AUTHOR
How much effort is enough? How much attention? How much “success”? Leading up to the publication of my recent novel, Kohelette, I couldn’t help but be aware of all the publishing professionals said a successful author should do to launch a book. The pitches, the marketing, and the business of it all stayed in my mind well... Continue Reading →
Kohelette: A Novel came out this past Wednesday. I'm beyond thrilled! Advance readers may have had the novel for a while already, but I've still relished sending it out into the world more broadly, first with a recent excerpt appearing in The Polk Street Review 2026 and now with this past week's publication. There may... Continue Reading →
What we are to each other doesn’t go away. Our people don’t go away. And that changes everything.
"I’m trusting that these shared meals are accomplishing, or may yet accomplish, something with good in it. Perhaps, at the very least, they’re a start." - from "Yarns and Yams" Now that we've reached the month when many families in the US gather for Thanksgiving meals, I'm sharing this reflection I wrote earlier in the... Continue Reading →
I dread "the block.” It comes in all shapes and sizes for all kinds of creative projects. It frustrates the heck out of people whose well-meaning efforts it stalls. Ever been there? It’s not fun. Unfortunately, my most recent novel, The Joy of a Field, left me spending more time with creative block than either of... Continue Reading →
Though I wrote a lot this summer, I also needed time to reflect on that writing and to not even think about that writing. I'm sure many parts of life - creative and otherwise - are like that. It helps to take breaks. This summer, two of my best "break" activities were morning bike rides... Continue Reading →
Callie J. Smith 