UPDATE: See photos and other highlights from Tuscany »».
An immersion into writing, bliss, and the artful life.
An immersion into writing, bliss, and the artful life.
ON THE PATH OF POSSIBILITIES. In a few days I will be on a plane to Florence and onto Tuscany. It will be my first visit to Italy and a dream come true: time and space to write in a beautiful, supportive setting.
Before I go, I'd like to share with you below the Application (BIO, HOPES, AND DREAMS) that is sending me to Tuscany. Thanks so much for being part of the journey, for being an inspiration bringing out my best. Have a wonderful summer; may it be filled with many special moments and dreams coming true. Will be thinking of you. Always.
-Mia
P.S. I will return with a new post here on September 19, 2011 (but if you need to reach me, please feel free to contact me, or follow me on Twitter, alongside amazing people from around the world).
BIO, HOPES, AND DREAMS
As submitted, along with my writing samples,
for the Application to the Writing Immersion in Sustainable Tuscany
November 11, 2010
I was born in Sai Gon, Viet Nam and fled with my family from war to America in 1975. I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan. My writing credits include published poems, an Honorable Mention for ASPIRING AUTHOR in the New York Stories 2005 Short Fiction Contest, and a Finalist placing for CLOUDS in the 2006 Glimmer Train Fiction Open Contest.
I am presently revising MORNING SUN, a historical fiction inspired by my trip to Mong Phu, Viet Nam and my father's journal. It is my goal to continue the extensive revisions of my novel at the Writing Immersion in Sustainable Tuscany. It is my hope to be with a group of dedicated writers in a place and space to share, discover, and bring clarity to our writings.
It is my dream to leave the retreat farther along with my revisions to MORNING SUN, possibly even hold a completed, new draft in hand to send back out into the world.
When I am not writing, reading, or at Four Days A Week, I love to travel, watch sports, take long walks, and get together with families and friends.
With warmest regards,
Mia
Before I go, I'd like to share with you below the Application (BIO, HOPES, AND DREAMS) that is sending me to Tuscany. Thanks so much for being part of the journey, for being an inspiration bringing out my best. Have a wonderful summer; may it be filled with many special moments and dreams coming true. Will be thinking of you. Always.
-Mia
P.S. I will return with a new post here on September 19, 2011 (but if you need to reach me, please feel free to contact me, or follow me on Twitter, alongside amazing people from around the world).
BIO, HOPES, AND DREAMS
As submitted, along with my writing samples,
for the Application to the Writing Immersion in Sustainable Tuscany
November 11, 2010
I was born in Sai Gon, Viet Nam and fled with my family from war to America in 1975. I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan. My writing credits include published poems, an Honorable Mention for ASPIRING AUTHOR in the New York Stories 2005 Short Fiction Contest, and a Finalist placing for CLOUDS in the 2006 Glimmer Train Fiction Open Contest.
I am presently revising MORNING SUN, a historical fiction inspired by my trip to Mong Phu, Viet Nam and my father's journal. It is my goal to continue the extensive revisions of my novel at the Writing Immersion in Sustainable Tuscany. It is my hope to be with a group of dedicated writers in a place and space to share, discover, and bring clarity to our writings.
It is my dream to leave the retreat farther along with my revisions to MORNING SUN, possibly even hold a completed, new draft in hand to send back out into the world.
When I am not writing, reading, or at Four Days A Week, I love to travel, watch sports, take long walks, and get together with families and friends.
With warmest regards,
Mia
✶ On November 16, 2010, my Application was accepted. And last week here I shared an excerpt from my historical fiction in progress, MORNING SUN. ✶
✶ A NOTE TO READERS: CLOUDS (as referenced in my Application above) originally appeared as Chapter Four in my historical fiction, MORNING SUN. At the suggestion of the great Alan Rinzler, it has since then been revised from a third-person to first-person voice, giving the narrative a chance at achieving the depth, pace, and plot it lacked in the previous drafts. THE HEART OF THE STORY REMAINS:
A Vietnamese boy who must find the courage to live with hope, if he is to honor his father's wish and save his family. He grows up to be a man, taking us on a journey through family love and sacrifices, heroic deeds, and boundless hope during a tumultuous time from 1944 to 1975 in Viet Nam. No matter how dark the morning, the sun always rises. ✶
✶ THANK YOU, READERS, for your comments and emails letting me know I am on the right path with my novel. The time you took to share your thoughts on my writing and MORNING SUN means the world to me. Thank you for your tweets: @thebluemuse ☼ @anitabondi ☼ @virtualDavis ☼ @ElizJohnsonSays ☼ @lindaAWI ☼ @drpoojaa ☼ @softypaws ☼ @sacredcake... ✶ Honored and touched.
✶ A top story in Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily, The Play-Making Daily, and Discovery Tuscany. June 2011. ✶
A Vietnamese boy who must find the courage to live with hope, if he is to honor his father's wish and save his family. He grows up to be a man, taking us on a journey through family love and sacrifices, heroic deeds, and boundless hope during a tumultuous time from 1944 to 1975 in Viet Nam. No matter how dark the morning, the sun always rises. ✶
✶ THANK YOU, READERS, for your comments and emails letting me know I am on the right path with my novel. The time you took to share your thoughts on my writing and MORNING SUN means the world to me. Thank you for your tweets: @thebluemuse ☼ @anitabondi ☼ @virtualDavis ☼ @ElizJohnsonSays ☼ @lindaAWI ☼ @drpoojaa ☼ @softypaws ☼ @sacredcake... ✶ Honored and touched.
✶ A top story in Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily, The Play-Making Daily, and Discovery Tuscany. June 2011. ✶
TOP PHOTO by Stephen Webber: One of many paths in and around Spannocchia, the home of the Writing Immersion in Sustainable Tuscany, June 24 - July 8, 2011.
