Since there is now a place for everything, and everything is in it’s place (as my Grandmother Mattes used to say), there is nothing to do up here in my Lake Arrowhead cabin but write and take long walks around the lake with my dog. There is boating of course and when I get my…
My goddaughter Amanda gave me a tutorial yesterday on how to use Instagram and get more blog readers for WritingTime and TheIntimidatedCook. (She also very diplomatically suggested that I look at pictures of other cooking blogs – and then I became the Intimidated Photographer and am about to take down my blog picture of…
This is why I love poetry and love Mark Doty as a writer. The Embrace by Mark Doty You weren’t well or really ill yet either; just a little tired, your handsomeness tinged by grief or anticipation, which brought to your face a thoughtful, deepening grace. I didn’t for a moment doubt you…
Don’t ever read My Life in France (Julia Child’s story of learning to cook in Paris) when you’ve casually invited over 25 people to come watch the 4th of July fireworks from your deck in Lake Arrowhead and you intend to cook a lasagna dish for them that you’ve never made before. A vegetarian…
The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing. – Socrates And this is the starting point for each book, each poem, each essay. You don’t come to this work with your story all worked out neatly in your head, ready to be placed on the page complete and perfect. I tell myself…
Here are some of the reasons my students write: for validation, for the love of language, to heal, to get their story out, to go deeper in their life, to find the perfect words or sentences to express feelings, to connect, to entertain. And everyone said they’d write even if they didn’t get published. (Though…
“WritingTime” has reappeared thanks to my friend and computer guru Rob Daly. Ten years of posts as well as my entire website vanished over a month ago. Something to do with malware or some form of virus, but all has been restored to cyberspace health and it’s good to be back. Many more posts to…
Here’s the best and easiest and happiest idea for a holiday literary party. You can vary it in all kinds of ways, but what I do is invite all my girlfriends, students, daughters and stepdaughters, to a very casual lunch the first Saturday in December. Everyone brings a book for a child in need, unwrapped…
Two dear friends came over yesterday, both of them writers (successful ones – supporting themselves by writing, teaching and editing) and when I asked what they were working on they started to moan. And when they asked me what I was working on I too moaned. Then Judith acted out a very funny scene of…
I believe in role models, friends who inspire you to jump into whatever your heart is pulling you toward, surrounding yourself with people who use all their energy for what they love and believe in and want to create. I know lots of truly wonderful guys – my husband, my brother, my sons-in-law, other writers,…
