Langley Returns
My daughter is visiting at the moment, and she brought her dog Langley. I am delighted to see them both, of course. As I have written before, I like other people’s dogs. I’m just glad not to have one myself. Yesterday, my daughter and husband went to see relatives in Marshall, Missouri, and I stayed […]
Back To Work Thirty-Five Years Ago: I Couldn’t Have It All
In August 1985, thirty-five years ago this month, I returned to work after my second (and last) maternity leave. I’d left the office unexpectedly in mid-May, a week earlier than anticipated, when my daughter decided to come into the world two and a half weeks early. I enjoyed my first day back in the office. […]
Beta Reader Feedback Is In
I’ve now received all my beta readers’ feedback on the contemporary novel that is my work-in-progress. I have spent the past week or so reviewing their input and starting to make the changes I think appropriate. Most of their feedback is really helpful. A couple of my beta readers had strong technical expertise and provided […]
Guilt in the Time of Pandemic
In this crazy year, I feel guilty for the things I’m doing and also for the things I’m not doing. Guilt, of course, is a good Catholic emotion. Though my non-Catholic friends tell me it’s part of their tradition as well. These days, we’re made to feel blameworthy about everything. Advertisers work on our guilt […]
Working in My Mother’s Garden
I wrote last week that I am not an outdoorsy person. Perhaps that’s because some of my early experiences outdoors were unpleasant. I remember many unsavory tasks in my mother’s garden during my childhood summers. Mother had a few flower beds around the house that we moved into when I was six and a half. […]
My Screened Porch
In the midst of the pandemic, we are all looking for little moments of joy, for something to take our minds off the horrible statistics and other depressing news stories. I’ve never been an outdoorsy person, but I’ve found that spending time with nature has been a help over the past few months. I’ve taken […]
No More Five-County Days
The Kansas City metropolitan area spans the state line between Kansas and Missouri. Kansas City, Missouri, is larger than Kansas City, Kansas, though both are part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Statistical Area. There are actually fourteen counties in the Kansas City MSA, nine in Missouri and five in Kansas. Kansas City, Missouri, itself spans […]
Putting a Little Zest in Life
A friend and I recently exchanged emails about cooking. Neither of us is the cook our mothers were, but my friend said she had more time on her hands to cook because of the pandemic. I hate to cook, but I’m desperate for a greater variety of meals. She mentioned that she uses Hello Fresh, […]
Firing the Babysitter
One summer day about 38 years ago today, I thought my career would come to a crashing halt. We had to fire the babysitter. Our son—our first child—was five and a half months old. I’d gone back to work when he was three months old, and my husband and I had hired a babysitter to […]
Researching Historical Fiction: The Owyhee Expedition
As I’ve written before, I plan to set my next historical novel in Oregon in 1864. I’ve had the idea for this next book since I began writing Lead Me Home, which I first drafted in 2008 (it wasn’t published until 2015). Soon, it will be time to start writing that next book in the […]