Cairo Caravan 2011 recap

My how time flies when you're locked away in a writing cave. Has it really been nearly two weeks since Cairo Caravan? Hardly seems possible. The whole weekend was amazing.

On Saturday morning, I had a lot of fun talking about the Ghawazee dancers who performed at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair (dim lighting made it an intimate affair) and talking to everyone who stopped by the table I shared with my friend and fellow author Shauna Roberts.

I saw so many old friends, met Facebook friends in person for the first time (I'm looking at you Liliana!) and made quite a few new ones, too (Mindy, Kareenah, CheriMarie, Nichole, Marguerite, Darleen, Nanette, Denell, Arlene, Lonnie, Veronica with her darling daughter, Lana, Tammy, Marianne, Cindy, Stephanie, Lisa, Jolie, Melisa, Sherree, Vivi, Pamela, Aruba, Toni, Monica, Jocelyn, Trish, Betty, Denise--maker of the amazing "Prop Transporter," Ma*shuqa, Antoinette, Amy, Amber, Connie, Jennie, Carol, the fabulous Penny Rose, Poppy, Oscar and JoAnn!).

I spent so much time gabbing, I didn't get in nearly as much shopping or see nearly as much dancing as I would have liked. So I was extremely happy to get an email from Lee Corkett with a link to his gorgeous photographs. You can see them here: http://leecorkett.com/blog/http:/leecorkett.com/blog/photography/cairo-caravan-2011-3/

So if you missed this year's event (or were too busy shopping, or gabbing like I was) be sure to check them out.

Keep and eye on MECDA's website for news on next year's event.

Booksigning at Cairo Caravan 2011

MECDA's Cairo Caravan -- the biggest annual belly dance event in Southern California -- is just around the corner, and I'm pretty excited the organizers asked me to come and talk about my debut novel, The Belly Dancer.

If you have a copy, bring it, and I'll be thrilled to sign it. If you don't, I'll have copies for sale throughout the run of the festival, thanks to the wonderful independent bookstore folks at Laguna Beach Books.

The 3-day event at the Queen Mary runs from 4 to 9 p.m. Friday (with a promised special surprise for Friday night attendees until 11 p.m.), 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

It'll be a full day of shopping, performances, workshops and food. Tickets at the door are $5 for MECDA members with card/$18 for non-members per day, or $10 for members with card / $35 for non-members for the weekend.

This year, my friend and fellow author Shauna Roberts will be reading from and signing copies of her novel, "Like Mayflies in a Stream," a story of ancient Mesopotamia and retelling of the epic Gilgamesh, at 4:30 p.m. Friday as part of the free lectures series.

My discussion, reading and signing will take place at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, also as part of the free lectures series.

If you can't make the lectures, I hope you'll stop by the booth Shauna and I will have. We'll be signing (and selling) copies of our books. I hope you'll stop by and say hi.

Need an incentive? I'm giving away free bookmarks and chocolate :-)

For more information about the festival, visit www.MECDA.org/cairo.

And the November Contest winner is...

Are you in the holiday spirit yet? The weather here has been cold and windy, just perfect for cozying up with the laptop. It's been great for writing, which is a good thing since my book deadline is coming up fast.

It's always fun, though, to take some time out of the writing day to pick a contest winner. This time we're giving away the awesome THE ART OF BELLYDANCE CD from Bellydance Superstars. We had about 65 entries this time around, and thank you to everyone who took time to play along. This winner was chosen, as usual, by my ever-helpful assistant. She was so excited to pick the winner, she nearly jumped out of the frame altogether. See:




And the winner is:



Taliba Lafleur




(Hooray!!!)


Taliba, I'll be sending you an email message in the next couple of minutes to get your mailing address.


To everyone else, thank you for playing! I'll be posting a new contest soon, so please check back to http://www.deannacameron.com/ to see what's up for grabs.


Happy Tuesday!

November Giveaway

The holidays are coming, isn't that a great reason for a contest? I thought so, too! To get in the spirit of the season, I'm giving away the "The Art of Bellydance" CD. It features some amazing musicians, including master drummer Issam Houshan, Oojami, Beats Antique, Galactic Caravan, and many more.

To enter the contest, click over to http://www.deannacameron.com/. I'll select a winner at random at noon (PT) on Tuesday, November 30.

Good luck!

And the July contest winner is ...

This has been such a fun contest. First, I'd like to say I really appreciate all the kind notes people sent along with their entries, both from those who have read "The Belly Dancer" and others who plan to. And it's no surprise there were a lot of entries -- 102, in fact. Those lovely dancers from Bellydance Superstars draw a crowd wherever they go, don't they? I admire these ladies so much for elevating the dance form and helping it break into the mainstream. I'm thrilled to be giving away their Solos from Monte Carlo DVD, along with the belly dance starter pack.

