The editors at Rind Literary Magazine have published my creative nonfiction piece, “The Gamemaster and the Reluctant Daughter,” in the new issue, #15. You can find it, beginning on page 33, here:
RIND: AN ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE, ISSUE 15
I hope you enjoy the story. Again, it relates very closely to the memoir I am working on.
***
Our bobcat, as seen through the window.
***
My positive hopeful plans for 2022 include making my daughter a wedding junk journal, which she’s excited about. I am collecting pretty little scraps and ephemera for that. Then I joined the Ugly Art Club, and I’ll see how that goes. Also, I want to study drawing faces a bit. And I need to get the publisher all the pieces for the poetry book. I really need my headshots retaken. I don’t like the last ones, except the accidental one of me holding Perry. (Should I just use that?) And, finally, I will be attending a special workshop at the Tucson Festival of Books for my memoir. I’m working on a collection of Red Riding Hood poems. So we’ll see how the year goes. Lots of plans. We’ll see what God has in store for me heh.
What are you planning for yourself this new year? Go get 2022!!!!
I’ve been thinking of going back to pencil sketches again. I did portraits as a part of an art class and found I really love doing them. I’m not good enough to do it for a living but you can usually tell who it is. 🙂 I’ve got to get past this new house renovation stuff first though. Good luck on your new year projects and the wedding. How exciting!
I sure hope you do go back to the pencil sketches! Are you a slow or fast sketcher? I like to do stuff fast, but I am hoping to slow down to work on faces. Because I don’t have the talent to do them fast it should give me an opportunity to slow down a bit. The wedding is so stressful, really. They are getting SO many nos. They booked the venue RIGHT before covid, and it was for last year, but they had to put it off because of covid. At some point they could have cut their losses and opted out, but they were so eager to have a big wedding. Now it will cost like a big wedding, but won’t be a big wedding :(.
I’m so sorry about the wedding. Perhaps by then the peak will be over and people will be more willing? I think I’m a slow sketcher. I have to do a lot of thinking while I sketch. My teacher said to just do it and sometimes I try that and fix it afterward.
heartfelt congratulations to you. All the best. I bless you.
Thank you very much, Selma. My best to you!
Luanne, you’re an inspiration. Thanks for sharing your hopeful directions. Wonderful Bobcat photo.
That bobcat is getting so comfy here. Getting a bit concerning, but nothing we can do about it because apparently they don’t usually survive being moved to a new territory. Thank you, Elaine. Happy New year to you!
Congrats on the published work! That’s always such a delight. The bobcat looks quite small compared to my imagination of it. Like a large house cat. Getting ready for a daughter’s wedding can be stressful and fun at the same time. Looking forward to seeing the Junk Journal. My plans for the year? First get settled in my new apartment up in Show Low. Have to move all my stuff up there. That will take a lot of time. Sounds like your year is off to a perfect start.
Are you in the states now, Marlene? That sounds like such a big job moving like that. Do you need to downsize? I hope your 2022 is wonderful and that you love your new home.
Thank you on the essay and the wedding. The wedding is more stress than anything right now as the NOs are pouring ;(. Unfortunately, this was booked 2 years ago blah blah blah. They were so eager to have a big wedding. Those are not my thing, but I feel bad for my daughter and her honey. The bobcat is pretty big and muscular. He or she definitely weighs a bit more than my daughter’s 20 pound dog. That’s typical of a bobcat, I guess. But weirdly years ago we had a bobcat here that was HUGE. The size of a mountain lion.
I am sorry your daughter isn’t getting the wedding of her dreams. Expectations can lead to disappointment. People need to be cautious now.
Yes, I have downsized. Gave away all my furniture and will start smaller. Moving into a small independent living facility with a very small apartment. I pared down heavily before putting things into storage and a lot my daughter will keep. The senior center is right there as well and my son is only a few blocks away. Having my own space at this time is vital. And my daughter needs to move on with her life. This trip was just a taste of what she wants more of in her life. now she has her toes wet and can go from here on her own. I won’t be doing it again. That bobcat is more than big enough for the back yard. Incredible. Thanks for stopping by.
