Sometimes messages come in threes. Last week one writer friend said that she doesn’t waste her “best time” checking email. First thing in the morning is reserved for writing. Busy work can be done at her less creative times of day. Then another friend said that she learned from a productivity expert to check email at noon and four every day, instead of every two minutes, as some of us are prone to do. Both of these suggestions reinforce the message of The Power of Slow by Christine Louise Hohlbaum, a book that arrived in the mail just as I was trying to slow down and focus my energy. Christine and I “met” on the Internet, and she was intrigued to meet a real live Quaker, [...]

Thanks to everyone who wrote in for a free book, whether you posted here or sent a request through the contact page. It was great to learn that I have readers from Australia to Winnipeg! (Isn’t the Internet amazing?) It did turn out to be a bit tricky because I wanted to send everyone a book. Unfortunately I gave the free ones my publisher gave me to the people I interviewed, plus a few radio producers, so I am now giving away books I bought myself. In terms of discernment, I had to remember that making everyone like me is not necessarily what I’m called to do. (An ongoing discernment lesson for me.) I felt particularly conflicted when people wrote and said they wanted to [...]

After a whirlwind month, I landed on the couch with a cold and read all four of the Twilight books my twelve year-old daughter has been obsessed with. I must confess, I enjoyed them more than I expected, though that shouldn’t necessarily be taken as a recommendation. I was in the mood for mindless. Last night my daughter asked what I thought of them, so I gave her the list of things I liked and the things I didn’t, which she more or less agreed with. For the benefit of those wondering whether they should let their vampire obsessed daughters read the books, or for those who are just curious how Stephanie Myer sold 42 million copies in 2008 alone—Well, frankly, I can’t answer that [...]

It’s coming up on a month since the release of The Wisdom to Know the Difference, and things have been going well. I felt very loved and supported by the great attendance at the Big Blue Marble and Borders, excited by the chance to have so many articles and interviews published, humbled by the amazing people in my Pendle Hill workshop last weekend, and ready to lay in bed and read my twelve-year-old’s favorite vampire novel by the time I got home Sunday. I’m coming out of the stupor now (Thursday) and assessing what I need to do next. And what I need to do next is give some books away! Despite the very touching things that people are saying to me about how the [...]

Although the Internet may ultimately put newspapers out of business, it is helping reporters in one way. There are now listservs for reporters looking for sources and authors hoping to be sources. I followed another writer’s advice and got on a few of these lists with the hope that some national magazine writer would be needing a Quaker to talk about discernment or wisdom. Although that hasn’t happened yet, I’m finding these daily lists to be revealing and sometimes amusing. Whether it accurately reflects the concerns of most Americans I’m not sure, but there are some patterns in the interests of the media. First, there are lots of stories about stuff. “10 Best Hotel Toiletries,” “Holiday Gifts Under $75,” and “Mommy Must-haves,” are a few [...]

It's been a good writing month for me. Here are my latest articles, a Tikkun piece on how our image of God affects our position on health care reform, and a Philadelphia Daily News essay that grew out of the melted ice cream cake blog post. I also had a slide show posted on Beliefnet. I'm remembering only a few years ago when I was publishing an average of an article every year or two, so this is pretty fun.

My friend Miriam Peskowitz says that people love lists, which is why my If you Love a Writer post got copied all over the place. Although I make lists like crazy at home, it’s not my usual blogging style, but I’m going to give it another shot to see if she’s right. So after my second book talk, I’m going to venture 8 Things I’ve Learned (so far) About Giving Book Talks. Please post your suggestions in the comments:  Don’t worry. If you have done a good job with publicity, people will show up, though not necessarily the ones who told you they would. Trust yourself, but also trust the booksellers. I knew that I would probably get a good crowd, so I’m glad I [...]

Yesterday I had a piece posted as one of the "Guest Voices" in the Washington Post's On Faith column. I thought it made some challenging points, so I'm surprised that it hasn't prompted any responses yet on their site. Maybe the title, Religious Society of Friends of the Earth, turned people off?

The official publication day has finally arrived for The Wisdom to Know the Difference. Amazon has posted a little “in stock” sign, and IndieBound and Powell's have removed the sign that said it wasn’t in stock yet. Not sure if the book is actually in bookstores, but it should be soon. (Please let me know if you see it.) In the meantime, I want to celebrate some other authors who have books out this month—just in case you thought Dan Brown was the only one. A few months ago, I joined, SheWrites, an online writer’s group for women. I must say it has been more helpful and the members more mutually supportive than the LinkedIn writer’s group I belong to. There is a sub-group of [...]