DJ Geribo's Art Apart Newsletter
Winter 2017
Having trouble viewing in e-mail?
View this e-mail in your browser

Welcome!

2017 Is Off and Running


The first three months of 2017 have come and gone and once again I sit here in complete astonishment at the speed of time. The good news is I have been productive!
 

Jim, the best Internet Architect around and also my husband, has updated my website with a new way of using my art gallery that includes a rating system for viewers. You can also set up a simple account and keep a list of your ‘Favorites’ from all of my paintings.
 

My goal was to finish three books this year and to finish my first book by the end of March. A lot of the writing in this book of short stories was brand new so although I did finish the book, there is still much editing to be done along with book layout before it is ready to be sent to the printers. My projected date of completion for this book is sometime near the end of April. I am also hoping to have this book be my first ebook - I'm really looking forward to that!
 

New art work has been added to my gallery and now that my website has been updated I will be back to blogging weekly.
 

As the Rolling Stones sang so many years ago, 'Time waits for no one'!

(photo of female cardinal eating sunflower seeds on our snowy back deck)

Writings & Musings

Writing Life Experiences


It always amazes me when someone tells me they are bored. I have heard this mostly from those in their teenage years or a little younger. I’m not sure why they are bored since life has barely begun for them and there is so much to learn. Of course, they don’t know that yet. But if you can somehow engage them in reading or writing as a family, perhaps you can help direct their interests to the point where they are never bored.

When I wrote my first book I was hired to talk to several of the classes, grades 5-8, at my local elementary school. I discovered a wide range of students; some who loved to read and write, some who only liked to write (hopefully, after quoting Stephen King “If you want to be a writer you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot” I was able to change their minds), and some who didn’t like to read at all. Of course, there could be reading issues with the child like dyslexia but aside from that, it saddens me to think a child does not like to read.

 


Link to DJ Geribo's Writing Blog.

I remember a boy in one of the classes who said that he didn't like to read. This happened to be on a day when my husband joined me; I was lecturing and my husband, Jim, showed the class our publishing website. The boy said he loved being outdoors and in nature.  Jim said that he too loved the outdoors and he learned to love it even more when he read a few books by Tom Brown, an author and tracker who lived in the wilderness. He shared his stories of the outdoors by writing several books about his unique experiences. If Tom was not educated and was not able to read and write, he would not have been able to share his stories with the world.

We’ll never know if we opened up the world to reading for this young boy but we can hope that we did. They are little sponges and absorb everything you tell them whether it is good or bad. But on that day, I hoped my excitement about writing my first novel and sharing it with these children was contagious and at least one of them chose the path of reading and writing for their future careers. I could guarantee their parents that their child from that moment on would never be bored again.
 

I've been working on this "Two Purple Cabbages" painting for awhile now. I work on it, then I put it aside, then I work on it, etc. But I believe it is finally at the point where I can say it is complete and I am happy. I love the curl and shapes that are formed as the cabbages grow. The little one looks like it is a baby or is hiding behind mom! And yes, I have to animate everything, too! And yes, I did grow these cabbages in my garden. The painting is on a 6"x6" gallery-wrap canvas and sells for $80 through my gallery.

To purchase "Purple Cabbages" go to my gallery.

Of course, I still love painting miniatures. This tiny garlic painting is so cute I just might have to keep it myself. But of course, that is a problem every artist faces - not wanting to part with a painting. I have kept several over the years and so has my husband. But you really can keep only so many  and then your house begins to look a bit cluttered. With that thought, if someone absolutely wanted this little painting, I would sell it for $15 through my gallery.

To purchase "Little Garlic" go to my gallery.
My Books

As I mentioned in my Welcome message, I just finished my 5th book. This is my first adult book and my first book of short stories. It was challenging, as has been every book I’ve written so far, but it feels really different. I think because I will have a much different audience this time.
I feel as though children are much easier to please and find the simplest thing exciting and entertaining. But for adults, well, they’ve seen it all so it takes much more to keep their interest.  And of course, that is my hope with this book, that adults will read it and be interested enough to read it to the end.