That apartment sounds like a really smart move. So many people wait to downsize until it’s too difficult. I’m afraid the gardener is going to be that way . . . . xo
I’ve been working on the downsizing prospect for quite some time now. Sometimes it just takes a while for the heart to catch up with what the mind knows. It’s not ideal but it will definitely work for me. It’s so quiet, I can get a lot of writing done here. 😉
Yes, I understand. Some people can never come around to it, though. You have a great attitude. And not feeling overwhelmed with it all might really help you get a lot of writing done!
Congratulations, Luanne! Enjoy the planning for your daughter’s wedding. Don’t let the stress steal your joy. And most of all, don’t forget what God says about plans! Happy New Year! xo
Thank you, Jill! Yes, I know what he says!!! Happy New Year to you, too!!!! XO
Congratulations, Luanne. The story made me feel sad.
Good luck with your plans!
Great shot of the bobcat.
I’m sorry for making you sad! Thank you. I hope you have good luck with your plans this year, too. Don’t you think that bobcat is getting just too comfy over here :(?
You shouldn’t feel sorry for making me sad! 😀 Thank you for the good wishes.
Yes, that bobcat does seem very comfortable!
Congratulations on the publication Luanne, it’s a powerful piece. When my mother became terminally ill it seemed almost as if it was what she’d been waiting for in terms of constant attention – she seemed to love it and of course everyone thought she was wonderful, which made the mixed feelings I had about her quite difficult. I can feel that ambiguity in the piece, especially with that quite stark ‘no longer have to play games anymore’.
Is your mother my father?! Wow. You said that so well that it sounded like my life. Definitely mixed feelings, powerful in both directions! Thank you so much, Andrea.
Sounds like the start of a great year for you, Luanne.
Thank you, John. Hope yours is starting out well, too. Happy New Year!
😁
This is one of the things I love about the new year – all the plans and goals and renewed energy. Best time of the year! BTW, your picture with Perry is lovely!
It really helps in the face of winter, doesn’t it? I know it doesn’t seem like much to you, but it’s been chilly and rainy here. We had to cover the flowers, just in case ;). So it seems wintry. And the thought of positive things ahead seems great.
Thank you about that pic with Perry. I’d kind of like something a tiny bit edgier for a poetry book, but the other photos are so creepy. All the weird face lumps and all.
We are all pretty vain about our “author pics” aren’t we? But really, your photos always look great to me. As for your weather not seeming so bad to me, I understand that it’s all relative. Whatever you’re used to.
Vain? Who, me? hahaha You haven’t seen these ugly ones. Ick. Getting new pix sounds like a lot of work to me, though, and not sure if they will be any better.
It’s a tough one. But honestly, yours all look good to me.
😉
Lots going on — lots of creativity!!
Thanks, WJ! I got your FB comment. Happy New Year!
Thanks for sharing your piece in Rind–I really enjoyed seeing your nonfiction. As I do every New year, I’m rededicating myself to writing more, learning more, improving. Stay tuned!
Thank you for reading, Ellen! I do love your New Year’s “resolutions.” They are very akin to mine!
Congratulations on the publication of your essay. I found it powerful and very sad. Such a fraught relationship. I love all of your plans for 2022. I seem to have too many plans 2022. I need to dial them back a bit to avoid frustration.
I discovered that I didn’t put this comment as a reply to you so you might not have seen it. So here it is: Fraught is a great word for it. Yeah. Whenever I write memoir stuff more focused on my childhood I keep trying to come up with better ways to show anxiety :/. Thank you so much for reading and your comments about the piece. Always hard to write about my dad. And hard not to.
Thank you for calling my attention to your response, Luanne. Your memoir pieces are very effective at showing anxiety and unease.
Yay!
😀
Fraught is a great word for it. Yeah. Whenever I write memoir stuff more focused on my childhood I keep trying to come up with better ways to show anxiety :/. Thank you so much for reading and your comments about the piece. Always hard to write about my dad. And hard not to.
