It ain't sexy, but you've gotta do it

Since the beginning of the year, I've been working with my friend and client, Karen Schumacher, on reintroducing her pure soy candles to the public. Defining a strategy, users, a new look--even a new name, Heirloom Candles--was fun and sexy and exciting, and we are SO PROUD of the outcome. It was a blast working on the redesign and messaging. Except...now we have to sell some luxury candles, in an economy that's pretty much tanked, using PR instead of advertising because there just isn't a budget for advertising.

Now, I don't know anyone who loves cold-calling prospective clients. And I don't know anyone who loves a rejection letter--thankfully we've only gotten a couple of those.  But the fact of the matter is: once the sexy stuff is done, the grunt work of marketing begins.

Prior to redesigning Karen's candles, we spent a LOT of time on messaging: who are we targeting with this product? How and where do we hope to sell it? What makes Heirloom Candles different? How do we price them? What is our budget? If you haven't figured out your messaging fundamentals, get busy. You can't get "there" without a plan.

Once you've figured out fundamental messaging and goals, you need to reach out to the right people in the right places.

Considerable time must be spent on developing lists: store buyer lists,  media lists, "expert" lists...lists of every type for every occasion. And because one-size-fits all letters look like just that, you also need to spend some time tailoring your communications to the appropriate audience. "To Whom It May Concern" just doesn't cut it when the whole Internet is out there to help you find the specific contact information you need.

Then, when your communications are prepped and your lists have been vetted, it's time to get on the phone, write those notes and reach out to the folks you want to know you and your product. There's no easy solution--pitching a product or service requires two things: time and perseverance. And maybe patience! The payoff comes when you reach someone who says "we were just talking about that! I'd LOVE to see and hear more!" While it's no guarantee they'll stock you, it certainly puts a little wind in your sails and encourages you to dial that phone again. Because marketing and sales are fundamentally numbers games. The more you call, the more folks become likely to take a look at you and  your product.  Grunt work isn't sexy, but it's what makes things happen for you and your company. So take a deep breath and dive in...business is better when you do.

Safe in Body, Gustav Rocks Like a Hurricane

Right now, Hurricane Gustav is blowing Baton Rouge, Louisiana — my home town — to tatters. I've managed to get through to several important people either via phone or by text message: my mother and father, who watched as their next door neighbor's 70-foot oak tree smashed its owner's car and utility shed to smithereens; my brother on the other side of town, who said the storm wasn't nearly as big a deal as they'd thought (tell that to his wife, on lock-down at one of the city's largest hospitals); my friend Lynda Danos, who texted me that her family is blessedly alright in their home just outside of Lake Charles.

Lynda and her husband Willie, who until last year raised sugarcane as well as beef cattle on their farm in Iowa, LA, were devastated by Hurricane Katrina as it arrived on the doorstep of sugarcane harvest season. What cane managed to struggle upright again after the rain and wind and wasn't burned by whipping saltwater was almost impossible to harvest because of debris and bottomless muck in the field. I know she, and probably Willie too though he'd never admit it, cried an awful lot in the months following Katrina and her even more devastating, in agricultural terms, sister act Hurricane Rita. Lynda's parents lived with them for weeks as their home was rebuilt — putting off the repairs necessary on the Danos' own (just completed) new home. Financial anxiety preoccupied them well into 2006.

Katrina and Rita — the storms — weren't why my husband and I finally pulled up roots and left Louisiana. Those reasons were both personal and professional. Nevertheless, Louisiana is my home and my heart. And as I've watched a fist of wind and water smash down on my state just as it finally staggered to its knees after the storms of 2005, I feel absolutely helpless. And that makes me crazy. CNN, probably the most responsive news agency in the world, can't update fast enough for me. Looping satellite images of the storm coming onshore make me gnash my teeth. I'm almost relieved that meteorologists are predicting Hurricane Hanna and Tropical Storm (for the moment) Ike will head my way here in Atlanta.

Why? Because I learned close up the stories of the rural victims of Hurricane Rita and, to a lesser degree, Hurricane Katrina. While New Orleans' tragedy transfixed the country, Hurricane Rita swept into Louisiana and inflicted unimaginable damage to the state's agricultural economy and, consequently, producers. Millions of dollars in sugar, seafood, timber and cotton were ruined. Livestock literally blew or floated away, we never could figure out which; whole herds of cattle just...disappeared. 

