Digging to China

If you don’t hear from me for a couple weeks, it’s because I’ll be on the other side of the world. Today, I’m digging to China. Tomorrow, I expect to be digging China.

Actually, we’re flying. New York to Beijing. In the weeks ahead, we’ll tour Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City, walk the Great Wall of China, inspect the Terra Cotta Army in the ancient Chinese capital of Xi’an, enjoy the canals of Suzhou, stroll the gardens of Hangzhou and see old China meet new China in Shanghai.

Of course, there’ll be a travel story in here—perhaps a few. And maybe even a novel set in the exotic settings. We’ll just have to see where the dust settles after we kick it up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China

More than Just Lit and Art

The next event in the Lit and Art Reading Series takes place on Sunday, March 30 at The Watermark Gallery. As always, it includes a diverse selection of featured readers, live music, original art, wine and refreshments, and the opportunity to mix and mingle with the local literary and arts community.

But this month’s Lit & Art is more than that. It is also a celebration of Persian New Year. And the closing reception of Manzar’s art exhibit, “Women West, Women East & Global Peace.”
The event takes place from 2 to 5 p.m. and may go longer if you want to stay to enjoy the celebration with Persian music, food and entertainment.

Our Featured readers in March are William Patrick Tandy, Julie Fisher, Sam J. Schmidt, g emil rutter and Diane Sahms Gaurnieri with music by Pop-Grass Banjo Dude Jacob Panic.

The art exhibit celebrates women from the east and the west and expresses a desire for world peace. “I hope in the near future we will have more wise women involved in politics,” said Manzar. “I believe this will lead us to a more peaceful world.”

Manzar, a resident of Baltimore, will be at the opening reception to talk about her work. She was born in Tehran, Iran. She has exhibited her work throughout the country and around the world.

“I strive for peace and beauty in all my works,” said Manzar, who also coordinates a “Teach Your Heart with Art” workshop.

The Watermark Gallery is located on the second floor of the Bank of America Building at 100 South Charles Street across from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

To learn more, visit www.WatermarkGallery.com or call the gallery at 410.547.0452.

Visit Manzar and her work at www.Manzar.net.

Learn more about the Lit and Art Reading Series at www.facebook.com/#!/groups/LitAndArt/.

Join the event online at www.facebook.com/#!/events/531313730318712/?context=create&ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming.

Help Me Board The Train

Over the past few weeks, dozens of friends, family, colleagues and connections have emailed, messaged, and posted to me about the new Amtrak Writer-in Residence program. Hey, I’m on board with that! I’ve written on an Amtrak train before and I’ll be happy to do it again!

I’m gratified that so many people thought of me when they heard about the Amtrak residency. I guess it makes sense since my debut work of fiction, Tracks: A Novel in Stories is set on an Amtrak train traveling from Baltimore to Chicago. And my book has been called a virtual love letter to train travel. It’s all about the passengers on the train and how they connect and touch one another in unexpected ways. But it’s very much a pro-train travel book.

Although I wrote Tracks before ever taking the Cardinal line from Baltimore to Chicago, I did do some editing of the manuscript while on the rails—doing research to make sure I had the details correct. And getting a feel for what such a long-distance voyage on Amtrak’s Cardinal was like. I’d love to do it again.

So if you have a moment, help me get back on board the train. Tell Amtrak you think I’d make a good candidate for their new writer-in-residence program. It’s in its infancy and there is no set application process as of yet. Those who have been granted residencies thus far have done so after being discovered by Amtrak on social media.

I’m not asking you to write a letter or even an email. Just a quick tweet with @Amtrak or Facebook post on the www.facebook.com/Amtrak page. Or a short message by Facebook, Twitter, or email telling Amtrak “Eric D. Goodman, who already wrote a book set on an Amtrak train, would be a perfect candidate for the Amtrak Writer-in-Residence program.”

And if I make it, I’ll tweet and post and message you all along the ride as I work on my next novel.

You may be interested in getting on board yourself. Learn more about Amtrak’s Writer-in-Residence program at www.thewire.com/culture/2014/02/inside-amtraks-absolutely-awesome-plan-give-free-rides-writers/358332/.