A couple weeks ago, I shared the big news that my novel placed as a finalist in the Faulkner-Wisdom Creative Writing Competition.
And now, there’s more news, because today, the novella lists were posted, and . . . Continue reading
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Celebrating, Part 2
Back in April, I told you about how I’d finally finished writing my first novel.
After I finished the writing, I began to take the next steps, such as researching agents, learning how to write a query letter, and trying to decide whether I’d be better off with traditional publishing or indie publishing. I also did one other thing: I submitted my manuscript to the William Faulker-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition for unpublished works. Continue reading
Adulting
Different people have different views about what makes you an adult. In the Jewish tradition, it’s when you turn thirteen and have your bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah. Many girls hear “you’re becoming a woman!” when they have their first period. Still others claim adulthood begins the first time you have sex, or get married, or become a parent. Continue reading
Reading and Writing What You Like, Or How I Accidentally Found My Niche
Last weekend, I had the great good fortune to reconnect with someone I hadn’t seen since 1984. Back then, he was a high school student in the drama club I directed. Now, we’re both in our fifties, a notion I still find mildly shocking, but one I need to get used to since I’m bearing down fast on the day when only one of us holds that distinction. Continue reading
Taking Flight
Last week, I awoke to a symphony of chirping. The cats sat at the window, fascinated by the swarm of finches that swooped and landed and took off again, testing their wings. It looked like a graduation party, with half the neighborhood joining in the singing and dancing. Continue reading
Fragments
Most of us live fragmented lives.
No matter which way we turn, someone is clamoring for attention: spouses, children, parents, friends, clients, employers, pets, neighbors, co-workers, opponents, team members, fellow congregants, people who replied to our tweets or posts. They need, they demand, they want. And responding (or ignoring) requires our time and our energy. Continue reading
The New Tenants: Watch the Birdies!
Question of the day: Are the baby finches crowding the last egg, or is it possible that Number Four has finally hatched?
To recap, the eggs were in the nest by May 23. The first one hatched on June 5, nine days ago, with Number Two following a day later. Then we had the mystery of whether Number Three had hatched or not; on Tuesday of this week, it appeared he’d finally shown up:
Remembering the Others
I awoke this morning to news of the second celebrity this week to die by his or her own hand. When news of Kate Spade’s death broke, and now with Anthony Bourdain’s passing, newsfeeds and Twitter are flooded with images of the people and their work, as well as tributes by people who knew them, who were touched by them, or who simply enjoyed or admired what they put out into the world.
But there have been others. Too many others. The ones who depart not with fanfare, but with a whisper. The ones whose pain led them to slip quietly out the door of life, leaving only a handful of devastated mourners. Continue reading
The New Tenants: Third Bird’s the Charm–Or Is It?
Earlier today, I proclaimed the joyful news:
Number Three has hatched!
Number Four had better hurry up, because his siblings are hungry little buggers who will crowd him out to get to the food!
Several hours later, I checked the nest again, and I beheld this unexpected sight:
So, what was going on earlier? Were these two little scoundrels sitting on the other eggs? Were they trying to hide their unhatched siblings, hogging the limelight (and lunch) for themselves?
Or did one of them go online, see the state of the world, and decide to crawl back into his shell? (Can’t really blame him for that, but it would be kind of weird, if only because the last time I checked, the WiFi signal didn’t reach outside. Also, birds can’t read.)
Stay tuned for the next episode of the avian world’s hottest new reality show, “Really, How Many Eggs Are There?”
The New Tenants: And Then There Were Two
The score is now tied at two and two (two hatched and two unhatched):
Stay tuned!
P. Jo Anne Burgh 