Surviving the Holidays

Here it is, that time of year again, when it seems to take all our fortitude to avoid holiday hype, eat reasonably and actually enjoy our families – and yet somehow not lose the thread of our words. There was a time, when my kids were young, when I would squander all...

Re-vision: To See Again

It’s November, National Novel Writing Month (NANOWRIMO), when ambitious writers pound out a novel in a notoriously short month – only thirty days, several of which are devoted to the preparation, enjoyment and digestion of Thanksgiving. I’m expecting twenty people for...

Morning Pages

One year ago – after ten months of energetically marketing my novel – I followed The Artist’s Way, a twelve-week course in finding my way back to the page. Written by Julia Cameron, the book has become something of a bible for artistic types who want to...

Souvenirs from the Edge

In Happy Trails, my last post before I left on vacation, I anticipated collecting stories while I was away. But one of the wonders of travel is its element of surprise: I didn’t collect so many stories as I collected pages and pages of words. Southwest Utah is...

Happy Trails

It’s like one of those light-bulb jokes: “How many suitcases does a writer take with her on vacation?” One carry-on with clothes and a computer, and an extra-large checked Pullman filled with papers and books. At least that’s how I’ve traveled in the past, packing...