Anyway, let's get down to business. The winner, as usual, was selected by my charming assistant. It's such a pretty day outside, she even dressed up in her summertime best for the occasion. See:

And the winner is:

Melissa Loomis

(Congrats, congrats!!!)

Melissa, I'll be sending you an email message in the next couple of minutes to get your mailing address.

To everyone else, thank you for playing! I'll be posting a new contest soon, so please check back to http://www.deannacameron.com/ to see what's up for grabs.

Happy Friday!

Anniversary Giveaway

Can you believe it's been a year since The Belly Dancer hit bookstore shelves? Me, neither! But what an amazing year it has been!

To celebrate the big day, I'm giving away the "Bellydance Superstars Solos from Monte Carlo," which is one of my favorite performance videos. It features some terrifically talented dancers, including Rachel Brice, Jillina, and Sonia (posing on the cover), as well as Adore, Bozenka, Amar Gamal, Petite Jamilla, Sharon Kihara and Saida. Of course there are great musicians, too: Issam Houshan on drum and Nabil Khalidi on the oud.

And, as an added bonus, I'm also including the cute little Art of Belly Dancing starter pack. It includes a pair of finger cymbals, adhesive jewels, and a 32-page primer.

To enter the contest, click over to http://www.deannacameron.com/. I'll select a winner at random at noon (PDT) on Friday, July 30.

Good luck!

Another great review...

This time from the lovely Bonita Oteri at Gilded Serpent.

Here's an excerpt:

"...author DeAnna Cameron deftly peels back the layers of Gay Nineties society and affords a richly descriptive and fascinating glimpse into the life, times and giddy excitement of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. ... The overall carnival excitement, curiosity and wonder of the Chicago Fair visitors is infectious. The pages teem with the unbridled enthusiasm and hope of our still young, shiny and new pioneer nation."

To read the full review, click here.

More photos from the Laguna Beach book signing and belly dance showcase

The O.C. Register photographer who attended the book signing and belly dance showcase at Laguna Beach Books on Sept. 4 put 17 of her photos together in a slideshow on the newspaper's Web site.

You can check them out here:
http://www.ocregister.com/photos/belly-book-laguna-2565186-beach-books/pid2565203

Giving THE BELLY DANCER away...

If you'd like to toss your name in the hat for one of a few free signed books, head over to Goodreads. The contest closes on Oct. 8.

Here's the link: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway.

The books are arranged by contest close date, so scroll down till you see October 8.

The Belly Dancer

reviews: 10
ratings: 63 (avg rating 3.83)

Recap of Friday's belly dance showcase and booksigning

Friday was one of the hottest (and most humid!) days of the year here in Orange County, but the Cameron clan had a very cool time at the booksigning and belly dance showcase that Laguna Beach Books hosted for us.

The event took place on The Old Pottery Place's brick terrace overlooking Coast Highway and the beautiful Pacific Ocean, with the lovely Danielle Bauter starting things off. After her introduction, I gave a short reading of THE BELLY DANCER and then the real fun began with live Middle Eastern drumming and lots and lots of belly dancing.

I was thrilled that so many friends came out for the event, especially Diane and Mara (who also danced!) who took great care of my little belly dancer while I manned the microphone and signed books, and my multi-tasking husband managed the sound system and drummed.

Here's a peek at the evening:

The darling Taide was our first dancer for the evening

Irma Garcia followed with a great tribal fusion pieceThen it was IrinaXara, who adds a touch of Gothic flair to her tribal fusion performanceAnd then the always spectacular Sooz and troupe Azuluna, with special guest Soy, performed traditional American Tribal Style as the sun started to set Sherrie followed with a sassy tribal fusion solo

Then Mara dazzled the crowd with her awesome Egyptian cabaret style

And Shanna, who came all the way from L.A., followed with another awesome Egyptian cabaret number

And Ninyshenka wowed us with her graceful dancing Next up was Tivka, who danced to a lively Middle Eastern number

And then JJ & the Habibis, a local Laguna Beach favorite, ended the night with a big troupe number

Belly Dance Showcase and Booksigning at Laguna Beach Books on Friday

Oh, I'm getting excited about tomorrow's belly dance showcase and booksigning at Laguna Beach Books! This is going to be a great way to kick off Labor Day Weekend!

Here's the lineup so far:

Sooz & troupe Azuluna
Taide
IrinaXara
Shanna
Nini
JJ & the Habibis

and I'm *thisclose* to adding even more special guests!

