Sydney Avey's Blog, page 5

Women Writing the West: Conference Tidbits

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I spotted this stunning Saguaro on the path at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort that led to the waterfall.

Women Writing the West aims to create a literary explosion comparable to the Southern literary renaissance of the 1930s. Any setting west of the Mississippi River qualifies. Their annual October conference travels year to year to historic Western towns: Tucson, Arizona t...

So You’ve Written a Book, Part 2

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So you’ve written a book and are contemplating the next step. Where to start? Query the agents who have access to big publishers? Seek a small publisher? Self’ publish? Whichever way you go, the “must dos” will fall on your head like fat raindrops.

The joy you felt in creating your work? The strength you built during the critique and edit process? All that confidence pud...

So You’ve Written a Book, Part 1

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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You’ve written a book, found a publisher, and now it’s time to bring your work to market. I understand why some good writers choose not to publish. The learning curve is steep. Behind that beautiful book cover is mastery of marketing know-how and technical skill. Graphic arts are not most author’s expertise. Also, the risk is palpable. Put yourself in the public eye on...

Book Review: The Secret Chord

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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The Secret Chord by Geraldine Brooks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Secret Chord is the fourth Geraldine Brooks novel I’ve read. I’m a fan. I was especially interested when I heard she was writing about the life of David. I wanted to know why he was so beloved of the Lord.

Because Brooks chose to tell his story from the point of view of Nathan the Prophet, we do not get in...

OSF: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

A summer’s day at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival last week was a smoky affair. OSF canceled outdoor performances. A walk through town required an air filter mask. Still, we saw three plays on the indoor stages, each as different from the others as artistic realism is from abstract impressionism. So, let’s compare.

Artistic Realis...

Book Review: The Changeling

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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The Changeling by Victor LaValle
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Changeling is an odd book that explores love, marriage, and parenthood in the context of folklore. Author Victor Lavalle refers to his story as a fairy tale. I’ve always been a fan of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, especially the misdeeds of trolls. The explanation I’ve heard for a child’s fascination with these dark st...

The Wonder of it All

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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Dennis Brown introduces the wonder of relative note and rest values

While the solar eclipse captivated most of America this week, a wonder of a different sort captured my attention. Groveland’s Pine Cone Singers are gearing up for another season. In preparation, Music Director Dennis Brown is teaching the group how to read a musical score. He opened the classes to the p...

Book Review: Waking Lions

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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Waking Lions by Ayelet Gundar-Goshen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Waking Lions is a devastating story about the complexities of immigration, race relations, and justice. At the same time, it is about the human heart in conflict with the cultural heritages that influence how people view their world.

Conflicts between our desire to do right and our instinct to protect ourselve...

Book Review: Journeys, Fruits, Neighbors

Sydney Avey

Dynamic Women — Changing Times

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Before your journeys, read books set in your destination

Maite Gonzalez Esnal pens prose that radiates with love for her native landscape. Translated from Spanish by the author in collaboration with Dala Beld Journeys, Fruits, Neighbors comprises travelogue, personal essay, and memoir.

Esnal draws from her experience living and working in the Basque Country. Her writing...

Book Review: Grief Cottage by Gail Godwin

Grief Cottage by Gail Godwin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Grief is a weighty subject. Being unfamiliar with Gail Godwin, I feared the book might wallow in sadness. I chose to read it anyway because she had been recommended to me as an artful novelist. That she is.

The story gets off to a deceptively slow start. It soon picks up when eleven-year-old orphan Marcus meets his Aunt Charlotte. He quickly learns he must fit himself into her solitary lifestyle.

Dual point of view

The reader benefits from...