C.M. Mayo's Podcast

Recorded on February 23, 2013 at the 27th annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering at Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas: cowboy songs by cowboys Michael Stevens, Craig Carter and Doug Figgs-- and an interview with Michael Stevens. This is #11 in the 24 podcast series, "Marfa Mondays: Exploring Marfa, TX & the Big Bend, 2012-2013."

>Read more about and listen to the other Marfa Mondays podcasts at www.cmmayo.com/marfa

C.M. Mayo is the author of Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico (Milkweed Editions) and the novel based on the true story, The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire (Unbridled Books) which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009. She is at work on a book about far West Texas. Visit her website at www.cmmayo.com

C.M. Mayo reading live for PEN San Miguel in the Teatro Angela Peralta, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, on January 29, 2013. After a brief consideration of literary travel writing in the digital age, Mayo reads from her article in the winter 2013 issue of Cenizo Journal, "A Visit to Swan House," about the Presidio, Texas teaching house of adobe visionary Simone Swan, which features Nubian vaults, constructed by means of an ancient technique rescued by Swan's mentor, the renowned Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy.

>Visit the Adobe Alliance webpage for more information about Swan House and photographs.

>Read more about and listen in to the other Marfa Mondays podcasts at www.cmmayo.com/marfa

C.M. Mayo is the author of Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico (Milkweed Editions) and the novel, The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire (Unbridled Books), which was named a Best Book of 2009 by Library Journal. She is at work on a book about Far West Texas and hosts the Marfa Mondays Podcasting Project. For more about these and other books by C.M. Mayo and her podcasts, and to sign up for her newsletter, visit www.cmmayo.com

Mary Baxter came to Marfa years ago for the horses and cattle business and stayed to paint the sky-haunted landscapes in a Sorolla-like play of light: mountains, plains, horses huddling beneath a cliff, a canyon bruised purple with twilight, gold grass, the visual Haiku of a red water tank. Recently returned to Marfa after a decade in (relatively nearby) Marathon, Texas, Mary Baxter talked to C.M. Mayo in her sun-filled studio in October 2012.

>>View some of Mary Baxter's works at www.baxtergallery.com
>>Read her biography and view more works at Hunt Gallery

C.M. Mayo is the author of Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico (Milkweed Editions) and the novel, The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire (Unbridled Books), which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas. For more about these and other books by C.M. Mayo, and about the Marfa Mondays Podcasting Project, visit www.cmmayo.com

C.M. Mayo introduces her new ebook, Podcasting for Writers & Other Creative Entrepreneurs (Dancing Chiva, 2012). "Naples Dave" and others from fiverr.com are the big voices, along with music clips from istockaudio.com, uniquetracks.com, plus silly sound effects, and more. C.M. Mayo recorded her portion at ye olde writing desk desk (any snoring sounds are from the dog) and edited the whole shebang on her laptop using Apple's GarageBand. As Mayo says, "If I can podcast, so can you."

About the ebook: Based on award-winning writer and avid podcaster C.M. Mayo’s one day workshop at the Writer’s Center, Podcasting for Writers & Other Literary Entrepreneurs provides an introduction and overview of podcasting for writers, from basic concepts to nuts-and-bolts tips. In 10 “easy peasy” steps (along with some “fancy schmancy” for those so inclined), Mayo shows you how to generate and publish your unique podcast—and yes, get that puppy onto iTunes. Read more about this ebook at www.dancingchiva.com


C. M. Mayo is the author of the novel, The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire (Unbridled Books); which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009; Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico (Milkweed Editions); and Sky Over El Nido (University of Georgia Press), which won the Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction. Mayo started out podcasting in 2009 with a simple recording of her lecture for the Library of Congress about the original archival research behind her novel; since then, it’s just been one podcast after another. Currently she hosts two podcast series, Conversations with Other Writers and, apropos of a travel memoir in progress, Marfa Mondays: Exploring Marfa, TX & Environs in 24 Podcasts.”

Her website is www.cmmayo.com

Elvis. The private art gallery. Lithium. And even better: no email. C.M. Mayo recounts a visit to this remote Chihuahuan Desert oasis in May of 2012.

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts "Marfa Mondays," a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, visit www.cmmayo.com

As part of the series of occasional conversations with other writers, C.M. Mayo talks with Sergio Troncoso, author of the novel From This Wicked Patch of Dust. He is also the author of the novel The Nature of Truth; the short story collection The Last Tortilla, which won the Premio Aztlan; and the collection Crossing Borders: Personal Essays. Recorded on Skype, summer 2012. His website is www.sergiotroncoso.com

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

C.M. Mayo recounts her experiences with the bizarre and mysterious phenomena of the Marfa Lights, comments on some of the literature and research, and interviews other witnesses. 

C.M. Mayo is the author of Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico (Milkweed Editions) and the novel, The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire (Unbridled Books), which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas. For more about these and other books by C.M. Mayo, and about the Marfa Mondays Podcasting Project, visit www.cmmayo.com

An interview with Paul Graybeal, owner of Marfa's Moonlight Gemstones. It was no exaggeration for historian Walter Prescott Webb to describe the Big Bend region as "an earthwreck in which a great section of country was shaken down, turned over, blown up, and set on fire." In short, there is ample evidence of millions of years of dramatic geological activity, with the craggiest of mountains to rocks of all kinds, from mammoth piles of boulders to pebbles. In this interview with Paul Graybeal, learn about agates, thundereggs, and more. Visit Paul Graybeal's Moonlight Gemstones at www.moonlightgemstones ; and watch the etsy.com video, "There's No Place Like Here: Marfa, Texas" in which Graybeal makes a brief but amusing appearance.  For more about C.M. Mayo's Marfa Mondays Podcasting Projects, visit www.cmmayo.com/marfa

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

An interview with Cynthia McAlister about the bees of West Texas, both imported and native to the northern Chihuahuan Desert. McAlister holds a masters degree in biology from Sul Ross University and is the author of several articles on bees, among them,"Our Native West Texas Bees," which appeared in the winter 2012 issue of Cenizo Journal. Recorded in late January 2012.

