A Girl Named Eve

I was surprised to find that my latest travel book find,  T he Lost Girls: Three Friends. Four Continents. One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett, Holly C. Corbett, and Amanda Pressner,  was a withdrawn book from the Rockford Public Library. This was a huge mistake on the part of the librarian/staff who had obviously not read the book. It's over 538 pages, almost two inches thick, intimidating considering we live in the age of social media distraction. I had recently bought five other travel books and kept this one at the bottom of the pile for its sheer size. I figured that if I could get through a book this thick I can get through anything, maybe even get around to reading the Bible one day. Little did I know, I inadvertently saved the best for last. The Lost Girls is about three late 20 something New Yorkers who set off on an adventure to travel the world together for one year. From page one I was hooked. I was grateful the book start...

You know how I love to read. Well, I was just so excited and inspired when I came across a variety of artworks created of readers. The artwork spanned centuries and styles, and left me wanting more. Here is just a sample of what I found. Luna By Oleg Zhivetin Crystal Coast Reader By Beth Carrington Brown Reader #19 (large), 2012. Darren Thompson. Oil.  Total immersion … has readin g really changed? Photograph: Corbis Redwood Reader  BY  BRIAN STEWART Mary McLain ”Young Girl Reading” Jean-Honoré Fragonard, oil on canvas, 31 15/16 x 25 1/2 in. 1770 Reading Girl By Franz Eybl. When was the last time you held a book? What was the last book you read? How was your transition from reading paper backs to reading in digital format? Have you made that switch yet?

I've been probing the internet for informative/insightful video interviews of authors, agents, editors. I came across this interesting interview with Marcela Landres, Acquition Editor. Marcela Landres is the author of "How Editors Think: The Real Reason They Rejected You". I'm adding it to my list of must reads after listening to this video. I would have added the video to this page but I wasn't able to. Here's the url to the video below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3p3dy6TEDg There were several important points in this interview including the need for more Latino Acquistion Editors, and the need for talented writers to really hone their craft, and lastly: Buy the Books! Don't share them! Authors don't get paid for readers, they get paid for writers. Links: http://www.marcelalandres.com Recommendations:  The Columbia Publishing Course  BookJobs.com

I missed this year's Comadres and Compadres Latino Writers Conference! It slipped off my radar completely. I'm normally very good about such things. And even better, now that I have come to know and be embraced by a community of writers, they are usually the ones to give me a heads up about upcoming events and submissions. I'll be there next year for sure.  Were you able to attend? The goal of the Comadres and Compadres Latino Writers Conference is to connect Latino writers to the agents and editors who are looking to publish them. The conference centers on three themes: access, guidance, community. Access to publishing insiders who make decisions of who and what gets published and who are desperately seeking Latino writers. Guidance on how to navigate their writing careers from idea, inception to publication. And to foster a Community of like minded writers. Hope to build a nation wide community of authors that will hopefully support each other on their way...

This is also from an older draft post. I've since been part of a show, an extraordinary experience I still have to blog about but I'd thought I'd still post these earlier thoughts. I love writing so just having a story out their in print or online and getting commented on I thought was enough but as I was recently told by an actor, when your story is told on stage its a completely different experience because of the interaction between the actors and the audience. In this play I definitely felt the chemistry. Now and days and even back in the old days it was so hard to make a motion picture. To tell one of our stories would cost thousands of dollars and an experienced Hollywood budget and staff. At CASA 0101 what you need is an idea and some ganas to make your story into a play. And best of all its a community event with a very grass roots feel.

I'm diving into Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees. I don't like to be between books for very long. I found it much of a coincidence that I had heard Sue Monk Kidd's name over three times in one week from three very different sources. My sister lent me some CDs of Sue Monk Kidd's First Light audio book. The second  was in Wayne Dyer's audio CDs on Spitirtual Living. And finally, when I was perusing my brother's bookshelf right next to his infamous political commentary personality I don't want to even mention here, was the The Secret Life of Bees on the bookshelf of my 32 year old brother I asked to borrow the book. A diverse collection of books to say the least. Still though, I felt compelled to read and I'm immediately taken in.

While in Alaska, my family and I saw an bald eagle soar right above our heads. It made us stop, turn, and gasp a deep breath. Later on that same trip, a brown mother (or father) bear walked in front of our bus as we slowly approached our glacier destination. Everyone got up and raced to the left side of the bus almost trampling over each other to take pictures. Both those times my instincts led me to reach for my camera. I didn't succeed with taking the shots.  Thirteen, eleven, and eight years ago, a slimy new born baby was placed on my deflated belly and we both stared into each others eyes for the first time. I have to trust that my memory will preserve my memories for me.  While waiting to board our cruise ship, I took a picture of an ordinary pigeon I saw later that same day to celebrate the ordinary moments. The breath taking moments, I know are irreplaceable and I entrust them to my memory. But among the rare fleeting moments are all the ordin...

Intimate stories about women from the hearts of men. I was anticipating seeing this play since I had first heard of it when it's producer and writer X first mentioned on a producing class I attended at Josefina's Workshops. I liked the idea of men confessing the good and bad influences women have been in their lives. And I wanted to see the full cycle of a development of a grassroots play unravel. From the class it seemed that producing a play is much like planning a wedding. There are plenty of details to watch, and you have to schedule things out months in advance and work backwards to set deadlines such as when the script should be written to the auditioning of actors. It was nice to see this project in completion. From the workshop, I learned about stuff I never would have considered such as differences between union actors and proper budgeting of the smallest details involved The writer x, grew up in a household of 5 sisters, and a supportive mot...

On Saturday, June 26, 2010,  I attended a Writing Workshop Intensive taught by Cherrie Moraga and  Adelina Anthony. My sister is a big fan so I went even though I have yet to read Cherrie's This Bridge Called My Back, Loving in the War Years, or The Hungry Woman. There's other books but those are the ones I really want to read. We did several fun writing exercises. I was relieved that we would have a chance to read and share some of our work. We filled a old conference room. There must have been 30 of us. I counted. Some sat on the floor to listen. I remember a handful of advice Cherrie gave that I committed to memory. Only you can you do. So don't worry about someone else trying to steal our work because what makes it special is us. We all have different stories to tell from different perspectives, tones, opinions. Stay humble. Don't let pride or arrogance keep you stuck thinking that you know it all. Stay humble, stay open. Keep learning. I have no problem ...

When I first stepped out of the hotel on a warm and muggy end of May morning. I wanted to go right back in through the revolving doors of the hotel I stayed at and come back out again as I was unexpectedly greeted with the sound of concrete drilling, traffic of local businesses setting up for the day. At first glance it felt like I flew 4 hours booked a hotel room only to awaken in L.A. Don't hate me New Yorkers. I did end up failing for NYC but it wasn't love at first sight. I found after the fact that I am not the only one who was shocked to find that NYC is not as glamorous as it appears in Sex N City. I know it's nieve but that's just why I was so surprised by my first impression. So when did I fall in love with NYC. Days later after waiting in line with hundreds of people of many different ethnic origins waiting in line to see the city from the top of the Empire States building. And after witnessing the Statue of Liberty and learning about the struggles i...