A Year After Publishing, What Has Changed?
A few months ago I read a blog post by a woman trying to become a professional writer. The post is funny yet communicates the frustration and embarrassment of the not-yet stage. The blogger, Sandra Ebijer, describes how you feel reluctant to tell people what you do...After Many Years, a Return to the Midwest–With Books
When I was a kid and an early adolescent, I lived in one of the plainer and more modest houses in the upscale community of Wilmette, Illinois. I moved away from the Midwest at age 14 and had never been back since — until this month. When the opportunity arose to...Spiritual Survival as a Writer
Recently a discouraged writer asked me how I cope with the depression that comes with writing. This woman, whom I’ll call Mary, wasn’t talking about dealing with rejection; she meant the endless self-doubt. She has spent probably four or five years writing...What I’m Learning From My Book Events
My novel The Songs We Hide came out May 1, and since then I’ve done eleven book events. I’m using the term “events” loosely, because these gatherings have come in different sizes and taken different forms. I’ve presented at bookstores,...Congratulations to some writer friends: Iris Graville, Janet Buttenwieser and Joe Ponepinto
My excellent MFA program, Northwest Institute of Literary Arts (NILA), closed a year and a half ago, and it was a sad event for all of us who had loved the program. Nevertheless, this has been a fruitful year for NILA grads. Last September Iris Graville’s memoir...
Welcome!
I am a writer who loves good music and good stories. It’s been my privilege to combine these loves by writing fiction that honors the creation of beauty, even in the bleakest of circumstances, through the creation of music. Writing has also led me to a deep interest in the recent history of central and eastern Europe.
Come and explore with me!