Tales from the Raven

I’ve noticed that I have a hard time editing a story if I’m enjoying it.  I’ve even caught myself referring to stories as ‘fun’ reads, as separate from material I’m editing, but often they can be of comparable skill and even by the same author, so the distinction must be in my approach. For example, [...]

The bad news is, I ran over something today. The good news is, it was my math book! The bad news is, the math book survived. The good news, so did the calculator! The ugly truth?  It takes more than neglect and abuse to stop this math class.

With travel and swim season ahead and the best of new year’s intentions behind, I’ve come out of hibernation to trim off a few pounds. As always, this process is full of choices.  Do I really want that chocolate cake?  Even if it means an extra hour on my stationary rower?  Shall I skip the workout [...]

droit n. Law. 1. A legal right. 2. Something to which one has legal right.  fleshpots >plural n. places providing luxurious or hedonistic living: he had lived the life of a roue in the fleshpots of London and Paris.  incipit n. The beginning or opening words of the text of a medieval manuscript or early printed [...]

I just linked (through my favorite literary one-woman kick-a$$ info scoop, Miss Snark) to a new site which has funny cartoons and interesting reader comments.  Go to Will Write for Chocolate.com if you’re interested.

10 – Come to the parent/teacher conference twenty minutes late and hungover 9 – Tell him you believe homework stifles a child’s innate curiosity and forbid your child to ever turn it in. 8 – When you visit the classroom give a mournful sigh at the sight of the books and ask what was the cost in trees. 7 [...]

Leann slipped down the stairs, her shoulders tensing as she passed the kids play room.  From within came the sounds of a toy train and children’s voices. She smiled and took her seat at the computer.  With the kids happily playing, she could finally get a few minutes to write down her thoughts and feel [...]

I’ve figured out that one of my stumbling blocks as a writer is that I can’t sum up what my story is about in a few well-chosen words. My dh asks me about my new story and I launch into a rambling account of this’ and thats’ which include lots of back history but leave out the character’s [...]

A month or two ago I took a quick look online to see what prices I could find for an upcoming trip, and choked.  Tickets I used to get in the $200 dollar range were upwards of $400 with less than ideal departure times. Since we didn’t know exactly when we’d be flying I set the search aside.  [...]

We’re hunting around the area for a good private school.  With a plethora of options, it ought to be easy but is in fact a difficult deciscion.  One factor complicating it for us is that our children are very different in their strengths and weaknesses, yet we’re hoping to put them in the same school.  [...]