We're also very happy that drummer Ed Lee will be joining us, along with his drumming friends (including my darling husband, Austin Cameron -- who will also be running the sound system for us. Yay!)

So, if you're planning to be in Laguna on Friday evening and would like to check out some great belly dancing, come by! We'll be on the brick terrace between the Laguna Beach Books and Sapphire Laguna restaurant. Come early to grab a seat on one of the benches or at the bistro tables, or just to enjoy the beautiful ocean view!

Here are the details:

WHAT: Belly Dance Showcase & Booksigning for THE BELLY DANCER, by me (DeAnna Cameron)
WHERE: Laguna Beach Books, 1200 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach. In The Old Pottery Place shopping center.
WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4
COST: It's free!

Signing in Riverside at 'An Evening at the Cleopatra Club'

The fabulous Aziza Sa'id has invited me to sign copies of THE BELLY DANCER on Saturday at "An Evening at the Cleopatra Club," which is her monthly hafla in Riverside, CA.

In addition to the booksigning, there'll be dancing -- lots and lots of dancing -- as well as live music and food.

The event will be held from 7:30 to 10 p.m. at Anahata Movement Arts, 3742 Tibbetts St., Suite 202, Riverside, CA. For more information, call (951) 276-YOGA (9642) or visit http://anahatamovementarts.wordpress.com.

I'd love to see you there!

Sept. 4 Booksigning and Showcase in Laguna Beach

If you weren't able to make it to Merry's in Long Beach on July 25 for the Book Release Party and Benefit, you'll have another chance on Friday, Sept. 4 to get a signed copy of THE BELLY DANCER and see some pretty terrific belly dancing, too.

Laguna Beach Books (1200 S. Pacific Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach) will host the hour-and-a-half-long event, starting at 6:30 p.m., and these are the performers who have signed up so far :

JJ & the Habibis

Sooz & troupe Azuluna

Hipsy Gypsy

Taide

Melissa

with Ed Lee & friends on doumbek

The dancing will take place in the brick courtyard between Sapphire Laguna restaurant and the bookstore. It's a lovely location on Coast Highway with an ocean view. Street parking is always tricky on on a Friday evening, so arriving early is advised.

Any questions? Please drop me a note at deanna AT deannacameron DOT com.

Hope to see you there!

Today I'm feeling very fortunate...

Something I didn't mention in the last post about the book release party is the part that made it a party *and* benefit, and that's because I wanted to devote a special space to that important aspect of the event. And here it is.

Very early in the planning stages, I read about the murder of a woman in Pakistan by the Taliban (which I blogged about here: http://scribblinggypsy.blogspot.com/2009/01/dancing-girl-killed-in-pakistan-by.html) for the simple reason that she was a dancer.

I couldn't believe it. It was something that didn't seem possible in this day and age. But the reality is, we're lucky in this country to be able to dance and express ourselves openly. There are many women around the world who cannot, and I thought it was important during an event that celebrates belly dancing and a book about belly dancing, to also do something for women who don't have the same luxury.

After searching for an organization that helped women in these troubled areas, I discovered Women for Women International. Its mission is to help women survivors of war rebuild their lives, and it operates in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and parts of Africa. The organization is dedicated to improving women's lives in a lasting way. Here's how it's described on the group's Web site:

"We begin by working with women who may have lost everything in conflict and often have nowhere else to turn. Participation in our one-year program launches women on a journey from victim to survivor to active citizen. We identify services to support graduates of the program as they continue to strive for greater social, economic and political participation in their communities.

"As each woman engages in a multi-phase process of recovery and rehabilitation, she opens a window of opportunity presented by the end of conflict to help improve the rights, freedoms and status of women in her country. As women who go through our program assume leadership positions in their villages, actively participate in the reconstruction of their communities, build civil society, start businesses, train other women and serve as role models, they become active citizens who can help to establish lasting peace and stability."

It's a meaningful message of self-empowerment, and it's women reaching out to and helping other women. These are themes that were very important to me as I wrote THE BELLY DANCER, and I can't think of a more appropriate way to honor the art and history of belly dance than to support this noble cause.

That's why I'm feeling very fortunate today. Not only do I enjoy the freedom to dance and live my life the way I want, but our event helped raise money for the organization, thanks to the help of so many individuals who donated either drawing prizes or cash, or both. I was thrilled and honored to be able to mail off those proceeds today.

If you'd like to learn more about Women for Women International, you can do so here. And please consider making a donation. There are women in this world whose lives may depend on it.

Photos from THE BELLY DANCER Book Release Party & Benefit

Is there any other way to celebrate a book about belly dancing than with a night filled with belly dancing and belly dancers? I think not.

