Kyle Semmel is known locally as the communications manager for the Western New York Land Conservancy. He’s also the translator of more than a dozen Danish novels.
This month, he joined the ranks of published authors under the pen name “K.E. Semmel” with “The Book of Losman,” a novel based loosely on his own life.
The book tells the story of an American who works as a translator in Copenhagen, shares custody on weekends of his 3-year-old son and enters an experimental drug program in an attempt to understand the origin of his Tourette syndrome, which he fears his son will inherit. Semmel will read from “The Book of Losman” at 7 p.m. Nov. 7 at Fitz Books & Waffles, 433 Ellicott St. Admission is free.
Semmel’s decision to write about the disorder that provokes tics and other involuntary movements – though, for him, not the loud vocal sounds the ailment is most associated with – began earlier this year when a piece he wrote for HuffPost in April drew 725,000 views, putting it in the top 25% of posts on the website.
Semmel, who was born in Batavia, grew up in York, near Geneseo, and holds a master’s degree in English from Kansas State University, recently talked with The Buffalo News about the book and his struggles with Tourette syndrome. He turns 50 on Tuesday and lives with his wife and son near Rochester.
How close are Daniel Losman’s struggles with Tourette to your own?
It is particularly close to how I felt two to three years ago, when I hadn’t had the courage to share my experience with anyone. Now, I generally feel much freer about talking about it.
How is what you experience different from others with the disorder?
I don’t have the kind of urges that others have, where they may shout things or make certain movements that I don’t make. Mine are more controllable, but I still do vocalizations that are more like snorts or grunts. My tics have been a constant, daily presence since I was a kid.
Read the full article here