My photo essay “Capture Magic that Hangs by a Gossamer Thread”
appears in the winter 2015 issue of Bella Grace magazine,
on sale as of today, December 1.

Last Wednesday, an unassuming grey plastic envelope arrived in the mail. No sender was indicated, but by the feel of it, a bulkier magazine was inside. As I sliced it open, I expected to receive another copy of one of the literary magazines whose contests I enter and all I ever win is another subscription.

However, from this drab envelope emerged the most gorgeous magazine I have seen in a long, long time, maybe ever: the Bella Grace Winter 2015 issue. And along with it, a note of congratulations that I’ve been published in Bella Grace!

On page 22 begins my own 8-page-spread photo essay. I still can’t believe what a stunningly beautiful job the editors at Bella Grace did (I had not seen a galley proof before). After all, this is the first time my photography has been published in print format, and I was nervous how it would turn out.

I also can’t believe my good fortune to have my photography and my writing featured alongside so many other talented artists, such as Susannah Conway and Madelyn Mulvaney, whose work I’ve admired for a long time, especially since I didn’t really take my photography seriously until I bought my own DSLR camera two years ago. And still, I often wonder what I’m doing as I wander around with my camera, sometimes twisting myself into all kinds of odd positions to capture a shot. I still often struggle with my lack of technical proficiency. So, all I can say from this publication experience is that it does pay (literally, actually!) to follow your heart, to do what delights you because you might just find that it delights others as well.

PS: Bella Grace is available at major newsstands such as Barnes & Noble and Costco. (That also thrills me to no end. Ok, enough with the gushing…)