Welcome, Writer's Voice guests! I hope you enjoy this sneak peek at my MG fantasy manuscript, Lang Sawyer and the Den of Nostromo: Query: Thirteen-year old Langhorne Sawyer has always had a fuzzy relationship with the rules. His Mom is dead, and his Dad is too busy selling sporting goods in glamorous locales like … Continue reading Lang Sawyer and the Den of Nostromo for The Writer’s Voice
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Full “Tumbleweed Thompson” Story Now Available!
The fine folks at Story Warren have published my short story, "Tumbleweed Thompson's Youth Tonic" over at their site. It's the first of what hopefully will be several colorful tales involving the adventures of Eugene Teitsworth, a responsible - and highly impressionable - young lad of 12, and his encounters with the force of nature known as Tumbleweed … Continue reading Full “Tumbleweed Thompson” Story Now Available!
Short Story Preview: “Tumbleweed Thompson and the Youth Tonic”
So I've begun work on a new project, and - like most projects - I'm not sure exactly where it will take me. But I'll say this - the past couple months have been a great season of discovery in the process of writing what I think now will be a collection of short stories … Continue reading Short Story Preview: “Tumbleweed Thompson and the Youth Tonic”
Counting the Cost
Yesterday, I opened the first day of this semester's Creative Writing class by printing on the white board in large black letters, "No Creativity Without Risk." It seemed, at the time, both an important tone-setter for the kind of work we're undertaking this semester, but also, a maxim I believe in. "First we jump off … Continue reading Counting the Cost
Sneakin’ Up on Me – Redemption Wrapped in Velveteen
The velveteen rabbit snuck up on me last night. I was reading it to my son, really cruising along, met the skin horse, had the scarlet fever, gotten to the climactic moment of the story, when - BAM - a lump crawled up into my throat and I felt my eyes start to water. How … Continue reading Sneakin’ Up on Me – Redemption Wrapped in Velveteen
Exciting Announcement!
This week, I got some great news related to my upper middle grade fantasy manuscript, Lang Sawyer and the Den of Nostromo! I was selected for the Mentor round of the Pitch Wars contest through YA author Brenda Drake's website. This means for the next month, I'll be working with middle grade author Jen Swann Downey … Continue reading Exciting Announcement!
Dear Virginia,
*A word of explanation: A few months ago, a teacher friend asked me for book recommendations for her daughter. I suggested Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi's wonderful Spiderwick Chronicles. Yesterday in my mailbox at school, there appeared a delightful, handwritten note from the girl thanking me for telling her about the books, and sharing how … Continue reading Dear Virginia,
On Gratitude – Don’t You Want to Thank Someone?
It snowed last night here in western New York. That’s not exactly news, but in the five years since we moved back to this area, we’ve never gotten six-plus inches before Thanksgiving. So, in that regard, it was noteworthy. We got a few flurries through the afternoon, but nothing really stuck. When I took the … Continue reading On Gratitude – Don’t You Want to Thank Someone?
A poem (it’s about Jay Gatsby)
So one of the cool things about being a high school teacher is I get to assign creative writing pieces, which I then get to complete along with my students. I know, tricky, right? A couple weeks back, I asked my juniors to write a poem inspired by The Great Gatsby. Theirs turned out great, but … Continue reading A poem (it’s about Jay Gatsby)
My First Moot
Imagine a lighthouse. Somewhere overlooking the Irish Sea, let’s say, just to keep the story rabbit-y. There’s nothing picturesque about this scene. Here we have a storm-tossed maelstrom of sound and fury. But in the midst of this tempest, there’s the reliable lighthouse, its beam sweeping the wine-dark sea, searching, searching for ships to save. … Continue reading My First Moot