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So You Want To Be A Writer…

So You Want To Be A Writer…

As an author, I hear so many people say they want to be a writer. My first question is always: what are you writing at the moment? You’d be surprised how often I receive a blank look, or the answer “I haven’t written anything yet”. But every now and again, someone will tell me what […]

September 23, 2022 | By | Reply More
My Writing Process: Jeannée Sacken

My Writing Process: Jeannée Sacken

Early on in my career as a photojournalist, I ventured into the Honduran mountains to document the life and work of a young Mayan mother. After a fruitless couple of hours, I called a break. Turning from the mother, I caught sight of her ten-year-old daughter, Suyapa, in the shadowy corner of their two-room, mud-brick […]

September 20, 2022 | By | Reply More
On Writing WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A CHAIR

On Writing WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A CHAIR

I Didn’t Mean to Do It: How Finding a Home for Pain Became a Book When I began to write my memoir, a book wasn’t something that I even considered. I didn’t think about my process, nor my structure. I didn’t mean to. I just began to write.  Write hard. After surviving a paralyzing car […]

September 19, 2022 | By | Reply More
Fatal Locations By Daniella Bernett

Fatal Locations By Daniella Bernett

Are you a kindred spirit and passionate about discovering new places? Or merely content to be an armchair traveler? Either way, I invite you on a spine-tingling journey into the dark heart of intrigue with A Mind To Murder, the eighth book in my mystery series featuring journalist Emmeline Kirby and her jewel thief/insurance investigator […]

September 18, 2022 | By | 1 Reply More
Writing A sky of Infinite Blue — A Japanese Immigrant’s Search for Home and Self

Writing A sky of Infinite Blue — A Japanese Immigrant’s Search for Home and Self

The memoir, “A Sky of Infinite Blue— A Japanese Immigrant’s Search for Home and Self,” is about my journey of healing, spiritual growth, and love. The journey was not only described in the book, but also by writing it, I transformed myself spiritually along with my Buddhist pursuit.  In my forming years up to early […]

September 17, 2022 | By | Reply More
Success in My Writing Career, and Otherwise: Kate Brandes

Success in My Writing Career, and Otherwise: Kate Brandes

Here are some jobs I’ve had: waitress (5 years); factory worker (3 summers); potato bug mapper (1 summer); cashier, feeder of calves, tutor, agricultural advisor ( all 1 year); geologic consultant (6 years); garden designer (4 years); science director at non-profit (6 years); watershed/environmental scientist (4 years); artist (10 years and counting); adjunct professor (4 […]

September 17, 2022 | By | Reply More
My Not-So-Secret Other Life as a Dancer by Barbara Quick

My Not-So-Secret Other Life as a Dancer by Barbara Quick

The memory is imprecise, like something recollected from a dream: a jewelry box, at eye level to my toddler self. My own hands in the perfection of their childish form—long-fingered, unmarked by life—reaching toward the black lacquer lid painted with blossoms. Hinging it open to animate the tiny pink-clad ballerina who otherwise waits asleep inside. […]

September 16, 2022 | By | Reply More
WHEN ONLY A GHOST WILL DO: ON GHOSTWRITING

WHEN ONLY A GHOST WILL DO: ON GHOSTWRITING

WHEN ONLY A GHOST WILL DO By Christina Hamlett “It must be so fascinating to be a ghostwriter,” an interviewer told me. “Do you get to go to a bunch of séances?” It took me a beat to realize she assumed I’d built a career around talking to the dead. Silly as that sounds, it […]

September 15, 2022 | By | Reply More
Doctors and Deadlines: Writing with Chronic Illness

Doctors and Deadlines: Writing with Chronic Illness

I emailed my publisher from my hospital bed in a state of panic. It was unlikely that I would be able to turn in the edit of my novel by the deadline. The doctors did not know what was wrong with me. Initial tests were not providing any answers, and I didn’t know how long […]

September 14, 2022 | By | 1 Reply More
My Writing Journey by Dianne C. Braley

My Writing Journey by Dianne C. Braley

My Writing Journey by Dianne C. Braley Unwrapping the thick silver paper sprinkled with snowflakes, I stared at the pink leather book trimmed with gold edging. A large ornate heart-shaped lock and key hung from the side. I knew what it was immediately because I asked for a diary in my letter to Santa after […]

September 8, 2022 | By | Reply More