Linda K. Sienkiewicz's Blog, page 9

Funnies for Writers

Need a reason to smile after dealing with rejection letters, frustrating revisions or lousy book reviews? We’ve all been there!

I don’t know if I’d actually send such a letter, but I laughed reading it!

Sometimes it’s hard to know how to answer this question from well meaning friends when you’ve been in a slump, especially if it’s been months.

Most of my writer friends agree that chocolate works for all occasions of misery.

Procrastination is real.

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THE WATERS: Spellbinding and brutal fiction

Fiction to lean into, to absorb, to take your time reading

Author Bonnie Jo Campbell’s newest novel, “The Waters,” is not to be missed if you like dense, provocative fiction.

My review is currently up on MER Motherhood Literature and Art magazine.

“There were herbs in the Waters of Massasauga swamp that could be rendered into medicines for just about every affliction: yarrow and plantain for bleeding wounds, elderberries and boneset for flu, willow bark for fever, and foxglove a...

Queen Clementine: a Dog Story

Clementine and her favorite toyThe gift of dogs

Dogs bring so much into our lives that I sometimes wonder how we can ever repay them. Clementine was like a gift.

When our kids were growing up, we had a wonderful chocolate Lab. When she developed diabetes in her later years, we gave her insulin injections twice daily. It was a challenge, but we loved her. After she died, we spent 7 years debating what kind of dog we wanted next. Another Lab? A rescue? Don liked big dogs. I wanted somet...

Ready to move beyond Goodreads?

Art by Leslie BallewegWhat’s so *Bad* about Goodreads?

Personally, I don’t have complaints about the Goodreads app (I suppose I don’t use it that much), but many readers and authors do. Criticism ranges from poor moderation of reviews and books, their “buggy, outdated tech,” and the very fact that it’s owned by Amazon, which uses Goodreads data to assess its sales. As far as reviews, complaints are that the app doesn’t do enough to combat author harassment or stop questionably bad reviews...

Red River Valley, for Dad on his birthday

Such a sad song

When I was a little girl, I asked my late father to tell me his favorite song…”the most beautiful song you ever heard.”

He thought a minute. “I guess it’d have to be ‘Red River Valley.’” His answer stumped me. It was such a sad song. Why would your favorite be one that made you feel sad?

He wasn’t one to listen to the radio or records. In fact, the bigger surprise may have been that he even had a favorite song. I imagine he’d heard Gene Autry sing it in the 1936 We...

Talking with myself

Weird habit or normal?

I confess: I replay or create conversations aloud. I expound. I pontificate. I argue. I talk in the bathroom. I talk when folding laundry. I talk when walking the dogs. I practice for an upcoming doctor’s appointment, a phone call, an argument. I have talked aloud ever since I can remember.

Over the years, I’ve managed to rein it in, but more times than I care to admit I’ll be talking away in the house, thinking I’m alone, and then turn the corner to see my hus...

Toast to 2024

Resolutions, anyone?

I generally don’t make New Year’s resolutions. Why set myself up for failure?

.

That said, I like fitness coach Joan McDonald’s philosophy:

“Your future you is depending on you to keep the promises you made to yourself today. If you want to build up confidence in yourself, you’ve got to start practicing making decisions and taking action today! Start with the little things, and be determined that no matter what challenges come your way, you will find a way ...

Will you be missing a loved one this holiday?

Experiencing loss vs grieving

Working through grief is a process that may take years. Don’t worry that it’s taking too long. Many times we think we’ve moved past mourning a loved one only to find later, years later, that we haven’t when we burst into tears while picking out oranges at Kroger.

Here are two perspectives that helped me look at grief more openly, even 10 years after losing my son to suicide:

1. All There Is

Anderson Cooper learned he hadn’t grieved his losses ...

What, Why, How: Artist Cheryl Barill

What:

I am a lifelong artist who lives in Michigan. I paint with oils and use gold leaf in many of my paintings. I have a long background in two expressions, one is sound and the other is color. I am self taught and have been known to be voracious in studying artists whose work touches me emotionally in ways I wish to master.

One of the most entertaining comments I once received while out in the field painting plein air was, “if Monet and Turner had a mash-up child, it would be you!” Yes, ...

How to Find Calm after Trauma

Cheri’s recovery process

My friend and fellow poet has been working on acute anxiety and trauma recovery by painting colorful watercolor birds and boldly posting her work on Facebook. The images intrigued me because, in my experience, watercolor is not an easy medium. It does not forgive. There are no do-overs. So how did this help anxiety?

For Cheri, however, that’s exactly the point. I asked her to explain her process and how it led to her book Moving Toward Calm.

A bird a day ...