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Mental Health Matters: Understanding Sue
When readers of Surviving Sue ask about my capacity for forgiveness, I think of it as a mix of task completion and desperation. Eager to better understand the effervescent blend of madness and love that bubbled within my mom, I traced pain points across her lifespan as I sought resolution, if not peace. The term…
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Putting in a Good Word
This Neil Gaiman quote is pretty darn spectacular: “Everything good that happened to my writing career happened because someone, normally another writer, helped me. Suggested me for something, put in a good word, and so on. The idea was always that you help others and they help others in their turn. It’s not a win…
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Slivers: Writing Fiction for Healing
I love questions and comments from readers. Last week I had a delightful encounter with a former student, Daniel, who said: “I just finished reading Slivers and my curiosity is getting the better of me. First off, I was surprised you wrote fiction and then I wondered if one of the characters was inspired by…
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New Review! “Surviving Sue”
The talented author and poet, Nigel Byng honored me with a review of my memoir, Surviving Sue last week and I think I’ll be in awe of him for the rest of my life. Yes…I know that smacks of hyperbole but it’s not. It’s precisely how I felt, how I’ll continue to feel, thanks to…
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That’s a Wrap – Printers Row Lit Fest 2026
Thanks so much for all the well wishes about my visit to this year’s Printers Row Lit Fest, friends! Whether you made it to the event or not, I felt the good energy. There’s nothing like the Printers Row venue, nestled in a historic neighborhood in Chicago. Being there once again (my third time) felt…
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Bringing Ideas to Life
I thought about titling this post, Fill ‘Er Up. Whenever I read a volume which inspires and energizes, I have a quirk. I come up with my own pithy phrase (in my head, anyhow) to summarize the goodness within. Do you do that, too? Not a synopsis, mind you. Just the boiled down essence, the…
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Fun News! ❤️
What a great week! In addition to having fun at the Harper College Bookmarks Festival, I received wonderful feedback from poet and author, Lauren Scott, last week about my debut novel, Slivers. Even better? We’re just a few days away from the debut of Dr. Yvette Prior’s latest anthology. Read on for all the details…
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“You’re An Excellent Writer and Storyteller, Vicki.”
Author Mary K. Doyle offered the most delicious praise last week: You’re an excellent writer and storyteller, Vicki. I’m still soaking up the goodness, wondering if Mary’s right. I have a miserable tendency to deflect praise, questioning veracity. Compliments shouldn’t cause consternation, right? I know the origin story of my “pfft” reaction. It’s a default…
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New Reviews! Slivers and Surviving Sue
“It’s a little bit magical how much people appreciate being heard and understood.”–Tania Israel I’ve said this before. One of the most unexpected gifts, arriving after the publication of Slivers, is readers’ interest in Surviving Sue. I could not be more pleased. While the two books are entirely different in terms of genre (fiction and…
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Bookmarks Festival
I’m thrilled to be a participant in Harper College’s upcoming event, Bookmarks: A Festival for Readers and Writers on Saturday, August 29 from 10 am – 2pm. It’s going to be great! Live music, local libraries, authors and readers PLUS a keynote from New York Times bestselling author, Laurie Gwen Shapiro about her book, The…
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