K.R. Gastreich's Blog, page 23
February 16, 2015
Towards a More Positive Take on Sexuality
Gustav Klimt, ‘Danae’ (1907)
Those of you who follow my blog know that I am not one to buck the trend – preferring as I do, on most occasions, to skirt the trend entirely.
This was my intention with respect to 50 Shades of Grey, released for the silver screen this past Valentine’s Day weekend. Not having read the book, I decided long ago I had few contributions to make to ongoing discussions of the novel’s style or content. It’s also true that I’ve been a strong proponent of a more open approach with respect to sexuality in our stories. For whatever reason, 50 Shades seemed to be providing an important release for a lot of women across the country. Who was I to complain?
Still, I’ve been unable to work up any interest in reading the book, and I’ve found myself strongly averse, on a very instinctive level, to seeing the movie. When Rosie Waterland’s review of 50 Shades of Grey started circulating last weekend on the internet, I felt myself vindicated. More than vindicated, I’ve been moved to share a few thoughts of my own.
Sexuality, especially women’s sexuality, has been a central theme of Eolyn’s story since I started the series. So important is this idea in the tradition of the Magas that I invented a word solely for this aspect of the sacred feminine: Aen-lasati.
Literally translating to “the fire within”, Aen-lasati captures the deep mystery and intense power of one of the most revered rites in the life journey of a practitioner.
Aen-lasati is about sensual pleasure, but it is also very much about respect. Why our society should ever foster a disconnect between these two, pleasure and respect, is beyond me. Like Rosie Waterland, I find it deeply disturbing that sexual freedom would be coupled in any way with an emotionally abusive relationship, as Waterland has judged it to be in the movie 50 Shades of Grey. A woman cannot experience freedom with a man who is emotionally abusive and dangerously possessive. Any argument to the contrary is simply delusional.
The Magas of Eolyn’s world (and, in the best of their traditions, the Mages) understand this. From the time they are children, aspiring practitioners are taught to respect Aen-lasati as a gift from the Gods. “Respect” does not imply prohibition, denial, or abstinence. On the contrary, to respect Aen-lasati is to live one’s sexuality to its fullest, even to take on multiple partners if one is so inclined, but above all, to experience intimacy in an environment free from emotional abuse and psychological manipulation.
That’s not to say all the characters of Eolyn’s world are able to achieve this ideal. Indeed, the subculture of the Magas exists inside a strongly patriarchal society that strives without ceasing to keep women under tight control.
Yet setting up a healthy and open approach to Aen-lasati as the ideal from the beginning makes an important difference for Eolyn and all the women she comes to love and teach. When abusive relationships manifest themselves in Moisehén, there are no shades of grey. There is only the tragedy of a woman misused, and the insidious dark magic that taints everyone because of it.
If you’d like to know more about Aen-lasati, please visit my guest post “The Magic of Love and Desire” on author Tracy Falbe’s blog.
February 13, 2015
Love is Free
This weekend only, Hadley Rille Books is opening the doors to its very own Love Shack, offering all of its Kindle short stories free, and reducing prices on many of its novels. Eolyn and High Maga are available for $0.99 in their ebook editions, and the short story Creatures of Light can be downloaded free of charge.
If you aren’t familiar with these works, I’m providing brief descriptions below. Now is a great time to dive into Eolyn’s world, as the third and final book of the series, Daughter of Aithne, will be available within a year.
Heiress to a forbidden tradition of magic, Eolyn struggles to define her own path in a world largely ruled by men. Her journey celebrates the sacred feminine and calls into question the patriarchal structures of her world. The stories are written in the tradition of epic fantasy, but they take many of the tropes of the genre and turn them on their heads. In the first two books of the series, Eolyn achieves great triumphs and suffers tremendous losses. Where will book three leave her and the people she has come to love? You will have to start reading to find out.
Check out Eolyn and High Maga. This is a great bargain, and it will only last this weekend. If $0.99 is beyond your budget, by all means at least download Creatures of Light and the other free stories from Hadley Rille Books.
To get everyone in a lovin’ sort of mood, I’ve embedded the video “Love is Free” by one of my favorite modern magas, Sheryl Crow, at the end of this post. Wishing all of you a great Valentine’s Day Weekend!
