The Raving Press' Book Festival at Speer Memorial Library held Saturday, February 25, 2017 was a complete and total success! 
These are not our words. They are the words of the participating authors, artists, photographers, and event presenters. They are also the words of the library's own staff at all levels. AND they were also the words (or general sentiment) of the public in attendance at that mega festival. 

Five (5) results stood out:

1)The local media (such as The Monitor newspaper, KVEO News, Televisa, Telemundo, Univision, KGBT, and In The Blink of an Eye radio show) all came out in support of our efforts. Everyone was surprised with what we were doing because it was completely free to all, and because the nature of the festival was simply unheard of.

2)The Speer Memorial Library staff noted that this event brought in many more people than they had ever had in previous efforts of any kind. ;)

3)Authors and artists who usually struggle to profit from selling their art enjoyed a sales bonanza at no cost for the space and no commission to the organizers nor the host institution. 100% profit to the artists and writers. NOTHING beats that!

4)The public got a full day of events for the entire family to consume at absolutely no cost to them for entry. They met artists and writers of all walks. Got signed books for the whole family. Attended a theater performance by Pedro Garcia, a Short Film hour with Maida Lee Saenz, a Poetry Reading with McAllen Poet Laureate Priscilla Celina Suarez, a Children's Book Reading headed by Christopher Rocha, and two totally FREE publishing seminars by Gabriel H. Sanchez (that's me!). 

5)This event alone brought out some great talent that our community did not know of. The outcome of the entire effort and the response by the public convinced us that this must only mean that the demand for something like this to continue is huge. Therefore, we fully intend on holding more similar events throughout the year...on a rotating basis. That is, this was the first stop of The Raving Press' Book Carnival (or Traveling Book Fair, the title is still tentative). 

If you would like to see this mega festival in your city, contact your library, city hall, school, or college and have them contact us to make arrangements for us to visit your area and bring the fun to you and your own home-grown artists and authors. 

Email: theravingpress@gmail.com
Website: www.theravingpress.com

Thanks!

Gabriel H. Sanchez

Welcome to the new year 2017! The most anticipated, highly orchastrated, and biggest event of the season is here!

It is the Speer Memorial Library Book Festival hosted by The Raving Press!We have invited authors from all backgrounds from children's book writers to poets. English and Spanish books will be available for signing by the authors.

There will be a children's book reading hour, a short film hour, a poetry reading and open mic hour, and TWO completely FREE publishing seminars offered to the public in both English and Spanish by none other than yours truly.

We welcome everyone to attend this event in Mission, Texas on February 25, 2017 from 10 am to 4:30 pm. It will be an event like none other. Bring friends and family. Writers, published authors, unpublished dreamers, everyone is welcome to join the publishing seminar. If you are interested in finding out your publishing options at a local and global level, if you are looking for examples of how an unpublished "nobody" can become an established author, or if you simply want to be surrounded by other go-getters to catch a little motivation, then this free seminar is for YOU!

​"The publishing world is a fast-changing landscape. No longer are the common folks like you and me left hopeless on the sidelines looking in at the big players having all the fun. Now all you need is imagination, skill, and self-reliance...and a whole lot of time, but anyone can be a published author." 

All we ask our participating authors, event presenters, and attendees is to please help us get the word out by sharing the flier that you see here. We will be sharing other fliers featuring each individual author and presenter as the days go by. 

Thank you all for your continued support and I hope to see you at this mega-event! 

All we ask our participating authors, event presenters, and attendees is to please help us get the word out by sharing the flier that you see here. We will be sharing other fliers featuring each individual author and presenter as the days go by. 

Thank you all for your continued support and I hope to see you at this mega-event! 

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Tonight is a special kind of night. Dark, cold, and drizzly. Perfect for do-gooders saving the world to host a play outdoors for tens of immigrant families. 

My friend Lucy Salazar invited me to this play--that is, a "pastorela" called La Caja Misteriosa by Dante del Castillo, directed by Dr. Edna Ochoa. It was staged at Sacred Heart Church, home of the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley's Humanitarian Respite Center for immigrants. 

I had been there before. It is primarily constituted by a building that might have been an event hall at some point. There are also several large tents outside where many families sleep and rest. I thought the play would take place inside the building, but to my surprise, when we got through the gate we were confronted by a multitude of people making way for the actors about to start their performances.

