• authors,  creativity,  Uncategorized,  writing

    No Excuses: My Writing Process

    Last week I featured author Una LaMarche as part of the #MyWritingProcess blog tour. Now it’s my turn. But be forewarned: my process is not a series of creative steps I follow to finish a project. Rather, my process involves karate-chopping excuses not to write on a daily and sometimes hourly basis.  Here are five of the most common excuses not to write and how I tackle them. Hopefully these tips will help some of you kick their asses, too. “I’m not inspired.” Here’s a secret: no one feels inspired all the time. Writing is a job that needs to be worked at steadily until it’s done. Would a carpenter say, “You know,…

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  • Uncategorized

    Pin Me Down

    I should probably stay off Pinterest. I admit it has its place. It’s great for organizing my inspiration for a new writing project, or for home decor ideas, or for the perfect sugar cookie recipe. But here’s the problem: I am a serial overcommitter. A manic multitasker. And, as someone who works outside the home, parents a toddler, and writes fiction, I have a full-to-spilling schedule. (This doesn’t make me unique, by the way. I bet you’re multi-tasking while you read this.) Anyway, my point is that I don’t need more stuff to do, I need less. Or at least to focus on the things I’ve already got going. Rather than pinning all-day cassoulet recipes,…

  • budget-friendly,  fashion,  seasonal,  style,  summer,  Uncategorized

    Summer Wardrobe Syndrome

    I have a recurring problem that pops up every year around this time. My husband has come to anticipate it. The sequence goes a little something like this: First, I stand inside my closet with my hands on my hips and declare that “I have no summer clothes.” Then I remember that they’ve been packed away in a huge Rubbermaid tub since September. I retrieve said tub and promptly throw half its contents into a bags destined for Goodwill, ReThreads (my favorite secondhand store), or an upcoming swap party. A garment gets tossed in a bag if it meets any of the following descriptions: (a) I can’t zip it or can only zip it…

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    A Mad Holiday

    A Mad Men party  hosted by ReThreads, my favorite vintage store? Yes, please! You can bet I’ll be going to this. Good think I saved my cat-eye glasses and 60s shift from my Mad Men birthday party last year… MAD MEN HOLIDAY SOIREE                 “It’s December 17, 1962 and you work for Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. This is your office holiday party. Break out your swankiest 60s garb and head down to Madison’s oldest and classiest theatre for an unforgettable night of style, sophistication, and pure fantasy. We’re doing this party up right.” Expect the following: • Martinis & Fancy Vintage Cocktails •…

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    a fall scene worthy of poetry

    Go, sit upon the lofty hill, And turn your eyes around, Where waving woods and waters wild Do hymn an autumn sound. The summer sun is faint on them — The summer flowers depart — Sit still — as all transform’d to stone, Except your musing heart. From “The Autumn,” Elizabeth Barrett Browning

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  • budget-friendly,  fashion,  green living,  style,  travel,  Uncategorized,  vintage

    Spring Forward, Stay Neutral

    By Guest Blogger, Dorothy Munholland The transition from winter to spring can be one of the most exciting yet simultaneously exasperating times of year for those of us who spend the colder months envisioning our warmer weather outfits. There is nothing quite like wearing shorts outside for the first time in months, especially when you realize that you may have jumped the gun on sporting bare legs. Then, just as you think it’s finally time to shove the wool sweaters towards the back of your closet the forecast calls for… snow. Great. Fortunately, I’ve managed to avoid the outfit letdowns caused by unpredictable weather and closet transitions because most of…