Are you courageous enough to find your voice?
This post is a first in a three-post series on voice. To read the second post see, Using voice in nonfiction writing. The last post is Use voice to breathe life into nonfiction writing. Recently, I listened to Todd Nordstrom, a guest speaker on the Libby Gil radio program. He is the CEO of the…
Misconceptions about being a writer
When I was young, I never knew how to respond to people who ask me what I wanted to be as adult. “Soldier, Sailor, Indian Chief” came to mind, but writer? The only one who ever suggested that I pursue writing was my high school junior-year English teacher, but she never really talked to me…
FALL in love with books
Welcome to the Fall in Love with Books Tour. This tour is available only from October 1 to 4, so jump on now! There are only a few stops on this blog tour, and chances to win free books along the way. For a chance to win a book, visit each author’s site below, and…
In a sales slump? Use social media to revitalize sales
Hello everyone, it’s great to be back. I have been biking and hiking in Europe for five months as research for upcoming books. Prior to leaving, it had been my intention to continue this blog on a weekly basis. The effort proved too difficult; either there was no WiFi connection, I was busy writing my…
September 7: Sarasota
We left Amsterdam for the US via Aer Lingus. We had a short stopover in Galway, Ireland, and then a 8.5 hour flight to Orlando, FL. There were many babies on the flight. and it seemed as if they were in a crying competition–the din gave Dennis a headache. There was a pre-clear US Customs…
September 7: Amsterdam
Why is Amsterdam so noisy. Its 4:30 A.M. and the city is keeping me awake. Does the din have to do with the low altitude, the tall stone buildings, the long wide streets? People’s voices are amplified; someone talking on a cell phone appears as if they were speaking into a megaphone. The tapping of…
September 6: Amsterdam
This is the West Tower, the tallest tower in Amsterdam, 85 meters (279 feet). The West Church was purposely built by Protestants in 1620. Rembrandt is buried here. In her diary, Anne Frank mentions listening to this church’s bells while she was hiding in a storage building across the street. As I write, the clock…
September 5: Amsterdam
The Netherlands is the most densely populated country in the world, and Amsterdam is its capital and most populous city. In addition there are the tourists. According to Wikipedia, “Amsterdam is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, receiving more than 4.63 million international visitors annually, this is excluding the 16 million day trippers…
September 4: Amsterdam
As we approached the Nijmegen train station, we saw bicyclists looking for vacant spots in the multi-floor bike park. Imagine how much energy is saved in the Netherlands just with bike use. It is strange for me to look for bike traffic; several times, Dennis had to yank me off the bicycle path. Unless riding…
September 3: Nijmegen
Since we left Miami on April 20, we have visited 13 countries, about half of the Western European countries: Madeira, Spain, Portugal, England, Wales, Ireland, No. Ireland, Scotland, France, Luxemburg, Belgium, Netherlands (Holland), and Germany. We took ships, ferries, trains, buses, and bicycles, or we walked; today we rode a draisine, a pedal car on…