I’m about halfway through drafting the first book in my new dragon series. As this story unfolded, I realized something about my writing. It’s driven by secrets. I find things out at the same time as you do. Sure, there are some things I know before any character does, but much of it, I don’t….
I can’t deny it. Purple martin swallows are my obsession. I love the look of them: they make me think of Toothless from the movie How to Train Your Dragon. They look like feathered dragons, don’t they? As similar as martins are to dragons — look at their heads straight on. They’re oblong on the…
Or amusing. Last week, a pair inspected the purple martin house. The male was partial to the second-floor accommodations facing the lake. The female settled on the first floor, lower left compartment overlooking our house. I’ve named them Fred and Wilma (from the Flintstone cartoon of yesteryear). Nothing Fred could do, not singing, not calling,…
I’ve mentioned in past newsletters how my mother died when I was an infant. I was told stories about her and had lots of pictures of her, but until I entered my thirties, I didn’t think of her as a real person. Someone who once lived a life. She was always a ghost in the…
I’ve been hoping to host purple martins in my backyard, but though males have visited, they haven’t convinced any females to move in. I have learned there is a colony three properties upriver from our house. I’m keeping the martin house up, hoping maturing males later in the season will want to stretch their wings…
Years ago we poured some concrete to extend the back of our carport. Our daughter was about five years old when she left this mark for us to find periodically as time went by. We did some cleaning today, and under the leaves of castoff years, her little hand print revealed itself and the memories…
Years ago when my daughter was a child, she imagined dinosaur spray, the kind a child can sssst into the air with hand waving, holding an imaginary spray can out, and making a sound reminiscent of snakes to ensure that no vicious Tyrannosaur could enter the bathroom while she was brushing her teeth. She sprayed…
Back in 2018, I decided to write romantic fantasy novels with dragons. I was already writing fantasy, but I enjoyed reading dragon fantasy. Why not write it? My husband has been more than supportive. He encouraged me when I had no ideas for the genre. We sat down and brainstormed three books together: The Dragon…
