I was 19 when I started my writing career on a stage in Houston's Talento Bilingue de Houston. I wore this awful pink prom-eque dress from the 80s and talked about my life as the daughter of an exile. And that...that performance...that piece...is where I was started and I owe all that to an organization called … Continue reading Happy Birthday, Nuestra Palabra.
Dear Reader, I feel like this is a week of announcements. I promise it isn't but this once I had to share. This week, I'm interviewing my amazing and CRAZY TALENTEd friend Jasminne Mendez for the podcast InkWell. The podcast is a collaboration between Inprint in Houston and Tintero Projects, a fantastic organization that furthers writers of … Continue reading Coming to a podcast near you.
Dear Reader, There it is. The city I grew up in. The gritty, sweaty mess of a city where dreams can come true and die in the same second they are created. This is a city that knows what heartbreak is but aims for an upset. Hustle lives here, in the corners and dirty crevasses … Continue reading Noir. Houston Noir.
Dear Reader, I didn't read Devil in a Blue Dress until grad school but the first line still grabs me. "I was surprised to see a white man walk in to Joppy's bar." Good Lord, are you allowed to write that? See, up until then I understood the tenants of fiction to be that you … Continue reading Meeting your heroes: How not to fan girl when you meet Walter Mosley.
Dear Reader, I wanted to recap something amazing that happened recently. I'm really bad at self promotion. Yes, it's such an ironic statement coming from a blogger and former journalist. I am getting better at it but I am very much a work in progress when it comes to promoting what I'm doing. So...this happened! … Continue reading 20 minutes.
Dear Goodreads, Usually I address the readers of this blog. In fact, that's the name of it, Dear Reader. But for this topic, I'm addressing you because, well, you need some help. So this week you have proclaimed it Mystery and Thriller Week. YES! We all could use more thrills in our lives. And as … Continue reading Dear Goodreads: You’re missing out but I’m here to help.
Dear Reader, It's National Poetry Month! This is an awesome month when we can read poetry, appreciate it, and learn from it. Well, actually, every month is poetry month in my world. So, I was actually reading two collection before poetry month and just finished one them in time for the celebrations. Danez Smith's collection, … Continue reading Death or a reclaiming: Danez Smith’s Don’t Call Us Dead
Dear Reader, It's been weeks since I've read Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami. It took that long to digest it completely. In fact, this book took me two tries. I tried reading this in 2015 but wasn't ready. Glad I was ready now. See, this was a quiet book. It … Continue reading Slow, quiet – Haruki Murakami’s ‘Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage
https://www.facebook.com/Ashton/videos/10154941131162820/?hc_ref=ARStNXiZprb-GjCpBC9k7ouYnBLoWBURNkvNBbhsbQV_3vBrHruOOgQyT0GJxO4IIfE Dear Reader, Sometimes when you search for answers the universe provides them. Hell, sometimes when you're not searching for answers the universe provides. Basically, the universe is so awesome it deposits and cashes in life's receipts. That happened today when a friend of mine posted this video. Will Smith, actor, producer, and life … Continue reading Fault vs Responsibility: Creating your story of forgiveness
Dear Reader, So a thing is happening on March 12. I'm reading!!! Yes, some folks thought it would be a good idea to put me in front of an audience and share my work. It's my friends Jasminne and Lupe Mendez, They thought it was a good idea. You should probably praise them (or blame … Continue reading So a thing is happening soon…
