A Walk Down Review Lane

Pre-pubublish review

February 21, 2017

“From the tear-jerker of a “dedication” holding a plethora of names and a collection of emotions, to the comedic porcelain Queen, I began my journey through the poems of a friend. Onward I travel. Through the erotic innuendo-decorated alleyways inhabited by a woman who can slay without killing, holding the gift of a little death in her hands. As I meander, I glance in the windows built by words. I inhale scents, savour tastes and catch the occasional glimpse of a soul once fractured that lives in the memory of this extraordinary poet. I even recognised someone I met once.

Mercedes Lewis runs the gamut of emotion in this, her debut book. The poet hopes to take us, the readers on a journey. She does … but it is one urged, compelled and inspired by her own journeys. This is what makes a poet worthy of being read. I’m so glad I took the time to take a trip with Mercedes.”

Chris Parsons, Poet

The Lesson of The Beads

I am thankful for so many things in this life. Sometimes, little things remind us of just how much we have to be thankful for!

The other day, while frantically looking for something else, which, by the way, I did NOT find, I stumbled upon this beautiful scarf. The beautiful, cream colored, beaded, silk scarf is a gift from a dear friend. Although I have yet to meet Georgi of Edinburgh, Scotland face to face, I count her as a very special friend.
Georgi sent me the scarf for my birthday, many years ago. It came is a nylon protection bag, into which I have always carefully placed it after wearing it. Except for evidently , the last time I wore it. Needless to say, I stopped what I was doing to reunite the scarf with its bag.

As I began to inspect and fold the scarf I noticed that the beads on both of the scarf were all tangled up together. I began trying to untangle them, following, and weaving each strand, I thought, back to its proper place. I figured out rather quickly that I was making a bigger mess, and possibly about to ruin my beautiful gift. Frustrated, and not wanting to damage it or lose any of the lovely beads, I held it up for closer inspection. As I did, one of the strings of beads, the first one on one side fell loose, and, to my surprise, the two ends of the scarf separated! Each end though was still a tangled mess. Holding the end, I began to gently shake the scarf. As I did, each row of beads gently swayed, detangled, and fell into place. Wow. Such a simple action. Such a gentle motion.

I am thankful for the lesson of the beads: Take it easy, don’t force it, and things WILL fall into place.

Now. Where did I put that darned bag! LOL

Mercedes Lewis
©2018

Talkin’ Story

Something beautiful to reflect upon

 Aloha to all who stop by!  Thank you for your patience and interest, and again, my apologies for being absent for so long.  I had church in the pool this morning. At least, my version of church, in water, communing with nature, myself, and my Creator. Talkin’ story. Checking in. It was great. The choir, a murder of crows in the big tree was kind of off key, but, I”m sure they may have been thinking the same thing about me.

I got some answers.

I have not written a word in months. Not even one little short, silly poem. Truth be told, I have not read all that much either. Today I was looking for the real reason(s) why. …aside from my regular reticence and self-doubt. When I evaluated it, I was surprised to say the least at the outcome. I had PTSD! A new one, not the one from the military.  Maybe I shouldn’t label it(I hate labels) PTSD, but I have certainly been disconnected, adrift, and more than a little depressed. Part of that has greatly to do with the current state of our nation, but I will NOT get into that! The other, more personal part, is that I miss GCLS, and feel disconnected. Yes, I know I used that word earlier, lol.  I have been involved with GCLS since its creation practically, and have been a volunteer or board member in some capacity since probably 2006. I was instrumental in creating the ConVirgins, and did all of their curriculum and planning until they were returned to the responsibility of the directors of membership. I suppose that was only fair, since that is the capacity I was serving in when Lori, Val and I brainstormed the concept.  …and the ConDucks. all mine! I am not sharing this for accolades or pats on the back. I am sharing to show how invested and enmeshed I was in the organization. How much of my life, and daily thoughts the organization was. So, when my tenure ended as Director of Events, it did not occur to me that I would go through anything like this. I thought I would be relieved to be relieved(see what I did there) of those long meetings, and planning, and listening to members share their feelings, negative and positive. I mean, who would miss all that! LOL  Well, me. I must now find a way to feel more connected to the organization that I love, and the many friends I have gained world-wide by being a part of the organization.

