Rolling with it

Whenever I am feeling unmotivated to write, I pack up my laptop and printed manuscripts and take them on the road. My destination of choice is the cafe at my local Barnes and Noble in what is [...]

Give up or keep going?

About a year ago, I started reading a book that had been personally recommended to me. I *sort of* knew the author and there was much to suggest I’d love the book. But, oh, I didn’t. [...]

What is private?

I am not what you would call a famous author. With just one book that’s enjoyed modest success, I’m not exactly getting mobbed as I walk down the street (and I’m grateful for [...]

The nest

Many, many moons ago, at the advent of my spiritual journey, I bought a cassette with a guided meditation on it. (That it was on cassette should give you a clue at how long ago it was). On it, a [...]

Tree-killing me

When I first moved into this house nearly sixteen years ago, I approached landscaping it with the zeal only a the new homeowner can muster. Among my more impractical purchases was one of those [...]

Red meat politics

I had a house full of people here last night, so I missed the Democratic presidential debate. Feeling like a bad Democrat, I fired up YouTube on my TV this morning as the kids still slept and put [...]

Waiting to get chosen

This weekend I saw more than the usual number of pictures of writer friends at fabulous book festivals. I was happy for them, of course. But I caught myself feeling some agitation. What was it? [...]

The Immigrant Experience

I am one of the 41 million Americans in the U.S. today (out of roughly 319 million, or about 13 percent) who were born outside of the United States. One of the great themes of my life was been a [...]

The Leftovers

I don’t normally have such a visceral reaction to a single episode of a television series that I vow to never watch it again. But it happened on Sunday. Last year, I watched Season 1 of The [...]