"G" is for Galaxy - A to Z Challenge

G is for Galaxy in today's A to Z Challenge. I have always been fascinated by the stars, planets,galaxies and everything in our universe. I'm especially intrigued by the Astronomy Picture of the Day and have a few of my favorite NASA photographs photocopied in my sketch gathering books. 

When Farrah Ferand, the heroine in my novel, Evening of the Dragonfly, was a young child living on a farm in Mississippi, she and her grandfather would go out at night to look at the stars. She would sometimes lie back and study the zillions of lights visible in the dark sky. When her grandfather told her about the planets and the many stars visible in the universe, Farrah's imagination went wild. Now, as she creates the paintings for her one-person art exhibition, memories of imaginary planets in other galaxies emerge. She wonders what sky was like the tragic summer night her mother died. No matter what she paints, unwanted images emerge.

"Planets in a Lost Galaxy" ©Mary Montague Sikes

But, along with her lost memories, beautiful images appear on her canvasses as well. "Planets in a Lost Galaxy" contains some of the imaginary planets she sometimes painted long ago.

"F" is for Farrah - A to Z Challenge

All of a sudden, Martha was inside her car, struggling to get out. Struggling as the water seeped in. Struggling as the little gray sedan disappeared beneath the still waters of the dark summer lake.

In my novel, Evening of the Dragonfly, Farrah is struggling to understand and to remember what happened that summer night when the tragic death of her mother took place. She wants to remember, but she doesn't want to remember.

"F" is for Farrah Ferand. I have liked the name Farrah ever since I watched the old TV series, "Charlie's Angels" years ago. Farrah Fawcett, one of the stars, was beautiful, and her lovely blonde hair was unforgettable. Besides that, she and her friends solved mysteries. I had Farrah Fawcett in mind as I wrote my story. I could imagine her painting away in the studio she and Dirk built. I could imagine her trying to remember what happened that awful night Martha, her mother, died. I could also imagine her in the starring role as the romance with Dirk evolves.

In my book, Farrah has dreams she doesn't remember the next day. Some of the paintings she creates are about those dreams. "Farrah's Dream" is the title of today's painting. 

"Farrah's Dream" ©Mary Montague Sikes

What does your imagination tell you about this painting?

Evening of the Dragonfly is available in trade paperback and as a Kindle e-book.

"E" is for Everyday - A to Z Challenge

A note to those who would like to know more about my book:

Evening of the Dragonfly is a novel set in the 1980s, a time less complicated than today. Farrah Ferand has a high school art teaching job in a small Virginia town. She meets Dirk Lawrence, a businessman from the city, who takes an interest in her and in her painting and is helping her build a studio over the garage in her rented home. Farrah is thrilled to have the studio because she has a one-person art exhibition scheduled. As she works on new paintings, Farrah realizes things about herself, her relationships, and the tragic loss of her mother. We encounter some of her realizations as new paintings and parts of painting are unveiled each day during the A to Z Challenge. My book is available in trade paperback and as an e-book.

"E" is for everyday things that we don't appreciate as much as we should. As Farrah works in her studio, she looks out the window at the trees with their changing leaves. She loves trees in all seasons of the year. She enjoys watching them through the windshield of her car as the vehicle passes through forests along the Interstate. They remind her of good times long ago when her grandparents sometimes took her on trips with them. They are her everyday trees.

Farrah's painting today is the completed 18" by 36" inch canvas she started in two segments last week. She might add a few new touches here and there, but it's about ready for her show. It's her "Everyday Trees", painted in her everyday style with Golden Acrylics on canvas. It's a different style from the one she uses in other work, and it's fun to watch her switch from her more whimsical paintings. You might notice that the artist made a few changes in the earlier parts of the painting that were revealed last week.

"D" is for Dragonfly - A to Z Blog Challenge

In Evening of the Dragonfly, the lovely little dragonfly creature is bittersweet for our heroine, Farrah Ferand. She has memories that connect the graceful dragonfly to her most tragic moments.

Because of her dragonfly encounters, Farrah has researched its symbolic meanings and is captivated by them. One of them tells her about "going past self-created illusions that limit growth and change." She needs that positive direction as she creates new paintings, one by one, for the one-person exhibition in the city.

There's color magic in the dragonfly and an opening to creative imagination, she learns. Surely, she needs both of those.

"Dragonflies and Portals to Other Planets" ©Mary Montague Sikes

Then, there's the mystical part--the dragonfly flitting through portals to other worlds. That information hits Farrah hard and leads her to create the 18" x 24" watercolor painting "Dragonflies and Portals to Other Planets".

Her tree painting hangs unfinished in the studio. She will work on it over the weekend and post a photo of the finished 18" x 36" canvas on the Monday blog.

"C" is for Color - A to Z Challenge

Farrah Ferand, the heroine of Evening of the Dragonfly, is a troubled young woman. Her mother died in a way she doesn't understand, so she has repressed the memories of that part of her life. As an artist, she has a special way to cope. She is working with color to create her first one-person art show.

"Color and Beauty" ©Mary Montague Sikes

Color is exciting and therapeutic. This painting for Farrah's show is filled with bright color. The Golden liquid Quinacridone red acrylic paint in the middle section of the second painting is strong and might make some changes necessary in yesterday's portion of the painting. It will be interesting to see how this piece turns out.

Follow Farrah as she develops a group of paintings for her show and for the A to Z Challenge