Category: Blog

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Eryn Grey…What Would YOU Burn??

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One of the best things about being in my thirties is that I get to see the young people I taught when I was a new teacher grow up. Today I get to share a blog post from a young lady I first met when she was about twelve, a seventh grader in my English class. Now she’s a university graduate and a novelist. 

Facebook has connected me with many of my former students, and it’s such a pleasure to watch them go through college or have babies or build careers or all three. So I’m bursting with pride to share this WHAT WOULD YOU BURN blog post.

From One Mean Girl to Another
         Last month, CEO of Abercrombie and Fitch, Mike Jeffries was quoted as saying, “In every school there are the cool and popular kids and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot friends. A lot of people don’t belong (in our clothes), and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely. Those companies that are in trouble are trying to target everybody: young, old, fat, skinny. But then you become too vanilla. You don’t alienate anybody, but you don’t excite anybody either.”
         Please. Because seven different colored polo shirts and twenty different types of acid washed jeans aren’t ‘vanilla’.
         Now, since the CEO of Abercrombie loves to play the ‘exclusivity’ card, I decided that he might like to hear from someone who fits his category, someone who is pretty and popular and has lots of friends and big blue eyes and bleached blonde hair, why wouldn’t he? That’s his demographic, is it not?
         Ten years ago, when I was in high school, I worked for Abercrombie folding jeans and spritzing people with way too much cologne. Ten years ago, I bought my first pair of faded, low-rise, acid-washed ripped jeans. Ten years ago, I had a handsome boyfriend who drove a Mercedes and I took a fellow Abercrombie employee to my senior prom. Ten years ago, I was one of the girls who was part of a group dubbed by our high school friends as ‘the sexy six’. And it was ten years ago, when wearing Abercrombie and Fitch was cool and could get away with labeling themselves as ‘exclusive’.
         Unfortunately, as much as I’m sure the insecure little teenager that lives inside Mr. Jeffries wishes that his business model of ‘exclusivity sells’ would work, this generation’s teenagers are not going to bite. Toms Shoes is a company which began in 2006 and focuses on a “one-for-one” business model where every shoe that is bought sends another to China, Ethiopia or Argentina (you know, everywhere for everyone). Toms has become a hundred million dollar company since its inception 2006
. However, Abercrombie’s “sales at stores open at least a year combined with online sales fell 15 percent”
 this quarter.  Whoops.
         What Jeffries forgot, being the savvy business man that he is, is that every generation evolves. The teenagers of this decade are socially conscious and concerned about overspending. They were raised in a recession and have seen the affects of pollution, poor health and lavish waste and guess what? They don’t like it. They want to change the world and they know they aren’t going to do it in a plaid pair of boxer-briefs and a lime green string bikini.
         If Mr. Jeffries is still trying to fit in with the “popular kids” he has vastly missed the mark. The most popular kids in high school now aren’t the bouncy blondes or the all-American football players of yesteryear — they are the hipsters who value “independent thinking” and “counter-culture”
. Quite frankly, everyone wearing the same pair of jeans and powder-pink-polo shirt, isn’t exactly independent or counter-cultural.
         So for many years, I have held onto my pair of Abercrombie jeans because it reminded me of a happy time. It reminded me of sitting on the beach in my Rainbows with a tanned blonde boy next to me. It reminded me of eating Chronic Tacos and laughing until our moms called and made us take our convertibles back to our mansions. However, those days are gone– long, long, long gone with the crash of the stock market and the fact that now we are all adults with jobs and student loans to pay off. Just like my jeans, the Abercrombie culture has faded and reached the end of its era. I understand that Mr. Jeffries still wishes to hold onto his memories and the hopes that he is still the most popular kid in school but at some point we all have to leave high school and grow up.
         With that said, today I will burn that ugly, outdated old pair of jeans. They will probably explode with all the bleach and the acid in them and the fact that they were so poorly made they can withstand hardly more than the walk to and from the tanning salon and honestly, Mike, perhaps its time you burned your jeans, too.
Kisses!
Eryn Harper Grey


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David King, What Would YOU Burn?

