Talking About Orchard Street

photo by Julian Voloj

Maya and Gonzalo Escobar create Talking about Orchard Street, a multi-sensory interactive installation that explores the generational transmission of Jewish life through dialog.  The father-daughter duo traveled from Chicago to New Haven to conduct interviews with former members and friends of Orchard Street Shul and to record locals’ stories of growing up in New Haven during the 1920s and 30s. These stories of everyday life include tales of flirting on the front steps of the shul, eating herring and kichel, speaking Jewish, finding first jobs, going on first dates, learning bar mitzvah portions, and hearing (or having) loud conversations in the women’s section.  In Talking about Orchard Street, visitors are invited to sit in comfortable armchairs, sample herring and kichel, listen to excerpts from interviews and engage in dialog with each other.

click here for more information about the Orchard Street Shul Artist Cultural Heritage Project

Fridays of Sword & Sorceress 24: an interview wth Teresa Howard

This Friday’s interview, ladies and gentlemen, is with Teresa Howard. Read and enjoy!

Tell us about yourself.

I am an avid fan of Fantasy and Science Fiction.  I enjoy reading, writing, and attending conventions.  While many of my stories are about the magical Nellari people, I have also written modern fantasy, children’s stories, and science fiction.  By day, I am a technology coordinator and computer lab instructor at a local elementary school in Birmingham, Alabama.
How did you get into writing?

I was a story teller as a child and entertained friends by creating imaginary worlds.   I always dreamed of being a writer.  As an adult I was encouraged by a friend to pursue that dream.  I took Ann Crispin’s writers workshop at Dragon*con in Atlanta and became part of the DC2K Writer’s group.

Why write fantasy?

I write what I love to read.

What is the worst mistake a writer can make?

The worst mistake a writer can make is not to write the stories that are trying to get out.   If you wait, you may lose them.   If you wait too long the stories may stop coming.

Tell us about your Sword & Sorceress 24 story.

Nellandra’s Keeper is set in the magical Nellari Homeland.  The main character struggles with fulfilling her family’s expectations and her own destiny.
Can you share an excerpt (a paragraph or two)?

Recalling the purpose of my mission, I delivered my message. “Grandmother has been calling for you. You’re late and if you don’t hurry back, everyone’s feast meal will be cold before we’re dressed.”

I watched embarrassment color her cheeks.

“Oh! I’d forgotten the time. I’d better hurry. Thanks, Galley!” She jumped to her feet and hurried away at a graceful sprint, heedless of the tangle of bushes that I had carefully maneuvered through.

Smiling to myself, I watched her retreating figure. That’s Nellandra, brains, beauty, grace, but not a smack of magic in her bones. I ran after her, sure that she would need my assistance before long.
Pick any one book to recommend. Other than Sword & Sorceress.

Robert Jordan’s – Wheel of Time series