As a writer, I believe that all content is story, regardless of genre, whether a technical document, a memoir essay, or a lyric poem. Although not expository, my fiction reveals as much or more about my organizational structure and narrative as the following pieces. Please check it out! Thank you for your consideration.
This pitch to the prestigious Landscape Architecture Magazine led to an interview, resulting in an article about the principal's recent project. It was featured in the December 2024 issue.
At the heart of Tampa’s historic Ybor City, the gem-sized Cigar Workers’ Park (.25 acre) pays tribute to the community of factory workers, mainly Cuban, Italian, and Spanish immigrants, who labored in the district's famous cigar production industry since the late 1800s. Landscape architect David Connor’s contemporary design, which focuses on a stunning fountain formed from the boards of a historic tobacco farm and shaded seating facing Tampa’s longest running cigar factory, adds meaning to this traditional workers’ leisure space through elements of environmental sustainability: a hidden storm water management system reduces maintenance and provides a habitat for native pollinators, as well as two sculptural bat towers that encourage nighttime inhabitants. Open daily to the public and the site of weddings and colorful local events, this landmark commemorates Tampa’s immigrant origins, fused with modern, urban environmental care practices, while heralding a dynamic neighborhood’s renaissance.
Title: 5 Questions to Ask your Physician about Prescription Drugs
Whether you take a daily pill for a long-term condition or you need a one-time solution for a rash, prescriptions help us immensely. Today's world of pharmaceuticals can seem overwhelming: brand or generic? With or without food? Below are 5 questions to ask your physician so that you can get the most from your prescriptions.
Join us from 5:30 to 6:30 PM on Wednesday, November 14th for a special presentation. Please RSVP for your appointment with the pharmacist by calling (863) 763-9228. For more details, visit our event website.
Questions or concerns? Call us today at (863) 763-2151 or use our 24/7 Consult-A-Nurse® service at 1-800-449-8642.
Tags: Raulerson Hospital, Okeechobee Fl hospital, medication, prescription, questions
Reference(s): FDA – grapefruit juice interactions
Title: Ease new parenting worries with these five baby care tips.
New parenthood is a wondrous and frazzling experience. You love your new bundle passionately but the lack of sleep can make the simplest diaper change feel like a challenge.
Here are five top tips for you and your new baby.
Learn more about labor, delivery and newborn care by registering for Brandon Regional Hospital's Prepared Childbirth Series which includes a hospital tour. Sign up online or by calling our Consult-A-Nurse®service at 1-888-327-2636.
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Due to privacy agreements, I cannot share my Publishers Weekly, BookLife division, publications here, but I welcome questions on the topics I covered, guidelines, writing style, and communication flow with editors.
Please find my Washington Independent Review of Books contributions here, as well as a sample below.
Please find my BookTrib contributions here, as well as a sample below.
For the Washington Independent Review of Books:
Aquarium: A Novel
By Yaara Shehori; translated by Todd Hasak-Lowy
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Teaser: A reclusive deaf family grapples with ableism, isolation, and a life-altering secret.
Israeli author Yaara Shehori’s third book tells the story of Dori and Lili Ackerman, who live with their parents, Alex and Anna. All four are deaf. In self-imposed seclusion, Anna homeschools the girls until authorities learn that Dori can hear and speak. Deeming her neglected, they abruptly place her in a boarding school for reeducation. Years later, as the now-estranged sisters meander different life paths, Dori is left to ponder how “the establishment” learned of her secret and to grapple with the role deafness plays in her adult identity.
Shehori is a poet, and her lyrical, introspective voice lends this literary-genre novel a dreamy tone as the two young women search for honest definitions of home and family in a world of audist discrimination. Water metaphors and references to Odysseus’s earplugged sailors abound. The book’s fascination lies in its skillful portrayal of the Ackermans’ reliance on nonverbal communication. However, the reader must wade through many phases of the characters’ lives before reaching a nugget of revelation on the final page. Although that may heighten curiosity, it’s just as likely to feel frustrating.
Aquarium offers a profound exploration of hearing — both its presence and its absence — and its impact on a family, on society, and on ourselves.
For BookTrib:
The Archer by Paulo Coelho
Paulo Coelho has produced some twenty books in his lifetime, including bestselling masterpieces such as The Alchemist. Now in his 70s, he is perhaps Brazil’s most celebrated contemporary author. His most recent book, The Archer (Knopf), translated from the Portuguese by Margaret Jull Costa, is inspiring as ever.
The story features Tetsuya, a carpenter in a small village. One day, a young stranger from far away arrives in search of him. The stranger reveals that the carpenter is the country’s finest, most legendary archer. He then challenges Tetsuya to a competition, hoping to capture that title. With quiet confidence, Tetsuya agrees. After the competition and the departure of the stranger, Tetsuya answers questions posed by a boy who has witnessed the experience. He also shares why he has kept his skill a secret.
This minimalist narrative is split between a prologue and an epilogue, thus framing a series of thirteen eloquent lessons. The chapters, ranging from a few lines to several pages, detail the proper form a novice archer must learn to excel. They explore the relationships among the archer and his bow, arrow and target, as well as who should accompany the novice along his journey toward mastering the craft. Coelho recounts these lessons from the point of view of the mentor, lending to the story the mood of a timeless parable or fable. His language evokes poetry more than step-by-step instructions.
EXPERT SYMBOLISM IN THE ARCHER
Such simplicity in storytelling disguises a more complex message than how best to pull back a bowstring; it fosters an understanding of the higher self and a reverence for life’s many stages. Like the tenets of Taoism, the story demonstrates the fulfillment that comes from relentless practice and mindful intention. The narrator likewise emphasizes the wisdom the student may gain from all experiences, even so-called failures. Awareness of negative feelings can lead to a student’s growth instead of thwarting it. The author’s closing acknowledgements refer to spirituality and Japanese Zen interpretations of archery underlying the book’s many messages.
Coelho goes so far as to redefine terms such as “master” or “target,” explaining that one cannot exist without the other. “Just as the arrow seeks the target, so the target also seeks the arrow, because it is the arrow that gives meaning to its existence.” Such philosophical gems provoke reflection long after the reader has closed the book.
THE ARTISTIC DETAILS
Adding to Coelho’s lyricism, the streamlined paintings by award-winning illustrator Christoph Niemann set a tone of symbolic elegance, making the book ideal in print rather than e-book. Like each gesture the archer makes, Niemann’s illustrations embody the book’s theme in graceful symbols.
Coelho’s keen understanding of humanity’s yearning for enlightenment emerges again and again in his work. “Enlightenment” does not conform to the Western notion of happiness in the sense of “fun” or even “love” but is a quieter experience related to discovering one’s soul. In Alan Riding’s New York Times article from August 2005, “Paulo Coelho: Writing in a Global Language,” the prolific author says, “What surprises me is when I’m called a spiritual writer. For me, the pursuit of happiness is a lie, as if there were a point when everything changes, when you become wise. I believe enlightenment or revelation comes in daily life. I look for joy, the peace of action.” This relationship between the self and physical activity is quintessential to Coelho’s ethos and writing. For fans of Zen philosophy and metaphysical fiction, The Archer is a must-read.