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Today I am so pleased to welcome a friend and cohort, David King. I met David at my kids’ Kung Fu studio (he is one of their instructors), and soon learned that he is a writer, as well as a black belt. We have been meeting every month or so since, sharing works-in-progress, encouragements, and advice. David recently finished his BA in Creative Writing at CSULB, graduating Magna Cum Laude(Huzzah!), and is hard at work on what I know to be a really wonderful nautical novel.
Here is what David has to share: 
When asked a question like this, there’s a lot to consider on my part. Had I been asked this a few years ago, I probably would have produced a laundry list of things, small insecurities and petty ideas scrawled all over it. It’s only recently that I think I’ve narrowed it down to two things, and ultimately those things connect in a ankle-high roadblock that seems to be constantly set in front of me.
I’d burn my hesitation and procrastination.
Hesitation is not always a bad thing, I know. There’s a point where its better to reconsider, reevaluate and otherwise not throw caution to the wind. On the other hand, I’m of the habit of hesitating too much. I look at my looming adulthood and the numerous responsibilities,  challenges, and things expected of me – jobs, taxes, insurance, the daily grind – and I just want to curl back up in my childhood where I’m safe. I won’t deny that the future genuinely frightens me, and that I’m only making it worse by stopping myself; my brain somehow goes to that worst-case-scenario thought and I hit the brakes. I don’t want this Peter Pan complex, yet I still struggle to look at the future with major optimism.
First one into the fire, then. Boom. Look at it sizzle!
I’m also a serial procrastinator – I’m sure it happens to the best of us, but I’ve gotten quite good at it, much to my dismay. It frustrates me, this apathetic stance on things. If this blog is any evidence, I’ve started so many things with the best of intentions, only to lose sight of my goals midway through. I keep putting things off, shoving them to the side as I let distractions take over. It should not take the exertion it does for me to keep focused on one task until its done, and coupled with the hesitation and fear, serves only to keep me from getting what I want.
In that goes too. I imagine it erupts and bursts as it heats up, like popcorn: pop, pop, pop!
If only it were that easy, for me and for everyone else, to take their troubles and ills and incinerate them, watch them go up in smoke. But even the act of looking for things to burnburns in its own way. I recognize the things that hinder me, and I can take steps to fight them. I can let them go, put them to the metaphorical torch and let their ashes get carried away.
Eloquence aside, my thanks to Elana for presenting a prompt that not only got me dwelling on these things, but got me off my lazy butt to look at this blog again. Expect more from me more often by this point, as I start getting the circus back in gear.
Goodbye for now, and remember: don’t play with fire, use it to your advantage!
David has had a short story anthologized! Check it out here, and visit his blog here.
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Jennifer Bosworth… What Would YOU Burn??

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Today I am excited to hear what Jennifer Bosworth, author of the electrifying STRUCK and forthcoming novel THE KILLING JAR would like to burn. Here is what she has to say:
“When there’s nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire.” 

That’s one of my favorite quotes. I get chills every time I read it, or say it out loud. I have no idea who said it, or what that person meant, which means I get to interpret in any way I please. What it means to me is that once you think you’ve given everything you have, it’s time to look inside yourself, see what’s left, and sacrifice that to the fire, too. 
What would I burn? All of me. With the hope that I’ll rise from the ashes like a phoenix, ready to do it all over again.


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WHAT WOULD YOU BURN?

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In anticipation of BURNING’s release NEXT TUESDAY (!!!), I have the pleasure of sharing guest posts by writers I know either in person or through the magics of social networking.

The first contribution comes today from my agency-sister Cal Armistead, debut YA author of BEING HENRY DAVID. It also happens to be Cal’s birthday!

Here is what Cal writes:

