Hang around enough writers groups and creative writing classes, and you’ll come across history’s most emetic sandwich: the compliment sandwich. That overly prescriptive, insincere way of giving feedback in a praise-criticism-praise formula that leaked out of the corporate jargon vanity management book world and into the real world where it could
Recently, a dear friend— And at this point, gentle reader, I was interrupted not once but twice in a row by my impressively sized orange cat (Barry, short for The Red Baron), casually sauntering across my desk to plomp his not unsubstantial girth across both my mouse and keyboard, roll over,
Writing routines can really be quite a double-edged sword. There’s the obvious good side: developing good habits (the *doing* the writing part being, of course, the most important), and using memory cues to help you jump back into your story efficiently. (On that note, just look at the old psychological studies
Last fall, I sprained an ankle. It was a mild sprain, from an extended time walking on steep terrain in the rain. I didn’t even notice the injury at the time. This wasn’t my first ankle rodeo, so I knew what to do. I rested it. But then I got too
I grew up reading books where kids jumped in lakes and rivers to swim. I also grew up in Louisiana with a bayou just beyond my back yard. I grew up with my parents constantly telling me not to jump in the bayou behind our house to swim, because it was
With ChatGPT all over the news, everyone who loves juvenile humor is an honorary francophone. It turns out that, spoken aloud, “ChatGPT” sounds like “Chat j’ai pété,” which translates to “Cat, I farted.” This will likely be the greatest contribution that ChatGPT will make to society. I see all sorts of
I have a special surprise for you this Throwback Thursday/Friday the 13th! A trip down memory lane, back to the abandoned military base where I spent my idyllic youth hunting ghosts: Camp Claiborne! This is a photo-heavy post! Click here for the narrated video version, or read on! Once upon a
This Friday kicks off THE SPOOKY SEASON! Introducing: I Was a Teenage Ghost Hunter: Camp Claiborne A 10-Part Story and Video Series Join me on a mini-autobiographical journey through my teen years poking the paranormal at an abandoned WWII military base in the middle of the Louisiana woods. YouTube Channel *
This collection of stories is, to the best of my knowledge, an accurate recollection of my experiences, as I experienced them at the time, and an accurate report on what I have been told by individuals known to me. Any divergences from what happened were either intentional changes made to protect
When I return to visit Louisiana, I like to make the time to stop in at Camp Claiborne, revisit the old stomping grounds. Over the years, it has changed. A lot. At some point, the state or military or some kind of authorities swept in. They said it was hazardous, that