In Celebration of Women in Horror Month 2018, I’d like to share a disquieting horror poem, “Proposal After An Acquittal,” that I penned a few years ago for a horror anthology from Mad Girl’sPublishing. (I’m thrilled to share that my latest horror poem about revenge at the carnival, “Ferris Wheel,” is featured in their new […]
Continue reading2017 End-of-Year Book Suggestions
Happy Holidays! I hope you’ve had a great year. In our busy lives, reading time is always precious. This year, the hours that I’ve spent in skilled authors’ worlds have meant even more, as our own world has been tempestuous. I want to share some of my favorite reads from this past year with you. […]
Continue readingFlash Fiction Spotlight: Holly Lyn Walrath
I love the urgency of flash. “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid (published in 1978) is one of my favorite stories of any length. Even before flash fiction became trendy, the call of the concise fictional moment rang loudly. Writing, reading, and teaching about flash feel natural to me, but precision can be challenging. Which telling detail will say […]
Continue readingPoetry & Community Rise From the Flood Waters
Texas writers have struggled to make meaning out of the way in which the winds & floods of Hurricane Harvey battered our state. I am sure that writers in Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, and parts of Florida face some of the same questions. Writing is my refuge and the air into which I […]
Continue readingGood Things Come to Those Who Wait
I submitted a piece of flash fiction that I believe in to several journals and a contest. Nine months ago. Unfortunately, a well-written trendy novel with a very similar title was published five months ago. I received a rejection from one national market. I haven’t heard back from two others. I retitled the story and […]
Continue readingTravels
Summer is a time for canvas beach bags, flip-flops, suitcases, long drives in sandy cars and making memories. In honor of summer trips-across the country to the lake house or across the city to the splash pad, I’m sharing my poem about a truly kind friend who left Jakarta before me and went to live […]
Continue readingCreative Ideas Flowed at Writefest 2017
Writefest 2017 was a wonderful week packed with inspiring workshops and fascinating panels. Heartfelt gratitude to Layla Al-Bedawi and Holly Walrath for organizing the conference, and to all the volunteers who kept things humming along. I was honored to present an authors’ chat with flash fiction legend Kathy Fish! Skilled, modest, and creative, she offered […]
Continue readingSparkle & Butterflies
It’s thrilling and terrifying to read new stories. You make yourself vulnerable. You share the characters who have stolen your heart with a room full of strangers, and hope that the characters’ journeys will move the audience, too. Reading aloud makes my stomach clench. The butterflies inside it aren’t merely fluttering- they’re beating their wings […]
Continue readingPoet Spotlight: T. Haven Morse
Do you love evocative poetry? I am pleased to know poet T. Haven Morse, and I’m excited to tell you about her new book, “Flooded By: A Persona Poetry Collection.” This unique read contains interesting glimpses into the psyches and souls of sixty emotionally driven individuals. People filled with anger, jealousy, joy, and wonder. I […]
Continue readingWriting in Times of Change
Let’s get this straight, I respect fiction writers of all political opinions. A well-crafted story is a well-crafted story. However, I do think that it is the writer’s responsibility to hold up a mirror to their society. This may be done directly in a poem or a memoir, in a story with characters going through […]
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