What would I burn/get rid of, if I could?
I love this question, in part because I’ve been to the Burning Man festival twice, and watching The Man burn was truly an awe-inspiring event, like some ancient pagan ritual.  There’s nothing quite like an enormous bonfire to stir your primitive soul.
There’s even something in the bible about gathering the wheat (the good stuff) and burning the chaff (the stuff you don’t need).  Matthew 3:12, to be specific.  (Don’t be impressed. I had to look it up, even though I’m a bona fide preacher’s daughter.)
But aside from the pagan and primitive and biblical implications of fire, I love the thought of us asking ourselves: What do we need to burn off in our lives to make room for our new growth?  
Although I could write an entire essay on intangible, figurative things I’d like to burn away (all those faults and flaws and weaknesses; those stubborn five pounds in my butt region), I’m going to stick with actual, physical items that I could hurl into a fire and watch with satisfaction as they burst into flame.
My partial list:
–       Clothes that don’t quite fit.  Anything that makes me think, “if only I lost five or ten pounds, that would look GREAT on me,” must GO.  This includes the string bikini from my honeymoon, many years and two children ago.  What am I holding onto that for? It only taunts me, and nobody should feel judged by clothing.
–       Old love letters, from relationships that went south a long, long time ago.  Why do I keep them?  I never read them, and I recovered from the angst and pain years ago. Why be reminded of all that? Time to haul them into the fire and be done with them.
–       Old diaries.  Let’s face it, they’re embarrassing, not illuminating.  Nobody is going to write my biography some day and want to include excerpts from my life at age 14.  And holy crap, what if they did?  I’d be humiliated!  Burn those suckers. Let the past be the past.
–       Anything in my basement or attic that hasn’t been unpacked in the 6 years I’ve lived in this house.  Especially the boxes that weren’t unpacked in the 7 years I lived in the previoushouse.  
Just the thought of burning these items makes me feel lighter.  Not five pounds lighter in my butt region, but still, lighter in general.  I might just feel inspired to do a spring clean purge in my house sometime soon.  I think I will start with those diaries.  Yikes…
Cal Armistead’s debut young adult novel, BEING HENRY DAVID, is available NOW from Albert Whitman Teen (at all the places where you buy books–but support your independent local bookstore first if you can!).  It has received great reviews so far, including a starred review from Kirkus and a glowing write-up in The Boston Globe! 


 Visit Cal Armistead here, and wish her a Happy Birthday!

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ARC, Anyone?

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Bloggers?

Reviewers?

BURNING is available on NetGalley, and my publicist at Random House tells me there are still some available ARCs, too!

Please contact Lauren Donovan at ldonovan@randomhouse.com if you would like to get a copy.

xo

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What Would YOU Burn?

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I am so excited that BURNING will make its way into the world on June 11, just five weeks from now! One of the things I love about this book is that it’s about choosing what to hold on to, and what to let go.

BURNING is set in the desert of Nevada, just near the Burning Man festival, where every year tens of thousands of people come together in a celebration of art, community, and self-reliance. At the end of the week, they ignite a giant wooden Man, and I like to imagine that when it burns, so too do many of the things people hold on to–fear, shame, ego, pain–and that the act of lighting that fire can be symbolic of freeing one’s self.

So, in anticipation of BURNING’s launch, I invite you to tell me… WHAT WOULD YOU BURN?

Please email me with your responses–one word, or essay length, or drawings or photos or poems.

I will be sharing your responses here on my blog in the days leading up to BURNING’s release. Join me in a celebration of freedom and new beginnings.

xo

Elana

What Haunted Me at 17

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At seventeen I lived in a haunted house, but there were no ghosts.
It was the nineties, and the economy had gone to shit. So had my parents’ marriage.
We lived in a mini-mansion in an expensive horsey community in Southern California; from our backyard pool, I could hear the horses whinny down at the equestrian center and listen to the hollow pong of the tennis balls on the courts nearby.
When my mother left, she took with her my two younger siblings, both of the dogs, and almost all the furniture. She left my father to try to sell the place, gutted and hollow. I stayed with him.
One day I moved my stuff out of my bedroom and into the empty formal living room. It didn’t have a door, but it was so big, and I thought it would be cool—funny—to make it my room. I had the entire downstairs to myself. My dad’s bedroom was upstairs, at the end of the hallway. When he was upstairs and I was downstairs, I couldn’t even tell he was home. Most mornings, my dad left a twenty-dollar bill on the kitchen counter, and sometimes that would be all I saw of him for the day—his money.
It echoed, the house.
My best friend Shayna and I rifled through my dad’s pockets and drawers and found his stash, smoked it out back on the swing set. We wandered stoned through the empty rooms, turning cartwheels and talking about how cool it was—the space, the freedom. The weed.
Eventually Shayna would go home to her family for dinner and I would microwave something or decide I didn’t need to eat anyway because it would be good to lose a couple of pounds, to touch back down under one hundred and ten. I would flip through books or turn on the television for company. I would visit my little sister’s and brother’s bedrooms. I’d stare at the indentations in the carpet, where their furniture once had been.
I’d listen for the tinkle of dog tags, for claws against the marble floor in the foyer, for laughter or bickering or anything. That was what haunted me, when I was seventeen—the specter of my loneliness. The weight of absence. And in the vast space of it, I tried to become a ghost, starving the fat from my bones, floating my thoughts away on exhalations of smoke. I dared myself to disappear, too.

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SACRED Art Show… with Rodolfo Montalvo!

