Blog Posts

Day of the Dead

robertafking November 1, 2012 0 Comments
Talking about Noah and his death has always been difficult, even as we are closing in on the seven year anniversary. By now, I should be more used to it, but even just thinking about him makes me start to cry and talking about him makes my voice catch. Just the other day Mike and I went to our financial advisor to review our retirement investments. When I met with him (the advisor) for the first...

Running and Writing

robertafking October 23, 2012 0 Comments
In September and October I ran two half marathons, one in Spring Lake, the other in Grand Rapids. I'm partial to this 13.1 mile distance for a couple of reasons. First, it takes me at least three miles to get warmed up. I hate 5k races for this reason. By the time I cross the finish line of a 5k I'm just getting started. Second, the 13.1 miles challenges me and gives me time to think. I don't run...

Birth Day

robertafking September 23, 2012 0 Comments
Today would have been Noah's 24th birthday. To note the occasion I'm posting a short piece from my memoir about the day he was born. Birth Day “Hello Love.” Noah blinked his dark eyes. I’d planned to say “Hello Love” for months. I wanted my first words to him to be memorable. They would become part of a story to tell him as he grew up.  While pregnant, I daydreamed that on his birthday...

My Revisionist History

robertafking September 11, 2012 0 Comments
As much as I hate getting rid of the good stuff I've written, I've found revising and rewriting to be a satisfying experience. One of the most pleasant aspects of the work is revisiting older pieces of writing--pieces that were written a year or more ago. I'm sometimes surprised at how much I like them. I also can see where they are lacking detail, dialogue or logical sequence. I also find...

Until Another Story Appears

robertafking August 28, 2012 0 Comments
Last night I completed the final story in my memoir. At least I think it is the final story. When I first wrote Fearless, on the fifth anniversary of Noah's death, I wasn't planning to write a book. I just wanted people to know the story of his death and what it felt like to lose a child. The Rapidian gave me a voice and a platform for that essay. People who read Fearless, especially the students...

A Week of Writing

robertafking July 27, 2012 0 Comments
When writers start to seek publication for their work, we're told that rejection is something we must be able to accept. It is a reality of the trade. I, too, have learned that rejection is more frequent than acceptance. That's just numbers, there are a lot of writers and not as many places for writing to be published. Yet, it is still (always) painful and no one likes receiving an email that...

Getting by with a Little Help from My Friends

robertafking July 13, 2012 0 Comments
A piece of my memoir was published yesterday in the online literary journal, Atticus Review. It is always exciting to have something accepted and published. It makes me look forward to seeking book publication sometime in the future (and when this becomes a struggle, remind me I wrote this). This new piece, titled "He Plays a Harp" was re-written and edited quite a few times since I wrote it in...

Writer, Reporter or Author?

robertafking June 21, 2012 0 Comments
Earlier this week I took PTO from work and dedicated much to the day to watching a thunderstorm roll in from Lake Michigan and writing/re-writing parts of my memoir. As it thundered and rained, I thought about being at home to write and how much pleasure having uninterrupted time to write gives me. I'm lucky though, I write for a living in the field of public relations. I write profiles of...

Hello to People of the Interweb

robertafking June 14, 2012 0 Comments
Wow. Look at this! My author's website. As the adventure of writing a memoir moves from manuscript to book, this site will host my links and pieces of my project. One day, I believe that it will show the cover of my book and have a list of the libraries and bookstores where the book is being shared or sold and where I'm reading. Until then, I'll be blogging a little bit, sharing my writing...