Being a writer is like having homework every night for the rest of your life. --Lawrence Kasdan *** The Cure for Creative Blocks? Leave Your Desk. “It turns out that being exposed to cultures that function differently from our own – from language to social customs to … [Read more...]

I’m always losing track of things (it gets worse when you reach a certain age, I’m told, and I think I’m there now), which is only horrible when I lose the keys or my passport, or an heirloom ring (that was found 7000 miles away in another country), or when I … [Read more...]

...include writing.  A lot.  But I also received some books in the mail (which is more of a passive action on my part, as the books were delivered to my door—but I still had to take them out of the box and pet them, so that counts for something): I’ve … [Read more...]

As David Pepose puts it, Newsarama “has a new regular feature, Writer’s Workshop, which will be teamed with its sister column Artists’ Alley—where we ask comics professionals to dig deep into how they operate.” I have the honor of being the first … [Read more...]

I don’t have a green thumb, by any stretch of the imagination, but I have been trying to grow things this year.  Plenty of land, right?  And, lo!  I have peppers.  I also have tomatoes (quite a few, actually, but I ate them all before I whipped out the … [Read more...]

I thought you’d like to see the paws that are carrying me along as I finish this book.  It’s a team effort.  Honestly, they’re the brains behind the operation. Daisy. The Poodle. Head of Household.  Boss.  Fashion Icon. (Note: this is not … [Read more...]

Write.  Write a lot of words.  Write them fast.  Write, write, write. The thought I’m carrying with me?  Something Elmore Leonard said:  I try to leave out the parts that people skip. Amen.  And see you guys later. … [Read more...]

Some of you may remember that it was a Long Hard Winter, filled with blizzards and ice, and cold toes shoved under toasty cat tummies.  Heck, I was stranded for a month at the top of a hill, forced to march a quarter mile every day to the mailbox, bundled up and shuffling … [Read more...]

Cool interview with Vince Gill, who is one of my favorite musicians.  One thing I’m always harping on is that the divide between artists is very small, perhaps non-existent.  Doesn’t matter if you’re a songwriter, a dancer, a painter, a … [Read more...]

Lynn Viehl blogged the other day about finding a “lost story” on a floppy disk that she discovered in an old desk drawer.  This happens to me all the time.  I have plenty of lost stories buried deep, deep, and deeper on my hard drive—I find them, … [Read more...]