Stories from the Junk Room

A friend and I were reminiscing yesterday about what people in Idaho called the “junk room”; that room in an unseen part of the house where the door was always closed and the smell of mothballs was ever-present. I had two favorite junk rooms. One was in my grandmother’s house, an upstairs bedroom piled pell-mell...

When Regrets Are a Good Thing

The other day I was listening to a podcast (I neglected to note which one) and one of the guests said something I’ve always believed but never had the guts to declare out loud. He said whenever he meets someone who insists they have no regrets, he assumes they’re either lying, or kidding themselves, or...

I Am Here

Today marks two weeks since life turned upside down thanks to the coronavirus. Friday the 13th is when it became clear my husband and I would need to start isolating, although it had not yet sunk in how all-encompassing that would be. Roger was recently channel surfing and landed on the movie, Guardians of the...

Your Friends May Not Be Your Audience

I was watching an episode of Fresh Off the Boat last night in which Jessica realized her husband had never finished reading the novel she wrote. It reminded me of something my marketing-manager husband once said, “Your friends and family are not your audience.” He’s not entirely correct, of course. Some of your friends and...

Journey On Just One Step More

I’m too tired to write this blog post. It’s been a long week, full of logistical and emotional ups and downs in both my business and personal life. It’s difficult, you know, when you care about your work, but you also care about your family and your community. It’s hard to sometimes feel spread so...

Beyond Your Wildest Dreams

It occurred to me the other day: If I’d been more focused all these years, I could have written 20 books, not just 8. If I’d been more organized, I might not have let so many potential prospects slip away. If I’d been more structured, I might have launched more of those great ideas I’ve...

You Really Like Me

Sally Field will never live down that speech at the 1985 Academy Awards when she won Best Actress and pronounced, “I can’t deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me.” It’s got to be one of the most cringe-worthy moments in television history. Honestly, though, part of the reason we all...