Inspiration

Last week, I was on Bark talking about how I had to learn to say no to others in order to say yes to myself, and to writing. My friend Sarah set me on the right path when she sent me Justine Musk‘s list of 25 Badass Ways to Say No. People have contributed wonderful comments, obviously I wasn’t the only creative person struggling with making time for my art without feeling guilty. The conversation is still going on. If you’d like to join us, head on over to Bark, or comment below and it will be like we’re talking …

April is my favorite time of year in Spokane. Not just because spring arrives, but because it’s time for Get Lit! During this amazing literary festival, authors and readers worship the written word. The festival began in 1998 as one full day of readings and was sponsored by Eastern Washington University. Now, more than ten thousand people come to the yearly event to enjoy a week of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction literary events. I’ve been a festival volunteer every year, since I moved to Spokane. This year, I’m moderating a panel featuring three amazing authors: Rebecca Zanetti, Danica Winters, and …

I’m so honored to be part of the new journey of See Jane Publish. We launch today! “In June of 2011, three friends got together to blog out their trials, tribulations, and triumphs on the road to romance publishing. As with many journeys, their paths to publication wended and wandered, and their destinations took them further afield from See Jane Publish. So now eight new friends have stepped out onto the yellow bricks to share their adventures along the way.” Diagnosis, with the help of a doctor, can help you out and be your best friend! There are several different …

I’m visiting my family in Sweden for a couple of weeks. The country is experiencing a heat wave and it is either hot and sunny or hot and muggy every day. Homes here do not have air conditioning, but I’ve found an awesome spot on my parents’ back patio that’s in the shade for most of the day. My mom’s quite the gardener, so I enjoy her flowers while working in this corner. Sometimes, even that lovely shaded table gets to be too hot and I instead move to the local library, a mere two minutes of walking down the …

Many years ago, I went to my very first writers’ conference. More than a little frightened and overwhelmed by the number of workshops and the large egos of some of the writers, I considered staying in my hotel room the second day. Instead, I pulled on my big-girl panties and braved another day of feeling out of place, answering rude questions, and attending workshops that taught me I would probably never make it as a fiction writer because few people ever did. That afternoon I attended a panel of romance writers. As soon as I stepped into the room, I …