Houston

June 1 is my January 1

June 1 has felt like a bit of a New Year’s beginning.  Starting this week I’ll have a new schedule and just on cue, the weather has turned hot in Houston.  This change in the month/seasons has been marked in our family by this book.  I have also given myself another 30-day challenge — which I may or may not share.  (So far though, day two, and I’m still on track!)

I was thinking of coming up with a Summer manifesto.  Maybe it needs to be illustrated and not just put on a post-it.  But this manifesto will include enjoying every ounce of the longest days of the year (another reason I love June) by riding bikes and grilling out more.  I know by August and September I’ll be shuddered indoors like it’s the dead of winter in Michigan, so I want to take advantage of not melting while I can.  But mostly I want to create more… more of everything.

And soon I’ll get to create with words and hopefully with some of you.  This week marks the start of the summer writing workshops, so if you’re in Houston, let’s write together (Tuesdays & Fridays).

June 1

 

Houston Summer Writing Workshop Schedule

Hey Houston Writers!

The dates are set and I’m ready to write!  I’m trying something new this summer and instead of trying to organize several six-week sessions, I want people to just come and write when they can.  (Yea commitment-phobes!) Summer is full of unpredictable schedules, but you can count on getting your creative fix at SWWS every Tuesday and/or Friday starting in June going through August.

So the schedule is as follows: Tuesdays 6:30-8:30pm & Fridays 1-3pm. ($20 per session) || Saturdays June 21, July 19, & August 16 from 9am – 1pm ($35 per session) *If you just want to come try it, your first session is always free!*  Come to one, come to them all!

SWWS has also joined Instagram.  I’m not a big fan of most social media, but this is a platform I can get behind.  I’m a lover of words + pictures and I’m excited to engage fellow creatives in this unique space.

Click on the links up top to learn more about the method I facilitate and to sign up!

SWWS Summer Writing Workshop

While You’re Away

I came across this mesmerizing little video and I’d like to think this is what our books do when we’re away.  Kudos to the creators!  I’ve been so busy reading and writing and I’ve got good things cooking over here, including a soon-to-be-annouced workshop schedule and a Summer Writing Series.  So stay tuned and sign up for all the listings and upcoming dates!

Come Together — Write Now

I am basically pulling an extreme-home-makeover on this studio this week.  I will have the first writing workshop in this space on Saturday!  The furniture is there, but it’s all the little things that get me.  And because I’m a perfectionist it’s going to drive me nuts if it’s not, well, perfect.  But honestly, I hope that the space is ever evolving — a little different each time you visit.  And you know what — I don’t think my writing will be any different if my light installation doesn’t come together in time (well… maybe!).  I can’t wait to post some finished pics next week!

Salt Water Studio

Slow & Steady

This was the sunset from my building the other night.  It offered the perfect warmth for such a cold night.  And it warmed my heart a little too.  I am making sloooow progress on the studio remodel and because I’m not writing but rather hammering, cutting, scraping, and painting I easily begin to doubt my vision.  As I continue to purchase supplies, materials, furniture and fabric, I have begun to question: just what in the world am I doing?!  But I know that’s just my critic rearing her loud head.  She’s telling me that I’m going to be a big fat failure and that all this effort will be fruitless.  No one will come.  You’ll fail.  And you know what — that might indeed happen.  But at least I will have tried.  I’m not a risk taker.  But I am with this venture.  But as I continue to pour out my heart (and sweat and a few tears), I choose to believe that those efforts will not be returned empty and that I will indeed succeed.

We are so close now — and it’s getting into a marathon mindset that is key for my mental stability.  And I’m in this for the long haul!

Studio Sunset

The New View

Some things are completely unexpected, but you know it’s right when it happens.  For some time I had been planning on opening my physical studio space in one place, but through a series of events I found a different space.  Space *A* is brand new and sparkling (wifi included); space *B* is a bit more DIY.  With much contemplation and a serious Pro-Con list, space *B* has become the new home for the Salt Water Writing Studio.  It will take a few weeks longer than expected to be up and running — which means no more workshops for the rest of the year — but 2014 will bring bright, new things indeed.  Keep checking back for progress reports and the *grand opening*.

New View

Leap of Faith — Launching My Own Business

Leap-of-Faith

About seven years ago, this novice writer found herself on the doorstep of her first-ever writing group.  Only my journals had ever seen the ink from my pen, but there I was stepping out of my comfort zone with seven strangers, bonded only by our love of the written word.  I had no idea what to expect; just who exactly were these other people and why in the world they would be interested in the same thing as me?  But that first night in a beautiful house on the shores of Lake Michigan would turn into a full-blown, four-year love affair of not only writing, but writing with others.

I then moved from Michigan to my home state of Texas and my pen stopped moving for a long time.  After the dust settled, something deep in my belly began stirring (and it wasn’t just all the amazing food that is Southeast Texas cuisine) and my pen felt a little restless.  I missed my writing partners and the safe space we had created.  So naturally, I would need to find another group…I was ready to begin again.  However, to my dismay, AWA did not have a facilitator or chapter in Houston.

For months my disappointed little mind would play on repeat, “Awwww, man! I can’t believe there isn’t an AWA group in Houston.  It’s the 4th largest city in the country for cryin’ out loud!”  One day though, the light clicked on.

As I repeated the familiar (and by now worn out) lament, the downturned corners of my mouth gave way to slowly raised eyebrows, a faster repetition, and a few exclamation points at the end.  At that moment I knew – the reason Houston didn’t have an AWA group is because I had not yet started one!

Life circumstances being what they are, my dream is finally becoming a reality.  As of today, I am officially launching the Salt Water Writing Studio – Houston’s only AWA writing group and workshop.  I hope to create a safe and stimulating writing space for beginners and experts, recovering MFA’s and moleskin journalers; a space where anyone who writes is a writer and a collaboration of unique and validated voices, whom we shall all learn from and with, together.

You can learn more about the AWA method here, but more importantly you can come write with me and experience it for yourself.  Hold on Houston, this could be huge!