Reading the book A Sudden Country by Karen Fisher; she’s one of the featured writers at Fishtrap, where I won a fellowship for July so I thought I’d better read her book. It’s won or been nominated for a slew of awards and it turns out I remember this book being reviewed in Entertainment Weekly [...]

Posted in Movies, books, fiction, my latest man-crush, my writing, television, writers, writing residencies No Comments »

I really shouldn’t have, but I bought this pulp novel on Ebay a week ago and just got it in the mail.–it was just a $1.99. I’m a sucker for these pulps from the 50s/60s–but especially if they’re film tie-ins, like this one: The Best of Everything written by Rona Jaffe. The movie starred Hope [...]

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<–got this photo at an antique store just outside Johnson Vermont last month. On the back it says “Uncle Fred’s brother Alvin. Hazel’s father.” Today had one of the longest (and most productive) days of writing since I got back from Vermont. Also, kind of nice to go with the hubby and write. We went [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, books, cute photos of me, my writing, nonfiction, postcards, ted, writers No Comments »

Still making my way through John Cheever’s bio; I should have taken it to Vermont with me, but instead I took the Journals of John Cheever (which is almost the same thing). Great quote from Cheever, though (from pg. 375 of the bio): “Why, I wonder, should my admirers always be mad.” –does this make [...]

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“To write well, to write passionately, to be less inhibited, to be warmer, to be more self-critical, to recognize the power of as well as the force of lust, to write, to love.” ———John Cheever (from The Journals of John Cheever) Been back from my residency in Vermont for two weeks now. Ooof, talk about [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, books, cats, fiction, hermia, my writing, ted, travel, writers 1 Comment »

Wow. I can’t believe it’s over. My last day at Vermont Studio Center. So much to say but my head is utterly pounding and the thoughts in my brain a-jumble — anxiety about travel tomorrow, the strange ritual of packing up after 5 weeks away, the  goodbyes to dozens of wonderful people. What is there [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, art, books, cats, collage, cute photos of me, my writing, ted, travel, word of the day, writers 3 Comments »

The last resident reading was Sunday night and I read the opening of my book. I was the first reader of the night and got to show several slides from my research–documents, photos that inform my work. It was a great night, with very positive response from the audience. Very uplifting. I shared the night [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, art, books, fiction, my writing, teaching, writers 1 Comment »

Well, it’s now been officially 2 weeks since I got here to VSC. I’ve definitely settled in (you know you’re settled in when you sleep in and miss breakfast). Yesterday several people went home–the two-weekers we call them. It was a gloomy day; they were all such cool folks: Sarah G, Sarah C, Scott, Pedro, [...]

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<–Snow in a can makes a great beer cooler!* Just a quick note. An hour ago was in my studio trying to get the printer to work and then Sarah-smile from upstairs came down to help me and then Abby-pie came over too and we got to talking about love and dating and boys and [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, books, fiction, my writing, poetry, writers 2 Comments »

“Every death is violent.” So began Amy Bloom’s reading of her story “By and By” from her new book (out this month) of stories: Where the God of Love Hangs Out. The story was dark, haunting. About a missing/murdered girl–and those she left behind. About the body and what happens to it in death, after [...]

Posted in Vermont Studio Center, books, fiction, my writing, travel, writers 1 Comment »