Sole heiress to a forbidden craft, Eolyn lives in a world where women of her kind are tortured and burned. When she meets Akmael, destined to assume the throne of this violent realm, she embarks upon a path of adventure, friendship, betrayal and war. Bound by magic, driven apart by destiny, Eolyn and the Mage King confront each other in an epic struggle that will determine the fate of a millennial tradition of magic.
“Vigorously told deceptions and battle scenes will satisfy fans of traditional epic fantasy, with a romantic thread.” – Publishers Weekly
“Magnificently written.” –Kindle Book Review
War strikes at the heart of women’s magic in Moisehén. Eolyn’s fledgling community of magas is destroyed; its members killed, captured or scattered. Devastated yet undaunted, Eolyn seeks to escape the occupied province and deliver to King Akmael a weapon that might secure their victory. But even a High Maga cannot survive this enemy alone. Aided by the enigmatic Mage Corey, Eolyn battles the darkest forces of the Underworld, only to discover she is a mere path to the magic that most ignites their hunger.
“War propels the book forward, and the characters are at their best when the events engulfing them are at their worst.” –Publishers Weekly
Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Kobo
Meet Selenia, a brilliant and ruthless woman scientist, and her lover Nicolas, intrepid explorer of uncharted lands. Together, they bring a world of wonder to the port of Talagna, but not without exacting a price. Dare to follow this unconventional romance in a brutal and gaudy age. Available as a Kindle short story or as part of the Hadley Rille Books anthology World Jumping.
“Beautiful. Rich. Ruthless.” -Amazon Customer Review
Amazon
February 10, 2015
Stories and Giveaways
I’m up on Heroines of Fantasy this week. My contribution to Love Fest 2015 is the short story ‘Turning Point‘, which first appeared in the 2008 winter edition of Zahir: A Journal of Speculative Fiction. It’s a magical adventure about a tropical entomologist who nets a handsome faerie. Visit Heroines of Fantasy to read it now.
In other news, the Masquerade Crew is running a giveaway for the audio edition of HIGH MAGA, narrated by the wonderful Darla Middlebrook. Visit their site if you’d like to register to win a copy.
This weekend, Hadley Rille Books will be offering free downloads for several of its Kindle short stories. Lots of romance to keep your Valentine’s Day weekend burning bright. Included in this offer will be my short story Creatures of Light – kind of on the dark side, but romance nonetheless. To browse other Kindle titles from Hadley Rille Books, visit their web site today.
That should give you enough places to go and things to do for the moment, so I will stop distracting you here. Thank you for visiting. I’ll be back with more news soon.
February 2, 2015
No One Can Live Without Love
Gustav Klimt, “The Kiss” (1908)
Nadie debe, nadie puede, vivir sin amor.
This is a line from a song by Argentinian musician Fito Paéz. Roughly translated, it means,
No one can or should live without love.
In a world where vitriol, cynicism, and the sheer sport of cutting down the ‘other’ seem to be fashionable, it’s hard sometimes to keep track of this simple but enduring truth.
Lately on Heroines of Fantasy, we’ve been busy endorsing the positive aspects of community. Mark Nelson set that tone in his first post for the new year. He was soon followed by Kim Vandervort’s very insightful reflections on The Art of Civility, and Terri-Lynne Defino’s reminder that we are all in the same boat with her post about the Misfit Myth. Love, of course, is part of the recipe for a more supportive and productive community; and love will be our theme on Heroines of Fantasy for the month of February.
Within the genres of fantasy and science fiction, love is often relegated to the realm of the tangential. It might be included as a reward for the hero once he’s finished with the “real” business of the plot. We say “love story”, and images often come to mind of endless streams of penny novels with cardboard characters and predictable plots. Love is perceived as fluff, adornment, a plot element without substance, a topic not worthy of true literary attention.
I may be setting up a straw woman here, but the truth is, I’ve run into these attitudes a lot; I’ve even recognized them in the way I myself have stereotyped certain genres. Yet in my own journey of writing and reading, I’ve come to this conclusion:
Love is the single most important experience we can write about.
That’s not to say our stories shouldn’t contain other very important elements, but when push comes to shove, if we want to make our characters real, we must allow them to love.
Love is at the core of the human experience, eliciting a host of other emotions ranging from ecstasy to despair. Love brings out the best, and occasionally the worst, in all of us. Love is not always romantic; there is love for siblings, offspring, friends, parents, family, strangers, pets. . . The list goes on and on. Love for our enemy has the power to transform the world.