For more information about C.M. Mayo's Marfa Mondays Podcast Series, please visit www.cmmayo.com/marfa

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

C.M. Mayo interviews Avram Dumitrescu, an artist and illustrator whose paintings have been featured in "Marfans: Art from the Plateau" at the Nancy Fyfe Cardozier Gallery in Odessa, and also showcased in Cenizo Journal. A native of the Channel Islands and raised in Belfast, he earned a bachelor's degree and Masters in Applied Arts from the University of Ulster at Belfast. He is married to journalist Megan Wilde. For more about Dumitrescu, and to view his portfolio, visit www.onlineavram.com. Recorded in late January 2012.

For more about the Marfa Monday Podcasting Series, please visit www.cmmayo.com/marfa

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

As part of the series of occasional conversations with other writers, C.M. Mayo talks with Michael K. Schuessler, author of the biographies Guadalupe Amor: La undécisima musa (The Eleventh Muse) and Elena Poniatowska: An Intimate Portrait, and editor of journalist Alma Reed's long-lost autobiography, Peregrina: Love and Death in Mexico. Most recently, Schuessler is co-editor (with Amparo Gómez), of the correspondence between Reed and her fiancé, Yucatan's charismatic first democratically elected governor, Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Tuyo hasta que me muera (Yours Until Death). Recorded in Mexico City on March 8, 2012. (Approx 1 hour and 7 minutes)

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

C.M. Mayo interviews Mary Bones, curator of the exhibit "The Lost Colony: Texas Regionalist Paintings," in the Museum of the Big Bend, Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas. The Lost Colony refers to the summer art colony at Sul Ross which began in 1932 and ended somewhat mysteriously in 1950. Alpine is 30 minutes northeast of Marfa-- right next door. Of the region, as Michael Duty writes in the introduction to the exhibit's catalog, "It... has long called to artists who have been captivated by its natural beauty, its history, and its people. In recent times, the area has also drawn the attention of writers and reporters who have written numerous articles touting the area's prominence as something of a center, albeit a far flung one, for contemporary art. Those articles focus primarily on Marfa and the influence that minimalist sculptor Donald Judd has had on the town..." Later, Duty adds, that Judd "was certainly not the first artist to be so captivated". Mary Bones explains the inspiration for the exhibit, and shares the stories about and friendships of some of the painters, in particular Texan Julius Woeltz and his teacher Xavier González, a native of Spain, both of whom made trips to Mexico City to study the Mexican muralists, including Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco. Some of the other painters discussed are Mabel Vandiver, Anna Keener, Elizabeth Keefer, Coreen Mary Spellman, Harry Anthony De Young, Beatrice Cuming, Otis Dozier, William Lester, James Swann, Ethel Edwards, Alice Reynolds, and Juanita Montgomery. Several of these paintings can be seen in the article by Mary Bones, "The Lost Colony: Texas Regionalist Paintings -Rediscovering an Artistic Past," Cenizo Journal, 4th Quarter 2011.

For more Marfa Mondays podcasts, please visit www.cmmayo.com/marfa 

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

As part of the series of occasional conversations with other writers, C.M. Mayo talks with Edward Swift, author the memoir, My Grandfather's Finger, and several novels, most recently, The Daughter of the Doctor and the Saint. Recorded in Swift's studio in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, on February 22, 2012. 

For more conversations with other writers, visit www.cmmayo.com

C.M. Mayo is the author of the novel,The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire, which was named a Library Journal Best Book 2009, and the collection Sky Over El Nido, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. She is also author of a travel memoir, Miraculous Air: Journey of a Thousand Miles through Baja California, the Other Mexico. She is at work on a book about the Big Bend region of far West Texas, apropos of which she hosts Marfa Mondays, a series of 24 podcasts exploring Marfa, Texas and environs. For more about these and other books and podcasts by C.M. Mayo, www.cmmayo.com 

Recorded at the PEN / Sol Literary Magazine Reading Series event of February 22, 2012 in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. C.M. Mayo introduces and discusses her translation-- the first into English-- of Francisco I. Madero's secret book of 1911, Spiritist Manual. Madero was the leader of Mexico's 1910 Revolution and President of Mexico from 1911-1913. For more about Madero's Spiritist Manual, including extensive Q & A and resources for researchers, visit www.cmmayo.com/SPIRITISTMANUAL

(Note: this is an abbreviated version of the longer podcast, which is available at www.cmmayo.com/podcasts.html , with fellow author Gerard Helferich, who read from his book, Stone of Kings.) 

Recorded in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, February 22, 2012. Gerard Helferich reads from and discusses his new book, Stone of Kings: In Search of the Lost Jade of the Maya, and C.M. Mayo discusses her translation-- the first into English-- of Francisco I. Madero's secret book of 1911, Spiritist Manual. Madero was the leader of Mexico's 1910 Revolution and President of Mexico 1911-1913. Introduced by Eva Hunter, editor of Sol Literary Magazine.

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