What I learned at the Matera Women’s Fiction Festival

In September,  I went for the second time to the annual Matera Women’s Fiction Festival, in the beautiful southern Italian town of Matera. The festival brings together many women –and a few men –  writers of women’s fiction, including mainstream, romance, mystery, fantasy, thrillers, historical and young adult. There are so many changes going on…

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Lake Skadar – the Balkans’ largest lake

The Montenegrin Skadarsko jezero goes by many names: Skadar (from the Montenegrin), Shkodër (from the Albanian) and Scutari (from the time when it was an Italian protectorate). It’s the  largest lake in the Balkans – part of the lake is in Montenegro and part in neighboring Albania. The lake itself is well known for its…

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Author interview: Chantel Rhondeau

Okay, I have to be honest here from the start. I’m not a romance reader. Bare-chested men on book covers generally stop me from exploring the story within. And yet, here I am promoting a romance novel … complete with pectorals on display… and I really enjoyed this book. I became critique partners with Chantel…

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Spectacular views from Èze, France

Just a short distance from Nice, after a dramatic and spectacular drive along the Moyenne Corniche road that alone make the trip worthwhile, lies the charming medieval town of Èze. At 470 metres above sea level, Èze – frequently referred to as the eagle’s nest – is a picture-perfect village perché (perched village), with breathtaking…

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Greetings from the Matera Women’s Fiction Festival

This is an advance post anticipating the fun I’ll be having at the Matera Women’s Fiction Festival when this goes up. The annual festival is underway in the spectacular southern Italian town of Matera. If you haven’t seen my travel post on Matera  and you’re flat out of ideas for your next holiday, be sure…

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Sleep in a cave in Matera, Italy

If you read my blog, you’ll know I’ve raved about the Women’s Fiction Festival held each September in Matera, in Italy’s southern region of Basilicata. But I haven’t actually posted a travel piece about the town, which is well worth a visit. Since I am on my way to the annual conference later this week,…

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Why writing is like performing live at the Apollo

Okay, so some of you may not know the Apollo theater  in New York. The theater began its life in 1914, as a burlesque hall. It closed in 1933, when then Mayor La Guardia began shutting down burlesque shows in the city. But in 1934, the theatre re-opened as the Apollo, catering to Harlem’s growing African-American…

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A layover in Belgrade, Serbia

Returning from a trip this past spring to beautiful Sarajevo, Bosnia, I had a ten-hour layover in Serbia’s capital. Having seen it on a short stop-over on the way over, I quickly realized that the Serbian airport really did not merit ten hours of my time on the return, so I was more happy to…

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The Outer Banks, North Carolina

On a summer trip back to New York last year, my family and I wanted to get away for a relaxing beach holiday. We decided to go someplace we hadn’t been before and chose the Outer Banks, in northern North Carolina, someplace I’d always ‘meant to’ explore and hadn’t yet gotten around to doing. We…

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