It's A Great Time to Speak Up

Sometimes, I look at my timeline on Twitter, and see authors, myself included, squeeing about new book covers, pleading with readers to buy/help promote books, discussing ways to hone one's skills and increase chances of getting published, etc. Usually, this is in the midst of tweets from other parts of the world where people are tweeting about the very real climate crisis, the very real revolutions going on in different parts of the planet, and the very real movements for social justice during one of the most critical times our collective human brain has witnessed to date. In case you missed it, we're teetering on a cusp right now. The decisions we make as a collective can really affect whether we survive. Seriously.

As I've written before, many, many voices and expressions are routinely muted while others are lifted in this society of ours. That's what the Occupy movement is all about. A handful of people make decisions about who gets to sit in the spotlight and how many thousands hold audience in the dark. A limited few perspectives get held up to the light, receive financial support, or are aggressively marketed and amplified. But you know what? We're not living in times where we can afford to wait for someone to give us the nod before we express our thoughts and opinions. One voice can and does make a difference. We've seen it time and again throughout history.

Things are changing--fast. There is access to new technology. Anyone can record and broadcast human rights violations and police brutality as they are happening. Thousands tweeted the eviction of the Occupy Wall Street protesters, despite Mayor Bloomberg's "media blackout." In fact, Occupy Wall Street has morphed into Occupy Our Homes -- taking back hundreds of thousands of empty, foreclosed homes in one of the highest periods of homelessness in this country, ever. Ebooks are widely accepted and read, and are available globally to anyone who has access to a reader, computer, or cell phone. Thoughts, ideas, and information are exchanged with lightning speed over the internet. The balance of power is totally shifting.

If ever there was a time it was more important for people to speak up, to not wait for someone else to provide validation, to throw their contribution into the ring to help shape the future of this little planet under siege, now is it.

Some of my friends have said to me, "Come on. It's not that bad. There are some really great publishers/filmmakers/singers, etc., doing great stuff, no?"

Yes, there are. But they're not the most visible or as widely publicized. And there are not enough of us to compensate for the tremendous imbalance in access and representation. I tell my friends, "If you think things are not 'really that bad,' you haven't been paying attention. Or you've been paying attention to the loudest, not necessarily the truest. Turn off mainstream media for a week and seek out other sources of news and information, then let's talk." Because guess what? We're not supposed to know how bad things are. If we did, we'd all be dropping everything to make it right. We'd unplug from the buying machine, and demand something different -- create something different.

Things are that bad. But the good news is that there is time for change. The U.N. Summit for Climate Change just took place in Durban, South Africa. There are scientists pleading with nations to take responsibility, to implement policies that will reverse some of the damage we've done to the planet, to reduce greenhouse emissions and help steer us toward another path -- a less destructive path. But the most powerful nations on the planet are, at best, not listening. At worse, they are flat out denying that climate change is even real, or even worser, putting the blame/responsibility squarely on the shoulders of poorer nations.

The message is: We don't have to change anything. Things are working fine the way they are. Don't worry your pretty little heads, we got this.

The problem is that things are not working fine for a huge majority of the planet. And that huge majority just happens to be mostly PoC, mostly women and children, and mostly working class.

So, yeah. Now is the time to speak up. Artists/writers/storytellers/musicians have, historically, helped shape the cultures and societies they've lived in. They've served as a voice and mirror for the people. They've entertained, educated, and enlightened.

Folks in positions of power are not about to give their power up. But the rest of us are not completely power-less. If someone won't help you put your book out, you can put it out yourself. These days, the production quality of independently published books is right on par with corporate publishers. Just make your book the very best piece of art you've ever created. Put your expression as an artist, a world citizen, as someone with something valuable to contribute, out there. Release your voice into the world, so that more and more perspectives are heard. Until there is a strong chorus, challenging the same tunes we keep hearing over and over again. Art that supports the status quo is akin to propaganda. Art that challenges and throws the status quo into a new light is creativity. It's dynamic love.

The audience always outnumbers the performers. Participate. And totally squee about books and promote them and buy them. But let's help get more voices out in the mix. It'll completely change the landscape. More people speaking up and putting their perspectives out there is the only thing that will create the kind of change we need right now.


