Category Archives: Blog

Reporter’s Notebook: When reporting on a miracle


This post was a bit difficult to write.

Not that I have problems with coming up with blog post ideas or writing them. Long time readers of this blog know that I can idea plan with the best of them and the well has yet to run dry.

The reason why this post was so difficult to write is that it’s not often I get to write about a miracle. I wanted to do it justice.

See the little girl in this picture? The one with the pink top. She is alive only through the grace of God (or whatever higher power you believe in).

Earlier this summer she was at a birthday party for one of her friends. At some point during the party, she ventured into the pool. It was her friend who saw her at the bottom of it. Parents at the party rushed to action, giving CPR and calling for the ambulance.

That began an incredible summer for this little girl. They revived her. She was kept in the hospital for several weeks before being transfer to a physical rehabilitation center in Texas.

She started school this month and is walking around, laughing, and playing with her friends.

But she’s still not out of the dark.

She still needs therapy. She struggles a bit to understand somethings. However, she’s still smiling.

That’s a miracle. That fact that she lived…a miracle. The fact that there were people around to give her CPR…a miracle. The fact that she can still walk and talk…a miracle. The fact that she can give big hugs to everyone she loves…a miracle.

That’s what was so difficult about writing this post. How do I convey to you guys how awesome this little girl is, how blessed, how happy.

I don’t even think pictures do it justice really.

So all I can do is tell you her story, give you some insight to her life now, and step back.

I can lead you to a miracle but it’s up to you to believe.

Isn’t that what life is, especially for a writer, the opportunity to believe?

– Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The road to publication has many destinations

So have you heard of this company, Plympton: Serialize Fiction for Digital Readers? 

Think of it as what Charles Dickens would do if he lived in current times and could work a Kindle like some folks worked a loom or whatever they were working back in the day. (Yes, that was a joke.)

BTW, we all know that Dickens is my homeboy, right?

Anyway, this wonderful company is working with Amazon and distributing serialized stories through Kindle. This is a fantastic effort and a great twist to the old school way people used to read fiction. I’ve experimented with serialized fiction on this blog. Trust me, it’s some work to get this baby boy going.

One of the reasons that I’m so excited to read about this company is that someone I know, Jennifer 8. Lee, is behind this thing. I met her a bit ago. I was an undergrad and a member of a student project for the American Society of Newspaper Writers. She was cool then and she’s insanely amazing now. It’s wonderful that someone you know is doing so well.

Just like then, Jennifer is teaching me something new. Well, she’s really reminding me of something that I already knew. With the tools and technology out there now, there’s a new frontier out there for writers and lover of stories waiting to be discovered.

As I wrote in my last post, three of my grad school friends are using technology to start their own publications. In the process they are adding to the world of letters, they are adding a point of view that doesn’t necessarily come from the critics or publishers that have traditionally dominated American literature.

And it’s not that it’s bad to want to be published the traditional way, there’s just more than one way now. There’s more than one avenue. More than two. More than three. There’s starting to be an infinite amount of roads with an infinite amount of destinations.

That is a good thing because the world is introduced to projects such as these.

That’s also a bad thing because there’s no vetting. Anyone with a computer and some know-how can publish and therefore flood an already flooded market making it harder for the good stuff to float and the bad stuff to sink.

What’s the happy medium? We’re not there yet but with projects like Jennifer’s I think we’re coming closer to it, don’t you?

Talking about her project, her company has started a Kickstarter campaign which will allow them to do more serialized novels/stories.  Help out by contributing. Charles Dickens would have!

Write On!

Submit to submissions or publications wanting your stuff NOW!

Hola todos! Hello everyone! It has been quite a while since my last post. There was lots to write and read and live through. But that doesn’t mean I’ve abandoned the blog, just wanted to wait to have something to write about.

 And I do!

All of it has to do with publication, mine and potentially yours. There are several publications waiting for you to submit. Poets, fiction and non fiction writers, artists — you’re wanted. Here, in the sections below, is which publications need writers and what I’ve been up to.

Soul’s Road in print!

