So my friend and I completed our 14-day creative challenge. I think it went well. Our biggest complaint was the time constraint...having to come up with something in such a short period of time. Full-time jobs, chores, family obligations all get in the way. But we pushed ourselves and did a little something every day.… Continue reading 14 Day Challenge – Update
New Page
I've added a new page to the site - Reading List. I'll post the books I read over the course of the year. I'll also note the books I've read the past few years. The ones I like you'll see that I've reread. I'll star the ones I haven't gotten around to rereading...yet! RB
14 Day Challenge
An artist friend of mine recently convinced me to participate in a 14-day creative challenge. The basic premise is that she will pick a random word from a jar each day, and she and I each have to create something based on that word. Seeing how she is an artist and I’m a writer, the… Continue reading 14 Day Challenge
Old School
I was in a store yesterday and while browsing the shelves I came upon an electric typewriter. No, it wasn’t used or vintage. It was brand new, still in the sealed box, for $99.00. I stopped to admire it for a few minutes and chuckle over the fact that on the same day, in two… Continue reading Old School
Thought to Page
Coming up with story ideas isn’t terribly hard. I have my list of story titles that often provides inspiration, and other times ideas spring from things I’m reading, or maybe a movie, and sometimes they just come out of nowhere. I don’t think I’ll ever have a shortage of story prompts, of which my only… Continue reading Thought to Page
Storytelling, Part 1
Telling a story seems straight-forward…you start at Point A and work your way to Point Z. Beginning and ending. It’s been that way since humans first told stories to one another around a camp fire in the faded past and continues today with e-books. The thing is, an A - Z approach to storytelling gets… Continue reading Storytelling, Part 1
Being Fearless
“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will… Continue reading Being Fearless
Raymond Carver
I’ve been working my way through a copy of Raymond Carver’s collected short stories. I had read a handful of his stories when I was in college and I found a writing style that I wanted to mimic. That’s the thing with writers, especially when we’re still trying to find our footing…we feel a connection… Continue reading Raymond Carver
Daydreaming
Have you ever daydreamed when riding in a car on a long road trip? You know what I mean? It’s one of those quiet stretches. You have the radio playing some local station you picked up while passing through a small town. The driver is fixed on the road ahead while you stare out the… Continue reading Daydreaming
Hunter S. Thompson
One of my many influences as a writer is Hunter S. Thompson, otherwise known as Doctor Gonzo. Thompson was the founder of Gonzo Journalism, a style which allowed the writer to impose him or herself into the story. There’s also an abundance of surrealistic description and drug-fueled mania. He wasn’t ever going to see one… Continue reading Hunter S. Thompson