Writing is by its nature a lonely business. We spend our time organizing ideas and fighting back self-doubt, so getting feedback from others can be helpful. Unfortunately, friends and family are not good candidates for this. They mean well, but we need help from other writers who understand the creative…

When we think of stories, we often flash back to the ones we read as children that began “Once upon a time…” Or we admire the movies we grew up on. …

Did you thoughtfully list your 2020 New Year’s resolutions and set big goals at the end of 2019? If you’re someone who plans ahead, you paid your final deposit on that cruise to the Panama Canal, or set the date for your March birthday party, booked your flight to attend…

I celebrated 2020 Black History Month each day by looking for changemakers and trailblazers. DAY 7 William and Ellen Craft, owned by two different slave masters in Macon, Georgia, pulled off one of the most ingenious escapes from slavery to freedom. At age 16 William was sold to a local bank cashier and because he was a skilled cabinetmaker was allowed to keep working at the same shop where he had apprenticed. His new owner collected most…

Madam C.J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove in poverty-stricken Louisiana in 1867, went from picking cotton to become the first self-made American woman millionaire. But it was not a straight line. How she began “There is no royal flower-strewn path to success,” she once observed. “And if there is, I have not found it…

On the surface it seems writing your life story should be easy. After all, you’re the main character and all the experiences that make up your story are filed in your memory. And yet, most of us struggle with where and how to start. There are many reasons for that…

You’re not one of those people who grumbles when retail stores roll out their displays many weeks before a holiday or observance, are you?

One day when my oldest daughter was a toddler, she was reflecting on how much she loved her dad. “When I grow up, I’m going to marry Daddy.” “But he’s already married,” I quickly pointed out. Disappointed and shocked, she said, “To who?” “To me!” I blurted too quickly. “Oh!”…

Every year as trick-or-treaters trail home on Halloween to tally their loot, writers around the world flex their fingers in readiness for National Novel Writing Month, better known as Nanowrimo, that begins on November 1st. This is the month when would-be novelists churn out thousands of words a…