Writing about place, people, and whatever parts of the universe I'm lucky to see.
I write today from Chicago, where we are quarantining before we visit family. The decision to travel in these times was a difficult one. During the summer, we determined we could not leave Norway. This time, with more information, we made the choice to come, and I pray it was the right one. In my... Continue Reading →
Can a non-writer learn the tools of the trade, or are great writers born with something different? Is writing a gift--the kind of thing you either have or lack--or is writing a learned skill that any person can develop? Questions of this ilk have sometimes plagued me, as an aspiring writer first, later as a... Continue Reading →
In late October, I set myself a writing goal of 12,000 words, which is certainly more than I had written in quite some time before that. As November has marched on, I have chipped away dependably. Setting this goal really had an impact on my volume. We're entering the final week of term, and the... Continue Reading →
They say the best way to learn a thing is to teach it, and in the trial by fire that is the teaching of a new syllabus, I have been learning a lot this week about the literary essay. I am looking explicitly at the theory now of a genre I have long read, enjoyed,... Continue Reading →
In this third season of Star Trek Discovery, there is a lot to enjoy. A reimagined, post-Federation galaxy, the ever-imaginative CGI work, characters who are growing on me in this third adventure through space and time, and most importantly, Star Trek's beautifully hopeful, human, redemptive storytelling in an age when so many shows seem fixated... Continue Reading →
I notice a fixation when I write on, let's call it, "textbook plausibility." It's always fiction, but I take great pains to make things possible. This could really happen, I hope the reader feels. Although we both know it never did. I'm currently working on a new story that I'm envisioning in a very specific... Continue Reading →
When has life ever been so busy? Fall semester is always the hardest here--major assessments in most subjects, a full-on calendar of events, letters of recommendation to write, lessons to keep planning. This year, changes in school procedures, a round of oral exams, hybrid lessons for students still off-campus or those feeling ill, and a... Continue Reading →
This post is part of the monthly Author Toolbox Blog Hop. Check out other Hop participants' posts to learn about more aspects of writing craft and business, the third Wednesday of each month except for November and December. If we are writers who care about social justice, we have to interrogate our work. How do... Continue Reading →
This week, let's look at blogs. What make one tick and another flop? Why do some get clicks and others languish patiently? And which is this? The IB syllabus for my English language acquisition students asks them to practice writing a variety of text types, from letters to proposals, from persuasive speeches to brochures. This... Continue Reading →
This summer and fall, my reading list has been conscripted. I inherited two literature classes from a colleague, and in short order I had a list of thirteen books to be prepared to teach, about half of which I had read before, about half of which were new. Among them were a few wonderful new... Continue Reading →
Jimmy Kindree 