“People who look down on other people don’t end up being looked up to.” ~ Robert Half Percival Everett’s latest book, James, is a masterful, imaginative extension of the life of Huck Finn’s collaborator ‘Jim’, first introduced to us by Mark Twain. Mr. Everett, the Distinguished Professor of English at USC, and winner of every… Continue Reading
“The great gift of human beings is that we have the power of empathy.” —Meryl Streep A neighbor in my apartment building questioned me about my work recently after I mumbled I must get back to my writing. Initially I was very frugal with my comments trying not to tell her more than she’d ever… Continue Reading
“A mother is a son’s first true love. A son is a mother’s last true love.” ~Denzel Washington Incubating longer than any other book I’ve ever written, I’ve finally reached the ending of my first draft after years of research and a terrific struggle to write my latest novel. Much of the delay was due… Continue Reading
“Family patters—like family secrets—repeat themselves.” ~ Iyanla Vanzant There has been a rash of books lately on the topic of family secrets. Why? Your guess is as good as mine, but I’m sure part of it has to do with the fact that children weren’t included in a lot of family news when I was… Continue Reading
“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” —Plutarch It was over a decade ago that I sat in my first writers’ workshop at the Stonybrook Writers’ Conference. The almost round tables were configured to promote emotional connectivity and support, all good things when one’s writing is being… Continue Reading
“My failures have been errors in judgment, not of intent.” Ulysses S. Grant In true one-thing-leads-to-another fashion, an interview online recently with Drew Gilpin Faust about her memoir Necessary Trouble, led me to another book she’d written, Mothers of Invention. Having grown up in the South herself, Faust has a unique perspective on the idiosyncrasies… Continue Reading