"I write for those women who do not speak, for those who do not have a voice because they were so terrified, because we are taught to respect fear more than ourselves. We've been taught that silence would save us, but it won't." -- Audre Lorde

"Life is very short and what we have to do must be done in the now." -- Audre Lorde

"Say something!" -- Bob Marley

Cover Reveal!

So this is the cover for my new book, coming out in March, 2012. I am more excited and nervous about this one than I have been with any of my previous books, adult romances included.

I've put so much of everything that's important to me into this book and it was the hardest one I've ever written. For one, I wrote it during some of the toughest times Life has thrown my way, so far, as an adult. Finding the time, motivation, focus, and energy to write was often a mighty challenge in itself. And I've lost count of how many times I revised this novel from the ground up. I revised with an agent and two editors -- I'm talking tear-down-the-walls, clear-the-nether-regions, blast-through-rock revisions.

This book is my Little Engine That Could. It's the mountain I climbed because I loved it and because I wanted to see the view from its summit. I still haven't seen the view. I'm waiting for you to read it to complete the picture :).

ARCs should be available late December/early January. If you'd like a review copy, please email me and I'll put you on the list.

*And now, the cover...

*Designed by the fabulous Eithne Ni AnLuain

Grateful, Unsettled, and Cherishing

As we ease on into the (US) Thanksgiving weekend, I am grateful for many things, unsettled by others, and cherishing one or two--the true gems around which my life revolves.

Grateful: for a warm home, loving friends and family, an extraordinary year, new connections with like-minded souls, progress and forward movement in areas both personal, as well as professional.

Unsettled: Thanksgiving is not one of my favourite holidays. It is not as big a deal in Canada as it is here, in the US. And this big deal -- in the schools, in particular, is a real problem for me. I struggle to infuse what my girls learn at school, with a more balanced perspective (see this post for an example). As my girls come home with feather headdresses and songs about tepees and how the Indians and Pilgrims were friends, I wish desperately that they were old enough to read this -- one of my favourite articles about Thanksgiving from a Native American perspective. Instead, I do my best to distill the information and translate it into a five-year-old and eight-year-old vocabulary.

Cherishing: the health of my children and life partner, and the opportunity to wake up every morning and try again to help shape this world into something closer to what it can be.

I wish you all a safe, relaxing, hope-filled holiday weekend.

Had a wonderful birthday. Thank you so much for all the love and good wishes!

For brunch, the hubs hired a chef, y'all. I've NEVER had someone I don't know come into my home and cook for me. Not only did she cook for me, the hubs, and the girls, she cooked for my two brothers, my sister-in-law, and my niece and nephew who were all down from Toronto to help me celebrate. It was a veritable vegan feast (of course, for dinner we went to the all-dairy-all-the-time Indian restaurant to balance out the veganicity). No pics of brunch, sadly. I think I was too stunned when I walked out and saw a young Irish gal wearing a chef's hat in my kitchen.

And to let you know that I was thinking of you, at least during dinner, below are a few of the pics I managed to snap. I didn't get any entree or appetizer shots because I ate all of my dishes before I remembered to pause. But these are the desserts (the pic above was my birthday cake, on the house--a black forest cake with caramel ice cream and crumbled black chocolate cookie), and my Mumbai Margarita (made with real mango juice and a dash of cayenne). Yummmm . . . So far, forty has been very sweet.

The aforementioned Mumbai Mango Margarita

 My brother ordered this delicious mango cheesecake

And this is Mango Passionfruit Falooda with Lemongrass. I know that looks like an egg yolk floating around in there, but it's the mango sorbet (can you tell we're all mango fans?). Yum . . .

Deepavali and A Big Birthday

This Saturday is Deepavali, the Indian festival of lights. The spiritual significance of this holiday is that lamps are lit to symbolize the awakening of the inner light. Some say it's the triumph of good over evil. I say that's basically the same thing. If you're following your true inner light, you know what the deal is.

While we're all stuffing our faces contemplating our inner light this Saturday, I will also be celebrating a big birthday. Those of you who follow me on Twitter or are Facebook friends know which one it is, so I'm not going to announce it here for any and every random drive-by. But I am excited about it, and happy to spend time with family and loved ones, as well as eat everything I can get my hands on (north Indian food is all dairy and butter--with bread or rice, and north Indian sweets are all dairy and sugar. How can you go wrong with that?).

