So far this year there have been three contests that I almost qualified to enter. My novel is really a novella and didn’t make the word count for one; my dream-come-true story didn’t involve sky-diving or some other near-death experience for the second; my first page start was intriguing and quirky, but not exactly scintillating …
I didn’t realize how strong my commitment to critique group was until this past January. I had minor surgery on a Wednesday and figured I’d be at the meeting the next day. My doctor called me Thursday morning and asked me how I felt. I described the pain I had during the night but said …
“Writing is not like painting where you add. It is not what you put on the canvas that the reader sees. Writing is more like a sculpture where you remove, you eliminate in order to make the work visible. Even those pages you remove somehow remain.” (Eliezer Wiese, Nobel Peace Prize Winner 1986) So what …
If I had to pick the most exciting half hour of my summer, I’d choose the thirty minutes I spent with Kyle Pressley, a man not my husband. We connected. He understood me. I was head over heels in love with his machine. That would be the Espresso Book Machine (EBM), one of the newest …
EBM, the most awesome, coolest writer’s tool ever by Julie Royce Read More »
The ocean tide pushes a wave toward the shoreline, crashing onto the rocks and bowing a hasty retreat. Another wave follows, drenching the wet sand, obliterating all but the memory of the previous wave. A photographer captures the scene and enhances it through digital format. A painter dabs at canvas with brushes and watercolors. A …
Ever agree to pet sit for a friend? As a writer, I envisioned quiet writing time away from my life’s interruptions. I packed up my writing instruments: computer, manuscript, notes, and favorite pen. As a writer, I have my superstitions. Like an athlete, I rely on a good luck charm, my special pen to write …
My recent scholarship to study writing mandated an English assessment at Las Positas College. “Arrive fifteen minutes early,” the online instructions warned. “No admittance after the test begins.” Arriving even earlier, I peeked through the heavy glass framing a locked door. Dark, no movement inside. I retreated to a wooden and wrought iron park bench …
My empty nest is full again. Both kids are home for an indeterminate period while they seek employment. Having them home isn’t the issue-it’s having them home with their own schedules. When they were in school, my writing life was bound by their calendar. From September to June, mid-morning to mid-afternoon was mine. Creatively speaking, …
Life cycles, schedules, and the writing gods by Lani Longshore Read More »
I was a timid grammar school student-the proper term back then. I didn’t raise my hand in class. I hated standing up front, the object of everyone’s attention. My shyness persisted to upper elementary. In the eighth grade, teachers recognized my expanded vocabulary and A+ spelling abilities and encouraged me-pushed is a more definitive word-to …
One of my favorite travel games is collecting odd names. I have a list of them – names of towns, roads, businesses. Some of them become titles of stories, some of them become titles of quilts, some of them serve as a source of amusement on boring days. This game is easier to play on …
Toledo Vader Road, the unwritten story by Lani Longshore Read More »
