BeckyCondon.com.
Buy: SHE FLIES