As a special offer for my latest book, if you pre-order “Seven Storied Houses” now, you will receive a copy of "Eddie Easel and the Case of the Missing Green" FOR FREE! This is a time-limited offer and must be ordered before Mother's Day, May 14, 2017.



 

I know there have been many books that I have stopped in the middle of and never gotten back to because there just wasn’t enough in them to keep my interest to the end. I wonder what the author would think if they knew that or would it even matter to them that one person, and I may not be alone, did not care enough for their book to finish reading it. Was something missing? Or maybe it was the subject that didn’t interest them. I have to realize that there will be people who may purchase my book but then may not finish reading it. How would you feel knowing that is a possibility if it was your book?

One fear I have is that I will find one of the books I have written at our local swap shop. I have found many gems, famous literary classics where the author has been dead for generations, at our swap shop. I have also found fairly recent authors who even autographed their novel but alas, it has ended up in a pile of other famous or not so famous authors at our swap shop. With that said, I truly hope people will treasure each of my books for years to come, and even pass them down to other family members. Most likely that is the dream of every author.


To pre-order "Seven Storied Houses" go to  www.BBDPublishing.com.
All of my books can be ordered from BBD Publishing:
  1. The House at the top of the Trees
  2. Mouse Bound
  3. The Miracle Dog
  4. Eddie Easel and the Case of the Missing Green (FREE with your Pre-Order of "Seven Storied Houses")

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.”     
                             
                      ~Henry  David Thoreau

 




The Lakes Region Art Association Gallery is located at the Tanger Outlets in Tilton, NH. The hours are 10am-6pm on Fri, Sat, and Sun.
 
LRAA Gallery Updates

 
Like any organization, change is normal. And the LRAA isn't any different. There are  lots of changes happening now and the major change is our gallery manager resigned. And like any organization, there are always personality conflicts where people can't agree. It is unfortunate but it is life as we know it.

What does this mean to me? Depending on where the new gallery manager decides to take the gallery, I may no longer be showing my work there. Too soon to tell right now but if this happens then it was meant to be. What I have found to be true is that change is good. So I'm going to look at it this way and just go with the flow.

In the meantime, this is what my current space looks like at the LRAA Gallery at Tanger Outlets in Tilton, NH.

On My Easel

 I am thrilled to finally have something on my easel. And I’m not talking about a 5”x7” but an actual large painting, an 18”x24” in oils. Since this has been an unusually warm winter with cold days scattered here and there, I have been going up to my studio to work on a variety of paintings, finishing a 6”x6” in oils and also working on this larger painting.

When I haven’t painted for awhile, I begin to crave it, almost like an addict craves alcohol or sweets. That is the only way I can describe the desire I feel. I’ve always wished I could type with one hand and paint with the other to satisfy both of my passions and not feel like I need to neglect one of them while giving my full attention to the other. But as a fine artist and a writer, that is my life.
 

Since I have been spending so much time on writing with my ambitious goal of completing three books this year, my painting has been seriously neglected. So when I started working on this 18”x24” painting, it felt so good, like I just had a fix and I would be good for a few weeks. Of course, that isn’t the case. I’ve been wandering over to the pastel area of my studio where I have a couple of paintings started and would love to get back to them, also.
 

So, to satisfy both passions, I am doing my best to work both of them into my day. I will paint in my studio in daylight and spend several hours up there. And then I work on my writing later in the day when I can sit at my laptop and crank out a few pages. This seems to be working.

A neighbor of ours has a big Morgan horse and he invited us over the day he got the miniature horse. Of course, Red, the mini, took right over and let Fritz know he wasn't the least bit afraid of his size. I always imagine the larger horse is chuckling to himself, saying something like, "Ok, little buddy." I was able to get some great photos of them hanging out together, or bonding, on this beautiful fall day and that is what I used for this painting.

When I asked our neighbor how the two were getting along he said they were getting along fine. I've been told that horses like to have other horses around, they don't like to be alone. I hope Fritz is happy now.



