Marsha Scarbrough IAM Symposium 2021

The Practical Shaman

Marsha Scarbrough, author of Honey in the River: Shadow, Sex and West African Spirituality, is a freelance journalist, who has had over 100 articles published in national magazines. Honey in the River has been awarded First Place in the 2016 New Mexico Press Women Communications Contest Awards and Honorable Mention in the 2016 National Federation of Press Women Professional Communications Contest. It was also named a Finalist in the USA Best Book Awards and the New Mexico Book Awards. Marsha’s first book, Medicine Dance: One woman’s healing journey into the world of Native American sweatlodges, drumming meditations and dance fasts, published by O Books, John Hunt Publishing, was named First Runner Up for the 2009 Zia Award by New Mexico Press Women as well as a finalist in USA Book News National 2007 and 2008 “Best Books” Awards and the 2008 New Mexico Book Awards. Marsha spent 17 years scheduling, planning and running the sets of major feature films, prime time television series as an Assistant Director in Hollywood. Along the way, Marsha traveled with Buddhist teacher Joan Halifax, danced with movement guru Gabrielle Roth, earned a brown belt in karate from martial arts legend Tak Kubota, participated in Native American healing ceremonies and produced workshops for a Nigerian master drummer. In 2006, Marsha moved from her native Los Angeles to Santa Fe, New Mexico. In 2017, she moved to Madrid, Spain.