I assumed I would be working through some terrible slush pile, where the likelihood of coming across anything worthwhile would be incredibly slim. So my first surprise was reading something pretty good.
Surprises in Interning
Story Ideas from a Cat
One of the several writing-related blogs, newsletters and mailing lists I subscribe to sent me an email this week with the title, “Story Ideas from a Cat,” and I immediately thought, That’s so perfect for me, because I am a mini-crazy-cat-lady. My mother is the real deal, as she has seven or eight cats most of... Continue Reading →
Book Trailers
Today, while reading my Shelf Awareness e-newsletter, a publishing industry mailer, I was reminded of a literary promotional concept that is wildly intriguing to me, and which I somehow didn't discover until very recently: the book trailer. I'm a marketing person by day, and I'm now in a position where I have to conceptualize and direct videos, which is a totally new... Continue Reading →
Traceable
A fresh snowfall makes me conspicuous. Suddenly, my once invisible footsteps are evident, making my path easily traceable by the marks I leave. My size seven boot soles, fatly imprinted into the powder, illustrate my route and the slightly open stance of my gait, which I observe behind me, as if tracking a stranger in reverse. The dogs... Continue Reading →
The Idea of Christmas
There's a little alleyway behind our house that runs between two streets, one sleepy and residential, the other a busy throughway. Sometimes, just for a change, I walk the dogs back there. They don't mind that the view is comprised of mostly garage doors and trash bins or that, depending on the season, the alley has weeds... Continue Reading →
Weird Rock Gratitude Post-Paris
Last Friday night after eating a mellow dinner together in the kitchen, instead of going to a local rock show like we did in our twenties, my husband and both went upstairs—I to the bedroom with my laptop to work on an essay, he to his studio to work on his new record. Forty-something party... Continue Reading →
Broadside Books
As an undergraduate creative writing student, I spent the majority of my disposable time and income at two independent stores in Northampton, Mass: Main Street Records and Broadside Books. I regularly took the Five College bus from Hampshire College into town and jumped off at the stop across the street from both for the sole... Continue Reading →
Expectations & Interviewing
There's something profoundly unnerving to me about reaching out to someone I don't know and asking them to talk to me. Maybe it's simple fear of the unknown. Maybe it's because I spent the last year interviewing for jobs like it was my job. When you are talking to strangers and practically begging them to... Continue Reading →
Running Head
The term running head conjures odd images for me. Immediately, I think in literal terms of a cartoonish, disembodied human head with disproportionately small legs fleeing a scene. Maybe a little like Mr. Potato Head if he were really on the go, though in my mind’s eye, he is always just standing around. Running head... Continue Reading →
Hot Pepper Jelly
I came across a small jar of homemade jelly in the pantry a couple of weeks ago, the kind sealed with a silver Ball canning lid and ring, the kind grandmothers have used for "putting up" jelly, chutney, tomatoes and the like for decades. Like most, this one had a little sticker affixed to it... Continue Reading →
True Scrawl 