About shanathornton

Listener, reader, storyteller, author of four novels, owner of Thorncraft Publishing and creator of BreatheYourOMBalance® Visit thorncraftpublishing.com for more details.

Yoga at Thorncraft & Grocery Cart Yoga

Posted on August 19, 2015 by shanathornton

Sometimes, I get the question, “so, why are you doing this yoga thing now?” It makes me laugh. I won’t go into the threads of yoga in my life and when they began and what they became at different times for me. Right now, yoga is becoming part of my publishing company’s journey, too. And, it’s fitting. Not only do I practice yoga, but so does Melissa Corliss DeLorenzo, one of the authors published by Thorncraft. In fact, Melissa wrote a blog in 2010 about how her children busted out their yoga moves in the grocery store for a public display of asana. While this blog is centered on NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), it’s the humor and overall zen quality of Melissa’s approach to mothering and accomplishing goals that captivated me (& caused me to laugh until I snorted). She has allowed me to publish it again here on my blog in a series about yoga and what we are working on for the future. Stay tuned and enjoy this hilarious story that most all mothers can relate to:

Grocery Zen with Children…yeah, right
By Melissa Corliss DeLorenzo
You know what’s one of my biggest challenges with NaNoWriMo? Finding time to go to the grocery store for the weekly shopping.   I remember when I was lying on the sonographer’s table and saw my twins in utero for the first time (BIG surprise), one of my first thoughts was how am I going to grocery shop with three little kids? But I figured it out: one baby in the car seat in the cart itself (yes, groceries piled around her), one in the baby carrier, my (then) two year old in the kiddy seat. As time went on, it morphed into one twin in the kiddy seat, the other in the carrier on my back and my little boy on foot. This arrangement worked beautifully for a long time.   Until recently.   The girls have decided they want to be neither on my back nor in the kiddy seat. So, I decided, fine, you can both go in the cart itself which prompted this facebook post once we returned home: Yes, I was THAT mother in the grocery store and my kids were THOSE kids. Everyone was probably relieved to see the extra big bottle of wine in the cart…   They have grown to be completely nuts in the grocery store. It used to be a piece of cake, but no more. Ella asked me recently if we were going grocery shopping. And I said, “I don’t think so, sweetie. Do you know why?” She said, “Cuz Ella and Lily don’t listen.” She’s right—they open packages of grape tomatoes in the aisles, they stomp on bags of flour, they toss things out of the cart, they pull labels off cans. And they think it is all hilarious. They yell as loud as possible and crack each other up. They try to jump out, too. And every shopper who walks by freaks out that they are imminently going to fall. I can sense them questioning my mothering skills. Something about the grocery store brings out the evil in my daughters. I’m sure everyone else thinks it’s quite comical, but I am the nut saying things like, “If you don’t stop crushing our food, you are going to lose the privilege of grocery shopping with Mommy!” While I am saying these crazy things, they are singing Ironman at the top of their lungs. (Thanks to husband for introducing Black Sabbath to my precious children…)

So, here’s the thing: I go out on Thursday nights alone. I go and write. There are times when I go and read or stare at nothing. I just like being alone while drinking my nice little latte without anyone touching me. Once, my husband jokingly said on my Thursday night, “You look nice,” (which meant, I think, oh you showered). “You going to meet some guy?” And I said, “No. The last thing I want is someone touching me or trying to talk to me.” This was when we were in the thick of two babies and a toddler, when the best personality trait a person could possess was the ability to hold it together when presented a broken cracker.   So, ever the optimist, and attempting to preserve the sanctity of my Thursday night writing time, I decided to try shopping with them again. This was the next facebook post:Remember that time I said I would never go grocery shopping with the kids again? Well, I mean it this time.

Getting to the point, I started using part of my Thursday nights to grocery shop, sans kids. But it’s NaNo time now and I cannot afford to utilize any of my precious Thursday nights for anything but writing. (See? This does have something to do with writing!) I was more determined than ever to make our grocery shopping together work. Damn it.

My new tactic: two carts! One for the kids, one for the food.

Here is the one with the food—peaceful and tranquil:  (You can imagine it with produce)
You saw the photo of the kids at the top of the page. That photo documents a semi-good moment in the shopping experience. Soon after, they were dumping water on the floor and doing Downward Facing Dog from the top of one side of the cart to the top of the other. All while chanting the words to “Five Little Monkeys” as loudly as possible. Then they commenced to freak out at the check-out when they realized that it was logistically impossible for them to place (throw) the food onto the belt from their cart. I defied the laws of physics and figured it out. I’m sure someone from MIT will be contacting me.

Long story short, I really mean it this time. But not on Thursday nights. I gotta write.

(Someone know a way to stretch the week one little hour longer?)

I still managed to stay mostly on track this week. A little behind but I will catch up this weekend!
How’s your NaNo project going?

