Category Archives: Writing Progress

Heat

I don’t know about your environs, but ours will be blessed with consecutive days of triple digit heat, again, later this week. It’s helpful for my psyche and staving off writer’s block to remember that last year at this time … Continue reading

Posted in Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Crucial Weekends (Moaning Myrtle Edition)

  There is still only finishing my middle-grade novel (see previous post).   However, life outside writing continues to happen– my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday AND Mother’s Day, during which I was presented with a Hufflepuff hoodie, a Mother’s Day card … Continue reading

Posted in Children's Books, Faction, Fiction, Me and Us, middle grade, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

SCBWI Los Angeles Writers Day 2018

  I’m going. Are you? Gary D. Schmidt is giving the keynote. That’s right, author of one of my favorite YA books: ‘The Wednesday Wars’. You’ve probably already read it, but here’s the SCBWI GDS Interview from 2/16/18. I especially … Continue reading

Posted in books, Children's Books, Fiction, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

SCBWI WWR 9/2017

Me–prepping for the upcoming SCBWI Working Writer’s Retreat:     Fortunately I got in, thanks to iphone alerts, Alexa/Echo alerts, the wall calendar with a particular date circled so thickly in red it could never become invisible, no matter the … Continue reading

Posted in Avoiding My Writing, Faction, Fiction, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

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

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

Posted in books, Children's Books, Faction, Fiction, Poetry, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

On Rejection

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

Posted in Children's Books, Fiction, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress, Writing Tips | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

RIP Poem

Because my father resides in me I am what others expect to see– though not as or not ever without less this or that & always 1 count behind or is it ahead of much worse: that 70’s divorce, old split/split … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, books, Poetry, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Chapbook Publication

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

Posted in Poetry, Steps In Promotion, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Snooze House

Lately, instead of writing at night I’ve resorted to rising early in order to revisereviserevise certain projects and I’ve realized: The loudest sound in the house at 5am? Despite our small zoo? And the programmable coffee maker’s generous peeps? And the refrigerator … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, books, Children's Books, dog, Faction, Fiction, ocean related, Poetry, Quotes, Santa Barbara, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mornings Become Them (Birds Edition)

615am–I get out of bed to let the dog outside and get back in bed forgetting to let the dog back in and he barks and I shoot out of bed not wanting the dog to wake the first grader … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, Avoiding My Writing, books, Children's Books, dog, Faction, Fiction, middle grade, Parakeet, Pets, Poetry, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress, WTF | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Spring Break Snoozing (Wide Awake Edition)

During this luscious week of no school for the Kindergartner, we snooze well. Except when we are awakened from chasm-sleep somewhere between 2a.m. and maybe 4:30a.m.—after the bars have closed, but before the rooster across the alley busts its lungs—after we’ve … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, Avoiding My Writing, books, Children's Books, dog, Faction, Fiction, Me and Us, middle grade, Pets, Poetry, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress, WTF | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A Weekend Of “Instead-Of’s” (Big Beach Edition)

Instead of the LA Times Book Fest, the beginning of my son’s Spring Break: Instead of the LA Times Bookfest Poetry Tent, this: Also a cave (!): This: Er–and this (at a different beach–a short while later–if whiles can be short–why … Continue reading

Posted in Children's Books, dog, Faction, Fiction, Poetry, Santa Barbara, To Explain, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Women’s National Book Association

I was made aware of the WNBA/LA thanks to my middle grade writing mentor, Kathryn Fitzmaurice (ask me if I am lucky to have her as my mentor and you will hear amplified hell yeah’s). She gave one of this … Continue reading

Posted in books, Children's Books, Faction, Fiction, middle grade, Writing, Writing Progress, Writing Tips | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Speaking of Passivity

It went like this: Google. Amazon. Facebook. Facebook IM. Back to Amazon. Weather (from Bing–weather.com is too hideous). Figuring out how to make Bing stop showing up whenever I clicked on a new tab. The Holy Checking of Email. And then … Continue reading

