I am writing my sixth novel, titled the Hidden
Abbey. It is, of course, Visionary Fiction,
which means stories with spiritual or metaphysical elements that are geared to offering
the reader a shift in consciousness.
Last weekend, I joined a group of other writers, including those from my writing critique group "The Destiny Writers," to present a Reading Salon to an audience of nearly fifty interested readers from our Ashland hometown and surrounding areas. We were enthusiastically received and it gave us a wonderful opportunity to share our literary works in progress.
The following was the introduction to my reading excerpt.
The Hidden Abbey is set in Glastonbury, England and its mystical counterpart, the Isle of Avalon. It takes place
in two different centuries – the 16th
and the 21st.
In
16th century England, Marissa, a young priestess of Avalon, falls in love
with Michael, the son of a wealthy English landowner. Michael will defy his
father’s military aspirations for
him to become a monk at the Glastonbury Abbey. As King Henry
VIII sets out to destroy all of England’s 800 Abbeys and
Monasteries (this is historically true), Marissa and Michael are torn from each
other
Interspersed
with this 16th century story is a story set in present day Glastonbury. Sophie, a cynical journalist, and Daniel, a
photographer, are sent on assignment to cover the commemoration of the
destruction of the Glastonbury Abbey. These two will discover that they are, in
fact, destined to fulfill the star-crossed love of the priestess Marissa and
the monk Michael.
February 1st marks the ancient Celtic Festival of Imbolc. It is the herald of early spring, the time when lambs are being birthed and the first delicate white flowers of the Snowdrop bloom. It is the feast day of the Goddess Brighid, also known as St. Brigid.
Years ago, when I lived in Glastonbury I wrote a poem dedicated to Brighid, Goddess of smith-craft, poetry, and healing. My publisher placed copies in a friend's shop on the High Street in Glastonbury. After I had returned to the U.S.A. I was contacted by the German singer-songwriter, Miriam Carl Boluk. Miriam asked for my permission to use my poem as lyrics for her band's song dedicated to Brighid, on their upcoming album. The band, Cool Masala, released their album, featuring the song Brighid.
You can listen Here to the song Brighid, sung by Miriam Carl Boluk. It's a nice way to celebrate and honor Brighid on her feast day.
Brighid
Ancient Brigid
Mother of the Power of Love,
Triple Goddess of the three form flame,
Your perpetual light touches both the Heavens and the Earth,
Cooling in the waters, maker of smithcraft, midwife of love
Burning the coals to keep the heartfire alive
To learn how to make a Brighid's cross, the sun cross, visit the wonderful Mara Freeman's blog. Weaving a Brighid's cross is another wonderful way to celebrate Imbolc.
Visionary Fiction speaks the language of the soul. It
contains all the elements of modern storytelling yet there is a deeper layer,
an archetypal level. This level invites a reader to personally undergo the
mystical inner initiations that the book’s character experiences. Visionary
Fiction (VF) not only entertains, it embeds esoteric wisdom and paranormal
experiences in story. It is an ancient art of storytelling – but a fairly new
genre in the publishing world.
Often relegated to the genre of Fantasy, Paranormal,
Metaphysical, or Spirituality, VF contains elements of all four.
But the story line is more concerned with how the character’s internal
experiences of paranormal events – such as visions, dreams, psychic phenomena,
past life remembrances, or forays into uncharted planes of existence – are the
unique catalysts for transformation. These types of non-linear occurrences run
parallel to our everyday conditioned reality. VF allows the
reader to glimpse a doorway into these alternate realities. VF engages the reader in the worlds of the seen and unseen. It is a quest into the deeper mysteries of life - in story form.
Our Current Reality
We live in a world that operates under an imbalanced
masculine-principle way of thinking. I am referring to the unhealthy attitude
that produces greed, war, violence, domination, authority outside ourselves,
and rational/linear thought to the exclusion of intuition and feelings. In
general, society demeans the feminine principle of nurturance, receptivity,
cooperation, emotions, our ‘sixth sense’ and intuition. I am not talking about
gender when I speak about the masculine and feminine principles, but, rather,
about ways of being and behaving. Both principles can act healthy or unhealthy;
helpful or hurtful. In other words, you could say there’s an excess of
unhealthy Yang, and a suppressed/restricted Yin. You need only examine the
degeneration of our cultural institutions – the banks, church, the politics –
to see that societal structures are crumbling under the effects of this
imbalance.
I find it interesting that many ancient spiritual systems,
such as the Hopi, Mayan, and Hindu, foretold a golden age. They predicted our
current era in history as the transition point into this evolution of
consciousness. As with all change, there is chaos and destruction before there
is regeneration. This is simply the way our world works. If these ancient
spiritual predictions are true, this explains the depth of turbulence we see
and feel around us.
The Relevance of Visionary Fiction in today’s world
Humankind longs for a new story. A regenerative and hope
filled rebirth. A world that joins the best that both the masculine and
feminine principles have to offer. In the union of heart and head, and with
wisdom, guardianship, and power that are infused with love, that golden age the
ancients predicted can arrive.
One time honored way to open up to this alchemical change and
explore humanity’s potential is through the vital act of storytelling.
