The Fortune Teller's Daughter - Now Available!
Hi Everyone!
Wow. What a week it's been. I've been reading a lot. News. Blogs. Books. Facebook posts. I've also been thinking a lot - about the days ahead and what I want to do to support and empower my daughters and my nieces and nephews. About what I want to do to make sure they are able to speak our languages, know our stories and our ways of honouring creation. I've also been thinking a lot about water and the climate, and what I can do to reduce my footprint and live more sustainably. About how we can really transform the way our little family lives and demonstrate how grateful I am for the many blessings we have in our lives.
For all these reasons and more it seems strange to launch a book today, but I am happy to share this one. It's called The Fortune Teller's Daughter and it's about a young Haudenosaunee girl named Cora who is yanked out of her everyday life when her mother goes missing and she suddenly acquires the power of lightning.
Hi Everyone!
Wow. What a week it's been. I've been reading a lot. News. Blogs. Books. Facebook posts. I've also been thinking a lot - about the days ahead and what I want to do to support and empower my daughters and my nieces and nephews. About what I want to do to make sure they are able to speak our languages, know our stories and our ways of honouring creation. I've also been thinking a lot about water and the climate, and what I can do to reduce my footprint and live more sustainably. About how we can really transform the way our little family lives and demonstrate how grateful I am for the many blessings we have in our lives.
For all these reasons and more it seems strange to launch a book today, but I am happy to share this one. It's called The Fortune Teller's Daughter and it's about a young Haudenosaunee girl named Cora who is yanked out of her everyday life when her mother goes missing and she suddenly acquires the power of lightning. She has to figure out how to navigate that power, save her mother and decide whether or not she is going to join this larger battle between good and evil - a battle that started long before she was born but will have all kinds of bearings on her future.
I am super excited to be releasing it, although I cannot help but think the timing is ironic.
Today also marks the one year anniversary of my sharing my books and launching an art production company with my sister. I have learned so much over the last year and hope to learn even more, become an even better storyteller and an even better supporter of other creative people. People who write, draw, paint, make music and comics and all of the other wonderful things that you are making.
Art is incredible. Art helps us learn and heal and relate to and have compassion for one another. And so I want to say thank you to everyone who has been a part of my writing journey or who has taken the time to read some of my work. It has truly meant the world to me.
With that said, here is my first offering of the year! It's available on Amazon and Kobo. And you can also order it on my book page :). Here are the links!
Amazon: The Fortune Teller's Daughter
Kobo: The Fortune Teller's Daughter
Wishing you all peace, health and happiness. Happy creating!
S.
My Creative Goals for 2017
2016 was a difficult year for the world, filled with loss and change. In some ways, it was difficult for us too but it was also a tremendously special year and I’m grateful for all the wonder and happiness that entered our lives.
My husband and I celebrated our one year anniversary in September. We welcomed our second daughter in May. And we moved into our new house in October—all very wonderful things.
2016 was also the year that I made the most progress with realizing my writing dreams. I launched my publishing company on January 21st, 2016 and published six books over the course of the year.
2016 was a difficult year for the world, filled with loss and change. In some ways, it was difficult for us too but it was also a tremendously special year and I’m grateful for all the wonder and happiness that entered our lives.
My husband and I celebrated our one year anniversary in September. We welcomed our second daughter in May. And we moved into our new house in October—all very wonderful things.
2016 was also the year that I made the most progress with realizing my writing dreams. I launched my production company on January 21st, 2016 and published six books over the course of the year.
I also formatted and designed a book for a fellow artist and writer from my community, Elizabeth Doxtator. We launched our books together at the Woodland Cultural Centre in November of 2016 which was a really great experience. Our friends and family came out to support us along with local MPP, Dave Levac who also gave us a very kind congratulatory certificate to mark the occasion.
I continued my language learning and started to make comics in the Cayuga language with my husband.
I bought some recording equipment and began learning how to record some of the piano music I’ve written.
I set-up as a vendor at three events: The Six Nations Language Conference, The Grand River Champions of Champions Powwow and The Everlasting Tree School’s Healing & Wellness event.
And finally, I finished the first year of my doctorate program and started into the second year.
