After reading the article in today's New York Times about Cormac McCarthy donating his Olivetti manual typewriter, one on which he wrote countless manuscripts, perhaps even his Pulitzer winner, I couldn't help but recall my first typewriter, a manual Smith & Corona, the color of a placid Caribbean sea....

This past summer, my three siblings and I began to clear out some items from my parents' house. Our mom died in April, 2008, but we hadn't been ready to disturb, at least individually, what she'd left behind. But there was one summer day when my brother from Maryland and...

Immediately after reading Irene Vilar's memoir, Impossible Motherhood: Testimony of an Abortion Addict, I closed the book and went to my bedroom to take an afternoon nap. I needed to escape; however, no sleep came, my mind rolling over Vilar's tragic story. When I was asked to review this...

Yes, it's that time of year where spooks and goblins, witches and Jack-o-lanterns are ever-present. In a couple of days, however, when youngsters go from door to door donned in the scariest costume they can conjure it will be in good fun; yet, once Halloween comes to an end, most...

It wasn't until Benjamin Genocchio's review of the Norman Rockwell showing at the Nassau County Museum of Art that I began to see the artist in a different, perhaps more disturbing, light. What a disappointment, since I usually find something charming in Rockwell's work. I own a print of his...

Yesterday I posted a review for Kristen J. Tsetsi's novel Homefront. After seeing my previous reviews for some other books here on The Huffington Post, Kristen asked if I'd consider reviewing her novel. Once I heard what the subject matter was, I agreed. I'm glad I did. I was...

There are many novels about war, most from the battlefield where there's page-turning tension and drama. But there are few stories written from the point of view of a loved one back home waiting, and waiting some more, not knowing if or how the soldier will return home. Perhaps that's...

Divorce is a common theme in many works of fiction; probably because we have all been affected by it one way or another and need to examine how something we were sure was so right eventually went so wrong. I couldn't help but consider this while reading Irene Zutell's

The summer of '08, I was the Director and Writer-in-Residence for the Adirondack Summer Workshop in Old Forge. It was such fun and I enjoyed meeting those who participated in the class, most who wanted to make their work-in-progress better. However, there was one student who came to the class...

Initially, I was hesitant to accept an advanced readers' copy of Luis Miguel Rocha's latest thriller, The Holy Bullet (Putnam), for review until I was told that Rocha based the story on actual information he got in 2005 from a man who claims to have killed Pope John Paul...

Occasionally, a local story makes national news; some are worthy of the attention while others aren't. The local story I'm about to share certainly does not merit national news. Not because it's not my local story -- after all, I live on Long Island, but because it's a non-issue. Or...

We've lost a few icons over the last few weeks; most recently Walter Cronkite and now Frank McCourt. I dare say that the world was a better place because of these men and what they accomplished. Mr. Cronkite set the standards in that a correspondent should report the news without...

So Fred Phelps, Sr. is continuing his tireless efforts by promulgating hate and intolerance toward anyone who does not obey God's word -- at least in the way Phelps interprets God's word, according to the Bible. I've written about this extremist in the past, but since I just finished...

I've been trying to wrap my brain around the topic of whether female judges make different decisions from their counterparts based on the whirlwind conversation surrounding Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Today's New York Times takes a closer look at this topic in an article titled "Debate on Whether Female Judges...

Recently, a concerned reader responded to one of my Facebook status updates where I posed a question wondering if Nancy Pelosi was being used as a distraction by the GOP. I believe the reader was genuine when she expressed a concern that I might be ticking off half of my...

In spite of self-publishing gaining more respectability, there are still those who feel it is a waste of money for authors to go that route. Just this week alone I have come across a couple of cynics who believe that struggling writers are foolish and being taken advantage of by...

Some here in the West have reacted with shock in response to the new Afghanistan law that gives Shiite men permission to rape their wives, even though President Hamid Karzai claims that we're simply misinterpreting this law. In other words, we've lost something in the translation. I won't pretend to...

As opposed to years ago, I am no longer religious nor would I define myself as spiritual, but I do sometimes find myself sitting in a pew at St. Patrick's Cathedral when I'm in Manhattan and have some time to kill between meetings. I suppose I could shop at the...

Ever since a recent bout of the flu kept me in bed for a couple of days, leaving me with little to do except sleep or watch television, I have been embarrassed to admit that I am now able to participate in discussions about certain TV programs inaccurately defined as...

I often write about the publishing industry and most recently wrote here about its standards. Admittedly, I am rather vocal when it comes to self-publishing or print-on-demand. Nevertheless, in spite of the new publishing paradigm, there is still often a stigma when it comes to self-publishing. The idea that...