Posted in Faction, Poetry, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Staying The Course

Saturday morning I rose when our son (impossible to wake on a school day) woke at 5:30a.m. to begin a weekend of attending birthday parties, completing school projects, and constant verbalized hankering for Minecraft (it was Survivalcraft, until we realized the … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, books, Children's Books, Faction, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Poems By Lantern Light

Well, the Good Luck Bar never disappoints, does it? The red and tasseled lanterns are BIG, which is an extremely smart decorating move as they make an instant impression when you trip over the threshold into the semi-seamy (but not really) sparkle-darkness … Continue reading

Posted in books, Poetry, poetry reading, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rhapsodomancy Reading Tonight

Well, it’s finally here–I’ve had it on my events bar for about a year and tonight I get to be a part of the coolest Los Angeles reading series in all of the county and beyond. Hooray for poetry, fiction, … Continue reading

Posted in Fiction, Poetry, poetry reading, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Double Rainbow (Rainy Day Edition)

Not long ago a man left a nasty little comment in my comments section calling my blog piece sophomoric and trite and something else I can’t remember and why this person was so unevolved as to blog-roam and drop his … Continue reading

Posted in books, Children's Books, dog, Fiction, Poetry, poetry reading, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress, WTF | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Notes From The Retreat #2: Critiques

Yes, I am going to go here. Out of the 10 copies of the first 25 pages of my novel returned to me, scribbled on by the writers in my core group at the SCBWI retreat, I kept 4. Those 4 … Continue reading

Posted in Children's Books, Fiction, middle grade, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Truth Is…(Maintenance Edition)

The truth is, I’m way too busy to blog—sprawling on the couch eating bonbons takes up a lot of time. And let me make this extremely clear: NOT milk chocolate bonbons with cherries tucked inside them. If I was even … Continue reading

Posted in Children's Books, Fiction, middle grade, Pets, Poetry, To Explain, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Secret Equestrienne (Before Morning Coffee Edition)

$300 boots in the local saddlery. Gorgeous. And nothing a budget-minded, secret equestrienne would ride in. So the Amazon dot coms that arrived by mail shocked me. At $94+change, they looked way too regal for the price. I was expecting spray-painted cardboard. … Continue reading

Posted in books, Fiction, Poetry, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Adventures in Rejection (Snailmail Edition)

I don’t like rejection, but I like this rejection letter even if it is: a rejection letter. So, thank you, rejection writer, for taking the time to read my submission and respond in such a gratifyingly (for me) thorough manner. You are … Continue reading

Posted in Children's Books, Fiction, middle grade, ocean related, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Na? No. Hope? Yes.

Amidst the latest horrifying US events, poetry—much of it fresh off the brain—whirls tirelessly through every non-existent corner of the internet.  Look: In dark times, people go looking for poetry and I’m glad there is plenty to assuage, aid, comfort and … Continue reading

Posted in books, Fiction, Poetry, poetry reading, Writing, Writing Progress | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Update 2: NaMeSitDif (etc.) Projekt

Since I forgot to Na on Monday, as I promised myself, and since I didn’t Na on Tuesday due to pressing engagements (Target, the teeth people), upon leaving the stables today I stopped at a No’ridge Starbucks on my way home, hobbling delicately inside, … Continue reading

Posted in books, Children's Books, Fiction, Poetry, Writer's Angst, Writing, Writing Progress, WTF | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Courage! (Neigh Edition)

I was late to retrieve the boy from school because I Face Sucked like a fiend AND watched the latest episode of “Once” on hulu AND in another open hulu tab caught up on the latest episode of “Revenge” WHILE checking … Continue reading

Posted in Adult writing, Avoiding My Writing, books, Children's Books, Fiction, middle grade, Pets, Steps In Promotion, Writer's Angst, Writing Progress, WTF | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment