Ghosts from Our Past

Deb Shapiro, the publicist for Page Street, arranged to offer a giveaway on  KidsBuzz/Shelf Awareness for my newly released novel, IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN YOU. She decided to have the entries sent directly to me, presumably so that I could begin building an email list of readers who were interested in my work.             This…

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Empathy: Essential for Writing… and Life

My professional writing skills students had to pretend to be a swim club manager who was writing a “bad news” letter to a long time member. The recently widowed member was distraught over the loss (probably theft) of her diamond engagement ring while she was swimming. She wanted the club to reimburse her, even though…

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Wrestling Coach Wisdom

  The other night, I attended a ceremony honoring a neighboring city’s eighth grade student wrestlers, including my grandson. The veteran high school coach was the guest speaker and made a big pitch to the students to enroll in the local high school and continue wrestling. He trotted out seniors from his team who’d excelled…

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I Love Being Wrong: Book Signing Bliss

            Most authors can tell you stories about their less than successful efforts at doing book signings. In fact, a Sisters in Crime friend from our local chapter, Derby Rotten Scoundrels, shared this hysterical YouTube posting by Parnell Hall about his experiences.             So, when Deb Shapiro, the terrific publicist hired by Page Street, set…

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