A DECADE+ OF STORYTELLING POWERED BY THE BEST WRITERS ON THE PLANET

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BE PART OF THE LEGACY

TAMPA BAY • FEBRUARY 23-24 2026

This FINAL encore experience will be unlike any other. Because like everything we do, it's been "reimagined" from beginning to end. It's not a virtual or hybrid event. It's not a conference. It's not a seminar, a workshop, a meeting, or a symposium. And it's not your typical run-of-the-mill everyday event crammed with stages, keynote speeches, team-building exercises, PowerPoint presentations, and all the other conventional humdrum. Because it's up close & personal by design. Where conversation trumps presentation. And where authentic connection runs deep.

Sea Glass

A single bottle filled with fluid to be consumed, contents worthy of purchase.

A young woman drinking the contents and writing a note to a lost loved one, yearning for their return.  Carefully rolling the message, placing it in the bottle, and closing off with the cork that had kept the fluid in.

The tossing of the bottle into the grand expanse of water caressing the sand with each wave. Each wave different than the last but similar in shape and form.

The bottle, lost in the ocean, falling to the floor.

The cork gradually coming loose and ultimately allowing the salty substance in. The blending of the saltwater with the ink as it streams from the now saturated paper.

The breaking apart of the bottle as it hits rocks on the ocean floor. The pieces being spread and embraced by the sand.

The transformations as its sharp edges of the broken pieces are gradually smoothed by nature’s magic melody coming in the form of an unseen energy flow of the water’s tide.

The piece of glass, traveling on the waves back to shore, hidden in the sand waiting.

The heart, found in the form of sea glass sparkling, back into the hands that had wished for its return.

The once discarded bottle transformed into something unique to be treasured.

Raissa Urdiales
Raissa Urdiales
Raissa lived most of her life along the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin. She currently lives in the quiet city of Tega Cay, South Carolina, just across the border from the very active art community of Charlotte, North Carolina. Raissa has not always considered herself as an artist. She spent a great portion of her adult life staring into computer screens and managing computer system implementations and upgrades in the traditional corporate setting. It was through a chance paint night that she discovered her passion for painting. On her 51st birthday, she treated herself to some acrylic paints and brushes and has not stopped painting since. She balances her passion for creating with her day job as a systems analyst. In the wee hours of the morning, you will find her painting before she immerses herself in the technology that is consuming the world today. Although Raissa does not have formal training in the arts she is very conscious of the benefits it has on the human psyche. She holds a Bachelor's of Science majoring in Psychology where she focused her studies on Organizational Psychology. Through her corporate career, she has learned how to strike a balance between that which provides monetary reward and that which fulfills us as humans. For her, this balance is obtained through painting, writing, and exercise. She is currently a member of the Guild of Charlotte Artists where she exhibits select pieces during the quarterly art shows in and around the Charlotte Metropolitan Area. She has also submitted and is featured regularly in the Light Space & Time online gallery. When she is not painting or working with computer systems, she is writing. She currently has a column with BIZCATALYST 360° named “Artful Being” where she writes on topics both in and out of her corporate life to help others gain balance on what it is to be human.

DO YOU HAVE THE "WRITE" STUFF? If you’re ready to share your wisdom of experience, we’re ready to share it with our massive global audience – by giving you the opportunity to become a published Contributor on our award-winning Site with (your own byline). And who knows? – it may be your first step in discovering your “hidden Hemmingway”. LEARN MORE HERE


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