Songs for the Winner’s Circle

Songs for the Winner’s Circle

Hello, bookish friends! I have to confess–winter is a tough time for me to stay motivated. I mean, the freezing cold alone makes me want to curl up in a blanket and hibernate until spring. And when the work stress and sniffling sick co-workers got to be too much this week, I knew I needed …

My 2017 in Review—and Goals for 2018

My 2017 in Review—and Goals for 2018

Hello, bookish friends! Boy, I don’t know about you, but 2017 was jam-packed for me. There were some days when it all felt overwhelming: the days when the sad news headlines just kept coming, or when family issues got so tangled up it was clear that we were going to have to Sit Down and …

My Magic Word Count Formula

OK, book friends, I have a confession: I don’t actually like NaNoWriMo. I mean, don’t get me wrong. The camaraderie, the ‘let’s just DO THIS!’ attitude is great. But banging out 50K+ words in only one month, especially if it’s someone’s first crack at a novel, is pretty much insane. When you do the math, …

Welcome to Fort Kickass

Welcome to Fort Kickass

I grew up in a tiny town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. My fifth grade class had 35 people. Total. In the whole fifth grade. Don’t get me wrong — the area was green and gorgeous, and I spent like 99% of my childhood either reading books or running wild in the woods with my …