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A trilogy of drawings:
E: You actually created three different images, all of which I love. How did you choose these images, and why three?
R: Whenever I watch a movie, read a book, or do anything that has to do with characters, a lot of the times my favorite scenes are the ones where the characters are by themselves. I think that when we get to see how our favorite characters act when no one else is around is when we sometimes get to know them best. For my drawings of Sacred I illustrated a couple of scenes that had those moments where we as the readers got to know Scarlet a little better. The image of the house was more of an establishing shot for me. There was another composition that I was playing around with that also had the house in view but it didn’t work out. So in the end, I tried to make the illustration of the house match the tone of the ones about Scarlett. I wanted to create another quiet moment between the viewer and the image.
The reason I made three drawings was because I knew I wanted to work in a semi-spontaneous way that would allow me to create a lot of finished drawings in a shorter amount of time. After I spent a lot of time thumbnailing my ideas, I had a few that I really liked. I gathered some reference material together and got to work. Basically I tried to make every line count and didn’t let myself erase on any of the images. All the drawings were done fairly quickly, but I did redraw them a few times to get everything in the right place with the right marks on the paper. Once I had the final drawings I wanted done I just took them into Photoshop and added the color.     
E: Who and what inspire you?
R: Inspiration for me is something that is always shifting from one thing to another, or from favorite artist to NEW favorite artist. In relation to illustration there are many things that have inspired me since I was a kid. Mostly, comics, animation, film, children books, architecture, things like that and the many artists that have worked in those fields. Right now I’m really interested in and inspired by old travel poster art.
But if I wanted to mention something more constant within myself that inspires me it would have to be my desire to accomplish my goals. 
E: What is a typical workday like for you?
R: Usually I’m up by 7:30 am and head to my desk right after breakfast. Most days I just have a quick cereal with some fresh fruit. No matter what projects I’m working on I try to warm up for the day with sketching on any of the sketchbooks I have going. Sometimes I start with a small watercolor piece, or a pen and ink drawing, or a sketch with pencil and color pencils. I like creating spontaneous pieces that I can take to completion in one or two short sessions before or after my main workload. I work from home and I like that I can shift from one project to another at any time. Depending on what stage of the project I’m in, I could be sitting in front of my desk all day, or on-line looking for reference material or researching the subject matter, or I could also be trying to line up the next project. The good days for me are when I’m in the middle of the project and I don’t need to be anywhere else except at my desk trying to finish whatever it may be I might be working on. I like to save the last part of the day for more personal projects or the warm-ups I mentioned. I know that the image of me at my desk is not the most exciting thing in the world, but that’s where I make my days count. The more time I spend at my desk, the happier I am. Sometimes I can get away for a bit and I’ll go out and sketch people out in the streets, or landscapes at the park or the beach, and every once in a while I’ll go to the zoo and sketch the animals.
E: What other projects—both professional and personal—are you involved in?
R: Some of my more personal works are paintings and collages on panel, but I haven’t been able get back into that side of my work lately. The majority of this year has been spent on children’s book art. My wife and I have been writing a story for a picture book for over a year now. We’ve been working on it on and off and we are getting really close to begin putting a dummy together. I actually submitted the story idea along with some art from it to a critique panel at the summer SCBWI conference composed of Cecilia Yung, Laura Godwin, and Rubin Pfeffer, and it received great feedback. It was one of the highlights for me at this year’s conference. Aside from trying to put together the dummy, I try to always have a lot of other illustrations going to add to my portfolio, and of course also keeping up my sketchbook work. I love sketchbooks.
Professionally, I completed a couple of ebooks recently for FarFaria and I’m currently working on my first book with a publishing house. The project came about right after the summer SCBWI conference. An art director from Simon & Schuster who I met during a breakout session offered me the illustration work for a middle grade book about a week after the end of the conference. The project is going really well. I just recently finished all the jacket art and I’m currently working on the interior illustrations. You can check out a picture of the cover at the Simon & Schuster page here: http://books.simonandschuster.com/Contagious-Colors-of-Mumpley-Middle-School/Fowler-DeWitt/9781442478299
E: What advice would you give people who’d like to break into the art world?
R: I would say to work hard and give it your best shot, and also to not be afraid to reach out to others about your work. Staying focused, persistent and passionate are all things that I have in the back of my mind every day. For me, getting to work was always the easy part between creating the illustration and getting it out into the world for people to see. But slowly and gradually I have been able to push myself to get out there and “network.” And if you’re interested in children’s books I would highly recommend becoming a member of the SCBWI to benefit from all their great resources and opportunities to connect with the children’s book industry.
E: Do you have a web presence?
R: My website is at www.rodolfomontalvo.com, my blog is at www.montalvothethirdstudio.blogspot.com, and you can also follow me on my new facebook page Rodolfo Montalvo Illustration Works.
 E: If you could meet any character in SACRED, who would it be and why?
R: I think it would have to be Scarlett. It goes back to the drawings I chose to do and the quiet moments that are part of the scenes that let us get to know her better. I loved being able to connect with Scarlett and sharing her journey in “Sacred.” I like the dark contrast she creates with all the other characters. Also, I would like to get to know Catalina Island some day, for me the island it self was also one of the most interesting characters in the story.
Thanks so much, Rodolfo, for being part of the Art Show! Here again are Rodolfo’s beautiful pictures.

