Finding your base

It's been a busy Summer. I wrote some about my travels a bit, so you know I've been pretty mobile. But with all the travel AND yoga teacher training, AND extra freelance gigs, I've pushed the writing and personal illustration off to the side.

I think the Asilomar SCBWI conference broke my heart a little, to be honest. As a visual artist, you constantly hear that you'll be a 'starving artist'. It's like everyone just loves to tell you this. Like they're helping you in some way. The speakers at that conference pounded this into our skulls to the point of causing nightmares (literally I had nightmares at that conference, haha). I'd had enough. It got to me because I beleived it! I've always listened to people and what they think.

But it's time to beleive what I think. I believe that you need to do what you absolutely love, and ignore everyone else's comments about it. Yes, you will have to make ends meet, and it might be by waiting tables or working a desk job, but enjoy every moment that you get to write about your beloved characters, or paint the magical worlds that pour out of your soul.

I'm saying this to myself as well, of course. I need to hear it myself most of all! Don't listen to the haters. Life it too damn short!

So I met with my writing group and realized it had been too long. The muse started poking me from inside recently (like she always does- right in the heart bone), saying, "Annie! You're not paying attention to me! I'm right here."

Time to find my base. Write it out. Make a schedule. You can't do everything, but you can do what you love if you choose to!

Truly,

Annie

Canelés and Bordeaux

I am a changed woman.

Now, whether I've been changed for the better, that's for others to decide. I was right when I thought I would love France. I really loved France. The countryside, the art, the bread, and the language all cast their spells on me. Don't get me started. I couldn't communicate much more than "Parlez-vous anglais?" and "Je ne sais pas parler francais", but I lovingly listened to people speak to me in French. The sounds are like strokes on a canvas of the most beautiful colors.

Anyway. I digress. Bordeaux.

If you want to see a city with pleanty to do but still managable and peaceful then visit Bordeaux. The architecture is a light sand color, with tasteful but glamerous ornimentation and sculpture. It's lovely and grand, but still easy on the eyes, lot too busy but never plain. Le Jardin Public is picturesque with families eating their baguettes and strawberries as the children run around in their sun hats. Renoir would approve.

One thing that's very popular there are these caneles de Bordeaux. They're little custardy treats that are like nothing I've had before. My wonderful couchsurfer host made them with me, so when I got home I was naturally eager to try again. Challenge: make a vegan version. Oh goodness, but that's blasphemy! The French love their creams and cheese.

I know. But I'm determined because I really prefer to procure ethically produced foods when possible, and I think plants rock. So, after trying a completely vegan version with tofu and soymilk and all that junk, I tried a version that uses local eggs and non dairy options. The caneles turned out excellent, and I feel fairly comfortable eating a canele that includes a neighborhood egg. It workes way better than tofu and is less processed, to be honest.

If you'd like to try this recipe, you will need a canele mold, which you can find at Sur La Table or Williams & Sonoma, but not Target. Sorry.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 liter non-dairy milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract or a vanilla bean
• 2 tabelspoons vegan butter

Bring these ingredients to a boil in a saucepan then remove and let cool slightly.

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 egg yolks (beaten)
• 2 eggs

Mix flour and sugar together, then add in eggs. Pour this into the saucpan and mix gently together forming a pancake-like batter. Let this mixture cool to warm or room temperature, then add 3-4 tablespoons of rum. Store this mixture in the fridge overnight to let all the flavors mature. Yum!

The next day (or the day after) preheat your oven to 495F. If you found silicone molds, then you don't need to grease them. Just pour the batter, filling the molds to about 3/4 of the way, then place them in the oven. After 5 minutes, turn down the oven to 350F and bake for another 45-60 minutes. You want to make sure the caneles are brown on the outside. In the inside they will still be soft and custardy and ...oh my goodness so good.

Let me know what you think! I'm still working on this recipe since I am no Julia Child. But practice makes... well....more practiced, I think.

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I plan on visiting Bordeaux again soon. I was only there for a day and a half, and there really are so many beautiful corners to explore. My favorite was Darwin, a series of old warehouses that have been converted to art studios and skating rinks. And the river makes for a nice bike loop, with lots of places to stop along the way. I'm taking french lessons to prepare. I warned you- I'm obsessed!

Nos encontraremos en el Sol

I've had the pleasure and the opportunity to travel recetly. It was life changing. Not in a major way, but in many small, subtle ways, to the point of it seeming like dream bites.

I wasn't afraid to go until I stepped on the plane. In rougly 18 hours (which included a layover) I would arrive in Madrid, alone. No one was waiting for me there. Now that excited me. What scared me most was not being able to ask for help.

I took spanish in high school, but I'm rubbish at it now. I can understand quite a bit and read pleanty of it, but converse with a real human? Goodness no. I'm rusty. I'm shy. I freeze up.

I'm on the metro, empty... like metros usually are at airports. I have no idea what time it is because my phone's service is disconnected. But I'm here! And I'm travelling, here to draw, see, feel it all. I want to remember- how can I serve? How can I best be a light?

I left for Spain feeling very confused about what I should be doing to help make the world better. I was hoping to gain some clarity and get over this funk I was in.

