I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! I stand here in the stillness of a night not yet formed, scanning the blue for an early star, and I wish, as I’ve done since a child: Might I get my wish tonight. There’s no talk […]
I love this quote and most especially its author, Sarah Stup. Sarah is a gifted writer and one of my all-time favorite clients. She has autism and literally types to speak. And what lovely things she shares about life and love. She also writes about difficult things, like the experience of autism — its sights and sounds, the loneliness. Of all her pieces — and I’ve read hundreds — this is one of my favorites: […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! I’m in Panera’s. Across from me is a mother and daughter. I’m guessing the mom’s in her sixties, the daughter in her thirties. They’re talking loud enough so I can’t concentrate on my writing but soft enough […]
Note: I wrote this piece in August, 2013, about Jenna, my youngest, a few weeks before she moved into her own apartment. Near tears. I would be in tears, but Jenna, my youngest, will be awake soon, and little girls don’t like to see mommies cry, it throws them off, scares them. But mommies do cry, and though she is still my little girl, she’s soon to be 19. She’s home for the summer and […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! So, there I am, roaming the exhibit hall of the BlogHer conference, my complimentary canvass bag overflowing with … Actually, I don’t know what half the stuff is, other than it’s free. Exhibitors with hopeful faces keep […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! I am not always kind. I can be grouchy and not yield to merging traffic. I don’t call my mother as often as I should and don’t always thank supermarket baggers. I kill ants and find flaws […]
Blogging a book works two ways: You can blog an existing book by breaking it into posts, be they chapters, sections or excerpts. You can write your book as you go, one post a time. The post can be a chapter, section or excerpt (e.g., one poem or short story). A great blogged book is unique even if its premise is not original. Take diet books: thousands have been written about losing weight, but that’s because […]
Yesterday I woke with a warm heart. Do you know what I mean? You get out of bed without thinking you’re not good enough, that, yeah, you look in the mirror and your hair’s a mess and you really should exercise, but that you’re okay anyway. One of those days when you lay claim to 80 percent of yourself and say, “Not bad. I can work with this.” When I wake/feel 80 percent, I care […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! My wonderful and very glamorous Aunt Anita passed away on Thanksgiving day. She was in her early 80s. I couldn’t make it out to Las Vegas to say goodbye, but I wrote this letter to her, which […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! So here I am at the cosmetics store Sephora with my 20-year-old daughter, Jenna, who has brought me here to get a new look. “What’s wrong with my look?” I want to ask, but I know better because she’ll tell me. I’m […]
I’m often asked what it’s like to be a writer — how I spend my days, how I experience the world. And so I will be sharing occasional essays from the front lines of my writing life. Enjoy! Today’s Wednesday aka Hump Day. I’ve always disliked the expression, the image of somehow crawling (clawing?) over this awful hump. Very depressing. Not just because it takes effort but because it implies that the days preceding Hump Day are so horrible that... Read more.
