Ruth Harris's Blog, page 4

My Mom's quick, easy, utterly delicious recipe for old-fashioned blueberry cobbler

Summer is still here. So are blueberries—and Blueberry Cobbler!

My Mom was a proud New Englander and an excellent cook. Her recipe for blueberry cobbler is quick, easy and delicious, perfect to share with friends, family or to eat standing up in the kitchen as it comes fresh from the oven!
1 quart blueberries1/2 cup sugar1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Place in buttered oven-proof casserole.
1/2 cup sugar1 cup sifted flour1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder3 tablespoons butter
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter until crumbly. Moisten with 1/2 cup milk. Spread over berry mixture and bake in 400 oven for 25-30 minutes until bubbly and lightly browned.
Et voilà!
Enjoy with or without ice cream.Alone or with someone you love.Morning, noon or night. :-)

Why Writing Rules (Usually) Don’t Work, But Writing Guidelines Do

 Writing guidelines can help us climb that “book mountain” A breath-taking article about a Polish team of mountaineers planning to climb K2 in the winter—a risky-to-the-max feat that has never been accomplished—reminded me that every book is K2, a mountain that has never been climbed. Like expert climbers, writers make progress step by step, or, to be precise, word by word.Writing guidelines for climbing Book MountainWe start at base camp, familiarize ourselves with the terrain and altitude, thread our way through ice falls and high mountain passes, we set our own ropes and carry our own gear. We drag ourselves through the middle, crawl to the summit, enjoy the view from the top, then do our best to survive the perilous descent (aka write the ending).Struggling and suffering, we endure setbacks and doubts, make mistakes and mis-steps. We depend on our equipment and our team, but, in the end, we (usually) climb our mountains alone. The good news is that (usually) climbing the book mountain won’t kill us (although sometimes it feels that way) and we will live to climb again. [image error]

Rejection and Failure: Don't Quit. Do Something Else Instead. Here Are A Few Ideas.