Needless to say—it was a busy, busy year and 2017 shows every sign of being just as busy!
Looking ahead to 2017
My goals for 2017 are to do more of what made 2016 as great as it was. To spend time with my husband and daughters. To write more. To paint more. To record my piano music as well as my books. To learn more language. To read more about Indigenous language revitalization. To read more legends and do more research. To be a healthy creative person who eats well and exercises regularly. And to share the positive energy I gain from creating things with the world.
I have specific goals, too. They are:
1. To write 500 plus words a day
2. To edit for an hour.
3. To write two novels, one novella, two short stories and three essays.
4. To publish three books.
5. To read 25 books.
6. To record an audio book of Spirit & Intent.
7. To make a short album of piano music.
8. To continue to learn more about writing and publishing.
9. To continue working in the area of language revitalization.
But my big goal in has everything to do with art. Over the last few months I’ve realized that while I have a lot of writing and publishing goals—I have just as many goals when it comes to drawing an painting and illustrating. There is a lot of art that I want to create. Art for essays I’m thinking of writing. Art for my book covers. Art for Cayuga language books I want to write for myself and my girls. Art on canvas. Art for print. Digital art.
Some of the work I did in 2016.
I have so much to learn when it comes to art that it sounds weird to say that I have a dream of being an illustrator—but it’s true. I have a dream of being an illustrator. So 2017 marks the start of a more intensive concentration on my art practice. I’m not ready to define my goals here yet but overall, I'm looking to amass a body of work that I'm happy with and to learn new techniques and experiment with more tools. I’m very much looking forward to sharing what I learn and I'll be sharing my work on my Instagram so come check it out!
Phew. So there they are. My goals for 2017. I am super excited for them all and for the wonderful new space we have to work on them all in. Building our house was a long and challenging process but having a home of our own is something I am immensely grateful for every day.
Here's one last thing before I go. Since 2013, a few key words have helped me to really determine the direction I want to move my life in. I thought I would share them with you, because although they’re just words, but they really did help me quite a lot. So here they are—in picture form :).
What about you? What are your goals for 2017?
Til next time, happy writing & creating!
S.
On Compassion and Community - Some Thoughts
I have been thinking a lot about writing and compassion and community for the last week.
As someone who writes, I have a lot of compassion for other writers. I have compassion because I know what it’s like to worry that you’ll write something people won’t like and the great risk you take in sharing your art. I know how much courage it takes to continue in the face of self-doubt and to withstand the near-constant questioning of your own work.
As an Indigenous woman who writes, I have a lot of compassion for my people and my community and when I’m writing my principal worry is not about me at all—it’s that I represent my people well.
Illustration by Sara General.
I have been thinking a lot about writing and compassion and community for the last week.
As someone who writes, I have a lot of compassion for other writers. I have compassion because I know what it’s like to worry that you’ll write something people won’t like and the great risk you take in sharing your art. I know how much courage it takes to continue in the face of self-doubt and to withstand the near-constant questioning of your own work.
As an Indigenous woman who writes, I have a lot of compassion for my people and my community and when I’m writing my principal worry is not about me at all—it’s that I represent my people well.
Well can mean many things. It can mean briefly highlighting an issue I’m thinking about more closely through a character. It can mean imagining what would happen if a situation were to change (like everyone could suddenly speak our languages with a high level of proficiency). It can mean telling a story that has been completely disregarded by the historical record. It can be learning an oral story. It can mean being honest but compassionate in exploring the complex nature of our histories.
Writing has also been a way for me to learn about, heal from and challenge the impacts of colonialism in my life. Because of colonialism I have grown up aware of some things and unaware of others. I suspect it is this way for other people in my community—that even though we grew up here, there are those of us who did not realize the depth to which colonialism sought to eradicate our stories, our relationship to land and water or to one another. And as a result there are tons of stories that we might only now be learning as we do other things—raise families, finish school, start our careers, learn the language, reconnect.
