BOOKWORM
AUTHOR ELEANOR PARKER SAPIA WRITER OF CARIBBEAN FICTION AND WOMEN’S FICTION, POET, AND ARTIST By Marsha Casper Cook
P
lease talk about your roots and how you found out who you wanted to be in your new life. Your story is very inspirational. I was born in Puerto Rico into a family of exceptional oral storytellers: my grandmother—the matriarch of our family—my mother, and my aunt. Their magical stories included lives of struggle, spirits, herbal recipes, ancestral rituals, good food, and a fierce love of family. I was the child at my grandmother’s knee, always begging for one more tale. I doubt it surprised anyone in my family when I turned to storytelling through painting and later with writing. A simple trip to the corner store can yield ideas for new stories or poems, and a cast of characters for future novels. However, my journey to publishing novels set in Puerto Rico with a good dose of history and magical realism took a circuitous route. Publishing my first collection of poetry took even longer. Each stage of my journey was as important as the last—steppingstones to where I am today—living and thriving in a creative world. Following in my parent’s footsteps, I married a US Army officer, and we raised our children in Belgium, Austria, and France. To date, I have lived in Europe longer than I’ve lived in the US and Puerto Rico. For 25 years, I painted and exhibited portraits and still lifes in the most unforgiving medium—watercolor— which speaks of perseverance and keen observation. I stashed drafts of poems in an old cookie tin and volunteered with refugee organizations and counseling
52 | eYs Magazine, Winter 2021
centers in Belgium.
Brussels,
In 2000, two life-changing events coincided: my maternal grandmother’s 90th birthday and receiving a copy of Julia Cameron’s seminal book on creativity called The Artist’s Way. The following year, I invited five girlfriends to experience the course with me. I learned just as much as my friends, who encouraged me to keep writing. Around that time, the paintbrush no longer told the stories of my soul—I was hooked on writing. I would go on to facilitate four more creative clusters with participants who felt blocked creatively or were interested in discovering their artistic passion. In honor of my grandmother’s 90th birthday, I wrote a tribute to her that included many of her life stories. After reading the tribute, my then-husband encouraged me to write an outline. That outline turned into the first draft manuscript of A Decent Woman, set in turn of the century Ponce, Puerto Rico, my hometown. In 2005, life changed dramatically. Before I knew it, I was a single woman in her 50s. I left one life and started a new one in the U.S. when my children headed to American universities. I was forced to face the unknown, dig deep, and tackle many challenges, much like a baptism of fire.
How has writing novels changed you as a person? If yes, please feel free to elaborate. I believe my creative journey had more to do with my personal growth than the actual writing of my books. Before my divorce, I volunteered as a Spanish language refugee case worker and as a volunteer counselor in the only English-speaking counseling center, both in Brussels, Belgium. After my divorce, I moved back to the U.S., where I graduated from a massage therapy institute, I worked full-time as a bilingual (Spanish) social worker with the immigrant/refugee population and became a Reiki Master. During that same time, I honed my writing skills, but the draft manuscript of A
