Every summer, the Writers’ Community of York Region (WYRC) holds a book fair (The Bookshelf) at the Newmarket Community Centre & Lions Hall, next to the farmer’s market. The fair showcases over 40 local authors, publishers and artisans through readings, discussions and a tradeshow that features writers’ works in a variety of genres from science fiction and fantasy to mystery, inspiration, science, history, self-help and children’s literature. I participated in this year’s festival on July 7, 2018.

Reading from “Water Is…The Meaning of Water”

At the Reading Lounge onstage in the adjoining Farmers’ Market, I read from my Amazon-bestselling “science-for-lay public” book Water Is…The Meaning of Water. As children and their parents played in the main water feature behind me, I introduced the term “limnology” (someone who studies freshwater) and talked briefly about the meaning of water with an audience eager to learn.

“We can’t live without it, so maybe we should start respecting it; this beautifully designed book by a limnologist looks at water from 12 different angles, from life and motion and vibration to beauty and prayer,” said Canadian author Margaret Atwood when she selected Water Is… as her first pick in the New York Times ‘Year in Reading.’

Each of the 12 chapters completes the phrase “Water is…” with terms that evolve from science into philosophy and spirituality; terms such as “magic”, “life”, “motion”, “communication”, “memory”, “rhythm”, “vibration”, “beauty”, “story”, “wisdom”, “prayer”, and finally “joy”.

The book is, after all, a celebration of water.

I first shared some history on the making of the book. I shared that the pursuit of this book was oddly serendipitous and “entangled.”

“Early on, during the research and writing of this book, I discovered that this project on water had become a gestalt watershed for all the important moments in my life. Places I’ve been. Things I’ve learned. People I’ve met and with whom I’d had surprising discussions and realizations. All spanning many years. And many of them totally unrelated. And yet, now, with a sudden flood of context, their significance has transcended into a new fabric of meaning through surprising connection. Like puzzle pieces cooperatively arranging themselves into a symbiotic pattern of synchronicity.”

Writer and philosopher Jake Kotze suggests that, “Synchronicity happens when we notice the bleed-through from one seemingly separate thing into another—or when we for a brief moment move beyond the mind’s divisions of the world.” Synchronicity and serendipitous discovery, like metaphor, appear when we change the way we look at things.

“Serendipitous discovery comes to us through peripheral vision. Like our muse, it doesn’t happen by chasing after it; it sneaks up on us when we’re not looking. It comes to us when we focus outward and embrace our wonder for this world. When we quiet our minds and nurture our souls with beauty. It is then that what we had been seeking naturally comes to us. Like a gift.”

For my reading, I chose several summary quotes that appear at the end of each chapter of the book. These quotes were also featured earlier this year in “Morphology”, an art exhibit in Mississauga that honored the creation of a marsh park as part of Jim Tovey’s vision for the Lakeview Site and the Waterfront Connection:

Wonder Woman Respects Water

“Respect water!” says Wonder Woman (aka cosplayer Jes Tongio). Wonder Woman was careful to point out with her wise Amazonian sword of Athena (goddess of wisdom)—forged by Hephaestus—that “Water Is…” provides a doorway to wonder and responsible action.

Other Authors at The Bookshelf

I met and visited with other fellow writers, including Clair McIntyre, author of YA/fantasy, and crime writer Joan O’Callaghan.

Fellow authors who read at Reading Lounge included Douglas Smith, award-winning author of “Wolf at the End of the World”; and A.A. Jankewicz,

fantasy author of Q16, and who’s short story appears in the Water Anthology I edited for Reality Skimming Press; and Gabriela Casineanu read from her bestselling book Introverts: Leverage Your Strengths for an Effective Job Search.

Claudiu Murgan read from Decadence of the Soul; he is launching his recent science fiction novel Water Entanglement next month.

Myth Hawker Travelling Bookstore was also at the festival. Specializing in Canadian authors, Canadian content, and Canadian small press, they  carry an extensive list of local Canadian authors wherever they go across Canada.

The Immigrant Writers Association (IWA)

The IWA was also represented, along with member-writers Gabriela Casineanu, Andreea Munteanu, Claudiu Murgan and Andreea Demirgian.

The Immigrant Writers Association provides programs, activities, and services that empower and support immigrant writers in their journeys. According to their website, the goal of the IWA is to  “encourage immigrants to express themselves through writing, to bring more awareness, compassion, and peace into the world.”

As second-generation immigrant daughter to German and Romanian parents, I recently joined the IWA. I look forward to mentoring new writers and providing workshops and lectures to share my experience as a writer, editor, and teacher of fiction and non-fiction.

 

Nina Munteanu is an ecologist, limnologist and internationally published author of award-nominated speculative novels, short stories and non-fiction. She is co-editor of Europa SF and currently teaches writing courses at George Brown College and the University of Toronto. Visit www.ninamunteanu.ca for the latest on her books.