It was a surprise to see so many people there but then I remembered the words of Sister Norma Pimentel that 2016 has been probably as busy if not busier than 2014, the year the story of unaccompanied minors/humanitarian crisis broke. This site alone, according to Sister Pimentel, has serviced more than 60,000 people. 

Most times it is hard for many of us to be surrounded by so many strangers and not feel a bit apprehensive. But the feeling at this event, surrounded by all those brown, weary, humble faces was one of such peace and camaraderie that, although I had both my little sons with me, I never felt distrustful or suspicious of anyone passing us by.

It was a pleasantly strange feeling. I think it is the effect of the love and compassion flowing from the staff and volunteers with the Sacred Heart Church and Catholic Charities. I recommend everyone go there at some point. Just go and offer a little of your time to help or contribute some clothes, or toys. Visit those folks and let them show you their humanity. You will be surprised how they so easily stop being "illegal" and become human right in front of your eyes. It is a miracle.

Gabriel

P.s.
Tomorrow is the last day of the Catholic Charities of the RGV Barnes & Noble Book Fair by The Raving Press. Have you done all your Christmas shopping? Go to bn.com and get those last minute (late?) gifts. There is still time to contribute with your buying power using our code at checkout: 12050555 .

Hey. You want to know what happened last weekend at Barnes & Noble in McAllen, Texas? We blew them away. That's what happened. They loved us so much they wanted us back. So after taking our time to respond we said, hmm okay, we'll be back on Saturday, December 10, 2016 from 6 to 9 pm. No exceptions! And they knew it was an offer they could not refuse...

So this weekend we are proud to present to you The No-Name Poets Cafe: A New Literary Movement!

Is this already sounding a bit pretentious? Maybe. I think it is the fact that I am calling this gathering on Saturday, December 10, 2016 at Barnes & Noble a "movement." 

The fact of the matter is that, while it is "new" and it is a "movement," it is by no means nameless.

That is, "NoName Poets Cafe" is the name of the new group, and it is intentional. The reason being that naming something immediately cages it, freezes it, stunts its growth. Anybody who is a "minority" in this country understands this to some degree. Being Latino, Hispanic, Minority, are labels designed to put us in certain categories. And people are designed to generally obey rules and stay within established parameters. 

The NoName Poets Cafe is a space that we at The Raving Press have designated to foment the contributions of people who don't easily fall into a particular category, or who refuse to be confined by labels.

It is also to accommodate those of a more fluid nature who have no issue taking different shapes and colors. In essence it is a space for everyone. But more than that, it is a space for those who are seeking to be catalysts in their own world. To shake up, change, and rearrange things around them.

Come out to our event and join the NoName Poets Cafe. It says "poets" in the name but it is for everyone. Singers, performers, poets, spoken word artists, painters, small business owners wanting to spread the word about their product.

What will you find at this event?
Balance. Diversity. Incorporation of more aspects of life than one. Poetry and art cannot subsist without industry. Industry cannot survive without art. 

There it is. In a nutshell.

We'll see you at Barnes & Noble Saturday, December 10, 2016 at 6 pm.

(Visit our Facebook Event Page)

We will be closing out the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley Barnes & Noble Book Fair by The Raving Press on the day after our event.

But the fair continues at Barnes & Noble online. Buy books, gifts, and other qualifying items using our book fair id: 12050555 and Catholic Charities will receive 20% of the sale. 

Thanks a lot. 
                                                                                     
Until we meet again. 

Keep reading and creating!

Gabriel

P.s. Please share this article. 

Thank you to our friend Raquel Lopez, host and founder of Enero Rojo Lunar. "Letras y Arte" the event held on September 17, 2016 by Enero Rojo Lunar was a great success. Thank you to the audience which is always so positive and receptive at this event. These are only some pictures of the event. For more images please visit the Facebook page Enero Rojo Lunar, Letras y Arte.

The Raving Press (editorial) participara en el evento de Enero Rojo Lunar (Directora Raquel Lopez) este Sabado 17 de Septiembre, 2016 a las 6:30 p.m. en la biblioteca de San Juan en San Juan, Texas. Compartiremos el espacio con poetas, cantantes, danzantes y otros artistas de la region. En este evento anunciaremos noticias sobre nuestra mas reciente publicacion cual es la antologia "Lost: Children of the River." Tambien compartiremos detalles del evento oficial que estamos preparando para lanzar este libro. Queremos extender las gracias a Raquel Lopez y su grupo por darnos el espacio para compartir junto a otras personas del ambiente artistico y literario del Valle y de la region. 