This is a reprint of my post for @AnneRAllen on April 30.Rejection and Failure: Don't Quit. Do Something Else Instead. Here Are A Few Ideas.
Rejection and failure make you think of quitting? Be like Thomas Edison instead.by Ruth HarrisRejection can make us want to cry and/or break things but rejection is almost never personal and often has nothing to do with your book, either. The sting of rejection can be bullied into submission with a can-do, eff-you spirit or maybe chocolate or a few glasses of wine—sometimes consumed together.Rejection is temporary, a passing storm that helps writers develop the necessary thick skin and confident attitude, but it’s a sense of failure—often intertwined with fear—that can make us want to give up and quit.Frazzled, Frustrated, and Fed up. (Notice all the f-words in this post?)I’ve been hearing a lot of negativity recently from writers who want to give up. They question their talent—and their sanity. They’ve tried everything—free books and promos and newsletter and ads and the latest, hottest genre—and “nothing” works. When they look around they see what looks like the ashes of the ebook boom: declining sales, unpredictable algo changes, and the indie stars from a few years ago who have left the scene.The odds-against in TradPub are equally daunting. Writers hoping for an agent know the ego-mangling effects of being dissed and ignored, their manuscripts disappeared and their emails unanswered.As a long-time editor, publisher and writer, my experience has been that we (and our books) fail much more than we succeed. Knopf editor Robert Gottlieb in his book Avid Reader: A Life, talks about the successes and the famous writers but about the failures—the books remaindered, languishing in warehouses, the authors fallen into obscurity—not so much. Understandably, because, after all, who wants to read about (or write about) flops, failures and the forgotten? Doesn’t mean they didn’t happen, though.I’ve experienced failure from both sides of the desk and want to take a deep dive into the subject since set-backs are an inescapable part of the business we’re in. To start with a bit of perspective: It’s not just us. Most businesses fail. Period.I live in New York where new restaurants open every week and even more close. Ditto clothing boutiques, hair salons, and dog groomers. Malls across the country sit empty and iconic retailers like Sears and Kmart, RadioShack and J.C. Penney are shutting stores.With that larger perspective, use your creative abilities to consider ways to reframe failure before you act on your impulse to give up.Failure as Foundation.In her June 2008 speech at Harvard graduation J.K. Rowling, currently the richest writer in the world, explored “the benefits of failure.” She described her own failures—she was divorced, jobless, a single parent and as poor as one could be without being homeless—and said that “rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.”Struggling to meet ends and so depressed she considered suicide, she reached out for help and returned to Harry Potter, an idea she had begun years earlier but abandoned. For J.K. Rowling, failure was not final but the beginning of a new ending.Should you, like J.K. Rowling, return to an old idea or an abandoned draft? Has the time come to review and reconsider?Award-winning writer Holly Lisle offers a detailed guide to revising a book.Maybe the book that fizzled needs the sizzle of a new idea or a new shot of energy. Gloria Kopp, a web content writer, shares seven ways for writers to generate new ideas and includes a clickable list of online writing and idea generating tools and resources.Failure as Part of the Job.Olympic figure skaters miss their jumps, world-class gymnasts don’t always stick the landing and medal-winning divers splash the entry. Famous golfers miss their putts, Roger Federer loses sometimes, and even Ted Williams struck out.Failure is part of their career and even those at the top continue to practice their serve, their swing, their fastball and curve. They spend time in the batting cage, in the rink, on the apparatus. They reach out for help and seek mentors and coaches, learn from their competitors, and from those who came before them.Ballerinas take class or do barre everyday. Singers