Powered by people

I love people. I need to be around people. Can’t wait to meet someone new. Can’t wait to have a good talk with an old friend. Even my preferred place to write is in a coffee shop filled with people: talking, slurping, laughing… Pella, Iowa, just enjoyed its annual three-day highlight–Tulip Time. The town is full… Read More

I read it somewhere

♦ Reading ♦ Writing ♦  Doodling ♦ Listening ♦ Thinking ♦ Learning ♦ Sleeping on it ♦ Discussion In my life, these go hand-in-hand, but sometimes their place in the queue changes. Maybe it’s my DNA. Maybe it’s my upbringing. Maybe it’s my short focus and eagerness for something new, but I get really excited about this list. My upbringing partially explains the love of reading and… Read More

Is less really more?

Regular, deliberate pruning brings improvement  Every year I prune my raspberry patch because overcrowded canes compete with each other for sunlight and nutrients. If I don’t, the patch produces fewer berries and smaller, poor-tasting fruit. Without pruning, shady moist conditions around dense thickets encourage fungal diseases. Pruning also results in better writing. Pare down your… Read More

creativity and organization: friends or foes

Structure gives free reign to your imaginative talents. Writer’s block–is your to-do list the #1 invader that sabotages your inventiveness? Do you get so lost in invention that you miss deadlines, appointments, and dates with your significant other? I’d love to spend all my time mixing words creatively into stories, poems, and delicious art that people will devour. Unfortunately, that’s not… Read More