Fresh produce from my Aunt's organic farm in Kauai

Fall Classes 2011

The Food Memoir:

Discovering Our Literary Palate

Writing Workshop Location to be announced

From the smell of mother's kitchen in Gastronomical Me by MFK Fisher to the planting, raising, and harvesting of food that nourishes us in Barbara Kingsolver's, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, food has been a delectable part of our literary palate for years and it seems we foodies just can't get enough! And who can blame us? What's not to love? We thrill to discover the mysterious secret ingredient in Iron Chef, the immense liberation found in the eating of Babette's Feast, and then marvel at the mouth watering sonnets of life's edible treasures in The Kitchen Diaries by Nigel Slater. Food memoir headlines the menu of today's pop-culture and titillates the literary appetite of even the pickiest connoisseur. In this class we will be stirring up our literary taste buds and cooking up our own delicious tales (and perhaps swapping a recipe or two) as we delve into the fixings of the food memoir.

The goal of this class will be to combine some of your favorite family recipes; gently fold in stories of your heritage and remembrances of special relatives; and sprinkle with your own personal culinary experiences, to create a a homemade recipe-memoir collection for the holidays.

Every other Wednesday night from 6:00-8pm ( bring a favorite dish to share) Starting first Wednesday in September and ending the second Wednesday in December Fee: 25.00 per class or six class card for 120.00 dollars

Please call (802) 425-6022 or email through this website to reserve your spot!

Finding your writing path....

Novel Writing Workshop

Just in time for National Novel Writing Month!

If you've ever said to yourself I've got a great idea for a novel but don't know where to start.... I know I have a story in me that needs to be told, it's just finding the time.....I have the first couple of chapters down but I don't know where to take it from here and just can't seem to find the motivation to move it forward.....--- then this is the opportunity you've been waiting for! In this lively, interactive workshop we will focus on the fundamentals of fiction writing and how to build a solid novel. You will learn how to hook your reader right from the opening line, create characters whose inner thoughts and outer behaviors reveal their true human nature, and establish a clear point of view to lead the reader through the story. You will also discover how to incorporate vivid landscape and moving dialogue into your work. Meeting twice a month with a substantial break for National Novel Writing Month in November, you will develop a writing schedule and time line for your novel that works for you as a writer in real life.

• Meeting every other Sunday 2-5pm. Start Date: Second Sunday in September End Date: Second Sunday in December* Fee: $180.00 for six class card or $40.00 per class Location to be Announced Please call (802) 425-6022 or email through this website to reserve your spot!

On booktour with Ariel Gore and China Martens, Malaprops Bookstore, Asheville, North Carolina holding one of my fan's children

Second Book in the Works

"Interview with Hip Mam Writer, Annie Downey by Kris Underwood"

1.You're working on your second book. Would you care to talk about that a bit? How is working on your second book different from your first?

The premise of my second novel is based on the question, can we, as women, ever truly leave our role as caretaker behind can we ever find that room of our own later in our lives? The main characters is struggling to find her identity after being forced into an early retirement to care for her ailing husband in a gated community. With her three boys now grown, and over thirty years of a up and down marriage she must decide if she wants this role of caregiver to her husband or to claim a life of her own. Like my first novel, the story is based on very human aspects of a woman's self her vulnerability, imperfections, and unrequited sacrifice, but also a journey of self-discovery, humor, tenderness and more importantly, acceptance of oneself.

Working on my second novel was probably the biggest challenge of my writing career--much harder than that second poem or essay! I felt extremely tentative going into it because I knew this time (from writing, editing and marketing my first novel) how HUGE the task was. And as I started upon the story, my daughter was diagnosed with Lupus Nephritis and I just stopped writing. It was the first time in my life I didn't write to process the events that were happening in my life. I felt this was my daughter's story her process which allowed my daughter to be the creative force in our household (resulting in her applying to art school, producing her own musical, learning to play guitar, writing her own music etc, etc, she is incredibly creative!) I didn't pick back up writing my second novel until my daughter was safely on her way to Art school over a year later, however when I did start writing again my character was waiting and ready, it was quite amazing, a miracle, actually and this time she had a lot more to say!

