Goddess painting of the day: Sekhmet, a detail

Sekhmet, the Egyptian goddess of war and vengence, is painted here in her traditional lioness form. I’ve often felt a bit intimidated by her fiery intensity — hopefully this painting conveys some of her powerful energy. Her chariot is drawn by three cobras, a symbol of magical transformation and sovereignty; appropriately, the uraeus, a crown worn in ancient Egypt, takes its form from the cobra.

This art excerpted from a painting (below) that I created for Shamanic Mysteries of Egypt, a book recently published by Inner Traditions and authored by Nicki Scully and Linda Star Wolf. I used watercolor, gouache and pencil for it.

The gods depicted below Sekhmet are Horus, Khnum and Sobek. This particular composition was received in a vision by Star Wolf; I did my best to hew as closely as possible to her description. I also incorporated aspects of ancient Egyptian art in a respectful manner in my presentations of the deities, decorative elements and borders. It was fun but challenging experience.

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What to do, where to begin . . .

Creative inspiration is a funny thing. A lot of times people are inspired to do something creative — but they don’t know what it is, or where to begin. It’s like having a full tank of gas in your car, but not knowing where you want to go. And who wants to drive around without a clear destination?

This conundrum was the subject of a recent post on Christine Kane’s blog. In it, she offers a list of what she calls “to-do’s if you don’t know what to do.”

Here are some excerpts from her blog to get you started:

“1. BE

Be comes before Do. If you’re just busy doing without some sense of who you are or why you’re even doing it, then stop. The activity might not even be in alignment with who you really are. Have you ever asked yourself who you want to be?

TASK: Get out your journal. We’re gonna have an Ink-Vomit session. (An Ink-Vomit session has only one rule: Once you start writing, you can’t pause or put the pen down. You don’t have to write fast. But you aren’t allowed to stop and think.) Answer the following questions . . .

1) Who do I want to be? (Hint: Start by writing, “I want to be someone who…”)

2) What and who inspires me?

3) How do I want to feel being me? . . .

2. Start with What You Don’t Want

. . . Knowing what you don’t want is a great place to start.

TASK: Get out your journal, and have another Ink-Vomit session. (see above) This time, write at the top of the page: “I don’t want…” and let ‘er rip. Don’t stop writing til you feel clear-headed. If things are especially mucky for you, divide this task into life-segments: relationships, work, finances, environment, etc. Then, flip the page over, and try the same thing by writing “I want…”

3. Uncover your “Whiney Desires”

[The] Whiney Desire [is] the “I just want to sit on the beach and drink margaritas and listen to Buffett the rest of my life” syndrome. If you got your wish, you’d be bored to tears within five days. Okay, maybe ten.

I call these desires Whiney Desires because they’re probably hiding a deeper and more authentic desire. . . . Whiney Desires block our true power. We reach for something superficial (and passive) to mask the truth. The truth is that we doubt that we can have the real thing.

“I just want to be taken care of. I just want to marry rich.” Translate that into: “I want to learn to take care of myself. I want to learn how to attract wealth into my life.” *

You can read the rest of Christine Kane’s suggestions here. What I like about her post is that she acknowledges the complexity of creativity — there are no easy answers, just as there is no one way to be an artist. That written, her suggestions offer one way to dig deep to the roots of what feeds our passions, and ultimately, our spirits.

As for my own “to do” list here, I’ve already started work on the New Book. The first draft of the contract arrived at my agent’s last week. I recently met with my editor, who had lots of great suggestions. I’m inspired. Oh, and if any of you want to play Nancy Drew, the deal for my book was listed in the May 09, 2007 edition of Publishers Lunch Weekly — a nice little tip of the hat.

Incidentally, if you’re seriously interested in the inside machinations of the world of publishing, Publisher’s Lunch is the most widely read daily industry newsletter. It’s part of the Publisher’s Marketplace website, which lets you track book deals, reviews, agents, editors, and the latest news — a fun read, if you’re passionate about publishing like I am.

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* Excerpts © 2007 Christine Kane. All rights reserved.

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publishing 101: literary agents — do you need one?

One of my recent posts about publishing flushed out a question about literary agents. In this day and age, literary agents do make it easier to get published. But do you have to have one to get published?

Here’s my wishy-washy answer: Yes and no.

On the “yes” side:

1. You can get published without a literary agent. But not everywhere. Generally speaking, most large established publishers refuse to consider book submissions unless they are represented by an agent.

2. Which means that many smaller houses (which may be very established and venerable in themselves) are open to unrepresented authors. To smaller houses, add specialty markets: academic, technical presses, literary fiction, and so on. However, they may not offer the distribution and financial muscle that a larger house does.

(The advantages and disadvantages of large versus small publishing houses is worthy of a separate post.)

3. Children’s book illustrators can often get published without agent representation. Even if a publisher will not consider unsolicited picture book manuscripts, they usually will look at illustration portfolios, which usually include book dummies with manuscripts and the like.

