It is difficult to believe that one can create gourmet dinners while camping on the desert. But one can! On Friday, we celebrated my husband’s birthday with a fabulous baked sockeye salmon, complete with celery dressing. We enjoyed a Caesar Salad and our guests brought a fantastic chocolate cake (a Nigella Lawson concoction). Nigella Lawson is a [...]
Lately, I’ve seen a number of articles commenting on ‘getting rid of the inner editor’. The voice that says stop, edit, you don’t know what you are doing. I’m trying to surge ahead of my inner editor. I want to finish the first draft of my current manuscript. I must finish this manuscript. The time [...]
I’m looking forward to Saturday, November 20th. The Desert Rose Chapter of the RWA is sponsoring an all day workshop in Scotsdale, Arizona. Topics range from ‘Two of the Many Faces of Paranormal’, ‘Ghost Writing’ and ‘Putting the Joy Back into Writing’. I love spending time with other writers and learning more about the craft [...]
Well, (cliche alert ahead) I jumped in with both feet and bit the bullet. I’m now a proud owner of a Kindle. After much fussing about, I decided to see what this e-reader was all about for myself. I ordered a Kindle 3 G & Wi-Fi, as well as a Kindle Lighted cover. And what [...]
This fall I decided to enter three writing contests with my latest manuscript. I wanted to get my work reviewed by unknown readers. I’m very glad that I took the opportunity and polished my work and sent it in. I received a tremdous amount of encouragement and strategies to improve my writing. Some of the marks were stellar and [...]
I work at home and can easily immerse myself in wonderful distractions. Some days, even cleaning the house can appear as a super idea. Anything to keep me from ‘returning to the page’. I don’t watch daytime T.V. However, this week I was transfixed by the events taking place below the ground and above the ground, as countries [...]
I’ve chosen to immerse myself in an extreme learning mode. First, I attended a one-day workshop this past month with Laurie Schnebley -author of Believable Characters-Creating with Ennegrams in Victoria, B.C “Ennea,” is the Greek word for nine and Ms. Schnebley has created nine personality types in her ennegram system. Her book is very concrete sequential and her [...]
Sometimes I discover an author and I’m totally shocked and mystified that somehow or other I’ve missed this person’s novels. I know, I know. It’s a big world. Many books and so little time. Well, yes, I did have a big miss, that’s for sure. But this past week, I’ve discovered Ann Patchett. I was enjoying a summer luncheon with [...]
Life behind the writer. It’s always intriguing when a popular, accomplished author undertakes a journey down a different path. Susan Juby has done just that by revealing her teenage drinking patterns that led her to alcoholism. Now twenty one years sober, she chronicles her early drinking experiences, fragile recovery and her dedication at this point in her life, to sharing her [...]
This past weekend I immersed myself in the world of writing. All day long, from six in the morning until nine at night. “How could you do that?” my husband asked. Easy, easy, easy. When you gather together a group of determined authors and head to Vancouver for the ‘Write On, Vancouver’ conference, hosted by the Greater Vancouver Chapter [...]