2. You have some background in poetry. How and why did you come away from that and into writing fiction?

I focused solely on poetry in my undergraduate studies¦.I loved woman poets and I felt that I would be a poet (a great poet) back in my twenties when I was nave enough to think that I was good at it (hee hee). I painted my nails black and wrote poems entitled "Dear Pig Shit" and other lovely broken-hearted musings based on my failed relationships. Then after years of no one publishing my little self-loathing gems I decided to try my hand at something I believed would be easier to publish top ten lists (Why I Ain't Getting a Tat..so on..) and essays (I Am Your Welfare Reform..so on) the top ten lists because I could be funny and essays because I could convey my experience of being a single mother in poverty on much more real terms. The good thing about having read so much poetry and gone to so many bloody poetry readings is that I learned how to move a more condensed, lyrical influence into my writing (which is very good for essays). My fiction I believe is my top-ten lists and essays combined a kind of see-saw of funny and serious human struggle.

3. What do you think of the term chick-lit? Do you think it is doing women writers any favors or not? NOT. (not). I think essentially they're trying to call all wome's fiction chick-lit or trying to package it as chick-lit In NYC I saw Julia Alvarez's novel, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents with a revamped chick-litish cover (egad!). Throughout history, I believe women writers have always struggled for equality in the writing world (publishing, academic positions) and the present is no exception. Chick-lit is just another magnified version of this bias. Do we go around calling male fiction dick-lit? Is a marketable term? No. Why? Because it is not a masculine, strong shoot them up, catch a train, freewheeling term now perhaps if it was called Tricky-Dick or Slick-Dick..hmmmm.... On the other hand, Chick-lit is a marketable term and it resonates pink, fluffy, dumb, non-threatening and more importantly cute. I've realized recently, its just a marketing gimmick that really isn't doing women writers any favors and is the same as telling women basketball players they're allowed into the NBA but only if they wear pink uniforms and put their hair in pig-tails because it's more dainty--more girlie--cute. Well, what the marketing world doesn't realize is that the fans could care less about what they are wearing they just want to watch the game because it is a damn good game.

I think when my kids were younger I identified with being a mother more so than a writer because my whole world revolved around their needs. Upon graduating, I remember saying to a friend that I could be a ok-writer and an awful mother or I could be the best mother I could be with the resources I had (and I didn't have a lot of resources)I put away the paper and pen and became a cleaning lady because I could make my own schedule (take the kids to practices, games, ect) but in the end my writing saved me from the identity of frazzled-single-mommy-cleaning-lady. Identity is very tricky and really all about ego. I would like to say I was fine with just being identified in the car-pool line-up as Oh, that's Iris's mom or oh, that's Oskar's mom, but really secretly I've always wanted someone to say "OH MY GOD LOOK! IT'S THAT FAMOUS WRITER, ANNIE DOWNEY! Unfortunately that hasn't happened yet its just "Mom, can you give me five bucks, I'm going downtown with my friends."

1. Do you have any sort of writing schedule you follow?

   After working alone as a cleaning lady for years, I'm the type of writer who needs absolute quiet and the house clean which is absolutely an awful type of writer to be if you're household is always running amuck (whose is?) So I've learned to really stick to a writing schedule of 9-11am and 10-12pm (this is when the house is the quietest and cleanest). When I don't have a choice I lock myself in the laundry room and write on a tiny desk I have set up--the clothes drier blocks out all household noise and I comfort myself with the knowledge that at least the clothes are clean.

2. When your kids were younger, how did you carve out the necessary time for writing?

When my kids were little, I didn't. I never thought to myself , "this is the time I set aside for my writing. It was all happenstance a snippet here if their dad had them or a snippet there if they were napping occasionally when a writing project was due for school I would force myself up to stay up all night and get it done, but I tried to avoid such projects as much as possible by either lying to my professor by telling him/her I was sick or taking classes entitled Drumming Circle 101 or Dream Interpretation for Beginners. I'm telling the truth about this because I'm asked this question a lot by moms who have put their writing or other artistic endeavors on hold while nursing and changing nappies. It is near impossible to take care of babies 24-7 and have enough mental space to whip out a painting, poem or chapter of a book. Creative babies are just as time consuming as real babies so unless you were born to raise twins or triplets you are going to opt for a nap rather than an hour of writing. We're human. And that's OK. Our kid's babyhood goes quick and sooner then you realize they will grow up and you will have more time on your hands than you know what to do with and writing will be there.

7. How do they feel about you being a writer? What was their reaction to the first book, and before that, articles such as I Am Your Welfare Reform? Do they even read any of it?

