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Slow Food Santa Fe's Lissa Johnson and Nina Rosenberg talk with representatives of the Food, Hunger, and Agriculture Program, part of the Food Initiative, working under the State Economic Development Department: Program Manager Erin Ortigoza and Food Value Chain Coordination Rep Jayme Chester. We’re also joined by Julie Cranston, Executive Director of Vida Mejor Capital, a New Mexico non-profit established to empower New Mexico’s small businesses through technical assistance and equitable access to capital.

This week on The Forum, we spoke with Mayor Alan Webber and longtime City Councilors Signe (“Sig”) Lindell and Carol Romero-Wirth as they prepare to step down from their roles in the coming weeks. With each having the option to seek another term, we explored their personal paths to public service, the reasons behind their decisions not to run again, and the lessons they’ve learned in office. They also reflected on the challenge of communicating the complexity of city issues to the public. For anyone interested in how municipal government works—and what motivates citizens to serve—this conversation offers valuable insight.

I’m aware that many Last Word listeners are writers, so today’s interview with award-winning Northern New Mexico’s poet, Renee Gregorio, may offer us all a fascinating boost for our writing life. Renee joins me with her new book, The Writer Who Inhabits Your Body: Somatic Practice to Enhance Creativity and Inspiration. Drawn from her lifetime practice of the martial art Aikido and her work as a master somatic coach, Renee suggests creating our own internal writing “dojo” through a simple centering practice. How do we open our whole body to the magnificence of language? How do we walk through the doorway of fear? How can our writing sparkle and roar? And is a roar really a whisper that quietly lets the reader feel that blessed and elusive moment of inspiration that never leaves us? Meet Renee at The Ark Bookstore on Sunday, March 24th at 3:00. www.reneegregorio.com

A delight to welcome Dr. Erica Elliott to the KSFR studios with her new book, From Mountains to Medicine. Erica’s life of adventure and misadventure around the world in search of her true calling has taken her from fragile depths to extraordinary heights. She has a mountain named after her in the Andes and here in Santa Fe she is affectionately known as the “health detective” sought out by patients with challenging symptoms. You’ll likely bite your nails in suspense and shed tears following Erica’s journey. Upcoming readings in Santa Fe include Garcia Street Books on Sunday, March 17 at 4:30 and The Ark Bookstore on Saturday, April 6th at 6:00. Enjoy her blogs at www.musingsmemoirandmedicine.com

Today, a glimpse into the craft of writing you’ve likely wondered about but never explored. Meet Joshua Lisec, a ghostwriter who has penned more than 80 books in the name of some well-known and lesser-known authors and celebrities. My interest was piqued by an article written by Lisec called Release The Ghosts, suggesting that the publishing industry’s hard-working, secret authors be given much more public credit. But it’s not as simple as that and revealing the “ghost” needs to be considered on a case-by-case basis, sometimes for legal liability reasons. However, Joshua did reveal the ghostwriting he’d done for a respected cardiologist in Florida and the intensive medical research that it took for him to understand and accurately present the subject matter. A fascinating and many-layered interview on the path towards presenting “emotional truth.” Joshua’s own book, So Good They Call You A Fake is out now. Learn more at lisecghostwriting.com

Truly a personal honor to interview celebrated author and National Medal of Arts Recipient, Julia Alvarez, here with her new novel, The Cemetery of Untold Stories. Can a writer ever bury her characters? What happens when they climb out of their graves and come alive, surprising the local barrio residents and even the author herself. Like all her books, our conversation weaves, braids and fades any separation between reality and what we call magic. Julia’s answers to my questions about storytelling in fiction and about our daily lives is inspiring and necessary. Julia will be discussing her body of work and The Cemetery of Untold Stories with acclaimed novelist Manuel Munoz at 6:00 pm on Saturday, May 18th at the Santa Fe International Literary Festival at the Convention Center. More at juliaalvarez.com and http://www.sfinternationallitfest.org/

Finally here with their long-awaited new book, Slow Travel New Mexico: Unforgettable Personal Experiences in The Land of Enchantment, our beloved local travel journalists, Judith Fein and Paul Ross. A guide book like no other from world travelers like no other. What is Slow Travel and how can you carve your own adventurous path in your neighborhood? Begin with an old-fashioned map, stick in a pin and let your imagination and curiosity lead the way, says Judie. Spot something intriguing along the side of the road as you drive? Stop and take a closer look, says Paul. A big, black, hairy creature grazing among cows turned out to be a Yak, native to Nepal ! Slow down, way down, talk to local folks and listen to what they have to say. Want to really dance with wolves? They’re closer by than you think. Be prepared to discard your day’s agenda and discover beauty, deliciousness and new friends. Slow Travel New Mexico, filled with hundreds of Paul’s full color photographs and tales tall and true.unmpress.com and globaladventure.us

With me today is Christina Vo a Vietnamese American who has written an exquisitely crafted memoir with her father, Nghia M. Vo. My Vietnam, Your Vietnam: A Father Flees, A Daughter Returns. Nghia, risking death, torture or imprisonment was miraculously picked up by a small rescue boat a few days after the fall of Saigon in April, 1975 and eventually forged a new life in the United States. Yet like many refugees Christina’s parents never spoke to their children of the horrors of the war and their harrowing escape, even only speaking their native language when Christina and her sister were asleep or out of earshot. So it was after college in the Midwest that Christina began to feel a yearning to discover her rich ancestral roots and journeyed first to Hanoi. The theme of reconciliation runs like a precious gem through our vibrant conversation. My Vietnam, Your Vietnam published by Three Rooms Press.

A treat for me to unwind with poet and writing teacher, Miriam Sagan, stopping by the KSFR studios with her inspiring collection, Thanks for Stopping By. Always breaking new ground and breaking the rules, this time Miriam’s poems are untitled, adding an unexpected potency and triggering an unconscious sense of immediacy. Miriam discusses her sojourns as writer-in-residence in Japan a few years ago, as well as alone in four of our vast National Parks. Also, we take a peak into a new project she’s creating with her daughter Isabel. Look for Thanks for Stopping By at any of our treasured local bookstores.

A fun and very different aspect of the world of writing today with local composer and lyricist Carol Calvert who has written a delightful musical operetta called The Way of Angels which will premier next weekend. What comes first I ask, the lyrics or the music? Carol’s answer surprises me. We explore the way the creative muse, and perhaps angels themselves, guided Carol to find collaborators including Santa Fe’s Criss Jay, members of the Zia Singers and accompanist Holly Mead. As an ordained minister, Carol’s fascinating conversation also strayed away from the actual writing to discuss the role of angelic help in other ways in our troubled world. A different take on The Last Word. The Way of Angels will take place at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 107 Barcelona St., Santa Fe on Saturday, February 24th at 7:00 and Sunday 25th at 2:00. By donation.