So, because I am celebrating this whole week, I will sign off the blogosphere until after the weekend. Happy Deepavali, everyone!

N~

Blogfest 2009 Continues!

As I mentioned in a previous post, Simon & Schuster is doing their Blogfest 2009. Here is a sneak peek at some of the questions I've answered so far:

What made you start writing?
A: I started writing to give voice to those who couldn’t find the words themselves – to write myself and those I loved into existence in a way...

Have you ever just wanted to give up?
A: Yes, many times. Maybe even on a daily basis. And as soon as I make the solid, no-turning-back
decision to quit...

If you could have any super power, what would it be?
A: I would love to go back and visit my ancestors, and to actually be able to live in their time for a short, definite period. So much of who we are and where we are is because of the decisions the people before us have made...

How has writing affected your daily life?
A: Writing has always been a life raft for me. It is a form of expression that is as necessary as breathing. It allows me to...

Go visit and comment -- and please share your own experiences!

Writers On Writing: Dorothy Allison

I love Dorothy Allison's brutally honest writing. This clip is Dorothy Allison talking about writing Bastard Out of Carolina. I love it, especially, because she talks about the universality of writing in specifics.

I've avoided posting about Michael's passing because I've had mixed feelings. As someone who understands all too well the damage childhood sexual abuse can leave behind, reports of his alleged sexual abuse of young boys were extremely painful to take in. And these were all the more difficult to process, given his numerous medical treatments to alter his blackness and the shunning of that blackness in his life; a life that was so complex and full of extremes in all directions.

But I can't help the tremendous sadness I've felt at the loss of the innocent creative spirit in a little boy whose memory will live on, well beyond our time.

In this video, his haunting acapella solo echoes with sadness and loneliness. It makes me want to tear into the people who exploited and abused a gift so vulnerable and so precious, while shaking (at the least) the man Michael became -- a man who further destroyed that little boy he used to be, possibly in ways he, himself, had been destroyed.

Love these words on discussing race from Nalo Hopkinson...

The little one is out of school. This means that my time is no longer my own until summer camp starts (on which day I shall whoop with delight and dance on our furniture to celebrate being in possession of said Time once again!).

I will update when I can, but it is summer and that means a s-l-o-w hush all across the Publishosphere.

However, I have some reading/signing/discussion events on the horizon and I will be updating with those, so stay tuned! And, of course, the Debs Blog Tour, like the Titanic (or is it my heart?), will go on . . .

*whispers* The other night, H and I got to go out. Like, really out -- it was almost like the old days with loud, thrumming music and sweaty people dancing too close to you.

Except this was not a night club. This was a show. And it was one of the most amazing experiences, ever. If you're in or around NYC, you MUST check it out. It is called Fuerza Bruta (Brute Force); it is participatory, active, and you are visually and audio-ly (auditorily? earily?) hyper-stimulated throughout, but not in a bad way.

On the floor, we -- the observers/participants -- were young, old, gay, straight, white, brown, male, female (someone even brought their young children, though I wouldn't recommend this, personally) and we all had the same "seats." The lights were out most of the time and it didn't matter how much you owned or what suit or shoes you had on. During that performance space and time, we all had to move around the stage ("stage" being a relative term referring to conveyor belts, people dangling from cables in the ceiling, and sliding through giant plastic pools above our heads) as we became part of the set. We watched the characters breaking out, breaking free, yelling, pounding and screaming their way through the disconnect in life.

Here is one of my favorite bits from the show...



And here I am jumping up and down like I still have the knees of a teenager...



Big fun. Seriously -- next time you're in New York...

On Writing and Balance

One of my favorite book series ever is the Darkover series by the late Marion Zimmer Bradley. I read each of those novels in one sitting. Seriously. Loved them.

It's no secret that I am a HUGE fan of feminist fiction -- whether obviously stated as such by the author, or a label the poor author has to tolerate from me. In any case, I went back to MZB's site tonight (a habit -- I re-read books I fell in love with, and wander over to websites of authors who once stirred that passion within me, when I want to remind myself of why I began writing in the first place).

