Tag Archives: life

What I’m reading — and loving! — right now: Beautiful Writers by Linda Sivertsen

Posted on September 18, 2022 by scout2011

The book publishing business is kind of a like a mythological beast: sometimes terrifying, sometimes beautiful, always layered. I know from personal experience that the best thing you can do when you love a book is to talk about it–to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged abby wambach, Ann Patchett, Beautiful Writers, books, celebrities, creativity, joy, Katherine Scott Crawford, life, Linda Sivertsen, Liz Gilbert, motherhood, parenthood, parenting, Patricia Cornwell, podcasts, reading, stories, Terry McMillan, writers, writing, writing life | Leave a comment

Over the Weekend I Pretend I’m a Writer

Posted on March 18, 2021 by scout2011

Just kidding. I know I’m a writer. It’s taken a while to accept it as a fact inside and out (yes, I’m aware that’s nuts; and yes, I have seen a therapist), but I’ve got it now. I may not … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged adjunct, Asheville Citizen-Times, celebrate, children, CNF, columnist, Covid-19, creative nonfiction, draft, drafting, escape, essay, fiction, first draft, Hamilton, heartbreak, historical fiction, historical novel, holiday, imposter syndrom, Katherine Scott Crawford, Keowee Valley, kids, lake, life, lyrics, Madonna, manuscript, momming, motherhood, new novel, newspaper, newspaper column, op ed, over the weekend I pretend I'm a writer, pandemic, parenthood, parents, prof life, professor, retreat, rough draft, running out of time, sniffin someone lookin pretty, summer in the city, teaching, The Greenville News, time, timeline, WNC, writer mama, writing, writing life | 5 Comments

Happy Birthday, Will Shakespeare … whoever you are

Posted on April 23, 2020 by scout2011

My apologies, dear friends and readers, for being so absent. I was not the most frequent of communicators before Covid-19 sent all our lives into a tailspin, and now, well … we all know what now is. My creative life … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged amwriting, books, Clemson University, CNF, College of Charleston, coronavirus, Covid-19, creative nonfiction, English department, English major, essay, happy birthday Shakespeare, Katherine Scott Crawford, life, MA in English, MFA, MFA in Writing, op ed, Shakespeare a woman, Shakespeare's birthday, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, thoughts, Vermont College of Fine Arts, William Shakespeare, words words words, writer, writing life | Leave a comment

Springtime in February … and other such conundrum

Posted on February 4, 2020 by scout2011

So, apparently, February is now a springtime month. I live in the mountains of Western North Carolina. My town sits at an elevation of about 2300 feet (higher than Asheville and Hendersonville, N.C.), and it usually–it should–snow. But climate change … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged blog, climate change, CNF, conundrum, creative nonfiction, essay, February, Katherine Scott Crawford, life, middle age, opinion, post, snow, spring, winter | Leave a comment

I Screwed Up Today (or, Parenthood is Not for Sissies)

Posted on March 12, 2019 by scout2011

Picture this: It is 7:45 a.m., and my children and I are walking into school. My 9 year-old walks two steps ahead, just out of arm’s length and just far enough so that I don’t see the sour expression on … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged children, column, columnist, daughters, essay, essayist, fatherhood, I screwed up, James Spader, Katherine Scott Crawford, kids, life, mama, mamahood, mother, motherhood, newspaper, parenthood, parenting, parenting is not for sissies, Pretty in Pink, puberty, raising kids, respect, sensitive, sensory, Steff | 4 Comments

Some initial thoughts: the recent decisions of the special session of the General Conference of the United Methodist Church

Posted on February 26, 2019 by scout2011

If I were still writing my newspaper column, I’d be writing, this week, about the special session of the General Conference of the United Methodist Church, which met over the past several days to make decisions about church doctrine regarding … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Christian, Christianity, church, church doctrine, clergy, CNF, columnist, creative nonfiction, essay, essayist, faith, family, friendship, gay, General Conference, God, homosexuality, hope, human sexuality, Jesus, Katherine Scott Crawford, layperson, lesbian, LGBT, life, love, Methodism, One Church Plan, opinion, parenting, religion, sacred worth, same-sex weddings, Simple Plan, special session, St. Louis, thoughts, Traditional Plan, United Methodist, way forward | 8 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day from my family to yours! (Plus a column.)

Posted on February 14, 2019 by scout2011

Happy Valentine’s Day from my family to yours! Even though it’s not a real holiday, and the historical origins are dicey (and possibly a bit murderous). Still. This day reminds us that, really, all we need is love. Today I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged amwriting, children, CNF, columnist, creative nonfiction, essay, essayist, freelance, Katherine Scott Crawford, kids, life, love, middle school, newspaper column, parenting, romance, Valentine's Day, writer | Leave a comment

New column: “Remembering a poet who wrote in the ‘vernacular of humanity'”

Posted on January 31, 2019 by scout2011

Earlier this year, the United States lost one of its best beloved poets, Mary Oliver. Oliver’s words have reached an innumerable amount of people, all across the world, and from all different backgrounds. Oliver was one of those soothsayer writers … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged amwriting, article, Asheville Citizen-Times, best-seller, CNF, column, columnist, creative nonfiction, essay, essayist, eulogy, family of things, God, honor, humanity, Katherine Scott Crawford, life, Mary Oliver, nature, newspaper, poet, poetry, Pulitzer Prize, reading, The Greenville News, vernacular, vernacular of humanity, wild and precious life, wild geese | Leave a comment

New column: “Our children belong only to themselves”

Posted on January 24, 2019 by scout2011

My most recent newspaper column is about a realization I came to after the birth of my older daughter. It shook me to the core, and made complete and utter sense. I hope y’all enjoy it. To read, click here.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged birth, childhood, children, column, columnist, eureka, fatherhood, giving birth, independence, Katherine Scott Crawford, kids, life, motherhood, newspaper column, opinion, our children belong only to themselves, parenthood, personhood, realization, The Greenville News Asheville Citizen-Times | Leave a comment

New column: “Make 2019 the year of ‘come as you are'”

Posted on January 17, 2019 by scout2011

If we wait until we’re perfect, we will never do anything. This is a tough lesson to learn–one I struggle with daily. So: that, life, being awkward, scared, and hopeful, and more, in my newest newspaper column. I sure hope … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 2019, anxiety, Asheville Citizen-Times, awkward, CNF, column, columnist, come as you are, creative nonfiction, essay, essayist, goals, Greenville News, imperfection, Katherine Scott Crawford, life, new year, newspaper, op ed, opinion, parenthood, parenting, perfection, scared, start before you're ready, thoughts | Leave a comment