Let’s start with the most the most recent bit of good  news. You know that book I was in, Soul’s Road? The book was only available on Kindle. Now, it’s available in paperback!

This is so exciting seeing that we didn’t know if it would ever see print. For those that don’t know, Soul’s Road is a fiction collection which is mostly written by graduates of the MFA program at Goddard College. For us, this collection was a labor of love and joy. From the Facebook page to the editing, this project was not about just publishing but of doing what we love which is writing.

The first editor of the project, Cody T. Luff wrote about the experience of self publishing for this blog not too long ago.

One of the reasons I love this project is that it’s not about the quantity but the quality. To put it another way, it’s a love of writing thing. It’s a story telling thing. One of the things that writers, especially those starting out in the writing game, worry about is publishing. It becomes a numbers game–how many stories can you get published in however many publications you can. Admittedly, I’ve been down that road myself and it overwhelms me. (In fact, I think I’m on that road now as I look at my list of deadline dates.) For me, the story or essay or novel is done when its done. That’s an interesting thought considering that I make my living by beating deadlines and that for me a deadline is a great way to get something done. But sometimes, it’s going to take however long it’s going take, regardless of when it’s due. There’s a writing journey especially for novels, . There’s a transformation that happens not only on the page but to the writer. That can’t be rushed.

Currently, Soul’s Road is accepting submissions for the next volume!  They believe in deadlines, however. You have until Oct. 1.

New publication!

My friend and fellow writer, Kristy Harding, started her own publication recently. It’s called Paper Tape Magazine. 

Here’s a little bit about them.

We are an online magazine focused on the place where art, criticism, and nerdy pop culture come together.
We publish art, articles, reviews, and stories every Wednesday.
Would you like to be involved? E-mail editor@papertapemag.com.

Sounds good doesn’t it? Kristy started this magazine right after grad school and it’s starting to shape up with its own voice and rhythm. I’m excited for her and thought I’d also give her a plug. Want to write a piece for them? Great! Because they are also looking for submissions. She’ll be getting something from me soon as well if I can get the piece under control.

Minvera Rising

Since we’re talking about publishing and what not, I’m excited to announce that the first chapter of my thesis/novel will be published in a new lit journal called Minvera Rising.

Yes, some grad school friends also started this publication as well. I’m in their first issue which is centered around the theme of “Beginnings”.

I’m excited for them because this journal was created by women and seeks women writers. It’s also centered around themes, asking writers to explore topics or turn them on its head. The theme for their next issue is “winter”

And yes, like Soul’s Road and Paper Tape Magazine they are looking for submissions. But you better hurry, their deadline is Sept. 30.

With that, I’m off to write. Procrastination has taken over my life and I really need to get into gear.

Until next time!

Writing tips for bloggers and blogging writers

I love being a blogger.

There’s a freedom (and responsiblity) in blogging that is rare to find in any other writing profession except for maybe fiction writing, but that’s another type of freedom and another discussion for another day.

For today’s #blogchat on Twitter, creator Mack Collier asked what writing tips are needed to be a better blogger. I think I’ve got a handle on this topic seeing that, well, I’m a writer.  And a journalist. And a blogger. 

And I do run a writing blog, after all.

As a writer, what tips do I have for bloggers? So glad you asked!

Voice is important.

I think this is extremely important. For me as a reader and writer of blogs, voice is extremely important. What is voice? Here’s an example. When someone says something, maybe it’s a phrase or the tone of voice,  another person would say. That’s when you pop up and say “you sound just like…” or “that’s something such and such would say…”. That’s voice. It’s a particular way things are being said or written. 

How do you develop voice? With practice. Start out with being personable and inviting to your reading audience. Remember, people don’t have to read you, they want to because you have something to offer so don’t be dry toast about it. 


I hate to say it but grammar counts.
I’m the type of writer that will work DAYS on an image or a metaphor or a scene but will spend about 30 seconds on grammar and mechanics. My eyes bleed when I have to do that. In journalism, we believe that a grammar mistake chips away at credibly. It’s the same with blogging. How can you have a fantastic voice but horrible grammar mistakes. (It can happen and has on this very blog.)

