Have you ever been in an abandoned house? In 2001, This American Life told a fascinating story of a house whose family disappeared. And certainly, even if we don't venture inside, we've all seen houses that appear abandoned. Do you ever wonder what's inside? What happened? Why do people just leave so many things? Sometimes …
I subscribe to a ridiculous number of newsletters and, of course, I can't keep up with them: Interview Notes, The Imperfectionist, The Whippet, The Art of Noticing, Claudia's Many Worlds Vision, Anti-Racism Daily, Feminist Giant, Austin Kleon, Notes from a Small Press, Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter, Intimations: A Writer's Discourse, I Barely Live in this …
I chose some of my work to make prints, and I've posted them on Etsy. A few bunny Christmas cards are there too. I'd love for you to take a look, share, and get the word out. I'm selling one image that isn't something I drew. It is a photograph of the lake I grew …
How goes National Novel Writing Month, you ask? Okay. Maybe you have not asked, but it is a question I'm asking myself. I've managed to pick up a cold this weekend, which hasn't helped. (I've taken two covid tests, and both came up negative. And I've checked various websites about symptoms--cold, flu, or covid19? Cold. …
Like a fool pulled by the moon, I've signed up for National Novel Writing Month. What lunacy is this? And the title of the work in progress? Karma and the Bright Full Moon. What is it about? Why, it's a sequel to a book I shared on Patreon--Drowning Karma. What's happened to Deva Martin's sisters? …
'Tis the spookiest weekend of the year! This morning I listened to some pieces on fear. We seem to live a lot in fear these days. Haven't we always? One of the segments talked about why we are attracted to horror. Google the question if you want! You'll find plenty of articles. I'm someone not …
Twenty years ago, when I first heard of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), I thought, "Whoa. That's madness." But I was also intrigued. The next week year, I gave it a try, and I loved it. Did I write the best novel ever? No. Of course not. Some folks complain about NaNoWriMo producing too many …
A couple of years ago (it surprises me it's been that long) I serialized a work-in-progress--The Fairy Tale Asylum. Some lovely writer friends gave me feedback, and now I'm trying to finish it up. Oh boy, are there a lot of changes! I struggle to know when a story is finished. I'll rewrite forever. More …
I asked my students to write a 26 sentence story. The first sentence must begin with the letter A. The second sentence with the letter B. The third with C, and so on. I allowed them the same cheat I used when this was a Story-a-Day prompt--instead of having to start a sentence with the …
I read Rob Walker's newsletter The Art of Noticing. He returns often to lost objects. What lost objects have stayed with you over the years? Why do they matter? But if I still possessed every object lost, I'd be living under a mountain of things, much like the Junk Lady in Labyrinth. I've written about …
Marta Pelrine-Bacon 