Welcome to the official etheric home of:
CRISTINA SALAT !
author...ex-New York editor...freelance writer/consultant/web designer...independent filmmaker.
"Determine that the thing shall be done, and then we shall find the way."
Abraham Lincoln
from Live Good, compiled by Kobi Yomada, Compendium Publishing, © 2005
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WHAT'S NEW?! Happy Summer 2009! It's been a busy & wonderful time sharing sacred cinema nights and creative rituals with friends new & old...and there is the delight of FINISHING work on various film scripts! :) Now I'm working on creating a smooth, long-term connection between my L.A. film work and our on-going artist-community here on the Big Island. Very excited about impending trips to east & west coasts! I've also been designing fun & sacred websites--who would have thought I would turn into such a TECHIE!!!--and loving the creativity & collaboration with cool people (plus it's nice to be able to "give back" after ALL the help I got when my endeavors needed an on-line presence!) Note for clients/creative partners: I'm still happy to collaborate on the developmental editing of manuscripts, co-write or ghostwrite interesting projects, meet &/or consult by phone re: the publishing industry & contract negotiation questions, and I'm also delighted to co-create simple or complex websites for interesting people doing interesting things...so feel free to give a call or drop me a line if there's something you'd like to work on together! BUT also, please note: all freelance work is done by agreed-upon prepaid "assignment," my schedule permitting! (More info can be found below in the WORKING WITH CRISTINA section of this site.) Well, the current script & tropical sunshine are calling...So, hope your year is filled with all kinds of dreams coming true! Blessings till our paths cross again, Cristina |
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This Website Includes :
(Click on any of the following categories to jump ahead...or just scroll on down!)
"Beginnings" from Cristina's work
Reviews (from Publisher's Weekly to a 14-year-old in Milwaukee!)
Film Titles & Filmmaker Bootcamp
Working with Cristina (ghostwriting/editing/publishing consultation/web design)
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Every beginning leads to all that follows
...and nowhere is the beginning more crucial than in literature!
Some "beginnings" from Cristina Salat's fiction & non-fiction for adults and for youth:
"In the middle of the night, my mother comes to steal me away. I am still up, reading under my covers with a flashlight, half-listening for Daddy or his girlfriend, Rosa, when I hear a muffled bump outside my window." Cristina Salat, Living In Secret, Bantam Books/Dell Yearling/Books MarcUs
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"At 28, in an empty Oregon church, I look for god who looks something like me only bigger." Cristina Salat, Sacred River |
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"One day will our people put your microwaves under glass and say with studied authority In white culture the women creatively cooked without heat?" Cristina Salat, Winds of Change: American Indian Education & Opportunity |
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"Wolf was not pretty; she was dashing. She had short brown hair, long brown limbs and a smile that could charm femmes into bed ...or so it had always been." Cristina Salat, Once Upon A Time, edited by Michael Ford, Masquerade Books |
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"The ship called Earth on which we stand is sinking. The time to make better choices and insist on life rafts for all was yesterday... Is there common ground? Yes. We are standing on it." Cristina Salat, Indigenous Peoples Recruit for the New Frontier The Humanist: Magazine of Critical Inquiry & Social Concern |
*If you'd like to read one of Cristina's non-fiction articles in full, her indigenous Peoples Recruit for the New Frontier published in The Humanist: Magazine of Critical Inquiry & Social Concern is reprinted at this link: Cristina's Indigenous People's article.
*Some of Cristina's short stories can be ordered directly from the periodicals they appeared in, such as her science fiction story Say Goodbye To Dana published by Whiskey Island Magazine Fall '84: Say Goodbye To Dana
*Her novels and other books her written work appears in can be found at local bookstores & libraries, as well as via ordering services like Amazon (see below!)
*And there are numerous articles to be found about Cristina, such as the January 2008 interview in Vision Magazine about her independent filmmaking adventures in Hawaii: www.visionmagazine.com/archives/0801/hawaii_january_2008.html
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Urban born, multi-racial author/editor CRISTINA SALAT has enjoyed being part of the media industry both behind New York/California desks and freelance, for book publishers, magazines, film producers, newspapers, small presses, and emerging/established authors nationwide for decades now.
Her work is published by Bantam Books, Children's Television Workshop, Prentice Hall, Dell Yearling, HarperCollins, Charlesbridge Press, Sidewalk Revolution Press, CDR-Forlag, Masquerade Books, Running Deer Press, Eighth Mountain Press, "Popular Photography", "The Humanist", "Family Next Door", "Planet Roc", and many more!
