Professor and author, currently working on my biography of best-selling author Emilie Loring. I enjoy kayaking, traveling, and all things Emilie.
Every year, near the Fourth of July, Emilie Loring left steamy Boston for the cool coastline of Maine. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you know that I go there each year, too. But the pandemic has changed things, and rather than get too sad about cancelling my cottage this year, I … More Yes, We Can Go to Maine!
When you pick up a book in the bookstore–or browse one online–how long does it take for you to get an impression and decide to read further or move on? Authors build stable careers by creating a reliable experience and delivering it, time and time again. But it all begins with a first impression. These … More First and Lasting Author Impressions
Ah, romantic summer! A season of weddings, beach picnics, and walking hand in hand… by the light of a silvery moon. By the light of the silvery moon I want to spoon To my honey, I’ll croon love’s tune Honey moon, keep a-shinin’ in June Your silvery beams will bring love’s dreams We’ll be cuddlin’ … More By the Light of the Silvery Moon
Our modern Memorial Day holiday was established in the 1970s, but its long history began when Emilie Loring was a toddler. Boston’s first “Decoration Day” was on May 30, 1868. “Every soldier’s monument in New England on that day should be crowned with floral emblems, for the living can pay no more beautiful tribute to … More Little-known History of Decoration Day
Have you noticed a change in the tone of public media lately? Several months in, after attending to each report, each analysis, and each prediction of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a collective yearning for something more. We know the challenge, and we are in it for the long haul, but to make the journey, … More “Refreshed.” It’s a great word, isn’t it?
There’s been a lot of buzz about recently-released, famous recipes. IKEA shared its Swedish meatball recipe, Disneyland released several of its park favorites, and Doubletree revealed its chocolate chip cookie recipe. Famous recipes always appeal. If we’ve enjoyed them before, we’re glad to make them ourselves. If we’ve not tried them, the very idea that … More Favorite Recipes of Famous People
“The world changes. Times change. People change. Habits change…” Preface to Whispering Pines by Clara Endicott Sears With more of us staying at home instead of going to work these days, daily schedules have dissolved. We don’t have to be dressed, fed, and out by 7:00. There’s no prescribed lunch hour at work or school, … More Dragging Days? Try a “Kettle Drum”
