Autumn Returns by Jayda Steele

Dedicated to two of my favorite redheads: fall [the season] and NEW YORK TIMES Bestselling Author, Rob Thurman.

Rob is one of my clients, but far more than that, she is family to me. She has become the protective, wise, talented, inspiring and hilarious big sister I'd always wanted but never had.

This piece was my "sigh of relief" that a really awful summer had finally ended, and that Rob had survived a fatal car wreck... after being in the hospital for nearly a month [three of those weeks, pretty much in a coma], Rob's first weeks back were happening when that sense of autumn's arrival was in the air. So I kinda took that and ran with it.

While Rob was "out," I'd become known to the public as "Jayda the Web Geek" who kept fans and friends posted on her condition... and I'm not gonna lie, things had gotten touch-and-go there for a while. To the outside world, I may have seemed like I was holding it together... but on the inside, many, many times... I was kinda losing my shit.

Creating this piece was my way of working it all out in the end - processing it and letting it go - because that's what art is for.

The image nearly came to me in a vision while I was cleaning my house - I also clean when I need to work through things - and I gotta say, this turned out even better than the original concept in my head.

I named the star of the show "The Lady of the Leaves" and she is totally how I picture Rob now that she's out of the hospital and on the path to recovery: more than alive, I see her filled with power and strength, like a fiery phoenix rising from the ashes, totally ready to kick ass with the magic of her writing again. Like an autumnal, Valkyrie Goddess.

Welcome back, Rob... and hello Autumn, oh how I've been longing for your return.