My first guest blogger in September will be Jeff Salter. Here’s a bit about him before he arrives. Currently writing romantic comedy and romantic suspense. Seven completed novels. My 3rd — “Called To Arms Again” — (a tribute to the greatest generation) — was published in May 2013. My 6th — “Rescued By That New […]
Heroes
I started this post in September of 2012 and the first words I wrote were “This will be hard.” Now I can’t actually remember why I thought writing about heroes would be hard. This being my 100th post, I can’t think of a better topic. I write in a genre that celebrates heroes as the […]
Review: Close Range, Annie Proulx
I had a few moments to spare this past week to spend at the West Portal Public Library, choosing books I don’t have in my personal library. I went straight for Annie Proulx because I enjoyed The Shipping News so much. I wanted to read the short story, “Brokeback Mountain,” not because I had seen the […]
Nights Before: New Serial
I’m beginning my new serial with ‘Twas the Night Before New Year, inspired by the children’s poem by Clement C. Moore and a personal experience. As you may know, the legend is that Clement Clarke Moore wrote A Visit from St. Nicholas on Christmas Eve, 1822 on a sleigh ride home from Greenwich Village. His inspiration […]
What I Learned from Helen Keller and My Father
My introduction to the life story of Helen Keller was through the film, The Miracle Worker. With the help of the acting brilliance of Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke, I watched the impaired little girl transform not only herself but her family and teacher by her determination to overcome the loss of sight and hearing […]
A Longer Time Coming: USS Liberty
In memory of the naval personnel on the USS Liberty who, on June 8, 1967, lost their lives when their vessel was struck by friendly fire. May justice prevail. Lest we forget.
A Long Time Coming
In honor and memory of all those who have given their lives in the cause of freedom, I wanted to say ‘Thank you’. My generation, and those generations before mine and too many of those now and in the future, have and will live through decades of war. Some of those wars were justified but […]
Temptation & Inspiration
Today is Sunday, my quietest day of the week. This morning, I listened to KCSM 91.1 on my TV, DR’s favorite radio station at the moment. Jazz is an acquired taste in my book but for DR – a musician through and through – it’s life’s blood. For Sonny Simmons, music is his life’s mission […]
Summer Reading
Is there any activity more iconic to the warm weather than picking up a book and losing yourself in another world? Probably, but I’ve had the extraordinary pleasure of actually 1) finding the time and 2) discovering books that warranted the commitment of precious hours. On a day when the sun hasn’t found any break […]
What Fiction Can Do For Us
While at the RWA National Conference in New York at the end of June, I attended a media training workshop. The workshop concentrated on preparing yourself for interviews – particularly hostile interviews. The questions running through my head were: “Why do we have to defend our writing like this? Why is Romance under constant attack?” […]