There are stretches of time in my writing life when I wake up eager to work and have one productive day after another. Then there are stretches like this week, when I wake up feeling like it’s intolerable to be on page 12 of a difficult 400-page revision, and am I really supposed to be… Read more »
I need a good cry
Today
Here in Cambridge, as in a number of nearby towns, we are generally all doing what we’re told and staying inside while the search for the Boston Marathon bombings suspect continues. What a strange and difficult day. What a hard week the Boston area has had. I have been thinking a lot about the parts… Read more »
Some Days Should Just Be Cancelled
Recently, I had one of those days wherein by the end of the day, you’ve screwed up so many times that you despise yourself and it seems like the only possible way to redeem the day is with a bit of plumbing. Hence, I proceeded to jam a scrub brush down the drain of my… Read more »
An Important Reminder
For those mornings when you wake up and find yourself wondering, Hmm, what strange thing happened to me overnight? Weirdness and worry, you are welcome in my day: come on in. The Guest House This being human is a guest house.Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness,some momentary awareness comesas an… Read more »
On Setting Things Free
I’ve been playing chess on my phone during work hours. Initially, I started to do this because the writing I’m doing is kicking my heart around the room and I can only bear to work on it in small doses; a game of chess every 90 minutes or so stabilizes me and brings me back… Read more »
Margaret Mahy, 1936-2012
New Zealand writer Margaret Mahy died on Monday, July 23. She was 76 years old. Margaret Mahy could write emotions like sadness, fear, the desperateness of courage, so that you felt them as you read. A few lines from Alchemy (2004): Certainly the sound of her sadness had spread itself backward and forward through time…. Read more »
So Much Sadness
I have so much sadness today at the news of the death of Maurice Sendak. I am crying at my airport gate. So much sympathy for his loved ones, and so much gratitude for all his work gave me – more than I can possibly express in this moment. The world has lost an irreplaceable… Read more »
A Thank You
A book release can be overwhelming. A lot of factors converge at once. Reviews, to be honest, don’t really faze me, but they do create a lot of swirling noise. There’s a lot of noise in general during a book release, and when you’re trying to ground yourself in what matters, noise can be decentering…. Read more »
Bad Days, Voice Recognition Software, SNoQ, and Benedict Cumberbatch
Wednesday was one of those days where you wake up and it’s so dark outside that you feel like there must’ve been some mix-up with the sun. And it never gets any brighter, and also your hands hurt, but you have to do a lot of computer work anyway, and because your hands hurt, you’re… Read more »
These Are the People in Your Neighborhood
According to the literature that came with my 2012 parking pass, my city, Cambridge, Massachusetts, has the highest percentage of people who walk or bike to work in the nation. (I wonder if I count in that statistic? It’s about a 30-foot walk from my bed to my couch.) I’m not a native of Cambridge… Read more »