VF can rouse humanity’s new story – through story. The mystical
encounters, paranormal abilities, and spiritual awakenings woven into VF provide the raw material for the transformation of not only the novel’s
characters, but for readers as well. The invitation is to apply the embedded
wisdom of the book into our own lives.
Yes, VF speaks the language of the soul. It
offers a vision of humanity as we dream it could be. At a time where our world
is going through so much tumultuous change, we need more Visionary Fiction.
It's Halloween today - the celebration the ancient Celts called Samhain. My Visionary Fiction novels incorporate many such ancient Celtic traditions, legends, and lore. Samhain acknowledges and honors the worlds of the seen and unseen - our everyday world, and the worlds of imagination, mystery, and spirit. Visionary Fiction is storytelling that explores the magical connection between these realms.
Samhain is the Gateway to winter, where the veils are especially thin between these worlds of the seen and unseen. The Celts called the unseen realms the 'Otherworld', a place of beauty, rest, and renewal. Samhain is a time in the cycle of the year for slowing down. For connecting to your deep self and resting there in the healing power of your inner nature. It is the turning of the seasons where you can commune with the earth mother's womb from which all that is created is birthed.
Samhain is also a time for honoring your loved ones who have passed. Perhaps today you may want to light a candle and recall in your heart the cherished memories of loved ones who are no longer in the physical world.
Or you might simply gather some colorful autumn leaves to place in a bowl on your kitchen counter, to acknowledge what you would like to shed in your life and what you would like to seed deep within you for rebirth and renewal.
You can make an offering to the beauty of nature, the spirit of nature all around you. You can do this by placing food or milk in a bowl and laying it beside your favorite tree in your garden.
This news is so big, I had to reblog it from our Visionary Fiction Alliance blogsite where it originally appeared. Visionary Fiction , the genre or category of my novels, is coming into its own and being recognized on bigger levels. It has now passed through the gate-keeping at Wikipedia and is officially listed therein. Thank you Vic Smith, fellow member of the VFA. for your professional, thorough, well-written article for Wikipedia, as well as this announcement article of our acceptance!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Exciting news for all Visionary Fiction authors, readers and lurkers:
As of August 2014 a entry entitled "Visionary fiction" has been published on Wikipedia at:
This feat of sweat and scholarship was engineered by VFA member and author Victor E. Smith and reviewed, edited and critiqued by VFA steering committee members Jodine Turner, Margaret Duarte, Eleni Papanou and Sandy Nathan. The fundamental concepts are drawn from the writing of VF pioneers Carl Jung, Flo Keyes, Edward J. Ahearn, Monty Joynes and Hal Zina Bennett, among others, as then discussed, massaged, and rephrased on this site since its inception and on sister sites like Fiction for a New Age, many of which are cited and linked within the article.
Our intense cogitation over the past couple of years, right down to the shortest comment, led happily to a reasonable consensus on the definition and characteristics of Visionary Fiction. With the results of this arduous process now condensed on Wikipedia, the VF community finally has a worldwide portal through which to communicate who we are, what and why we write, and how to find us and our work. And since Wikipedia allows anyone to add to or comment on its published material, we can be sure that the description of our genre will evolve and remain up-to-date as we expand into our future, certain to be dynamic.
Visionary Fiction author Monty Joynes, recently featured in a post on this site, wrote this to the author after reading the Wiki entry: "Great and important job... Even the literary academics will appreciate what you have done. I feel that your work provides a kind of 'breakthrough' for the understanding of our collective literature... the recognition has been a long time coming. Thanks to you, my books and others will find new readers."
For further enticement to visit the page, here are the major headings for material covered in the article:
Definitions
Characteristics of Visionary Fiction
Distinguishing Visionary Fiction from other Genres
VF Publishing and Marketing
Scholarship
Awards and Community
Reaching this milestone has truly been a cooperative effort, and using this entry now to full effect remains a group activity. Tweet, Tumblr, Facebook, reblog this post the link to the article at every opportunity. When someone asks, "What is Visionary fiction?" give them the quickie, then tell them to look it up on Wikipedia. Explaining our genre has just gotten a lot simpler. Get the word out to readers, writers, publishers, agents--oh, heck, to anyone on this planet who wants a shot of growth in consciousness.
Think Big! Coming Soon!
PS as a Wikipedia author/editor: I found the mechanics and protocols of Wikipedia's editing system daunting at first, even though I consider myself quite tech-savvy. My first submission was turned down quite peremptorily, largely because of a novice mistake in citing references. If you want to add or edit the article--and all are encouraged to do so--take the time to look up Wikipedia's guidelines for contributing and formatting before jumping in too deep. Had I followed this advice, the announcement might have come a couple months ago--sigh!
