Vacations have a way of restoring us on every level—body, mind, and spirit. They remind us that the world is full of beauty and adventure. They give us a chance to discover what happens when we break with our daily routine and seek out the unexpected. And, most importantly, they reconnect us to ourselves.
Simply put, vacations reignite our spirits. And that’s exactly what we set out to do in creating Escapes. Escapes offers a series of tiny vacations with poetic and sensory writing about beautiful destinations and evocative watercolor images.
“Maybe someone doesn’t have the means or the time to travel,” says Sarah Forster, the artist behind Escapes, “but with this book, they can still be transported to the magic of a place no matter where they are.”
It was a particular moment in Paris that gave Sarah the idea for this book. “I stepped off the train,” she said, “and the sky had a softness to it. I could smell sweet blooms in the air. Pigeons cooed and the sounds of the city were like music.” Every time she thinks back to that moment, years later, she says it still brings her a feeling of bliss.
“I wanted to share that joy and inspiration with others,” Sarah says, and that’s where the idea for this book was born. Sarah’s impressionistic watercolors give a glimpse into other worlds, and leave room for you to imagine the rest. Paired with M.H. Clark’s writing, each page offers a chance to go somewhere, to experience something, and to bring a bit of your journey back with you.
To create each vignette, Sarah used very wet and loose watercolors, then added a pinch of salt for “unexpected flair.” “I love creating the paintings,” she reflects. “I tried to let the paint take on its own life on the paper and not control it so much… to just let the magic happen.”
In addition to the evocative images, Sarah used hand lettering on certain phrases, including the cover title, to highlight their importance while also offering an intimate, personal feel. “I wanted the look to feel calm and easy to read—providing the reader a space to breathe and take a moment.” Sarah also chose a cloth material for the cover, with foil-embossed lettering, to give readers a book that echoes the sensory, tactile nature of the exercises and images inside.
Wanting to evoke the sensations of travel—and the potential it offers—Clark intentionally chose places that would bring a rich, vivid experience to readers. “From snowy cedar forests to rocky coasts and desert scenes at sunset, Escapes is a chance to connect with a sense of stillness, calm, groundedness, and inspiration,” she says. “We feel so deeply alive when we notice and feel engaged with the world… it’s that sense of being truly, wonderfully present that I wanted to capture in these words.”
Whether you’re reading Escapes with a cup of coffee during a break in a busy afternoon, or finding a peaceful moment before bed, it’s our hope that this title, like any good vacation, becomes a way for you to connect to yourself, to rediscover a sense of beauty and adventure, and to restore yourself on every level along the way.
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