Tag Archives: Inspiration

I published a novel!!

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It’s been so long since I’ve posted here that I’m not sure I even remember how to make a post or what will happen next. But in case anyone is still following…I’m excited to share this news.

The Emperor Moths is live and available on Amazon!

Getting this book out of me and into the world has been a true labor of love. More labor than love in these last months of final edits and publishing, to be honest! But even while doing a final punctuation/format check, I found myself loving the characters and being moved by different parts of their journey. I hope other readers will feel similarly. 

That most of the main characters are adolescents makes this a YA novel by default, but I strongly feel there is something for adult readers too. Maybe adult readers will enjoy it even more than younger readers?! Hard to say. I hope you’ll check it out! Much love and gratitude!

P.S. I also designed/created the cover art.

Oh, the waves…

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12×12, acrylic on canvas
I never thought of 
The ocean as tapestry
A blanket of moving surf
Until you mentioned 
My blue-green fibers
Pattern and strong weave

But I’d always known waves
Were the key, a curve 
To ride upon. That somehow
I’d be a sailor. And you,
All of you, would be
My seafaring companions

© Amanda Reilly Sayer, 2021

Light Above, Light Below

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16×20 acrylic and latex on canvas

This painting – like many of us on a personal and collective level – has been in a state of transformation over the last several years. It began with a limited palette of latex house paint, which laid down a lot of the initial texture and made for an interesting surface on which to work. Over several sessions and years, I added acrylic paint, more color, and changed the composition fairly dramatically. This painting seemed “finished” several times, was re-seen in potential, and ultimately became a springboard for something new. As a metaphor, this feels right.

I like the relatively abstract quality of the current version of this painting, the sense that it may still be in the process of revealing itself (becoming), much like a partially developed photograph. I’m noticing the burst of light near the top of the canvas, more striking in the actual painting which shows more extremes of light and dark than this photograph of the painting does. May this bring you a sense of hope, as it does me.

Light and love to all 💛

The Sun Also Rises

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16×20, acrylic and latex on repurposed canvas

I’ve toyed with the idea of increasing the color saturation in parts of this painting, particularly in the middle section. I may ultimately do that, if for no other reason than to push the growth-edge of my technical painting development. On the other hand, separate from my visual preferences for contrast and color, this painting – exactly as it is now – captures something about my experience. Maybe yours too? For me, the colorful, muted light of sunrise reflects both the joy of possibility (hope) and the tentative pause (fear) that often coexists as we begin a new day.

Dreaming of Summer

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This winter has been more challenging for so many of us in different and similar ways. Personally, I can see the value in periods of relative isolation and dormancy, but I am also celebrating the change of seasons, balancing my wish to appreciate the present with my intentions to create and welcome the new. The metaphors are rich, but so too are the simple pleasures of being warmed by the sun and noticing the scent and feel of the sea breeze.

Wishing you all well and grateful for the connections here!