Since removing my paperbacks from Amazon, I’ve had excellent sales at the local bookstore, but only one paperback sale through my web site. This makes sense. Buyers of physical books do much of their discovery by browsing shelves. So, I’ve been thinking about the tourists who picked up book one, The Calling, at Black Cat Books and Coffee. If they want book two, Shaman’s Blues, will they look at the end matter, find my web site, notice the “buy paperbacks direct” link, and order from me? Will they remember the name of the bookstore and look up its contact information and order from them? More l ..read more

Seventy-six percent eclipsed, the New Mexico sun was still bright. Of course, I didn’t look at it, but the blue-skied day seemed to have barely dimmed at all. I went as I do every Monday to teach an outdoor yoga class. The garden around the patio where we practice is carpeted with the blooming succulents in pink, red, and orange. Class is ordinarily accompanied by the gentle drone of bees. But the ice plants had closed their flowers tight, and not a single bee lingered. A sudden cold breeze came up. As the hour-long class progressed, warmth returned. At the end, I guided deep relaxation and th ..read more

 I’ve been reading old drafts I never posted, looking for lost gems, and found this: It was one of one of  those talking-to-strangers encounters so common in Truth or Consequences, initiated by a bubbly dark-haired women in the art-installation area of the ladies room at the Brewery. She enthused about the place and asked if I was local. I said I was, and then I asked where she was from. “LA,” she said. “I’ve been here six months.” “Sounds like a really positive change,” I  said. “How did you decide on T or C?” “I thew a dart.” I must have looked puzzled. She explained, “I sprea ..read more

She staggered and wove, her steps crossing each other as she traversed the steep sidewalk, aiming uphill toward Main Street in her irregular style. Heading downhill on my way home after teaching yoga, I tried not to stare at the poor drunk on the opposite side of Foch Street. And then, from seeming unable to walk a straight line, she transformed into a dancer. She spun, both arms extended, her balance perfect despite holding a large cloth bag. Then she staggered on, and then spun again. Okay, I thought. This is Truth or Consequences. What the heck. You can express yourself. I continued across ..read more

Every two years, I have to renew all my certifications as a fitness professional. I enjoy the classes, including the tests, and feel refreshed as an instructor. I also take weekly classes with a yoga teacher whose skill I aspire to emulating. There’s no required continuing ed for writers, though. I could go years without learning anything new, if I wanted. But since I don’t know everything and can forget to apply what I do know, I took a class on revision and self-editing. It made me look at my work in progress with fresh eyes and gave me an improved sequence for my revision tasks as well as ..read more

First, look at the art. Take your time. Explore. Then you may understand the effect it had on me. I attended an Art Talk by Otto Rigan at Rio Bravo Fine Art, spending over an hour immersed in images of his work and stories of how he came to this unique form of expression. After his talk, I ran on a desert trail I’ve known for years, a place so familiar I know where to step, where I’ll meet rough ground or soft sand or the perfect surface, and it looked entirely different. I saw the light, literally. Light glinting on grains of sand like tiny mirrors. Light shining back at the sun from smooth ..read more

I had, as usual, inspiring encounters with art and with friends at the January Art Hop. In one gallery, I talked with a very productive artist who said he makes a new list every day to get things done. I had to confess that a few same things have been on each new to-do list I’ve made—for years. He said cheerfully, without judgment, “That’s okay. You did other things.” In another gallery, I admired the work of a local quilt artist, mentioning how innovative and unconventional her work was. She said, “Unconventional, that’s me. Getting outside my comfort zone grows my comfort zone.” Later in the ..read more

No murder, just mystery.Book two in the Mae Martin Psychic Mystery series is 99 cents in all eBook stores through the end of January. The book that brings Mae to New Mexico!   ..read more

I meant to go shopping in Las Cruces, an hour away. I was waffling about stopping at Caballo Lake State Park, a short way from home on my way south. It was such a beautiful day, I gave in to the urge. At the park’s EV charging station, I looked for my Charge Point card and found … no wallet. I’d left it at home. One of the perils of changing purses too often. If I’d driven straight to Las Cruces, and not stopped to indulge in outdoor beauty and top off my charge, I’d have wasted my day. I might not have discovered the missing wallet until I had all my items at the checkout. I don’t even want ..read more

I’m not talking about the holidays, but about tourist season. And coyote mating season. The local economy depends on the human snowbirds who flock here along with pelicans and sandhill cranes and other winged visitors to our lakes and the Rio Grande. My runs in the desert are no longer solitary. I must have met six different people today, ranging from dog-walkers to a man trekking with poles. The sky was a brilliant New Mexico blue with flares of white clouds, and the sixty-degree sunshine felt even warmer reflected by rock and sand. And then there was the coyote trotting past, trying to esca ..read more