SALAT'S work spans fiction and non-fiction genres, including movie novelizations, film scripts, magazine articles, and books for youth. She has also been contracted by Simon & Schuster, Little Brown, Independent Cinema, etc. for work not yet produced.
Her children's books include the award-winning LIVING IN SECRET , the Ghostwriter series' ALIAS DIAMOND JONES, and the children's picture book PEANUT'S EMERGENCY, a Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People and a featured title in Soliloquy Learning's new PC interactive Reading Fluency series.
SALAT is the founder/director of cultural/creative offerings including:
* Kulana Artist Sanctuary, home/retreat space for creative folk, www.discoverkulana.com built-from-the-ground-up and managed by Cristina, and located on the Big Island of Hawaii,
* Shark Productions: an independent film company "with teeth" www.sharkproductions.biz which included an internship program in California and features monthly filmmaker bootcamps in Hawaii,
* the popular Publishing Salons offering local writers access to industry-standard publishing info, hosted at the Sitting Room in northern California and the Volcano Arts Center www.volcanoartcenter.org in Hawaii,
* and, most recently, The Abundant Artist and Abundant Healer support circles, hosted at Kulana Artist Sanctuary, along with Screenwriting & beginning Web Design workshops taught by Cristina.
A dynamic lecturer and workshop host, SALAT thrives on furthering the abundance possible for the artistically and compassionately inclined, and she savors the creative manifestation process from A to Z, including the travel required for research, film shoots, book promo, & soul rejuventation! :)
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(from Publisher's Weekly to a 14-year-old in Milwaukee)
"courageous, thought-provoking" |
"a wonderful story which details the difficulties of a young girl living under an assumed identity" |
"all-inspiring" |
"This Ghostwriter book certainly has some food for thought" |
"This is ine of the first really good young adult book that I have seen dealing with split families in which one parent is not straight." |
"Written over ten years ago...still as important today as it was then" |
"Although it's just a TV tie-in, it rises above its source. This is one of the best children's books I've seen in a long while" |
"charming" |
"is sure to delight young readers while honing their survival skills" |
"a lively page-turner" |
"sensitively written" |
"adorable, exuberant and full of life" |
"a great hero for the preteen set" |
"young readers and parents will have a 'sunshine happy, stamp-your-sneakers feeling good' time" |
"crafted with insight and skill" |
"wondrous enthusiasm" |
"Two friends and I bought 120 copies of this book and we're passing them around the United States." |
"a great job portraying emotions" |
"a well balanced story that promotes a host of good things...Bravo!" |
"witty and energetic" |
"great good humor and thoughtfulness" |
"motivating and inspiring" |
"a great talent for balance" |
"'Read another chapter!' came to be the refrain as our read-aloud time began to cut into recess and free time" |
"invaluable" |
Sample trade review of project
edited & art directed by Cristina for Two Bears Press:
HANDS written by Bernard Dadie, with illustrations by Keba Konte published by Two Bears Press, 2003 School Library Journal: Dadie, who was imprisoned for anticolonial writing in his native Ivory Coast, celebrates freedom and unity in his poetry. Using a symbol that transcends ethnic and cultural barriers, he venerates hands that labor, caress, and heal, "Black hands, made to mold Love/callused,/to wear bitterness away-." His free verse and Konte's haunting images paint pictures that stir the soul and delight the eye. These compelling montages incorporate photographs of the world's children running, leaping, playing, bathing, and laboring, to punctuate Dadie's prose with visual power. These provocative collages, some on blistering, peeling wood, strip away society's veneer to reveal heartbreaking truths about injustice and human cruelty. Together, the riveting images and phrases meld to "upset the boundaries erected on the path to the heart." Labeled a "crossover classic," this sophisticated picture book with its multiple layers of meaning will be appreciated most by mature readers, but the unforgettable, evocative imagery works on many levels. Useful across the curriculum (literature, history, world cultures, multicultural studies) or to provoke discussion about human rights, Hands should also be read for the beauty of its polished prose, its stunning artwork, and its timeless message.
