Reader review Touchwood This verrrrry slow burn romance is honest, beautiful and yes – sexy.

30 Years? How Can that Be?!

Karin Kallmaker Touchwood 30th Anniversary Edition 44 Comments

Drawing and comment period is now closed. Winner announced in the most recent comment.

I still can’t believe it’s been thirty years since the love story of Rayann and Louisa made its way out into the world. Half my brain accepts that events of that time are ancient history now, but the other half feels like I wrote this story merely “a while back.” Before I had kids, you know, not that long ago except both have graduated college now… Well sh*t.

Thirty years went by really fast.

It’s strange to realize that an age-gap romance I wrote in part to claim history for an older lesbian is now itself a step back in time for the younger woman’s experiences as well. I guess it’s not all that strange that all these years later I’d resonate with Louisa more than ever before. A lot of you who read the original back in the day and this edition now have said much the same thing. Read More

chart showing why the writer is crying, chose random page to admire in new release, found typo

Why the Writer is Crying – a Meme

Karin Kallmaker Craft of Writing, LIFE + STYLE 0 Comments

A friend shared the Librarian version of this meme and I immediately thought of all the things writers post about that make them cry.

It’s also true that if you created a similar chart for “How Writers Procrastinate” making a spreadsheet to make a meme to make a blog post would be item number two, after cleaning the house.

P.S. The best depiction of a writer in film is the opening of Romancing the Stone as Kathleen Turner sobs over her keyboard and has used up every possible tissue in the house and finally blows her nose on a post-it note reminding her to buy tissues. 100% accurate. Read More

It’s the Little Things that Bring Comfort and Joy – Giveaway

Karin Kallmaker Book News, Comfort and Joy, Maybe Next Time 70 Comments

Drawing and comment period is now closed. Winners announced in the most recent comments.

As 2021 comes to an end, having been both and neither better and worse than 2020, I find myself greatly heartened by the little things.

A Short Visit to Paradise

My wife and I are back from spending a week in Hawaii. It didn’t matter that the weather was predicted to be stormy, or that we had to take extra steps to prove our vaccination status, or masks were required in all public indoor spaces. We were going to experience all of that at home, so why not experience it in Hawaii?   Read More

3 white unicorns on a rainbow

Inclusion, Survival, and Rainbow Unicorns

Karin Kallmaker LIFE + STYLE, Readers and Libraries, Sisters of the Pen 16 Comments

I’ve made no secret over the years about my love for the Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS). I count it among my favorite organizations, and the annual conference is – bar none – my favorite event of the year.

A Bit of Background

As the world around all of us changes, and everyone – young and old – finds new ways to exist and express themselves, ideas and the words that express them change too. I’ve written before about the inevitable phenomenon. It’s exciting and painful all at once.

GCLS has been slow to adapt. Slow to the point that some early supporters have wandered away in search of more welcoming places. I’ve tried to support and amplify the voices of those people who have felt excluded and unwelcome and asked the organization to make it unequivocally clear that the organization’s goals, events, and awards were not just open to them but welcomed them.

Recently, GCLS unveiled updated language throughout their mission statement, goals, awards eligibility, and web site to reflect that GCLS welcomes women and nonbinary people and that there is simply no debate that transwomen are women and it supports the literature that tells those peoples’ stories. These changes to terms used were the result of the work of many volunteers, and was debated by the membership-elected board.

I was outright relieved. As one of their trailblazer awardees, it has been increasingly difficult to tell people they were welcome as the language remained not very inclusive. There has been some vocal pushback since the announcement. I’ve had private conversations with a couple of people that boil down to:    Read More