Visit Melissa’s blog at http://www.melissacorlissdelorenzo.com
Melissa’s blog was first publishing at Her Circle Ezine for The Writer’s Life blog. http://www.hercircleezine.com

Instagram Yoga Challenges–10 epiphanies & why you should participate even if you’re a beginner

Posted on June 24, 2015 by shanathornton

1. Yoga challenges are a fun release & will deepen your yoga practice on your own terms:
Last year, I began participating in yoga challenges on Instagram. I started with a short one focused on meditative asanas (or postures). This allowed me to self reflect and slowly add longer, more rigorous challenges. Yoga challenges can be a one day thing (#HumpDayHearts is a Wednesday ongoing challenge), or last for a few days, a month, or even longer. You choose the challenges that fit your lifestyle and participate when you can. Many challenges will take place every month or every other month (the challenge #InspiredYogis in its 9th round is one example). They all vary depending on the theme or hosts.

2. To participate is about your self (winning or losing doesn’t matter):
As a trail runner, I’m usually focused on improvement, endurance, and the goal. For yoga, I did not expect to “win” a challenge, as that seemed like a paradox considering that yoga was the practice. Not a sport. Not a competitive game. Yoga is a practice that isn’t a practice session or composed of practice sessions designed for a performance in which one is judged or an opponent against someone else. I learned that getting into my breath and finding comfort was the “win.” I was moving my body beyond its comfort zone. Moreover, I did receive a prize for participating in challenges…several prizes and they kept coming from protein bars to custom yoga outfits. This was simply a surprise bonus. I also realized that hosts and sponsors don’t choose recipients for prizes based on how challenging a pose seems to be. To one person, a twist is difficult, while someone else struggles with arm balances. The hosts and sponsors simply choose based on inspiration, effort, and compassion.
Other challenges do not offer gifts or prizes. The point is personal growth and learning new ways of practicing an asana.

3. Yogis will give instructions & videos to help you (true teachers are encouraging & supportive):
Yoga challenges are another way of being physical, and the Instagram community of yogis are supportive, encouraging, and complimentary. Beyond that, they teach you how to practice by offering all kinds of variations, by discussing their personal growth from the beginning of their practice and by showing their fears are rooted in the body and its abilities. Participating in a challenge is sharing, giving, letting others in, and allowing a creative physical expression.

4. Yoga makes you face your fears and/or your pent-up emotions:
I’m regularly challenged to face fears, if I want, and for me that’s standing on my hands or trying pincha. Some of my IG friends have confessed their fears of backbends, specifically dropping back to catch yourself on your hands. Someone else was terrified of hurting her back in bakasana, or crow pose. I read a yogis emotional reaction to deep twists and how emotion erupted from him and he had no idea that he was even feeling emotional. He was anticipating a stretch, a workout, a practice of breathing and body alignment, but what he experienced was so much more. He realized his own mental block.

5. Yoga reveals any body-shame issues & allows you to create art with your body & your location:
I admire the way yogis laugh at themselves and their bodies–their butts in the air in downward facing dog and so many other asanas (try #OhthePlacesYoullCrow challenge for some Dr Suess-inspired fun) I laugh at myself trying to do a chinstand, and I’m just rolling around in the grass and eating weeds more than I am balanced on my chin.
I admire the way yogis find their niche of creative expression on Instagram. They create variations in not only the asanas and the approach to them, but also the way they take and edit the photos. The lines, the twists, the shadows and light on the human body in a place of balance, attunement to the asana and breath, going beyond to consider the space where the person is practicing yoga–all of that changes with each person’s different expression of the asana. The photos show yogis blending into landscapes, interrupting them, colliding with our own constructions in expressions of being and transformation at the same time. People becoming trees. Flying in an acroyoga bird in front of the sea. Reaching those toes out over the open space of a canyon, and perching like a bird with talons anchored into a rock, a bench, a mountain’s face. #WanderlustYourCity is a challenge that allows you to highlight the places that you love in your city and share those places with other yogis all over the world.

6. Combining art forms:
Already a basic yoga challenge asks you to combine yoga with photography to create an image. Beyond that, yoga challenges like #ArtMusicYogaLove offer musical inspiration for artistic yoga creations. You choose your own asanas and how you interpret the songs given by the hosts.

7. Yoga in relationships & friendships:
While the practice is personal, yoga is a gift to be shared. Experiencing it with others is joy. The challenges have encouraged me to practice yoga in public with family and friends with whom I’ve never practiced yoga.
The challenge #Twinnings has connected yogis who’ve never met in person but who wanted to create yoga art together and encourage one another.

8. Spiritual depth:
No matter what your religion or spiritual practice, if you want more depth and a place to discuss ideas, you can find that in the challenges as well. Many yogis discuss deepening their meditative practice or their core spiritual beliefs, and provide instructions on what has worked for them. These beliefs do not have to be Hindu, Buddhist, or Taoist. Instagram yogis have a variety of spiritual beliefs & practices. #MoreThanAsana is such a perfect challenge to experience spiritual depth, whether you share your journey on Instagram or use it in your practice privately.

9. Surprise yourself with progress:
Before you know what happened, you’ll be reaching your toes and flipping your grip, getting deeper and flying higher, if you allow yourself a daily practice with the IG Yoga Community. Yogis like to say “practice and all is coming,” and I know what they mean because I see the evidence in my life. Yoga benefits the body in so many ways. Many yogis share how an asana improves the body and the benefits of practicing a particular posture. For example, how inversions can aid in chronic headaches and mild depression, to name a few of the benefits.