On the “no” side:

1. See above. You cannot get published without a literary agent at the majority of established publishers. Why? It takes too much time and money to wade through the “slush” pile for that rare diamond in the haystack. (How’s that for mixing metaphors?)

Is this unfair? Perhaps. But I can tell you that based on my short-but-not-so-sweet experience reading unsolicited manuscripts, maybe one (or less) in one hundred manuscripts are worth showing to an acquisitions editor. Sobering, isn’t it?

2. Literary agents provide editors with a valuable service as acting as a gatekeeper by prescreening manuscripts for them. And publishing houses don’t have to pay agents a wage, unlike editorial assistants or a freelance readers.

3. Literary agents earn a fee based on the sale of the book; generally speaking, 15% of the book advance. (In the interest of public service, let me add that a reputable literary agent will never ever charge a reading fee or a fee for representation. Ever. If they do, run far, far away.)

Accordingly, it’s in the agent’s interest to only represent manuscripts that they believe have a serious chance of reaching print and will command a serious advance. Otherwise, they are wasting their time as well as the editor’s. Waste an editor’s time = lose professional credibility = not make money. Not smart to do if an agent wants to stay in business.

So where does that leave the aspiring author or illustrator who wants to sell their first book? Here are a few questions to help you decide whether you need a literary agent or not.

~ What type of book you want to get into print? Children’s picture book? Scholarly bio? Nonfiction with a highly specialized market? Or are you writing a potboiler novel with wide mass appeal?

~ What type of publisher do you want to publish your book? Check out their submission guidelines. Large house with many imprints? Small literary house? Academic press?

~ Where do you see your career going — one book in a lifetime or a lifetime as an author? Do you simply want to see your book in print? Or are you looking for a black swan of a payout?

These are but a few of the factors to consider when deciding if you need a literary agent. Once you do decide, proceed accordingly.

For additional info, here’s an inside look at how an agent decides to sign an author and more.

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Have a question about publishing, writing or illustrating books you’d like answered on Publishing 101? Send it to Kris: e-comment at artandwords dot com.

Technorati Tags: publishing, literary agents, getting published

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Goddess Inspiration Oracle: Fortuna

From now through September, I’ll be featuring a Goddess Inspiration Oracle card every Monday as a countdown to publication. The Roman goddess Fortuna suggests the possibilities that the world offers us.

KEYWORDS:
surprise
luck
changes

Intially considered a fertility deity, the goddess Fortuna reigned over the laws of chance. Fortuna was honored throughout the Roman empire in numerous incarnations, all made specific to the supplicant’s needs. For example, newly married women honored Fortuna as the goddess Fortuna Virginensis. They offered her the garments from their bridal night so that she might smile upon their unions.

Generally considered benign of favor, Fortuna was later viewed as unpredictable in her inclinations. In medieval manuscript paintings, Fortuna is traditionally depicted blindfolded, suggesting the arbitrary and sometimes surprising nature of chance. She was also shown with two faces, one smiling and the other bearing a frown.

Text and art adapted from the Goddess Inspiration Oracle, published by Llewellyn Worldwide. All content © Kris Waldherr 2007. All rights reserved.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Draw strength from Diana, the beloved Roman huntress. Channel your anger wisely with help from the Hawaiian fire goddess Pele. Consult Anuket for prosperity. The Goddess Inspiration Oracle makes it easy for women to tap into the sacred wisdom of these powerful deities.

From Abeona to Zhinu, eighty goddesses from across the globe are represented in this deck. Each card features a striking portrait of a deity, her attributes, and a message inspired by her unique story. It’s an ideal instrument for creating affirmations, sparking creativity, gaining fresh perspectives, and uncovering insights related to health, love, creativity, motherhood, and other issues specific to women. The guidebook offers in-depth descriptions of each goddess, keywords associated with her, and practical suggestions for working with the cards.

Purchase now.
Learn more or try a free reading.

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goddess girl

In the New York Times recently: For the first time (to the best of their knowledge) Washington DC was visited by a living goddess.

Sajani Shakya, 10, is considered a living goddess in Nepal, her homeland. She is worshipped as an earthly manifestation of the Hindu goddess Kali — one of about a dozen such goddesses in her homeland. And she is the first of the Nepalese living goddesses to visit the United States; the goddess girls live mostly in seclusion.

“There’s nothing I don’t like about being a goddess,” Sajani said through an interpreter.

The girl goddesses are chosen when they are about 2 years old from a Buddhist caste, though they represent a Hindu deity. Hindu and Buddhist priests pick the living goddesses after consulting a horoscope and then finding a girl who meets “the 32 perfections.” These range from skin “of golden color” to a body “like a banyan tree.” Devotees believe that the goddess Kali inhabits the girls, though they do not exhibit unusual behavior, and then the goddess leaves them when they reach puberty. After that, the girls retire with a small pension and are free to work and marry.

Sajani knows she has only a few years left before she must retire. She says she would like to be a teacher someday, but she cries with her mother over the loss of her life as a goddess.

“When I’m not a goddess anymore,” she said, “no one will treat me as well as they treat me now.”

You can read the entire article here.

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