by Olivia | Dec 16, 2011 | Uncategorized
My mom named her dog “Tagalong,” Tag for short, because since the moment she adopted him he has had trouble differentiating himself from her. Wherever she is, that’s where Tag is. Actually, he’s gotten a little bossy about telling her where she is supposed to be. He...
by Olivia | Dec 14, 2011 | Books in Process, Uncategorized
“I want to be an author for my career.” Mind you, I’d only met this nine-year-old boy a few minutes earlier and he had no idea what I do. But we shared an aspiration, and he was the proverbial breath of fresh air for me that evening. He just loves books so much that...
by Olivia | Dec 12, 2011 | Uncategorized
Years ago, I lived in a town with limited employment opportunities. A woman in our church caught me working on a quilt, discovered I was capable of sewing wearable garments (not any more!), and offered me a job. She was the manager of fabric store, part of a national...
by Olivia | Dec 2, 2011 | Mama Says, Uncategorized
I spent three weeks with my mom in the middle of the summer, but I took my work with me. “Have laptop, will write” and all that. When I’m wrapped up in a story, I can get pretty driven. One evening my mother said, “You should quit. You’ve been working all day.”...
by Olivia | Nov 21, 2011 | Books in Process, Uncategorized
When I was in my early twenties, I lived with and worked for a wealthy family for a few months. They seemed wealthy to me, anyway. After all, they had live-in help—ME. I folded the family’s laundry in particular ways, vacuumed the white carpet in a system that made...