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*Cristina's books for children have won numerous awards including:*
ALA "Best" of the Best Books for Young Adults
ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
Horn Book Fanfare
Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People
New York Public Library Best Books for the Teen Age
ALA Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered Book Award
Minnesota Book Award
ALA Best Book for Young Adults
New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age
*A sampling of articles, interviews, reviews,*
award listings, & inclusion in recommended reading lists
for some of Cristina's various endeavors can also be found at the following links:
Article about Cristina's filmmaking adventures in Hawaii: "From deep within the lush rainforest near Volcano National Park, Salat is training a new batch of independent filmmakers on how to make movies using ingenuity, skill and their own inner resources." (Nicole Pugh, Vision Magazine)
Article about Cristina's Independent Filmmaker Bootcamp: "It's hard to imagine anything standing in the way of this artist's process!" (Kristine Kubat, Big Island Weekly)
Alias Diamond Jones review Amazon
Living In Secret review Amazon readers plus Publisher's Weekly and Kirkus Review
Living In Secret review Edmonton Public Library
Living In Secret review & book details Tower.com's bestsellers on Family, Marriage & Divorce.
Living In Secret Oakland library LGBT recommended book lists
Peanut's Emergency Chicago Public Schools Kindergarten Recommended Reading List
Am I Blue? review Barnes & Nobel review
Am I Blue? review Amazon readers plus School Library Journal and Publishers Weekly
Am I Blue? review Powell's review
Am I Blue? review Canada Family Pride
Am I Blue? review: "When a book that sets out to do good turns out to be as good as this one, we are all winners."(Katherine Paterson in The Washington Post)
For more book reviews, interviews, articles, info, and creative offerings
pertaining to Cristina, google "Cristina Salat" and thousands of entries will appear!
(And there's more under the incorrect spelling "Christina" Salat as well!)
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(And Cristina & her artist sanctuary get a % if your purchase begins from here on this site!)
edited by Cristina for Two Bears Press: |
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Living In Secret
Peanut's Emergency
Alias Diamond Jones
Sister Stranger
Am I Blue?
Higher Learning
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To view clips of "Dragon" and "Pele's Home,"
and to learn about Cristina's other film endeavors, travel to: www.sharkproductions.biz
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NEW from Cristina & Shark Productions:
SCREENWRITING
9 weeks to a finished draft... plus what to do with your masterpiece when it's done!
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First series runs from April 18 - June 13, 2009
Second series runs from June 20 - Aug 15, 2009 |
Saturday afternoons, 1PM till we're done.
Come for specific workshops, or attend the full series! |
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SESSION #1: THE BEGINNING--Setting intensions...& sucking readers in so script moves up the chain of command towards a deal, rather than into the recycling bin. #2: CRITIQUE SESSION--Peer & professional feedback up to first plot point spin. #3: THE MIDDLE--You've hooked 'em...now can you deliver the goods? #4: PITCHING SESSION--Take us on the roller coaster ride that is your story. #5: CRITIQUE SESSION--Peer & professional feedback of the script's middle "meat" (60-90 pages, copies mailed to workshop participants in advance). #6: THE END--And now, to bring the masterpiece home...! #7: CRITIQUE SESSION--Peer & professional feedback of the critical third act. Does your story take an audience where you want them to go? #8: THE SCRIPT'S DONE, NOW WHAT?--How & where to send it. #9: HEADING TOWARDS A SALE--Professional critique of submission materials. |
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*EXPRESSION OF APPRECIATION $40-100/session (sliding scale) every session except for extended workshop # 5, which is $100-300. |
20% discount for the complete series! |
*Please note: since we can only welcome a small number of participants into each class, advance nonrefundable/nontransferable reservations are required. No drop-ins.
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Independent Filmmaker BOOTCAMP IN HAWAII! hosted by Cristina Salat on the Big Island of Hawaii Imagine this: collaborating on scripts, acting, directing, being creative with lighting & sound, shooting a variety of projects from dramas to docs, creating original music & sets, editing, producing, and promoting... learning... sharing skills & tools... birthing finished "products" into the world... and building a portfolio of produced work... all while enjoying the magic that Pele's home island has to offer! Bootcamp includes immersion in the above in month-long chunks. Hosted by author/ex-New York editor/independent filmmaker Cristina Salat at various locations, with filming occuring island-wide to make use of our dramatic island locations: tropical black, white & green-sand beaches, molten lava beds & smoking craters, Planet-of-The-Ape-type jungles, and snow-covered mountain peaks! We have created a variety of "shorts" from script through to film festival and theater submission. As a solid, compatible core of committed filmmakers forms, we may eventually birth independent feature films as well. Emerging and established filmmakers welcome! Longer term bootcampers in good standing eligible for paid positions as they arise! *** And check out the fabulous article Big Island Weekly did on our filmmaking adventures: http://www.bigislandweekly.com/articles/2008/01/02/read/a_and_e/arts04.txt *** In order to minimize scheduling conflicts, bootcampers welcome to jump on board whenever their calendars allow by reserving 4 week-long chunks (not necessarily at the beginning of a month) of bootcamp alone (or bootcamp + accomodations at Kulana Artist Sanctuary, as available) whenever Cristina is on island and offering them! Come join our ever-evolving rotation of filmmakers creating magic on Pele's Big Island! Inquire about next bootcamp openings! PLEASE NOTE: All who spend time at Kulana Artist Sanctuary, Cristina Salat's home for creative folk, agree to be 100% personally responsible for their own safety and the safety of their belongings.
