I have several TBR lists. One for fiction, one for nonfiction, and another specifically for books about writing and the writing industry. The result is that at any given moment, I am in the middle of at least three books. The result is often like walking through a chemistry lab and choosing random chemicals to... Continue Reading →
Not Your Average Juliet
Alice slips through the front door, her angel wings rustling as they brush against the door jamb. She pauses, waiting to see if anyone noticed the soft sound. Voices drift from the room to the right, involved in conversation, oblivious to her presence. The angel drifts to the stairs and begins the journey up,... Continue Reading →
Camp NaNoWriMo (or, What I Did on My Summer Vacation)
I just did something crazy amazing.I wrote a novel.In 30 days.You may have heard of NaNoWriMo (National Noveling Writing Month). The idea is to commit to writing a first draft of a novel (50,000 words) in the month of November. They also run Camp NaNoWriMo in April and July, which is the same concept, but... Continue Reading →
Ignite
Let me start with how I ended up reading this book.I am attending CampNaNoWriMo (I'll have more to say about that next week). The WordNerds have been providing short videos to campers. The WordNerds are a group of six women who write. The videos they post talk about writing, publication, and books in general. I... Continue Reading →
Mansfield Park
I just finished Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.Every girl loves Jane Austen, and wants to be a character in one of her books, right?I definitely do not want to be a character in this one. None of the female ones, at least.In Mansfield Park, Austen gives us a cast loaded with females that I don't... Continue Reading →
The Oresteia
I have a confession to make.I tried to make myself read Aeschylus' The Oresteia (Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Eumenides). I couldn't do it.I know there is a great story in there. There's war. Sacrificial virgins. Prophecies. More war. Cassandra (my all time favorite bit of mythology) is in there. But I just couldn't... Continue Reading →
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
I have been working my way through all of Stephen King's books. Again. I finished The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon last night.It's a story about a girl who gets lost in the woods and is saved by baseball.Really. That's it.But like all of us, Trisha (the heroine of the tale) has that little part... Continue Reading →
Last Words
Your last moment with someone is important. It should carry some weight. Some emotional significance. My last moment with my mom before she died was just horrifically average. On my way out the door to school, “Bye Mom, see you this afternoon.” “Have a good day,” her reply. No sense that that was the... Continue Reading →
Going up
"Hold the elevator!"I wedged my toes in the crack just before the doors closed. I've learned feet are more resistant to pinching than fingers in my daily trips up this slow elevator. Thirty-two floors. Thirty-two chances for someone to ask me to hold the elevator. On average, it happens three or four times per trip.This... Continue Reading →
Just one sip
"Here, take a sip."My eyes popped up from "The Raven" to see who was talking to me. Standing before my park bench was a man. That's all. An average, ordinary man. So average and ordinary that I remember nothing about him.What I do remember is what he held in his hand. A sterling silver hip... Continue Reading →
Susan Monroe McGrath 