I admit I am more aware of the impacts of colonialism now than I was when I was younger. I am aware that colonization occurred because early settlers wanted the land for their own purposes. I am aware that government policy continues to operate in a colonial manner in that it enables resource extraction and control of Indigenous lives by defining the terms of—everything: access to clean water, education, and health care. I am aware that trying to talk about reconciliation without a discussion about land is to ignore a critical treaty matter. And I am aware that even though the treaties set the foundation for peaceful co-existence, many of these things can sound threatening and scary for non-Indigenous people. Colonization has made it so.
In such times, knowing more and having more information about one another becomes a way of creating the conditions for ongoing peace and understanding. Who are you? Where do you come from? Do we know any of the same people? What happiness, or sadness, or grief do you bring with you? How are we to get along and share this space? These are questions I've been asked many times.
The question, “where do you come from?” is one I usually get when I am out and about on Turtle Island. I got it a lot when I was working for the Chiefs of Ontario and travelling for various meetings. I rarely get asked this question in my home community, Six Nations. Usually the question I get asked here is who is your family? Sometimes (though it is admittedly rare) this question is asked in the language.
Who is your family? Who's your mom? Who's your dad? Where do you live?
For me, those questions extend (both playfully and seriously) to: What history do our families have with one another? What stories do you know that I might not know? How do I let you know that you can trust me? How do I earn your trust? How do I share with you? What are the boundaries we need to have so that we both feel safe and valued? What kind of future do we want for our children? How can I help?
All of these questions are important. Stories emerge from questions. Stories about relatives that have passed away. Stories about family members you might not have known as well as you wished. Stories about important events in our history, like the first time one of our lacrosse teams won a national championship or one of the women from our community became the first Indigenous registered nurse in Canada or a Cayuga chief travelled to Geneva to meet with the League of Nations. There are so many stories about the people and places that make up our community and they are all special. It’s no wonder there are so many talented Indigenous writers, now and in the past sharing what those are.
In this manner, questions about who we are and where we come from are not an indictment. In many ways they are the very foundation of relationship building. They are the starting point. They create a space to share and exchange stories. They are a way to start new ones.
When The Orenda first came out, I started to read it and eventually put it down. I primarily read fantasy, science fiction and other people’s dissertations so I knew from the start of the book, it probably wasn’t the book for me even though I understand and respect that many people did and do like it. Mostly I read it because I was curious about the use of the word orenda, which is an important and powerful concept from my culture and because I had mixed feelings in seeing it used as the title of a book. It made me uncomfortable in the same way J.K. Rowling’s Magic in North America stories did. So I appreciated when others finished reading it and then asked for clarification about the portrayals of our people in the story and the research that informed the book. Those answers eventually confirmed that the book was primarily informed by Jesuit accounts, which were written from a colonizing lens and with a colonizing intent.
I admit this was mildly upsetting for me. And I realized that I could do one of two things. I could put my energy into going back and reading The Orenda, study Jesuit Relations and then point out all the perspectives that were left out of both accounts so that my own children wouldn't read these narratives one day and believe they told the truth about who we are.
Or I could direct my energy elsewhere, into creating the stories I wish existed.
I was already working on a collection of stories inspired by Jikonsaseh, one of our clan mother titles. I could continue my own work and try connect with other writers and artists and encourage them in whatever way I could. I could write and make my own mistakes and become a better writer though practice. And while I would write honestly, I also decided I would write with care and compassion because I love our communities and I’m invested in our continued healing and our ongoing effort to decolonize.
I chose the second option because I wanted my children and nieces and nephews to have different kinds of stories to read if they wanted to. And I’m glad I did. Since then I’ve written many books and learned many things. Perhaps best of all, one of my nieces has read and liked the stories I've written which has made the process of writing and learning about publishing so awesome and worth it.
When I started sharing my writing at the start of this year I knew that an important part of doing so meant that I would always be willing to talk about the choices I made or share the ideas behind the stories I was telling should anyone in my community feel inclined to ask (since there was no question they had every right to critique). And the truth is, I want to share that context because while I write fiction—and fantasy at that—the challenges my characters’ face are not the least bit fictional. Indeed, the issues impacting their lives are complex and require reading and listening far beyond my books—as most issues do.
So being free to write the stories I feel called to is something I understand and feel is important. But being accountable to my community is also very important. And this brings me to the question that is being asked of author Joseph Boyden: where are you from?