practice their scales and I recall reading that, as a young singer wanting to improve, Frank Sinatra paid  a retired opera singer to teach him a series of vocal exercises which he added to and practiced throughout his life.For a writer, editing, revising and rewriting are invaluable forms of practice. Editors, beta readers, and crit groups can take the place of tennis coaches and batting gurus. The book that flopped or was never finished (Harry Potter anyone?) can get a second or third chance because dialogue, grammar, descriptions, info dumps, and go-nowhere scenes can all be reworked and improved.Course Correction or Radical Reinvention?When your career is stalled and “nothing” is working for you, you have the advantage of being invisible. Because no one is paying attention to you, you can take big risks. A pen name can be liberating as you venture out to try something new and different.CollaborationIf you’ve been on your own, what about collaborating with another writer or even several writers?Lindsey Buroker did it.So did Stephen King and Peter Straub.Joe Konrath did it, too. More than once.So did Anne and Catherine Ryan Hyde.Writing for the MarketLots of controversy about “writing to market,” but if you feel you are getting nowhere, why not consider it? As a young editor, I started out writing magazine articles but wanted to try writing something longer. A book!At the time, gothic romance was a hot genre. I read a handful of top-selling gothics, wrote an outline and a few chapters to prove to an editor (and myself) that I could do it. Eventually I wrote several gothics and, in doing so, began to learn how to write a book.I did not find writing to market soul sucking. Perhaps because I viewed writing to market as a starting point, found it educational, and liked getting paid. If you feel stuck and decide to try writing to market, why not think of it as a stepping stone?A few how-to’s to get you started:•How to write your first romance novel.•Chuck Wendig lists 25 things to know about writing horror.•Susan Spann shares 25 tips for writing a mystery.•Bestseller David Morrell’s 5 rules for writing a thriller.•Six secrets to writing suspense.•How to write action-adventure.Failure—or fear of failure?Are we talking failure? Or the fear of it?Is fear of failure holding you back? Twenty-five noted women from Michelle Obama to Dolly Parton discuss the fear that might have paralyzed them and the steps they took to overcome it.What if you’ve actually failed? Author Ray Williams talks about coping with failure from a psychological point of view.Techniques for dealing with failure and moving on.The book that failed. Or did it?That new book you were sure was going be your break-through sank without a trace.Those newsletters “everyone” said was a sure fire route to fans and sales landed in spam folders.The promo that worked so well last time fizzled this time.Those widely hyped Amazon and Facebook ads turned out to be expensive and time consuming to set up and maintain. They made a dent in your wallet but not your sales graph.Maybe that book is languishing because it needs the right hook. Paula Balzer at Writer’s Digest goes into detail about how to write the hook that hooks.How about a better blurb?Or maybe no one’s buying your book because no one can find it. Here’s how to choose categories and keywords that can shelve your book where people who might like it can actually find it.What if the promo that was great for “everyone,” did zilch for you? Bestselling author Cara Bristol gives 8 reasons why.Before I Go (and you give up), Heed these Two “Failures.”“Failure is success in progress.” —Albert Einstein“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that don’t work.” —Thomas Alva Edison

Extreme vanity? Or just good business?

image credit:  By Penarc - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...


 $800 vials of Botox. $475 Genesis laser treatment for pore tightening. $1,200 Titan laser sessions to firm the jawline.

This New York Times article about a LA derm to the stars seemed OTT on first reading, but it also made sense.

Would you want your pimple to be seen in hi-def around the world? Your sagging jaw line?
The lines around your eyes? Sexy—supposedly—on men. On women, not so much.