February is the month of love, and we at Heroines of Fantasy invite you to celebrate with us in style. Starting on Monday, February 2, our contributors and reviewers will share stories of love, romance, triumph, and heartbreak from the various genres we represent. The full schedule of festival shorts will be posted on the right-hand bar of the blog. Join us as we honor the greatest of human experiences, and please share your own stories and thoughts with us along the way.
To get everyone in a Love Fest kind of mood, here’s that song I mentioned earlier, Amor Despues del Amor, written by Fito Paez and interpreted in this video by Miguel Bosé. It’s an old video, but a good song. Kick off your shoes and dance, and while you’re at it, help yourself to the virtual champagne and heart-shaped cookies at the back of the room.
Let Love Fest 2015 begin!
This post first appeared on Heroines of Fantasy, January 30, 2015
January 26, 2015
On Connections and Castanets
Sargent John Singer, “Spanish Dancer” (1879)
There are several aspects of flamenco that have bedeviled me since I first started studying the dance form a few years back. One of these is contratiempos. The other is the use of the castanets. Last week, I had the opportunity to tackle both in an intensive workshop with the Escuela de Flamenco Paulina Peralta in Costa Rica.
Contratiempos is a way of playing with the “off” beat of a melody. It’s tricky because our natural tendency is to gravitate toward the beat of a song, not to the “off” beat. Understanding contratiempos is closely tied to the use of the castanets since both are, fundamentally, about the rhythms of flamenco.
Early in the workshop our instructor Paulina Peralta shared a piece of wisdom that resonated with me. Roughly translated, it went something like this:
Right now, the castanets are not a part of you; they are something foreign, outside of yourself. In order to play the castanets, they have to become a part of you.
We don’t often think explicitly in these terms, though I expect anyone who has studied music with a passion understands what Doña Paulina was saying. We might think of musicians as having “mastery” over their instrument, but it’s also reasonable to say that the musician and the instrument are a single entity. Neither is complete without the other.
As things go in the long winding road of my mind, these reflections on the relationship between musician and instrument reminded me of an ongoing conversation we have in the context of science: the question of the investigator’s relationship to the subject of investigation.
Many feminist scholars have dedicated themselves to understanding “objectification” in science. By separating ourselves from the study subject, controlling and manipulating it, scientists seek to understand it. And by understanding it, we come to control it further.
This is not an inherent way of practicing science. In other words, it’s not the only way science can or is or should be done. Rather, objectification of the study subject is a result of a particular value of the dominant culture in which science has developed over the last 400 years.
By separating ourselves from the other (in this case, nature), we come to understand and control it.
How different this is from the proposition made by my flamenco teacher, that it is impossible to understand ‘the other’ until we let that ‘other’ become a part of us. Here, the idea of “control” is replaced by a principle of interaction. By becoming one with the castanets, understanding is reached and music is made.
Many feminist argue that the influx of women into science has to some extent altered the culture of science. As anecdotal evidence, I like to look at the history of my own field, ecology. In the 1960s, when ecology was dominated by men, competition was considered the single most important organizing force of ecosystems. As women began to enter the field, they brought new perspectives, new questions, and even new ways of asking the old questions.
Concurrent with this, we enjoyed an extraordinary expansion of our understanding of the natural world. By the time I began my graduate studies in the 1990s, the “hot topic” pendulum had swung from competition all the way to the other extreme, mutualism. At a recent conference, I saw a young woman ecologist point out that there are a variety of interactions now recognized as fundamentally important in shaping communities and ecosystems. Diversity of perspective has allowed us to better understand diversity itself.
My students from the Native American and Pacific Islander Research Program often come from cultures that emphasize connection & interaction over objectification & control. As a result, they may find themselves at odds with the acculturation process of science, sometimes for reasons they don’t quite understand. As mentors and coordinators, we try to encourage our students not only to conserve their cultural values, but to allow those values to influence the way they practice science. Our time with them is a brief moment in their lifelong path, but one that I hope has a positive and lasting impact. Not only on them, but on the scientific endeavor as a whole.
Connection and interaction are also important in the path to understanding. Who knows what we might discover, if we honor these values in all our endeavors?
