It is not an easy place to be – this no man’s land of unanswered prayers and constantly asked questions. For almost a year now, I have lived in a sort of limbo – questioning whether my role in life has somehow messed with my soul. It is not a question of what I do, […]
Finding Hope While in Limbo Read More »
Hands raised as the students answered my challenge, “What modifiers can we add to these nouns and verbs? How creative can you be?” Young faces, not yet wrinkled, with no worry lines between eyebrows. Fresh voices not yet affected by too many years or hard living. I looked at them and found hope. Most of
Hope Dressed in Youth Read More »
As a writer, I know better. But it happened anyway. As we prepared for our recent family vacation, I packed all my paper goods – legal pads, journals, notepads in a special bag. Then helped my sister pack up her Subaru Forrester and carefully secured my “writing” bag in her trunk. Other luggage piled on
With the release of “Intermission for Reverend G” and the signed contract for the third book in the series, I thought the petite minister with Alzheimer’s might slip out of my subconscious. I’m already ten chapters into another novel, a completely different type of book where nobody struggles with Alzheimer’s – yet. You never know
Reverend G Strikes Again Read More »
For several years, I have wanted an umbrella over my deck table. My plan was to sit on my deck to write or pray and not worry about the Kansas sun beating down on me. But every year – no matter how determined I was to save the money, I could not find enough extra
What is it with us writers? We have such a hard time admitting to our vocation, our “calling” to write. Several of my coaching clients struggle with this topic – and truthfully, sometimes, so do I. We are challenged to call ourselves writers because we haven’t won the Pulitzer or landed our books on the
Last weekend, I cleaned out a file cabinet that contained almost 40 years of articles and story files. These were the manuscripts I sent to magazines, some that aren’t even in business anymore. As I sorted through the files, I tossed old drafts and reams of research that is no longer current or credible. I
Pursuing the Dream Read More »
For some reason, I am keeping my old bicycle. Both tires are flat, but the leather seat is still intact and all of the gears still work. Several spokes are broken and hang at cock-eyed angles like broken arms on a football player. Why am I keeping this bicycle? At one point, I thought of
Dreaming of Bicycle Days Read More »
Many authors, especially the more famous ones, avoid book signings. They feel that the amount of work required to put into a book signing doesn’t equal the sales returned. The ROI doesn’t calculate in favor of the author. But I disagree. Book signings are some of my favorite events. With my most recent book signing,
Why Book Signings are So Important Read More »
When I write a novel, I do quite a bit of pre-writing on character sketches. Some writers focus on plots, but I believe that if you really know your characters, they will write the book through you. So lately I’ve wondered, how is Jacob doing these days? How is he dealing with his mom’s Alzheimer’s
What Jacob Thinks About Alzheimer’s Read More »