Most of us wouldn’t much like it but most of us—lucky for us—don’t depend on our looks to earn a living.

What would you do if you were a movie star and your million-dollar paycheck were at stake?
Or what if you were a working actor—but not a star—who was looking for next job? Would you have some “work” done? A touch up here and there every now and then?

If you care about paying rent and putting food on the table, getting first crack at hot scripts, or just landing your next role, of course you would. Ditto for TV personalities, news anchors, C-suite executives who need to look “rested” and alert, ready to meet the next crisis or challenge.

All of which reminds me of my now-retired derm who told me that, when he was in med school, he wanted to do something that would help people feel good and so he chose dermatology. His father, an orthopedist, went ballistic. “If it didn’t involve a saw and hammer, he didn’t think it was medicine,” my derm told me.

His father kept bugging him until my derm finally lost patience. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to go into psychiatry,” he threatened his father.

Who, from then on, ceased and desisted railing against dermatology as a career choice. Ultimately proud, no doubt, of his son, a talented clinician who effectively treated the array of skin sensitivities I had inherited from my father and the only derm able to heal a friend’s persistent and extremely irritating rash of mysterious origin.

I love glimpses into other worlds! Do you?

STRESS BUSTERS AND BURNOUT-BEATERS.

STRESS BUSTERSAND BURNOUT-BEATERS.Burnout can hit the most motivated writers and Type A high-achieversWe’re writers. We work for ourselves. We don’t need no lousy bosses to crack the whip. We can do it to ourselves–create the frazzle, the frustration, the deadlines, the endless to-do lists, negative feedback, and the conviction that we’re not doing enough fast enough.


