The Oh-So-Poetic Roshambeaux of Rome in the Thunder Dome: A Rise to a Fall.

The story of Rome is one of civilizations greatest epics. One of humanity’s greatest successes. And perhaps even greater failures. And thus, all at once perhaps its most tragic. In just over 500-centuries what began as a humble village, just a salty sea breeze away from the Mediterranean, calcified into a peal, a nucleus upon

Bathing With Amy Lowell (1874-1925): A Poem to Feed Your Week

Little spots of sunshine lie on the surface of the water and dance, dance, and their reflections wobble deliciously over the ceiling; a stir of my finger sets them whirring, reeling

What the Hell is Water? David Foster Wallace and the Need to Believe

“Because here’s something else that’s weird but true: in the day-to day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship. And the compelling reason for maybe choosing some sort of god or

And now, a heart-to-heart from Ulysses (Joyce)

On the Road Less Traveled : A Personal Essay on the Path of Most Resistance and the Adventure That is Life.

Don’t be victimized by the culture of fear. Our planet is waiting to be explored, to reveal it’s secrets to you, to me, to any who dare ask, it will expose you to the raw truths of life. To the quarks of distant cultures and alien tongues. To disgusting foods and delicious cuisines, to dangerous and countless blessings.

Three Chinese Fables to Guide Your Weekend

Many Chinese fables tell an entertaining story to illustrate a moral lesson. Here are a few such stories. Stopping Halfway, Never Comes One’s Day In the Warring States Period, in the state of Wei lived a man called Leyangtsi. His wife was very angelic and virtuous, who was loved and respected dearly by the husband. One day, Leyangtsi

Habits of the Mentally Strong: Meditations on Manifesting Your Best Self

Practicing gratitude? Perserverence? Taking Responsibility? These are just a few of the tools for maintaining a strong mind. Check out my newest article for tips of fulfilling your goals. In other news, applying for scholarships and glaring starry eyed towards Naropa University.

That Settles it, “Writing is Hard.” -Yeats

“A line will take us hours maybe, Yet if it does not seem a moment’s thought, Our stitching and unstitching have been naught. Better go down upon your marrow bones And scrub a kitchen pavement, or break stones Like an old pauper, in all kinds of weather— For to articulate sweet sounds together Is to

Life is in the Little Habits; Or, Why I Make My Bed

Life is in the Little Habits; Or, Why I Make My Bed https://bywayofrenee.wordpress.com/2018/12/16/life-is-in-the-little-habits-or-why-i-make-my-bed/ — Read on bywayofrenee.wordpress.com/2018/12/16/life-is-in-the-little-habits-or-why-i-make-my-bed/

The 9-Minute Novelist: How to Write a Novel in Just Minutes a Day (from Writer’s Digest)

Writing a novel is a complicated equation involving a lot of variables and moving parts — not the least of which are the authors themselves. In fact, the process of writing a novel is so arduous and soaked in magical thinking that many writers struggle to explain the process coherently,

Top 5 Most Frustrating Writing Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them) – from Grammarly

“Recently Grammarly asked its social media communities which writing mistakes were the worst kinds of errors.”

Where Are You Going? An Interview with Quo Vadis: On Journaling, Travel, and Memoir.

On the art of journaling, note taking, and recording the world around you. These are my favorite notebooks for daily musings and painting.

Flash Poem to Self: “Be confident, not sad sap, sipping quietly in corner bar:” On Writing, the Bohemian Lifestyle, and Balancing Art/Mind.

I will be confident — not sad sap, sipping quietly in corner bar.

I will be, act, speak with intention.

I will be finished, will shop my novel. 

El Violin: Valencia ( A Love Poem to the Spanish City of Oranges

Bohemian nights in Valencia where the gypsies shred violins into the coming dark
“Rhythmic swells reverberate trough my lungs. The back streets of Valencia.

Back street Europe.

Romani enclaves and gypsy parts of town.

We’ll sit here in the Plaça de la Virgen with our stiff sangria, smartly bashful in red-faced delerium.

For it is Spring and the blossoms have begun to sing. 

A nod to blanco nerium”

A poem to the City of Oranges. An Open Love Letter to the City of Valencia, Spain.

Ten Songs for Winter: For Rich Emotion, Deep Inspiration, and Lucid Dreamin’.

You know how it goes:] the blustery mornings. Watery eyed and minus-7. The frozen pipes and snowed in nights. The red faced wind burns. But look at that, the stars have never been so sharp –outlined in the thin air like diamonds under keen inspection. 

Spontaneous Combustion: #1 ($99 Dollars, Almost Free: Life Coach. Copywriter. Thief)

I’m not here to pretend to be some guru or act like I know anymore than you do because, believe me, the older I get, the less I know.

Funny how that works when the world is running wild with “twenty-somethings” peddling Nirvana and life-coaching: really just give me $99 and I promise you’ll feel better. Go ahead, try it. 

Prologue to a Memoir: A Rough Draft, a Novel, a Working Confesson.

A strange thing happens when you begin to contemplate the end. It’s as if setting such a definitive goal opens the world to endless possibilities: a phone is buzzing,

2018 Reading Challenge: Reading Women Challenge

reveal yourself: what are some of your challenges, demands for 2018? I want the juicy details! let’s get through this together.

From the Rooftops of Granada — an excerpt from my manuscript for ‘The Outsider.’ A Confessional Memoir/Novel on Identity, Love, Travel and Revolution in the Arab Spring.

I mean, it’s not cheating if nothing happens. Oh, but emotions run deep. Which begs the question: What’s worse, an emotional or a physical affair?

Opening lines: A Story About Identity, Revolution, and What it Means to Be a Modern Human. A Work in Progress #LiteraryFiction

Excerpt from The Outsider: A Memoir?
“The sky out my window is that fiery red which makes the heart swell with life and there it is again: that sensational expanding within my chest, rising to my throat, gripping and stinging my eyes.”