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As
Published in the
Morning Times , February
17, 2007
Waverly native concentrates on writing
career
CORNING - Tina
Field Howe refused to believe the common
belief that there is no real career
opportunities for artists.
As a student
at Waverly High she was involved in the art
club and band and knew she wanted a future
involving something creative.
Now living in
Corning, Howe has defied all odds and is, in
fact, making a living not only as an artist,
but as an author.
Howe graduated
from Waverly in 1977, later earned an
anthropology degree, trying her hand at
archeology for awhile and eventually she
became what she always wanted to be - an
artist making a living. She is the daughter
of Betty and Jesse Howe of Waverly.
She worked at
Corning Inc. for 15 years before her job was
eliminated in 1995. Now she is still working
for Corning, but this time as a freelance
graphic designer, who designs web sites,
brochures, and other materials for the
Fortune 500 company, as well as writes for
them. Additionally, she designs signs and
other promotional materials for the Gaffer
District in Corning, which is the city's
business district. She is one of the lucky
people who is able to work from home.
Howe has now
written her first novel, called “Alyssa of
the Fields.” Her own illustration dons the
front of the book and features an image of
her niece, Kaitlyn Hatch, a student at
Athens Area High School, who Howe says is a
prolific writer in her own right.
Howe has also
written and illustrated a children's book
called “Snailsworth: A Slow Little Story.”
Howe thought
of Kaitlyn because she was around the same
age as the main character in Howe's novel.
The novel focuses on the growing pains of a
young girl and is set in a fantasy world
that Howe created. Even though the focus is
a young woman, the novel also features
strong male characters and older women, said
Howe.
Howe will be
holding a book signing for “Alyssa of the
Fields” at the Jivin' Java on Broad Street
in Waverly from 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. March
3. Kaitlyn will also be at the signing. In
addition, Howe will be featured on “Off the
Page” with Bill Jaker on WSKG public radio
on March 6.
“I think my
own growing pains were the inspiration for
this book,” said Howe. “I was raised in a
traditional household where we were told not
to make waves and don't be a show off.”
The story in
“Alyssa of the Fields” is about Alyssa
struggling against tradition. Her parents
have a very strict tradition and she breaks
out of the traditional role. At first she
suffers hardship for her decision to change,
but later she saves her people.
“And a lot of
secrets come out,” said Howe.
The story is
also about the challenges of life and about
taking a chance. Kendra, is a mother figure
for Alyssa in the book and teaches her “how
to hold her own,” said Howe.
Howe said she
wrote the beginning and the end of the book
first and then filled in the middle. She
didn't realize at first that the idea for
the book paralleled her own life, at least
in some fashion, as a teen-ager, until it
was completed, she said.
“I see this as
a book about growth and being authentic,
living with passion, living from your heart,
doing what you have to do even though you
don't know why at the time,” she added.
Howe said this
book came from the heart and that she “just
had to write it” even though she isn't sure
why right now.
She has
already begun to work on a sequel to the
book, but does not yet have a release date
for it.
Howe relied on
various friends and acquaintances to help
her tighten the story for the book and it
was a young reader who told her something
was missing.
“Someone found
a hole,” said Howe. “She found I just left a
gap in time. It turned out to be ‘the kiss'
and it was a pivotal scene.”
When it came
to a front cover for the book, Howe said she
wanted a personal quality to it and
immediately thought of Kaitlyn as a model.
It was Kaitlyn
who struck the pose that became the
illustration.
“I had her do
all this other stuff and it just didn't work
and then she just struck this pose and -
that was it,” said Howe. “I'm going to use
her for book two and I'll do the same thing,
let her pick some poses like before.”
While Howe
feels she was a type of model for Alyssa's
personality, she points to her own little
sister Larissa as the inspiration for
Alyssa's little sister in the book.
“We are really
close to this day,” said Howe.
Howe's son
Matthew, 19, is now following his mother in
her footsteps, moving into a creative field
by attending the Art Institute of Pittsburgh
for gaming design and development.
Howe is
pleased her son has been encouraged to try
his hand at a creative field and she also
hopes other young people will realize that
they too can pursue their dreams of a career
in art. She currently makes presentations at
area schools, telling students about her
career and the dreams she has realized.
“I tell them
they can do stuff over the Internet even
now,” she said. “I can live in any city in
the world and still work for Corning.”
More
information about Howe, her work and her
books can be found at www.tinafieldhowe.com.
Her book can be purchased from the site and
picked up at Jivin' Java after March 3. It
can also be purchased on BarnesandNoble.com.
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