Those of you who have been following my blog for a few years may remember my postings about a book I was writing. At the time the book was called Omar’s Snake or The Snake. I forget which came first. I’m terrible at titles. The title is usually the last thing I think of. I [...]
I love reading about words. They have such interesting histories. I had an experience like that last week. I was reading an article in the New York Times about two women who had an altercation in a McDonalds. It was a rather sleazy, forgettable story, except that something in the article caught my eye. One [...]
I make it a point to read Thomas Friedman’s columns in the New York Times. He always has thought-provoking comments about technology and politics, especially relating to the Middle East This Sunday his column was especially interesting. Its title was Watching Elephants Fly. Here’s the link. It’s worth reading. Friedman begins his discussion of the [...]
I just caught a whiff of something significant blowing in the wind. Amazon announced that it’s starting a lending library. I’ll have to research this further. So far, this is what I’m getting from what I’ve read online. If you’re a member of Amazon Prime, you’ll be able to download ebooks to your Kindle or [...]
Picture Book Month begins tomorrow. I’ve been asked to start the celebration with a few words about why picture books are important to me. It was quite an honor to be asked and quite an opportunity as well to state why I believe picture books are so important. I learned to love books because of [...]
I have to confess to a guilty pleasure. I love reading biographies and autobiographies of rock stars. I think it’s because I lead such a normal, controlled life. I experience such vicarious pleasure reading about people who go totally berserk. Yes, they crash and burn in the end. But what a ride! Right now I’m [...]
One of the most exciting parts about being an author is that your life is full of surprises. Your words have wings. You never really know where your books are going, who is reading them, and whose lives they are changing. In 1978 I published a picture book with Pantheon called Why Worry? It was [...]
What I like best about my website is that my webmaster Wess set it up so I can do most of the work myself. That means I have to learn the program, solve problems, and figure out how to get the pages the way I want them. Wess will help if I get stuck. Still, [...]
I’ll be the first to admit it. I’ve done my share of grumbling about editors. Sometimes more than grumbling; raging and swearing. What?! I revised it twice for you and now you’re turning it down?!!! No, I can’t cut that scene. It’s the key to the whole story. If you like it so much, why [...]
My critique group was winding up its bi-monthly meeting. We were in Nancy Coffelt’s living room. Before we called it a night and went home, I raised a question. It had been on my mind for some time. I asked the group: “What exactly is a memoir?” Every time I scan the New Book shelf [...]
