Life was different when I was 9 years old. I think. Or maybe it was just that I was different. For me the words "Up on the roof top... click, click, click" didn't hold the same meaning that it did for other kids, especially this time of year.

It all started when I was 8 1/2. That's when Charlie arrived. Charlie was a stray kitten and my family and ( Read more... )

It seems every major city will soon have a Complaints Choir video on YouTube. Neil Gaiman posted a funny one that I enjoyed, the Helsinki Complaints Choir. So I've included it here for your viewing pleasure.

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I've never been very good at handling death. Especially when it strikes close, like it did last week. I wasn't caught completely by surprise when Flip died. After all, he'd been injured and near death for quite some time now. I knew Flip better than anyone did and I saw the grim reaper coming for him days in advance. Flip and I were about as close ( Read more... )

Sunday nights at 10 pm I make every effort to watch my favorite TV show. I always turn on my set a little early so I don’t miss the beginning. Last night was no exception. At 9:50 I clicked it on and caught the last ten minutes of the Showtime series called Weeds. Weeds is a dark comedy about a single mother living in suburbia, trying to make a ( Read more... )

Halloween is just around the corner. That means supernatural beings, super heroes, and all that creepy fun. So I thought I'd post a picture of myself in one of my past fun costumes and talk about some supernatural, and maybe a little creepy, but definitely fun reading.

I just finished Neil Gaiman's book, Anansi Boys.  It was about a young man, Fat ( Read more... )

I had an interesting dream last night. I often do. Sometimes I even have an interesting dream during the day, but for me those daydreams end when I run into a wall, or bump into someone at the grocery checkout line. Night dreams are so much safer.

Last night, in my dream, a fighter pilot was going to give me a ride in his jet. He climbed into the ( Read more... )

The last few months I've been writing and doing little else. The word "productive" springs to mind, but it would quickly be followed by "stir crazy." Needless to say, I was ready for a break when I went to Montana last week.

Earlier this year I met Randy Wayne White, NY Times bestseller. We were talking about writing conferences and he said that the ( Read more... )

I was recently in Palm Desert, locked in seclusion and madly typing away as I attempted to finish my first draft of It’s A Crime. Seclusion is easily obtained in the desert this time of year. Even the insects leave, rather than risk bursting into flames at high noon. And we all know how big their brains are.

I decided to take a short break from ( Read more... )

It was just like when I switched to a new school in Junior High, and I came home all excited to tell my mom: "I made a new friend at school today." That's how I felt after coming home from this year's Society Of Children's Book Writers and Illustrator's Annual Conference. The conference started last Friday, ended on Monday, and although I was tired ( Read more... )

Responsible Storytelling

Okay, you may recall a few blog entries ago when, in passing (no pun intended), I mentioned telling my children that I invented The Farter. Yes, that clever little device that turns a light on when you fart. I had fun spinning that yarn. I told them that after a great deal of tinkering, I perfected the device so that it ( Read more... )