So, there you have it. I’m not saying that I will be writing a novel, or long blogs, or even that there will not be another long lapse, but, at least, for me, I have identified a great part of the issue.

The other part?   Grandmother(ancestors) visited during church and reminded me:

1.  We have lived through worse and made it out okay.

2.  Tomorrow always comes, for someone.

3.  This world is not my home, stop wasting time.

4.  It will ALL be okay.

5.  Do my part and live in today; not yesterday, or tomorrow.

Thank you, Grandmother, and thank you all for stoping by!

 

Saints and Sinners Deux: The Adventure Continues

I believe I told you before that I was going to the Tennessee Williams Festival, and the Saints and Sinners Book Festival in NOLA. I also told you that it was such a rich experience that I would have to do it in parts. Well, this is the next part. I’ve also decided, this may take longer than I thought, lol. My apologies for taking so long with this part, hopefully the others will come more quickly! I think this will mostly be a picture tour. Maybe one day I will go into more detail about some of the topics. Who knew I packed so much into those few days! It was amazing and awesome.  …and I haven’t even started on the actual festival yet.

Along with the festival(s), I had the pleasure and lagniappe of having Mary Griggs for my hostess. No, no merchant gave her to me, and she wasn’t gifted to me by the festival, although they gave me many nice things, I just wanted to use my limited NOLA speak, lol. Thank you, Mary, for schlepping me around. You are the best!

Day One, I arrived before the festivals were to begin, at least for us, so it was filled with beignets at the New Orleans Coffee and Beignet Co.,

Le Musee de f.p.c., (The Museum of free people of color)

then, relaxing in the back yard after a delicious home cooked meal.

I’ve already told you what a wonderful cook Mary is, and directed you to her Mouth Brothels food page.

This was our day for relaxing. I’m glad I arrived early in the day so we could get to see some sights, and still get some rest. The next day would be even busier. Stay tuned… ❤

A Little Taste

Yes, I’ve jerry-rigged this so I can still chat with you all! YAY! …and please excuse the feature bunny if it’s humongous because I could not figure out how to make it smaller.  Just call me, “Still Learning”, lol.

I’ve decided that the NOLA, Saints and Sinners Literary Festival experience was just too rich and too full to share it all at one time. So, like dark chocolate, or fine wine, I am going to share little bits, nibbles and sips, at a time, in no particular order, because, …that’s me! LOL   …and on that note:

I can FINALLY let the cat, –oops, I mean bunny out of the bag. Happy Easter! Mary Griggs has NO idea how hard it was to hold on to this cute little surprise until she did her food blog about it. This delightful fella capped off(pun intended) a most delicious homemade meal,

and believe me, it was all as mouthwatering as it looks.  Mary is as generous with her recipes as she is with her hospitality, so I will leave her to explain all of the particulars to you. But, when I say off the bone, succulent, and melt in your mouth good, these are not platitudes or hyperbole. I will just say, if you ever have an opportunity, DO NOT DENY YOURSELF THE PLEASURE!  Just remembering it has made it a better Easter for me, so, on that note, I hope you are enjoying yours! ❤

Holidays: Something always happens

Holidays are good for many things: rest, respite, recreation, celebration, family, and most of all recuperation or as I like to call it, procrastination. Real life and technical issues are descending faster than whatever space junk is falling! And, while I can do something about my technical issues, eventually, and with the help of the phone company, I can do nothing about the space junk.

So, while I await a new phone, I will work on the narrative and links, on my computer *gasp* IF I remember how to use it, and when I am fully operational again, I will share about NOLA, and by that time, probably even Rehoboth Beach.