But in those numbers there also were names and outcomes: in agriculture, your money is either in the ground or on the hoof until you take it to market. Which meant that as well as homes and fences, millions of dollars in 2005, 2006, even 2007 income for Louisiana producers blew away in Category 3 winds and torrential rains. Some of the best people in the world got their hats handed to them in less than 24 hours;  "Thanks for playing. Sorry, you lose." Mike Danna, an amazing professional photographer and my former boss, took photos — devastating in their immediacy and pain — of people who would likely never recover from the blow.

So again, why am I almost willing those tropical storms in the Atlantic head up the eastern seaboard? I wouldn't wish the same devastation on the producers in my adopted state of Georgia. To be sure, I wouldn't wish it on anyone. But tonight I still can't reach some folks, and I'm anxiously waiting for the Weather Channel to update its report. So I think “Bring it on, Hanna honey. I can take it, but I just don't know how much more those folks in Louisiana can.” Prayers have been joined by tough talk in my head tonight, though I just saw on CNN that bulldozers are already plowing the roads along the coast. Looks like my precious friends are tough enough indeed.

Queens, Commercials and Underwear Essentials

Last post was June 11--wow. SOOO much has happened since then. It's been exciting, frustrating and exhausting, but hey--what else would I want?  :)

Just after the last post, I attended the Louisiana Farm Bureau annual meeting. It's one of my favorite events EVER--LFB is one of the last state Farm Bureaus in the U.S. to hold a Queen's Pageant. Being, I believe, a frustrated beauty queen in another life, I eat that stuff up with a spoon. Once again I sat with Vivian Anderson, wife of president Ronnie Anderson, and handicapped the contestants. We did well, but Wendell Miley, LFB's safety director, once again called the winner about 5 minutes into the contest. I don't know how he does it...he's been right almost every year.   

When I tell people about attending the Queen's Contest I get a lot of smirks and eye rolls--I don't deny it's an anachronism in today's world of "everyone's a winner." But the Queen will travel Louisiana for a year, attending events almost every weekend and logging up to 10,000 miles away from her family, to tell the story of agriculture. Each girl is grilled on her knowledge of the state's agriculture and issues that impact it. They have to really WANT it, and it shows.  So where I used to roll my eyes as well, I now think it's pretty cool too, in a sparkly sort of way. 

Also started working on some challenging rebranding work for that organization and it's subsidiary, the Louisiana Farm Bureau Insurance Companies. It's quite the David-Goliath story going up against Geico, Allstate and State Farm for business, but that's what makes the job so fun. Kudos to LFB Creative Director Lauren Thom for coming up with our theme...when the creative is finished I'll post for the oohs and aahs.  We'll also be able to prove effectiveness, the linchpin of any creative communications campaign. "How did it do?" "I don't know." just won't cut it. Can't wait to see the numbers.

I DID get to skip out for a long weekend somewhere in June between insanity and pandemonium--went to Gulf Shores with 2 best buds. I was so crazy and ready to run down to the beach I forgot to pack underwear. Many many lingering lingerie thanks to Maria and Nicole for stocking me up with an abundance of underpinnings upon my arrival.  :) AND I got my first tan in years. So bad for the skin, so good for the soul.  

Thanks, my friend, for checking back--sorry it's been so long since I posted. 

Teaching Children Manners and Values

I belong to a service called Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Reporters from all over the place ask for sources for their stories. It's pretty interesting what comes across as far as inquiries go...

So yesterday an inquiry came through asking: "For a story in a national parenting magazine, I'm seeking experts who can talk about teaching young kids (under 6) values -- how can kids better understand things like self-reliance, courage, respect? Are values still taught in today's high-paced world -- and why are they still important for kids to learn?" 

I was on that query like a duck on a junebug. Here was my response...your thoughts and comments are welcome!

"It is absolutely vital that parents teach their children values in this high-paced world. I know you asked for "experts" and I would say I am one -- I'm a mom of two boys, 7 and 2.5, and a communications consultant in Atlanta.

Already we are teaching our sons what used to be called "manners." Please, Thank you, No sir, Yes ma'am. Being kind, cleaning up after yourself, playing fair and more. My 2.5 year old clears his dishes, or at least brings them to me so I can put them on the counter because he can't reach. He already has responsibilities, such as picking up after himself and putting his shoes away. Why?

Because now is the time to train them in skills and behaviors that will serve them for a lifetime. Manners are vital when interacting with people of stature -- parents, sure, but also teachers and bosses. They also teach you how to demonstrate respect for others and resolve problems, such as sharing and playing "fair." Helping out around the house now with age-appropriate chores teaches them responsibility and job-sharing. It also diminishes their expectation that I am there to be the chief cook, bottle-washer, maid and laundress. i don't like doing those things any more than they do, and it helps them see that I'm a person, and together we all make up and work together as a family.