We feel like hamsters spinning an infinite wheel, and the more successful we get, the tougher the challenges become. No wonder we’re prime targets of stress and its evil relative, burnout.Stress and Burnout are Different.As I said in , stress is a condition of too much and is characterized by over engagement. Too many demands, too much pressure. Your emotions are overactive and hyped up. You face too many demands on your time and energy, and feel barraged and overwhelmed by unrelenting pressure.The consequences of stress are primarily physical: your pulse rate quickens, your heart pounds, but you still feel a glimmer of hope.You think that if you can just get everything under control, you’ll be OK again.Burnout, a result of chronic stress, is a condition of too little and is characterized by disengagement. You feel empty, emotionally drained, and devoid of energy.Burnout reduces productivity and leaves you feeling helpless, hopeless, cynical, and resentful. Your motivation is gone, your creativity, kaput. You feel detached and depressed, and as if you have nothing more to give.Keeping in mind that stress and burnout are different, the approaches to dealing with them are also different.Coping with StressThe symptoms of stress are primarily physical.The American Psychological Association points out that an extreme amount of stress can affect the immune, cardiovascular and neuroendocrine and central nervous systems, and can take severe physical and emotional tolls. The APA lists five healthy techniques that psychological research has shown to help reduce stress in both the short- and long-term.Right-size your to-do list. Embrace the zoom out.Henrik Edberg, an author who writes about simplifying life and becoming happier, offers 33 practical tips about how to reduce stress. They range from right-sizing your to-do list (simple but brilliant!) to the benefits of zooming out in order to gain healthy perspective.Create a coping plan and learn to “just say no.”Lynn Ponton, MD at the Psych Central site, lists 20 ways to soothe the stress monster including detailed how-to’s of progressive muscle relaxation and the function of a “hassle” list that will help you distinguish between minor and major hassles.Keep a stress diary.From difficult people to poor time management skills, sources of stress are all around us. A stress diary will help you identify and manage your stress points so you will feel less frazzled and more in control. Here’s a templatefor a stress diary to get you started.Organize the chaos.Being better organized will help you feel less stressed and more in control. On her blog, Elizabeth S. Craig explains how staying organized gives her more time to write and offers tips on the tools she relies on.Distraction and interruption.Whether it’s the phone, IMs, emails, texts, a friend, a spouse, a neighbor, those interruptions add up to increased stress—and it’s not just stress. According to a New York Times article, distraction actually makes you dumber.Unplug the router, or put your computer into Do Not Disturb mode to fend off distractions and let you focus on your task. Dump the multitasking and ban the interruptions and you will find your stress level plummet.Coping with BurnoutBe alert to the signs of burnout.Burnout is a sneaky thief of energy and pleasure. Burnout, a consequence of almost constant stress, doesn’t happen overnight and you won’t be able to rebound overnight. Be on the lookout for burnout if your joie de vivre is MIA, or if you:Feel every day is a bad day.Can’t drag yourself out of bed in the morning.Have the blahs and are exhausted.Take no joy or interest in your work, or feel depressed by it.Feel overwhelmed or paralyzed by your responsibilities.Turn to escapist behaviors, such as drugs and/or excess drinking.Are more irritable and short tempered than usual.Feel hopeless about your life or work.Experience what Ernest Hemingway called the “black dog.”From snark to insomnia, the subtle symptoms of burnout.Alan Henry at Lifehacker points out that the best way to beat burnout is to start fighting back before you hit rock bottom and can barely get out of bed in the morning.Luckily, the signs are usually right in front of us—it is up to us to take care of ourselves, pay attention, and take the appropriate steps.For burnout, take a go-slow approach.Sherrie Bourg Carter Psy.D. points out that “Burnout doesn’t happen overnight, so it’s unrealistic to expect it to go away overnight.” She advises a go-slow approach to recovering from burnout. “Consistent implementation of positive changes into your routine is the best way to see improvement.”The four stages of burnout.Psychotherapist, Mark Gorkin, LICSW, “The Stress Doc,” suffered severe burnout himself and used his own experience to become an expert on stress and burnout, how to avoid them and how to recover. On his website, he describes the four stages of burnout:ExhaustionShameCynicismCrisisHe suggests proven strategies for rehabilitation and rejuvenation.Recovering from burnout isn’t quick or comfortable.In a personal essay, CEO Carrie Severson reveals that recovering from burnout is actually as uncomfortable as what causes burnout. Hardworking entrepreneur, she was broke—financially, emotionally and mentally—and describes the steps she took to rescue herself and balance work with personal time.The 4 risk factors for burnout.Tchiki Davis, M.A., Ph.D., a Silicon Valley consultant, goes into detail about the consequences of poor work-life balance that result in burnout. She describes helpful techniques that you can use to rescue yourself from the destructive mindsets that lead to burnout.The 3 types of burnout.Scientists at the Association for Psychological Science have identified three types of burnout:overloadboredomworn-outThe linked article, somewhat technical in places, delves into the significance of ineffective coping strategies that fail to protect from work-related stress. It also suggests that cognitive and behavioral therapies, such as ACT, may be useful for all burnout types.Serious risks of burnout.Belle B. Cooper, an iOS developer and writer, observes that burnout can impair personal and social functioning as well as overwhelming cognitive skills and neuroendocrine systems. She says that over time the effects of burnout can lead to memory, attention, and emotional problems.She suggests ways to overcome burnout, some of which may seem counter-intuitive, like adding more activities to your day. If they are activities you actually enjoy, they can help us fight the resentment that leads to burnout.Even though it doesn’t always feel that way, you have choices. Use them.Stress feels awful. Burnout will stop you in your tracks.Reframe the way you look at work and set boundaries, use organizational tools to quell the chaos and productivity apps to manage priorities, grab time for yourself, your friends and family, recognize the value of “goofing off” and “down time.”The life you save will be your own!by Ruth Harris March 26, 2017, originally appearing on Anne R. Allen's blog. What about you, scriveners? Do you suffer from stress? Burnout? What methods have you used to cope with these problems? Have you tried a recommended technique that didn’t work? SaveSave

