ALISHA SOMMER
ALISHA SOMMER
Bay Area Freelance Writer & Photographer

workshops & retreats

There's nothing I'm more committed to than providing sacred space for people to explore their creative voice. I love to do this by offering writing workshops where you'll be provided inspiration to start or get back into your art, whatever it may be.

If you're putting together a retreat or gathering and are in need of a presenter to talk about writing, creativity, photography, motherhood, food or wine, please don't hesitate to contact me.

UPCOMING EXPERIENCES:

liberated lines / TBA — An online writing course offering email prompts and live virtual writing circles.

Fever Dreams Collective Gathering / October 2-6, 2019 SOLD OUT — A 4-night creative retreat at the lovely Westerbeke Ranch in California wine country. Part sleep-away camp and part artist residency where we'll play with myth and story, using ourselves and the land to make and create individual and group art.

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photography 

Every photo session begins with an hour-long consultation where we'll narrow in on your vision and clarify the narrative behind you and your brand. As a result, the images we create together are not just another set of pretty pictures but a curated collection of visual stories that communicate the true essence of you and your business. Each photography session also includes a prop allowance and image usage guide. Let's dream up all things related to:

Restaurants, Food & Wine (click here for rates)

Branding & Lifestyle (click here for rates)

In need of something else? Use this form to request a proposal.

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Beauty hunting.
Yesterday was one of those days that I’ve been craving for a very long time. There was no where to be, no people to see, no forced conversations. I made blueberry muffins and we had coffee and mimosas at home. I laid in the hammock and read @sylviavlinsteadt’s “Lost Worlds of the San Francisco Bay Area,” while covered in sun and the scent of lemon and orange blossoms. We ate an early dinner of ham and potatoes and green beans tossed in lemon and olive oil. It was the slowest and most satisfying Sunday I’ve had in quite some time. And now I’m ready for Monday, trying to tease out Sunday’s tenderness and stretch it across the upcoming week. How was your weekend? What are you looking forward to this week? . . . . . . . . . #vsco #vscocam #wherethelightis #thesacrednessoflight #home #gratitude #californialiving #californiadreaming #coffeetime #slowmondays #theartoflivingslowly #thatsdarling #morningslikethese
Things I’m thinking about on this Thursday morning: 1. Waves of doubt are very normal, but somehow we learn how to keep our heads above water, pushing these bodies through. 2. Snails are really magnificent little creatures. 3. Alignment over balance. And then a developed intuition that signals its alarm when you’re reaching in ways that pull you out of yourself. . . . . . . . . . . #vsco #vscocam #wherethelightis #thesacrednessoflight #morningslikethese #coffee #coffeetime #thatsdarling #liveauthentic #livemoremagic #flowerlover
Beauty hunting.
This morning I noticed two roses in bloom. Delicate, wrinkly peach-colored petals attempting to unfurl, pushing out from the green leaves and stalks that somehow manages to grow from from this poorly pruned and very neglected bush. I too, am feeling new life after the cutting off of an old one. Or maybe that’s just the feeling we all have when Spring arrives, our interior world always a mirror of the outer. And so we gather again, @robin.soyala and I, and maybe you too, to explore, through images and words, this home we inhabit. To wonder about what it is that we require for our own brand of flourishing. Seven days of emailed prompts, a Facebook group with additional writing exercises and sharing, one live virtual writing circle, May 20-26, $20. Details for registration in my profile. . . . . . . . . #writersofinstagram #writers #thepoetryoflife #liberatedlines #liberatedlinesflourish #writingcircles #vsco #vscocam #wherethelightis #thesacrednessoflight #amwriting #womenwriters #creativewomen
She is radiating joy. Ecstatic. All because of some sandblasted jeans, a loose tee, and a fresh pair of sneakers. But is true that sometimes feeling really good about your outside makes you feel great on the inside. And it’s not vanity. It’s expression. It’s a way of establishing and owning your presence, your truth. Side note: this little brass tray has become a little beacon, an altar to my mornings. I’m a little in love with it. . . . . . . . . . . #morningslikethese #gratitude #amreading #womanofcolor #style #fashion #selfexpression #momlife #thatsdarling #livefolk #liveauthentic #coffee #coffeetable #littlebitsofhome
My tastes in wines oft reflect my interior life and so I think that must be why I’ve been drawn to Syrah these last few months—less fragile than my beloved Pinot Noir but just as complex and moody. In the right hands it’s wild, yet elegant, fruit and herb and smoked meat. So yeah, I think that feels like life right now. This particular bottle, 100% whole cluster from cool Carneros, is dancing on the palate. (Which makes sense considering that Apsara comes from the Sanskrit word for “angelic dancer.”) Red and black fruits, olive—and the rosemary is shining through thanks to the rosemary focaccia we’re having with dinner tonight. Balance, purity, and expression indeed. • Unofficial tasting note: Drink this when you need to elevate your Monday—or any day. When you have have an evening alone with a book and a candle and the Delta breeze. It’s for deep and rumbly conversations that last long after the light has gone. . . . . . . . . . . . . #apsaracellars #syrah #carneros #wine #winelover #foodandwine #wineenthusiast #foodwinewomen #womenandwine #vsco #vscocam #wherethelightis #gratitude #californiadreaming #californialiving #womeninwine #photographer #winephotography
Beginning to feel more settled. There are a few key places I can get to now without having to be so reliant on the GPS: school, the grocery store, work, the library, two different coffee shops. Little ordinary things, often overlooked, that are milestones to be celebrated. Happy Monday. And hey, congratulations on being here. You made it another day. 🥰 . . . . . . . . #gratitude #vsco #vscocam #wherethelightis #thesacrednessoflight #home #transitions #selfportrait #faceless #coffee #coffeetime #mondayslikethese #morningslikethese #thatsdarling #liveauthentic
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