Editors Have Wounds, Too
In June 2018, Author Kelly Simmons gave a talk on characterization at the Philadelphia Writer's Conference. She listed the traits that a sympathetic character should have: desire, spunk, resilience, foolishness,…
The Mummy Demon Revisited
My visit to Atlantic City was a trip through time. At the Johnny Rockets restaurant, where I had my supper, they played oldies from my childhood, such as the…
The Great Pumpkin Revisited
Last year I gave a little history on the pumpkin and why it was so crucial to Halloween. This year I'm focusing on the Great Pumpkin that Peanuts character Linus…
Leaving the Day Job
Yesterday, I retired from my job as a respiratory therapist. I worked at the hospital for 34 years, and much of what happened provided grist for my fiction. A lot…
Ode to Mike’s Backpack
At the outlets this week, I bought a new backpack. The battered black one I was using went into the trash. No big deal except that the tattered bag belonged…
Battle of the Covers
The cover war started during Smashwords’ July promo. Because Smashwords had changed its formatting guidelines, two of the books that had been out awhile didn’t meet specs. I noted that…