Spring has been a season of change as I take some time to explore my other artistic roots. While it’s easy for authors to feel guilty about not having a major writing project going, sometimes change is good. So, at the end of January, I flew to Mexico to take a plein air art workshop. http://www.artworkshopvacations.com
Perched at the confluence of a river and the Pacific Ocean, the village of Boca de Tomatlan was the perfect place to recharge batteries and revive my former passion – painting. The workshop was hosted by Robert Masla and Monica Levine, an American couple who offer art workshop vacations in their colorful Casa de Los Artistas.
Harbor, Boca de Tomatlan
Painting of view from balcony
Our teacher, Jim McVicker, a noted Northern California painter, did demonstrations every day, and let us find our own places and subjects to paint. It was an inspirational stay, and I met some lovely artists from all over the US and Canada. One of the painters, Fiona Potter, who also does jewelry, later send me a pendant with the image of my book cover. Thanks, Fiona!
Pendant of book cover
In addition to painting in a number of scenic locations, eating great food and enjoying the sounds of breaking waves, some of us veered off and went zip-lining for the first time – a rather breathtaking experience.
BOOK NEWS: The Coconut Latitudes continues to have “legs” in the U.S. and abroad. I’ll be doing a book reading on April 20th, 7:00p.m. at the Annapolis Bookstore, 53 Maryland Drive, Annapolis, MD. It will be a dual delight because my Maryland cousins will also be attending – the first time we’ve been together for several years. If you have friends in that area, please let them know about it!
Internationally, The Coconut Latitudes was highlighted in January by the Caribbean Books Foundation, and a short story titled “Lost in Spain” that I submitted to “Travel Stories and Highlights” was selected for their 2018 Edition. This U.K. series is edited by Robert Fear, and features writers from all over the globe.
What’s next? I’m off to Southern Sampler Artists’ Colony 2018,
Southern Sampler Artists Colony logo
a week-long “creatives’ retreat” in South Carolina. I’m looking forward to getting together again with Bren McClain, who wrote an award-winning novel, One Good Mama Bone (which I recommend highly), and other writers, artists and creative sorts to experience art and community, Southern style. Who knows what new expressions that will draw forth from us?
May your Spring be full of renewal and bloom with lots of colorful flowers!
As rainstorms shudder against my windows and alternate facts compete with common sense, I’ve often felt like the imperiled dams and rivers in our state: over-filled, overflowed, and thoroughly wrung out.
On the ART FRONT: “Cacophony” is a new juried art exhibition at Kaleidoscope Coffee, 109 Park Place, Point Richmond – March 1 through April 28, 2017. Please join us at the reception, Friday, March 10, 4:00-6:00p.
The book starts with the premise that trauma is a fact of life, one that “literally reshapes both body and brain.” As readers of my memoir know, alcoholism played a monumental role in my family, shaping lives and beliefs for decades. I am thankful for Dr. van der Kolk and all of the healers at the front lines in the battle to recover lives shattered by trauma in its many guises. While the subject is difficult, the book is uplifting and full of hope. I highly recommend it.
From Fear to Freedom: A Memoir’s Journey, an essay I wrote about the (sometimes traumatic) experience of writing The Coconut Latitudes, is included in The Magic of Memoir. A collection of stories by 38 writers of memoir, it was edited by Linda Joy Myers (president and founder of the National Association of Memoir Writers) and Brooke Warner, publisher of She Writes Press. A “memoirist’s companion for when the going gets tough,” it also includes interviews with high-profile writers (including Mary Karr, Elizabeth Gilbert and Mark Matousek) whose inspiring tales shine their own light on the subject. This is the perfect gift to give anyone thinking of writing a memoir. For details or to pre-order, visit the Amazon book link: