A Writer’s Least Favorite Part of the Job
My son went back to work this past week at the inner city high school where he teaches. When he handed in the requested form indicating that he planned to return the following year, his principal was effusive. “He got really excited, Mom,” my son told me. “It feels good to be wanted.” It…
Read MoreChoices
There’s definitely something about losing the remaining senior generation of your family. In the last five months, my husband and I lost his mother, his grandmother, and my mother. Coping with a trifecta of grief and loss has been tough, but it’s also made me do a lot of reflecting. With the time I have…
Read MoreGrieving During the Holidays
Gargou and I No sooner had I penned my cheerful blog on “Why I Love the Holidays” than my mother died. Overnight I became one of the myriad of folks experiencing acute grief during the holidays. Suddenly, all that “fa-la-la-la-la” Christmas music was grating instead of delightful. I know I should have been relieved at…
Read MoreNo Bah Humbug for Me! Why I Love the Holidays
I often hear less than enthusiastic comments about this time of year: “I can’t wait for the holidays to be over!” “This is so stressful.” “There’s always so much to do and not enough time.” Well, yeah. The to-do list I made this morning has a mere 24 items on it. But I love the…
Read MoreThe Power of a Phone Call
As I write this, my dear husband is preparing another one of his delicious Thanksgiving dinners. He truly loves to cook, and I am regularly banished from the kitchen. I admit it—I’m incredibly spoiled. He is unquestionably my culinary hero. He’s also my telephone hero. In an age when so many, myself included, email and…
Read MoreBook Shopping for the Teens On Your Holiday List
Did you know that more than 30,000 books for young adults are published annually? I sure didn’t, and I write for this age group! There are so many good novels out there in every possible genre and combination of genres: contemporary realistic, fantasy and adventure, historical fiction, science fiction, sports novels, mystery and…
Read MoreWhy Writing for Young Adults Matters
This past week, I presented a talk about young adult literature to the Literature Committee of my city’s Woman’s Club. Due to a scheduling snafu, my audience consisted of five women instead of the anticipated 20 or so, and two of the attendees had to leave early because they were greeters at the club’s expo…
Read MoreFinding Your Tribe Helps In Surviving the Ups and Downs of the Writing Life
Monday morning did not start out well for me. I opened my email to discover a publisher’s rejection of a writing project close to my heart. As rejections go, it was a very nice one. The acquisitions editor pointed out some strengths of my manuscript and encouraged me to submit more work in the future.…
Read MoreWhat John Lennon Said
On the wall of our music studio at home, my husband hung up a plaque with one of our all-time favorite quotes by John Lennon: “Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” That certainly has been the case in my own life. For example, years ago, in the wake of a…
Read MoreMaybe Next Week Will Be Better
My younger son Joel teaches at an inner city high school in Denver. It’s a tough job for not much money. Last weekend, he recounted a particularly difficult week in which nearly everything that could have gone wrong did. “But it’s okay, Mom,” he told me. “I’ve even picked out what I’m going to wear.…
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