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Audiobooks and Blizzards
Posted on March 18, 2019 1 Comment
I love audiobooks. So, so much. Really, is there anything better than a good audiobook when you have a thousand mundane tasks to do and no time to read? I don’t think so. Having a story to coax me through the day is a tiny bit of heaven for a hard week, and I took […]
For The Writer Who Needs A Fresh Start
Posted on February 27, 2019 2 Comments
Oddly enough, I started my writing journey with a failed story. Weird, right? I tell people all the time that the only way to fail as a writer is to quit. I fully believe that every story has potential, and the worst habit a writer can get into is dumping their current work-in-progress for a […]
Ash and Smoke
Posted on February 15, 2019 5 Comments
I buy the kerosene at the shop around the corner. The woman selling it smiles at me, and we talk about the fresh spring weather, the crocuses popping up in her flower beds, and the barges coming down the river from the cities inland. It’ll be a rich year, she tells me. A blessed year. […]
On The Edge Of Living
Posted on February 8, 2019 2 Comments
All men die, I tell them when they ask me why the world ends the way it does. And when they die, they come here. We’re not dead. Not yet. They ask me why that is, but I don’t tell them the reason. I don’t tell them that we’re the forgotten people, the ones sent […]
For The Writer Who Doesn’t Have A Routine
Posted on February 6, 2019 Leave a Comment
This last week, I sat down with one of my writer friends at a coffee shop. We talked for a long time. About everything. Movies we like, story problems, agents and publishers, and life in general. It was wonderful. It’s been a long time since I’ve had the chance to really sit down and have […]
January, IKEA, and Reading Goals
Posted on February 4, 2019 10 Comments
Can we all just agree that January lasted an entire year? Because it lasted an entire year. Seriously, that was the longest month ever. And, thank goodness, a fairly productive one for me, considering I set my expectations way too high and had to rein it in a bit in the last week. Mostly to […]
Almost Life
Posted on February 1, 2019 Leave a Comment
He was dying when he told me, “I had an almost life.” The nurses sent for me when he woke up. His face was gray in the moonlight, gray against his sheets, gray against the hospital walls. I sat on the edge of the bed, listening to the heart rate monitor blip softly in the […]
Portrait of a Missionary
Posted on January 21, 2019 Leave a Comment
As a writer, I am fascinated by people. No two people carry the same stories. Their life experiences, their worldview, and their hopes and dreams are uniquely their own. No work of fiction can compare to the beauty and complexity of the world around us, but, caught in our jobs, our routines, and our day-to-day […]
Go To Sleep
Posted on January 14, 2019 4 Comments
I come when the library closes. The lights are out, except for the lamp Mrs. Wilfe leaves on just for me. The doors are locked, and the windows have been shuttered. Even most of the reading desks are cleared. No one is left. Only me. Because I have to put the stories to sleep. I […]
Heartsmith
Posted on January 7, 2019 4 Comments
They say the best shops are the easiest to find. I don’t agree with that. I’ve known many good shops in my time, shops that were hidden away, that took me all day to find. Sometimes the hunt is half the fun. But these days, people prefer main streets and wide roads, and convenience is […]
