3/22/12

Goddess of the Week: Sara Beth


Exciting news.  My blog friend Joanne DeMaio (you hear her often in the comments) has just published a novel called Whole Latte Life.  I asked her if she wouldn't mind taking on goddess duty so we could find out about it.  Take it away, Joanne:


If my novel’s main character were to call upon a goddess, she’d need a goddess of reinvention.  Throughout Whole Latte Life, Sara Beth faces moments when she has to begin again … .Whether it’s with her marriage, or repairing a friendship, or finally living the life she loves, beginnings play a pivotal part of the story, right through to the end.

And what I learned writing this book is that beginnings play a part in all of our lives.  Because a surprising twist came in my own as the novel took shape, in that I saw myself develop on the page.  Without realizing it, I was writing a little of my own journey … of my desire to become someone new.

So I worked on that story, following the writing rule to write what you know.  I incorporated what I knew about trying to become the person I wanted to be.  And then I upped the ante.  I stretched that rule.  I challenged the boundary.  Ultimately, I wrote a new rule.

Through Sara Beth, I decided to write what you dream.  Write what you wonder.  Write what you desire and crave and long for.  Sara Beth became the vehicle through which I learned to reinvent myself as an author.  When she bravely started living her choice life, so did I.  Because of her, I now have a book published.




Like a Finnegan goddess, Sara Beth taught me, in my own words.  Her triumphs motivated me to find my triumphs.  She found a way around the challenges and obstacles, and so did I.  In writing about a character’s dream, her story moved me further along on my own author dream. 

So, I’m introducing a new goddess here at Finnegan Begin Again.  Sara Beth is the goddess of reinvention, of beginning again.  From walking out of her life, to tossing her wedding rings into the Hudson River, to getting herself kidnapped, this is one goddess who reminds us that though the path is winding, we can find ourselves somewhere, somehow, among motherhood and womanhood and the journey of life.

Channel Sara Beth when you’ve decided it’s time to live your dream.  To live what you wonder, even in some small way. 

Thanks Margaret for having me here today, along with my guest-goddess of reinvention … Coffee cheers to a latte life!


(Margaret here.  I have already downloaded Joanne's book, which is available both digitally and in print.  Learn more about Whole Latte Life at Joanne's Amazon page and the book's website.  Also, check out Joanne's Whole Latte Life blog.  It's very inspiring.)  

11 comments:

Joanne said...

Hi Margaret, It's so nice hanging out here on the west coast today! I hope your readers will share if they're living their dream in some way, or if it's time to channel Sara Beth.

I'll stop by for my coffee refill a little later on ...

Watson said...

Sarah Beth is the goddess for my human, Barbara. Especially around Spring and Easter and new blossoms and things popping out of Earth. Thank you for sharing her with us. And congratulations on your book.

Cafe Pasadena said...

Joanne's door, coffee, & music posts, such as her Springsteen experience are my favs from her WLL blog. Wish you well on your self-publishing journey.

I don't always leave sunny California to ck into other blogs. But when I do, it's usually to visit Joanne.

Joanne said...

Daisy - I hope you give my book a Paws-Up.

Cafe Pasadena - Thanks for your well-wishes. I'm lining up my summer concerts, and looking forward to music beneath the stars.

Anonymous said...

What a lovely post, Joanne! I love how you tied everything together with your book, your own revelations, and beginning again (as in Finnegan...). I can really relate to finding yourself through your writing, as I feel like I've done that through writing on my own blog. It's very empowering, isn't it?

Congratulations on your new book, and also on a really cool guest blog post here. Best wishes for continued success!

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

Not sure why that last comment posted as anonymous...??? It was from me...

Deb @ PaperTurtle

Anonymous said...

I figure any friend of Margaret's is a friend worth knowing -- many congratulations, Joanne!

Joanne said...

Deb - Writing is so many things to me, empowering is definitely one of them! Thanks for your good thoughts.

Altadenahiker - Thanks, Margaret's definitely got a great bunch of friends here.

Petrea Burchard said...

Congratulations on your book, Joanne! I'm excited for you! I guess I've always channeled Sara Beth because I've always insisted on following my dreams and couldn't imagine living any other way. What has surprised me about dreams is that they change.

Pasadena Adjacent said...

I find the idea of writing down a life that takes on your fears and gives them form and direction, fascinating. Useful. I may try channeling Sara Beth for my own personal issues.

Congratulations Joanne

Susan Campisi said...

What an inspiring post and personal journey. It sounds transformational. And now you have a new beginning: life as a published author. Congratulations! I think I'm ready to channel Sara Beth as well.