Every spare moment these days I am editing: playing with words on the page, selecting phrases, deleting paragraphs, disentangling dialogue and aiming for the ultimate goal of a completed novel. In November 2016, while at a writing retreat I was invited to participate in a national contest called Pitch Week. I jumped in with an […]
Creating Fiction That Mirrors Life
I spent my first day of a 6-day writing retreat shell-shocked over the election outcome. While I should have been hanging out with Leda, Jonathan and Marcia (the characters in my new novel, Aesop Lake), instead I was holed up in my room watching HRC give her concession speech, feeling distraught that my daughters now […]
Sometimes the name they give you is all wrong…
Sometimes the name they give you is all wrong, like my friend Zap. He’s as cool and brainiac as they come, but the boys down on “D” wing think he’s stupid, like he’s been trippin’ or got some wire treatment at the Retreat. But he ain’t. Zap just keeps to himself, he don’t talk to […]
The Darkest Night
The Darkest Night by Sarah Ward Every week day morning, George rises from bed at 6am. He listens to VPR in the bathroom, showering and shaving while he contemplates the world’s challenges. He reminds himself how lucky he is that he lives in a safe part of the world, where he isn’t worried about bombs […]