Stress or Burnout? Why they’re Different and Why you Need to Know the Difference

Stress or burnout? Writers can suffer from both.by Ruth HarrisLook at your to-do list.WiP needs edits and revisionsEditor/cover designer to hirePromo forms to fill outFirst draft to finishGet that new book/new series ready to launchThe next-to-final draft need polishingBacklist covers need a refreshA box set waits for formatting and covers.An idea for a new series needs an outlineTime to write a new book for an existing seriesNewsletter!Writing a newsletter for your pen nameWriting a blurb / a blog postAnalyzing results of AMS and FB adsBeta readers to be contactedNow look at yourself.Snapping at colleagues, the strangers at the table next to you in a restaurant, the checkout clerk at the supermarket.Snarling at your dog who’s too afraid of your rotten moods to snarl back.Fighting with your spouse/roommate/bestie over…nothing.Can’t sleep.Can’t eat or you overeat.You’re losing/gaining weight.Productivity has slipped to zilch.You hate everyone.And everything.Including yourself.We’re stressed out. Or are we burned out? We feel like hamsters trapped on an endless wheel. We’re tired, crabby, frustrated, uninspired, and unmotivated. Our anxiety-meter has topped out and we’re not even running on fumes any more—we’re running on empty.We talk about it among ourselves, moaning and bitching and rolling our eyes. Our sense of humor turns blacker and blacker.We can—and do—complain about our plight but we’re paying real consequences, physically and emotionally. Our friends and family suffer the fallout. So does our work.Stress and burnout are related but they are different although, according to experts, some of the signs and symptoms overlap. Whatever the specific definitions, stress and burnout reveal themselves with specific symptoms and are more dangerous than you might think.Stress or burnout: how they’re different.Stress is a condition of too much and is characterized by over engagement.Too many demands, too much pressure. Your emotions are overactive and hyped up, you face too many demands on your time and energy, and feel barraged by unrelenting pressure. The consequences of stress are primarily physical: your pulse rate quickens, your heart pounds, but you still feel a glimmer of hope. You think that if you can just get everything under control, you’ll be OK again.Burnout, a result of continual stress, is a condition of too little and is characterized by disengagement.You feel empty, emotionally drained, and devoid of energy. Burnout reduces productivity and leaves you feeling helpless, hopeless, cynical, and resentful. Your motivation is gone, your creativity kaput. You feel detached and depressed, and as if you have nothing more to give.The Mayo Clinic lists the common symptoms of stressStress symptoms can affect your body, thoughts, feelings, and behavior. Being able to recognize common stress symptoms can give you techniques for managing them.Stress that’s left unchecked can contribute to health problems like high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and diabetes.Common physical effects of stressHeadacheMuscle tension or painChest painFatigueChange in sex driveStomach upsetSleep problemsPsychological effects of stressAnxietyRestlessnessLack of motivation or focusFeeling overwhelmedIrritability or angerSadness or depressionBehavioral effects of stressOvereating or undereatingAngry outburstsDrug or alcohol abuseTobacco useSocial withdrawalExercising less oftenThe Harvard health newsletter describes the symptoms of burnout.Burnout, which can be a result of prolonged stress, is a gradual process. The signs and symptoms are subtle at first and can mirror those of stress. However, over time they become more severe and destructive.Physical effects of burnout:Feeling tired and drained most of the timeLowered immunity, getting sick a lotFrequent headaches or muscle painChange in appetite or sleep habitsEmotional signs and symptoms of burnout:Sense of failure and self-doubtFeeling helpless, trapped, and defeatedDetachment, feeling alone in the worldLoss of motivationIncreasingly cynical and negative outlookDecreased satisfaction and sense of accomplishmentBehavioral effects of burnout:Withdrawing from responsibilitiesIsolating yourself from othersProcrastinating, taking longer to get things doneUsing food, drugs, or alcohol to copeTaking out your frustrations on othersType A personalities and burnout.Psychologist Sherrie Bourg Carter Psy.D explains that high achievers—Type A personalities—often experience burnout. She describes the early and later stages of burnout as follows:Chronic fatigue.In the early stages, you may lack energy and feel tired most days. In the latter stages, you feel physically and emotionally exhausted, drained, and depleted. You may even feel a sense of dread for what lies ahead on any given day.Insomnia.In the early stages, you may have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep one or two nights a week. In the latter stages, insomnia may turn into a persistent, nightly ordeal. As exhausted as you are, you can’t sleep.Forgetfulness/impaired concentration and attention.Lack of focus and mild forgetfulness are early signs. Later, the problems may get to the point where you can’t get your work done and everything begins to pile up.Physical symptoms.Physical symptoms may include chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, gastrointestinal pain, dizziness, fainting, and/or headaches. (All of these symptoms merit a medical evaluation.)Increased illness.Because your body is depleted, your immune system becomes weakened. This makes you more vulnerable to infections, colds, flu, and other immune-related medical problems.Loss of appetite.In the early stages, you may not feel hungry and may skip a few meals. In the latter stages, you may lose your appetite all together and begin to lose a significant amount of weight.Anxiety.Early on, you may experience mild symptoms of tension, worry, and edginess. As you move closer to burnout, the anxiety may become so serious that it interferes in your ability to work productively. It may also cause problems in your personal life.Depression.In the early stages, you may feel mildly sad, occasionally hopeless, and you may experience feelings of guilt and worthlessness as a result. At its worst, you may feel trapped, severely depressed, and think the world would be better off without you.(If your depression is at this point, you should seek professional help.)Anger.At first, this may present as interpersonal tension and irritability. In the latter stages, this may turn into angry outbursts and serious arguments at home and in the workplace.(If anger gets to the point where it turns to thoughts or acts of violence toward family or coworkers, people should get professional assistance.)How to manage stress and avoid burnout.Because the consequences of stress and burnout are serious and because so many of us feel overwhelmed and stressed out, recognizing the signs and symptoms is critical.Learning how to manage stress and avoid burnout before it starts can save your marriage, your relationships, your job, and your career.In Part Two of this article, I will turn to experts for advice about how to manage stress and burnout.


