This is the question my mother-in-law asked about The Hunger Games. Now, she didn't ask in a harsh judgmental way, but in a true mystified way. My first thought was, "A person like me." She's never read anything I've written, and I'm afraid if I ever get published and she reads my work, she will …
Continue reading “What kind of person writes a book like that?”
One agent suggested my novel was young adult. This surprised me because I wasn't trying to write a young adult novel. The main character is a teenager though. But I never thought I was writing for teens. Writing for teens...that's a minefield. Well, it can be. Adults are allowed to read anything without much of …
The garbage disposal was broken. The maintenance guy and I were sharing stories of growing up without garbage disposals. As a kid I carried my plate outside, walked to the side of the house, and scraped whatever was on my plate into the cow pasture. Mr. Maintenance asked me where I grew up. Florida. And …
I spend a stupid amount of time worrying if my writing is good enough. But apparently what I needed was a good old-fashioned sexist attack to make me know my writing is a damn well just fine. Have you seen the article about VS Naipaul? NPR picked up the story from The Guardian. And Naipaul …
Continue reading My Narrow View Is Sharp Enough to Stab Him in the Eye
Maybe this happens to you all the time. Yesterday, I was introducing myself to another parent at the roller rink. And a friend standing nearby asked if I were skating too. "Yes," I said. "I've been at my computer so much this week, I need to move." And this father, who knew nothing about me …
When I say to her, "That's a pretty bracelet," she says, "Thanks! I bought it from a Christian jeweler!" When I say, "I like the painting over the fireplace," she says, "Thanks! I got it from a Christian painter!" And I confess, I want to say, "Oh, well, thank heaven it wasn't a Muslim or …
Marta Pelrine-Bacon 