In the noise, we hear voices of not good enough and you’ll never do it. In the noise, we feel the tension and stress of busyness in our bodies. We’re scared that we’ll find even darker places in the silence and perhaps not be able to face ourselves, but grace is found in silence. We know our adrenalin […]
I don’t actually have a lot of problems with competition. I have the occasional twinge of jealousy, but I immediately channel it into a note, an encouraging comment on Facebook, or a text. What gets me is comparison and not measuring up. I’m not as good as that person. That effort wasn’t as good as […]
This crash had been coming a long time and my retreat wasn’t a quiet withdrawal, it was more a full-blown defeat. My inner supply of whatever it was I needed to go on was done. Someone said to me recently, ‘But you don’t work. You don’t have a job.’ I know what he meant. I […]
In the tradition of Waleed Aly from The Project, there’s Something We Need to Talk About. At the launch of my novel Amazing Grace, I decided to give a speech, an editorial if you will, about faith and sexuality. The link to the live recording is here, but some of you have asked to read […]
In the lead up to the release of my new novel, Amazing Grace, some friends have been brave enough to share their confessions. Confessions of domestic violence, abuse, an eating disorder, and miscarriage are often stories of shame, fear, and secrets. We often feel like we are the only ones who silently suffer, the only ones who […]
Why are books like Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton so popular? It’s a memoir, but it’s more a confession, an exercise in truth-telling. Glennon tells her story warts and all. We often associate confession with judgement, shame, and fear, but if we look at the Prodigal Son, his confession is a truth-telling exercise. He […]
My Confession In the hush of a Catholic church in Italy, surrounded by the light of holy candles and ancient relics, I had a moment of quiet reflection and meditation. I was looking for answers. I’d just finished writing Amazing Grace, a YA novel about a girl who questions her sexuality. In the process of […]
‘Would you like a digestif? Limoncello? It’s on the house.’ The waiter, dressed impossibly tight, black jeans, white-tight t-shirt, thick leather belt, ankles bare above leather loafers, hipster beard, sculpted hair—you get the picture—tilts his head and we shrug a why not? ‘ Si. Grazie. We would love limoncello.’ I sighed. How perfect. The sky […]
The Music of Life: Writing in Italy The pop of a cork from a Prosecco bottle. Soft, murmuring Italian voices. Cucina. Mangiare. Si Grazie. Bene. Words, food, sharing, friendship in a bookshop café in Florence. My friend and I sit and write. An iced café, served in an Italian wine glass, invites us to sip […]
