Focus On The Story

In a couple of weeks, I’ll once again be in Charlottesville, Virginia, at the University of Virginia speaking to a group of highly-motivated students who want to be doctors. What I’ll tell them will have very little to do with biology and science, although we will talk a bit about that. Mostly, I’ll be telling…

Read More

Revisiting Old Friends and Finding Something New

I have a few (okay, maybe 10) books that I re-read on a regular basis. No matter how many times I’ve read them, I always find something new, whether it’s a description I overlooked, or a bit of dialogue that has finally grabbed me.  I don’t set out to find something new, merely to immerse…

Read More

Boyhood Memories

Our lives are full of stories; indeed, you could say that our lives are made up of the stories we accept and the stories we reject, all of which make us the person we are. Some stories stick around, consciously or not, and resurface from time-to-time. In the past year, I’ve been living a retelling…

Read More

New Day, New Story

It has been a long break. I haven’t paid sufficient attention to my website in some time. As always, there’s a story. Just after my last book, Back Side Of A Hurricane, came out, I was diagnosed with a serious health problem that made marketing a book seem not so important. Not surprisingly, the book…

Read More

With Liberty and Justice for Some

It has been a long time since I posted. I’m editing my newest novel, and don’t spend much time noodling around the computer, and as you know by now, I’m not very attuned to marketing, so I’ve neglected my site. But I’ve been reading a lot, and three recent books have gotten me thinking.  I’ve…

Read More

Listen to Sleary

Today I read a post on social media that referenced a printed quote from a male physician that sounded misogynistic about the work ethic of female physicians. There were an avalanche of comments from readers who called for the physician’s ruin. I was reminded immediately of the Chicago Cubs’ fan who was captured apparently taking…

Read More

Another View Of The Magic Of Music

Not too long ago, I wrote a blog about how music can grab the members of the band when things are going well. This week, I was reminded of what music often does to those who are listening. First, some context, and maybe even a bit of marketing. On July 4th, the band I play…

Read More

The Company You Keep

Since early spring, I’ve been keeping company with the work of some great writers. I began in early April by re-reading one of the great novels ever written (in my opinion)—Philip Roth’s Everyman. This meditation on aging and death was as rewarding the second time as it had been back when it was new. I…

Read More

Hail and Farewell To Another Great Class

My class at University of Texas at Dallas ended a couple of weeks ago. I’ve just finished reading all the final papers and posting the final grades. Since the Honors College has been kind enough to ask me to teach again next spring, I will soon begin thinking about revising the syllabus, adding or subtracting…

Read More

The Magic of Music, and How It Happens

The band that I play in—The April First Band—played a gig yesterday. It was a brunch benefit for a community nonprofit in Denton, Texas, a great music town that we’ve played once before. It is always a privilege to play in Denton, and especially nice to do a benefit for a worthy cause. And, given…

Read More