As a memoir writer I am a big fan of Mary Karr. I’m almost through reading her latest, Lit and as always, she’s given me a lot to think about. In this memoir she writes about her alcoholism, being a mother, recovery and spirituality.

It’s fitting that in this very non-spiritual place in my life, I am being inspired to think about spirituality from a great writer (instead of a church or a minister etc.) I haven’t been to church in a year? longer? and people (in-laws) keep asking me when we are going to get Reid baptized. His brothers have been baptized in the church where my husband and I were married. The church has sent me information about baptism dates and yet I can’t seem to make myself fill out the form…..it feels hypocritical somehow.

But reading Lit, I’m starting to think differently. I’m starting to think that maybe being spiritual doesn’t mean you have to go to church (and dress up and dress the kids up and sing songs and say prayers that I don’t understand and always made me feel like a poser anyway). That maybe all I need to do is kneel down on my own floor and say a prayer, any kind of prayer. And I feel so corny saying that but so did Karr which makes me feel so much better!

I’ll still need to dress up and go to church to get Reid baptized…but maybe that will just be the beginning of something. I still have to finish the book but I’m surprised that its taken me down this path and maybe I’m grateful too.

“Asking for Help.” see Literary Mama…

I started running the year I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I was 14 years old and living away from home at a private school. My field hockey coach had been surprised when she saw me running on a Sunday afternoon, our day off. I’d always complained when she made us go for a run around campus, and had been caught taking the shortcut more than once. That year she gave me a “Most Unlikely Runner” gag award at the end of our season, but I could tell that she was proud. I was proud. Running was teaching me to see my body as healthy rather than sick. With my running shoes on I was strong and steady, not the girl with the chronic disease. Running began as a way to tame my blood sugars, but over the years it has become a necessary rhythm in my life. As the mother of three boys under ten, running every morning keeps me calm and steady in the middle of the motherhood storm.

I was shopping at TJMaxx this week, and while standing in line was shocked to see Dan Brown’s Lost Symbol for sale at a majorly discounted price. I am not a big fan of Brown’s and had no plans of buying the book but as a long time book buyer/lover, I was startled to see the hardback being sold next to discounted cookbooks and Disney books.I have to admit to buying my copy of Her Fearful Symmetry (thumbs down) from Costco but for some reason TJMaxx struck me as a different scenario.

In her story, Nation’s Retailers Engage In Online Book Pricing Wars, Lynn Neary writes:

Al Greco, a Fordham University professor who studies the publishing business, says this price war could have a serious ripple effect on all booksellers: “This cuts into book buying at retail stores, supermarkets [and] convenience stores. The book store chains especially hit hard will be the independents who are unable to discount to that level.”

I guess what scares me the most is the idea that wandering down the narrow aisles of shelves crowded with books in a family owned bookstore will be a thing of the past. The positive side of discounted books is that maybe it will encourage more people to read, but I still don’t know how I feel about buying books at TJMaxx.

I think it’s time for the whole publishing business to make changes so the Dan Brown’s and Audrey Niffenegger’s won’t be hogging all the press and money, but what direction will it take? What does all this mean for people like me, working toward my MFA, hoping to get my book published and make a little money? Where will this leave people like me?

This is the best essay I’ve read on book promotion in a while. I have to say it makes me cringe when I read rants from authors who complain about touring the country to promote their book. At least your book is published, I hiss under my breath.

Well, Stephanie Elizondo Griest gives it to us straight in her Poets&Writers (Nov/Dec) essay, Confessions of an Author Nomad, promoting Your Book At All Costs. Her opening line had me hooked,

“Three years ago I drew the sad conclusion of every writer without a spouse or a trust fund: I could either write or pay rent. Not both.”

I laughed out loud and had to read it, slowly and with emphasis to my husband so he could appreciate that there were others out there like me, willing to go without in order to write! While I have a spouse, we also have 3 children and a mortgage and on and on so maybe she should clarify her statement as a “spouse who makes a lot of money or a trust fund”…..

Griest’s path of promotion is definitely not one I could emulate with 3 kids under 10, but I appreciate her enthusiasm and love of the journey. Her essay about the life of a published author on the road is inspirational instead of depressing, and we can all use more of those tales…..

Here are my latest business profiles from Charleston Style and Design mag….

