Well, that was fast. It feels like only a few weeks ago I was lacing up my trainers for my New Year's Day run and feeling bittersweet about the Syzygy-themed songs on my workout playlist. But 2018 quickly accelerated to warp speed. Calendar leaves turned more quickly than pages in an engrossing novel, but a … Continue reading Running Through Writing: Year-End Review 2018 (and a look ahead at 2019)
Running solves most of my problems. Bad day at work? Fight with the family? Mad at the world in general? After half a dozen sweaty miles, I reach a place where I’m better equipped to deal. It’s especially helpful for working through story issues. My feet go on autopilot, carrying me not through neighborhoods and … Continue reading The Accidental Mirror: What Flawed Characters Reveal About Ourselves
It could have been the opening for a suspense novel. After a week of almost ceaseless rain, a young couple heads out for a long run, feet eager and skin starved of vitamin D. On a humid summer Sunday morning, even the leafy canopy over the trail seems sluggish. What could go wrong as they jog … Continue reading Save One Snake: Answering the Distress Call of Environmental Fiction
"What are you doing?" my Laddie pants, pulling up beside me as I pause my Garmin. "Book shopping." Drawing the cold March morning into my aerobically scorched lungs, I approach the glass-fronted hutch beside the trail. A Little Free Library appeared in our neighborhood last year, and I've been a devoted trader. "Ooh, look! You … Continue reading Racing Andy Weir: On Running, Writing, and Being Realistic
Every January since I started running about a decade ago (has it really been that long?! Jeez, no wonder my hip hurts) I’ve celebrated New Year’s Day with a long run. Traditionally, the first song I cue on my playlist is U2’s “New Year’s Day”. (Yes, I’m that dorky. No, it doesn’t bother me anymore.) … Continue reading New Year, New Story
