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  • A cabbage moth drinking nectar from a lavender flower on a stalk of lavender against a black background, and surrounded by other out-of-focus stalks of lavender.

    A Writing Lesson from Photography on Surfacing Truth

    When I make a photograph, it’s always a two-phase process. Phase one is making the image in the camera. This is usually a multi-step process, and may have quite a lot of steps depending on the type of photograph. If my subject is wildlife, I may plan a hike and travel to the location, or…

  • Gridded A6-size Midori MD notebook inside a grey leather cover, open to a blank page with two rainbow-colored rope bookmarks down the center. A TWSBI Vac Mini fountain pen filled with Colorverse purple ink, named "Delicious Sleep," sits on top of the left-hand page.

    What I Learned (Or Relearned) About Writing in 2022

    I’m always learning new things, and I’m starting to believe one of the best ways to keep using what I’ve learned is to write it all down. Otherwise I’ll forget, and life will have to re-hammer that lesson home again when I most need it. In order to avoid a re-hammering, I drafted this list…

  • Diptych - two thirds show the inside of Taylor Swift's Midnights CD case, the lavender version of the CD, and the CD booklet's lyrics to Anti-Hero. The other third shows a cat looking out of a window at a snowy cedar tree, with part of a computer screen with the Scrivener writing app open. In the foreground is a mug of tea.

    On Writing Slow and Being My Own Anti-Hero

    You know those dish soap bottles that have that little seal under the lid? You forget it’s there and try to get some soap, and no matter how hard you squeeze, nothing comes out. Then you remember and unscrew the lid, and there’s the seal, with its little edge to pull up. But they’re always…

  • Coming Out of the Writing Closet

    I have a confession.  It’s a deep, dark secret that I haven’t really talked about here before. I am writing a book. Yes, you heard me right.  I’m just over 30,000 words into my first draft of a young adult novel about a girl who doesn’t know she’s a witch. Please don’t laugh too hard,…

  • 100 Things

    This is a stream-of-consciousness writing exercise from one of the books on writing that I am reading.  I really enjoyed it, so I thought I’d share. Here are one hundred things I love, in no particular order: kitties purring hugs the sound of the ocean sun on my face sand in my toes finding the…

  • Finding Inspiration

    I’ve been blogging now for about 18 months, but I still feel like a newbie. I’m still figuring out what it is I want to write about, to tell you about. Like with everything I do, I want to put my best foot forward and be the best blogger I can be. To help me…

  • Writing About Your Life

    Title: Writing About Your Life Author: William Zinsser Publisher: Da Capo Press I picked up this book a few weeks ago to help me loosen up at the keyboard, to journal better, and to blog better. If you read this blog frequently you know I need all the help I can get! While Writing About…