I'm not sure it's ethical to state this in a publicly accessible online forum, but my students at Goucher this year are an extraordinary group. I'm also not sure I should single out a recent story, which had an enormous effect on me. In part, I realize now, because I have lived it. It centers on a middle-age woman's memory of the best peach she ever ate. But, of course, its true subject is memory, how delectable the peach seems in hindsight. There was much discussion if the peach was, in fact, the Read more [...]

Although it's hard to make a generalization on the basis of twice, I always get lost driving to Charlottesville. But then, I get lost a lot, although I have an excellent sense of direction. I love getting lost, although usually in hindsight. Good things happen. The single biggest scoop of my journalism career, for example.However, when I got lost as a 5-year-old at Mount Vernon, it wasn't fun. I ducked behind a wall to get a drink at a water fountain. When I emerged, my family was gone. (We were Read more [...]

It's Terry Teachout's observation that writing begets writing; it's merely my experience. I've been updating this blog fairly regularly and the other writing in my life is flowing. So -- the story I promised in the backblog.I was (am) a big-boned female. If my facial resemblance to both parents was not so pronounced, one would doubt that those fine-boned, high-metabolic types produced me. But they apparently did and, like Topsy, I grew and grew and grew. (Aside: Can one say "Like Topsy" anymore? Read more [...]

Is it a given that one never remembers one's own tantrums because they occur at such a young age? Then again, perhaps that screaming fight with my boss (September 1999, I won't every forget that) counts as a tantrum. And I vividly remember one thing I screamed, so the entire department could hear me: "WHEN ARE YOU EVER GOING TO STAND UP AND DO WHAT'S RIGHT, JOURNALISTICALLY, AS OPPOSED TO WHAT YOU THINK IS MOST POLITICALLY EXPEDIENT FOR YOUR CAREER?" By the way, it's my grudge against that particular Read more [...]

The Memory Project isn't so much about memory as it is about trying to recount memorable events with concrete detail and thereby reclaim the emotion of the event. At least, that's today's claim.So when a vivid memory of mine came up against three family members who had no recollection of it, I refused to back down. They admitted it _could_ be true (well, two out of three did). Besides, the event wouldn't be memorable to them, so it's plausible that they forgot it while it burns on in my feverish Read more [...]

Another forgotten writer. And this one really is inexcusable. Ridley was one of the first writers I interviewed after moving to the features section of the Baltimore Sun. I think the piece was assigned to me, but perhaps I lobbied for it after reading the press materials on Pearson. At any rate, I remember it was a lovely autumn day and he was staying at the Radisson in Baltimore. For some reason, I even remember what I was wearing, a pale green dress from Banana Republic. We went to lunch or coffee Read more [...]

Other writers I interviewed: Dave Eggers. Roddy Doyle. Sebastian Junger. Marion Winik.This list could continue to grow. Being forgotten clearly means nothing as Doyle and Junger were too of my all-time favorites, and Marion and I have socialized since she moved to the area. (Oh, and Jonathan Harr.)You know what really bugs me, though? The list is overwhelmingly male. How did this happen? Am I sexist? Do male writers tour more often than females? I need to go brood on this. Read more [...]