Yes!! We always need presence of mind/discernment in order to know how to respond well to others. One reason I doubt the efficacy of prayer is that the gift of discernment never seems to arrive. I pray

Indifference is not ignoring someone. Sounds like #detachment - which is so hard for me to distinguish from #apathy. Years ago I read Awareness: The Perils and Opportunities of Reality by Anthony de Mello,

Totally gonna watch this one. LOVE the plot. Woman in coma enters the universe of her unfinished screen play. This reminds me of a nun I met in 1987. She was writing a sci-fi trilogy, and we agreed it

yes, three years later, some of these battered trees are still leafing out, still standing their ground, even the headless pines, which continue to look ridiculous. But it can take a lot of money to hire

Every blade of grass has its Angel that bends over it and whispers, "Grow, grow." The Talmud

I love these "small world" connections. (Lake Owasco) And that you were also a pastry chef, @boxcarblue. This was the first line I highlighted: You might be surprised to learn that bakers use

I love your question at the end: Anyway, how about you? Do you prefer to read stories from the Bible directly or have you read books like this too? If you have any similar suggestions, feel free to share!

What Is Conflict in Literature? In literature, a conflict is a literary device characterized by a struggle between two opposing forces. Conflict provides crucial tension in any story and is used to drive

Audiobooks - if you can multi-task, listen to books while weeding, mopping, washing dishes, cooking, that'd be great. Maybe if I try ear buds and Bluetooth I can make this work, but it's too hard for me

Wouldn't ya know: three days in a row, I haven't seen him/it. But the seeds have been consumed. I could photograph the empty shells. :)

To my unending frustration, most readers/editors/workshoppers and even small-press publishers kept telling me my opening pages lacked urgency and conflict. The market demands an exploding helicopter on

#Entraining - that term is new to me. Thank you for an informative and inspiring post! I shared it with my daughter who's put up with a lot of "devaluing" or being exploited on the job, and she

I'm impressed at your tech savvy and financial acumen! You seem well informed, and I should be asking YOU, any tips on how you have increased your engagement with different communities? This is my method

Wow, thank you - I do try to comes across as respectful, not critical! Constructive. Helpful. Let me repeat: you're doing great! The story is flowing. The exposition is well written and easy for the reader

Hilarious! "Freewrites never lie" Instead of shooting the thieving groundhog, the vegan hand-feeds the thing, and groundhogs purr. Well, why not! Clever, as always, and fun. :) You reminded me

Clever - teach geography by visiting the neighbors. Amanda is precocious ethically as well as scholastically - her concern for others. The cookie drop, the fruit, the letters hand written to each neighbor.

Love it! not the stick-tights (poor dog!) - in the midwest we have Virginia stickseed, Hackelia virginiana, a nightmare for dogs. Your dog at least appears to be a short-hair. Collies.... no comment....

A fire dragon rising from the water - what an image! Vivid, memorable. And then... this! She bends her neck and lays her head near my feet on the edge of the large stone. WHO IS THIS GUY, that a dragon

If people didn't do terrible and/or stupid things, we writers would have a lot less material to write about. So many writers stand back and watch - the characters will "insist" on doing their

I can assure you: you are not a failure!! The kind of revisions suggested in the How to Write books would be minor, trivial, simple. Sometimes though I object to replacing stuff like "She was standing