I’m going to close today with something fun: the interpretation of La Boda de Luis Alonzo by Lucero Tena and her castanets. (And yes, these two have been making music together for a wee bit more than 10 hours…) Please take a moment to watch this; she is really a phenomenal musician. I know you will enjoy the show.
January 19, 2015
A Sabbatical Wish List
Purchasing tortillas and tamales in Heredia’s central market.
Well, it’s official. This week marks the start of classes at Avila University, and the beginning of my spring 2015 sabbatical.
The question I’ve heard most often over the past few weeks is: What do you plan to do for your sabbatical?
Truth be told, my number one priority is to follow my own rhythm. 2014 was an overcharged, overpacked year, and my body and mind need some attention. Exercise, rest, recuperation, on all levels emotional and physical.
That being said, I’ve set several professional and creative goals for the coming months. Here’s the master list:
Finish my third novel. Daughter of Aithne is so close to being done, it’d be kind of embarassing to come away from my sabbatical without being able to say I managed to send a completed manuscript to my editor. Right now I’m polishing the opening chapters with my writers group, while simultaneously drafting the final chapters (of which it looks like I have about 6-8 left). I’m still hopeful we’ll be able to get this novel out to readers by the end of the year. Rest assured, I will keep you posted.
Lay the ground work for an anthology that documents the first ten years of the Native American and Pacific Islander Research Experience (NAPIRE) Program. Those of you who have followed me for a while know about my long involvement with this initiative, dedicated to encouraging Native American and Pacific Islander students to pursue careers in field ecology. Program coordinator Barbara Dugelby and I plan to put together a volume that documents both scientific and cultural achievements of the program, with contributed chapters from past program participants, students and mentors. As part of this project, we are organizing a symposium for the annual meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, to be held this July in Hawaii.
Develop a proposal for a global health minor at Avila University. After attending the Conference on Global Health in Latin America and the Caribbean last November, I came away with the idea that global health would be a great match for Avila University, with its strong tradition in social justice and its growing commitment to global and international studies. This semester, I would like to research global health offerings at comparable universities. Based on what I find, I will put together a plan for implementing a global health minor at Avila.
Translate Creatures of Light to Spanish. Not that I have a tremendous amount of confidence in my translation skills, but this Kindle short story is brief enough that I’d like to at least try my hand at making it available to Spanish language readers.
On a more personal note:
Quality time with my husband. Rafael and I be spending the sabbatical together in his home town of Heredia, where we lived for eight years before I accepted my current position at Avila. Words are inadequate to capture how much this means to me.
Hiking, camping, and related adventures. National parks, mountain retreats, and beaches are all on our wish list. We will be undertaking wilderness expeditions both in Costa Rica and in the United States, and you’ll hear all about it right here.
Flamenco in my free time. As it turns out, Costa Rica has a fair number of flamenco studios, and I intend to take advantage of them. The fun begins this week with an intensive workshop on castanets, taught by Paulina Peralta at the Centro de Artes Promenade.
Okay. Enough dreaming. Time to get to work. . .
January 14, 2015
The Joy of the Critique Circle
I’ve recently re-discovered The Next Big Writer, an on-line work shop for aspiring and established authors of all genres.
I’ve never been all that fond of the name, but the platform has been very useful for me in terms of polishing and improving my work. Eolyn was workshopped in its entirety on tNBW, and multiple chapters of High Maga also received critiques there.
Sometime during the writing of High Maga, I drifted away from tNBW. I began working with some of my critique partners outside of the platform. Other valuable reviewers with whom I interacted at tNBW were called away by various life and publishing projects. There was a lull in the virtual writers hut, and new partners weren’t turning up to replace the ones who had moved on. In short, tNBW wasn’t offering a whole lot for me in the moment, so I signed off and sought other avenues for feedback on my writing.
Last November, as I was heading into the final stretch for this third novel, I received notification that tNBW had launched a new site. I stopped in to check it out, and was duly impressed. After taking advantage of a month-long free membership, I committed to the long haul by registering as a premium member.
As a writer, I thrive on two levels of critiques. One of these are the beta reads, when you send your completed manuscript to kind volunteers who are willing to slog through the whole thing and give you their honest opinion.
Before the beta read, I also like to have the chapter-by-chapter critique. Not everyone opts for this, but chapter-by-chapter works really well for me. As my reviewers progress through the book, their questions and criticisms help me to draw clearer connections between where a particular chapter is coming from, and where it is heading. I especially like it when reviewers say something I disagree with, because it forces me to think, to critically examine my own line of reasoning and make sure the story fits together the way I intend. And of course, if reviewers like the story, it always inspires me to continue.