This is something I work on constantly, not only in my writing but also on my blog posts. I’ve had friends read over a post and email me, asking me what I meant about a passage. Embarrassing, yes, but I appreciate when it happens because, nine times out of ten, I just wrote the post in the 10-15 minutes I had free between projects. 

Stop being cute and get to it.

One of the things that annoy me about blogs is that the writer tries to be cute. So cute that the meat and potatoes of the post is seven graphs and three pictures in.  It’s not only annoying but a waste of time. In the time it takes to get through the cute intro to what the post is about, a reader can decide to move on. In journalism it’s the time it takes to get from the lede to the nut graph, which tells you what the story is about.  That distance is about an inch on a good day, usually shorter. 

Just get to point. 

It’s easier for some than others. Here’s a way to figure it out. Write the post as you normally would. Then figure out where the important part of the post starts. If it’s far from the first sentence of the post, it’s time to edit down the intro to what you need. 
But once you get to the point, make it well.
If I had to concentrate on any one part of the post the most, I’d spend more time making sure my point is clear. I spend loads of time making sure the train of thought is clear and concise. For me as the writer, it’s important that my point is on point, that it’s fact checked, and that it’s easy to follow. I work on this constantly. Sometimes I nail it. Other times, well, it’s a work in progress. 

Then there are the other writing rules. 

There are lots of writing rules to make great prose. I recommend two books on the writing process. On Writing Well my William Zimmer and The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B White. These two books have served me well through the years. I still refer to them and referred to them while revising my thesis. Some of my favorite rules are: don’t use three words when one will do, avoid over using adverbs, and extract redundancies. 
When I’m revising, I like to do at least two reads to per piece. The first time I read for content. I ask myself: 1) Are all the pieces there I need? Are they in an order or sequence that makes sense? What am I missing? What would make this better? I usually have walked away from the piece (chapter, short story, blog post) for a couple of hours, days, or even weeks. I try my best to look at it with fresh eyes. I like to call it “letting the piece breathe”. And 2) I read for grammar and mechanics. I try to catch as many as I can (again this makes my eyes bleed). While I’m checking for that, I’m also doing a line edit — reading the sentences to make them as strong as possible.
Since I’ve been writing about writing for a long time, here are some of my favorite blog posts about writing in general through the years. They’ve been helpful to writers in the process of their novels and projects. I hope they’ll be helpful to you, too. 
What haven’t I discussed here? 

I’ve covered lots of writing rules and practices. What’s left? The process. How do you write best? Laptop? Ipad/tablet with keyboard? Are you using an app or using another app like Evernote (which I’m currently in love with) to get some blogging or writing done?

Would love to hear your thoughts! Hit the comments below! 

Education: The defining Latino issue

Editor’s Note: This paid post was created in collaboration with Latina Bloggers Connect and nuvoTV.

I first read about Sergio C. Garcia of California through an article in the Los Angeles Times. 

He’s in this country illegally but that’s neither here nor there. That’s not what makes him special though I’m sure there will be those who disagree. You’re entitled to your own opinion.
He’s special because, against all odds, attended college, graduated, and was accepted into law school.  He’s done now, waiting for the okay from governing agencies to practice in California. Sergio is waiting on a ruling from the courts to say whether’s allowed to practice law due to his legal status.
His father applied for a green card for him when Sergio was younger. That was 17 years ago.
Since then he did everything he was supposed to do. He went to school. He was a model citizen. He made his parents and a community proud. He graduated and over came every obstacle in his path. 
Despite what you may think, this is not a story about immigration or legalities or governmental red tape. This is a story about education. The importance of education especially to the Latino community. 

Education, and other important topics to the Latino community, will be discussed during a townhall meeting on nuvoTV called We Decide. They are partnering with NBC to do this. The entire show and the push to do it is an avenue for the Latino voice.  Check out and like their their Facebook by clicking here.

