The Next Big Thing

A huge thank you to Arielle Guy for tagging me in The Next Big Thing Blog Hop. Here are my responses:

What is the working title of your book (or story)? The working title is Legion of Matriarchs.

Where did the idea come from for the book?
These poems have lived inside me for generations. They come from the voices of all the women who raised me, from their lives, their stories, their love, loss, shame, and pain. As a southern woman, I'm intimately familiar with the idea of a matriarch, so the poems in this book come from my experiences, the stories I grew up hearing, and the future I hope to see for the generation of women coming up behind me. They also come from the many conversations I've had with women over the years and their stories of how shame impacts their lives.

What genre does your book fall under? Poetic memoir

What songs would be in the soundtrack for your book?
“Closer to My Dreams” by Goapele
"Talk to Her" by India Aire
"Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley
"I Gotta Find Peace of Mind" by Lauryn Hill
"I'll be There For You" by Mary J. and Method Man
"Dead N* Blvd. Pt. 1" by Me'Shell Ndegeocello
"Hypnotic Love" by Maysa
"Southernplayalisticadilacmuzik" by Outkast
"Scandalous" and "Insatiable" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "The Beautiful Ones" by Prince
"Pavane Pour Une Infante Defunte" by Regina Carter
"Angels" by Richard Smallwood
"Mary Jane" by Rick James
"Maybe Angels" and "If It Makes You Happy" by Sheryl Crow
"Functional" by Thelonious Monk
"I'll Take You There" by The Staples
Anything by Marvin Gaye, Al Green, The Commodores
And too many others to list...

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Six generations of women, with Shame" as their general, attempt to navigate life, love, and family politics as if it were a war and their lives depended on it.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I plan to submit the manuscript to contests, open readings, and prizes.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
It took about a year for the first draft. Now the revisions and such? That's another story.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?
Mostly, I was inspired by my niece, Khalia, and all the women in the generation behind me. I also took a lot of inspiration from my nephews, Treavor, Telvin, Cameron, and Connor. Watching them break, bend, and believe some of the cycles they men have been in, both breaks my heart and gives me hope. I write for them, their wives, and their daughters. Basically, many of the poems were inspired by my desire to break the cycles of shame and silence in my family and to give voice to other women who have experienced similar histories.

The poems are also informed a great deal by Sun Tzu's, The Art of War, Robert Greene's, The 48 Laws of Power, the Farmer's Almanac, and a ton of old wives' tales.  

What else about your book might pique a reader’s interest?
Shame is an actual character in the narrative thread. She speaks, threatens, teaches, manipulates, and encourages.

My tagged writers are: 
Cynthia Dewi Oka
Meg Day
Sam Sattin
Ebony Noelle Golden
Vanessa Matir
Remica L. Bingham

Her Story: Book-In-A-Day Wk 6

Title: Her Story
Structure: French Door
Dimensions: 3 11/16 x 7

Another great day for BIAD. Even though I set a record for the longest night for BIAD (4AM), I'm happy I was able to get through it. This is the first book I've done where I used handmade papers (I didn't make them) and my memory of them slowly resurfaced as I made this book. Handmade papers can be so fragile and delicate, especially when you add PVA. 


Watch the video of my process.

Inspiration
This book is a nod towards the start of Black History Month. I figured it was appropriate to bring out the handmade stamps I made a while back when I got frustrated trying to find some that I could purchase. While I don't have any real ties to West Africa, I find myself  drawn to the Adinkra symbols. I'm in love with symbols in general, but these are ones I come back to time and time again. And they keep showing up in my life at random times. 

Most recently, one of my students, Rosa Cabera, created a flyer for a free workshop she's giving here in Oakland. Her hand drawn logo is the "aya" fern of the Adinkra. It symbolizes endurance and is a perfect image for the InkRise workshop she's leading. It's Rosa's flyer that reminded me of the stamps I'd made. 

Her Story takes five of the symbols that show up in my life time and time again and places them in a narrative context that tells my story. Without using any original text, I've attempted to tell my story in a way that I hope will speak to other women who experience the book. 

The French door structure allowed me to arrange the symbols in a way that leaves the flow of the book to the reader. There are infinite possibilities for interpretation. 

Embracing The Mistakes
So this book yielded the most mistakes so far and that was a great experience to go through. It was frustrating at times and caused me to stay awake a lot longer than I wanted, but my BIAD definition of a "day" is from the time I wake until the time I go to bed, so I HAD to get it done for my sanity :-). 

