a writer’s life
she sells seashells
Many of you may know of my enchantment with mermaids and how they are the inspiration for my first novel, The Mermaid Mahjong Circle. What I have not shared previously, though, is this account from my childhood that, along with a myriad of storybooks and their illustrations, has made mermaids forever magic to me. Living […]
read my mind
Writers are given tons of advice on, well, how to write. Write something every day, we’re told (does my Target shopping list count?); keep plenty of pencils handy for comments, edits, and notations that come to you in the middle of the night (how about for putting my hair up in a bun because it […]
study hall
Because teaching is one of the world’s most noble professions, to limit appreciation of teachers to just one week seems not enough. That having been said, given that we are in the midst of Teacher Appreciation Week, I am presented with the perfect opportunity to express my admiration for those teachers who have made much […]
right time, right place
What does it mean when a place calls to you? That it’s where you were born and have your roots, and where you always feel at home and need to return? That it’s where you met the most-loved person or people in your life and constantly feel that bond pulling you back? Or that it’s […]
block party
Sure, it’s all fun and games until the inevitable happens – that oft-told, sad-but-true, you-know-it-when-it-hits-you case of writer’s block. There you are (or, actually, I am), weaving a tale, telling a story, thinking that you’ve got all your ducks in a neat little row when one tiny duckling refuses to move out of the way. […]
tell me a story
Decades before the advent of “Take Our Daughters to Work Day,” my father would take the little-girl me to work with him on occasion. And what occasions they were. This was back in the 1960s, and my dad was a film editor working at a post-production company and editing TV commercials. These were the Mad […]
write the joy
Writers write for many reasons. For me, it’s all about the joy. Writing the joy means not only writing what you know – the advice given to writers probably since the beginning of time – but writing about what makes you happy. The people, the places, the passions that fuel you. The words themselves that […]
first things first
Celebrating a first birthday is a life event — for the celebrant and those who rally around with cake, candles, gifts, and oohs and ahhs. So when I realized that my first novel’s first birthday is in a few days, it occurred to me that a party was in order — at least a party […]
write of way
Writing is a tough business. Novel writing, specifically. And the only thing more difficult than writing that novel, at least in my own experience, is getting it published. The competition these days for literary agents willing to take a chance on an unpublished novelist’s first work — to say nothing of the fight for a […]
charm school
Okay, raise your hand if you remember those old-school charm bracelets. To me they seemed the accessory of choice for those perfect, suburban TV moms of a past era — think June Cleaver of Leave it to Beaver fame — women who vacuumed in pearls and heels, who had dinner on the table each night […]
rice on your head 