My son, Matthew, was the kind of teenager that most parents dread. Obstinate, short-sighted, rebellious, he was a handful all through his teen years. A friend of mine, who was himself raising three daughters, told me, “I can’t imagine raising a teenage boy. It must be incredibly difficult.” And it did have its challenges, like … More Believing Is Not Enough
My son, Matt, has lived many places over the years. With me and our family, he’s lived outside Chicago, San Diego, in northern California, in Idaho, and here in north Texas. Following his dream of film school and video production, he has lived in Seattle and Miami as well. Getting married to a Nebraska girl … More A great place to visit, but…
OK, I am still in the learning curve when it comes to independent publishing. I have a marginal background in marketing, having worked professionally as a book and magazine editor. But no formal training, and this whole online experiment is all totally new to me. So for the most part, we’re making this thing up … More What I know. What I don’t.
One of my students sent me a link yesterday that I have to share with you. I have already posted it on my Facebook page. The link is an 18-minute presentation by a fellow named Simon Sinek about what it takes for companies to succeed, specifically in the area of innovation. Of course, while I … More Passion, Vision and Faith: What Makes It All Work
I have told my writing classes many times that if you are serious about writing, you never stop being the student. And it’s true. My students think I am the Writing Master, but I am the first to admit that I still have a lot to learn about writing. And that, I think, is one … More The Student Becomes the Teacher
Sometimes it’s easy for us as writers to blur the lines between our writing life and real life. And there are many reasons why that happens. But there are also good reasons why we should not let that happen. My writing career really took off when my father was dying of cancer. It hit me … More Writing is/is not real life
Here’s a brief look at the first book in my Champion series, set to come out next summer: That night Harris couldn’t sleep, so after Katya was pleasantly snoring, he got up, got dressed and drove down to the church. He felt like Alice in Wonderland. The more he investigated, the more he looked for … More Excerpt from “The Champion”
I don’t think I am alone when I tell the truth that there was always something in me that wanted to change the world. However, you see the world–in need of God, unfair, abusive, frightening–I believe that everyone has a desire to change it. Writers are slightly different because most of us believe that one … More Changing the world…one story at a time
A day or two ago an author friend of mine on Facebook commented that she secretly enjoyed reading someone’s published work and then realizing that she could write better than they could. Well, Ingrid, you’re not alone there. Writing is a solitary, very often thankless, job. And we have to take joy wherever we can … More Secret Pleasures and Public Obligations
About six or seven years ago, I was asked to write a regular religion column for the local newspaper. It got me great local “exposure” and they didn’t care what I wrote as long as it was “religious.” The bad side of it was they didn’t pay me anything, and in the end, wouldn’t even … More Drivel
