Flash Fiction workshop at House of Light near Orgiva, Southern Spain, and now NES residency in Skagastrond, Iceland

 The mama horse in the photo below, in the village of Skagastrond in Northwest, Iceland gave birth in the few days since I arrived. I first photographed her alone with a big belly. Thinking about the flash fiction workshop I just experienced feels like a re-birth. So much of what I know about story was reinforced, and yet there's much more to realize and expand into. In flash you don't explain. Inunendo rules in fiction that comes in under 1,000 words. It's an opportunity to prove less is more. After twice-a-day workshops and prompts with Kathy Fish and Nancy Stohlman, and a wonderful group of writers from all over the place, I am ready to up my game in the micro and flash fiction worlds. 

So now I am in Iceland where it's the midnight sun, leaving the heat and comraderie of Spain for wind, rain, sunshine, geothermal soaks and quiet time. The artists (visual, musicians, writers) are hardworking night owls in their sprawling studio; socializing is limited. Not easy for me after the banter, nude beach visit, wine drinking before dinner, and amazing vegetarian meals prepared for us in Spain! But I'm buckling down; here I fend for myself. I have revised some stories, and am working on new poems and new fiction before my debut novel OFF THE YOGA MAT is available for pre-sale (coming soon). Also, a craft essay on how I never gave up on revising and believing in my novel even after more than ten years of rejections, revisions, and discouragement.

Down the road from Salthus, where I stay. I love Icelandic horses. Artists immersing in the cold Icelandic sea. Sauna to follow. 

 

                                                
                                          View from House of Light in Spain.

 Nancy on the left, in her glamourous outfit for our final evening salon outside                                                        where some of us shared newly written work and others read polished,                                 

  published pieces. I went with the new! Didn't get feedback, so they could suck! 

What a glorious beach. I went in the Mediterrean Sea four times on our excursion.

Malaga, Granada, and Flash Fiction Retreat in Andalucian mountains

 

I am so fortunate to have been able to travel to Spain (and soon to Iceland). This is my first extended travel experience since the pandemic began in early 2020. My friend Karen Matthews and I spend a few nights in Malaga and Granada offering us warm weather, the history and architecture of the Al-Andalus period when Muslims ruled the Iberian peninsula. The Alhambra was spectacular and I was glad we went early as it was crowded. We wore our masks in the inner rooms, but not everyone did. The heat was also bearable (Karen likes it).

The layers of mosaics, stone and wood carvings, courtyards, fountains and calligraphy make it one of the most spectacular marvels of antiguity with mystery and grace I cannot begin to explain. I will plan to read about its history and the craft involved in these designs when I get back home.

Now I am fortunate to be at House of Light retreat center in a tiny village near Orgiva, in the mountains. Taking a flash fiction workshop with two well-published and experienced teachers in this form, Nancy Stolman and Kathy Fish (no relation to me althought one of my cousin's wives has the same name.) So far, the prompts and discussions have pushed me out of my comfort zone in terms of what I am writing in the short prose form.

More to come on the workshop and the other writers and this gorgeous terrain.

Carataunas, Spain