Need to Escape Work? Find a Portal.

admin — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 23:00:17 +0000

You may have found a portal if…

It’s a wardrobe closet (The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe)

A many-eyed, flying orb knocks on your door (Wrinkle in Time)

You are at a Train Station (Harry Potter)

You’re sent a Golden Ticket in the mail (Charlie and the Chocolate factory)

You fall down a rabbit hole (Alice in Wonderland)

My definition for a portal: there is a “real” world to return to even if you don’t know how to get back.

These are some portal-stories that still stick with me longer after reading them. What are your favorite portal-stories?

The Magic Thought-bowl

admin — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 23:00:39 +0000

Journaling helps me silence my inner editor and warms me up for other writing.

Like Dumbledore’s thought-sieve; he uses his wand to twirl out a thought from his head and capture it in a magic bowl for awhile.

Yolkswagen

admin — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 00:00:27 +0000

Creativity flourishes during hard times.

October Sunrise in Auburn, CA

admin — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 03:15:10 +0000

One of those cloud mornings that makes me glad to be alive and writing.

Reading Jane Austen at Chimney Beach in Lake Tahoe

admin — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 02:42:45 +0000

Wish-flowers published in The Quotable: Issue 6

admin — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 22:02:16 +0000

The Quotable has published my short story, “Wish-flowers,” in their Issue 6: Time. You can read “Wish-flowers” for free online, or purchase a pdf or print version:

Go here to read Wish-flowers for free online

Go here to read all of The Quotable’s Issue 6: Time

Go here to purchase either a pdf or print copy of Issue 6: Time

The Quotable – Kill Your To Do List

admin — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 01:00:58 +0000

The Quotable is publishing “Wish-flowers,” a short story of mine, later this summer. Check out this blog post I wrote for The Quotable about killing your writing To Do list. Because why write stories if writing is a chore?

Boxcar Blues

admin — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 18:24:59 +0000

I took a road trip to Death Valley a few years ago. While exploring a few of the nearby ghost towns, I discovered this abandoned boxcar. HDR photography brought out the still brilliant blues and reds and hints of green and yellow, as well as the high desert landscape seen through the far opening.

How fantastic this boxcar must have looked freshly painted. I wonder what it was used for—a circus? A ladies dining car? A traveling snake oil salesman’s display car? Why is there an old mattress spring on the floor? Was this a sleeping car?

The Brief History of the Dead

admin — Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:38 +0000

The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier is a lyrical, literary, speculative fiction story about the end of the world. As a deadly virus sweeps through the world, the dead are transferred to The City, an in-between place. The story alternates between happenings in The City and Laura Byrd’s struggle for survival on an Antartica expedition gone wrong.

It’s soon clear that Laura is the last surviving human being on Earth. While I figured out early on how the story was likely to end, this did not lessen my enjoyment. The writing is lyrical, the characters are thoughtfully and compassionately written, the story is fantastical, and the conclusion is satisfying.

The Brief History of the Dead left me with a lot of the good sort of questions about what happened and what it all means. This is not a fast, action-packed book that held me on the edge of my seat, but found the characters, the world(s) and the story compelling. If you are looking for a well-done, literary sf story, I recommend checking this one out. I loved it.

A Favorite Quote (there are many to choose from):

“The living carry us inside them like pearls. We survive only so long as they remember us.”
― Kevin Brockmeier, The Brief History of the Dead

Sandra Cisneros – The House on Mango Street

admin — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:00:36 +0000

I have begun my own quiet war.