You can tell when it’s stacking up to be a bad writing day.You look at the list of non-writing stuff that needs to get done, throw up your hands and think, No possible way.Or the thought of whatever project you’re working on ignites that gnawing insecure feeling that … [Read more...]
The Healing Power of Fiction
The best fictional characters are the ones we would be friends with if they weren’t so … you know … fictional.Not to say our favorite book-friends are perfect—their shortcomings are what make them intriguing. Their struggles become our struggles, as we hope, page after page, … [Read more...]
Where I Write: Authors on their Favorite—and Strangest—Work Places
“Mom! Where are my cleats?!”This is not conducive to writing.Like interruptions to any work of focus, intrusions make the headlong forward motion of imagining a scene, dialogue, motive, setting, physical movement and internal turmoil grind to a screeching, asphalt … [Read more...]
Writing from the Heart of My Discomfort Zone
I’m a huge baby about anything scary. I have no idea why people go to horror movies or read violent stories. Honestly, it’s like someone telling me they enjoy eating dirt and offering me a spoonful. Seriously? Whatever for?Clearly there is a part of the human psyche that … [Read more...]
Temporarily Kid-less, I Somehow Forget to Write
I’d fantasized about it for months: the week when all three of my boys, ages 16, 12 and 10, would be at overnight camp. My 18-year-old daughter would be home, but this barely counts, since she’s gainfully employed, self-sufficient, and has a busy social life. I love my kids, but … [Read more...]
Ow, My Head Hurts!
I’ve had two concussions in the past year. By “I,” I mean “we.” By “we,” I mean two of my sons. Because when your kid has a brain injury, so do you.If your child’s brain has somehow been slammed up against the inside of his cranium, here’s what he can’t do:read, watch … [Read more...]