Some day, my boys will grow up. Their manners, from showing respect to using proper table and phone etiquette, will certainly help them in social and business settings. Being able to hold a conversation, use proper diction, shake hands and look someone in the eye while apologizing also will be valuable assets as they look for friends, jobs and mates. Judging from the apparent decline of manners and values in today's society, I hope my kids can set a good example by treating others as they hope to be treated.

Are we weird and rigid in our training? I don't think so -- it's really not very hard, either. It's repetition, repetition, repetition and little kids take that well. Eventually it becomes ingrained. My 7-year-old has beautiful manners (about 95% of the time--he IS only 7, after all!)"

It frankly surprised me that her question even included the idea of whether manners were necessary in today's world. To me, they're more vital than ever before. As news and views in America slip toward the more intolerant and judgmental, manners enable us to see another's point of view, and at least agree to disagree. Manners are about respect -- for others and ourselves. And what's more valuable than that?

Creaky Screen Doors Let in Memories

Do some smells trigger in you an immediate connection to another time and place? One for me is always the first smell of burnt leaves in fall. Even after 30 years, that smell puts me smack in the middle of my front yard, 12 or 13 years old, living on Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Mt. Clemens, MI. I was probably raking the leaves in that big old yard — no wonder I have an attachment.

I hadn't thought much about other triggers for memory until I was speaking on the phone yesterday to my friend and client Karen Schumacher, who lives in Husser, LA. She makes wonderful candles you'll be dying to buy in about two months...  :)

Karen is blessed to live in the country with her husband Hank, where they operate the Bald Cypress Cattle Company and her business, Heirloom Candles.  As four of her 10 grandchildren live on the farm with them, it was no surprise to have Dusty, one of her older grandsons, answer the phone when I called. He used the “kid intercom” to reach Karen--meaning he hollered out the door for her to come inside and talk to me. 

As she entered the house, I heard it: a sound that brought back so many memories for me from my grandparents' house in Louisiana where we spent most summers that it took my breath away: the creaking spring of an old-fashioned screen door.

That sound means to me:

Golden Guernsey ice cream from Kleinpeter Dairy, literally yellow with creamy deliciousness.  Topped with honey, it was the official harbinger of summer.

Sitting in my grandparents' kitchen sink watching the birds feed at the bird feeder with my grandfather, Ginny. He could identify every type of bird AND whistle its call. No wonder I thought he was the coolest grandpa ever.

Smelling the Community Coffee "fresh-o-lator" full of dark roasted grounds. In Louisiana, most kids are started on coffee in their toddlerhood and I was no different. Even today if I buy another brand I feel guilty.

Catching green garden lizards with my brothers and seeing if we could get them to bite and hang on our earlobes like earrings.

Climbing in my grandparents' fig tree and eating those luscious purple fruits 'til we were sick. And then doing it again the next summer.

My grandmother, Maggie, has been gone for many years now--she died when I was in college. My grandfather, now almost 98, met precious Eddie and had another 18 years of happiness with her after Maggie died. When I was in Louisiana last week on business, I went to see Ginny, and it was bittersweet. He is in a wheelchair now, his skin almost translucent with age. He always tells me he's tired, and that he's not supposed to still be here, when my mom is out of the room. Let me tell you, there's nothing appropriate you can say to that, to a man who's played thousands of hands of poker, caught probably about a million fish, lost two wives and countless friends, and seen at least six wars in his lifetime. He's lived. A lot.

So maybe, when I heard Karen's screen door creak, that was God giving me my grandpa back in all his vigor one last time. Because creaky screen doors now mean a cardinal's flashing brightness, a damn good cup of coffee, and Louisiana summers with my grandpa. And those memories will never grow old.

Networking with the FFA Kids

I got an unexpected but very welcome invitation last week. My friend Blane Marable, executive director of the Georgia FFA Alumni Association, asked if I would like to join his newly-installed state board members on a trip to Merial Pharmaceuticals in Duluth GA. Heck yeah!  I'm always up for meeting new people, and getting to visit with FFA kids is always interesting.

