Day people

It’s my fifth day of not working, and I am finally beginning to relax. I’m starting to feel inspired to do things — creative and non-creative projects alike.
It’s surprisingly difficult to find time to write: A morning spent finding accommodations in Yosemite for later this summer, a trip to the gym and the grocery store, [...]

anthologized (good news), rejected (bad news)

I am now officially anthologized. Published, I mean. In A Book! Me.
My essay, “Pruning,” (formerly known oh-so-imaginatively as “The Garden”) has been selected to appear in an anthology of garden writing called “Gardening at a Deeper Level.” Obscure, yes. But published, yes! In a book!
I got the letter on Saturday, fully expecting rejection. In fact, [...]

Spying on MFA students

I�ve been accepted into five MFA programs in creative writing. I’m waiting to hear from a sixth. This, I know, is an enviable position. I’m still surprised by it myself. Six months ago, as I went through the grueling process of applying to six programs, I sincerely believed I would be lucky to be accepted [...]

adolescence = disturbing

While I’ve never been a huge Joyce Carol Oates fan, I respect her for her amazing productivity more than anything else. But recently I picked up a collection of her short stories, “Small Avalanches.” I bought it because Oates’ stories and novels are often about young women and teenage girls, and I thought that [...]