No matter where you are in the world, seasons hold a certain cadence. It might reflect work patterns or lifestyle; weather or crops; and even a season of writing. Whether or not you are at the beach with a good book, eating strawberries freshly plucked, or tapping the keys in a windowless nook, take time time to catch up on the Raw Literature guest essays at Carrot Ranch.

In this round up of essays, you will enjoy some visual creativity, discover newly published works, experience the weather and possibly develop a craving for cake and milk. Our essayists range from Poland to South Africa to England to Canada to the US. Raw literature knows no boundaries.

Raw from California Past: Charli Mills Imagines the Weather’s Impact. This is from my own pen, in response to the interesting memoir prompt hosted by Irene Waters in Times Past. Writing raw, I dug into memories of California weather to recreate the lives of historic figures in a trio of 99-word stories.

Raw from Poland: Art and Literature in the Raw by Urzula Humienik. While many writers visualize their characters, this novelist creates visual art as her characters. Urzula explains why she pursued a degree in art to expand her passion for literature. She writes, “There seems to be an interwoven connection in my mind between art and literature, and it’s possible I’m not the only one.” Her original artwork from current characters are included.

Raw from the East Coast: Sarah Brentyn is a Writer Unplugged. A master of brevity, Sarah writes from the raw center that marks her style. With a new book out, Hinting at Shadows, Sarah explores her process and awe for “raw.” She writes, “This tiny three-letter word is like a super hero. I’m a word nerd and I love that this petite power house can describe so many items, objects, and states.”

Raw from England: Anne Goodwin Goes Underneath. Crafting fiction from raw concept to publication ready is becoming second nature to Anne. In fact, she’s recently launched her second novel, Underneath, how one man decides to make use of his cellar. In her essay, Anne considers her obsession with stairs as a reoccurring theme in her writing. She writes, “In my novels, stairs symbolise the transition from one state to another, and possibly back again.”

Raw from Canada: Casia Shreyer Gives an Interview. With a new anthology published by Shreyer Ink Publishing, Casia answers questions about her creative process and working with other writers to develop collaborative works from raw literature. The theme is that of tolerance. “Everywhere we look people are grappling with the idea of tolerance and acceptance, weighing it against theology and tradition and their other personal values.”

Raw from Northeastern US: Lit Like Raw Milk by D. Avery. Long in the saddle and new on the scene at Carrot Ranch, D. Avery is making cream at the top of raw literature. The author of two books of poetry, Chicken Shift and For the Girls, D. reflects on memories of milk as a child. She writes about her recent experience writing with the literary community at the ranch, “The writing that is gathered there is rich and flavorful, like raw milk. It is filled with associations and connections, showing evidence of its origins and of its journeys.”

Raw from South Africa: Baking, Writing and Children by Robbie Cheadle. An interest in baking leads to one of writing and it’s a family journey with mother and son, Robbie and Michael. Both have expansive imaginations and now they are published. Robbie writes, “This original idea of Michael slowly developed into the Sir Chocolate series of books that exists today. We have written ten books, three of which are currently published.”

Cheers to whatever season may find you. May you live and write raw from the heart, from your deepest parts to your highest aspirations.

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Raw Literature is an ongoing conversation about those first works we create as writers, as literary artists. Guest Authors share personal insights on their craft, its process, the experience of creating raw literature and what they do with it. Carrot Ranch is a dynamic literary community that creates raw literature weekly in the form of flash fiction (99 word stories). If you have an essay idea, pitch to Charli Mills, Lead Buckaroo, at wordsforpeople@gmail.com.

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