Meteorological Winter is officially over. Here in middle Europe we had two gorgeous days of Spring weather last week after a record amount of sunshine deficit since, oh, The Little Ice Age (the real deficit is not so bad, but it feels that way). Now we’ve been plunged into near-freezing temps again for the for the next few days, if not centuries (time for that Vitamin D supplement and a brisk walk around the block). In addition to getting off the couch and going outside, there are other things we can do to offset the winter blues. Here are the… Read More
The following piece was written by my one of my writing mentors and friend, Josh Peterson, who has graciously consented to share his remembrances of one of his early writing mentors. I hope his eloquent sentiment touches you in the same way it did me. I’ve still not stopped thinking about that poem. Back in 1993, when I was just starting to seriously think about my writing, I saw an advertisement at the Newton Free Library in Newton, Massachusetts for a writing workshop held there on Saturday mornings at 10:30 a.m., run by a man named Jim McGarry. Poetry? Who… Read More
The trickle of water over rocks made me look up. Sebastian sat across from me studying a globe that floated between us a few centimeters above the grass. “Hey, Sebastian, good to see you.” He glanced up. “Are you ready to try again, Frau Schwarzbach?” I examined the floating sphere more closely. Its surface resembled the version of the Snakes and Ladders game I had played once with a metaphysical Sebastian on my first night in Germany. The board had been flat and resembled the one Gus and I had played as kids. It had been an antique, possibly… Read More
In the countdown to the release of Shaky Ground, in cooperation with The Akamai Reader, we’re doing a giveaway. It’s for five days only so hurry on over there!
I’m having a nice time-out for a couple of days while waiting for the print proofs and cover for Shaky Ground. It’s time to reflect. I don’t usually blog about writing (who the hell needs that), but in the course of a discussion in our critique group, Richard mentioned the quandaries of writing long versus short fiction, it got me going. Another member of the group also distracted me by mentioning hand puppets, and I laid in bed this morning trying to get the picture of Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop out of my head. I think my brain is… Read More
