Oh, those flashing eyes! The other day, I laughed when I read the recent tweet of a fellow writer: “There's a lot of 'flashing eyes' in this draft. Need to fix.” Our fictional characters certainly do flash their eyes. They also roll them, grind their jaws, blink, sneer, grimace, and smile in varying degrees from crookedly to unabashed. They shrug, cross their arms, tremble, and shake their … [Read more...]
A Day at the Neighborhood House Nonprofit
typical Food Pantry/Clothes Closet clients: One of the regular clients I see for emergency food at the Rochester Area Neighborhood House (RANH) is *Bill*. He's legally deaf, so I to tap him on the shoulder in the waiting room before I bring him back for food intake. He can read lips if you speak slowly, and he speaks well. Today he limps; his arthritis was acting up. Bill gets about $900 from … [Read more...]
Endings are never easy
What if... How many times have you enjoyed a book right up to the end, but when you closed it, you felt unsatisfied? Not in the sense that the ending wasn't "happy," but rather that the last chapter seemed slapped together? Or predictable? Or missing something? Endings are not easy. I recall when my agent mentioned she thought my novel might need an additional scene at the end to “round things … [Read more...]
How confident are you with Gmail?
Some people might be delighted if one day their email vanished, but not me. And I will never ever trust Gmail again. My Gmail folders vanished: I'm not a computer expert. I only know what works for me and what doesn't. Recently I learned I was not the only one to have their Gmail disappear. Years ago, I was using Microsoft Outlook when I started getting frustrating messages stating that … [Read more...]
12 Tips to Survive a Book Festival
Every time I'm at a book festival, I learn something new. This summer I shared a table with author Sylvia Hubbard at Sterlingfest, and learned to give attendees permission to pick up your book and browse through it. "It's okay to touch it!" Sylvia told a man who was intently studying the cover. When he started reading with evident concentration, she asked him what part he was looking at. He then … [Read more...]
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