My favorite part of being at The Big E (New England's State Fair) today was listening to earliest-memory stories. I posed the question a number of ways—from what age is your earliest memory? how old are you in your earliest memory? how far back can you remember?—and passersby shared. Sitting cross-legged in the grass under…
"Does a book remember it once was a word?" —Nina Laden
I wrote the first bit of The Memory Sessions 13 years ago this month. It's a teenager now, so time to throw it a little party. With music, drinks, food, hearty people, and conversation about childhood, we will toast this memoir without memory. Special thanks to Caitlin Leffel, author and editor, for lending her grace…
I'm taking The Memory Sessions on the road! First stop: HippoCamp 2019, in Lancaster, PA. I've wanted to attend HippoCamp since its inaugural conference. This year's the year! On Friday, August 23, at 6pm, I'll be reading and answering questions along with five other debut authors: James Chesbro, Tyrese Coleman, Anika Fajardo, Randon Billings Noble,…
My essay "If You Find a Mouse on a Glue Trap" (Brevity, September 2018) will be reprinted in Pushcart's annual anthology. When the email from Dinty W. Moore arrived yesterday, I read it more than a few times. More than a dozen, I think. It took that many readings to decode: "Your piece has been…
