I remember seeing Robin Williams once, at the Seattle Art Museum. I was at the café, looking out the window at the street in one of those seats that is for people who are alone, just a stool and a counter. I heard a voice behind me and realized it was familiar. Familiar, here in … More Exercise #1
Fog is like the valley pulling a blanket over itself and hitting the snooze alarm— “Not yet, sun.” This place must have had a hard day yesterday, all that grass to grow and leaves exchanging carbon dioxide for oxygen— all those birds to support on branches (but the orioles sway on slender reeds, showing off … More Snooze Alarm
I go to a fair number of conferences and workshops. I go because my degree is an MBA, not an MFA. I also go because the more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know. Here are a few of my favorites: Iowa Summer Writing Festival: This writer’s conference is hosted by the University of … More Why Do I Go to Writer’s Conferences?
“Let’s try to ruin the planet. The Bible says to subdue it, and isn’t that what subdue means? Obliterate?” “I like it. Let’s brainstorm some ideas.” “Okay, well first, let’s take something that we’ve done a long time without hurting the planet and then make just a few simple changes so that it does hurt the … More Let’s Try to Ruin The Planet
In 2014 I decided it was time to start publishing, or at least trying to publish. Because until now, I wasn’t published but I could always say, if asked, “I’m not published yet, but my writing is secret. I haven’t submitted anything yet for publication.” If I had long hair, at that point I would … More Wildly Successful
When I first started writing many years ago, I didn’t foresee just what a mess my computer writing files would become. Some of my short story versions were filed together and others were tossed haphazardly in the general folder. I had folders labeled Writing, Writing 2007, Writing_1, etc. Conference materials, writing exercises, and blog posts … More Organizing Writing Files
I belong to an awesome writer’s group. The God moment that started it is almost as out there as The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven* but mine actually happened, and I have a witness. It started at a Cincinnati Vineyard Church Missions Team Prayer Training event on a Saturday morning the summer of 2009. … More A Surprising Way to Begin
I got a new scanner and I expect it to change my life. Which is a lot to expect from a piece of electronic equipment, but isn’t that why we buy electronic equipment in the first place? My scanner is the iX500, which sounds space-age, and sort of is. It scans 25 pages per minute, … More Scanner
I wrote this homage a few years ago, prompted by a picture I took that’s mentioned in the story. Sadly, I can’t locate the picture now. I originally published this in 2011 in another blog called FromBetween.