_____________________
Victor E. Smith regards himself as a generalist. From childhood on a communal farm in Pennsylvania, to adolescence in a Catholic seminary, into adulthood with occupations that ranged from counselor and teacher to entrepreneur and corporate computer trainer, Vic remains astounded, often stunned, by both the wonders and terrors of human existence. Such awe has always compelled him to write: poetry, journalling, in publications about business and education, and now in novel form. A lifelong proponent of human spiritual evolution, he has focused on paranormal phenomena and their manifestations. Travel to the settings he writes about, no matter how remote, is to his research what fingerprints are to a detective. THE ANATHEMAS, A Novel of Reincarnation and Restitution, aged literally through decades of experience and revision, is his first novel. A prequel and a sequel are well underway.
“The
sixteen Virtues are the pillars of My heart.Stand strong among
these pillarsand you will build your own temple of Sacred Union.”
~Divine Mother, from Adorata: the Path of Enlovement
I came to the
Adorata path in a round about way. My background is in nursing and I hold a
doctorate degree in counseling. But for the last 15 years I have been an author
of Visionary Fiction. Visionary Fiction is storytelling that may have spiritual,
metaphysical, or supernatural aspects, but most of all, it gives the reader an
intimate experience of a shift in consciousness through the character’s
experiences in the story. The theme in my novels is always about embodied love.
Embodied love is the
alchemy of Sacred Union within your body and heart. Embodied
love is practical and down to earth. It is your capacity to give love and be
loved, in all of love's forms. It comes through harmonizing your inner female
and inner male.
I prayed and
knew that one day I would find a body of teachings and a spiritual path that
could teach people, in practical
ways, exactly how to embody love. Well, my prayers were answered when I found
the system called Adorata, founded and developed by the Italian-born modern day
mystic, artist, and humanitarian, Tiziana DellaRovere.
What
is Adorata?
Adorata is a body of teachings and a
spiritual path that unites a Divine Feminine based spirituality with a new
archetype of Divine Masculine spirituality, to create embodied love, the alchemy
of sacred union within your body and heart.
Adorata
harmonizes and mystically transforms your inner male and female within, which
are two aspects of the psyche existing in all men and women regardless of
sexual preferences. A disharmonious relationship between your inner male and
female can cause you to experience life as an exhausting struggle; it may
attract undermining situations, or may underlie unhappy relationships or work
situations.
What
are the Adorata Virtues?
The
Adorata Virtues are the foundational stepping-stones to embodying love. They
are archetypal attributes of the Divine Feminine depicted in sixteen Madonna
portraits that emanate the qualities of each Virtue and are accompanied by
sacred text and prose. The Virtue Courseis a mystical experience of embodying these fundamental aspects of
the Divine Feminine.
The Adorata Virtue Course is an Initiation!
In the
course you will read the sacred text and prose, do meditations, dance, ritual, art,
insightful exercises and introspection, as well as incorporating practical
suggestions in applying and embodying the Virtues in your daily life. You will also learn the powerful Adorata
Meditation, which is the mainstay of the Adorata system.
The Instructor – Dr. Jodine
Turner
I am a certified
Adorata Practitioner, having undergone a five year training program with Tiziana DellaRovere. I will be offering the Adorata Virtue Course in the first
eight foundational Adorata Virtues of Purity, Serenity, Wisdom, Abundance,
Devotion, Harmony, Passion, and Trust.
The
Webinar Course
This course is
offered as an online, interactive, virtual webinar class through CSourceWisdom.
The class will meet for two hours once a month for eight months. There will be exercises and initiatory practices offered throughout the month to help you apply and embody the Virtues in your daily life. Opportunity for interactions with fellow classmates and the instructor will be provided and encouraged in a safe, private environment of a virtual campus.
Classes
begin in August 2014 and carry on through March 2015. Class time is Saturdays
from 10 am– 12 pm PST.
August 9, 2014
Sept 6
Oct 11
Nov 8
Dec 6
Jan 10,
2015
Feb 7
March 7
Course Fee: The fee for the eight classes is $60 per
class, or a one-time payment of $465. The beautiful Adorata book entitled Adorata: the Path of Enlovement, by
Tiziana DellaRovere, is included
I invite you to join me to engage in the
initiations of embodying love!
Jodine Turner is the award winning, best selling Visionary Fiction, fantasy author of the Goddess of the Stars and the Sea series about priestesses who have lived in Avalon down through the ages to today. www.jodineturner.com
While living in Glastonbury, England, the ancient Isle of Avalon, Jodine began writing her best-selling, award winning ‘Goddess of the Stars and the Sea’ novels. These YA/Adult Visionary Fiction, fantasy, magical realism novels tell the adventures of young priestesses who live during three perilous eras - the final days of Atlantis, the Dark Ages of the suppressed Divine Feminine, and present day Glastonbury during today’s turbulent change in consciousness many call the ‘Shift of the Ages’.
The novels carry keys to embodying love, and are an initiatory journey into the Mysteries of the Goddess.
First in this series of all stand alone reads is The Awakening: Rebirth of Atlantis. Next is The Keys to Remember. Most Recently released are Carry on the Flame: Destiny’s Call Book One and Carry on the Flame: Ultimate Magic Book Two.
Jodine lives in Oregon with her husband Christopher. She is an Adorata Practitioner in the spiritual path of embodying divine love and balancing the masculine and feminine within; as well as a therapist, a consecrated priestess, and a deacon in the Gnostic Church of Mary Magdalene.
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