Tag Archives: writing

Where I Discovered Poetry Last Weekend

Posted on May 25, 2017 by

Here: And here: How my family inspired me last weekend? Via this: And this: And this: What it feels like to finish a pre-mini-vacation writing goal and move to the next? This: Came down with the flu upon returning from family shenanigans. However, today … Continue reading →

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Inspiration (Mother’s Day Edition)

Posted on May 15, 2017 by

What inspiration looks like. Feels like. That guy, reading me his MDay card.

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MAY DAY (BLOOMING LATE EDITION)

Posted on May 4, 2017 by

On May Day! May Day! May Day! (a few days late, but—-) 90+ degrees today, again. My Spring yard is shriveling. I thought this wouldn’t happen until next month. Silly me! When the Arctic is melting! Doh. The box turtle and the … Continue reading →

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Third Eye (April Edition w/Cat)

Posted on April 28, 2017 by

Woke up at 430am, pressed on with the last 40 pages of revision, my 3rd eye drowsy, but game. Now that I’m wide awake, overly caffeinated and the little boy is at school and the husband is off to heroic … Continue reading →

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April Is Poetry Month (As If You Didn’t Know)

Posted on April 7, 2017 by

  At the recent SCBWI Writers & Illustrators Day (see my SCBWI piece),  editor Pam Gruber had her workshop attendees write down a bit of world building. In honor of all those writing a poem a day this month (I am … Continue reading →

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SCBWI-LA Writers & Illustrators Day 2017 (Links Edition)

Posted on March 20, 2017 by

I was asked by SCBWI-LA to write about my experience at the recent WID. The piece is up on the Kite Tales blog. 1, 2, 3: LINK. Such a luxury for me to discard certain hats (taxi-mama, chef of sorts, … Continue reading →

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SCBWI Event Coming Up!

Posted on February 20, 2017 by

I am looking forward to next Saturday, 2/25/17. The Skirball is a choice location, indeed. Are you going? If so, see you there! https://losangeles.scbwi.org/events/writers-illustrators-day/

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Healing By Degrees (FB Edition)

Posted on February 18, 2017 by

“What wound did ever heal but by degrees?” —-WS, Othello  I’m talking Snapchattish-brief degrees. My impatience won out. I weeded Facebook ‘friends’ after the election and the first peaceful march–in which I marched, peacefully, surrounded by like minds. After this weeding and … Continue reading →

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Hearts

Posted on February 14, 2017 by

Just. So. Simply. Timely. And simply nice.

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On Rejection

Posted on December 9, 2016 by

Recently I was lucky enough to have a conversation with someone I deeply respect and I was moaning a little about rejections I’ve received lately. The person suggested I stop calling them ‘rejections’ and refer to them instead as ‘No … Continue reading →

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Dug Out

Posted on November 21, 2016 by

Eons ago my wisdom teeth came out far easier than this morning’s Tooth #4, which my dentist described as having a curved root, meaning: curve-ball for what should have been a pretty quick procedure. ‘See?’ my dentist said. He twisted my liberated tooth … Continue reading →

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Island Infusion

Posted on October 24, 2016 by

Recently a boat deposited me on Santa Rosa Island for a few days, one of a handful of remote scapes comprising the Channel Islands National Park . I traveled with a geologist, an art dealer and two canvas artists who … Continue reading →

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Louise Penny

Posted on October 3, 2016 by

Where has Louise Penny been all my life? I was completely not swept up, but vacuumed into A Great Reckoning and have since been binge reading the Chief Inspector Gamache novels–but I have to say, so far the other books … Continue reading →

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Fres-yes? (Wild Kratts Edition)

Posted on September 28, 2016 by

The Wild Kratts are based in Canada. In addition to their TV shows, which are broadcast all over the world, they occasionally venture over the border–mostly into eastern states and the mid-west–to entertain select child-filled crowds with their live show. The energetic brothers have … Continue reading →

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Ann Patchett’s COMMONWEALTH (In Percentages)

Posted on September 15, 2016 by

Because Maria Semple stated (in an article I read a few days ago) that she is planning to read Ann Patchett’s new novel, ‘Commonwealth’, I (who had no idea Ann Patchett had a new novel coming out, ‘Bel Canto’ still on my … Continue reading →

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Seasonal Conundrums

Posted on August 14, 2016 by

Researching summer camps for my 8 year old, round about last March/April, I became frustrated: Sports camp in triple digit heat? No. Great white shark and hammerhead shark sightings along our southern coast. Surf camp? No. Science Camp? He loves … Continue reading →

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Valley Chapbook

Posted on August 6, 2016 by

Part of our summer my son and I spent with family in my Ye Olde Hometown. We ate organic foods. Socialized con gusto. And my soon-to-be-3rd-grader attended a local summer camp. His hands were slobbered by the purple tongues of … Continue reading →

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O Summer!

Posted on August 5, 2016 by

I’ve been quiet since May, after a brief, powerful writer’s retreat. I’ve been busy this summer with what the retreat inspired: Writing. Revising. Writing. Revising a new short story, one screaming for edits of late. It’s almost ready for submission. Compiling … Continue reading →

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Remember the Bunnies

Posted on May 5, 2016 by

WRITER’S RETREAT! Oh, that’s long over now. ‘Tis a distant dream. T’was  2 1/4-ish days of nothing-but-revising, surrounded by foliage, sculpture/fountains and wild bunnies with super white tails. Sequestered in a simple room of my own with a nun’s bed, I … Continue reading →

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Chapbook Publication

Posted on January 15, 2016 by

Finishing Line Press is releasing my chapbook of poetry, Valley Meditation (with Palomino), March 23rd, 2016. Yes, that’s right: This March, the one right around the corner from El Nino–except that EN isn’t really hitting my portion of summer-deflated valley. … Continue reading →

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Psychic

Posted on January 5, 2016 by

Somehow I now live in a neighborhood where the man next door is perfectly okay with hanging a sign from his rented eaves. PSYCHIC SERVICES, the sign declares–bold white on not-so-bold, pretty or eye-catching puce–followed by a phone number. When … Continue reading →

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Suckers Galore

Posted on October 24, 2015 by

I’ve read, of late: All The Light We Cannot See, The Luminaries (I sense a pun), Station Eleven, The Orphan Master’s Son (I sense a rhyme–no, it is, it is a rhyme), Plastic Ocean: How a Sea Captain’s Chance Discovery … Continue reading →

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Fire

Posted on August 4, 2015 by

We left our drought-socked stifling valley at 815am and by 2pm—Hwy 99 to orchard-heavy back roads with stop signs, to another “highway”, to back roads with stop signs and colonies of slender giants we realized were members of the Stanislaus … Continue reading →

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Business As Usual, Please

Posted on July 27, 2015 by

My dad passed away last September, although ‘passed away’ sounds too ‘death-lite’ for the actual event. If you’ve never been at the bedside of someone moving on, all I can say is, it’s probably not possible to brace yourself for the experience. Try … Continue reading →

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Breaks

Posted on April 6, 2015 by

What I love about Spring Break? For a week I am Fun Mama–instead of: get dressed, brush your teeth, grab your Spidey hoodie, let’s go, go, go, homework, karate, shower time!, etc. It’s nice to be all: Ooooh—let’s scooter around … Continue reading →

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