Friction: What’s In Your Way? What Ought To Be?

I receive a lot of email. In fact I spend far too much time clearing out my inbox every day. I’m not talking about spam, which is luckily well controlled. Too much of the email I’ve actually signed up for is useless to me: companies trying to sell me things I don’t need or want;…

Read More

Sunday Inspiration: The Big Questions

“We are much involved, all of us, with questions about things that matter a good deal today but will be forgotten by this time tomorrow — the immediate wheres and whens and hows that face us daily at home and at work — but at the same time we tend to lose track of the…

Read More

Novels and Children: Some Are Easier to Raise Than Others

Novels and children. Sometimes planned, sometimes not. Sometimes almost trouble-free, and sometimes . . . I bet you’ve already figured out some other similarities between novels and children, haven’t you? Here’s another. A mother protects her children the way a novelist protects her books . She might know they have faults, but even on a…

Read More

Sunday Inspiration: What Are You Owed?

“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” – Marcus Aurelius As I’ve mentioned in the past, one of my favorite blogs is “Barking Up the Wrong Tree” by Eric Barker. He writes well-researched essays  that I find helpful. A recent email I received– 5…

Read More

Three Plots Readers Can’t Get Enough of and Why

I love the title of my blog today, don’t you? Doesn’t it sound like I know what I’m talking about? That’s always a plus, but not necessarily the truth. Quite honestly my social science background is shaking me by the shoulder and asking how I know what readers love.  Have I done studies or even read other…

Read More

Sunday Inspiration: Sparks and Flames

  “After the one extravagant gesture of creation in the first place, the universe has continued to deal exclusively in extravagances, flinging intricacies and colossi down aeons of emptiness, heaping profusions on profligacies with ever-fresh vigor. The whole show has been on fire from the word go. I come down to the water to cool…

Read More

Costa Rica: A Winner in Every Way

If you guessed Costa Rica, you were correct. This particular photo comes from the Mixed Culture website, but I did see the Resplendent Quetzal from a distance yesterday. What a glorious sight. We’ll be home today with great memories of “Best of Costa Rica” from Road Scholar and all the super people we met along…

Read More

Where in the World is Emilie Richards?

I’ve been traveling this week. Here are some photos from my trip so far–heading home soon. Can you tell where I am? Comment with your guess–if you dare. I’m doing this from my iPad, so the photos are not in order of any kind. Have you guessed? Let me know in comments. Meantime have a…

Read More

Win Dragonslayer and Forty-Plus Other Novels

Today, I have an exciting giveaway I’d like to share with you. Did you spot my novel Dragonslayer way down in the left hand bottom corner? I’ve teamed up with more than 45 romantic women’s fiction authors to give away a huge collection of novels to 2 lucky winners, PLUS a Kindle Fire to the Grand Prize…

Read More