Silly me, I thought my work on What Can’t Wait was DONE when I finished it. Little did I know that the work of getting the word out was just beginning. Thinking about publicity has actually been a blessing in … Read more

I wrote this personal mission statement some five years ago when I was teaching high school in Houston, and it still hangs over my desk, keeping me on track and reminding me of my scholars. Here’s the explanation on the … Read more

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to bake and give away cookies. Teachers, if I could bake for you all, I’d be serving you a big ole stack of cookies like this one. Since I can’t, here’s my … Read more

Cool tattoos in the photo, right? But my tattoo’s not there. In fact, the tattoo artist cocked an eyebrow at me when he saw what I wanted. “Fifty bucks is the minimum,” he said. “Doesn’t matter how small the tattoo.” … Read more

Last week I posted about books that might be useful in meeting writing resolutions for the new year. Here are some of my favorite teaching-related titles for folks making resolutions to up their efficacy in the classroom in 2011. In … Read more

Here’s a list of books and resources for moving forward with your resolutions for writing. Posts on teaching and general living-well resolutions to follow. Whatever your resolutions, I recommend finding a good way to track your daily progress. Check out … Read more

Catching up on blog reading, I came across bad book news about my old stompin’ grounds of East Texas in this Bookshelves of Doom post. Turns out that a superintendent in Quitman, Texas (not far from where I grew up), … Read more

So at IU, where I’m a graduate student, I give an undergraduate course on vampires in literature. When I tell people what I’m teaching, I get reactions like:

“You must be a big fan of vampires.” 

“Wait, vampire literature? … Read more