My blog

Sweet ‘ums, I’ve neglected you.  I’ve been off from work/life/writing, lounging and eating and even going for long, aimless hikes in the damp winter air.  I’ve considered [...]

How did I make fully grown humans?  I’m not even sure.  But here they are during our fabulous Christmas Eve celebration.  In keeping with Latino tradition, our big party happens on the [...]

To top off my highest travel year to date, last week I headed to San Francisco for a whirlwind three-day trip full of fun, eating, more eating and one fabulous party.  I had drinks in the Castro [...]

THE SECRET SIDE OF EMPTY is in pretty awesome company on this list of Top 10 Latino Books of 2014 by School Library Journal, including my friend Skila Brown’s beautiful novel in verse, [...]

I am what is known as an introvert.  A lot of people think that means I’m shy.  If you’ve ever seen me holding court at a gathering, reveling in making a group laugh, you know I am [...]

It was a small thing.  It was on one of those groups where newly published authors cluster together, shaking, kind of like those people on Naked and Afraid.  Except the thing scaring us is [...]

The other day, after dropping off my kids at school, I stopped at the local CVS.  It’s become something of a habit of late, now that I don’t have to scurry off with the rest of the [...]

In a little over 1,700 days, I will stop being the me I currently am and start being a new me.  What she will look like or how she will fill her days, I have no idea.  But the countdown has [...]

I try to skip lightly through the dark parking lot.  I have at least had enough common sense to give in to the elements and not wear party shoes, instead opting for a sensible pair of boots.  I [...]

My mission was to find Thanksgiving vegetables. But there I stood, holding the kohlrabi, something I’d never willingly consume. I’d put the Swiss chard in the cart, along with the [...]

My editor wrote to congratulate me yesterday that THE SECRET SIDE OF EMPTY has been nominated for a YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers.  Yay!  As they say in “the biz,” it’s [...]

Are you getting sick of me writing about divorce?  Apologies. I can’t help it.  It’s not like I’m a fan or anything.  But never before in my life have I learned so powerful a [...]

Until this year, I’ve been telling myself that I have more life ahead of me than behind me.  But – midlife crisis alert! – at 44 years old it’s getting harder to make that [...]

Yesterday I wrote about some icky feelings I’d been having.  After doing that, I felt much better.  It always works that way for me. Today, a Facebook friend pasted a link to an article [...]