We had dancers, lots and lots of dancers, as well as drummers, belly dance costume models and even pirates! (Oh yeah, and some of them were even extras in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies).

We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Merry's Fashion with Passion boutique in Long Beach for allowing us to take over her store (and her sidewalk, and her alley, and the street in front of her shop...) on Saturday night to throw this party for our friends, family and folks who wanted to get their own signed copy of THE BELLY DANCER.


We had a phenomenal turnout -- at least 200 people at one point packed the store and back patio, where the guys from Hana Lima Industries set up the most amazing Moroccan tent. The crowd was so thick, it spilled out onto the sidewalk and street. My husband says he watched as the traffic on Broadway had to maneuver around the crowd, and at one point a city bus slowed down to a crawl so the driver and passengers could get a good look at the dancing and drumming taking place on the sidewalk.

We sold out of the books that Laguna Beach Books so kindly provided!

The event was such a wonderful success because of all the help and support from so many people.

The dancers: Katerina, Sarah al Nour, Enala, Sooz & her troupe Azuluna & the Om Sisters!

The musicians: Ed Lee, Donavon, Austin Cameron, Marc, and their friends


Andrea Farese of Stellar Advantage for providing the belly dance costumes for the fashion show.


Rachel from O.C. Bellydance Connection for taking great photos!

And of course, my parents, who kept my 9-week-old daughter fed, dry and entertained during the madness, and my dear friends Alane & Diane, who were the first to arrive and the last to leave, and stepped in to help me fix all the little problems that popped up throughout the night.


Honestly, I can't thank everyone enough. You're the best :-)

(Photos courtesy of Rachel of OC Bellydance Connection)

THE BELLY DANCER Book Release & Benefit party tomorrow!

If you're planning to be in Long Beach tomorrow evening, stop by! We'll have belly dancing, live drumming and a belly dance costume fashion show.

We'll also be raising money for a really great cause -- Women for Women International, which helps women survivors of war rebuild their lives.

All the proceeds generated from the drawing for drawings for the great belly dance-inspired prizes will go toward this amazing nonprofit group.

And we have so many wonderful people to thank for donating the prizes!

Belly Dance magazine (1-year subscription)

Naked Rhythm's Alex Spurkel (1 month of drum lessons and Naked Rhythm CDs)

Om Sisters (3 belly dance classes)

http://www.bellydance.com/ / Hollywood Music Center (3 belly dance CDs)

Sashi (her new Gothic Bellydance instructional DVD)

Alane Canzone (a custom-made hula hoop)

http://www.savehollywoodpark.com/ (thank-you gifts)

I'll be donating a bunch of stuff, too: two cosmetics gift packs, a Moroccan caftan / coverup, a restaurant gift card. And we're adding new donations every day!

The event will go from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Merry's Fashion with Passion boutique, 2747 E. Broadway, Long Beach. 562-987-4363.

Hope to see you there!

Just posted an excerpt of THE BELLY DANCER...

If you'd like to check it out, here's the link:

http://www.deannacameron.com/NovelExcerpt.htm

Enjoy!

Giving stuff away at the Romance Book Club -- come see!

Today I'm guest blogging about my inspiration for THE BELLY DANCER over at the Romance Book Club, and one lucky commenter will win either a signed copy of the book or a belly dance hip scarf.

You can check it out here:

http://www.theromancebookclub.com/guest-blogs/2009/7/14/the-inspiration-for-the-belly-dancer-by-deanna-cameron.html

Today's winner is...

It's been a great publication day! I discovered more good reviews (Bookreview.com and BarnesandNoble.com, to name a couple) and that book sales are already strong. Yay :-)


For all of you who bought the book: THANK YOU! I haven't had much time to soak it all in yet -- most of the day has been spent with the little one running to and from the post office to get the bookmarks and other materials out to all the people who have requested them from here and the belly dance forum on Bhuz.com, along with some bookstores around the country.


But here's the fun part of the day: giving away a belly dance hip scarf to today's lucky winner.


So, here we go:

Entries:

My little independent auditor:

Winner:

Congratulations, Catherine; I'm e-mailing you now to get your address.


Thanks to everyone who entered! I'll be doing more contests, so stay tuned!

THE BELLY DANCER is out!

It's release day for THE BELLY DANCER! Woohoo! I'm celebrating with a guest blog over at Historical Tapestry on why I love the legend of Little Egypt. That one is up now, and an interview with author Shauna Roberts on her For Love of Words blog that will be up a little later on.

I'll also announce the winner of today's contest at 4 p.m. -- so if you've entered, be sure to check back!