Writing
Reading at Elsewhere Studios Residency, Paonia, CO
About the Author
Winter is available for freelance writing, readings and workshops. An invited author at the Gunnison Valley Literary Festival in 2019, she offered Beating the Beast of Block: a workshop for creatives who need to nudge the muse. She helps organize A Writers' Reprieve, a retreat at Takoja Institute in northern New Mexico.
Her writing has appeared in Pilgrimage: Story, Place, Spirit, Witness; Messages From Hidden Lake; EarthFirst! Journal; ArtWorks: a publication of the West Virginia Division of Arts and Humanities, Selki; The Journal for Shamanic Practice; Wild Women Rising; Sacred Hoop; Spirituality & Health magazine and several anthologies.
She was awarded first place in 2015 by the New Mexico Press Women's Association, and the National Federation of Press Women for the short story Orienting Heaven. In 2020 She received an Honorable Mention in the L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future competition for the speculative fiction piece, Ichthys and her surrealist paintings. Her work has recently been short-listed for Grist's Imagine 2200 environmental writing award, Women on Writing, Sunspot Lit, and the Northwind Writing Award.
4 Warnings: Shamanic Journeys, an illustrated chapbook of visionary prose, was used as a text for classes at The Awareness Institute in Sydney, Australia. It is available from Amazon and directly from the author. 8-Sided Drum, a collection of lyric prose, is available for pre-order.
Reviews
"4 Warnings: Shamanic Journeys"
" What a woman can teach us all....You may pick up this beautiful, seemingly short, book casually. You will leave it being forever changed. Ms. Ross weaves a vision of our possible future as a species - indeed, as living creatures - which pulls at the heart and, hopefully, spurs us to action. Through her visionary travels with Bat, Orca Whale, Deer and Bear, she leads us on a journey encompassing the spiritual and physical realms which lie hidden within our psyches, to truths we know but don't know we know and sometimes wish we didn't. If you have an inkling of the dangers we have imposed on our very existence on this home, our planet; if you have a heart which hears the steady drumbeat of destruction; if you want to cry out with all creatures, in compassion - pick up this beautiful and heartful book. You will find a companion here." -- Bruce Nygren, President Emeritus: Center for Non-dual Awareness.
"A beautiful piece of work! Very moving. The illustrations couldn't have been better." -- Richard Lutman, prize-winning author of Crowsfield.
"Your book is beautiful and also frightening, suitable shaman material, creative and destructive forces alongside each other. Thank you for gifting us with these precious dream journeys." -- Ken Stanton, participant, Foundation for Shamanic Studies at Esalen Institute.
"Your book is wonderful!!! Inspirational..." -- Naomi Lake, Shamanic Healer
“She Who Hears the Cries of the World”
"A major shout-out to one of our members, Winter Ross, whose memoir piece (which reads like a short story) was short-listed in a recent contest. I read her piece and it blew me away - it worked for me on so many levels. Winter Ross is clearly at the top of her game, and I feel extremely honored that she is one of our "happy few." -- John McManamy, Nomad Writers
"Close Encounters of the Zero Kind"
"You have such a lovely voice -- I think you could write an entire memoir about this. Thanks for giving me the chance to consider it. Good luck! xx -- Noah Michelson, Director of Huffington Post Personal
"How to be Celibate"
...you are a talented writer who knows how to create a narrative voice on the page with different word choices and phrases. I feel like I was interested in the topic, but what I was most interested in was seeing how you were going to say whatever you were going to say next. I was fully engaged in the narrative voice and just the way you worded everything. It’s highly skillful and a blast to read. -- Critique editor, Women on Writing
"Orienting Heaven"
"This is everything a short story should be, a tight introduction, a clearly defined scene, a few recognizable characters, and a tight closing to the story. This is memorable and raises some questions for cogitation, but fortunately those questions remain hanging. Reader, answer them yourself! I praise this person's writing and hope she finds lots of time to devote to it in the future because an interesting literary future may await her." -- Judge for the 2015 New Mexico Press Women's Communications Contest