The Raving Press will be making an appearance at the Enero Rojo Lunar literary and art event this Saturday, September 17, 2016 at 6:30 p.m. at the San Juan Memorial Library in San Juan, Texas. We will be sharing the stage with poets, singers, dancers, and other artists of the Rio Grande Valley and its surroundings. In this event we will be talking about our most recent publication titled "Lost: Children of the River" and we will also be announcing the details of the official book launch which we are arranging.  We wish to thank Raquel Lopez and her literary group for the opportunity to share the stage with other artists and writers of the Valley area. 

Jose G. Cano is a painter, song-writer, and well-rounded artista from the Mexico-U.S. frontera/border región in Texas.

Contribution: "De Norte a Sur" painting above. I had a few talks with Mr. Cano in which we discussed possible ideas for what we envisioned our front cover to be. He came up with different versions of my suggestions. At the same time we were also viewing many other entries. But finally we, the editors, selected Mr. Cano's work above, which is representative of the several themes involved in the refugee's experience.

One of those themes is the "beast" as the trains are called on which the immigrants climb and travel. Sometimes they fall off and end up being ravaged by the steel wheels of this beast, which makes its name appropriate. There is also the river representing the border division between the U.S. and Mexico. And above in the sky flies an American eagle representing salvation and seemingly about to strike a blow at the snake-like beast below, like a reenactment of the eagle devouring a snake of the Aztec story of the founding of Tenochtitlan. We see a woman grieving lost loved ones who could not escape the dangers of their homeland, and a man who cannot accompany his family on their journey to freedom. 

(These observations are strictly the subjective musings of this author and are not representative of the painter's views, nor are they meant to be the final analysis. Viewers and readers are free to interpret this image as they wish.)

Note: 
We try to collect and link any social media or websites for our contributors in this project but some do not have this information or we are unable to contact them because of various reasons. If anyone has their social media or website info please forward it to us so we can contact them directly. We are seriously underfunded and understaffed, so any help is greatly appreciated. And by the same token, if you see mistakes, missing information, or lack of credit where credit is due, please understand that it is due to the reason stated above and in no way represents lack of professionalism or dereliction of duty to promote and duly credit our contributors. Thank you. 

Raquel López Suárez. Originaria de la ciudad de Río Bravo, Tam. Méx. Titulada en Pedagogía a nivel primaria y medio superior (UPN, 2002-2006). Trabajó como docente por 7 años en una escuela primaria de la ciudad de origen. Actualmente es  residente de los Estados Unidos de América. Graduada de Project Ignite (PLP, TX 2009-2011) donde adquirió conocimientos en diversas áreas, tales como; escritura creativa, poesía, teatro, business management, toastmasters, promotora de salud, aerobc’s,  etc. En el 2011 se   inició    en los estudios de   teología y psicoterapia (The Ecumenical Center for Religion and Health,  Campus  McAllen, TX). Así como   tomó  varios seminarios con enfoque al desarrollo humano y  a  la salud holística, impartidos por profesionales internacionales.
Autora del libro de pensamientos, reflexiones y poesía, “Lluvias Acarameladas” (Palibrio, 2013). Fundadora/directora del foro de expresión literario-artístico “Enero Rojo Lunar” (RGV, 2014-2016) incluyendo talentos  de USA y de México. Ha participado con sus textos en diversos programas literarios, festivales,  instituciones sociales y comunitarias de algunas ciudades del sur del Valle de Texas y  del norte de Tamaulipas, MX. (2010-2016).

Contribuye con los textos:
Inocencia Interrumpida

The Lost: Children of the River anthology by The Raving Press is now officially out and ready to ship. There are several ways to obtain your copy. I will describe three of them here.

1.) Go to Amazon.com and insert the search:
"Lost: Children of the River The Raving Press".

It's a mouthful, yes, but if you insert only the title you get unrelated results. Save time. Copy and paste from here.

2.) Click through to our Createspace E-store
This method helps us, a small business/organization earn some royalties, therefore you would be supporting not only the arts but also small business. Win-win.

3.) Stay tuned on this blog to catch our book release events which will be announced soon and come out to meet us in person. Books at the events will be sold at a discount to those who sign our attendance list and give us their email address. Another win-win!

Thank you for dropping by. Keep coming back for more. 

Special note about "Lost: Children of the River" if you contributed artwork, photography, or literature we want to gift you a copy of this publication. Please come out to our events to get your copy and perhaps read your poetry from the book or talk about your contribution. Thank you.  
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