An October Like No Other
When I was a kid, the best thing about October was the run-up to Halloween. The expectation of a bagful of treats overrode any other considerations. Those with birthdays that month had their happiness doubled by the promise of presents [...]
A Sporting Chance
I must admit to a certain degree of sadness at the loss of college football this year. Oh, I know several conferences have decided to forge ahead with abbreviated schedules, and others are involved in lawsuits asking for the universities [...]
Let’s Dance!
The summer grows hotter. The world roils with the pandemic. I stretch the limits of my housebound sanctuary and, when the mood strikes, I dance. Visiting our grandchildren last weekend, I was struck by the eagerness of my five-year-old grandson [...]
A Musing On Truth and Lies
Can you remember the first lie you ever told? I can't. What I do remember is the flush accompanying the misrepresentation, the internal conflict when the admonitions of parents and priests collided with the need to shift blame, to deny [...]
A World Turned Upside Down
Note: I drafted the following essay before our country erupted in chaos in protest of the police brutality and murder of George Floyd. I felt a need to add an uplifting look at the pandemic-infused world. Now, our nation is [...]
How To Survive and Thrive With Uncertainty
If there's one thing we all know, here in May of 2020, it is that the future is more uncertain than ever. A funny little virus with spikes on its belly has infected the world, overwhelmed our hospitals, and thumbed [...]
October 2020 Author Of The Month: KATHLEEN AMBRO
I met Kathleen Ambro at a writers’ gathering before the pandemic took them all away. She was delightful. We shared information and talked about our writing. I’m always intrigued by the variety of ways we choose to tell our stories. As an author of children’s books and of a biographical novel, she has some insights to share with us. As we talked, I knew I wanted to host her on my website because she had a story to share with other writers interested in the genre of children’s books. Please help me welcome Kay to October’s author feature.
Janet Irvin: Hi, Kathleen. I’m so glad you’re here with us this month. Let’s get right to it. You started writing articles for magazines. How did that happen?
Kathleen Ambro: I started writing articles quite by accident. My husband’s cousin fell and broke her shoulder, […]
Previous Months’ Authors
2020 September Author of the Month: ROCHELLE BRADLEY
Rochelle Bradley is a local Dayton area author whose novels combine humor with romantic encounters. She involves herself in community events, mentoring beginning writers and sharing her expertise with readers […]
2020 August Author of the Month: VALERIE J. COLEMAN
My August author is a dynamo of energy, enthusiasm, and personality. She is multi-talented, writing, editing, publishing, and presenting at conferences, both in person and now in the virtual arena. […]
2020 July Author of the Month: DAWN PAUL
This middle-of-summer, 2020, demands a bit of whimsy, and who better to supply it than my featured author, Dawn Paul, whose tales of gnomes invite us to the world of […]
2020 June Author of the Month: KATE CARLISLE
I must admit to a fascination with Kate Carlisle, our June author, especially her Bibliophile mysteries. After I read the first one, I was hooked, probably because protagonist Brooklyn Wainwright, […]
2020 May Author of the Month: LEE MARTIN
It is with great pleasure that I welcome an amazing writer, Lee Martin, to the site this month. Martin teaches in the MFA program at The Ohio State University, where […]
2020 March Author of the Month: MEGAN HART
Our March feature is a NYT Best-selling author with a slew of books to her name. When she moved to our Dayton, she joined our community of talented writers working […]