With another presidential election, politicos aspiring to office want to either appeal to Latino voters or appeal to the voters who believe Latinos are a problem in some way.  But the real power, and what should be the real purpose, is for Latino issues to be heard every year, not every four years. So how do we get our voices heard when it’s not election time? Now we go back to education. Read carefully because class is in session. 
The Latino poverty rate has increased from 20.6 percent in 2006 to 26.6 percent in 2010 according to the Pew Hispanic Center. There are more Latino children living in poverty than other races/ethnicities at 6.1 million. Latino adults over 20 with no high school diploma? 41 percent. 
Smart people know that these numbers are shocking considering Latinos are the fastest growing part of the American population. That means, as a nation, we are in real danger of having a generation and a populous not prepared for work. They won’t be prepared to lead. They won’t be prepared to continue this experiment we call democracy, much less participate in it. 
Texas, my home state and the place where I cut my teeth as an education reporter, knows this. They’ve known it for decades. As a result, they’ve implemented a plan for higher education called Closing The Gap. Monitored by the Texas Higher Education Coordination Board, its focus was to increase the number of Latino students in college and universities across the state. There were quotas to hit, each campus had them. Their enrollment had to have a certain number of Latino students. I worked in Corpus Christi at the time and would listen in on calls during the board’s meetings. Schools that didn’t reach their quotes were reprimanded like children. The schools in the Valley had the best opportunity and the biggest burden. Suddenly it was open season for Latinos in Texas. Every school wanted every Latino that graduated high school. Promises were made. Scholarship money thrown at them.
There was a problem that came with that line of thinking–enrolling was one thing, graduating was very different. And so the stats don’t change. They got worse. The cycle continued.
This cycle gets highlighted every four years during the election season. They speak of Latinos being the sleeping giant for voting. Each side pokes “the giant” in hopes it wakes ready to skyrocket one candidate past the other. Hope swells. Debates happen.

However, when the Wednesday morning after the election arrives and it’s business as usual. 

The cycle continues. 
But what if the cycle was broken? What if more Latinos finished college? What if they chose professions that made people take notice like, being a lawyer? What if, through education, Latinos no longer lived in poverty? What if they became the new middle class, the new definition of the American dream? 
What if we were all Sergio? 
That would mean that the “sleeping giant” would now part of the political landscape in a big way with not only place at the table of national discussion but sitting at the head of it. 
From poverty to leadership; that’s what I see when I read about Sergio. I see hope, transition, a life that his father, like mine, dreamed for his son in this country. Red tape or no, Sergio achieved more success in his life than some of his fellow classmates. 
Believe what you will about immigration, at the heart of the Latino community’s future is education. It is the great equalizer regardless of government regulations.

Don’t believe me? Ask a Dreamer. 

When is it okay to show you’re Latino?

Admittedly, the picture made me cringe when I saw it.


Because of copyright laws (and because I don’t want to get sued) I’ll link to the picture and Ruben Navarrette Jr.’s column on CNN.com.More on that column in a bit.

Yes, I cringed and the first thought was, “Oh, this is going to be a talker.”

Of course I instantly went to social media where, if you’re Latino its where you get a good portion of Latino news. There it was on Facebook and Twitter, comments and commentary about not only the picture but of Navarrette’s column

So I read his column and, for the most part, I agreed.

How could I as a proud Latina with Guatemalan and Cuban roots agree with Navarrette who essentially said he was offended by the photo and the gesture by Manzano? It boils down to old English letters on the window of a F-150.

In addition to being Latina, I am a Texan and, as far as the rest of the 50 states are concerned, we are the most cocky s.o.bs on the planet. Call it a size thing or the fact that we can still legally secede from the union, Texans are filled with a pride and cowboy stubbornness that gives us a certain type of character. Add to that the fact that we’re neighbors to Mexico and inherited the Mexican machismo, we do what we want, when we want, and to hell with everyone. Hence Latinos in cities such as Houston and San Antonio display their pride in la tierra madre by putting their family’s last names or Mexican city of origin (Orale Monterrey!) in reflective old English letters in the back window of “la troca”.

Yes. I cringe when I see that, too.

My sister and I, proud Fernandezes, would never stick old English letters on our cars or trucks. Maybe out of fear that our Cuban father would rise from the dead to beat some sense into us or that fact that pride in culture, in family, and in country of origin is not in how you display it to the world but in what you do.

