First Steps
November 21, 2012It began on a trip to Alaska. I read about a library in a small town that provided books to the newborns in their local hospital. “Hey,” I thought. “We have a hospital in Norwood. Why not do the same thing?” I wanted to jump right in. As soon as I ...
Read more...The Art of Journaling
September 18, 2012When I was ten years old, my family took a trip to Nova Scotia. I decided to bring along my new diary. It had blue and orange stripes and the all-important lock on the outside. The pages were gold-tipped, and soon the sparkles were flaking onto me and the backseat of the car. When ...
Read more...Going for Gold
August 7, 2012Like many of you, I’ve been sitting on my couch each night, mesmerized by display after display of Olympic achievement. Whether watching Michael Phelps sweep the all-time Olympic gold record or Gabby Douglas wow the judges on bars, I have this distinct thought: there’s no way, given an eternity to train, that I could accomplish ...
Read more...Library Secrets: Part 2
May 30, 2012Okay, maybe this isn’t a big secret, but have you discovered this amazing resource at your local library? She’s called the Children’s Librarian. I’ve yet to meet one I didn’t love. What’s great about my children’s librarian is she anticipates my research needs before I voice them. Just the other day she brought over two ...
Read more...Eternally Optimistic
May 16, 2012Like many of you, I have children who are polar opposites. One daughter sees the world through a half-empty glass; the other sees her cup as overflowing. This doesn’t mean that rain can’t fall on her, but when it does, she’ll grab an umbrella and jump wildly through the puddles. I admire this about her. ...
Read more...Split Personality
May 9, 2012Some days I am a librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood, Massachusetts. Some days I am an author who visits schools and attempts to pen a few words around midnight when the house is quiet. As a mother, wife, author, librarian, wannabe knitter, pathetic scrapbooker, amateur photographer (the attached photos don’t count…they were ...
Read more...The May Days
May 2, 2012What I needed was a little accountability–a wee bit of momentum to light my fire. All I asked for from my Facebook friends was for encouragement to write a page or two every day in May, with the intent of jump starting a middle grade novel. What I received was amazing–a new group. Our members are ...
Read more...Hidden Treasures
April 25, 2012Yes, I know. Most people head to Cape Cod or Florida for Spring Break. What did we do? A road trip. All we needed was a Winnebago, but we didn’t have that. We had a minivan packed full with two parents, two grandparents, two kids and a loaf of bread and peanut butter. Still, ...
Read more...Library Secrets: Part 1
April 11, 2012I have decided to blog about some library secrets (i.e. helpful tips for your research as a writer, sleuth, wannabe trivia master, and more). To start, I am including my essay about the future of the public library. This is probably not a big secret, or is it? You be the judge. Geckos and the ...
Read more...Awakenings Again
April 3, 2012It’s spring again. What can I say? Most winters we wonder if it will ever come. When those first daffodils unfold, something stirs in all of us. Even the most curmudgeonly can’t help it; they have a lighter heart and step. For those of us who have experienced the hard winter of our souls, we ...
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Children’s Author and Poet