The Past, Alive and Well in a Persistent Wilderness

The Past, Alive and Well in a Persistent Wilderness

Last September, I flew to Omaha on a research trip for my next book, a novel, Valentine, Nebraska, the story of homesteaders based on my grandmother’s life. At Alamo car rental they said I could choose any Dodge Challenger I wanted. I picked the white one with Texas...
Keep a writing schedule (yeah, right)

Keep a writing schedule (yeah, right)

I am the queen of datebooks, calendars, and organizers. You need a list? Call me. I even carry a small reporter’s notebook in my purse. When inspiration strikes, I scribble it down. I have multiple day planners and various systems to boost my productivity, make me a...
The Grandmother Effect

The Grandmother Effect

When Women’s History Month rolled around this March, stories of women’s achievements were everywhere; I even read one profile on a small, digital screen at a gas pump. Instead of feeling cynical that this celebration was a form of tokenism, or being frustrated by the...
There’s Still Time

There’s Still Time

It’s easy at 62 to look backward. Most of my life is behind me. And wistfulness seems to increase with age. As a younger person, I used to be amused by my older relatives who talked about a loaf of bread costing a nickel and the good, clean fun of a high school sock...
Passionate Habits

Passionate Habits

I have been thinking a lot about perspiration, inspiration and the maddening ebb and flow of passion in my writing life. The first line of this post came into my head this morning at 5:30 AM after six weeks capturing vague thoughts on yellow sticky notes. At her book...