An essay about understanding the writing rules before you break them by Rachel Thomspon. Style, what it is and what it ain’t.A writer in my critique group turned to the others and said, “That’s my style. It’s fine.”It wasn’t fine and it wasn’t style.He had argued about it many times saying “the rules don’t matter,”Continue reading “On Style and Skill”
Category Archives: reflection
Asphalt and nostalgia: A recipe for poetry and emotional healing
My father died almost six months ago. Mercury enters retrograde today. Almost one month ago, I ruptured a tendon in my finger. My teenager has an ear infection. But today, I found bliss in the construction outside my house. UGI has been tearing up the street for what feels like months and today they wereContinue reading “Asphalt and nostalgia: A recipe for poetry and emotional healing”
Review & Reflection: Sunshine while reading Poetry East, Fall 2021
It is May. The weather has been bitter, damp & frigid. My toes, my hands (and the ruptured tendon in my left ring finger) think that winter has returned. My flesh carries a purple hue and has lost its youthful softness. I can’t speak for the rest of the world but 2022 has captured meContinue reading “Review & Reflection: Sunshine while reading Poetry East, Fall 2021”
Seasons of books and publishing
I started pitching my book, Manipulations, the first volume of the Fashion and Fiends series, to traditional publishers and agents about 20 years ago. At the time, ebooks had not hit mainstream. Amazon had not yet transformed vanity publishing into self-publishing. My work was quirky and complex even then and didn’t quite fit in horrorContinue reading “Seasons of books and publishing”
Reflection: Orwell & the trajectory of “isms”
By Johann Strauss George Orwell’s writings have experienced a spike in popularity during the past decade and for a simple reason. Modern societies are becoming ever more like the dystopia depicted in Orwell’s most famous book, 1984. Whether it be mass surveillance, the incessant use of propaganda, perpetual wars or the cult of personalities surroundingContinue reading “Reflection: Orwell & the trajectory of “isms””
Reflection: Rules of Driving Applied to Life
By Rachel C. Thompson Who remembers drivers education? It appears, as I drive, that few people have. How may remember that crusty, perpetually annoyed instructor or that first day we got to drive without a learner’s permit? But didn’t we quickly forget the actual rules. Some of them were important then as now. What IContinue reading “Reflection: Rules of Driving Applied to Life”
Unexpected beauty
It’s Friday. I hear Mercury is in retrograde or was in retrograde so many communications aren’t happening clearly, or your technology is on the fritz. In my case, my body joins the chaos but such is life with a disability. This week had it’s high points and some lows. Coworkers are expressing interest in myContinue reading “Unexpected beauty”
Launch of Parisian Phoenix Reflections
Greetings, everyone! If you’ve looked at this site as we’ve been building it, you will note it is slow going. If you’re a writer, I’d like you to absorb the appropriateness of that. Some writing is inspired. But even when inspired, editing never comes quickly and painlessly. At Parisian Phoenix, we have an amazing team.Continue reading “Launch of Parisian Phoenix Reflections”
Parisian Phoenix Publishing 