Curtiss Ann Matlock's Blog, page 2

Life goes On

I didn’t intend to take a break from writing, didn’t even know there was such a thing for me, but I have more or less done so. I haven’t touched the novella I started some months ago.

In recent weeks I have read a couple of good fiction books and delighted in streaming classic black and white films free from YouTube, most of them made far before my birth. While watching, I rediscovered my delight and relaxation in crocheting. The movies and crocheting give a space away from the current wor...

Gone Camping Part 2: Finding Faith and God’s Provision in Women’s Solo Camping

I posted two weeks ago about my stop along the Tombigbee River, which was absolutely lovely. Service Park, a Corps of Engineers campground, is one of my favorites. Not only is the site of tugboats pushing immense barges up and down the river fascinating, but the peace and quiet of the campground and the bit of cool early morning temperatures from the river much appreciated.

From Service Park, Faith and I headed two-hundred miles north to Dewayne-Hayes Campground (another Corps of Engineers...

Please Welcome Author Liz Flaherty

Today I’m excited to have author Liz Flaherty post on the blog. I’m grateful for her sharing news of her new novel, Pieces of Blue, and the term The Woman’s Journey. I find that a perfect description for the stories that I love to read and to write, and, in fact, what fascinates me about all fiction and all of life is the telling of everyone’s journey. Read on to learn more about Liz and the writing of Pieces of Blue.

Pieces of Blue, by Liz Flaherty

For all of her adult life, loner Maggie...

Gone Camping

I sit this morning along the bank of the Tombigbee River. There is a faint breeze caressing my face.

One of my most favorite things, maybe my very favorite thing, is to step out into early morning. I like it before the sun comes, when dawn is just hinting. An old term for this time a day is the blue hour. There is such a magic of life at that time. The air is different. It is moist and fresh and filled with an expectation of good things.

I think as writing practice I’ll work on describing ...

She Believed She Could

I bought this at Tractor Supply the other day. I smile every time I look at it.

Trivia about me: I adore chickens. I raised a flock for several years and even blogged about the adventure of raising chickens on gluten-free feed (Gluten-Free Nana and Her Girls). I so enjoyed sitting out in the evening and watching the hens peck and run across the lush green grass. To this day when I see a hen walking, swaying that little fuffy butt, I chuckle with delight.

To me this image is an illustrati...

Choosing Audacity

Writing, any creativity takes such courage. More so for some of us than for others. When you attempt any bit of writing, you run smack dab into yourself: your doubts, your complaints and excuses, your convoluted thoughts–at least in my case my thoughts are extremely convoluted most of the time–your ideas that you think people will laugh at, your wild desires and timid hopes and grand dreams, all that you can’t fully believe will turn out. I might add that you face all of this in everyday life,...

Do You Know What You Love?

Read Time 3 Minutes

Just a reminder that You can Read Love in A Small Town and Mary In Color free in KindleUnlimited

You can see all my books that are available on Amazon here.

For Mother’s Day, I received this marvelous cast iron tea kettle. A favored color, and and ironware is also a favorite. The maker provided a pamphlet of explanation on the craftsmanship, use, and care of the kettle. It is a Japanese tetsubin, which literally means iron pot, and is a pot especially ...

Further lessons in Girl Camping

Every time I go camping (camping being a rather wide term, mine with every convenience to be had in towing my modern rolling home), I learn new lessons. When I look back, the main lesson I learned from the start of my girl camping adventures and the major lesson I relearn each trip is that I can do far more than I ever imagine that I can.

For instance, take the job of backing up my camper. From the day I brought home my first camper and had to back it into the barn, I was terrified. I learne...

Rules For Writing the Novel, and other bits of nonsense

“There are three rules for writing the novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” ~W. Somerset Maugham

I mentioned here a few weeks ago the classic book of writing instruction The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White. In the face of everyone in the modern world who gets their writing rules online with one or two clicks from the AP or The Chicago Manual of Style, or Grammarly, or a program, I’m reading this little book, much like a novel, and for the same reasons–entertainment, en...

Of Rain and Words

This really happened today, and I find I must tell of it. As I drove out of my driveway, on my way to pick up a friend and take her to her doctor’s appointment, wind gusts tumbled leaves and large white magnolia blossom petals across the ground. Heavy clouds made it like evening and rumbled and boiled. A day of storms was predicted. I prayed for no rain until my friend got safely into my truck, a process that takes time because of her mobility issues.

My friend was coming down the sidewalk as...