As you know, writing is a solitary profession. Writing groups and groups of writers can help combat the isolation and I’m lucky to have both–a weekly writing group as well as a writer’s collective to keep me company and cheer me on. The five women in my Paper Lantern Writers writer’s collective all share a love of history and storytelling but each explore different time periods and places. Today we’re sharing a sneak peak of some of our work through our first First Chapters collection.

Included is Ana Brazil’s Gilded Age mystery FANNY NEWCOMB AND THE IRISH CHANNEL RIPPER, C.V. Lee’s medieval work-in-progress ROSES AND REBELS, my 19th century polygamous homesteader work-in-progress THE CASKET MAKER’S OTHER WIFE, Katie Stine/Edie Cay’s Regency historical romance A LADY’S REVENGE, and Linda Ulleseit’s 19th century Californian family saga UNDER THE ALMOND TREES.

Visit us at www.paperlanternwriters.com/store to download for free!

But today isn’t all about snuggling up and staying in. I’m also packing for some winter adventures.  The first is this weekend to Utah to do some novel research and attend a conference on Mormon Arts.  I’m packing with one eye on the chilly weather there and one on the frigid weather of our just-booked trip to Korea next month to attend the Winter Olympics.  A good friend who has been part of the Olympics going back to the Salt Lake City games in 2002 says the Pyeongchang Olympics will be the coldest Olympics in modern history.

Winter sports enthusiasts says that if you can keep your feet warm, you’ll be fine.  So last week I swung by REI to look at some Serious Snow Boots.  Alas, I have Seriously Long Feet and even the few size 11s they had in stock scrunched my toes.  Assuming I’ll need boots big enough to accomodate thick socks and maybe some of those little packets of feet warmers that skiers use, I went to the Sorel website and discovered that they had a few size 12s still available. Of course, this time of year the pickings are slim, but I was able to order this All-American looking pair with the Italian name. My toes have plenty of wiggle-room which means these boots are getting a trial run in Utah.

They will certainly be far superior to the footwear my characters wore while homesteading in 19^th century Utah and Idaho.  Even the fancy folk in Victoria’s court never had it so good. And poor Sunja making pickles and battling the cold in Japan and Korea would never have dreamt of the affordable yet luxurious footwear that for me is just a click away.

What are you reading this winter?  Does a change in season affect what you read?

Because two friends I walk with in the early morning have been out of town for the past few weeks—summer travel has begun!—I’ve switched up my morning exercise routine by taking more yoga classes at the swim club down the road. Not entirely awake I stumble over to the sound of bird-song and the rhythmic splash of swimmers doing their laps.   In the winter a fog-shrouded sun rises in the east behind the yoga instructor, but now we turn our mats south to avoid being blinded by the fully exposed orb.  Post-namaste I spend time in the garden dead-heading daisies and supplementing the irrigation with a little hand-watering now that the drought restrictions have been (temporarily) lifted.  The lizards scatter and the hummingbirds come in for a sip. Such a lovely way to start my day. Has your daily routine changed much now that summer is here?

 Here are some other things I’ve enjoyed of late.

 A wonderful Career Code profile of our daughter Claire over at WhoWhatWear.

Dress codes for travel (while you’re there, check out the travel uniforms videos at the bottom of the article).

The corrective lenses of travel. 

Maybe you have more time than you think.

To write software, read novels.

Despite all the naysayers, life has never been better.

Elizabeth Gilbert on letting our light shine.

A pretty bar cookie featuring rhubarb. 

Jumping Jetsons! A revolving planter that levitates! 

A new album from The Monkees – “Good Times.”

“I was so full of music I had to play.”—Grandma Lo-Fi

Grandma Lo-fi: The Basement Tapes of Sigrídur Níelsdóttir from Republik Film Productions on Vimeo.

Happy Weekend All!

I recently attended a wonderful writer’s conference near Bend, Oregon sponsored by Women Writing the West.  One of the most memorable sessions of the conference was a workshop on “Landscape as Character” led by two Colorado writers – Dawn Wink and Susan J. Tweit.  For anyone writing about people and places in the West, the landscape looms large.  But Wink and Tweit say that no matter where you live, paying attention to small details is the best way to understand the big picture.

For example, plant biologist Tweit says that in the modern age we tend to use our sense of smell the least, which is a shame because it can evoke some of our most powerful memories. To help us tap into our non-visual senses she had us close our eyes for five minutes and write down what we experienced. No surprise, it was much easier to tune into the sounds, smells and physical sensations of the room once we’d turned off the “video.”

Try it yourself.  Take out a pencil and paper, set a timer and close your eyes.  Don’t worry.  You’ll still be able to read your scribbles when you’re done.  Were you surprised by what you smelled, heard, touched and tasted?

