writer

June 1, 2016

Melanie’s Lemon-Berry Muffins

It seems that every year around the beginning of summer I reread or at least skim parts of Gone with the Wind. I even venture to take the 959-page tome into the pool, to the horror of bookworm friends who doubt my ability to keep from dropping it into the water. (Seriously, people, I am an… Continue reading

Recipes for Readers

author, Book, bookworm, classic literature, gone with the wind, healthy muffins, healthy recipe, lemon, literature, muffins, novel, Reading, refreshing summer recipe, scarlet o’hara, strawberry, summer recipe, writer, writing
May 23, 2016

11 Writers’ Paradises

I use “I’m a writer!” to justify haunting many eclectic and sometimes downright strange locations. I visited four of the below Eleven Writers’ Paradises today, so I guess you could say it was a successful Sunday! (And yes, I know 11 is a weird number for a list, but it is my favorite number so sorry not sorry.)… Continue reading

Musings

antique, author, authors, Book, books, bookworm, cemetery, church, coffee shop, hipster, inspiration, inspiring, library, novel, paradise, poem, short story, used bookstore, writer, writing
January 30, 2016

The Shop

“Okay, what quirky place inspired this story?” asked my editor upon reading the following tale. “It’s too random not to be based on reality.” My editor (who may or may not also be my mother, but she was an English teacher/professor so it’s kosher) was right. This story sparked to life in an antique mall in… Continue reading

Scribblings

1920, antique, antique shop, author, Book, books, desire, editor, era, fashion, flapper, inspiration, literature, modern, modern woman, old fashioned, roaring twenties, shop, short story, store, story, style, the shop, thought-provoking, time, vintage, writer, writing
January 30, 2016

Please share this letter!

No, this is not some “reblog to solve a major world crisis” post and you won’t end up with bad luck for a year if you don’t share. Odds are that if you ignore this altogether, nothing bad will result. However, I truly am asking you, my fellow lover of books, to share this post… Continue reading

A Bit of Light Reading, literary living

author, Biola, biola university, Book, books, bookworm, brain candy, erin morgenstern, gift, gym reading, inspiration, kindred spirit, letter, literature, novel, pleasure reading, Reading, share, thank you, the night circus, writer
January 20, 2016

Everythingism

I promise I’ll explain the cat sandwich in space picture in the end, so just bear with me for a few paragraphs, okay? Thanks. I am what most would consider a perfectionist, which is in itself both a blessing and a curse. On the positive side, it leads me to, more often than not, accomplish… Continue reading

Musings

books, cat sandwich, diligence, do all the things, do everything, everything, excellence, hard work, literature, Music, music major, perfect, perfectionism, perfectionist, pressure, trying too hard, writer
January 12, 2016

Two Poems for Two Places

Driving across my home state of Arizona, I was struck not only by the differences between my Sonoran Desert home and White Mountain destination, but by the subtle similarities between the two. While it might seem odd that I was able to find any commonality between these so apparently distinct places, I sensed a certain artistic… Continue reading

Poetry

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January 10, 2016

Literary Tourism

Don’t be a tourist. I don’t mean don’t travel; by all means, see the world and explore new places! But don’t be a tourist, defined as “a person who travels for pleasure, especially sight-seeing and staying in hotels.” That doesn’t sound so bad, but can one really experience a place through simply seeing sights and… Continue reading

literary living, Literature, Musings

Anna Karenina, author, Book, books, bookworm, classic literature, explorer, exploring, great books, literary, literature, london, masterpiece, novel, paris, Reading, tolstoy, tourism, travel, traveller, writer, writing
December 16, 2015

On the Platform

“Are you waiting for someone, miss?” “Yes.” “Would you prefer to sit in the waiting room?” “No thank you.” She had been sitting there for quite some time and the train station master was beginning to wonder if she was really waiting for anyone at all. She certainly appeared to be… Continue reading

Scribblings

draft, Fiction, hopeless romantic, romance, romantic story, short fiction, short story, writer, writing
December 15, 2015

The Gardener

Their forks clicked in unison against the empty plates as they set them down, finished. The utensils were not the only things that had clicked. The meal had been delicious, the girl lovely, the man courteous, the conversation interesting and free of the awkward pauses generally ended by dull commentaries on the weather or the… Continue reading

Scribblings

cemetery, draft, Fiction, gardener, graveyard, scribble, short fiction, short story, speculative fiction, story, writer, writing
December 15, 2015

Graveyard Library

Upon finishing up my finals and juries today, I found my mind in a muddle, so I did the natural thing: I went exploring. In doing such, I happened upon a cemetery and spent a great deal of time wandering and wondering. To any outside observer, I was just another a college girl in an ugly Christmas sweater… Continue reading

Scribblings

author, beauty, cemetery, epitaph, exploring, finals, graveyard, history, inspiration, learning, library, metaphor, poem, poet, poetry, tomb, tombstone, writer, writing
October 6, 2015

The Word Crimes Inferno

In reading Dante’s Inferno, I was struck by his ability to identify, categorize, and assign fitting punishments to various sins. This is not perhaps the most cheerful observation, but it was certainly intriguing and made me think (apologies for the morbidity): what crimes I would punish were I to write a modern Inferno and how would I… Continue reading

Literature, Musings

AP Literature, author, Book, books, bookworm, dante, dictionary, english humor, essay, grammar, grammar humor, grammar nazi, grammarly, humor, inferno, literate, literature, novel, pun, punctuation, puns, Reading, syntax, the inferno, word crimes, writer, writing
August 28, 2015

#WriterGoals by Homer, Odysseus, and Ryanne

Yes, my title is a hashtag. Sometimes I like to break the trend of ordinary prose. Sorry not sorry. Ironically, however, this post is based on writing standards set waaaaaaaay back in the days of Homer. In reading through The Odyssey for my university’s honors institute, I realized two things: First, listening to Chopin’s nocturnes whilst reading makes… Continue reading

Literature, Musings

AP Literature, Art, author, authors, beautiful, beautiful wriitng, beauty, Bible, Book, book review, books, brainstorming, C.S. Lewis, character, Children’s Books, chopin, classic literature, creativity, enduring books, epic, good writing, great books, homer, poetry, prose, the iliad, the odyssey, torrey honors institute, true writing, truth, writer, writer goals, writing