Author Archives: Elaine Burnes
Writing a Transgender Character
A piece last fall in Time magazine about the movie The Danish Girl inspired this post (I’m a bit behind). In particular this line, “Stories about transgender people have been received rapturously over the past two years…” And, “But when the script first landed in [Director Tom] Hooper’s lap back in 2008, he says, it […]
Bookstore Haze
To celebrate the release of Finding Ms. Write, the new anthology out from Ylva, I’m taking part in a “blog tour” and giveaway (check below for how to win a copy!). For my part, I thought I’d reminisce a bit. My second job after college was in a bookstore. The first was a pet store, […]
The Insecurities of Being a Writer
I’m just going to throw this out there. Sometimes. Most times. I find being a writer downright depressing. Fiction writing, that is. This blog post is easy, but is a direct result of procrastinating and avoiding the novel in progress, a.k.a. WIP for work in progress. I’m afraid to even open the document because staring […]
Bird Nerd
It’s spring and that’s when I turn into a bird nerd. The warblers are migrating! This year I started early because in the past, not being truly matured into an adult birder, I’ve realized too late what’s going on and missed the bulk of the migrants. Yes, migrants. Don’t tell Donald Trump, but millions of […]
Hawks and Doves
Warning: animals were harmed in the inspiration of this blog. Not by me. And no, this is not a political rant. Recently, a Cooper’s hawk has been using my bird feeders as a buffet. It’s the price of attracting birds in winter. You also attract those who eat them. I can’t mind, really. The hawk […]
What’s the Story About?
In a writing workshop with the wonderful Ted Gup, he told us every story should ask two questions: What is the story about? and What is the story about? That may seem too Zen to be practical. But think about it. It’s true everywhere you look. To Kill a Mockingbird is about how Scout’s brother […]
The Nature of Character
I recently learned that all four baby eagles I’d watched hatch and fledge from a nest in Iowa last year, thanks to a web cam, have died. Mostly from electrocution. Power poles are dangerous. It struck me as incredibly sad, but also as an important lesson about nature—bad things happen. The parent eagles are back […]
The Things We Leave Behind
One thing I’ll say for this snowy winter—it’s been good for tracking. After a fresh snow, I thrill to see the first prints. Bird, cat, maybe a fox, a wing impression, blood spatters. The wandering track of something clearly not a squirrel crisscrosses my yard. Cat? Fox? The snow is too deep to tell. Squirrel […]
HOSED
Lately, I’ve been lying awake at night listening to the sounds the house makes. Creaks and cracks from the cold winter outside. Drips from water leaking behind the gutter and down around the front door and into the basement. A mystery drip somewhere in (or just outside?) the bathroom. It’s deep winter, one of the […]
Feed the Birds
Coming up with that title made me think of my favorite song from Mary Poppins. “Feed the Birds” has a whole different mood from the others—less “Disneyish” if you will. Apparently P. L. Travers agreed, and it’s reported to be what won her over to making the movie. But my point isn’t the song or […]