For further information regarding current fees, deposit, schedule & application process: 808-985-9055. |
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THE ABUNDANT ARTIST Beginning: April 26, 2009! These one-Sunday-afternoon-a month eclectic, interactive support sessions are intended to move folks beyond "starving artist" discouragement, procrastination, set-backs, anxiety, etc...towards more fully expanded: productivity, prosperity, and an all-around happier, living breathing, grateful GOOD! :) Open to creative folk in any & all mediums (writers, actors, painters, filmmakers, multi-media, jewelers, sculptors, carvers, etc!) at any & all levels of (so far achieved) "success!" Location: KULANA ARTIST SANCTUARY Volcano, Big Island, Hawaii.
*Expression of Appreciation: $20-50/session (sliding scale). *Please note: since we can only welcome a small number of participants each time, advance nonrefundable/nontransferable reservations are required. For futher info: 808-985-9055. |
Also find Cristina Salat's publishing intensives,
creative life workshops,
writing-for-children seminars,
and writing/publishing retreats
offered through The Volcano Arts Center!
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Freelance WRITING, CO-WRITING & GHOSTWRITING
developmental EDITING of book/magazine manuscripts & play/film scripts
VIDEO/AUDIO/ANIMATION
fun & sacred WEB DESIGN
contracts/publishing industry/creative life CONSULTATIONS
PUBLIC APPEARANCES including lectures, workshops, and speaking engagements...
...all done schedule permitting and via prepaid money order/cashier's check made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT." Sorry, no credit cards/pay pal. Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
More info below!
*WRITING/CO-WRITING/GHOSTWRITING:*
FIRST DRAFTS DONE BY CRISTINA:
Book/movie: Fee negotiated on a per project basis.
Articles/essays: Fee negotiated on a per project basis.
Promo blurbs/web copy: $40/hour; 3 hour minimum.
All work done prepaid & schedule permitting.
SASE plus necessary source, background & intension materials provided
as printed hardcopy and as Word document on CD by client.
In-person or phone consultations regarding project: $150/hour
including travel time out of local area, plus travel expenses, as necessary.
Prepayment accepted via money order/cashier's check made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT".
Sorry, no credit cards/pay pal.
Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
REVISION/SECOND DRAFTS & BEYOND OF WRITINGS DONE BY CRISTINA:
Book/movie projects: Generally 20% discount off first draft fee.
Articles/essays: Generally 20% discount off first draft fee.
Promo blurbs/web copy: Generally $20/hour; 3 hour minimum.
All work done prepaid & schedule permitting.
SASE plus necessary source, background & intension materials provided
as printed hardcopy and as Word document on CD by client.
In-person or phone consultations regarding project: $150/hour
including travel time out of local area, plus travel expenses, as necessary.
Prepayment accepted via money order/cashier's check made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT".
Sorry, no credit cards/pay pal.
Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
*CONSULTING WITH CRISTINA:*
Corporate rate: Per project fee.
Individual rate: $150/hour. Phone/in-person appointment, schedule permitting. Please note: publishing/film industry, contract negotiation, and creative life consultations are offered in author-editor-independent filmmaker terms, and are not intended as legal advice.
Consultation fees include travel time out of local area, plus travel expenses, as necessary.
*PUBLIC APPEARANCES/WORKSHOP HOST:*
Corporate & Individual rates: Prepaid engagement fee.
Please note:
All speaking engagements fees & dates are done prepaid and are nonrefundable/nontransferable once contracted for, including travel expenses.