I feel very much the same way; more than eleven years now since my dad died, but fresh memories and poems emerge. Best not to resist them! I loved this piece, and it reminded me of the role of games in my own family, as they played a large role in my own joys and comforts in the midst of traumas and upsets. Nicely done!
Yes, Perry should be in the photo! Congrats again.
Hehe, MAYBE. We will see! Thank you!!!
I’m sure looking forward to more of your memoir! Plans: Publishing “Leora’s Early Stories.” Well, first I’m working toward a solid first draft by the end of January.
That is fabulous news, Joy. Fingers crossed that all goes well for you with the draft!!!!
It’s sure at an unwieldly stage. Thank you, Luanne!
That is such an awkward stage. Good think with your persistence it will pass!
Thing.
Luanne, I absolutely loved the piece on your dad and his game playing. Truly one of the most moving of your works at any point since we’ve been friends. Your memoir deserves to be finished in 2022.
Stay safe in these periolous times.
Oh WOW. Thank you, Sheila. That’s great that you responded that way to this essay. Yay!!!!! You stay safe, too!
That’s an ambitious list, so I don’t want to add to it, but I don’t see anything about family history there (aside from the memoir). Do you plan to do more on your other two blogs in 2022?
I read this before, but didn’t get back to reply to comments until today. Crazy stuff going on over here ;). Good catch. I have been very sad about so many archives being closed. It seems that every way I turned to try to research I met with a problem: Ukraine and Belarus, U.S. military, etc. So I came up with a new plan. I’ll email you about it. I’m so curious how you are continuing through all this.
OK, I will look for your email. 🙂
Just sent it!
The story is painfully wonderful, Luanne. Gamemaster on so many levels.
I love Monopoly, and it’s the only game Harvey likes to play. But it’s hard to play one on one. Yet somehow it seems you did it.
Oh, thank you, Amy!!! We had no problem playing Monopoly with only two people. I wonder why!
I don’t know! With only two it’s pretty much a game of luck to see who lands where as opposed to making deals with others, I’d think.
Hmm, well, I don’t think I’ve played much as an adult WITH an adult. You may have a point there.
Any time you want to play, just come to MA. I love Monopoly! 🙂
Ok!!!!
That was another powerful piece and I could well visualise you being with your father both as a young and as an adult person.
My ideas for 2022 centre around writing, much the same as 2021. But I have kicked the year off fabulously with a visit from my sister. Hopefully I’ll do some blog posts around that.
I am sorry your daughter is struggling to have the wedding celebration she dreamed of. My nephew married some months ago and it was touch and go with COVID also. But it was a great event and all the nicer for having fewer guests in my opinion.
I’m glad your nephew’s wedding went ok even with covid! I will hold my breath under daughter’s is over. Just don’t want any Key Players to have covid right then haha! Wonderful that you are spending time with your sister. I’d love to hear about that!
Thank you for reading, Gwen. What you say about visualizing makes me happy because we always wonder about that, don’t we?
What a lovely story, Luanne! Such a heartfelt depiction of your father, small warts and all. The games… the interactions you had with him, when young, made me envious, I have to say. I never had such an interactive relationship with my dad. He was only home on Sundays as he had a store to run (dry goods)… mostly I picture him in his recliner watching golf or baseball… Poor guy was tired… He died at 82, back in 1994. May he RIP.
You are a lucky lady, to have had what you did.
Oh, thank you, Ellie. My dad could be a real piece of work, but he also was my biggest supporter and definitely was a dad who gave a lot of attention. Your father probably worked too hard :(! Yes, may they both RIP.
Luanne, congratulations on your recent publication! 😀 Wow! What a wonderful and varied year, filled with creativity! I like the sound of the Ugly Art Club and enjoy the Memoir festival. As for your daughter’s upcoming wedding, how exciting and emotional. Now, what is a wedding junk journal?! I’m intrigued!
I will take an old book, remove the pages, cover it to look weddingish, and fill it woth a variety of pages such as sheet music, pretty paper, and other “junk,” then fill it with mementoes of the wedding and lace and all manner of pretties. Thank you, Annika!
Wow! That sounds beautiful and so unique — a precious gift for the newlyweds!
Oh, I’m so glad it does!