We thought 2020 would be a better year, especially since 2019 began with my fall and breaking my hip and pelvis. But alas, we all know how that turned out. For us it wasn't all bad. During pandemic days, we gardened more, shopped by ordering and picking food up in grocery store parking lots, and my husband David worked from home. We really have nothing to complain about except...

My creativity got swallowed up by worry and lack of contact with other humans. Turns out, that contact really does feed me. I only wrote a few poems, two scenes on my screenplay, a Christmas letter, and yes, I also helped other people with a few editing tasks.

When I finally did feel creative, I chose to make two mosaic panels, which are now attached to the outside of our house. I've always loved just diving in and breaking plates and tiles and placing bits together to form larger images and designs. It's very much like writing, only with writing you place letters, words, paragraphs or stanzas together. Not all that different of a process actually. But I think I truly needed the satisfaction of breaking stuff to free my creative soul from the lock of pandemic worry. 

Now in March 2021, we're vaccinated, beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel and it is not a train--it's the promise of the gifts creative writing can bring when the process is freed to begin. Onto the next... 

#mosaic
#CreativeWriting
#LessonsInDisguise
#KatePorter
#PandemicWorry
#FreeToBegin

#Beginning in July, David and I began renting our granny flat (picture of its back patio) on AirB&B; we call it a Cozy Casita. On the outside this would seem to have nothing to do with my novel, poetry, or antiquarian book selling. However, here's what I've started doing. I'm giving each of our renters a copy of Lessons in Disguise to take with them if they would like to read it. So far, everyone has! Some have given me comments in the visitors book we have in the rental, a few have commented to me before they left because they already started to read it (one insisted on paying me for it), and one has taken it back home to China! yes, to China! I told him he would be my first book club of one person via email.

 Here is what my Chinese friend said in 5 recorded texts: "Your book reminds me of a story that happened in China more than 100 years ago. Made into a movie in 1951. Person was a manual labor person, he was illiterate. One day he passed by an elementary school and heard reading through the classroom window. So he listened to it but was beaten by the school police, I mean security. So he made a determination to raise money to have a school for children who could not afford to go to school. So he went door to door, one person to another, to raise money and finally when he was in his old age, when he was in his seventies, he raised enough to open a school for children who could not afford to go to school."

By text we communicated further. I told him: "Thank you so much for telling me this story. It's tragic that there can be so much history that every country lives that is similar to that of the others. It shows that we are universally very much the same and want the same things for ourselves and our children." We shared email addresses, and I hope to continue our communication. I learned that gmail is not allowed in China, thankfully I still have a yahoo account. Who knew that would be useful. 
#KatePorter
#KatherinePorter
#CozyCasita
#LessonsinDisguise

\Within the book clubs I'm meeting with, it certainly seems that reading printed books is very popular. In this latest group, only one woman bought my book for her Kindle, the first one sold electronically by the way, but everyone else had the printed version.

I joked the other day that readers with iPads might want to invent a way to have their "books" signed by authors. Maybe a little pad on the back of the pad. I'm not sure how that would work, but there could be a way, perhaps. Maybe there's an app for that. 

Thank you to Lynn Beveridge and friends for welcoming so warmly into your group. Our lively discussion showed me what close and insightful readers you are. This is the joy of writing that can only be discovered by having an actual book to share with others. 

#KatePorter
#LessonsInDisguise
#SanDiegoBookClubs
#KatherineAnnPorter

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to Zoe Ghahremani, Author of the Month Coordinator and to Marc Chery, Humaniteis Section Program Manager. Your work on behalf of local authors is sincerely appreciated.  ​

#AntiquarianBooks
#AuthorOfTheMonth
#KatePorterAuthor
#LessonsInDisguise
#SanDiegoCentralLibrary

The other day I read and deleted my mostly boring emails but then stumbled upon one sent by Zohreh (Zoe) Ghahremani, author of Sky of Red Poppies, which was KPBS's 2012 choice for One Book One San Diego. She was letting me know I've been chosen by the Friends of the San Diego Central Library as their "Author of The Month, September 2018", which I feel is quite an honor. To be chosen by those particular judges who love books, and who also see the importance of reading good books, absolutely thrills me. This year there were over 200 entries by local authors and Lessons in Disguise and I are honored to be among the ones at the top. 

I decided to name my talk "How a Tattered Old Book Changed My Life" because I think old books can change lives. One changed mine, the one that inspired me to write my novel. I hope readers of this blog can join us at the event, but if not, I'll write about it in my next blog posting. 

Thank you for checking in! 

The image I added here has almost nothing to do with my blog post. I just think it's a beautiful mosaic and a reminder that the world is full of color. This is part of why I'm not happy with Ebooks emanating from flat surfaces and screaming light but not reflecting light from interesting natural surfaces. 

Because I write on a computer, I don't want to read on a computer--unless someday I have to. There are people who must use an E-reader to be able to read or to hold a "book". Yes, I get that.

So, now my novel, Lessons in Disguise, is available in that format; though I had to be coerced into it--not because I don't read Ebooks myself, but because my book is about the importance of actual books and in particular old, worn out, mutilated, and dogeared books.  

Books get read by grandmothers and grandfathers, are written in by and signed by authors, are given bookplates and provenance of ownership, and they may be beloved, hated, or banned by previous generations. How will we know any of these things from a defunct computer that is languishing in a landfill unable to be opened someday in the future? 

But there you have it, I'll quit complaining and just let people read my book the way they want to and get away from my computer and go prune the succulents around my mailbox--that's as close to nature as I'm getting these days. 

In November, I met with a book club of 11 incredible women, but it was such a thrill that I forgot to take pictures. In December, however, I also met with this lovely and welcoming group of fabulous women. They had all read my book and were full of questions and heartfelt comments about their interest and clear insight into the characters in my novel, Lessons in Disguise. What an amazing feeling to be meeting readers who loved the book's characters as much as I do. If I could meet with book clubs once a week, I would truly be a joyful person. Thank you to my friends, Judie Hunter and Nancy Heise for introducing me to your reading friends!