According to common wisdom, I have such a terrible diet, I should be dead. It is not that I hate broccoli; for ten years I was a vegetarian. And I crave vegetables now the way I used to crave chocolate cake. In restaurants I envy dishes piled high with bright green jungle-like leaves, the crisp […]
When I write, I begin with the assumption that everything is connected to everything else. After all, everything that we are and all that we know began with the Big Bang which happened around 13.8 billion years ago. Not only did it occur. We were part of it. We were all there. At least all
Writing is Bridge-Building Read More »
In college, I used to envy students who could draw realistically, who could render apples to look like photographs. After all, when I was a child, art was all about making things look real. Even in my college art classes, my inability to create the illusion of reality hurt me. I put in extra studio
Beyond Realism: How My Art Major Taught Me the Power of Purpose in Writing Read More »
Argh: the pitting of the word “nerd.” The word used to be a haven for bookish outsiders, many of whom had been shunned for being different, an identity I latched onto it at an early age. A shy kid who had been bullied, I did not feel like I could be the things society preferred:
The Invasion of Nerd Island Read More »
I sometimes imagine I have escaped my past. Since moving to Florida from fundamentalist South Carolina, I have been an armchair agnostic. However, on occasion I see something that jolts me back to my childhood. This time it came from Facebook. A relative from South Carolina had posted a photograph of a cute tow-headed toddler, his
Are Atheists Real? Read More »
As a writer, I am constantly reaching toward understanding other people, if only because creating convincing fictional characters depends on it. I have to imagine what it would be like in their place, even if their perspectives, lifestyles, and backgrounds are not my own. But it is hard. The illusion that I am the center
Shortly after college I read an article about how a hopeful graduate of a creative writing program had sent a manuscript to an editor. The editor responded that, although the writer had followed the technical rules of fiction writing, his prose suffered from a lack of “life experiences.” Her advice to him and all writers
What Kinds of Experiences Does a Writer Need? Read More »
I like to imagine a hidden world that I can enter whenever I am standing in a long line, waiting out a traffic jam, or any situation where I feel trapped. If I close my eyes, unseen layers of experience become apparent: birds chirping, clocks ticking, motors rumbling, or the drone of a distant jet,
Writing From The World Beneath Sight Read More »
What if you could write your way into a better life? What if you could invent yourself as you would a fictional character? In my new e-book released on Amazon, one of my characters does. My short story collection, Becoming the Story and Other Tales, is a mix of science fiction, fantasy, and personal prose. The book
I just released “Becoming the Story and Other Tales” for the Kindle Read More »
To return to Part I click here To return to Part II click here Last sentences from Part II: I was alarmed at how callously the students and even established employees treated some of the patients, especially the ones who were least able to defend themselves. One incident in particular still haunts me. When the
Confessions of a Bad Monkey Part III of III Read More »
