Now and Then: Student Protest
This week across the nation students at approximately 3,000 campuses walked out in protest of gun violence in schools. At some schools the groups were large; at others, a solitary protestor made their stand. I was proud to see so many young people believing in...
Lemonade, Plus TSA
Last weekend I attended the Nevada Reading Week Conference. Almost. The event was cancelled, courtesy of a winter storm. Organizers and presenters rallied on Saturday morning and we agreed we’d do what we could for whoever braved the icy roads and showed up....
Fiction: From Life, with Cat
I'm posting early this week due to travel. For a break from topics about writing (or, when I just can't stand it anymore, social and political issues), here's a short story, first published by THEMA Literary Journal, Summer 2008 Henry's Fence anthology. "Henry" is an...
Lifelong Learning, 2018: Critics in the Classroom
I’ve always been a fan of lifelong learning. It’s an aspect of life that’s highly valued in the town I grew up in, Port Townsend, WA, a hub of history, nature, the arts and inquiring minds. The subjects I’ve pursued lean to the arts side, particularly theater, music...
How Much is Enough?
It’s hard to settle down and write my weekly blog. I can’t get the school massacre in Florida out of my mind. America, today, is disgusting me. We have by far the highest rate of death from gun violence of any of our socioeconomic peers. We have for a long time....
“Spring” Update-Speaking, Writing, House Hunting
Speaking update: I am so excited! In three weeks, we’ll be in Reno, Nevada, at the Nevada Reading Week Conference ( http://www.nevadareadingweek.com/ ). My sessions (Kids as Critique Partners and So You Want to Write a Novel) happen on Saturday, March 3rd. I’m busy...
