creating space, from the outside in
Vestiges of fall lay on the ground in bits of dried leaves, acorns, weakened limbs, and memories of a landscape once in vibrancy and motion. A blanket of frost covers it, encased like a tomb to be nudged by a dawning sky and the promise of sun. I was out for a hike in the early morning when I saw a new landscape . . . striking me as if it had evolved overnight. Light pulsed through trees standing naked in a monocromatic carpet. The sky was void of any [...]
pockets of wonder
It’s the season of trees when their leaves, a pallet in shades of green from bright leafy flora to deep woodland, cease their infusion of growth and bleed vibrancy of color seen only in the fall. It’s a time to connect and to explore the wonder of a landscape falling softly to sleep, but not before it brings drama to the last act of the show. It wasn’t until recent mornings along walks in the woods when a foreshadowing of winter’s stillness loomed in the morning’s chill, and pockets of [...]
from feeling small to being big
I feel small. And it makes me feel imbalanced. Once feeling large and poised over the summer months with the security of sunny days, familiarity of longer lit hours, and the comfort of happy places at beaches and bike-riding, has now morphed into a perspective that is confined and maybe a little off center. I didn’t realize this until after Labor Day, when the remaining days of the year began to spit out quickly like dominoes. And now that fall has arrived, I owe my feeling to a focus on [...]
the lost and found of an author identity
I sunk deeper into my seat when watching her on a short Q and A video. I felt her words were directed at me, as if to say, “and you know who you are.” But I dismissed the thought because I didn’t think my publisher’s recommendation for authors to update their websites every two to three years applied to me. I believed she was referring to those who considered their authoring and book publishing a career, a vocation, of which I can't claim the wearing of that hat. Sometime later, [...]
what we hold
After a lengthy hiatus from writing memoir to write a second book, my first of fiction, I returned to memoir, and recently completed an essay about my mother and I during her final months of life . . . or so I thought. Yes, grief was palpable throughout the paragraphs, yet, when I read the essay a final time before handing it to the editor, I learned more not only about my mother, but also more about myself. While going through my mother’s belongings after her death, I asked my [...]
look up to see where you are going
Early one sticky morning while on a walk through the woods, I tried my dexterity at selfie-videoing (is that what it's called?) I found it takes practice, and an artistic eye. My face moved in and out of the frame, my head moved up and down, though I was not agreeing to anything. Perhaps it was a lack of hand-eye coordination. Or an arm that was just not long enough? The landscape was recessed, and I was so up front, age spots dotting the face clearly visible, the floral and [...]
stepping into your own writing style
Lately, I’ve been into writing styles as I plow through my summer reading list. I read closely for the tone, word choice, grammar, and language, the author manipulates to tell a story. I can’t help but to scrutinize what I read, from personal essays, and women’s fiction, to even nonfiction books about trees. My traveling eyes home in on a collection of words that separately may not have the bounce or resonation as they would when the author smartly places them together in a sentence. I catch the rhythm and [...]
In a slump? Stay there for a while
I’m in a slump. The Wisdom of the Willow is completed, polished, shiny and bright, awaiting publication; the momentum of writing an outline for my third book has slowed to a crawl; a documents file of half-baked writing projects has been left to bake further; and I can’t think of a thing worth reflecting on for any meaningful monthly blog post—except about being in a slump! My hero writer, Dr Suess, puts it simply, “When you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun. Un-slumping yourself is not easily [...]