You may have heard of FFA — once the Future Farmers of America. Sometime along the way in recent years they just changed to FFA — no farm reference. I still don't understand that but this isn't a blog about marketing... necessarily. Nevertheless, FFA turns out some of the most remarkable young adults I've ever met. Smart, focused, hard-working, accomplished and polite (yes! I know!), these are kids that colleges across the country fight over. I've got to figure out how FFA and their parents do it so I can raise my two boys to turn out similarly. However, back to the visit.

Dr. Steven Lerner is the marketing director for Merial's U.S. large animal sector. Friendly, unassuming, he was a delight at lunch, discussing his daughter's recent graduation and more. Come to find out that this plain-speaking man has about a million degrees in biology, animal science and genetics. My brain melts just thinking about it. However... he gave these high-flying FFA kids, most of whom already have specific career goals, a very plain, interesting lesson in achievement as he outlined how he came to his position at Merial. Here are his takeaways, as interpreted by me. Dr. Lerner, if I'm off-base, let me know:

1. You don't go to school to learn about your chosen profession. You go to school to learn how to learn. Learning throughout your career is what leads to advancement and, hopefully, fulfillment.

2. It's okay to wander far from the course of study you followed in school. Dr. Lerner went from research into sales into academia back to process management and then to marketing. Quite the convoluted path to success, but he smiles an awful lot for someone who took the circuitous route. It must have worked for him.  You know--it can work for you, too.

3. Having a plan is good. Being flexible is better. See item #2 for an explanation on that one. Rigidity is an opportunity crusher. Flexibility, whether it's in your personal life, business plan or career trajectory, can lead to amazing opportunities and experiences you might never have gotten otherwise.

4. Start developing a network. NOW. I don't think those FFA kids knew that they already were networking at this event with a VERY interested potential employer. Dr. Lerner was completely up front saying, "We love having you here today and hope that, when you graduate, several of you will come to work for us." You could see the switches flip in their heads as they thought, “Aaah! nettttworrrrkkiinnnnnggg! This guy could help me get a job!! I get it!”  No matter the industry, your experience or your beautiful resume, jobs and referrals depend GREATLY on who you know. If the odds aren't in your favor right now, improve them! Get out, meet some people and KEEP IN TOUCH WITH THEM! It's not hard!

5. Money isn't the goal (but it's not a bad thing, either). Doing a job you hate because it pays well is probably my No. 1 most-hated job scenario. There is no salary good enough to buy back your time, passion and integrity. Case in point: Charlie Bucket. Did you know that Peter Ostrum, who played Charlie Bucket in the REAL Willie Wonka movie (the first one, of course), only did that one film. Not for lack of opportunity, but because it didn't make him happy. He's now a large animal vet in rural New York State and is, apparently, happy as a clam. ’Nuff said.  Now, if you're doing what you love and you make a ton of money at it, more power to you. Rock on!

The funny thing about the trip to Merial wasn't just watching these novice business leaders get an education. I was surprised and pleased to know that I came away with something new that day too. First, Dr. Lerner's casual conversation with those FFA kids was like a refresher for me and a reminder to follow MY career passions. But I learned from those kids, too — about dedication, responsibility and commitment, and that “good kids”--or eight of them--abound if you look in the right places. Now I just need to find out how to get an FFA chapter started in my urban high school, even though my oldest son is 7. Hey, you can never start too early... at least that's what the FFA kids I networked with last week said.

The Dichotomy of Blogging and American Agriculture

I was talking to my  friend and teacher Leisa Rich the other day about the blog. I'm like a kid with a new toy, so I asked if she'd seen it since I'd given her a shout-out, and (thankfully) she had...but then she turned "that look" on me and said, "you know, Margaret, I'm just so OVER blogs. I'm blogged out." Quickly followed by assurances she didn't actually mean ME, of course, but you get the picture.

Since I can't leave anything alone, I asked why. "People just over-communicate. I don't need to read one more person talk about going out for Mexican food and it gives them gas." Heard that, sistah. Gross.  BUT...what interested me was the "over-communication" part of her complaint. So the first thing is...if you wouldn't tell someone at a party about your gas, why would you charm--that IS used with an ironic tone--complete strangers with the details?? Keep a lid on it.

But the over-communication comment also got me thinking about folks in agriculture. For so long, producers and people in small communities have kept their efforts, stories and successes to themselves. Is it modesty? Lack of know-how? An ingrained reluctance to toot your own horn? Whatever the reason, you can't afford to keep silent anymore, and the tools--FREE tools--are at your fingertips to talk about what you do, why it's important and why people should care about you, your product and what's involved in creating it. Case in point? You're reading it.

