A year of loss — On June 27, 2022, I lost Kathleen, my wife of 45 years, my love, my truest friend, my confidant, my constant companion, my writing mentor and editor, my motivator and champion, and on and on and on. Death has visited our family many times. When Kathleen was thirteen, her mother…

Driven out, taken in — The scars were what convinced her. His ursine size notwithstanding, Nessa O’Clery might have written Jake off if not for that spider web of white lines tracking across his forehead and cheekbones and vanishing into his unkempt beard. This guy was a survivor. “Let him live,” she ordered. Her three…

A poem in memory of my wife — When the chicory blooms, you’re there. When lightning splits the clouds And thunder cracks And rivulets flood the irises, You’re there. When leaves don warm colors of cool autumn And pumpkins break out in toothy grins As saints lend souls their guiding hands, You’re there. When the Child is in…

It’s trying. Very. — This article contains shocking and disturbing revelations about the character of the world’s most famous AI system. Some readers may feel faint, find their faith shaken, or descend into convulsive fits of laughter. You’ve been warned. Read at your own risk. It started innocently enough. I wanted to see what…

A final moment of happiness — The sun didn’t show that morning. An unbroken stream of gray filled the western Ohio sky, carried on a chill breeze. The air felt heavy, wet. James Linderman didn’t care for it. Deer would be scarce this morning, more so if the rains came. Cloaked in a stand of young…

I totally forgot about this newsletter over the past year. I guess I owe you an update. First — some of you may already know this — 2022 was derailed shortly after it started as Kathleen, my wife of 45 years, grew increasingly ill and passed away on June 27th…

Train up or…well, just quit —

Make your print look as professional as your writing — As a self-published author, you already know — or should — the importance of good writing, solid editing, and a great cover. You’ve done everything you can to make your book look and read like a professional product. Or have you? Did you pay attention to typography? Do you know…

How to use reader reactions to improve your writing — Whether to read your reviews is a vexing question. Many writers and publishers insist you shouldn’t, and they have a point. That volatile cocktail of glowing praise, lukewarm approval, and open hostility can make you sick with anxiety. Then again, hidden in the mix just might be some nutritive value…