Meanwhile, my excellent blog partner, Anne R. Allen, asks:What about you, scriveners? Are you suffering from stress or burnout? It’s so easy for writers to get stressed these days, since most of us have day jobs, and the job of being a writer involves so much more than actually writing. Do you recognize any of these symptoms in yourself or others? 

Writers: How to get out of your own way and build resilience.

Resilience: The Key to Reaching Your Writing Goals in 2017(This article was first published at Anne R. Allen's blog on January 29, 2017. Visit Anne's blog this week for her always-reliable advice on 5 good reasons to blog and 5 bad reasons.)
Books! The ones that got written!
They’re mean and nasty and they're out there waiting to get you.InhibitionsHang upsGlitchesGotchasSnares and snagsRoadblocksNo go zonesFlops and fizzlesThe reasons (excuses?) for not writing/not beginning (or finishing) your book/not allowing enough time and energy for marketing/blogging/advertising often come down to the same tried-and-true suspects.1) The P Word.As if you don’t know what I’m talking about. [image error]

Tougher than Harvard. More demanding than MIT. Husband Training School is the last hope of wives Who Have Had It.

They love their husbands but...
Sissie Canholme had had it. Her pulse was racing. Her heart was pounding. Her anti-perspirant stopped working hours ago.Jogging?The treadmill?A Zumba class?Nope.Sissie Canholme was comfortably seated in a quiet room. Soothing music wafted from high quality speakers and fragrant jasmine tea in small porcelain cups waited on the low, red lacquered table in front of her.But why the stress and anxiety? Certainly not because she was over eight and a half months pregnant. Sissie was healthy, the baby was healthy. Everything was ready and completely prepared for the coming blessed event.So what was the problem?Brunette, hazel eyes, age 36, California-born, California-bred, Sissie was on the executive floor in a sleek, ultra-modern office tower located in Chengwai, China. She was waiting for a decision from Ling Yun, Weibo Digital’s CEO that would affect her future—and, in turn, the baby’s future.Sissie was in China to negotiate a manufacturing deal with Weibo Digital for her employer, California’s tech titan, xWorks. If Ling Yun’s response was positive, Sissie’s status at xWorks would rise. So would her paycheck, and she would move up another step in the company’s hierarchy.Meanwhile, her hair smelled of Chinese cigarettes. Her eyes were dry and scratchy from too many late nights at the office and too many trans-Pacific flights. Her makeup was melted, her hairstyle collapsed, her shoulders slumped.She had to pee. Her eyelids were drooping. She wanted to sleep. The baby was kicking up almighty hell. She was so tired she almost didn’t care any more when the door to the conference room opened. Ling Yun, elegantly attired in a hand-tailored Savile Row suit, gestured to her.“Come in,” he said. “We’ve considered your proposal.”His tone betrayed nothing nor did his expression. This was, after all, the inscrutable Orient.Sissie, her armpits soggy, her stomach in knots, her bladder about to burst, the baby kicking up almighty hell, followed him into the conference room. She listened to the terms of Weibo Digital’s counter-offer, her expression neutral. (Ling Yun wasn’t the only one who could be inscrutable.)When he finished, Sissie managed the polite bow mandatory for doing business in Asia. She thanked Ling Yun for his consideration and said she would have to discuss his response with her manager before she could reply.Exhausted, Sissie barely remembered leaving Weibo Digital, going to the airport and boarding the plane. She was looking forward to seeing the nursery her husband, Gordo, had prepared for little Sissie Jr.The baby furniture would be in place, and so would the pink scatter rug and pink-and-white gingham curtains she had picked out. Picturing her beautiful baby and the picture-perfect, fully furnished, freshly painted nursery that was waiting, Sissie smiled to herself.She was looking forward to spending the few days before giving birth in an atmosphere of beauty, harmony and tranquillity. As the plane climbed to altitude and crossed the Pacific, she relaxed for the first time since arriving in China and fell into a deep, refreshing sleep.* * *Except when Sissie got home, the IKEA furniture—the bassinet, changing table and storage unit—was still in the garage, still packed in shipping cartons. The crib had been partially unpacked but not built. Slats and protective wrapping material were strewn over the cement floor, and a hammer and screw driver were abandoned somewhere in the chaos.When Sissie went into the house, she saw that the nursery—it was the unused second bedroom—was unpainted. The rug was rolled up and shoved into a corner, the windows grimy, the curtains unhung.Gordo, who had a freelance business maintaining the web sites and twitter accounts of on-line athletic wear and equipment retailers, was on his computer filling out the roster of his fantasy football team. His Joe-college good looks were untroubled, his blue eyes tranquil. He hadn’t had time to get to the crib yet, he said.“You have time for fantasy football but you haven’t had time for the baby’s crib?” Sissie said, doing her best to keep her voice at a reasonable pitch. Still, the sarcasm leaked out. “You work at home. You’re here all day.”“I wasn’t home all day,” said Gordo, completely missing the edge to her tone. “I was playing golf.”“Golf?” Sissie snapped. “You were playing golf?”“Jeff called,” said Gordo, referring to his college roommate. “He had the day off and asked if I could join him in a round or two.”“You thought golf was more important than the baby we’re having in a week?”“I don’t know why you’re so upset,” said Gordo, a bewildered expression crossing his face. “I’ll get the furniture put together. I promise.”Angry tears stung Sissie’s eyes. “You’ve been promising for six months and that furniture is still in the garage,” she said. “In shipping cartons. You haven’t even opened them."“I opened the crib."“Only halfway. The slats are all over the floor."“I just said I’d get to it, didn’t I?” said Gordo, now sounding pouty and aggrieved. “I don’t know why you’re so angry."“You don’t know WHY I’M ANGRY?” Sissie shouted, her pretty features screwed up in rage. “What’s wrong with you? You act like all this isn’t happening. Well, it is happening. We’re having a baby and, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m the size of a whale. My job is half killing me and I have two baby showers this week. Where am I supposed to put the baby stuff?” she asked. Then she burst into tears. “Where am I supposed to put the baby?”“Now I understand,” said Gordo. He reached out in an attempt to soothe her. “You’re upset. It’s the hormones."With that, Sissie pushed him away and homicide entered her mind. She was going to kill him, she thought. She was going to go to the garage and get the hammer and bash his brains in. She was going to pick up a slat and beat him into a mass of bloody, splintered bone and mangled tissue.Then, memories of movies and TV shows elbowed into her consciousness—a tormented scream, the cold, hard bars of a cell door, the harsh rasp of a sadistic guard—and her murderous fantasies screeched to a halt.Without another word, she marched into their bedroom and slammed the door so hard plaster rained down from the ceiling.She picked up the phone and, blinking away tears of fury, she dialed the number one of the women in her Lamaze class had given her.* * *“I need an application form,” Sissie said, relaying her cell phone number and email address. “It’s an emergency.”Former Marine Corps Drill Instructor Robin Aguirre sighed.She had heard it all before from other wives who phoned Husband Training School.It was always the same and it was always an emergency.
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Sometimes you need a goat.