Now, more than ever before, people are interested in where their food and other products come from. Who grows it? Makes it? What is it like living on a farm? (For some people that's like asking, "what's it like living on the moon?") Tell them. They'll never know, otherwise.

When you have something new going on at your operation, let someone in the news know. A great place to start is the Georgia Farm Bureau, which has a weekly television show, daily radio show and TWO magazines. If you don't live in Georgia, here's a tip--there's a Farm Bureau AND an extension office in every state. Help them tell your story--sometimes that just means letting them know you're here and you have something interesting going on. Other farm journals and websites abound--do a Google search and get started. Or, if you don't want to go to the trouble, call me. It's what I do. Either way, reach out. People don't understand what you do or how you do it. They don't come across agriculture every day. That makes you unique, and makes your story unique, too. Find someone and communicate with them--we're ready to listen.

On Cowboy Boots Made in China

My grandmother, Alvis Fincher Austin of Klondike, Texas

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So I've had the itch for some time now to get myself some cowboy boots. Now, having said that, I first have to admit that for years, I mocked my older brother who lived in the country and adopted himself a rather country “way.” For instance, when we moved to Baton Rouge from Michigan back in 1979, he took me out for ice cream at Baskin Robbins, and horrified me when he asked “summa that PRAY-leens and CREE-yum” ice cream. Almost died. Let me explain. First, we sounded like the worst sort of pandering Yankee nitwits and our northern accents were so thick most folks couldn't understand us in Louisiana anyway, and Second--and this was probably the greater sin--south Louisiana folks call those damn things PRAH-lines, not  PRAY-lines, for God's sake, and I, who just wanted to fade into the crowd and go unnoticed, knew he'd marked us as fakers the second we opened our mouths. 

The hilarious joke fate has played on me is that the life I dogged my brother about is the life I now aspire to. He ended up owning horses and living in the country before his difficult death and truly, that place and those animals were probably the only thing close to real peace he ever found in his life.

Back to the boots. Most of the farmers and ranchers I know work in steel-toed pull-on Brahman workboots, not cowboy boots. But I've been pining for a fine pair of boots for a long time, and the need has just been wearing me out. I don't know where any boot stores are in Atlanta,  so when I went to Baton Rouge for a business trip I thought I'd just pick up a pair there.  So I'm looking, not finding anything that made me crazy--which would have required some sort of red trickery and sass--but I really had my heart set on some so I found a serviceable pair of brown ones I thought I could live with.  And then, the tag: Made In China. I put them down like my hand was scalded. China doesn't have COWBOYS! 

As fate would have it, I went to San Antonio shortly thereafter on a trip for Farm Bureau. My lovely friend Jim Monroe told me he'd take me to find some boots there, because as he says, “If you can't find some kicks in San Antonio you’re not gonna find ’em anywhere.” Then I got the big bonus, because Ronnie Anderson, president of Farm Bureau and a true cowboy himself (so's Jim in case you're wondering) came along and I had a lovely time with my two friends picking out boots for me. I wound up with two pairs (!), some very slick and fancy city boots that will be perfect for going out in Atlanta, and then another pair of good-looking rugged ones for every day. Pix are coming.  I did something with the fancy ones that I haven't done since I was a little girl: I put them on the night stand so I'd see them as soon as I woke up. Yes, they ARE that fine. 

AND...they're made in Mexico, where they do indeed still have cowboys and some of the finest cowboy boot artisans around. If you're interested in finding out more about cowboy boots as an art form--and they ARE--check out Tyler Beard's books on the subject--gorgeous!! For some really fine pix of modern day cowboys, check out the December 2007 National Geographic (http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2007/12/vaquero/draper-text) and photographer Robb Kendrick's transcendent tintypes  of 21st century cowboys. They accompany Robert Draper's evocative story about enduring individualists.

The final note on the boots--for my birthday in March, my parents sent me such an amazing gift: my grandmother's cowboy boots, which have been in a closet in their house for about 60 years. They're tiny--she was at best 4'10" on a good day, and when I knew her as a child she was always Done Just So: hair, panty hose, lipstick... the whole nine yards of proper southern lady-hood. And I got these boots, and the heels are worn down to the nail heads, and it gave me the most wonderful vision of her as a beautiful young woman in Dallas, dancing and stomping and having a ball. I wish I'd known her then--we probably would have had a lot to talk about, between dances.

Mike Danna On the Myths & Facts of Ag

Well, since I mentioned Mike Danna in my blog, I thought I'd share with you an article he wrote about agriculture--the myths of the industry vs. the facts. Some interesting reading that may get you thinking tonight. Enjoy!