In the meantime, the show must go on! April is poetry month, and I will appear in a guest post on April 4th or thereabouts on IHeartLesfic. I hope to see you there!

And … for all of you celebrating something, ENJOY your celebration! ❤

 

Be My Guest

These days, that phase can have ominous overtures. Like, “Please, go ahead, kill yourself”, or something.  It sounds good, but, then again… like “Help yourself”, you know that person is not offering you to serve yourself, or go ahead of them, or whatever. It’s like a double dog dare or something. Ominous overtures.

But, I am happy to report that I received an invitation of the old-fashioned kind.

I Heart Lesfic has asked me do a guest post on their website, and I have humbly accepted. If you are not familiar with them you can check them out HERE. 

They are a great support to lesbian authors, providing a

 platform to showcase work, and hopefully  gain introduction to new readers. There are also great opportunities for readers to win free books! On April 4th please go over and check me out, and yes, there is a chance to win a free copy of my book.  So, be my guest, please, and check out my guest post! It is short and sweet. After all, I am a woman of few words, and a poet, lol. If you do drop in, feel free to leave a comment, or reach out to me, and, don’t forget to enter to win a free ebook! While you are there, check out previous guest posts, and perhaps sign up to follow iheartlesfic  . It’s free!

Hope to see you there. ❤

 

Win some, win some

I was disappointed to find that I did not make the finalist list of poetry nominees for the Lambda Literary Award this year.  

My daughter consoled me by stressing ‘this time’.  I continued to be blue for about two seconds.
Seriously though, congratulations to all who made the finalist cut, and I wish you much success. It will be exciting to see which cream(as far as I am concerned, it is ALL cream) rises to the top.  See the finalist list HERE.

Let’s be realistic. I had a BOOK that was at least considered! That is a bridge  that I had never even thought to cross in the past. Besides, so many other exciting things are happening in my life.

My dad is doing well this year, and that alone is enough to be thankful for, and that is not the least of it!  Last year was a frightening blur of hospital trips, surgeries, and thinking about mortality, quality of life and such.  I’m so glad that is over, at least for now.

This year, I have been a ‘writer’ more so than ever before. I began this year, as I shared with you all before, by attending and participating in a local book event, READOUT2018. It was a grand way to kickoff the year as a writer. I will attend Saints & Sinners this year, where, for the first time, I will read  and be panel member. I am also attending Women’s FEST 2018 in Rehoboth Beach, and GCLS in Las Vegas. I’ll be blogging about my adventures.

So, awards or no awards, I am already the biggest winner of the best year so far!

A Great Celebration

I attended my first local book event in a very long time. It was the first time at one of this magnitude. READOUT2018, was held at the Gulfport Public Library, February 16-18.  There were a lot of writers and poets represented.  We had the opportunity to read as well as sign books. There way a keynote speech, a panel, and a workshop, as well.  Here’s the line-up, some bling and handouts we received.  I was in phenomenal company.

The Meet and Greet was very nice, They served wine and beverages, cheese, fruit, crackers(some of which faked me out, posing as pepperoni! The nerve! LOL) We mingled, meeting authors, readers, and the library staff and volunteers.  The sponsors and host did a wonderful job with space, supplies, ad making us feel welcome. The authors actually interacted with others. You know that paralyzing introvert thing many of us suffer from, but once we dived in, it was fabulous. I actually met a wonderful author, who was not on the rollabout there supporting her partner. Take about unexpected treasure! I met Nancy Manahan(2nd from left), co-author of the novel Lesbian Nuns: Breaking Silence, originally published by Naiad in 1985, and reprinted in 2013 by Spinster’s Ink. I absolutely HAD to fangirl and get a signed copy and a picture. 

Saturday was chock full of happenings! Elizabeth Sims(need I say more) did the keynote speech. She packed a lot into the allotted time. I wish we had longer. I wish I had taken notes. I wish I had take pictures. What can I say, I was caught up in the moment.  I did manage to take some notes during the Fearless Writing Workshop on Sunday. We did two exercises, and, I got my power ring! The techniques she shared are timeless and priceless.

