I’ve had a Post-It in my day planner for at least 3 weeks that says, “Write blog post about quiet time.” Ironically, I have not had enough quiet time to actually write a blog post about quiet time. This is…troubling. And, according to Alan Lightman, a physicist and writer, it’s a sign of the times. — Read More
Category: Writing Process
Book #3: Coming this June!
I’m so excited to announce that my third book, Tiny, will be published by Turner on June 11. You can pre-order it now. A brief synopsis: Nate and Annie Forester are faced with every parent’s worst nightmare when their three-year-old daughter, Penelope, is hit by a car right before their eyes. In the aftermath of — Read More
(Kind-of-sort-of) writing with a baby
I was compelled to write this post after a co-worker approached me in the work kitchen and said, “I don’t know how you work full-time, have a baby, and write books. You must not sleep.” Lest I give the impression that women should burn the proverbial candle at both ends, I had to correct her: — Read More
Short story news
Since I’ve had my baby (almost a year ago–wow), I haven’t had the time, energy, or mental focus to tackle writing a new novel. Hell, I’ve been struggling to read novels lately; I fall asleep after 5 pages. Anyway, I have been able to write some short stories. One that’s especially near and dear to — Read More
The joys of research: An ode to the Internet
When I started writing my first novels (back in the 20th century–ha), the Internet was in its infancy. Google was not the preferred search engine. Anyone remember AltaVista? Those were the days. Except they weren’t. Not for a writer in need of easy research. I used to go to the library to do research for — Read More
Why I wrote a book about a guy who wants to kill himself
At the end of the “Parts Unknown” Berlin episode, Anthony Bourdain quoted Samuel Beckett: “You must go on, I can’t go on, I’ll go on.” Except he didn’t go on. Shortly before this episode aired, he hung himself in a French hotel room. I read Kitchen Confidential a few years after it was published and became an immediate fan of — Read More
When the muse drops by and you’re like, “I’m busy”
Most creative types know that a visit from the ever-elusive muse is a welcome and wonderful thing. You can’t always control when inspiration strikes. It comes and you take advantage of it because you don’t know when it will come again. Unless you’re busy. Then it might not be realistic to strike while the proverbial — Read More
The beat goes on
The little one is napping, so here I am. One of the most humbling things about motherhood (and there are lots of humbling things) is admitting that I have so much less control over my schedule. I used to pride myself on my productivity. I would wake up with a specific to-do list and if I — Read More
While you were sleeping: A letter to my daughter
Dear Mya, You’re napping in your swing, finally. Usually by the time we get you to nap, you need to eat again. I have 10 minutes to write this before the inevitable hunger cry commences. It’s been a rough few days. We’ve all had a cold. I got my first round of edits for Cherry — Read More
Women writing men
My next novel, Cherry Blossoms, has a male narrator. I didn’t plan to write a story with a man’s voice; it just came to me that way. This story, like most of my stories, started with one line: “I have eight months to live.” And the character saying that line in my head just happened — Read More