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Urban legends about about many things these days — just check www.snopes.com for page after page of myths that are mostly more myth than fact. However, there are some "urban" legends about agriculture these days that seem to persist despite all the facts to the contrary. Here's a list of some of my favorites and the real deal behind them:

Myth:  The only sustainable form of food production is organic.

Fact: If the world converted to all-organic food production, yields would decline 30 to 40 percent and crops would become much more vulnerable to diseases such as the potato blight that caused the Irish food famine. In addition, to product the nitrogen needed to fertilize crops organically, we would need to convert one-third of all crop acreage into production of "green manure" plants which release nitrogen as they biodegrade, or increase the number of cattle on the planet 700 percent to produce it.

Myth: A person's genes can be changed by eating a genetically modified food.

Fact: If you eat corn, you don't become corn. Your body digests the proteins and absorbs the amino acids to use them to build proteins. Your body cannot tell where a protein originates. It treats all proteins alike and problems only occur when someone is allergic to the protein, such as those in peanuts and shellfish.

Myth: Only genetically modified tomatoes have genes; ordinary tomatoes don't.

Fact: All living things contain genes whether they are genetically modified or not. Yet consumers in many countries answer the question "Do only genetically modified tomatoes have genes?" incorrectly, in the affirmative.

Myth: Globally, hunger is caused by a shortage of food.

Fact: Hunger is due to economic, political and social reasons. The world produces enough food for everyone. Even Africa produces enough food to feed that continent. Poverty results in lack of access to that food and hunger also may be induced for political or social reasons, especially in war-torn areas of the world. Unfortunately, producing more food will not solve these problems.

Myth: We are losing family farms because large, corporate farms are taking over American agriculture.

Fact: Less than one percent of farms are non-family-owned, corporate farms. Family farms still produce the majority of our food and fiber (about 86 percent). While it's true that farms are becoming larger in order to spread costs and risks over more production and many incorporate for tax purposes, they're still family-owned farms.

These myths and many others can be found in the booklet "Addressing Misconceptions About Agriculture," produced by the American Famr Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. To learn more, please visit www.ageducate.org.

Developing Creative Businesses Here in Georgia

Yesterday I went to an all-day workshop in Macon, GA on developing the creative economies of the state. The creative economies defined by the Georgia Tourism Foundation are slightly different from Richard Florida's famous "Rise of the Creative Class" creatives, who include researchers, scientists and the like. The GTF literally means CREATIVES -- dancers, photographers, painters, jewelry-makers, fiber artists and more.

Many of these folks are women, and many also are struggling to make a name for themselves and elevate their work into a full-time business. The workshop I attended is to find and develop trainers to work with creative, mostly rural businesspeople and give them skills they need to succeed. Many rural towns in Georgia and other states were founded on the presence of a particular industry or company, and have fallen on hard times after losing that business. These folks don't want to abandon their town or homes, so creating an alternative business infrastructure is vital. The workshop featured presentations on "discovering your heritage" for these towns, and featured towns such as Savannah as success stories. It can happen if enough people become committed and band together to effect change.

I sat next to a lovely fiber artist named Carla Powell in the session. If you don't know what a "fiber artist" is, it's someone who works with and creates art with textiles. She is PHENOMENAL. Go to www.carlapowellstudio.com and see if I'm lying. More on textile artists in a minute...the great deal about sitting with Carla is that she was there to offer creatives training in making a website to promote themselves and their art on blogspot. HELLO--where is my new blog? She inspired me to sit down and take care of my OWN business, finally--something I've not focused on nearly enough lately because I've been working a lot.

So the trip was worth it, the creative economies project is DEFINITELY worthwhile, and I'm going to post some links for you to follow to find out more about the creatives in Georgia and, if you're a creative or microbusiness, there'll also be some links on resources you can access for help.

Back to fiber artists--I've learned there isn't a big fiber artists community in Georgia, or at least Atlanta. I learned this from Leisa Rich, an AMAZING fiber artist and also my teacher. I've been taking classes from Leisa for a couple of months at Callanwolde here in Atlanta (www.callanwolde.org)--an arts center where you can take classes on anything from dance and pottery to drawing and acting. We're very blessed to have that resource here. Leisa is so busy working as a teacher, mentor and artist that I wanted to give her a shout-out and direct y'all to her website, www.monaleisa.com. She does custom commissioned art pieces and has many works in traveling and permanent exhibits. Check her out!