The Word Weaver is a newsletter for writers and editors produced by the WCDR

After What’s Left won the Whispered Words prose contest, Suzanne Caskie contacted me for an interview in the Who’s Who section of the Word Weaver. Wow. Three interviews in a row. I have to go take a long hot bath after my whirlwind tour, so I’ll leave you to read her article. Then I’ll get ready for my close up…

Deepam Wadds
By Suzanne Caskie

Suzanne Caskie

She’s the first-place winner of this year’s Whispered Words and a powerfully wise woman with the insight to follow her own path. Her story is one that can inspire us all to stay true to our passion and do the only thing we know we must — write!
Deepam Wadds had some success with poetry and short stories in the early ‘80s, but after becoming involved in a new spiritual practice found it hard to write. “As I learned about the dissolution of ego, I began to equate writing with ego so let go of it for almost 20 years. I always kept a journal and wrote poetry but it wasn’t enough.”
Two decades later and after an out-of-the-ordinary visit with a psychic, Deepam’s writing life transformed. “It was hilariously clear. He told me I had to write, to create art and to dance, and I knew it was true. So when the opportunity presented itself, I just said yes.”
That opportunity was a 2008 workshop with Ruth Walker at a literary festival in Orillia. From there she went to a Sanctuary Sunday with Sue Reynolds, a Writescape retreat that fall, and then took the Novel Approach year-long program with Sue and James. Deepam started down a road that led to new words, new intensions, new friends and her short story “Choose the Hammock,” published by carte blanche literary journal… now submitted for a Journey Prize and a Canadian Magazine Award.
It also led to her winning Whispered Words. “What’s Left,” the story of a woman who communicates through algebraic equations after an aneurism, came with a $1000 award. When asked what she will do with the money… “I’m putting it into a special savings account to go toward a five-week writing residency in Banff, where I’m hoping I will be revising my memoir.”
Deepam has two big projects on the go. Her memoir, Four Winters in India, based on her time in an ashram with the Indian mystic Osho, has begun while she edits her first novel The Cost of Weather with detailed revisions for Penguin New York. Hard to believe this same inspirational member of the WCDR almost gave up her craft.
Once a year, Deepam shares her love of words and life at a retreat that she organizes in Costa Rica. The retreat features yoga, writing practice, meditation, delicious local food and, of course, all the benefits of being in the sunny south. “The profound experience that happens when writers make the time to write is just a bonus.”
So next time a writer you know considers giving up the art of writing, remember Deepam’s path and remind him or her to get ready … opportunity always presents itself.
You can purchase your copy of the Whispered Words anthology at the May launch, where Deepam will read the story that took top prize. Deepam is a successful Rebalancing Massage Practitioner in Orillia, www.balancedbodystudio.com, and vice-president of The Writers’ Community of Simcoe County. To enjoy her beautifully written blog, visit: https://deepamwadds.wordpress.com

For more information on the divine Suzanne Caskie and her world of decadent cheese, please visit her blog: menageohfromage!