As the one who’s always behind the camera instead of in front of it, my need for a new, professional portrait crept up on me this year. Charmed by Sarah Beard Buckley […]
My Affair with Henry and the Photo Shoot that Followed
Out of the Fog and Toward Manuscript Submission
Anne Lamott wrote, “E.L. Doctorow said once that ‘Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make […]
Find Your Retreat: Your secret hiding sense and place
An experience this weekend reminded me of the necessity for finding my “retreat,” that muse-infused space where magic happens. I don’t mean a formal “writing retreat,” complete with workshops and lectures. Although, […]
Aiming for Audience: How Peaks Island Authors Do It
In an era when many people are tempted to debate the future of books and libraries, it’s comforting to me that the discussion on Peaks Island centers more around how we can […]
Where Munjoy Hill Memories Meet Masts of Tall Ships
I have decided to watch the Tall Ships Parade of Sail from a corner of Portland most meaningful to me-Munjoy Hill. Here my Irish and French Canadian grandparents found a welcoming […]
Streetcar named “Narcissus” has a new chapter
It feels good to write another chapter of a story, especially when the plot is headed toward a climax. Last year, I published an article in Portland Magazine about a historic Maine […]
Chasing Muse: Finding the “Wild, Silky Part of Ourselves”
People pay good money to chairlift up a mountain in civilized fashion and then ski down for pleasure. I just paid to snowshoe straight up 2000 feet in single-digit temperatures to brave […]
Secret Weapons Against Winter: Write or Plunge into the Sea?
While a polar bear plunge may beat back winter darkness, most island authors choose a different secret weapon to fighting their way back to life: writing.
Writing on Basement Walls: What inscription will you leave in 2015?
Imagine that you are descending stone stairs down to the basement in a 150-year-old high school to a room known as the Graffiti Room. Does this sound like a writing prompt or […]
Maine Snow Days
Deliciously naughty. Forbidden. That’s how it feels, burrowing under the covers after hearing the news – “it’s a snow day!” Billowing snowflakes muffle the outside world, even the thudding of snowplow blades. […]
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