1. The first mistake was in my measuring. For some reason, I just kept measuring things wrong and having to redo and redo. 
2. Mistake number two -- my ink sprays were not working with my handmade stencil and it drove me crazy. I tested four different sprays. Made a new spray and tried it; it didn't work either. Then I tried using paint directly from the bottle with a makeup sponge -- NOPE. Finally, I settled on pochoir (my fav technique) and wondered why in the world I didn't just start with that. BLAH!! 
3. The beads I wanted to use for the "dangle" were too big. Had to find suitable ones. All of my old jewelry making stuff is in the laundry room behind and over and under things. I had to fish it out and that seemed to take FOREVER. 
4. Stamping blunders -- I should have measured the longest word first to see if it would fit on the largest acrylic block I own and on the page, but I didn't and when it came time to stamp the word "fawohodie" my spacing was wonky. Then I had one word "Wawa Aba" that was really two words but I stamped the first word right in the center, which left no room for the "aba". But it's all good and I'm happy with that page anyway. 

But despite all of this, I LOVE THIS BOOK. I'm happy with my mistakes. I consider them the touch of a handmade, one-of-a-kind book. Not to mention, I am so happy that my stamps (after being in storage for so long), got to see the light of day and stamped beautifully. 

I realized in making this book that I really like the effect that embossing has on a stamped image. I embossed the Adinkra symbols with clear embossing powder and LOVE LOVE LOVE the way they came out. 

To see a list of materials I used for this project, please join the free community at givinghands.ning.com. 

I'm looking forward to what next week brings. If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can view the list of materials I use and see more photos). See you next week!!

Midnight at the Oasis: Book-In-A-Day Wk5

Title: Midnight at the Oasis
Structure: Wraparound Pamphlet
Dimensions: Closed -- 4 ²⁄₈ x 6 ²⁄₈
Fully Extended -- 19 ²⁄₈ x 6 ²⁄₈
It's week five and I have complete another book-in-a-day. This journey has already been so much more than I could have expected. Each week I wonder if I'll be able to make another book that I'm pleased with and each week, I am able to create something that I feel really proud of. This week five book is no exception.

Click here for the video of my process.

Midnight at the Oasis is a wraparound pamphlet book structure. I had forgotten about this structure until I had a conversation with my husband about wanting to create a book that could be sewn but where the sewing would not be visible. He remembered seeing a blank one that I made in a class with Julie Chen at Mills College. I had to dig back through my blank book stash and there it was!!

I adore this structure and will likely make a blank art journal to give-a-way in the next Giving Hands give-a-way and, of course, I'll make one to use as an art journal.

So the process for making this book was really organic in that I selected a really old poem and spent several hours reworking it and revising it. Once it felt right for me, I spent some time journaling about the poem to see what came up for me. (Yep, that's my process.)

What came up was something I spend time working with when I have creative clients who can't seem to move past their "block". I don't believe in writer's block or artist's blocks. I do believe that we have creative lulls in our lives and that those lulls can seem like blocks. Exploring that line of thinking made me really go deep to figure out why I don't believe in "blocks" and this book is what emerged from that space.

In the end, this book made it to the number two spot on my list of favorites so far. I think I enjoyed the process so much because of the time I spent revising and thinking about my poetry. 

Other things I realized during the making of this book:

• My heat tool is invaluable.
• The scoring board is a magnificent tool.
• I like shimmery paints.
• Simple can be beautiful. 

One of the biggest revelations I had this week was that I am starting to let go of the implanted idea of perfection that I've had for so long. This book felt freeing (as did all the others I've made so far) and I realized that when I let go of the idea of perfection as defined by others, I end up loving the result much more than I could have imagined. 

I'm looking forward to what next week brings. If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can view the list of materials I use and see more photos). See you next week!!

Urbanite: Book-in-a-Day Wk4

Urbanite cover

Title: Urbanite
Structure: 8 panel accordion with pockets 
Dimensions: 6 x 4 1/4 (closed) / 34 inches expanded

Click here for the video of my process.

This week's book is my favorite so far. I had a great time making it and working with the content that eventually ended up in it. The book is a homage to my journey to Oakland, CA from Jacksonville, FL in 2008. 