Another helpful exercise came by way of a worksheet Tweit provided.  Take out another sheet of paper and answer these questions as best you can.

• What watershed is your place part of? (Note: A watershed is the area where all the water under it or off of it drains to the same place. Mine is the San Francisco Bay. To find yours go here.)
• What bioregion is your place part of? (Great Basin, for instance, or Cascade Range)
• What is the name of the closest prominent local landmark?
• Name ten plants characteristic of the place:
• Ten birds:
• Twenty animals/fish/insects/reptiles:
• Name ten historical figures whose lives or actions shaped the story of the place:
• Which Indian groups lived in the area? What were their names for the place?

After I’d answered these questions to help with the revisions on the early chapters of my novel-in-progress set in northern Switzerland I felt like I should have been awarded a merit badge (or at least a bar of Swiss chocolate.) It was a very helpful exercise and one I’m excited to repeat for the San Francisco Bay Watershed where I live now.  As well as the Henry’s Fork Watershed in Idaho where I grew up and the Bear River Watershed in Utah where the rest of my novel takes place.

Even if you’re not a writer but would like to have a better understanding of where you live, answering these questions–and engaging your senses as you do so–will enrich your life. Especially if you indulge in some locavore chocolate when you’re done.

Have you found ways to learn more about your landscape beyond photographs? 

Today the air smells like smoke and the sky is buzzing with helicopters.  I suspect they’re monitoring the fires north of us that are burning out of control. I am watching them circle the Bay and thinking about the Oakland Hills Firestorm in 1991.

We didn’t lose our home but close friends did and I remember the shock and confusion as we sat together in our front room and watched the television reports of their neighborhood burning. The afternoon sun glowed red in a sky turned black.  For days ash rained down on our cars, yards and homes. For months afterwards the burn area looked like a moonscape.  You grew quiet when you drove through it.  Out of respect.  And also because you felt relieved and somewhat guilty that you’d been spared.

For now our house seems to be safe, but my new garden is suffering. The deer have become more aggressive—eating newly planted bushes they’d left alone until now. Perhaps they would have anyway, drawn by the apples ripening on the front yard tree, or maybe the fires are driving them closer to the water.  Just to be safe.

Some other things I tracked this week.

Keeping gravity at bay with the Lexus Hoverboard.

Some nifty summer drink ideas (including non-alchoholic or easy to make so options) here and here.

Would it be optimal to die at 75?

Smart talk about Jon Stewart.

“If you have information to send out through space and time, you must build it a story that knows how to motor.” On symbolism and metaphor–author Neil Gaiman by way of Justine Munk.

I bet this is what surfing feels like.

WAVEFORM from O’Neill on Vimeo.

Happy Weekend All!

Achew! Pardon me while I reach for another box of tissues.  It’s been awhile since I’ve had the kind of cold that keeps me up all night and napping through the day, but this week a doozy of a virus reminded me why it’s decongestants and not diamonds that are a girl’s best friend.

I tried to make the most of an excuse to lay low, but after a day or two of kicking around the house in my robe catching up on nighttime soaps (Empire, anyone?), I decided to get dressed and head into a morning session of the annual Design San Francisco conference.

On my way there I saw a woman in a pink bathrobe standing in front of a blue-green mural talking with someone on her phone. I thought, now that’s a nice color for a robe.  Then, why is she out on the street in her robe?  Was she inadvertently locked out of her apartment? Waiting for someone to drop off bagels to go with her coffee? I had more questions and would like to have rolled down the window to say “nice robe!” but the light changed and I was off to learn about color trends and how to buy and sell vintage furnishings online.

Cruising through the design showrooms, I didn’t see anything else as captivating as that spot of pink against the blue.  Made me glad I’d rallied to leave the house.

Here are some other things that caught my eye this week:

This welcoming all-white interior.

A towel warmer turned drying rack for the laundry room?

Helpful kitchen tips.

Novelist Louise Plummer’s  response to the sexist Colleen McCullough obit.

How to find fulfilling work.

Writing advice that resonated.

So are you a blamer? Yeah, me too.

Happy Weekend All!  Stay healthy.

Reading about the young Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, this link to an earlier film about her life appeared.  Watching it I was struck by her shy smile, the rushing waters where she lived in northern Pakistan and the inescapable violence that surrounded her.  But I was also fascinated by her parents–the never photographed mother and her charismatic father.  Early on in the video her father explains to the filmamker that though Malala wants to become a doctor he wants her to go into politics because he thinks she could effect more change in the world that way.  His statement is chilling knowing what we know now, that little Malala would later be shot in the head by the Taliban but would recover and go on to be an activist for female education eventually becoming the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Some time ago I read a study showing that though a mother can do much to direct a girl’s life, a father’s example and expectations have an even bigger impact on his daughter.  Certainly Malala’s did on her as my father’s did on me.  Their shadows stretch out long before us much like the shadows of me and two young parents as we recently watched their children play in the surf.  May the shadows we all cast on our children be ones of encouragement and sound direction. May they provide shelter for them as they navigate troubled waters.