Read her books, check out her blog Zestful Writing, check her out in the Writer’s Digest magazine/ezine. Run, don’t walk.  If you have a book in you, she will help you get it out!  But mostly, read her books, and if you have a chance to hear her speak, don’t miss it!  Oh, and she has mean arms and forearms(I used to say ‘guns’, but somehow, these days, I feel uncomfortable with that), too.  Sorry, Elizabeth, I couldn’t resist. LOL

We sold books in the vendor room. It was my birthday, and I read from my book Glimpses of a Fractured Soul, which was printed on my birthday (close) last year, as a surprise. I would not trade Regal crest Enterprises for anything. Okay, okay, Cathy, I would trade them for Blue Beacon Books. Anyway, One of the writers got me a chocolate muffin(thanks, RJ), stuck a lead pencil on top, and sang happy birthday to me. Right in the middle of the vendor room. How grand is that! oh, and Trinka got me a MYLAR balloon, lol. Thanks Trinka!  I hope you and Mary are enjoying the book.

Again, I was totally engaged, and got very few pictures. Actually, I’m beginning to think that is a good thing. I did however get pictures with this wonderful lady! Jillian Reed did a wonderful review of my book for ProSuzy. You can find it there, on my author page, or on Amazon. At the end of that review, she stated that one day she would meet me. She DID! I am overjoyed to make the aquaintance. In the first picture I have her review pulled up on my author page. I now. I’m such a geek/nerd/whatever. LOL I really thank her for her beautiful words about Glimpses. Check them out, as well as the other reviews, if you get a chance!  …oh, and the book, too. LOL

I do wish I had made a video, or done the reading aloud. Wait, I think I might have a snippet from Ptown. 

…nope. Maybe next time.

OfSorts: DEMONS SHEMONS

OfSorts: DEMONS SHEMONS – (a review, of sorts)

Author: K.B. DRAPER

http://www.kbdraper.com

A delightful, well-written, lighthearted, and humorous romp!

I am not a person who normally reads about demons and devils and such. In fact, I almost missed out on one of my favorite book series because it had ‘devil’ in the title. I admit to being a bit of a prude, and a scaredycat. What can I say?

I am happy to report, I was not overly anxious(most of the time), and I laughed… a LOT.

Demons SHEmons is a cauldron of genres, seasoned with romance, and spiced with humor and tension. It was, for me, a fun and easy read.

P.S. For those keeping track of such things, this was a very ‘clean’ read. I only noticed two dropped words, and one transposed word.  That’s almost immaculate! (I’m beginning to think dropped words are a rite of passage for writers. Rarely do I find a book without at least one, lol.) Kudos to the author and to the editor.

The book blurb:

Most people come home with a window sticker, a shot glass, or a bottle opener cleverly disguised as a key chain from their summer vacations, not Addison Jo Mattox (a.k.a. AJ, if you want to keep your front teeth). Nope, instead of hitting a three-for-ten T-shirt shop like a good tourist, AJ drunkenly stumbled into a sacred Native American Indian ritual and accidentally inherited an ancient hunter spirit.

Now AJ, the hunter spirit, whom she lovingly named Norm, and Danny, Norm’s rightful heir, wander the country fighting demons that escape from Hell to enjoy this world’s lavish all-you-can-eat soul buffet.

A national park in Mississippi is the next stop on their traveling shit show because someone or something (spoiler alert: it’s totally a demon) is killing residents of a nearby small town. But demons aren’t the only thing AJ and Danny have to contend with this go around. Throw in a self-righteous, holier-than-thou reverend, his dick-for-brains son, a not-so-sure-what-side-of-the-law-she’s-on sheriff and a super-sexy, do-jiggly-things-to-your-naughty-bits park ranger and well, AJ just might find herself in a battle that she’s not prepared for … love.