A critique circle also gives one the opportunity to view other works in progress. I have read some great stories in my different critique circles, made greater still by the opportunity to banter with the author about characters and events as the novel progresses. In addition, as much as I learn from other people’s critical reviews of my work, I learn even more by critically reading and reviewing the works of others. For everyone, it is a win-win situation.
During my journey as a writer, I’ve participated in critique circles both on-line and in-person. I’ve gone from group reviews to one-on-one exchanges and back again to the group. Every step of the way, I’ve found my fellow writers’ feedback helpful. If I were to give just one piece of advice to aspiring writers, it would be this: Find a critique circle that works for you.
~*~
Some excellent posts have gone up these past couple of weeks on Heroines of Fantasy. Mark Nelson started off the year with a thought-provoking reflection on the need to refocus our dialogue in the SFF community. Kim Vandervort followed up this week with some additional insights into the art of civility and the business of writing. Please take a moment to read them both, as I think they set an excellent tone for the year to come.
We also have two new book reviews, Guardian by Jo Anderton and Time Heist by Anthony Vicino.
January 5, 2015
The Importance of Heroism
Happy New Year!
I hope you had an enjoyable holiday season. I’m feeling rested and refreshed from a lovely time with family and friends. My husband and I were reunited after several months living in different countries. My brother came into town with his family, and my nephew was home from college. All in all, we had much to celebrate — and celebrate we did!
Now the season is fading, and the New Year getting under way. Many of my colleagues will be back in action at Avila University starting on Monday. I’m trying to decide when to take down the Christmas tree, and prepping many things for my upcoming spring sabbatical in Costa Rica. I expect to have much to share with you during 2015, and I look forward to your company along the way. :)
Over the holidays I continued reflecting on my favorite books of 2014. Rising above them all, as many of you probably remember, was Guy Gavriel Kay’s The Lions of Al Rassan. Along the way I discovered that I’m not the only person who compares Kay to that other great story teller, George R.R. Martin.
When comparing two story-telling titans, who comes out on top really boils down to certain personal preferences. Both of these authors appeal to me because they write tales that communicate a sweeping expanse of history. They craft rich and complex cultures, plots packed with intrigue, and characters who are well-rounded and beautifully flawed.
Yet when all is said and done, as much as I admire Game of Thrones, my vote for the better story goes to The Lions of Al Rassan.
One element of Al Rassan that appeals to me is its treatment of heroism.
Heroism can have many definitions. The most inspiring kind of heroism, in my mind, is a sort of day-to-day heroism, in which ordinary persons rise above a landscape of human failures and cruelties to remind us of the best in all of us. This type of heroism is not necessarily accomplished by slaying a dragon or charging into battle. It’s accomplished through kindness and service given to others, sometimes at great personal risk.
Heroism is the capacity to reach across boundaries of culture and conflict toward a place of compassion and better understanding. On an individual level, it will rarely change the course of history in one fell swoop, but it almost invariably changes each of us as persons. It lights our way with hope and gives us companionship in the darkest of times.
One of the many things I’ve learned from Kay’s work is that I really really like to see this kind of heroism in my stories.
Westeros, as richly imagined as it is, has little patience for heroes or heroines of this sort. As one advances through A Song of Ice and Fire, it becomes increasingly clear that kindness will get the characters nowhere. The more vile the person is, the more likely he or she will win the game. Characters who begin with some sense of honor eventually learn they must set this aside in favor of ruthless cunning and a thirst for vengeance. They must do this or they, like Ned Stark, will perish. (I suppose I should mention at this point that my analysis is strictly limited to the novels as originally written; the HBO series has tinkered with the story, introducing plot lines and characters that soften this aspect of the saga.)
I know we live in a cruel world, and as a reader I never look for books that deny this. But we also live in a world of hope, in which there are countless small acts of heroism every day. I like to see this aspect of human nature celebrated in our fiction, just as much as I like to see the dark side exposed and dissected. For me, the greatest tales reflect the full range of human nature. Al Rassan is one of those great tales. It’s the kind of story telling that I aspire to.
December 22, 2014
Peace on Earth, Good Will to All
I’m settling in for a very nice holiday. The whole family is in town for Christmas, and that of course makes these days extra special.
