WHEN THE MOON IS A GHOSTLY GALLEON “Heart Land” has a chapter entitled “Of Ghost, Goblins and Little Green Men.”  In this Halloween story, the children of my fictional town avoid knocking at the dentist’s door because he treats them to bundles of sliced carrots and

HOW THE PEN GOT IT WRONG  I received a questionnaire recently from PEN, a writer’s organization that promotes literature and advocates for artists around the world — particularly those who find themselves in repressive societies. I breezed through the questions until I came a

ALL WORDS CONSIDERED One new book I’m reading is a study of Francis Bacon, a philosopher of the 16th century. The work was written by one of my former students, now a university professor in California. We reconnected at his 45-year high school reunion and as he’d always been amo

THE TWO FACES OF ADAM AND EVE According to George Lakoff’s book, “The Political Mind,” the human brain is constructed to be hypocritical. We are wired to show empathy for one another but we also desire to dominate (blog 9/22/11). These two aspects of ourselves can have bizarre

WHEN SILENCE IS THE LOUDEST ANSWER Blogs come in all formats and sizes, expressing as many opinions as there are bloggers.  Certainly it is the most egalitarian form of communication since the ancient Greeks gathered in the Agora and is as free to all as autumn leaves.  Finding an a

v:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} o:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} w:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);} .shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);} HOW WILL THE BRAIN REACT WHEN IT MEETS ITSELF?  I admit the study of the human mind is fascinating to me. What’s more, I’m astounded by the

WORDS THAT DON’T MAKE CENTS! An article in “Live Science” by Stephanie Pappas reports on a recent study from Harvard University that shows people who are intuitive thinkers, as opposed to reflective thinkers, tend to have a higher belief in God. To give an example of intuitive

An announcement to all:  The publisher of my novels has decided to close the company.  My third novel will not be out in January as expected.  I shall have to look for a new venue.  Anyone toying with the idea of buying Gothic Spring should do so right away as it will soon be ou

A BIT OF GOSSIP ON REACTIVE DEVALUATION Anyone who reads my blog posts will probably be happy when I finish George Lakoff’s book, “The Political Mind.”  I apologize for my compulsion to share its details on the human brain. Obviously, I’m fascinated. Yesterday, for example, I

THE WAR AND PEACE OF LANGUAGE I’ve written more than once about George Lakoff’s book, “The Political Mind” and the scientific information it reveals about how we think. As I’ve explained elsewhere, he argues the two basic components of the brain are the pursuit of self-inte