I grew up in the Deep South: a small town in Mississippi, home to one of the state’s two universities (the best one, obviously), a Wal-Mart and a Piggly Wiggly, a small hospital, a bunch of bars, and a bunch of churches. Years later, I returned, following my parents “back home” to attend that university. […]
Read MoreThe first thing you notice is the color. Ground, yellow. Hills, yellow and tan. Grass, tan and brown. A memory of green in there somewhere. Dirt, yellow to red to brown to gray. Stripes in the rock: rust red, peach, orange, white. The second thing you notice is the distance. It doesn’t end. If you’re […]
Read MoreWe drive two-lane country roads, smooth pavements and wide ditches, trees surrounding us. The hills are slow and gentle. We go up and down, up and down without noticing until I look back and see the ripples. The earth is soft. It is full of undramatic beauty, the kind that doesn’t need to be made […]
Read MoreWriting an about page or short bio or God Forbid a cover letter is, like, literally, the worst. I am not even kidding. You’d think it would be easier. After all, what subject could I possibly know better? Expertise? I got that, baby. I’ve been hanging out with myself since I was born. Maybe longer. But it’s terrible. If […]
Read MoreWhere the most important part of a pitch is your specific story idea, the most important part of a query is you: your bio, your experience, your expertise, your fit with the publication. What is a pitch? A pitch is the proposal of a specific idea. You have something you want to write. You describe it […]
Read MoreThe strange dynamics of survival and growth in a post-catastrophic Puerto Rico At a panadería in Puntas, somewhere between the coffee pot and the cash register and the glass window of pastries, there’s a small sign. Coquí Accepted Here Out back, the generator roars. Power’s out. How long? Nobody knows. Sometimes there’s a notice on […]
Read MoreWhen the path forward is covered by fallen trees, downed power lines, devastation and impossibility, what would you do? Before the hurricane, Javier and Sonia grew crops, ran their farm stand, took care of their three boys, and managed vendor relationships for their main products, Té Sana and a line of piques (sauces). They worked hard, […]
Read MoreQuit editing as you write. Few writers can do this and still produce enough words to publish something. I’m not one of those, and I bet you aren’t, either. When you edit as you write, you do these terrible things to yourself: You slow your rate of writing way down. You cut off your creativity. You […]
Read More