There’s a cast of characters living in my mind and they’ve been there for years. Most of them have names, some rather creative ones, like my old friend Knits McWaller, who came to me in a dream one night. Others, more ordinary: Charlotte, Alene, Sam, Sara, David, Belle, and Iz. I ponder their stories, I…
For the past few weeks, I’ve been camped out with my MacBook and assorted piles of paper on a stool at my kitchen counter where I relocated from my woman cave. I have an office. I consider myself blessed to have had a room of my own for most of my adult life. It’s where…
Yesterday afternoon, from the comfort of my office, I attended a board meeting for the Story Circle Network via Zoom. Ten women gathered together to write, share what SCN activities we were proud of over the past year, and talk about business—which didn’t seem like business. It felt more like what it really is: strong…
I was in my twenties the first time I got paid for my writing. I had submitted a poem (or poems?) somewhere and it (or they) were accepted for publication. I don’t remember what I submitted or who accepted them. What I do remember is receiving a cheque in the mail and using it to…
It’s the last Friday of September, already; the month whizzed by in a blur. Oh, how I’m looking forward to October and a different pace—though I’ll have to make it intentionally so. I hate to use the “b” word but I can’t help but attach the busy label to the coming month as Gerry and…
I don’t remember what I was doing on August 3, 2023, but I know what I was doing on August 3, 2008. Starting a blog, that’s what. Fifteen years ago I started a blog called My Own Velvet Room after a favourite book from my childhood. It still exists, though I migrated to this space…