Over the last week I’ve read many important points that go some way in illustrating how complicated this is. I’m sharing them here because while I know not everyone will want to read them or accept them, they are valuable. I truly hope some people will read and think and consider the points that are being made and not chalk up asking a question to identity policing or jealousy, which some articles have already done. And on that note—while I acknowledge these points of view, I find it ironic that anyone would talk about identity policing when the whole point of the Indian Act is for someone else (in this case, the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs) to define First Nation membership for the sole purpose of eroding rights.
For my part, I recognize that of course, writers need to continue to write about what they choose. That’s the nature of writing. That’s how it works. But the fact that it’s a choice means that as writers, we can decide to not tell other people’s stories for them if we want to and still tell plenty of wonderful stories in the meantime. We can create space for fellow writers. We can create frameworks that help us gauge whether our stories are empowering our communities or if they are perpetuating stereotypes. And while we have to stand by the work that we do, we can still go on the record and admit when we could have done better. After all, mistakes have been made and they will probably continue to be made. I’ll probably make some of them myself. We can also choose to not do these things. That's part of how it works too.
In this way, writers will continue to do their work. And I hope that they do.
Indigenous Nations on Turtle Island will also continue to do their work. They will do what they have a right and responsibility to do—decolonize the notion of citizenship, develop future leaders through ceremony and education, protect water, stabilize our languages, honour Creation, build safe, welcoming communities and find ways to bring our people back together to create a sustainable future for us all.
And sometimes, that means asking questions. Of the Crown. Of the Governor General. Of the Prime Minister. Of corporations. Of individuals. Of each other.
I sincerely hope that things can work themselves out and that we can continue building our relationships and enjoying books and the process of creating books. I hope that we can create a space for belonging for our people who may not live in the community but who are a part of our family nonetheless. I hope our questions will turn into meaningful conversations in which people feel heard and action is taken and fears are abated. Moving forward, I think there is an opportunity to do all of this, with kindness and compassion. Probably because I've always veered toward optimism and I have a lot of hope. Hope I want to share.
Sending peace and good thoughts to you all. Nya:weh,
S.
Additional Reading:
https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/what-colour-is-your-beadwork-joseph-boyden
https://www.facebook.com/daniel.justice.7393/posts/716714078504628
https://lennyshish.wordpress.com/2016/12/30/boyden-i-discovered-a-gold-mine-on-james-bay/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/joseph-boyden-where-are-you-from/article33441604/
http://redindiangirl.blogspot.ca/2013/09/in-which-i-review-joseph-boydens-orenda.html
Cover Reveal for The Fortune Teller's Daughter!
Happy December everyone! All month I've been wrapping up various projects and thinking about ways to celebrate the #SeasonofStories. I have been writing, painting, and editing work and now I am so, so, so excited to finally be able to share a sneak peak of the cover for my new book with you!
This story has been brewing in my mind for the last five years and almost every year since these characters first made themselves known to me, I’ve written their story in a different way, each time growing closer and closer to the way it was unfolding in my imagination. There have been twists and surprises all along the way.
Happy December everyone! All month I've been wrapping up various projects and thinking about ways to celebrate the #SeasonofStories. I have been writing, painting, and editing work and now I am so, so, so excited to finally be able to share a sneak peak of the cover for my new book with you!
This story has been brewing in my mind for the last five years and almost every year since these characters first made themselves known to me, I’ve written their story in a different way, each time growing closer and closer to the way it was unfolding in my imagination. There have been twists and surprises all along the way.
This is a story with many characters, a story spanning many worlds and an adventure that connects to a teaching I learned from a story I was once told about the nature of Treaties and the treaty relationship.
It will be told over a series of four books. Each one building on the events of the last and weaving together the perspectives of key characters along the way.
This book is the first one. It’s called, The Fortune Teller’s Daughter.
It'll be available on January 21, 2017! Here’s the synopsis:
Cora Solomon is a skeptic. She doesn’t believe in magic. She doesn’t believe in fate. And she most certainly doesn’t believe that her mother can divine the future from a cup of tea leaves. In fact—Cora has spent her entire life wishing her mother had a normal job.
