Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com I recently had an opportunity with the National Association of Memoir Writers (www.namw.org) to talk about my memoir, Under the Birch Tree and other points about writing my book. During this hour-long virtual book club, the topic was transforming autobiography to memoir. However, so many points to make in so little time, so thought [...]
The warm foundation walls contract with a bang and a clatter and then a snap from cooling after the furnace kicks off. The sound effects, intermittent with varying degrees of volume and consistency, interrupt an otherwise silence that is characteristic of most days. The stillness and quiet seemingly overpower any audible interruption making me feel as if I am suspended [...]
As a Catholic grade-schooler, the nuns taught me a conversation with God was as important to my education as was getting good grades. The nuns chimed in ritualistic reminders, “Pray to God, evoke him in daily prayer, and you’ll be closer to him.” The idea is to develop a relationship with him and you won’t need to fear anything. I [...]
As a youngster, my DNA was evident through my green eyes, light brown hair with a cowlicked plume of honey-streaked hair just above my right eye. Could these physical traits have been carried down the DNA ladder? I recently did one of those DNA tests to find out about my ancestry. With a Polish mother and an English father, I [...]
Writing my memoir was like driving down Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. Upon my return from being away from the city for a few years, the order of exits was fuzzy in my memory, creating a challenge to my navigation. I had once depended on knowing each exit like a marker signaling when to turn or to keep going. My [...]
And what a post publication week it has been! On pub day, Culturalist included Under the Birch Tree in its “Top 10 Inspiring Stories of Self-Discovery to Read When You’re Feeling Lost.” And Buzzfeed listed my memoir as “Five Captivating Memoirs You Need to Read This Summer.” My book made a list? I certainly didn't expect my book to make [...]
Today we celebrate Father’s Day by connecting with fathers and grandpas in ways that make us feel comforted, secure and with the familiar, like being at home. For me, as a little girl, my desire to seek a connection with my father was as strong as my wish to feel at home with him. Back then, a connection, inherent between [...]
To publish or not to publish, that was the question. I’m into my first week of pub month of my memoir and I’ve been asked if it was my goal to publish. I hesitated in answering because I honestly didn’t know. My intent had always been to just write and working on my manuscript was no exception. At the very [...]
Giving away copies of my new book Click on this to enter now!
Connection. That word is well-known and well-used thanks to social media. Our electronic conversations never lack the words “get connected” or “connect with me.” The social media applications—Facebook, Instagram and Twitter —are the top contenders that keep us connected with others. Through our connecting posts, we learn of others’ daily lives, who they meet, places they go, even the foods [...]