We’ve gone over our characters and probably have an idea of a story or plot. So why stop now and look at the very words we use? It’s important because we want to get our words, sentences, and paragraphs in good working order before we get too deeply into our […]
A Future I Can Count On
The future bewilders me. I never know what’s next. I should be used to that by now. But no. I make a plan and then watch it swirl into oblivion shortly after my first sip of morning coffee. Since I’m off much of social media, I have more time. So, […]
Head for Shore
The lake before me runs at an even pace with ripples breaking against the rocky, wooded shoreline. November trees adorned with crumpled, brown leaves shiver in a cold breeze. Evergreens standout, their pine branches waving as if to salute distant friends who never get any closer. This should be a […]
Learning the Craft: Storytelling
Why storytelling? Because, throughout known history, humans have always told stories. Let’s face it: writing is all about storytelling. Storytelling has been around since the dawn of time. The Australian aboriginal people painted symbols from stories on cave walls so they could remember the stories told. In the past, before […]
Learning the Craft: The Best Friend Character
How do you create a Best Friend for your protagonist? It depends on what you want from that friend. Do you want the BF to be a reflection of your MC? That would be boring. Or do you want to showcase the qualities of your Main Character by giving his […]
He played football and learned the pain in his leg was not from football; it was bone cancer. He was eleven years old.
By Larry Peterson Angiolino Bonetta was born on September 18,1948, in Cigole, a town in northern Italy located in the Diocese of Brescia, a diocese established in the first century. His parents, Francesco Bonetta and Giulia Scarlatti were not poor and managed to make ends meet, but there were no […]
The Strange Paradox of COVID-19: Saving the lonely by making them lonelier
I have learned that loneliness has no boundaries. It reaches out for everyone and captures many of the unsuspecting, including the seemingly happy, satisfied, and successful. Yes, loneliness is capable of dragging the lonely into a world of hidden misery and often depression. It can attack anyone at any time, […]
The Elusive Judgment-Free Zone
The ad for a national fitness center franchise promised that for $10 a month I could enter a judgment-free zone. It gave the hours where I could escape the judgmental world around me to enter a place where no one judges my looks. So from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. […]
Who Do You Say That I Am?
By Janice Lane Palko You’ve seen those Ancestry commercials about people who believe they are one race or nationality and then take a DNA test and find out they are not who they thought they were. My husband could be featured in one of those commercials. This past Christmas, I […]
Pick up the Orange
By Janice Lane Palko Some people receive profound promptings from the Holy Spirit. Me? I get messages like “pick up the orange.” A few weeks ago, I walked into my local grocery store and saw a woman select some oranges and put them in a plastic bag. As she walked […]