Hello everyone, if you’re in the Seattle area, and you’re lucky enough to have purchased an entry ticket, please know that I will be signing Sandcastle and Other Stories at the event. I will be there with three other authors on the third floor of the venue. M.E. Franco, James Peercy, and Amanda Huntley will…
I love studying the hubris of man, how we rise and fall throughout our lives—me included. I also love to observe people, listen to what they are saying to each other in a group or how someone speaks to someone on a cell phone out in the open. Usually this bugs others, but at times…
I must’ve read Donna Tartt’s first grand-in-theme novel, The Secret History, three times so far in this lifetime (hehe), but resisted The Little Friend—boy was I a dunce. It’s just as terrific, and gothic, and lush. Can’t wait to read her new book, The Goldfinch. Tartt’s an author of twisty mysteries that dwell on…
Labels always make me think of childhood, and coloring books, where a parent or a kindergarten teacher would say: don’t color outside the lines. That’s what they’re there for, to guide you, to teach you (both the lines and the teachers pointing to them). Maybe it’s my Ukrainian upbringing, mixed with a ton of Jersey…
Now that it’s Fall, I want to start this post with some positive memories, places I’ve been this summer, and bookstores I would love to return to. Just keep writing is my mantra right now, and a little negativity in terms of reviews is all part of the process, and interesting. Besides, I tend to…
Margo Channing: Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night! Margo Channing: I detest cheap sentiment. I always say that “All About Eve” is one of my favorite films. The backstory is priceless. A feud of longstanding, and highlighted by a radio comedy show featuring Tallulah Bankhead, makes watching “All About…
Well, today I’m thinking about short fiction, giving a reading at the local Anacortes Public Library tomorrow night, and the love of darker tales (yes, even with a bit more humor thrown in—life does that too), and positive feedback. I am always grateful for that. Zippy is feeling under the weather, and I won’t be…
I’ve been busy on the other side of the writing life, the dreaded side, the one that makes me most nervous: the pre-release side of the game. And it is a game. Please don’t believe I am bragging here; it’s just life—we all have met nice people. I’ve met many authors in the past few…
Well, the incredible writing journey I am on continues. I remember driving down to Seattle with fellow Young Adult author Stacey R. Campbell, who wrote the fun “lost royal princess” mystery titled Hush, with a list of bookstores to visit. The very first on our list was University Book Store in Seattle, the largest independent…
Cannon Beach is all about restoring balance . . . spirit, and thoughts about gratitude. Haystack Rock is a 235-foot (72-meter) sea stack in Cannon Beach, Oregon. It is sometimes claimed locally to be the third-tallest such “intertidal” (meaning it can be reached by land) structure in the world, but there are no scientific…