Dancing in the street!  Near the Reina Sofia museum during the San Isidro festival.

But then I connected with people and everything changed. I met some lovely people at the hostel and on my walking tour fresh in the morning. After the tour ended around lunchtime, I'd made a new friend, and we spent the next few days visiting museums, talking about art, and taking photos. We even drew together in Reiro park. Zaki and Elody, you made my time in Madrid magical!

El Parque de Retiro

By far, one of the most beautiful parks I've been to was Retiro Park near the Prado museum. It was large and in charge, green as a grasshopper, stylish and relaxed with beautiful people riding their bikes and strolling along the various paths. I love this park, and I'm deeply impressed by how grand it is. The Monumeno de Alfonso was superb, and there's nothing more calming than watching people lazily paddle their boats around the beautiful structure.

I started most of my days with early morning walks and a coffee. The San Isidro Festival was going on that week so they were setting up for events and testing microphones. Light conversation between myself and the cafe waiter or a fellow traveler included with coffee every time, free of charge.

The Spanish countryside is beautiful and green. It reminds me of Napa in parts. I missed my train.... Had to wait 4 hours for the next one because I went to the wrong station. I'm pleasantly surprised, though, that when something goes wrong, life goes on. It's not really a big deal. I was so afraid something like this would happen, but in the end, I'm ok!

I walked around the train station for a long time, read my book but mostly watched other people. The train was comfortable and headed to San Sebastian where I would stay with my first host from couchsurfing.com.

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What's new with you?

What's new, friends? It's Spring and I don't know about you, but I can feel the new beginnings that are ready to burst forth and take us somewhere. The weather is helping inspire this energy, too, if I do say so myself.

Just to recap, I did a trial run of a self portrait painting workshop. It was a lot of fun, and proved helpful for those of us that need to get in touch with our intuitive artist. I'm blending some yoga, process painting, and play with this workshop. Along with this artistic soul spring cleaning, you walk away with a self portrait which is a really fun thing to keep in your time capsule (or give to your Mom). Good stuff.

I'm also getting ready for my trip to Spain and France next month. I bought a fresh new sketchbook. This will be my first time going overseas alone so I'm swimming with a lot of emotions right now. Here's a drawing from a couple years ago when I went to Scotland. Hopefully I will taste lots of beautiful things this time around, too....will need to find vegan versions thist time.

And today I broke in the sketchbook after a meetup with some lovely artist friends in San Francisco. While drawing on the corner, I met Elaine Jones, a beautiful 95 woman who told me about her vibrant life in the Richmond and Sunset neighborhoods, both of which have changed a lot over the decades. You wouldn't know she's 95, but had a surgical accident two years ago, and now can barely walk. We talked for 30 minutes or so before dinner as I sketched and she observed the sunset.

Spontaneous conversations leave me warm and comforted like nightlights.

What have you been up to? Our stories are precious. Share yours when you can!

Hangin' with the posse.

This last weekend, I had the pleasure of attending the Society of Childrens Book Writers and Illustrator's conference at Asilomar in Pacific Grove.

Beautiful place, beautiful people. I love this community and how much they support and encourage each other. At the end of the event, it was determined that we're all a little crazy. I'd never thought of us that way, but I guess we are. Artists and writers are known for following their hearts even when the world is telling them they're silly for doing so.

I took a bunch of crazy notes and met some crazy new friends. We suffered some power outages because Asilomar can't handle our crazy. Seriously, this group of people are the most loving and kind people you've ever met. If that's crazy...then this world don't know what's up.

I learned a lot about how to improve my compositions, which really comes down to focusing on design rather than drawing. I'm re-doing my dummy book and I'm already much happier with the new ideas are emerging.

My portfolio doesn't really speak to childrens lit, and that's ok. But I think I'll do a handful of new images for some classic fables to help strengthen the collection. I'm guessing that it's a lot like performing a cover song. If you give the viewer/listener somehting they recognize, then they can see how you interpret it.

And as for writing, it takes time. I've been journaling radically since I was about 9 but never crafted an entire novel and that's ok. Actually, it's really fun to learn! It's similar to moving around pieces of a puzzle, revealing certain parts of the story at certain times, so the reader is swept away. Harder that it looks, but worth trying.

The workshops were extreemly helpful and inspiring. I walked away having concrete steps to take in order to improve and move forward and some fire to propell me down the tunnel of kid lit madness.

We had a stormy Friday and Saturday, but all of us woke up to an incredible Sunday morning filled with sunshine and roaring waves in the distance. They called to us, so after most attendees left for their homes, a few of us took a long walk along the shore. We built a stone bridge across an ocean stream, admired some hipping and scuttling birds as they searched for sand snacks, and gazed out along a very beautiful part of the California coast.

I took so much away from this weekend. Mostly, that it doesn't matter what the world says about you, just that you follow your heart, which which will lead you to who you really are. You can fight it, but why not let your self fly when you can fly?

Now- time to get to work and make some killer books!

Annie is an author and illustrator with books available on Amazon and local book stores. She is open for commission, too! She lives in California, and loves tea, bike rides, reading, and exploring new places.