Soldier, Sister, Savant

Soldier, Sister, Savant is the inspirational and unique story of Diana de Avila and her journey to artistic genius as an acquired art savant. Her creative fractal art emerged after a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and the worsening of multiple sclerosis. Acquired savants are a rarity; female acquired savants even rarer.

The story of Diana de Avila and her acquired savant syndrome, a little-heard-of and understudied phenomenon, is an honest and compelling one in which she details her struggles and sudden gifts. This hybrid memoir introduces readers to the digital art savant, not born with such talent but who arrives at it, literally, by accident. The authors share significant events in de Avila's life prior to the advent of her "accidental genius," as well as many examples of her art. Readers will discover the enormous role that faith, family, resilience, and resolve play in de Avila's overcoming life-threatening odds in order to prolifically produce over one thousand pieces of extraordinary digital art.

Wilma Davidson, Ed.D., is a former faculty member at the University of South Florida and the president of a communications consulting firm Davidson & Associates. In her consulting work to Fortune 500 companies, educational and governmental institutions, Davidson advises clients how to put their "best foot forward--in writing and in person."

In addition to serving as a writing and presentation-skills coach, Davidson is the author or co-author of five published books on writing and business. Her books include the text Business Writing: What Works, What Won't; Writing a Winning College Application Essay; and The Bell Labs Editor. She has also served as the author and editor of Most Likely to Succeed at Work: How Work Is Just Like High School--Crib Notes for Getting Along and Getting Ahead Amidst Bullies, Teachers' Pets, Cheerleaders, and Other Members of the "Class."

A board member of the Sarasota Branch of the National League of American Pen Women (NLAPW), Davidson met her co-author de Avila of the book Soldier, Sister, Savant through their professional women's organization, the NLAPW. She lives in Longboat Key, Florida. Diana de Avila's discovery of her artistic gift is a highly unusual story encompassing a journey that began not in art classes but after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and the worsening of multiple sclerosis (MS).

De Avila initially chose a career path in the United States Army, enlisting right out of high school. A near-fatal motorcycle accident derailed her intentions to serve in the military. The US Army Disabled Vet continued her search after a prolonged and difficult recovery. She continued to suffer from her injuries affecting both her vision and cognition and, at the time, from undiagnosed MS. Spiritually devout, de Avila entered a convent but later left the Daughters of Saint Paul to pursue other avenues. Excelling in academics, de Avila studied psychology, then entered into business ventures and work as a web architect, all before finding her artistic voice.

De Avila, M.S.Ed., is one of a very few people worldwide to have what is known as acquired savant syndrome. Active in engaging members of the medical community in unmasking her syndrome, de Avila serves as director and a founding member of the Savant Artist Collective.

Without any type of formal training in art, de Avila has composed award-winning and sought-after works of digital art. She has produced over 1000 pieces of art, experimenting with software, Bezier curves, fractals, algorithms, and fractal geometry in creating not only original works but in pioneering processes of generating art. De Avila and her co-author Wilma Davidson wrote the inspirational, non-fiction hybrid memoir Soldier, Sister, Savant that chronicles de Avila's unique path to becoming an inspirational artist, as well as featuring examples of her art. Both de Avila and Davidson are members of the Sarasota, Florida Branch of the National League of American Pen Women (NLAPW), an organization of professional artists, writers, and composers, where they first met. De Avila is also a member of the Florida Artists Group, Inc. (FLAG) and has recently been accepted as a member of the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). She lives in Osprey, FL.