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Beer, burgers and books

A birthday burger: I gave my husband a choice for dinner on his birthday: his favorite home cooked meal or hamburgers at Paint Creek Tavern. I know he can’t resist a good burger. I got out of cooking. We were seated next to table of four exceptionally loud dudes. Bros having a night out. Yakking at the top of their lungs, howling, and chugging beer. I have a habit of watching people (more like…

Poet Karla Huston explores memory in her latest collection of poetry after working with Memory Care Elders.

Poems with “roots in the stories people tell” I met poet Karla Huston in the mid 2000s at a Walloon Lake Writers Retreat. She’s a gifted poet whom I respect and admire. She’s penned several collections, and has had the honor of being Wisconsin Poet Laureate in 2017-2018. Her newest release, Ripple, Scar and Story, is published by Kelsay Books. I’m pleased that she had the time to answer a few of…

Do you know how to properly pluralize nouns? The plural of plurals is not plural's! Learn the rules of plural nouns. #MondayBlogs

Can you spot the error in each of these signs? At my local Kroger. In a Pittsburgh Hilton hotel elevator. At a medical center pharmacy Here’s the answer: the above signs should read DVDs, Live Music Thursdays and Fridays, and We carry all meds now (skip the shouty capitalization). An apostrophe is never used when pluralizing a noun! Apostrophes are for showing possession or contractions.…

What, Why, How: Elizabeth Meyette

What: When I watched Elizabeth Gilbert’s TED Talk on Creativity, courage surged through me to submit the novel I’d written for publication. I had just retired from my career in education, and publishing that book became my first retirement goal. I was very fortunate and Love’s Destiny was published the next year. My publisher wanted a sequel, and the rest is “a little history…a little mystery…a…

What's in your silverware drawer? #MondayBlogs

Critters The other day when cleaning sesame seeds and peppercorns from the plastic silverware tray, I noticed the varied assortment of forks and spoons we’ve collected over the years: a fork and butter knife from my late mother, spoons from IKEA, and various pieces from the first set of dinnerware we had over 45 years ago in our first home. We lived in a two bedroom, one bathroom ranch in North…

In the process of writing her fifth novel, Meeropol mined her own buried experiences as a nursing student on the locked wards of a hospital to add more depth and compassion.

What: I imagine my novels balancing on a tightrope stretched between the issues that are important to me (racial and social justice, the climate emergency, feminism) and the characters who live inside the stories that grow from those themes, characters who try to figure out how to make a difference in the world. My manuscripts never start with theme or issue—they begin with characters in some…

Ann Arbor’s Kerrytown Bookfest returns after 3 years, and looks to be bigger, brighter, and even better than ever! Sunday 9/18/2022, 10-5pm

More than just books! Ann Arbor’s fabulous book fest Kerrytown finally returns after three years! It’s in a new location at Washtenaw Community College, but it looks to be bigger, brighter, and better than ever, and weather won’t be a worry. The festival will be able to make use of the college’s theater and various rooms as well for the special events. And what a line up! Check it…

Blankets of joy, hope, and resilience

The amazing work of Ian Tadashi Moore I met Ian Tadashi Moore through the Michigan branch of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and his wildly imaginative work enchanted me. I was even more amazed to learn that not only was he an illustrator and writer, but also a musician, and that each of his books has an accompanying audiobook. Ian has launched a new Kickstarter to…

Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Okay, it's true, he had to pick the avocado off, but overall he liked it.

Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? The implication is that old dogs (and old people) learn less well than the young, and that old folks are set in their ways. It’s one of the oldest proverbial sayings in the language. The earliest example of it in print is in John Fitzherbert’s The Boke of Husbandry, 1534: …and he [a shepherd] muste teche his dogge to barke whan he wolde haue hym,…

The King of Outsider Art

Howard Finster Leave it to Pinterest to start me on an unexpected journey. I use the site for interesting images to pair with inspirational quotes for my Facebook Author Page. The quirky portrait, above, caught my eye, with cloud-like faces making the top half of the mans’ head, and lettering decorating the bottom half. I’d never seen anything quite like it. However the post had no indication…

Now you can find Sichuan cuisine in any good Chinese eatery, my husband has retired and I have a cool story about my Sun Bird Crest necklace.

 The sun and immortal bird People often ask me about the unusual symbol on my necklace that my husband bought for me when working in Chengdu, China. The symbol is the official city logo, inspired by the Golden Sun Bird, an ancient relic unearthed in 2001 from the Jinsha Site. The four birds in the symbol represent the four seasons, while the 12 inner rays stand for the 12 months of the year,…

Alllison Maruska's historical mystery began with a simple prompt: a note in an antique coat, and delved into true circumstances from American history: eugenics and women's rights.

When I learned my friend and author Allison Maruska wrote a new novella, a “historical mystery,” I immediately emailed her with questions. The Note sounds like a fascinating read, one about secrets and plot twists, and women’s lives. I’m there for it! A novella with root in eugenics and women’s rights Is historical mystery something new for you?  Writing mysteries is my happy place. Even my…

According to a new study on dogs, it seems Lucy wouldn't get away with pulling the ball out more than twice if Charlie had been a dog.

Oops Looks like your dog does understand you more than you think. The results of a recent study explains why my pup Cowboy quits the game when I fake a throw one too many times. Researchers used a unwilling-unable paradigm to study 96 dogs of various breeds and ages and discovered that dogs may be able to actually understand humans’ intentions. This paradigm measures whether an animal is…

”In these atrocious times, let us try to build paths out of the darkness.” All proceeds from BUSY GRIEFS, RAW TOWNS poetry anthology will go to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) to support continuing Ukraine relief efforts.

Sunflowers By Christine Rhein I grow them every summer, keep the pictures on my phone — petals of brilliant yellow, skies, royal blue — nothing like gray winter, gray tanks, headline news. The whole world has pictures, explosions we hold in our palms, villagers walking us into farm fields full of shrapnel. Let it not be useless to tend the tractors, to talk of seeds and seedlings, of…

Positive Writing Goals in 3 Easy Steps

I republish this post every couple of years because, frankly, most writers can use a kick in the pants sometimes. This one, however, is painless. It’s motivating, and it will work to cement definable, positive writing goals. I credit the exercise to author and writing coach Cheri Caddick! First step: Fold a piece of lined paper in half. On the left half, write a list of what stalls you when it…

My indulgence is based on my biggest fear: that the shoe that makes my feet happiest will be discontinued.

My new Adidas Marimekko-designed athletic shoes My biggest indulgence: buying athletic shoes. Some women hoard high heels. Some women have closets full of boots, heels, flats and pumps. Leona “Queen of Mean” Helmsley had 250 of the same Ferragamo shoes. I’m not that bad, but whenever UPS or FedEx brings a box to the door, the husband laughs and asks me, “More shoes?” My indulgence is based on…

Should parents censor what their kids read?

“Home” by Ingrid Tan What is acceptable reading material for your child? It’s a legit question, especially since banning books by some schools has in turn created a demand for these books. Suppose your middle schooler wants to read Art Spiegelman’s Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus? Would exposing them to certain truths harm them, or frighten them? Looking at this list of banned…