Some other things that caught my attention of late–

Furnishing a “galactic ark.”

Brainy Octopi.

Why short men make better husbands.

Do design pros have an obligation to dress up? 

For the glasses wearers and writers out there, a curmudgeonly but thought-provoking interview with Thornton Wilder.

How to tour a museum using the “slow art” method.

Is your stationary stash up to snuff?

And finally, Annie Lenox puts her own spin on a classic.

Happy Weekend All!

For example, I returned home from Germany at midnight and flew out to Boise first thing the next morning for M.J.’s high school reunion. When I’d booked these back-to-back trips I had great intentions of packing for both before I left town, but I got busy tying up loose ends and. . .no second bag was packed.  Fortunately, I had adopted a pretty good travel mindset after ten days on the road and didn’t worry too much about packing for the second trip even with the quick turn-around. On the plane home from Europe I plotted out two outfits I’d need for official reunion events and quickly threw them and a few other casual items in a second suitcase before crashing into bed that night.  All my little travel necessities–toiletries, travel ipod, etc.–were easily transferred from one suitcase to another on my way out the door the next morning.

Packing for the second trip–even with little sleep and no prep–was a breeze!  The difference?  I wasn’t trying to extricate myself from my ongoing life.  Even when I didn’t have everything I needed–we ended up going off-roading (!) with my sister and her new boyfriend and a pair of outdoor shoes might have come in handy–it was No Big Deal.

Lesson learned? Get into a travel mindset as much as you can and keep moving.  Here’s author Danielle Krysa talking about how to get into a travel mindset without having to venture too far afield:

And here are some other things that inspired me while I’ve been moving and adventuring:

A chicklit writer learns how to play to her strengths.

Writer Elizabeth Gilbert shares  how to keep creating.

Weird Al gives a grammar lesson.

Comedian Jim Carrey gets serious about life choices.

And finally, whether you’re on the road or taking it easy at home this August, I’d recommend participating in blogger Susannah Conway’s August Break project. It’s a (free) directed photography exercise that encourages you to take a photo a day throughout the month of August to illustrate a specific prompt like “lunch” or “blue” or “memory.”  Then, if you’d like, you can post your photo to Instagram or Flickr and see the other ways that people have found to interpret the prompt. I participated last year and found that it was a great way to tour my world–and others.

Happy Weekend All!

Yes, beauty is often fleeting.  So best to catch it while you can.

Some other things worth chasing this week:

Rainbows mean rain. Here in California that’s cause for a Happy (Rain) Dance.

Thinking I’d like to add rain chains to my next house.

Bravo to Nars and Marc Jacobs for their stance on Age + Beauty.

This serene art installation really floats my boat

Cool Olympic photos from Sochi make me miss the games.

Golden Rules for writing well could be applied to any creative project.

And finally, exquisite animation makes The Wind Rises 2014′s first Must See film.

 Happy Weekend!

Ever since I finished a ten-years-in-the-making quilt top on Tuesday, I’ve been happily plucking clipped loose threads off my furniture, clothing—even my hair brush. Now the top (and back) are off to be professionally quilted and I’m savoring the delicious pause between completed and new projects.

I’m also taking a little break from fiction writing because I finished the first draft of my first novel (!) on Monday.  Kind of a milestone week, I’d say.

“Now what?”  friends ask when they hear I actually typed the words THE END.  I tell them I’ll write it all over again–starting in a few weeks.  But right now I’m going to take a deep breath and marvel at how all those loose threads of characters and plot points and historical details that have been scattered around my brain for years got gathered into a big, messy ball of a story.

Ta da! And TA DA!

***

After I stopped making up stories and sewing small squares of fabric together this week, I discovered:

Marble madness is everywhere.

Fun facts about color.

Aidlin Darling Design–one of my favorite Bay Area design firms–received a National Design Award from the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

Some lovely ballads as well as sea shanties in Sting’s The Last Ship.

How novelist Claire Messud celebrated Thanksgiving abroad.

Performance artist Marina Abramovic–perhaps best known for her silent encounters at MOMA in 2010–actually has a lot to say.

Looking ahead—if you’re in the San Francisco area, check out the treasures and top-notch presenters starting Thursday at the San Francisco Fall Antiques Show.  You can read more about it in my BANG story here. Should be a fun, fabulous event!

Happy Weekend All!