As my son, Oskar says, "Writing is the best profession because you can make your own hours." And then I think, "But you don't necessarily get paid for those hours.". Both are true. I love being a writer because I love the act of it, the process, the journey, connecting with others through my art--it's my fantasy job. However, I must have another job to support my fantasy job (what refer to as my to make ends meet. Big bummer. But, I take deep pleasure in growing as a writer with every project I do and I'm able to share my writing with others. That's the miracle of the artistic process--the sharing. There is nothing like a woman emailing me about my novel, Hot and Bothered, saying things like "This book is the story of my life"or about my essay, I Am Your Welfare Reform, "It was so nice to feel I'm not the only welfare-mommy out there." Writing is about self-empowerment and empowering others and there is no salary that can compare to that kind of mojo.

8. I know you're just finishing your novel, but do you have any other projects or writing in the works?

I'm currently working on a collection of essays called, Journey to Mother, which are based on my experience in taking care of my mother who has breast-to-brain cancer and is currently in hospice. Fiction-wise, I am planning on going back and working on a young-adult novel I started while studying for my MFA in Writing which I'm really passionate about!

Hot and Bothered is in a bookstore near you!

Check me out on Myspace!

Hot and Bothered Reviews!

From BUST Magazine

"The newly divorced narrator in Hot and Bothered is busy getting acquainted with the rhythms of her new life: raising two kids, dealing with her over-the-top family, and looking for love. Though fictional, the book portrays single-mom dilemmas, like being financially beholden and balancing romance and parenting, in a way that feels real. Downey lets her narrator make mistakes, such as tossing her cell phone in the garbage and trekking to Alaska to get laid--only to discover that her wannabe boyfriend offers very little in return. Her relationship with her kids (her daughter looks at her with "I'll-get-you- back-rotten-mommy-eyes") is turbulent but honest, and their adjustment to her dating patterns is an integral part of the book. She's forced to learn about who shis is without a husband to hide behind. Making peace with her past, while wearing hot pink clogs and maintaining a steadfast sense of humor, is what her journey's all about. " Rachel Kramer Bussel

From Booklist

The chirpy heroine in Downey's debut is surprised to find herself at a crossroads when, at age 39, her husband ("Ex-Rat") leaves her with two children and an identity crisis, presumably to join Sex Addicts Anonymous and gallivant around with a new girlfriend. Saddled with a sassy best friend, a flaky mother, and a gigantic crush on a charming professor ("Perfect Guy"), she thinks that it's a miracle when she finds time for herself. She tries meditation, she tries a part-time job, she even tries shopping for sexy lingerie, all while parenting and hosting holiday dinners. Told in flashes, Bridget Jones-style, the short, page-length snippets, with titles like "A Manic Moment" and "Cheese Danish," give the sense that the author, like her main character, is always on the run. Still, Downey pulls off the fast pace, and readers will root for this single mom to find her prince, however unconventional the pursuit may be. Will she end up with Perfect Guy? Ex-Rat? Rugged Alaskan Man? Now that she is thriving, who cares? Delightful. Emily Cook (Copyright, American Library Association. All rights reserved)

From The Library Journal

"Meek and passive, this book's unnamed-until-the-last-minute thirty something narrator juggles her acidic ex-husband, recalcitrant children, meddling maternal realtives, tough best friend, and dueling paramours. It's no wonder, then, that she doesn't feel like she fits into her own house, her own family, or her own skin-until she decides to take charge of her life. When an unexpected detour in Cape Cod puts her resolve to the test, this newly independent woman finds out if she's got the mettle to stick to the changes she has made in her life. Downey, a regular contributor to Hip Mama and Vermont Woman Magazines, has penned a debut novel full of wit, humor, and offbeat characters. Her journal-style prose offers readers an immediate intimacy with the narrator's life and sharp-edge personality, at some expense to the development of the other characters. No matter, Downey delivers with a well-worth-it conclusion, the strongest part of this unconventional mom lit that dares to let it all hang out. Recommended for larger public libraries.--Amy Brozio-Andrews, Albany P.L., NY.

From Body & Soul Magazine (from the publishers of Martha Stewart Living)

"Chick lit grows up, gets married, and then gets divorced in Hot and Bothered (Algonquin Books), the debut novel from Hip Mama contributor Annie Downey. Like Bridget Jones, our heroine keeps a diary full of witty, self deprecating comments on her daily comedies and tradegies. Unlike Bridget, however, she is a single mom trying to juggle a philandering ex-husband, an Alaskan mountain man, and a single-dad university professor she calls "Perfect Guy." Throw in a man-crazy friend, a self-centered macrobiotic mother, a gay father with a fear of flying, and other eccentric characters, and this romp through the latte-sipping streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts, turns into an entertaining, if tidy, tale of love conquers all. A guilty pleasure, predictable but fun."