GO AWAY HOME – “The perfect story of coming home” – 2014 Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal winner for Historical Fiction
2015 Next Generation Indie Book Award – Finalist – Regional Fiction
Set in World War One-era Iowa, GO AWAY HOME is a captivating coming of age novel that will resonate with anyone who’s confronted the conflict between dreams and reality and come to recognize that getting what you want can be a two-edged sword.
My recent trip to Ireland has me thinking again about the importance of place to a writer. Ireland has a rich written history, including literary greats James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, and W.B. Yates. Those names were prominent as we toured the Emerald … [Continue reading]
“Is it plugged in?” That was the first question tech support always asked back when computers were new and I called to find out why the alien on my desk wouldn’t work.Dutifully, I’d untangle my feet from the writhing morass of cords under my desk and … [Continue reading]
Harriet Tubman. Oskar Shindler. Esther. People iconic for their courage and the bold actions they took to save the lives of others, actions that put their own lives at risk. Every time I hear a story about someone who stands up to society, their … [Continue reading]
If you just spent four years in college to become a teacher, would you take a secretarial position instead? I did and found myself on a path loaded with unexpected opportunities.After graduating in 1972 with a degree in speech & English … [Continue reading]
A few years ago, as I walked the Crystal Bridges Art Museum grounds, I spotted a single picture frame set on posts in the middle of a soccer-sized field. Intrigued, I walked out to look closer, reasoning that this frame must be quite important to … [Continue reading]
Writing can be a solitary business. When I’m working on a writing project, as I am now with my novel in progress, I get to my keyboard each day by 9 a.m. and do my best to stay on task until noon. I dive headlong and alone into my story - forgoing … [Continue reading]
I woke this morning with a profound sense of peace. In spite of blizzard force winds raging overnight, it was remarkably quiet. Political ads no longer filled the airwaves. Campaign text messages no longer flooded my phone. Local coffee shops are … [Continue reading]
I ended the old year as I often do - by cleaning out my office. This December gave me an even better opportunity to clean out, though, since my husband and I agreed to tackle remodeling my office - the last room in our house to get a new ceiling, new … [Continue reading]
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) sent hundreds of thousands of writers to their keyboards in November to write the novels they know they have in them. Historically, 17% of those who start succeed. I was one of those writers.Writing 50,000 … [Continue reading]
“Every morning I tell myself: Write recklessly today.You can play it safe tomorrow.” - Sue Monk KiddAs I join tens of thousands of other writers to tackle the National Novel Writing Month challenge to write 50,000 words in November, Kidd’s comment is … [Continue reading]
Or Subscribe via RSS