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SACRED Art Show Lives On! With Heather Anne Soodak!

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Even though SACRED is now available to purchase, the Art Show lives on! I will be featuring a few more authors before we find an installation for the whole show… and when it’s up, I will share where you can go see these beautiful works in person.
Today I am so excited to share the work of Heather Anne Soodak.



E: I love the perspective in this piece, and the colors! How did you choose this image?
H: I love the “spark” that Scarlett and Will have, it reminds me of being a teenager again! This moment in the school library captures that yearning they have between one another: “I had thought I was subtle in my observation of him, but when Will looked up, he found my eyes at once.” I also chose the library scene because I like that the two are both well educated and have that connection of reading and seeking knowledge.
This piece does not demonstrate my typical, cartoony style but it seemed fitting for a more serious and magical moment.
E: How did you become an artist?
H: When I was three I started scribbling, and it took off from there! It did help that my parents were encouraging. I got my first rejection letter at ten years old when I submitted an illustration to Cricket magazine-that must have been when I was serious about being an illustrator.
An early Heather Soodak original

E: Who and what inspire you?
H: Animals mostly because when I look at them I see such character, and it just makes me inspired to write and illustrate stories of them! Childhood is also an inspiration for me, I try to remember how it felt to be a kid and then my imagination runs freely. Illustrators that inspire me are Quentin Blake for getting the expression and movement just right, Maurice Sendak for touching our hearts, and Peter de Sève for his humor, though there are many more!
Heather’s dog Darwin
E:What is a typical workday like for you?
H: I start the day teaching art part-time to elementary and high school students, which I love. It is rewarding sharing the excitement of art, to pass it onto young ones that create masterpieces of their own! Then, usually run errands or go home to walk my little brindle mutt Darwin who excitedly bounces about when I arrive, how could I resist? Then I have a snack, and then relax by reading, yoga, or watching a favorite show. Then I cook a nice large dinner (my favorite meal of the day) for Chris and myself, and then at about 9 or 10 I like to lose myself in the current illustration project (I am a night owl). Sometimes I do murals and work all weekend, it varies depending on what projects are coming up! That’s what makes the Illustrator’s life exciting!
Heather’s workspace
 E: What other projects—both professional and personal—are you involved in?
H: I am currently working on a commission to draw a lovely librarian’s two adorable cats, promotional postcards to send out to publishers, holiday cards for family ands friends, the Picture Book Idea Month Challenge, a story about a girl and the ocean, pieces for an upcoming art show at the Art Exchange in Long Beach, organizing everything, designing my art website, and training my new puppy Darwin. Phew!
E: What advice would you give people who’d like to break into the art world?
H: If you can narrow down what you are about in one idea, (find your niche) and learn how to promote yourself for that, it will help a lot. Don’t give up, if you love it, and know you are meant for it, do it! What else is life about?
E: Do you have a web presence?
H: Check out my artwork at www.heathersoodak.com. Working on the new site, so enjoy current work on http://hsoodak.blogspot.com/ for now.
E: If you could meet any character in SACRED, who would it be and why?
H: I would want to meet Will, how could a girl not? So insightful and mysterious<blush>! And, the animal character I want to meet is Delilah of course; she seems like a nice and gentle horse. Both of these characters helped Scarlett through a difficult time. 

Here’s Heather’s lovely piece in sketch form:

…and in process:

…and, once more, in all its final glory:


Thank you so much, Heather!!

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SACRED Art Show… With Casey Larae!

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It’s so exciting to include a photographer in the art show! Here is the beautiful work of Casey Larae:

E: I love this so much. How did you choose these three images?
C: I chose these three images because they are what stuck in my head visually, Scarlett and her different connections – her horse is #1; her recurring nightmare and brothers death, #2, represented by being buried / sinking in the sand; #3, connection to a boy, Will.  These three seemed to give a good idea about what is represented in the book specifically focusing on love, fear & hope.  
E: Tell me about the process of a finished photograph—from snapping it to printing it.
C: This took a while to complete from conception to printing, arranging for a 17 yr. old hand model – a local relative, but both of us are without cars, me by choice her by situation being as she’s 17.  So we had two shoot days as we ran out of light the first time as we were relying on public transit and had limited options for days/times to meet up.  I had already decided I wanted to keep it simple and just focus on a hand in each image, her hand in different vignettes so that’s what I did, picking three significant connections or emotions.  When it came time to edit the images, I first tried a variety of sepia toned gradients and colors to try to evoke more feeling but after a several iterations I decided I liked the look of the images with a slight wash or faded effect so they are not vibrant & strong but more subdued and hopefully reflect a more hazy/dazed emotional state of mind.  I chose to print this piece on metallic paper so it has a strange, reflective & shiny quality, which I think inspires curiosity from a distance and helps draw viewers in.  
E: How did you develop your business? Word of mouth? Advertising?
C: I worked as an apprentice for a top OC wedding photographer for 4 years then when out on my own about 5 years ago.  I initially focused on weddings and pregnancy portraits, but I enjoy variety so have been shooting whatever comes my way since then.  If I had more of a focus I might advertise, but I don’t yet want to be anchored down into one type of photography so all my business has been Word of Mouth.  Referrals are a huge part of me being able to do photography professionally, and I am so grateful to the people around me for keeping the cycle going.  I would love to do more editorial work and book covers, so I will be pursuing that this coming year and can’t wait to do more fun projects more in line with the documentary style photography that I enjoy.
E: Who and what inspire you?
C: Go getters inspire me. How do they do that? Like Richard Simmons, where does he find his energy and gusto. I like it and his strong sense of self.  Random I know, but I just heard him interviewed and they told a story of him on a plane and how he shifted the energy of the plane, got everyone interacting and laughing… what a great strong being he is, positively affecting the space around him.  I of course love artists and musicians and photographers and writers, comedians especially – they put themselves on stage – open and vulnerable and honest.  As a photographer I think I could walk around all day every day and photograph anything in nature backlit, with light shining through the leaves or branches. This inspires me, makes me curious and yet serene.

E: What is a typical workday like for you?

C: It’s improv every time. I have an idea of what I want to do, but no idea exactly what I will shoot.  I always use natural light, I shoot on location, no studio, so I only get natural–hopefully more genuine–images of people.  I try to create a calm and playful environment so that everyone is as at ease as they can be in front of a camera and we move, we walk, we play, we sit still once in a while, and I do my best to capture the essence of people in their environments.  
After a shoot I spend double the amount of time editing – the process of downloading the images, editing out those that don’t work, then making any color adjustments and converting raw uncompressed images into JPG files for printing and sharing online.  I love playing with color or black & white or sepia tones to see what colors best represent the images, and once I get to see them printed I am so happy as I get to help people preserve a sweet moment in time. 
E: What other projects—both professional and personal—are you involved in?
C: Professionally, I prefer doing maternity and newborn portraits, but I also shoot weddings and some family portraits throughout the year for variety and, quite frankly, to stay in business.   Personally, I have a few projects going. The one I have shot most is the ‘Artist Process’ series where I visit artists/craftsmen (focusing on handmade goods from Southern California)  in their workspace and interview them about their process.  I have posted them on my photography blog with all the other professional shoots so they are mingling among the clients.

Casey Larae
E: What advice would you give people who’d like to break into the art world?
C: No idea – I’ve heard work begets work, so work work work… and as an artist I like to think of it as play… so Play more.
E: Do you have a web presence?
E: If you could meet any character in SACRED, who would it be and why?
C: Will or his Dad – I’d enjoy a philosophical conversation with Mr. Cohen, but I’d enjoy a date with green-eyed Will.
E: That makes two of us.

Here are Casey’s lovely images once again:

And if you’re in the LA area, please do visit the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore in Redondo Beach tonight, November 13 at 7:30, to visit with the great artists who are being featured on my blog and to hear me read a bit from SACRED!