Feb 2, 2021 | The Writing Life
The dream is closer than I thought. All it took was setting myself on FIRE. Which is way less painful than it sounds. The FIRE movement, short for Financial Independence Retire Early, is already changing my life dramatically. I always thought one of three things had...
Jan 6, 2021 | The Writing Life
Am I the only one who wants Christmas back? I was happy to see the end of 2020, but so far, 2021 has brought me: a broken filling (ouch), “fun” with an insurance company who wrongly terminated my benefits, a kitten that was so destructive he had to be...
Dec 2, 2020 | The Writing Life
To paraphrase Poltergeist, “I’m ba-ack.” At least for now. When Alex Cavanaugh, the great leader of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group, suggested I make my monthly newsletter post an IWSG one so I didn’t have to leave the group, I...
Nov 4, 2020 | The Writing Life
Something had to give. I’ve known it for some time now. I just couldn’t figure out what. Or maybe the truth was I didn’t want to admit it — even to myself. But, after seventeen years of blogging, I’m hanging up my hat. I thought it would...
Oct 6, 2020 | The Writing Life
Hello Insecure Writing friends (and wonderful readers), Does anyone else feel like they’re on a sadistic merry-go-round? Mine looks like this… 1. I get a writing-related job to support my dream of being a full-time author 2. The writing-related job...
Sep 29, 2020 | Mysterious Places, Scary True Stories
In Rockland County, NY, straddling the border between the towns of Stony Point and Haverstraw, and only three miles from where I live, lies one of the most tragic places in all of New York State. And likely one of the most haunted. It is Letchworth Village, and its...
Sep 15, 2020 | Scary True Stories
You’re not alone. Many of us grew up scared stiff of someone — or something — hidden under there, waiting to pounce. Even worse, this urban legend has some truth behind it. Several hotel patrons and staff have discovered bodies concealed under beds...
Sep 9, 2020 | Scary True Stories
What happens when the thing you love most is suddenly stolen from you? Natalie Purdie had a passion for dancing. From the age of eight years old, she “ate, slept, and drank” dance. “Dancing was my life,” she says. When Natalie was sixteen, her...
Sep 2, 2020 | The Writing Life
For today’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group post, I thought I’d help with others’ writing insecurities instead of whining about my own for a change. 🙂 Due to the pandemic, I’m now able to share what I’ve learned in the marketing and...
Aug 25, 2020 | Murder at the Movies
People in horror movies do some pretty stupid things. I guess they have to…after all, if everyone acted intelligently, there wouldn’t be much suspense. Still, I love movies where the would-be victims have half a brain and actively attempt to outwit...