10. Desire to give back to others:
I wanted so badly to participate in the challenges as a sponsor from the beginning, but I was timid about sharing my products. I’m not a yoga teacher, though I have been aware and had a practice for decades. Last year, I couldn’t imagine how yoga challenges would lead me to participate as a sponsor in the challenges and mail out my organic yoga-inspired t-shirts to yogis across the world, but that’s where my journey is now. I’m one of the sponsors (IG account: @shana_trailbalance) for #SummerofRenewal
The challenge is happening now on Instagram. Join some wonderful hosts and discover more about your body-mind connection. Have a good time creating art with your body and surroundings.

IG Muse: Canditcha’s Instagram Photos

Posted on May 31, 2015 by shanathornton

An empty room and blank paper–at countless workshops & speaking engagements, writers advise having those two things in order to create a manuscript. It’s a necessary beginning for many authors, myself included, but once a story takes shape, inspiration needs to come from a source with more to offer than the expansiveness of the blank page. Visual stimulation is as important to me as what life may sound like for the characters I create. I look at photographs to find ever-changing muses.

Photo by Candice Shoulders. @canditcha on Instagram

While writing Poke Sallet Queen & the Family Medicine Wheel, I was captivated by Candice Read Shoulder’s images on Instagram. She posts as @canditcha

They show her modern day life with her husband on their middle Tennessee farm, but most of the images have a vintage filter or style. I’m mesmerized by her ability to capture the beauty of horses in motion and how sunlight moves and changes through the day and the seasons.

Candice and I worked on our high school yearbook together, and after I graduated and moved, and then she graduated and moved, both of us traveling in opposite directions, we found one another via Facebook once we each returned to middle Tennessee to reconnect with the permanent roots we already had here.

Did technology help me to write my book? Of course, it did, and bringing images directly to my phone from her phone is only one example. When I asked Candice if she had photos of poke sallet in every stage of development–flowering, berrying, ripening, and nodding in a tower back toward the ground–she walked outside and around her farm to take the photos. Each time she sent a photo or tagged me in one, I jumped back into the story with fresh images to pull me along.

Photo by Candice Read Shoulders. @canditcha on Instagram

I am honored that she gave me permission to create a slideshow for the book composed of her images. During my reading next Thursday, June 4, 2015, at the Customs House Museum and Cultural Center in Clarksville, TN, I’ll display the slideshow on a large projector during my reading at the art walk. I hope that you will join us.

I’ll also display a second slideshow composed of antique and vintage photos of historical places in and around Nashville, as well as rural middle TN families with their musical instruments. The Art walk begins at 5:30 pm. I will be reading from my new book and signing copies. Books will be available for purchase from Seasons, the museum gift store.

Read praise from notable authors and more about Poke Sallet Queen & the Family Medicine Wheel here.

Book available now from all major distributors. Request it from your local library.

The Literary Midwife

Posted on May 15, 2015 by shanathornton

When a manuscript has been created and moves into the final trimester before delivery, our books go to my literary midwife, Kitty Madden. She is the final Editor for all books at Thorncraft. Because we work with words on paper, the editor can go in and change and adapt as she likes, but only as the author agrees. This is how we work together for every book.

Kitty Madden, Editor for Thorncraft Publishing. Photo by Beverly Fisher

When my journey began, I spent most of my time daydreaming and talking about ideas. I moved on to research and tangible words on paper with instructions. Kitty was one of the few people I trusted with my manuscript, with my growth as an author, and with the crazy idea in my head of publishing books. She marked up every page of my first book, not only with her corrections and questions, but also with positive praise about what I was doing to satisfy a reader and to communicate as I intended for the story to talk. Kitty makes corrections as an editor should, but she does not express the brutal cynicism that some people in books think is an automatic part of the literary landscape (for that, I am grateful…the world has enough cynics). I had no idea that she would encourage the publishing company to materialize, and she believed so truly and thoughtfully that I began to see a reality instead of a dream. She was also vocal about all of the obstacles and how she couldn’t imagine what they might be and wouldn’t want to try to confront them, but she would deliver these books alongside me.

As with any two (or three or four) creative individuals, we don’t always think of the same solution to a problem in our books, but our ability to collaborate offers peace in our work. Generally, one of us concedes at the other’s explanation for “why.”
This is always a fun discussion of, “oh, but I like your way and think maybe it is best.”
“Well, thank you, but I’ve been thinking about the way you changed it and I think it does work.” Etc etc. until we conclude, “Both ways work, and let’s do this.” Usually, we compromise. We trust one another and enjoy the creative process, which makes our work pleasant.

We are well into the final trimester of Melissa Corliss DeLorenzo’s next novel, Talking Underwater.
When we formatted the book, Melissa asked, “Will Kitty begin editing now?”
I said, yes, and Melissa expressed her relief. This is always affirmation that Kitty’s words coax the highest expression of the book into the world while comforting, reassuring, and coaching the author.

shanathornton

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