Now, back to Manzano and Navarrette. While I agree with Navarrette’s overall argument, although made clumsily (non-immigration status making it okay for Oscar De La Hoya to do the same? Come on, son!) the bigger discussion is how does a bi-cultural person display pride in their heritage? Is there a time when its okay or not?



I would argue that every minute of every day is a perfect opportunity to show Latino pride. How to do it, however, is the real question. As a Latina, my pride is subtle only if one choses not to see it. It’s the Cuban flag next to the US one on my desk. It’s the picture of my dad as a young man in Cuba and the one of my mother’s home village in Guatemala that sit next to my computer as I write this post. It’s my desktop wallpaper: I am Cuban I cannot keep calm. My loud belly laugh when something’s funny because my dad had the same laugh and he said Cubans all laugh the same, on purpose. My disdain for Fidel, my worry about the Guatemalan mountain villages during the civil war. It’s Noche Buena and lechon during celebrations. It’s talking to my Jewish coworker and learning about her culture/religion as she learns about mine. It’s in my Tweets, Facebook statuses, and when I’m on there it’s on my Google+ page. There is no on/off switch to my Latinaness. It is with me when I breathe and it makes up my story, my American story.

That’s why Manzano’s picture made me cringe, old English letters on trucks make me shutter, and why, when Marion Jones repped the US and Belize flags (she was born in the states)during the 2000 Olympics it also made my face twist. It’s not that they represented their heritage, it’s how they choose to do it.

You don’t need to tell me who you are, you need to show me. 

New look, focus for Writingtoinsanity.com

It’s funny how things evolve right?  I remember when I thought creating the above logo for the blog was a big deal. 
It was a big deal because I was using software and skills I had never used before and the result wasn’t bad. Of course, looking back now I shake my head and ask myself  “What were you thinking?” 
But look at those red glasses. Yes, at the time I was wearing these red glasses that I LOVED. I loved them because they were different. They were meant to stand out and on some level I believe I was also meant to stand out. I wasn’t meant to wear the same glasses everyone wore and I wasn’t mean to be like, you know, normal. Or whatever the definition of normal was at the time. 
Me with my awesome red glasses.
So those red glasses were my symbol to always go against the grain and give a big I-don’t-care-I’m-doing-it-anyway to anyone who tried to stop me. 
It also helped that Ugly Betty was my favorite TV show at the time. 
Even when I moved from red to purple, I kept some form of the red glasses as a symbolic gesture of how this crazy blogging path all started. 
So how did this start? 
It started like most of my good ideas start, in a newsroom, as a way to have a voice that wasn’t heard at the time. I tell ya what, it was the best idea I ever had. EVER. And I’ve loved writing this blog. 
Oh dear, it sounds like I’m saying good-bye. I’m not. I promise. I’m still here, still blogging, still writing but I am hinting at something, the evolution of the best idea I’ve ever had.
In the past, this blog has served as a destination for TV junkies, a long line of how-to posts for writing, and it has attempted to inspire folks to embrace their inner Hemingway or (insert favorite writer here). But, now approaching its fifth year of existence, (seriously?) I have come to the conclusion that when this blog is really good, when I have the most fun writing it, is when it was the realist. It’s when I’m talking about my life as a writer, the difficulty in finding time to write or trying to publish, is when I think this blog is the best. 
So let’s be the best. No more how-to posts. I’m sure folks enjoyed them but who am I to tell you how to do things? I can only tell you how I do them and maybe you can share how you do things and we can figure out this crazy writing thing together. 
Writing is about the journey. Cliche’ I know but it’s true. After finishing one chapter of my writer’s journey, I’m embarking on the next one, the scary one, the part where I have to prove to myself and to the world that my words deserve to be apart of American letters. I must prove that I have something to say and it’s time for people to listen.
I have to prove that I was worthy of those red glasses.  
Expect then to hear tales of my life as a writer, reporter, and blogger. Expect to hear my opinion on things that I think are important. Expect to hear about what I publish and when I publish. And above all, expect reality. I’m not sugar-coating anything. 
In fact, you shouldn’t sugar-coat either. Let me know what you think about the redesign! Take the poll below or leave me a comment. I’d love to know what you think about how the blog looks now and the direction it’s about to take. 
Symbolically, I still wear the red glasses (even though I wear purple ones now). And there’s no way I’m fading to black. 
Purple or red, it’s all about swag. 
Thanks for reading and continuing to support me. Love y’all! 