Fans and followers of Eolyn know how very important Winter Solstice is for the mages and magas of Moisehen. One of my favorite chapters in the first novel covers the events of Winter Solstice at Mage Corey’s estate in East Selen. Corey’s carnival-like celebration is a new and daunting experience for Eolyn, who until that time has known Winter Solstice only as a quiet vigil of shared stories and spiced wine, enjoyed with her beloved tutor Ghemena.
In Eolyn’s world, Winter Solstice can be observed as an intimate family event or as a great festival, but however practitioners choose to celebrate, it is always a time of deep magic. Magas and mages weave their spells together through song, dance, and sometimes more intimate rites, in order to bring the sun back from the Underworld and maintain the balance of the nature.
Balance is the ultimate goal of Eolyn’s journey, and it has proven a difficult goal indeed. Eolyn has survived two novels worth of war, oppression, and conflict. The third novel, now in progress, brings us to the final game, with the highest stakes and the greatest losses as Eolyn and her cohorts struggle to overcome history and attain a lasting peace for the Kingdom of Moisehen.
It’s funny how the prayers of the real world often flow into the worlds of our imagination. In this holiday season, I find myself wishing Eolyn and all her people peace, just I pray for peace in ours.
Of course, one might argue that as an author, I have much more control over whether this dream is realized for the Kingdom of Moisehen than any of us do over the fate of peace on Earth. Yet through the trials and epiphanies of this past year, I have reaffirmed my belief that all of us contribute to the peace (or conflict) of our times in small but significant ways.
So here is my prayer for you, and also for myself: that each of our paths to peace will be revealed in the coming year, and that we will find the courage to walk the paths that are given to us.
Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and most of all, peace for you and all those you love.
December 15, 2014
HIGH MAGA now available in audio book
The cover of the audio edition of HIGH MAGA features the same spectacular art work by Thomas Vandenberg.
I’m a little late on posting this news, but it’s true! You can now enjoy High Maga narrated by the extraordinarily talented Darla Middlebrook.
Darla, who also narrated the audio edition of Eolyn, did an amazing job with this second novel, though it represents a much darker journey than its predecessor. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Darla again, and I couldn’t be more pleased with her work on this novel.
Visit Amazon to listen to a free sample. You can purchase your copy from Amazon or iTunes. Even better – download it for free with a trial Audible membership.
Shortly after the new year, I’ll be organizing a blog tour to celebrate this release. Stay tuned for that, as there will be activities, giveaways, and a series of posts that reveal the inside story on the writing of High Maga and the production of the audio edition.
For those of you unfamiliar with the novel and its narrator, I’ve posted a blurb about both below. I hope you will consider purchasing the audio edition for yourself or for a friend. This is a great way to discover the adventure and magic of Eolyn’s world.
HIGH MAGA (audio edition)
Karin Rita Gastreich (author), Darla Middlebrook (narrator)
Lands ravaged. Dreams destroyed. Demons let loose upon the earth.
War strikes at the heart of women’s magic in Moisehén. Eolyn’s fledgling community of magas is destroyed; its members killed, captured or scattered.
Eolyn seeks to escape the occupied province and deliver to King Akmael a weapon that might secure their victory. But even a High Maga cannot survive this enemy alone. Aided by the enigmatic Mage Corey, Eolyn battles the darkest forces of the Underworld, only to discover she is a mere path to the magic that most ignites their hunger.
“War propels the book forward, and the characters are at their best when the events engulfing them are at their worst.” –Publishers Weekly
“A must read for any fantasy lover.” -Amazon Customer Review
About Darla Middlebrook
With experience of 34+ years as a Speech-Language Pathologist, more than 20 years as a stage & film actor and over 20 years as a trained singer with knowledge and insight into the mechanics of the voice and speech, Darla Middlebrook brings a wealth of experience to bear to develop character voices (male, female, mature, extremely elderly, creepy, bright exotic, etc) with an impressive emotional range.
Currently, Darla is one of many voice actors who narrates podcasts for AIRS-LA (an audio internet service for individuals with visual challenges) in addition to narrating audio books. She is able to produce retail quality audio books from her home studio in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan – Canada.
Darla’s Web Links:
Website: http://www.darlasvoice.net/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/damiddlebrook
Twitter: @GypsyCatVoice