*DEVELOPMENTAL EDITING OF MANUSCRIPTS: *
Mail: fee for developmental "red-line" edit regarding manuscript's strengths/flaws/marketability/suggestions for effective revision at the following rates--
| 1 single-spaced submission/query letter page |
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Novella/non-fiction of up to 150 double-spaced pages or play/film script of up to 150 single-spaced pages | Novel/non-fiction book of up to 250 double-spaced pages | Up to 350 double-spaced pages | Up to 500 double-spaced pages | |
$40
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$200 |
$450 |
$750
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$950 |
$1,500 |
plus: $150 for an overall assessment/industry update of the publishing world as it pertains to project in the form of a letter that will accompany return of the edited manuscript, if this is desired,
plus: manuscript (cleanly typewritten, in an easily legible type size and font, with at least 1-inch margins), one-page cover letter describing your project, its intended audience and desired publisher (adult, children's, N.Y. house, university press, small press, etc.), SASE (self-addressed, self-stamped envelope with adequate postage to return manuscript first class), and payment (cashier's check/money order made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT ") to: Cristina Salat, c/o Editorial, POB 190, Volcano, HI 96785.
Please note:
All editing is done pre-paid according to the rates and guidelines above.
Technical information books no longer edited.
Manuscripts beyond 500 pages edited by special arrangement only.
General editing turnaround time = 2 - 8 weeks.
"Second-pass" edits for work previously reviewed = 20% less fee based on revised draft's new page count.
Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
*WEB DESIGN:*
SACRED |
WEBSITE CREATION |
WITH CRISTINA! |
SAMPLE SITES: Text, photographs, & web design provided for Naana Muxul's websites: www.epfxworks.com (English version) www.epfxquantumworks.com (Spanish version) Client's comments: "Cristina Salat, I call her my angel as she came to me when I was struggling with unscrupulous companies while trying to build my web page. She has proven invaluable for me. Her writing skills are superb, she made the text reach out and touch you. She is intelligent and capable of...doing things on the computer in a short period of time that baffle others. I was amazed. She was able to grasp the essence of my work like no other web designer had, and completed the project in a timely manner. I will be using her in the future for more projects and would highly recommend her. With thanks, Naana Muxul"
Other sample sites including text, photographs, video, audio, animation, & design done by Cristina:
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Quick & simple websites (as in just a few pages of text & pix) --OR-- Sites that are more complex (as in lots o' pages, interactive forms, flash animation, pal pal link, shopping cart, etc.) done via these terms: * Project fees determined on an individual basis and dependent on complexity, timeline, and other such factors. * All source materials such as text and photos are provided by client...along with information regarding site's intended audience so correct metatags for search engines can be included in code. * Happy to help with creation and optimization of text, photos, video, & audio as needed; discuss at onset so scope of project, copyright ownership, and quote for site construction is clear. * A simple, straight-forward site with up to two design/ brainstorming consultations by phone/email/or in persongenerally ranges from $600-$2000. * More complex sites including interactive forms, shopping carts, video, audio, animation, etc.--&/or site creation that requires lots of brainstorming with client--generally range from $2500-$5000. * Special conditions including rush jobs can sometimes be negotiated for an additional fee. * Website creation work done prepaid and schedule permitting. * Design/brainstorming consultations beyond those initially agreed upon available $150/hour, including travel time for in-person meetings. * Significant changes to site design after creation has been agreed upon/begun entail an increase in fee. * Host/domain name/travel/etc. expenses the responsibility of client. * Domain registration, passwords & related access info will be transfered to client once site construction is complete. At this time, client is free to change passwords for sole future access. * Prepayment via money order/cashier's check made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT" at onset. (Sorry, no payments by credit card/pay pal.) Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
Happy to help put a fun, sacred, productive representation of your work up on the World Wide Web !
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*VIDEO/AUDIO/ANIMATION:*
ORIGINAL CREATIONS
and
EDITING OF ALREADY EXISTING PROJECTS
Prepaid fees negotiated on a per project basis.
All materials and travel expenses provided by client, as needed.
Prepayment via money order/cashier's check made payable to: "CRISTINA SALAT" at onset of project. (Sorry, no credit card/pay pal.) Business/personal checks accepted from returning clients with work begun after payment has cleared.
See: www.sharkproductions.biz for further info regarding Cristina's film endeavors!
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CONTACTING CRISTINA:
POB 190
Volcano, HI 96785
Email the author at: info@cristinasalat.com
And for more about what's new at Kulana, Cristina's home & retreat for creative folk in Hawaii,
visit: www.discoverkulana.com and Kulana's current newsletter!
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"My hope still is to leave the world a bit better than when I got here."
Jim Henson
Live Good
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*** Live good! ***
Text & images © Cristina Salat. All rights reserved.
Please note: this website is updated sporatically in between Cristina's creative adventures.
Schedule of availability, rates, & guidelines for working with Cristina subject to change; best to contact her directly for most current info.