Elizabeth Bartasius

Fresh turmeric steeps a healing tea. Their roots, like a mound of deformed caterpillars, don’t inspire beauty however. When I peel the...

As a writer my job is to see all sides. If I take sides in a story, I maybe be blinded to the layers of other characters. After all, all...

Days before my grandmother died, she lingered in a coma, eyes no longer open, wearing the Joan Collins-like wig I’d seen her in everyday...

Agents and editors have told me when they review a manuscript they read the first sentence only. If their curiosity is peaked, they will...

It took putting myself back in the grip of the man whose hands wrapped around my neck. It took crying. It took being so incredibly...

Vacations are hugely distracting to my writing. I love vacations. When I return, I always have a few moments of regret. When I’m...

Santa came through the open window, my mother said, as we didn’t have chimneys in Florida. Plus, he’d only come in the very middle of the...

Dear Fear & Curiosity, Fear, I need you. Curiosity, I need you. You both contribute to me. And yet, you both suffocate me, at times....

Fear is cloaked in a doctor’s vest, a telescope around its neck: the ultimate authority. Fear walks into a room confident; it knows how...

Curiosity is a cliff diver. A circus clown. Curiosity is my monkey muse. Wearing the Fendis. And cursing like a mother-fucker. Curiosity...

Sometimes, I’m just too full to write. Too overwhelmed by the to-do list, Or things left unattended. Sometimes I’ve overstuffed with...

A magical thing happens at moments in a writer’s life. You’ve likely felt it to in your art or your own individual expression. The Zone!...

“Work defines you. Then you have to define yourself.” - My friend, Jeff - on what he learned during retirement I'm standing here in a...

‘The Clear’ is the gateway. To what? You ask. To write, to create, to anything. If my desk, life, head are not clear, Then I cannot seem...

I don’t wanna write today. I’m feeling the need to clean, to purge. I feel compelled to use the “listen to your body” excuse to not...

If you could create your ideal writing space, what would it look like? Like boiling cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, fennel into a pot to...

Starting is the hardest part, of course. It’s ease to stay on the couch, in a thankless job or in a story of anger-hate-blame-fear…until...

Why Movement is Uber Important Lately, I have noticed how Moving is non-negotiable. Anatomically, we humans are built to move with feet,...

Sometimes, I need you. Sometimes, I feel I can live without you; I have other people. Sometimes you are annoying as hell. Sometimes you...

***Warning: This is a more personal post as I’m heading into surgery next week and wanting a little extra tenderness from others and...