Rebuilding The Holy City, Family Owned Strock Enterprises Focuses on Satisfying Homeowners

Flooring Experts, Carpet Baggers offers Variety, Service and Excellent Value

I am not a big seafood eater but I live in South Carolina and am determined to become one. Barbara Seelig-Brown of Stressfreecooking.com has written a new cookbook for the ADA called, The Diabetes Seafood Cookbook, fresh, healthy, low-fat cooking. With over  100 recipes that range from mango tuna salad to salmon with black bean salsa, each recipe includes nutritional information and cook’s tips in 3-4 simple steps.

While I love to cook meals for my husband (cooking for the boys is not much fun), seafood has always scared me. What I like about this cookbook is its simplicity. I was not afraid to attempt a recipe, and in fact, I went out and made baked scallops & mushroom sauce and it was delicious! (I’ll add photos later.) The entire process took less than 30 minutes (the amount of time the baby was quiet in his bouncy chair), and had only 14g of carbs per serving. And, it was good.

There are many salmon recipes and while I have stayed away from salmon because of it’s fishy taste, I know it’s good for me. So I’m going to gather my courage and give one of Barbara’s 17 salmon recipes a try. Maybe roasted salmon with vegetables? Or salmon tacos, salmon and spinach pie? Something that doesn’t taste so salmony! Wish me luck…..

My friend and colleague, Lyndsay Riffe, Registered Dietitian/CDE and type 1 diabetic, sent me an email about these fabulous women. I’m excited for them and jealous that I am not a part of this team! Maybe one day down the line….it’s good to dream!

Twenty women with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, and friends who call themselves “Type 3,” will gather from across North America to participate in the Longhorn 70.3 on October 25 as part of Team WILD: Women Inspiring Life with Diabetes. Team WILD is the first team in the world to use team training, coaching, medical support and camaraderie to prepare women with diabetes for specific athletic events, from 5ks to Ironmans.

The twenty Team WILD athletes participating in the 2009 Longhorn 70.3 come from seven states and range in age from 24 to 55. Team member, Jennifer Smith, says, “The benefit of being on this wonderful team is that we all have individual expectations and experiences, but because we share them each day we are also learning from 19 other experiences….not just our own.”

The inclusiveness, collaboration, compassion, and female focus of the Team WILD community make it unique and powerful. Through Team WILD, Type 1s and 2s reject the old-fashioned notion that insulin dependence or resistance is a life-inhibitor; and Type 3s express their invaluable support, understanding, and empathy, without which our community could not thrive.  “We embrace fun and motion as keys to happy, healthy lives. Through our team events, education and outreach, we seek to inspire the same in others,” says team founder Mari Ruddy.

With the enthusiasm of the triathletes and outstanding support of the coaches, Team WILD has developed into more than a team of women training for a triathlon in October; it is a community building bridges between women with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, and the people who love and live with them. The Longhorn 70.3 is only the beginning!

There are 23.6 million children and adults in the United States, or 7.8% of the population, who have diabetes. Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life.

For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact Mari Ruddy, Team Founder at 720-252-6693 and mruddy@teamwild.org.

Team WILD is a project of the Diabetes Exercise and Sports Association.

My mother has told me the story of my birth ever since I was a young girl. Even though I am nearing forty, I look forward every year to hearing my birth story. The details of that cold night, the dead car, my mother’s refusal of pain medication, my father’s inclusion in the birth, are dramatic and romantic. Each year, I am surprised to discover something that I didn’t know before.

My children’s birth stories are different. (Literary Mama.com)

I’ll be teaching/facilitating a class at The Center for Women called:

Healing Through Writing: How to write your way out of a painful breakup
This group will use the act of writing as a tool to confront the chaos of a relationship gone wrong. Learn how to express your feelings into a meaningful language that will transform the pain of your experience.

Mondays, Oct. 5-Nov. 16th 5:30-7:00pm.

Go to: http://www.c4women.org/support_groups.htm

“When it comes to writing about family or friends, you can be liked, or you can tell the truth. If you want both, you should become an accountant.” David Matthews, “Aces of Spades”

Great responses in the New York Times to the memoir released in the US this week titled, “The Lost Child” by Julie Myerson.

What is our responsibility as writers of memoir to the people we write about?