The Autumn Star

The #MeToo campaign has dredged up a lot of memories for me. I'm working on a longer blog post that breaks down how, from early childhood, society molded my views on women and men. What was expected, what was valued, and what wasn't. And how those views informed my decisions to stay silent when men harassed and assaulted me.  It's a lot to process. And some of the people I'll write about are still in my life. This is true for many of us. We live among our abusers. We share mutual friends. We see them at parties. We laugh at their jokes. We try to forget what they did, at least as long as they're in our presence.  For now, I'm going to share this poem.  Long ago, I dated a bartender. I visited him on weekend nights. This is what I endured every. single. night. MEN OF A CERTAIN AGE Men of a certain age always ask your name before telling you how pretty you are. They ask for it again and again, and again. As if your name - t

Here's a question I ask every candidate I interview: What's the last great book you read? Catch: It can't be a business book. It always stumps them. Some of them are honest: "I don't read fiction. But, I just got done reading a new book about Jeff Bezos ...." Me: (Inward sigh) I wish this only happened when I was talking to young recruits, new to marketing, eager to show me their dedication to learning business from the greats. But it's not. I can't even tell you how many CEOs, presidents, entrepreneurs, managers, designers, developers, and even fellow copywriters that have confessed to me that they don't read fiction. They offer a variety of reasons why. All of which I consider bullshit. I don't like fiction.  Bullshit. Do you watch movies? Television? Those are fiction. (Even the "reality" shows are scripted.) If you don't like reading fiction, it's because you're not reading good fiction.  Or, it&

Inspired by Unthinkable podcast episode "Just Ship It," I decided to set a National Poetry Month challenge for myself. One poem every week day. I'll update this blog with new poems every now and then, so I have an archive of all the poems at the end. 4/21 ONE IN FOUR *Trigger Warning An argument instigates A misunderstanding Fueled by liquor and bitter impotence A challenge I didn’t see it his way I didn’t see it coming The gauntlet thrown I am facedown Like a slap, like a shot Choking on the sheets We’ve shared His weight Crushing my resistance His hands Willing my submission For a moment, a breath I am stunned -- paralyzed prey An eternal second An unspent scream Then, muscle memory kicked in: Waking up There is a boy I knew, I loved Inside my bed Inside of me And the smell of alcohol From his sweat And my breath Filling the room A miasma of shame and guilt and defense We never spoke of it What happened Had happened before: Nervous, new lover Fumblings Moving togethe

I've noticed an increase in the number of job posting and freelance gigs that call for a copywriter to also do some level of image creation or design work. I've been asked more than once, "How are your Photoshop skills?" Me? Photoshop? via GIPHY I know sites like Canva and PicMonkey make the process of creating images a lot easier, but I still have a few issues with this trend. #1 It seems to be a one-way street.  I haven't run across a lot of designers being asked to write copy. And you know why? Because designers are notoriously bad at writing copy. No offense, designers. You guys are amazing at what you do. I have nothing but respect for your skills, because Lord knows I don't have them. But I've yet to meet a great designer who was also a decent copywriter. So why are writers suddenly being asked to pull double duty? My suspicion is that people value copywriters a little less than designers. Why? Because we're all taught how to write

8:15 a.m. Baby Girl and I had just started to wake up. This is my favorite time of day. She's smiling, giggling, snuggly. We're warm and cozy in bed together. The day is nothing but possibilities. And then the phone rings. The home phone. Which nobody ever calls and we have only so I can call 911 if there were ever an emergency. "This is a notice that the IRS have filed a lawsuit against you. Please call 207-693-8051 to resolve this matter immediately." Hubby and I do owe money from our 2015 tax returns, but a lawsuit? It must be a mistake, I think to myself, as I dial the number. The man who answers says his name is Jack Brown. He has a thick accent that leads me to believe he wasn't born Jack Brown, which alerts me something is amiss. He is very angry, which also sets my Spider Sense tingling. He is going to explain everything to me, and instructs me not to interrupt. He says that the IRS has found "fraudulent details" in my tax records datin

Earlier this month, Baby Girl and I flew from Florida to North Dakota to visit Daddy. He's working up there while there's boom money to be made, and has been gone for two months this time. The travel time was eight hours, a long day even without a six month-old, but we were optimistic. It was going to be an adventure. Baby's first flight!  Searching for a sign  Our first flight left Tampa at 5:00 am, so we arrived at the airport at 4:00. Checking our bags would only take a minute, I figured. Who else would fly so early?  There were no employees at the counters. None. Nada. Zip. And no one in line knew why. People finally gave up and went to the curbside baggage check-in.  I did get a response to that tweet.  Awesome, Delta. Thanks for the info. This could have been easily avoided with a little planning and a few pieces of paper.  Signs at the counters would have saved travelers precious time and help to avoid a negative brand experience.  Tip:  Communicate clearly and often