The NaNoWriMo Cometh

October is all about pumpkins and pretty colors. Come November, our thoughts turn to…30 crazed-filled days scribbling nonsensical sentences in a quest for 50,000 words, a modicum of sanity at the end, and that elusive brag: “I wrote a novel.” Oh, and something involving a bird and...

Redux: Saku-Taku-No-Ki

From time to time, and as a thin guise to cover up the days between new posts, I’m going to reprint some older posts that I liked. I originally posted this inspiring nod to Yolen’s gem on January 22, 2004. Enjoy! This wonderful Japanese phrase translates to mean the instant a chick...

With a Twist of Irony

Ed. note: These are too cute/clever/insightful to pass up sharing. Normally I refrain from forwarding Web lists, but these seem worthy. Enjoy! The Washington Post Mensa Invitational annually attracts wannabe verbarians who add, subtract, or change one letter in a real word, then add a witty...

Redux: The Sounds of Writing

From time to time, and as a thin guise to cover up the days between new posts, I’m going to reprint some older posts that I liked. I’ll try not to do this too often, but it may help entice the muse back more often. Originally posted February 23, 2004, I hope you enjoy “The Sounds...

Sacrilege

Some writers wouldn’t dream of what I did this afternoon, but then, I’ve been hell-bent on organizing and taking back (from the digital world) my life, so I guess there’s no sin in my act. Sorting through old journals, I realized that I had too many where I’d only written a...