Barb asked me to go on tour. I have never been on tour. I have been to a Rick Springfield concert and a few years ago I saw Dave Matthews, but our own tour sounded…well, righteous. I started thinking about the tour bus and my wardrobe. Barb studied at Julliard, she’s an accomplished composer and…
Editing a manuscript is like a spin class. There’s something already there, my body’s not bad, but with a little effort it could be better. Tighter, leaner, more…defined. When I edit I start at the beginning, I can’t just move in and out of chapters because I lose track of where I’m at and then…
Live like you’re dying, but never take yourself too seriously. Well, which is it? I’ve read myself onto a long balance beam. I need to focus, be serious enough to watch my step and carefully plan my trip from one stop to another. I need to believe in myself, give myself credit, stop caring what…
No one every really needs a writer. Thank God. I was at my children’s swim meet this weekend and one of the swimmers must have been hurt, because the announcer comes on the loud speaker and says, “If there are any doctors here today, could you please report to the clerk of the meet. We…
I need to be more serious. Expensive shoe wearing, fine leather bag carrying, author portrait where I’m looking over my shoulder in some way, serious. A scarf that’s not fuzzy with every color in the crayon box is in order or maybe even…lip liner. If I become more serious, play the part, then I will…
It is important to be descriptive. I work on my vocabulary. Not in a flash card sort of way, but I try to expand the way I express myself. This takes some effort because I want to stretch, but never go into territory that feels artificial. The words I use need to feel organic, so…
Silence. It is very quiet where I live. I have a clock in my office and there are days when all I hear is a light tick and the tapping of computer keys. I love those days. I like loud music, laughter, lively conversation, just as much as the next person, but silence is a…
Ink. It is one thing to sit at a computer and type words on a screen. I will admit that takes discipline and a mind for creating something out of nothing, but putting ink to paper seems like more to me. I know I tend to glamorize the past, but when Jane Austen sat down…
I may have missed my chance to be rich and famous. Maggie came home tonight and informed me that if I just wrote books like the one she started reading today, I would be famous and rich and people would love me. Wow, I was a little taken aback by her enthusiasm, but Maggie doesn’t…