>VCCA: Rainy Monday

>The latest word on the nearby forest fire is that it is contained by burned 300 acres. Since we had heavy rain today, I’m sure the danger has no past.

I’m working on the same story I’ve struggled with the last couple of days. I made progress and finally got to the end of it late in the afternoon, and even caught some glimpses of a voice I’m looking for for the point of view character. I’ll work on it again tomorrow and see if that voice is clear enough to me, but it may be that this one will be more unfinished than others for the time being.

The evening’s entertainment was another presentation – we have several this week (too many, actually, and I’m apparently contributing to that, although I’d rather do it next week) – this time by an essayist and a visual artist. First Tama Baldwin read a very lyrical piece from a series of narrative landscapes she’s done and then Rosa Valado did a slide show of a number of art installations she’s done over the years with both paintings and structural pieces. This was also very imaginative work and both sparked discussions afterward.

About the author

I am the author of three novels--THE LAST BIRD OF PARADISE, OLIVER'S TRAVELS, and THE SHAMAN OF TURTLE VALLEY--and three story collections--IN AN UNCHARTED COUNTRY, HOUSE OF THE ANCIENTS AND OTHER STORIES, and WHAT THE ZHANG BOYS KNOW, winner of the Library of Virginia Literary Award for Fiction. I am also the co-founder and former editor of Prime Number Magazine and the editor of the award-winning anthology series EVERYWHERE STORIES: SHORT FICTION FROM A SMALL PLANET.

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