“Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.” -Yogi Berra Football season is almost upon us, and I am fondly watching my own Oakland Raiders getting into training camp and getting ready for their first official game in September. This, I hope, will be the year that Oakland returns to the playoffs … More Bringing Back the Swagger
I’m back in the office. My summer is over with, voluntarily. I’m thinking that I could use the extra time to get ready for the class I’ll be teaching this fall, but I’m also hoping that the time in the office will force me to get back into writing Tesla’s Ghost. The other motivator came … More A Rose By Any Other Name
I’ve been asked what the hardest part of writing a novel is, and my answer tends to be directly related to how well my novel-building is going at the time. My dad used to have a saying: “Some days you eat the bear, and some days the bear eats you.” Some books come together quickly … More Brick By Brick
I started getting published in the 80s and 90s when I realized it was a simple as one thing: give the editor what they want. But it wasn’t until recently that I realized that there were more important things than cashing a paycheck from a publisher. I tell my students there are two good reasons … More First, Find the Fun
The only time I’ve ever gone in for counseling was when my father was dying for cancer. Half a dozen trips to the psychologist, and I realized that the best therapy was simply writing about it. I started writing short stories as therapy and starting getting them published as a side benefit. But what do … More Therapy
I had my usual dream last night. Of course, when you’re dreaming, everything is real. It’s not only real, in fact, it’s common sense. It’s very obvious that if I only concentrate I can raise myself off the floor and float free in the air. Levitation. I’ve had the dream for years in various forms, but … More The Art of Levitation
Tesla: Master of Lightning by Margaret Cheney and Robert Uth. 184 pages. Metro Books. I’m stuck in the preparatory part of writing a book when you’re still gathering intel, still absorbing ideas and piecing together bits of inspiration that you hope will one day turn into something worthwhile. And while my story is, in the … More Review: “Tesla: Master of Lightning” by Cheney and Uth