I am a firm believer in the whole, "knowledge speaks when the student is ready" thingie and I believe this to be true about the timing of books and other reading materials -- that they show up when you need them to. So, tonight I rediscovered MZB's thoughts on "wanting something badly enough" and it put a lot of things into perspective for me.

I realized that, although writing (and seeing my books in print over a lifetime) is my dream and goal, I am not willing to sacrifice certain things to achieve it. My goal, more than anything else, is balance. And writing books is a part of creating that balance. The other things are my relationships (primarily with my husband and children), my personal growth and evolution, my health (emotional, physical, spiritual), community service and involvement, and being an active contributor in the world as we spin toward a common goal.

I'm sure there are things I am missing, but what's important to me is not being able to "do it all." It's that all of these things work together in a harmony, blending and flowing to create the same tune -- one that represents who I am and what I care about most during my time here.

Writing is certainly one element in the symphony, but it is equal in importance and weight to all of the others.

After brunch with some Debs and Tenners, I met up with this awesome blogger I've admired for some time now. Ms. Awesome Blogger is a fun, warm gal and we had a grand romp through Union Square, the farmer's market, Whole Foods, and the Strand bookstore.

I got to sign copies of SHINE where it is housed in the bowels of the Strand bookstore, and bought a whole bunch of things (books, food, knick-knacks for the kiddies, BOOKS) that I had to lug around all day until my dinner date with one of my oldest and dearest friends.

All in all, a fantastic, satisfying day. As insane and neurotic as this business sometimes makes me, meeting amazing new people and reconnecting with old friends brings me back to what we're all really here for: connection and love.

Now holding on to that realization as I muddle through WIPs that I just can't crack, and good news that's taking FOREVER to get to my ears is the REAL challenge. *SIGH*

Have a fantastic day, all!

I've been researching for my WIP and needed to find wise teachings from different parts of the world. Here are some awesome African proverbs H sent me to help out...

"He who is being carried does not realize how far the town is."

"It is not what you are called, but what you answer to."

"Send a boy where he wants to go and you see his best pace."

"The lion does not turn around when a small dog barks."

I can apply every single one of these to just about every area of life (especially writing life!), can't you?

The Great Spirit of the Life Force In Action

Yesterday, H and I visited a friend who'd just given birth by C-section to twin girls. The girls came two months early. I immediately thought our friend had them early because she had been under some stress -- they say stress can bring on early labor.

But she said, "No. It turns out that Gemma [one of the twins] was beginning to lose out on the amount of red blood cells she needed because the other twin was taking them all. So, Gemma started the process of getting out of the womb fast in order to save her own life."

The doctors gave our friend some of the strongest medication they could find to stop the contractions, but nothing would stop them. Gemma was bound and determined to live. And she was going to find her way out into this world, doctors and their strong medications be damned.

Go, Gemma and Sasha!! You are fighters and you are both meant to be here and thrive. And you have an amazing, loving Momma waiting to help you on your path.

The whole experience of seeing these two tiny (just over two pounds each), squirming little lives fight so hard to come into this world -- to do the work they are meant to do and have the experiences they're meant to have, was more inspiring than anything any adult could say to me.

Walking into a hospital is always humbling, anyway. It puts things into proper perspective for me. It is sacred space. It is where Life and Death happen. And this visit was especially heart-opening. I got to see the great spirit of the Life Force in action.

Thank you Gemma and Sasha.

Grr. I had no idea this week was a three-day week until yesterday morning. So, everything I planned to do today and Friday has been completely ixnayed. Which means the writing? It suffers. SIGH. But such is the parental conundrum.

In the good news section:
~ I am, rather quickly, getting over the latest virus my kids brought home. HATE being sick. Not only does it get in the way of doing things, it gets in the way of eating things -- way worse.
~ Jackson Pearce posted a very cool and hilarious list of reasons why everyone should read SHINE.
~ A lovely woman whom I have taken to calling Awesome Librarian reviewed SHINE here. I was particularly drawn to this line, "Samar is a beautiful, hope-filled character." Yes! That was SO what I was hoping to get across. And I just love that Awesome Librarian put SHINE in the context of two other books about teen girls grappling with issues of self-esteem and body image (one of them is fellow Deb Sydney Salter who I just spotlighted!!) -- issues that are very near and dear to my heart. Two books I plan to read immediately. Librarians totally ROCK the casbah, man.