Work-in-progress of Fritz and Red


Go to My Website to See My Latest Paintings



Surprise Birthday Portrait

Not typically the time when I receive requests for animal portraits, I got a phone call in January from a woman who wanted a portrait of her daughter's dog. The dog, a Boston Terrier, was aging and she wanted to have a portrait done before he passed away. It was to be a birthday gift and she needed it by the beginning of February when she would see her daughter at a Super Bowl party.

I was excited to have a commission so soon after finishing the portrait of Otis (see my Fall 2016 Newsletter) and met the woman at a local restaurant where she provided me with an excellent photo of the dog. I promised to have it in two weeks.

If the dog had been a younger Boston with more black in his face, I would not have thought twice about it and it would have been a far simpler portrait than the one I was to do. Chino had a lot of white/gray on his face and I needed to work that into the face to make it look natural. It was more of a challenge than I thought it would be but who doesn't love a challenge? Also, the face angle was in such a way that there was a lot of shadow on the neck. Another challenge but the great thing about pastels is you can add lots of layers, and that is what I did, to get the right shadow effect.

I'm very satisfied with the results, as was Mary, the mom, who cried when she saw it and gave me a big hug. She also notified me later to tell me that her daughter was thrilled and so impressed as were all the other people at the Super Bowl party.

To see more of my work, go to my animal portraits website

Authistpreneur

author/artist/entrepreneur

Someone who is an author, an artist, and an entrepreneur.  Any person who writes or has a published novel, who paints fine art/illustrations, and also has established businesses using the combination of artistic talents.
                                                                - DJ Geribo

 

What I'm Reading

January was a busy reading month; I finished 4 books! Well, to be honest, I had already started reading two of them so I finished reading them in January. But still, off to a good start. February was a little slower and I only finished one. And since it was a book that was part of a collection, I separated the book from the collection so that I could add one book, at least, to my February reading list. March is another story. Since this was the month I finished writing my first book of 2017 and I write my Winter 2017 newsletter, reading another book isn’t a high priority, even though reading is as important to me as writing. But I did manage to finish reading one book so I have six read so far this year.

Two of the books I read in January, “The Cat Who Had 14 Tales” and “The Cat Who Saw Red” are by Lilian Jackson Braun. I have an idea for a series of books with pets as some of the main characters and I wanted to see how it was done by others. Since Ms. Braun has written many “The Cat Who…” books, I thought she would be a good one, perhaps, to use as a model. Also on my list are books by Rita Mae Brown who has written several books with Sneaky Pie Brown, again where cats are among the main characters. Fun, light, and with a mystery to solve, I enjoy these quick reads.

 

I also finished a book I had started in December by David Sedaris called “Naked”. His humor ranges from boring to laugh-out-loud funny for me. If the stories in this book are true, well, Mr. Sedaris has seen a side of life few of us have had the opportunity, or should I say misfortune, to experience.
 

And also in January I read “The Age of Grief” by Jane Smiley. A book of short stories (since I just finished my first book of short stories I wanted more exposure to other writers and their work), this book was full of real life experiences that end, as often happens in real life, on a sad note. I still have not read her Pulitzer winning book, “A Thousand Acres” but it is definitely on my short list.
 

In February I read, as part of a collection, “The Little Disturbances of Man” by Grace Paley. This was her first novel and so the stories, although written in the fifties, are still relevant today. Ms. Paley writes with an honesty and openness that sets her apart from many of her contemporaries.
 

Then finally, in March, I read “The Handmaid’s Tale”. I have several books by Margaret Atwood but I really wanted to read this one. And I just heard they are producing a TV series on this so in case I wanted to watch it I thought I should read the book first. I loved it but certainly not the world she created. I read an interview where Ms. Atwood said that everything in the book is something that has happened at some time in history. Scary thought. She writes as if it is something happening in our world in the future. Things have really changed for women and none of it is good. As the saying goes, beware of wolves wearing sheep’s clothing. And I’ll leave it at that for you to interpret yourselves!

 

Go to My Blog to See What I'm Currently Reading

I hope you enjoyed my newsletter. If you did, please share on Facebook, Twitter, or Forward to a friend. I welcome your comments!
Share
Tweet
Forward
Copyright © 2017 All rights reserved.