Early morning at the Kihali animal orphanage in AfricaA poor, brave little rhino named Zuri (Swahili for “beautiful”) has been rescued from poachers but her recovery is not going well. She is depressed and listless, she has nightmares and lies in her stall crying for her cruelly murdered mother.
None of the medical interventions have helped, and Zuri, who associates humans with the killers who took her mother’s horn, refuses to nurse. Her sad bleating and quivering body are clear signs that she is still in deep mourning.Why, wonders Renny Kudrow, Director of the Kihali animal orphanage, hasn’t she started to recover? What if she doesn’t get better and they lose her?He’d be to blame, he thinks. Not the Kenyan rhino experts, tall, skinny Jomo and strong, burly Muthengi. And certainly not the vet. Dr. Starlite Higgins has done everything medically possible.Feeling guilty and disconsolate, Renny’s thoughts drift to Starlite’s idea. Her impressive work on a DNA database will make Kihali a leader in the conservation of endangered species, but just because her latest idea was unconventional and untested, didn’t mean it wasn’t worth trying, did it?Renny doesn’t know, but he is in charge, the responsibility is his and he feels its weight. Time is growing short for Zuri, he knows, and he is running out of options. He must make a decision.Stretching his long legs, Renny gets up, abandons his tea, still hot in its battered tin mug, and leaves the veranda. He jogs across Kihali’s yard as the African sun begins to rise and doesn’t stop until he reaches the laundry line that, suspended between two poles, runs behind the kitchen. There, in her usual spot, tethered by a fraying rope, is Boozie.The moment she sees him, she does what she always does. She jumps up and greets him the way she greets everyone.She stands on his toes and kisses him.***A Goat Named BoozieShe has a black face, white ears and an inquisitive manner. Like most of her kind, she is intelligent and affectionate but, like most of her kind, she also has a propensity for creating mischief.
She’d earned her name when she’d gotten into the left-over drinks after a cocktail party on the veranda, over-imbibed, and fell off the low porch into the petunia bed where she passed out and slept it off. Since then, adult beverages have been carefully kept away from the adventuresome and irrepressible young goat named Boozie who, following Renny, bounds across the courtyard to Zuri’s stall.Leading Boozie, he enters the stall wordlessly. Starlite and Muthengi both raise their eyebrows, glance at each other, but say nothing.As Renny supervises and Starlite and Muthengi watch, Boozie introduces herself to Zuri with a kiss.Mewling softly under her blanket, poor, depressed Zuri seems not to notice.Boozie, undaunted by the lack of response, explores Zuri’s head and ears with dainty tastes and gentle nibbles. Then, ever curious, she investigates the short, stubby legs and, from there, moves down to the padded three-toed feet.“Mouthing and chewing are the ways goats explore the world around them,” mutters Renny in his professorial way, not looking at Starlite even though he is standing next to her.“You sound like you think I didn’t know,” Starlite replies with a slight edge, looking straight at him as Boozie continues her affectionate explorations. “Wasn’t my suggestion the reason you decided to introduce them?”Renny isn’t about to give her all the credit. “One of the reasons.”Starlite isn’t in the mood to back off, either. “So maybe I had a good idea after all.”“Possibly,” he says and shrugs slightly, keeping his eyes on Zuri and Boozie and assiduously refusing to acknowledge Starlite. “Let’s see what happens.”Starlite leaves her tart retort unspoken when she notices that Zuri’s quivering has subsided. She turns to Muthengi. “Zuri seems almost relaxed for the first time since coming to Kihali.”“Rhinos have thick hides but sensitive skin,” Muthengi says. “They love to be touched.”“And goats love to do the touching,” Starlite adds.Renny, watching, suppresses a smile and makes no comment as Zuri, turning her head to favor her right eye, looks to see who is paying so much attention to her.Seeming to conclude that the friendly young goat offers no threat, Zuri takes a deep breath and clumsily struggles to her feet. She is weak from lack of exercise and her short, stubby legs wobble and offer unstable support.She takes a few hesitant steps, then stumbles and falls. She cries out in distress and remains on the floor of her stall. She seems defeated and ready to give up.Boozie, undeterred, scampers over and kisses her ear. Zuri turns toward her new friend and, encouraged, she takes a deep breath and rests for a moment; then, gathering her will, she uses her chin to help support herself while she gets up. She teeters for a moment, then finds her balance and arranges her feet squarely on the ground beneath her.She turns toward Boozie, who urges her on with another enthusiastic kiss. Zuri looks up at her new acquaintance and even seems to smile.The two quadrupeds stand side by side, one slim and sprightly, the other low-slung and rounded, a mismatched couple if there ever was one. Still, they are at peace, comfortable with each other, comfortable with themselves.Wordlessly, Renny turns to Starlite and she sees that his eyes are filmed with tears. For so long, she has felt the sting of his disapproval and she, too, is moved. Impulsively, she reaches out and, wordlessly, briefly grazes his hand with hers.“They’ll do well together,” she says.“Yes,” he replies, his voice thick. “I do believe they will.”
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Like books by writers like Rona Jaffe, Judith Michael and Barbara Taylor Bradford?

DECADES, Book #1 in the Park Avenue Series was originally published in hard cover by Simon & Schuster. Now FREE at all ebook vendors.
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Spanning the years from the optimistic post-War 1940s to the Mad Men 1950s and rebellious Make Love, Not War 1960s, DECADES is about three generations of women who must confront the radical changes and upended expectations presented by the turbulent decades in which they lived.
Evelyn, talented but insecure, faithful to the traditional values she grew up with, is a loyal and loving wife whose marriage means everything to her.Nick, handsome and ambitious, a chameleon who changes with the changing times, is her successful but restless husband.Joy, their daughter, coming of age at a time of anger and rebellion, needs them both but is torn between them.Barbara is the other woman. Younger than Evelyn, accomplished but alone, she wonders if she can have everything--including another woman's husband.
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“Ruth Harris has re-created both the style and substance of three decades of American life—from the bobby socks and innocence of the 1940s, to the crinolines and caution of the 1950s, to the bra-less T-shirts and alienation of the 1960s.” —Book-of-the-Month Club
“Powerful. A gripping novel that depicts the lives and loves of three generations of women.” —Women Today Book Club

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