Archive for May 2019
Celebrate yourself.
Don’t forget to celebrate, people. This year I have a novel publishing in November in the United States, and I have a different novel publishing in the UK and internationally in a couple months. This two book oddity was the result of a change by my US publisher, St. Martin’s Press. The Other Mother was…
Read MoreStop complaining. It’s killing you. It’s killing us, too.
A friend recently sent me me a piece on the hazards of complaining. They are extensive. The more you complain, the more likely you are to choose negative over positive thinking in the long run. Remarkably, each time you complain your brain is actually physically rewiring itself, making it easier to adapt to that reaction…
Read MoreFirst hamburger ever
It took 6 years and 362 days to finally convince the boy to try a hamburger, but the lure of a Happy Meal toy and a love for French fries forced him to commit to at least one bite. His response: “Sweet.” A whole new world has opened up for my son. Just wait until…
Read MoreSpeak Up Storytelling: Live Episode (Part 2)
On episode #51 of the Speak Up Storytelling podcast, Matthew and Elysha Dicks talk storytelling and celebrate our one year anniversary with the second half of our live episode! In our followup segment, we celebrate the recent success of listeners. Next we listen to stories by Rachel Leventhal-Weiner and Beverly Brakeman. Amongst the many things we…
Read MoreWhat is Alabama thinking?
Two weeks ago Alabama passed a law making abortion illegal even in instances of rape and incest. Last week Alabama public television refused to air the season premier of Arthur because it featured a same sex wedding. It’s weird that a state legislature thinks it can permanently role back the clock on progress in an…
Read MoreThings I Do #14: I assume the world has ended.
When I look at my phone and see “No Service” in an area where I know there is service, my first thought – every single time – is, “Oh no. Nuclear attack. EMP attack. Something bad. The world is ending.” Then two or three bars appear, and I spend the next hour walking around like…
Read MoreSomeday sucks.
“Someday” might be my least favorite word in the English language. It’s the word that prevents so many from trying so much. It’s the word that results in lament and regret. “Someday” causes people to live small lives filled with wishes and dreams and delay and inaction. “Someday” is the word that allows people to…
Read MoreTerrible Twitter and Terrible Maps
Twitter is most often a vapid, seething echo chamber where you’re verbally assault on a daily basis by Trump supporters who are personally offended when you tell the President that he is a racist ignoramus who locks children in cages, brags about sexual assault, and calls Nazis “very fine people.” It’s weird. When these same…
Read MoreChess boxing, people.
I am a founding member of the Blackstone Millville Regional Junior Senior High School chess club. Quite an accomplishment. I checked with my alma mater. The chess club no longer exists. Honestly, I’m not sure if it even continued to exist during my time at the school. But for a brief period of time, possibly…
Read MoreNever again. But a little sad.
I know this is a ridiculous waste of paper and money, and Elysha immediately went online to ensure that we would never receive a copy of the yellow pages again, but there’s a part of me that also loves seeing something old and nostalgic arrive on my doorstep once a year. It would be fun…
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