Remaking Our World: Coronavirus, Hope, and Future Society
* Written by Cristina Deptula, of Authors, Large and Small provides resourceful and tenacious book outreach services for writers of many genres and believes in the value of stories to help us uncover moments of grace and beauty and expand our capacities for creativity and compassion.
Coronavirus has radically shifted our lives and schedules. Now that we’re three months in to shelter in place in many metro areas, people are beginning to speculate on how society might reshape itself after we survive this pandemic.
A few of the authors we represent, as literary publicists with Authors, Large and Small, have written pieces inspired by the psychological experience of quarantine. Some look to the big picture and speak out on ecology and economics, while others look inward, seeing this as a time to process and heal personal and communal grief, and to reconnect with neglected aspects of our lives.
In this short series, I give these writers space to share their thoughts. Today is part 3 of this series
Kris Francoeur, writer and educator, is a grieving mother who has found joy and light again through the practices of conscious and deliberate gratitude, unconditional acceptance and connection with nature. With master's degrees in both Counseling Psychology and Educational Leadership, Kris writes with authority about grief and moving forward in our very busy and stressful world.
A published author of fiction, Kris has published three romance novels with Solstice Publishing using her pen name Anna Belle Rose. Kris lives in beautiful Addison County, Vermont with her husband and youngest son, a small herd of alpacas, a flock of chickens and several hives of bees. Kris loves to spend time with her family, spending time in the garden and spinning the alpaca fiber for yarn for knitting.
Her memoir Of Grief, Garlic and Gratitude tells the story of her journey back to life after the sudden loss of her young adult son to a drug overdose. It’s available here from Morgan James Publishing.
She speaks to what she’s learned through her personal grief journey and through writing her memoir, which she feels holds true for coronavirus-related loss as well.
My book addresses the question of how death, and grief, impact our lives, and how we move through/with that grief. It directly deals with my own issues with organized religion, but also looks at the question of a spiritual connection to the universe, and how my faith in a greater energy force was questioned and strengthened in my grief.
As this book is a memoir, it is all about me and my son who passed. However, in my novels, I address questions of love, loss, spirituality and hope and work to develop characters that have realistic flaws, but also have inner strength to come through those lows in life.
You asked me if I think that the greatest role an author can play when writing about spirituality, philosophy or any of life’s ‘big questions’ is not necessarily to provide answers, but to inspire readers to think about these questions. I absolutely agree! I love when readers reach out to me and talk about the conversations they have had with loved ones about life and death because of my books.
I have always questioned the big picture, the universe, love, loss and energy. But with the death of our son, I needed to reexamine them through a new lens.
After his death, I wrote a daily piece on Facebook about gratitude, because it was the only way I could find some light and hope in life at that point. So many people reached out to me to ask me to put them together in a book, that I was motivated by their love and support.
Gratitude, which led me to an acceptance of the power of the universe was an incredible way to step out of the isolation of my grief and connect with the larger world.
* Written by Cristina Deptula, of Authors, Large and Small provides resourceful and tenacious book outreach services for writers of many genres and believes in the value of stories to help us uncover moments of grace and beauty and expand our capacities for creativity and compassion.
Coronavirus has radically shifted our lives and schedules. Now that we’re three months in to shelter in place in many metro areas, people are beginning to speculate on how society might reshape itself after we survive this pandemic.
A few of the authors we represent, as literary publicists with Authors, Large and Small, have written pieces inspired by the psychological experience of quarantine. Some look to the big picture and speak out on ecology and economics, while others look inward, seeing this as a time to process and heal personal and communal grief, and to reconnect with neglected aspects of our lives.
In this short series, I give these writers space to share their thoughts. Today is part 3 of this series
Kris Francoeur, writer and educator, is a grieving mother who has found joy and light again through the practices of conscious and deliberate gratitude, unconditional acceptance and connection with nature. With master's degrees in both Counseling Psychology and Educational Leadership, Kris writes with authority about grief and moving forward in our very busy and stressful world.
A published author of fiction, Kris has published three romance novels with Solstice Publishing using her pen name Anna Belle Rose. Kris lives in beautiful Addison County, Vermont with her husband and youngest son, a small herd of alpacas, a flock of chickens and several hives of bees. Kris loves to spend time with her family, spending time in the garden and spinning the alpaca fiber for yarn for knitting.
Her memoir Of Grief, Garlic and Gratitude tells the story of her journey back to life after the sudden loss of her young adult son to a drug overdose. It’s available here from Morgan James Publishing.
She speaks to what she’s learned through her personal grief journey and through writing her memoir, which she feels holds true for coronavirus-related loss as well.
My book addresses the question of how death, and grief, impact our lives, and how we move through/with that grief. It directly deals with my own issues with organized religion, but also looks at the question of a spiritual connection to the universe, and how my faith in a greater energy force was questioned and strengthened in my grief.
As this book is a memoir, it is all about me and my son who passed. However, in my novels, I address questions of love, loss, spirituality and hope and work to develop characters that have realistic flaws, but also have inner strength to come through those lows in life.
You asked me if I think that the greatest role an author can play when writing about spirituality, philosophy or any of life’s ‘big questions’ is not necessarily to provide answers, but to inspire readers to think about these questions. I absolutely agree! I love when readers reach out to me and talk about the conversations they have had with loved ones about life and death because of my books.
I have always questioned the big picture, the universe, love, loss and energy. But with the death of our son, I needed to reexamine them through a new lens.
After his death, I wrote a daily piece on Facebook about gratitude, because it was the only way I could find some light and hope in life at that point. So many people reached out to me to ask me to put them together in a book, that I was motivated by their love and support.
Gratitude, which led me to an acceptance of the power of the universe was an incredible way to step out of the isolation of my grief and connect with the larger world.
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