Oakland gets a bad wrap from folks who have never lived here. They see images on television or go on what they have heard others say and they don't realize that Oakland is an amazing place to live. But the book isn't really about that. It's actually about how a "southern/country gal" like me moved to the city and found herself. It's about how the city almost broke me during the first two years, but in that breaking, I was rejuvenated in so many ways. 

Urbanite, cards out

Most of my time in the first 24 months here were spent in transit between our apartment, Mills College, San Francisco, and all the places in between. I learned about Oakland from the people I met and sat beside on the bus, the Bart, and the shuttles. They were a huge part of my breaking and my strengthening. 

Urbanite, open spread

Urbanite is an accordion style book with pockets that hold poetic musings about the city and my time in it between 2008 and 2010. I loved the way this book was born out of my process with the book-in-a-day series. When I started creating the pages, I didn't have any content in mind. I allowed the artistic process to guide me and it did. It's not what I had in mind when I woke, but I could not have planned it better. I LOVE THIS BOOK. 

Urbanite, page spread

For more photos and a list of materials I used, please visit the givinghands.ning.com site. 

What I Learned During the Making of This Book:

• all ribbons are not created equal
• mixed media paper and 140lb watercolor paper are drastically different
• typing on a typewriter makes you more aware of each and every letter you're using. It makes you pause and think before you "write". 
• I like rounded corners.
• spray inks are beautifully unpredictable
• staring BIAD at 2:40 in the afternoon is NOT the best idea
• the accordion with pockets might be my new favorite structure (but there's 48 more books to make :-)

If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can view the list of materials I use and see more photos). See you next week!!

Dos-á-Dos Blank Book: Book-in-a-Day Wk 3

Three views of the Dos-á-Dos

I'm really happy about this week's book. I selected a simpler structure this week to give myself time to ease into having to teach and make a book each week. I'm glad I did. This structure, the Dos-á-Dos, is one of my favorite blank books to make. 

The first time I made this book, I was assisting my dear friend, Lyall Harris as she taught a letterpress class at the San Francisco Center for the Book. I've been trying to revisit the structure ever since and this seemed like the perfect time. 

This book reminds me that January is a time for reflection. The two back-to-back signatures give me amazing opportunities for journaling and thinking about the past (2012) and the future (2013). That's what January is all about, right? Reflection, recollection, and reinventing. Well, at least for me that's what happens in January. You know, like the story of Janus. (here's another great source for the story of Janus) 

The video for this week is here. 

The Dos-á-Dos structure has reminded me that:

• art is reflection
• the blank page is an opportunity/an invitation
• thinking about something from more than one perspective can be freeing
• creative moments can be short and sweet (it took me less than four hours to gather all the materials, set up the video equipment, and construct the books)

If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can view the list of materials I use and see more photos). See you next week!!

Abyss: Book-In-A-Day Wk 2

Abyss, 2013

This week has been crazy, but I managed to get the book done on Thursday as planned. The camera and the transferring of the video did not go as well. I've got to get a new camera! That's my first epiphany for the week.

Again, this week's book was an amazing experience. I realized that for the short time I've been making books (2 years), I have thought of book art as a precious product made over time, so this adventure of making one book each week and doing it in a day causes me to really take another look at my relationship to the book art world. Like most subcultures, it has its own set of unspoken rules/ideas/ideals. For a time, I thought I wanted to live right in the heart of those rules, ideas, and ideals, but I'm not sure that's my path. I think I'm more inclined to spread the word about book art and the power of the handmade book. I want it to be accessible to everyone, especially to those who otherwise would not have access to it. A bit idealistic, I know. 

Abyss, 2013 (full page spread)

The book I crafted this week is more along the lines of an "artist's book" in the sense that there isn't any text. The images relay the narrative and just like any good narrative, the story unfolds (literarily). My vision for the book was something different when I started out, but it morphed as I folded and creased each section. Eventually, the book was much more than I had hoped. 

The color scheme was inspired by my first look out the window at 6AM on Thursday when I woke to start the book. I ended up LOVING these colors together and found them tranquil and invigorating at the same time.

I remembered learning this folded structure from one of the teaching assistants in the Mills College Book Art program. Then I saw it again on this YouTube video. It reminded me how much I loved the outcome of the fold and the potential for the 21 "panels" -- the possibilities are endless. 

But I had to remember my lesson from last week -- Keep It Simple Sweetie!!! So I did. No text, just art. And I could not love it more. 

In the end, I created a narrative with the images by mixing and matching the triangles from the original squared paper. Of course each "reader" will bring their own experience to this book and that is one of the things I hope will happen. Click here to watch the video and see my process. 

