'The best poems are those that don’t really end ..read more

I discovered the short stories of Doug Brown thanks to an interview of him a couple of months ago on the podcast Short Story Today (which I highly recommend), and I have since delved into his collection of short stories, My Bohemian Baptism and Then Some (Serif Press, 2023). What immediately struck me about Doug ..read more

Just for grins, I wrote this bit of speculative fiction over the weekend in honor of today’s solar eclipse. The Eclipse Is Running Late For some strange reason – a scheduling mix-up, or a meeting running long, or some other cosmic bureaucratic glitch – the eclipse is running late. The sun is furious and firing ..read more

'I try to make poetic observations that tie in to our common humanity ..read more

None of us gets to live forever. But perhaps our words will outlive us, somehow ..read more

'Your first book will be less than perfect. Write it anyway ..read more

I wish there were a surefire way of knowing when a piece was finished ..read more

One of the author websites I read regularly is Junot Díaz’s StoryWorlds. Diaz is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, among other titles, and through his Substack writings he generously shares his ideas about the writing craft with his readers. A recent post, When the Words Become ..read more

Continuing this blog’s celebration of women writers throughout Women’s History Month, I’m thrilled to introduce readers to Nicky Shearsby, an author of dark psychological horror thrillers. Nicky is active on X (@Nickyshearsby22), where she frequently engages with other writers and shares encouragement and wisdom. Her latest novel, Darkridge Hollow, is available now in ebook (Kindle) and ..read more

'... if you have the opportunity to work on your gifts, it seems like a crime not to ..read more