Melissa Westemeier

Working in an environment with more creature comforts and fewer distractions has been amazing.

In the olden days, I used to write like mad in the summertime and set aside my stories during the school year. When I quit teaching, it...

All fiction writers are making it up as they go along. Some of us shoot for accuracy in the details, others of us fake it all the way....

I joked to my neighbors that anyone staking out my house in May to learn the family schedule would be deeply frustrated because of travel...

In writing news, I took a 2 month hiatus from writing murder mysteries to work on a different project. I completed 75,000 words in this...

(a silly little list of good things) Our driveway, surprisingly, after so much snow. I guess the ground was warm enough to help melt it....

When I feel lost or overwhelmed, sometimes I sit still, refuse to move, and get really depressed. Sometimes I pour all my energy into...

I rarely feature household pets in our annual Christmas letter, but this year I mentioned Rose and Poppy. A week after mailing the...

I left you with an offer on the table for my books, but I forgot to mention how the actual writing of books was going. During the query...

By January, Small and Graff gave me some valuable feedback on my murder mystery and I rolled up my sleeves. Writing requires juggling a...

I've been cryptic about my writing on this site over the past year, partly because I've been in the dark myself, partly because I've been...

Much has been written and much more has been said about parenting styles and while my oldest would beg to differ at times (specifically...

I've been a fan of the Sunday puzzle on NPR for years. When the boys were little, we'd play it together on the way to church, shouting...

When I was growing up we had a poster in our basement play area that showed two kids playing and the caption from Ecclesiastes 4:9-10,...

My youngest offspring has always needed to move. He runs, jumps, flips, spins, and throws with dexterity and speed. Sport is as essential...

I haven't written much here lately, but trust me, I have been writing. A few times a week I hike at a local nature preserve, a habit that...

It's a sultry 76 degrees this morning and I started a fire in our backyard pit. (Disclosure: I hate fires. When people are all, "Hey,...

Smörgåsbord is one of those Swedish words that sounds suggestive of its meaning. Smörgåsbord has a rich and satisfying sound, filling the...

Acts of kindness that I still reflect on: When I was sixteen I was riding my bike to the public library on a very rainy day. Somehow (I...

Monday started a new term and the first writing assignment I give my students involves crafting some flash nonfiction. I guide them...