So, given the three-day weekness in the air, I shall bid you all adieu until Monday. You Canadians might be off then, but those of us south of the health care border will be working away. And *I* especially, will be working toward my long-awaited Toronto launch next week!! Sqeeeeeeee!!!!

I believe jewelry is more than just personal adornment. I think the ancients knew about the different properties of various gems, metals, and minerals, and how each of those affect the body's energy systems. They then used these gems and metals and minerals in varying degrees to add or remove energy from the body to balance health, the psyche, and to draw or repel both events and people so that we, as a whole, could continue to evolve optimally for the benefit of all.

At least that's what I believe.

So when H came home and told me someone he works with makes handmade jewelry, my eyes lit up like shooting stars. He asked if I wanted Yin to make anything for me. Even before the sentence was out of his mouth, I lunged at the opportunity. This is what she made for me (and I'm SO touched that she named the piece SHINE, COCONUT MOON!)

I wanted onyx and moonstone, specifically, for the launch because those stones are the yin and the yang. Onyx is the void -- the receptive, intuitive faculty and moonstone is nurturing, calming, balancing. Together, they work to form a quiet sort of power and assurance that is perfect for things like launches and presentations.

But Yin took it one step further. She added heart. A lot of it. She added details that I never would have thought of, took the time to grace the piece with a little of her Self and whispered magic into each bead.

Now it is my Speaking Necklace. Whenever I'm to stand in front of a crowd and speak the Truth as I know it, I wear this necklace for balance, strength, and as a reminder to stay connected to what's inside. The weight of it, lying gently against the seventh chakra is a reminder to not be swayed by illusions and to reach into the Wise Dark for what's real, especially with my eyes open to the outside world.

For more info on Yin and Lelimelo, her hand-made, one-woman-show jewelry spot, check out her blog and website. She's absolutely wonderful and you can feel the difference when you're wearing one of her unique pieces.

Spring!

The SHINE Trailer Face Off continues through today until 11:59 pm, but I wanted to butt in here to share this. It's finally Spring!

Every time I drive by the house on the corner with all the crocuses pushing out of the cold earth, I'm reminded of how lovely, fragile, and resilient Life is. And how there is always hope and grace. Even after the darkest, coldest of times. Maybe especially after the darkest and coldest of times...

Happy Spring, everyone!

Aaaaaand, we're back.

Today, I hit the ground running -- having to wake my cells up at the most un-Godly hour of 7 a.m. and getting the kids to school. They, of course, were asking reasonable questions like, "Why do we have to wake up when it's still night time?"

Why, indeed.

The break was a much needed balm for my tired and weary self. I got to reassess and regroup and resuscitate. But most importantly, I got to remember. I got back in touch with what's real and True and important, and all of that re-discovery is glowing in my solar plexus region, warming me up for the next few months. I'm stepping into this upcoming year with a clearer sense of what I need to work on in myself to make Me a way better person. SO important to do that every now and then, isn't it?

In other news: now that it is 2009, we are officially in Debut mode for the Feast of Awesome. I will be hosting the 2009 Debs Blog Tour here throughout the year. First up will be Stacey Jay with her debut novel, YOU ARE SO UNDEAD TO ME, coming out on January 22nd.

In the meantime, I will be working on new projects and finely tuning lingering ones. What about you? What will you be working on?

What I Learned Last Weekend

What I learned this past weekend is this:

there are people who wait for success to bring them joy. And then there are people who allow joy to bring them success.

It was an epiphany-ish moment for me because the first part of that sentence so accurately describes two people I love very much. They've been waiting for this thing called "success" for most of their lives. And you know what? They're still waiting. For some reason, Success has never come calling. Every time they think they're close, it slithers out of their grasp. It's a shape-changer, that Success.

And then I meet these people on the road of Life. These people who are just honestly alive and happy in almost any given situation. They exude a kind of warmth and generosity and . . . honesty. And people gravitate toward them. People want to be around them, want to do things for them.

These people are living their success now, reveling in each and every moment that rolls their way.

I'm trying hard to become more like them and less like the first part of that sentence. I challenge you to do the same for the rest of today, maybe even the rest of this week.

-N.