Approaching normal?

Atlanta never really quarantined for COVID, but some things shut.

After the second week of school in August, I drove home and my gas light lit up. I pulled into a gas station, but I couldn’t figure out why I never used to get low, or where I used to fill up.

It took me two days before I remembered that I used to go to the Humane Society every weekend, and I’d fill up at the gas station beside it, so I never went below half a tank. But when COVID got bad here, the Humane Society closed the campus.

This weekend, for the first time in about a year, I went back to the Humane Society. They’re not reopening yet, but they’re murmuring about it, and they had an adoption event. 

I spent time with a few dogs including Alan, a spectacular, gracious older gentleman. 

And then I filled up my tank.

Wherever you are on the planet, I hope you can start doing the things you love again, too.

In writing news, some of you have read drafts of what I’m now calling A Killer Melody and sent feedback, which I really appreciate! I’ve incorporated your thoughts, and I think the manuscript is much better for it. It’s very different than what it was in November or December.

I’m currently researching a lot about self publishing, because it’s what almost all the authors I admire are doing, and I’ve gotten advice to head that way. Like most choices, it’s both exciting and frightening. I’ll keep you updated, and thank you for all of your help!

Body Bound

Hi everyone!

I hope you and your families are all doing well. Whether you’re locked in your apartment or taking care of patients or helping keep grocery stores open, thank you, and I hope this little handful of a story brings you some joy.

Body Bound is featured today on fresh.ink (which will email you a short story every day if you sign up). It’s an oldie of mine, and super short.

I hope you like it, and stay safe!

It’s her birthday!

p.s. Shout-out to the amazing woman at PetSmart who brought a new collar to the car when Murphy’s broke yesterday!

Beach Reads and Lost Pencils

School’s out! We made it! Congrats to all students, parents, and other school-affiliated creatures!

Now that we’re done for the year, it’s time to lay in the sun, heal up our stitches, and sink our teeth into something delicious. (Yup, Barkley’s got about ten more days of cone left from a cut by something vicious in the backyard.)

1. The Emerson Review ran a short story of mine called “Pencil Thief” in their latest issue! The first story in the magazine features an armadillo that I can’t get out of my head, and there’s an amazing poem about eating disorders that is to be read forward and then in reverse. It’s all free online — Check it out!
2. If you’re craving something longer, something with aliens, and something you’ll be thinking about for a while, check out Cadwell Turnbull’s The Lesson. The novel comes out in mid-June, and features aliens who settle over the US Virgin Islands. I think one of the things Cadwell does best in his writing is to treat all characters as fully realized. Every single person (or alien) that he develops has a lifetime’s worth of problems, and fears, and dreams, and each character’s complexities drive tension and plot. I tried to learn from his attention to character while we were at NC State, and am still learning. (Yes, we attended NC State at the same time. No, I don’t make any $ in talking about him.)
3. Last but certainly not least, THANK YOU everyone who looked into my poetry chapbook! We made it into the top 10% of books sold on Amazon!

Enjoy the beginning of summertime, everybody, and happy reading!

Reading Weekend & Being Brave

Hey y’all,

Happy (finally) springtime! It’s stopped being forever rainy and cold in Georgia, and I hope you’re getting some sunshine too.

I’ve been working sporadically for the past year or so on a poetry chapbook, and I corralled my courage and decided to make it known to the world. It’s called “Atlanta Millennium,” and it’s about Atlanta, love, dogs, running, depression, and trying to be a decent human in the 2000s. If you like words or any of those things, or you need a friend in book form, you might check it out. The digital version is available for $2.99 on Amazon, and you can read it for free if you’ve got KindleUnlimited. If that’s going to break the bank but you really want to read it and you’ll review it or recommend it to some friends, just let me know and I’ll try to get you a copy.

For a much shorter read (of exactly 50 words), you should check out Chip Houser’s “Beetle in her Pocket.” Chip’s work is borderline horror, and you may never look at a pageant the same way.

Happy springtime reading, everybody!