Words Are Spells

LOCAL PINECREST NOVELIST, alternative medicine practitioner, and South Florida Writers Association (SFWA) Conference Director C.V. Shaw is a whirlwind of positivity—and about as busy as she sounds. Yet she still kindly took the time to speak with AQUA Pinecrest about her literary influences, her quantum energy work, how she came to write a tale of treachery, magic, and passion set in the lush countryside of sixteenth-century England, and what aspiring scribes can expect from the upcoming SFWA Mango Writers Conference at the 94th Aero Squadron Restaurant in Miami on Feb. 21.

You’ve been writing from a very young age. Do you remember what first lit that passion?

I grew up in a Cuban household, where the famous poem by the Cuban poet, essayist, and political activist Jose Martí, Cultivo Una Rosa Blanca (I Cultivate a White Rose), which speaks of peace to both friend and foe, and was often recited, and with such passion, that it would stir up my own. I listened with such delight as if the moment had been set apart for something special. Later on, I’d come to find out Martí, was my paternal grandfather’s uncle.

And what about the mystical? It plays a large role in your new novel The Spell, but also in your day-to-day work as a quantum energy practitioner. How did you begin to tap into that world?

It was very natural for me. I’ve always felt a connection to the unseen. I remember as a little girl, I used to dream a lot and was eager to report them as soon as I woke up. As I grew a little older, my wise old aunt would call the house often to ask what I had dreamed. With time, I would finally understand why. A lot of these dreams were prophetic, and as I got older, it reached beyond dreams: visions of what was to come happened often. I had a healthy obsession with angels and Edgar Cayce—The Sleeping Prophet. I was led to an angel teaching group one day and as I drove away, I noticed the Acupuncture College across the street. I took that as a celestial sign and registered soon after. As I began treating patients as an intern, I noticed my intuitive factor turned out to be able to tap into the root of their ailment and how to treat it. I then continued to study other modalities of Quantum Medicine and eventually started teaching a course called MindScape, which helps students tap into their own intuition—which we all have, though some more evolved than others—through alpha state meditation. It develops it in a way where you can use it to guide yourself through your own healing and other life circumstances.

Everything that happens in our life is a reflection of what is happening inside and vice versa. In a nutshell, if one’s energy is flowing correctly—no blockages or stagnation—there is no dis-ease, because we are at ease. But when someone is tense, they are blocking their own energy in their own body. So, relaxation through meditation. Remembering one’s natural state of being is key.

So, The Spell is quite an epic and takes place a long time ago in a kingdom far, far away—yet deals in universal, timeless, relatable truths. Where did this idea originate?

I would love to say the idea was mine, but I was undeniably guided from beyond through writing this story to get one crucial message out to the readers. What was quite interesting is that in my first interview, I was asked a question that catapulted me into a memory I had during a past-life regression when I first became a hypnotherapist at age 22. As I was gathering my thoughts to respond, the memory of that past-life took over, and I realized that what I had written was a recounting of that past-life—a memory that was forgotten for many years.

How painstaking was the process of developing it and building that magical world?

The world-building and development was actually quite fun. There were real moments of awe when I created a scene out of nowhere with no rhyme or reason. If any part of the process was painstaking, it was the grieving when the book finally went to print, and it was time to leave the castle.

What have you learned about your own life and place in the world through writing?

A lot! I realize that everything I write—or that anyone writes, for that matter—is all really coming from the subconscious mind, looking for an exit so it may to be expressed. The subconscious mind communicates through symbols and images, and we make stories out of them. I find a lot of healing happens when I write. And I have learned there was and is a lot of healing to be had. Buried emotions I wasn’t aware were there will surface, release, and heal through my writing.

You recently became Conference Director for the South Florida Writers Association. What does the organization do?

The SFWA is a not-for-profit organization providing a space where writers can connect and support writers by offering information, knowledge, and networking to help writers achieve their writing goals. We provide critique groups for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. And in our monthly meeting we host speakers that bring in tools on all levels and phases of writing to assist our members.

We host one annual writing conference, the MANGO Writing Conference, which is a full day of literary industry speakers touching on all the important factors our members want to know more about. Any aspiring writer or published writer should attend because times change, and even published writers need to stay up with what’s happening in the tech world, such as AI and social media strategies, as we know they are driving forces these days.

Should more people write?

I feel that everybody’s got a book or a story book in them, whether you fictionalize it or not. We are all teachers and reflections of each other—and being able to offer that for another to resonate with is healing for both. What I found with SFWA is the group helps smooth out that initial fear of getting started and pushing through with our amazing support system. Writing groups hosted by published authors, whether traditionally or self-published, really help break that intimidation. And I find I feel inspired when inspiring others to write.

What’s next?

I’ve completed my second novel, The Painted Rose, a re-telling of Alice in Wonderland layered with the true story of the Lewis Carroll and the real Alice—Alice Liddell. It’s got a Girl, Interrupted vibe to it, and I’m excited to get it out. It’s in the query trenches at the moment. I’m also working on a collection of poetry, essays, and short stories called Blue, dedicated to my late mother. It’s about love, grief, awareness, and the existential crisis that transpires when you’re left an orphan late in life.