A Universe in the Making

When the Spanish version of my book, The Last Margaret Keane, came out, the publisher invited me to participate in the LeaLA Festival in Los Angeles.

My husband and I drove from Phoenix, where we were visiting his parents, to attend.

Sadly, my books didn’t arrive on time, so I didn’t have anything to sell at my table.

The publisher had given me a table where I was supposed to have one hour to display my book and try to sell it. I had made a banner that came out beautiful, and I sat there with just two copies — the ones my in-laws had bought and let me bring on the trip so I could at least have something to show.

I still managed to talk to many people about the book, and it was exciting to see that I could have sold copies if I had had them there.

I realized that most tables from other authors had more than just one book. It made me want to create something else for spaces like that.

There has always been a strong connection in my mind between images and writing — what I can describe with words and what I need to show more explicitly.

While I was writing the book, I was also painting. I even tried drawing on a digital tablet, which didn’t turn out very well. I still have those paintings. Some of them are for sale on my website, but most of them are just sitting in my house — some framed, some tucked away in a closet.

They are a big part of the book.

I wanted to continue developing that connection between images and writing.

That’s how the idea of the fanzines started to take form. It felt like something that could naturally combine both.

Now I’m expanding that. I’ve ordered postcards and stickers of some of the pages, and since Letters From Miami is a monthly zine, I have to keep producing them — a good problem to have.

What I see now is not just a series of books, but a whole universe.

A universe that isn’t intended for kids, since the books have adult themes, but that kids seem to be very drawn to, thanks to the colorful images.

I’m realizing that, without planning it, this universe is taking form.

A way of storytelling that uses images, colors, and forms to communicate feelings that go beyond words.