I love summer holiday weekends because you don’t really have to do anything to get ready for them. You just sort of hang out with friends and have a glass of wine and if you forgot the wine then you just sort of have whatever everyone else is having. I noticed that I have been…

So I had excellent intentions of embarking on a blog challenge that started April 1, and suddenly here it is, practically the middle of June. I don’t normally ignore my blog for that long, and some of you have asked me privately if everything is all right, and I appreciate that. Jessica is fine—in fact,…

A blogger I follow — Laura Young at No Safe Distance — recently posted on the importance of carefully choosing role models. This got me to thinking about all of the teachers I’ve had over the years who’ve helped me to understand how to accomplish various goals. They’ve also helped me see the reality of…

A few weeks ago, my artist friend, Lynne Baur, commented that she could help me learn to draw after I mentioned that I’d love to do an illustrated book but have no artistic talent whatsoever. (She said, and I quote, “You shouldn’t take ‘can’t draw’ as an obstacle to an illustrated book.”) For a sample…

I see these memes going around: “At age 30, JK Rowling was depressed and wanted to give up, but she didn’t and now she’s worth 15 kajillion dollars, so you shouldn’t give up either!” And I just . . . think that’s bullshit. It’s not helpful. In fact, I think it’s discouraging. You’re more likely…