But when her mother goes missing and the police are unable to uncover anything about her disappearance, Cora turns to the methods she once shunned to learn the truth about what happened to her mother and why. And there is certainly much to discover.
Before long, Cora is drawn deeper into the world of seers, myth and magic where she encounters strange lights, dangerous serpents and powerful beings she thought only existed in stories. Most importantly, she discovers that her mother has been keeping secrets from her—secrets that will change her life forever.
And here is the cover!!! It was designed by James T. Egan of Bookfly Design.
Happy November
Wow! How is it almost the end of November? This year has sped by and the last few weeks have been particularly crazy. There have been a lot of things happening in my life on a personal level lately and a lot of things happening out in the world. I'm just going to take a minute here and send a huge blast of compassion to you all. I find myself more and more aware of the challenges our different experiences and ways of thinking create but I'm going to keep hope that we will find a way to practice compassion and empathy with one another. I'm also going to keep hoping that we can all find a way to come together to protect the water, because truly - no matter what views or beliefs we have, we and our children need water to survive. I'm so grateful for water and I know it's one of those things that is too important to take for granted. It's also something we can all work together for.
The last few weeks I've been super busy with my course work and preparing my research proposal for my dissertation. Academic writing is so interesting (very different from my creative writing) and I have really valued learning how to go about it.The topic for my dissertation is exploring community-based collaboration in the area of Indigenous language revitalization - which is a passion of mine. It's nice to read about the great work that's going on and it's also nice to be inspired to speak and use the language more (I'm learning Cayuga).
Wow! How is it almost the end of November? This year has sped by and the last few weeks have been particularly crazy. There have been a lot of things happening in my life on a personal level lately and a lot of things happening out in the world. I'm just going to take a minute here and send a huge blast of compassion to you all. I find myself more and more aware of the challenges our different experiences and ways of thinking create but I'm going to keep hope that we will find a way to practice compassion and empathy with one another. I'm also going to keep hoping that we can all find a way to come together to protect the water, because truly - no matter what views or beliefs we have, we and our children need water to survive. I'm so grateful for water and I know it's one of those things that is too important to take for granted. It's also something we can all work together for.
The last few weeks I've been super busy with my course work and preparing my research proposal for my dissertation. Academic writing is so interesting (very different from my creative writing) and I have really valued learning how to go about it.The topic for my dissertation is exploring community-based collaboration in the area of Indigenous language revitalization - which is a passion of mine. It's nice to read about the great work that's going on and it's also nice to be inspired to speak and use the language more (I'm learning Cayuga).
I've also been working on producing/designing/formatting a book for a friend of mine. It's called "Art of Peace" and was inspired by the story of the Great Law of Peace. She also asked me if I wanted to launch my book Spirit & Intent when hers launches next week and so that's coming up as well, which is super cool. Here's a little poster. We're having the book launch at the Woodland Cultural Centre in Brantford, Ontario - a place I love and have been going to since I was little because their collection has some of my dad's art in it.
Last week I did a short reading of one of my stories at a really cool event called Stories From the Land. I was a bit scared - it was my first time reading one of my stories out loud and in public but I was very excited and grateful for the opportunity to be apart of the project. Stories from the Land is a podcast of 12 storytelling events happening in First Nation communities across Turtle Island. The stories are meant to be about our connection to the land, community and culture. Very cool stuff. The stories will eventually be available for listening and I'll be sure to post a link here when they are!
Ahh. What else? Oh yes! I've been learning to make comics. I've only really done a test one so far but I'm really excited to do more and I know I will get better at them as time goes by. Along the same lines I also started another special project that combines my love of painting, stories, language and videos (and also music in the future). It's here - a short movie about the story of The Vampire Skeleton which I illustrated using a combination of watercolour and shadow puppet theatre. I LOVED this project and have already started working on another. Moving into 2017, I'm going to be doing a lot more of these. Here is some of the art that I made for it:
And lastly, I'm about to finally (after months and months of delays) release a very special YA fantasy book called The Fortune Teller's Daughter. Stay tuned for the cover release next week!
Okay. Phew. I think that is all from me. Busy busy busy times ahead as we move into the last month of the year. I hope you are all well and as always - happy writing!
S.