Other epiphanies:

• time for a newer digital camera that records video
• Thursdays will be the day for BIAD, schedule it and make it so
• still shots can be just as effective as live video (sometimes more effective)
• inspiration can come from the most mundane places
• book art can be both precious and accessible
• week two was easier than week one
• I'm not supposed to be teaching in the videos, I'm creating. It's okay to stay silent :-). 

Next week I return to teaching at the college and I'm excited to meet my students, but I'm also really afraid of what that will do to the BIAD time. It's an experiment right!? And my goal is to prove (to myself) that art and living can happen in the same life.

If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can view the list of materials I use). See you next week!!

Safe Passage: Book-In-A-Day Wk1

HOORAY!!! The first book is complete. It was an amazing experience and I learned so much. More than the learning, it feels great to accomplish something creative and I imagine having that feeling every week of this year will do something to add years to my life :-).

The first book, Safe Passage, is a homage to the journey my husband and I made in 2008 when we sold EVERYTHING we had accumulated in our suburbanite lives and made the trek to Oakland, CA so that I could pursue a second master's degree at Mills College. We both agree that it was the single most defining moment in our lives as a couple.

Not only did we free ourselves from a lifetime of collecting and gathering unnecessary material objects, we shed a great deal of financial stress and unhealthy habits. There were times, during the planning, when we thought we might not be able to make a huge move like that, but we were granted safe passage and our lives have never been richer. 

The first BIAD book uses a one-page structure that features a map of Northern California on one side and uses text from a poem I wrote in 2009 while attending the Voices of Our Nations (VONA) summer workshop in San Francisco. I studied with the amazing poet, Ruth Forman, who had us consider "home" in one of our writing assignments.

That poem, at the time, was about my fear of returning to my hometown for a visit and finding myself unable to leave. Home is comfortable. It's where we can relax and, for me, it's where I am most vulnerable. The thought of being so open and exposed frightens me and so I have mixed feelings about going home. The poem captures that, I think, and does a good job of sharing both the fear and the awe I have for my hometown (Pensacola, FL). 

I wanted the book to give the reader the experience of a long journey, while also entering into an intimate relationship with the idea of home. 

The one page structure allows for two levels of viewing. There's the actual large page when you view it full sized (representing the vastness of a journey), then there are the internal pages that you view as a traditional book (intimately, one city at a time).

The most exciting part about making this first book was the reminder of how much I LOVE TO CREATE things. I think we all can get caught up in the day-to-day of life, but if we pause and take a moment to enjoy creating, it can change our perspective on the day-to-day humdrum. 

So I learned a great deal while creating this first book. The most important lesson was that I am still holding on to perfection as a goal when I create and I've got to LET IT GO! The spontaneous and fast-paced nature of creating a book-in-a-day is something that doesn't allow for perfection, but instead, provides a safe space for intuitive creation. 

One of my goals with this series is to use things I either already have at home or that I can find and get the day I'm creating. That means, no ordering things online and waiting for them to come, no days and days of trekking to multiple art stores to find the right supply at the right price. It means that I've got to use what I have on hand and work with it the best I can. 

I'm up for that challenge because as a mixed-media book artist, I have been gathering and collecting items for far too long. I've got art supplies in this house that I've never even opened. This series of books will give me the chance to use what I've been "saving" or what I've forgotten about. It gives me the chance to explore new materials and try new techniques. 

Other epiphanies:

• digital cameras are man-made, thus, bound to fail
• technical issues are going to happen -- roll with it. 
• I must physically press record on the camera
• it's okay to think about the book (structure & content) ahead of time
• gather all the materials you're thinking about using BEFORE you start making the book -- the morning of works well for that
• consider the size of the book more intentionally
• the grain of the paper really does make a difference
• PVA glue does not last forever in a plastic container
• TRUST THE PROCESS
• editing the video is a part of the process
• keep it simple sweetie
• by the end of the year, I will have 52 prototypes if I want to edition any of the BIAD books!!!!!

I'm looking forward to the next book. I've started thinking about the structure I want to use, but content has not shown itself just yet, but I'm hopeful!

If you're watching the videos, I'm honored! If you're making the books, I'm intrigued, so please post them to the flickr group or on the Giving Hands Creative Community site (where you can get bonus videos, more photos, the text that appears in the book, and the list of materials I use). See you next week!!

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