Have you heard of Caddy Jellyby, Rogue Riderhood, Fanny Squeers, Dick Swiveller, Uriah Heep, Ebeneezer Scrooge? (That last one is a sure giveaway.) These are fictional characters created by the master of names—the king of instant characterization—Charles Dickens. His names are highly unusual and unique, often chosen not only for delight, but for their usefulness…
I wanted to gather up some winter reading recommendations for these winter days. I’m talking about true “winter” books, ones featuring cold and snow and dark evenings. I’ll keep adding to this list, but here are some book ideas for you to get cozy with. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan This is not…
My daughters (the two who live close) and I have a little book club. We love to read, but we also love an extra opportunity to get together to eat and drink. If you’d like to catch up on what we’ve read, here are the links to the other Mother-Daughter Book Club posts: The Mother-Daugher…
[This article is reposted with permission from author Joan Fernandez. Joan’s debut novel, Saving Vincent, A Novel of Jo van Gogh, will publish on April 15, 2025 with She Writes Press and is based on a true story. In the early twentieth century, a timid widow—and sister-in-law of the famed painter—Jo van Gogh takes on…
Lots of people who are writing books do not set daily word count targets. There are various reasons for this—they feel stifled by it, they need to let their writing go where it goes (or not), they want to feel okay whether they write many words or few, or they just do not need it….