My sister had a nerve-wracking habit of appearing in my room uninvited. The fact that I would have been drawn and quartered, probably literally, if I’d dared to consider the privacy of her room assailable had no bearing on the sanctity of my space. She was privileged; I was pathetic–from her point of view, anyway.… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Writing
Things That Go Bump!- ‘writing about what haunts us’
A recent Opinionator article by Peter Orner in the NY Times, titled “Writing About What Haunts Us”, stuck a commemorative thorn in my side. His piece addresses guilt as a motivation for writing fiction in general, and a particular incident in his young life that haunted him so deeply he had to turn to non-fiction… Continue Reading
Shifting Gears
The New York Society Library, affectionately known as ‘the writers library’ because of its impressive roster of accomplished author/members, has a wonderfully supportive assistant head librarian in Carolyn Waters, who makes us all feel appreciated and cherished with her Writing Life series of lectures. Bending over backwards to supply us with the tools we need… Continue Reading
For Whom We Write
When I graduated from college the first time with an Associates degree there was no such thing as a Department of Continuing Education. I had an awareness of and affinity for lifelong learning as I reached for my diploma on that sunny June day; but my first matriculation was so long ago that academia hadn’t… Continue Reading
Editing Life
by Sidney S. Stark January marks the beginning of a new calendar year with parallel fresh initiatives. NO, I didn’t say resolutions. Happily, I’ve learned not to rule my life with ‘shoulds’ anymore. But starting something new is often energizing, and the beginning of my new writers’ workgroup is living up to that promise. It’s… Continue Reading
Confidence
What is it? Is it essential to success and happiness or merely a useful tool? How much is too much or not enough? Who decides? Can it be acquired through learning or must it come naturally and without effort to be of value. That word ‘confidence’ has cropped up in too many conversations I’ve had… Continue Reading