It’s time to show that rough draft who’s boss I can’t be the only writer this happens to The project you’re working on might be your first, or your forty-first novel. You may have a detailed outline, even a scene-by-scene breakdown. Or maybe you’re just letting the idea that seized hold of you some months ago…

Next time, I unpack the books first We moved in twelve days ago, but today I finally feel like I live here We lived in this house in a sweet neighborhood in Southeast Boise, Idaho for six years before emptying it out, renting it out, and heading back to California to live in the Napa Valley…

We fled the California fires, and here we are Living in Napa Valley was a dream come true, at first In 2014 when we moved to the lovely little Wine Country town of St. Helena, we kept pinching ourselves. Here we were, going about our daily lives in the midst of a destination that people travel…

To the Black mom protecting her son I understand why you fear for your teen son I’m a mother of sons too, and while mine are grown men now, I vividly recall the stomach-dropping anxiety of their adolescent years. But I’m white. Whatever fears that kept me wide-eyed at night waiting for them to come home…

White people, there’s a lot to learn Now that it’s a federal holiday, most white folks at least know about Juneteenth But we may not be clear on what it means. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day when Major General Gordon Granger led a group of Union soldiers to Galveston, Texas. There he read out General Order…

Somebody invent this right away Is it weird to be excited about a hearing aid? Of course, I’m way too young for such a thing. But my employee health benefits include coverage for a good chunk of the expense, and I’m soon to leave that job while we move several states away, so my husband…

Success has a lot to do with just not quitting I found an agent with the first book I wrote Does that sound like I had instant beginner’s luck? A win, right out of the box? Lest you roll your eyes, I assure you there was nothing quick or easy about finding my novel a professional…

But yesterday proved me wrong, and I’m sad I could have grabbed the strap to my shoulder bag at any time The leather tote that held my small purse, laptop, iPad, and journal hung by one of its straps from my shoulder as I tugged my carry-on out of the overhead compartment. “I should fix…

When your book has to cut weight or die Writing a novel has a lot in common with gardening You prepare the soil, removing rocks and dead roots (limiting beliefs, self-defeating assumptions) and adding amendments (reading, daydreaming). You select seeds (story ideas), plant them carefully, water them judiciously as they sprout (rough drafting). You guard…