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A musing and a challenge from my friend Clarice.


I’ve been thinking a lot about Clarice Lispector lately. Mostly about her book Hour of the Star. I’ve thought about her and that book and about this:

What would I write if I knew it was the last thing I did on Earth.

Yes. This is a very morbid thought even for me. But this is what has been occupying my mind lately, how writers write because in their soul they want to live forever. Somehow, we think we have found how our very essence can live forever, even after our bodies give up on us.

I read Hour of the Star in graduate school. I was already in love with my friend Clarice when I read SoulStorm but HOTS was the last book she wrote, the last thing anyone read that came directly from her. It’s a short book, about 80 or so pages, but every word, thought, and syllable was used to tell her story about the life and death of a plain jane woman. I consider it a masterpiece.

Though researchers said she didn’t know she was dying when she wrote the novel, I respectfully disagree. The tail is full of death premonitions. While she may not have known she had ovarian cancer, she knew something was up.

She died two months before I was born.

She was a journalist. I would consider her a feminist. Model beautiful and MIT brilliant. Like her character in HOTS she was a paradox and the exception to every rule. I wonder if she saw herself as a plain jane?

How do you see yourself? Are you writing something important that makes you happy? Is what you’re writing allowing you to live forever. These are the questions I pose to you dear writers. This is my challenge.

Make your prose matter.

Location:Millicent Way,Shreveport,United States

Latinas unite! Don’t panic over anxiety disorders

It started out with what I thought was a heart attack. I thought I was dying.

The day that happened, what I knew to be true changed. I relearned that I wasn’t invisible and I had face issues I didn’t even know I had.

That heart attack was a panic attack. In retrospect, a big one, only because I didn’t know what was happening. That’s when life became even more beautiful for me, the moment I experienced the fragility of humans. That was more than a year ago.

What I learned next was shocking. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, U.S.-born children of immigrants may have higher risk for mental disorders than their parents.

Whoa.

There’s not lots of research out there about mental illness and Latinos, much less info about Latinas and these disorders but there are researchers and psychiatrists talking to about this.

That means it’s time for a conversation.

My next project is to write a personal essay about my panic attacks, one that will hopefully find a home in a publication when its completed. My hope is to go on this journey of discovery about panic attacks and mental illness, education myself and other Latino/a, and create an online community around this issue.

In the Latino community, there is a stigma about mental illness. It’s explained away with simple phrases like “ataque de nervios” or attack of the nerves. Sometimes, it’s seen as weakness to go seek help for mental illness. Sometimes, it’s seen as a middle class problem for those with health insurance.

It shouldn’t be this way. This is real. It needs to be addressed.

So, I’m doing what I do best, which is write. Although it’s an essay, I’m using my journalism skills to research, interview, and write this piece. I just have a general thought right now, my research is in the fledgling stages but that’s okay. This is too important to rush.

Now, here is the best part of this journey. This is the part that is going to be amazing. As I go through the process of writing this piece, I will share what I find with you. I want us to become a community. I want us to share information and experiences. Here’s how I’m going to do it.

Through my Google+ page, I will share links and videos and blog posts. If you’re on Google+, circle me and I. Leave me a note on my page and I will include you in the circle I created. So everytime I post something, I will share it with the circle. We can build a community that way!

Through Facebook, I’ve started a group called Latinas and anxiety disorders. I will also post what I find there. It’s also a good place to start a conversation and to trade stories about anxiety disorders or other mental disorders.

The goal is to start a community, open a dialogue, and do this together!

I am excited about this.  I still have panic attacks but I manage them. With knowledge and community, we can help the next Latina or woman understand what is happening.