AmiMaxine

First Drafts

I think this is a tweet all writers need to see:

When writing Wherever Would I Be, it was really important to me that Lucy’s adopted family be loving and as trauma-free as an adopted family could be. This family was to be a safe haven for these children. Lucy’s father, Luca, was a foster child himself, bounced around from home to terrible home before he wasContinue reading “Meet Lucy’s (Adopted) Family”

Hummingbirds

I once had the extreme privilege of co-directing a study abroad to Costa Rica in 2015 (I had to look up the date, and my jaw fell at the realization this trip was that long ago!). I had always wanted to do a study abroad, but I didn’t have the money or the time inContinue reading “Hummingbirds”

A Story a Day: Month Eleven

For this month, I chose (kind of) at random stories from Granta (I ended up needing to purchase a subscription to finish reading Month Three, so thought I’d use them again), the literary quarterly from Cambridge University. I say ‘kind of’ because I scrolled through their list and chose any story that I came acrossContinue reading “A Story a Day: Month Eleven”

My New Reading Lamp

Can I get real nerdy with y’all for a moment? ‘Cause I just got a new reading lamp, and I’m more excited about it than I probably should be. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I remember when I went from living on campuses with my partner (who was a hall director, and therefore had to live on) to owningContinue reading “My New Reading Lamp”

Cover Design

Probably the thing that worries me most about self-publishing my second book is the cover. Not in the “will people love it” sense – but in the “what if I can’t get it to look how I want” sense, in the “what if I royally mess up the dimensions” sense. I know – I knowContinue reading “Cover Design”

Chai

I love chai masala. I could drink it every single day and never get sick of it. I’m a ginger fiend. The cloves and cardamom and cinnamon are like a spicy hug. The little boost of caffeine helps me in my moments of need. It’s all perfection. In my stories, my characters are all aContinue reading “Chai”

Meet Lucy

With the decision to self-publish, I thought I would dedicate at least one post a month to this book – in this instance, introducing you to the main character. The idea for Lucy first took hold maybe five years ago. I had a flash of a young girl, adopted, who was in search of herContinue reading “Meet Lucy”

A Story a Day: Month Ten

For this month, I chose at random stories by LGBT+ writers in honor of October being LGBT History Month. I found them through google searches looking first for LGBT+ writers, then for LGBT+ specific literary journals. As with the previous nine months, I have no idea what these stories are about – the goal isContinue reading “A Story a Day: Month Ten”

Celebrating my Writing Buddy

I first met Ophelia O’Leary several years ago. She was smart and complex and a little bit sassy – not unlike her creator, Jack Lelko (who you all know as my writing buddy). I’ve had the chance to revisit her world a few times over the years – most recently when I set her publishedContinue reading “Celebrating my Writing Buddy”