If you’re an author living in today’s warp-speed world—unless you’re one of those reclusive J.D. Salinger types—you’d be crazy to turn down an opportunity to go on NBC’s Dateline or Dr. Phil. Well, even if you are a reclusive type, unless you have a rich uncle handing out greenbacks so Read more…
One of the best rewards for writing—since it’s rarely the money—are the letters and emails I receive, like the following. Each one always contains some nugget of wisdom, and this one—from a Southern belle of just 76—contains many. It reminds us that for most women, life today is much better Read more…
A walk near dusk in my nearly deserted neighborhood reinforced why I choose to live here: a mailbox with the hand-painted words “Mountaineer fans live here”; a set of clay hands, cast in a gesture of prayer; a lawn mover left unattended on a well-manicured lawn; a few friendly people Read more…
The most difficult part of covering the Skylar Neese story is deciding which hat to wear: journalist or author. But that’s nothing compared to the challenge of being Skylar’s parents, on days like this one. Yesterday I tweeted that “she who has been named” had finally, after months of silence Read more…
Pat Benatar, or her songwriter, really got it right. It is a war out there, and people in love are on the front lines. Like wounded soldiers, thousands fall every day, bloody and bruised. Unable to get back up. People in relationships where love is alive take bullets for their Read more…
It was one year ago today when Skylar Neese left home, fully expecting to return. Sadly, she never got the chance. Looking back over the last year, I found hundreds of thousands of news articles, blog entries, posts, comments, tweets and retweets about Skylar Neese. Some reported on her disappearance, Read more…
It’s been said there’s nothing more powerful than the elements: sun, moon, wind, or rain. But there is something stronger than the force of nature. It’s a mother’s love. So it was that Mary Neese braved today’s scorching heat and high humidity to dedicate a bench to her daughter, Skylar, Read more…
If you google “Skylar Neese,” you’ll find the once-missing teenager’s name appears about 150,000 times online. Articles can be seen in publications like the UK’s Guardian, or the Huffington Post. Her case has been mentioned on TV shows like CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360, CBS News and, very soon, NBC’s Dateline. Read more…
There is just too much news, from all over the world. It flows in faster than I can keep up. Faster than many news organizations can keep up with it—much less a solo Lois Lane like me. So tonight, as this Memorial Day 2013 draws to a close, I’m going Read more…
That just about says it all. But it certainly doesn’t tell the backstory. I think I’ve been speaking in public since I was about ten. Rarely do I get nervous. My TED talk was different. Maybe that’s because you know the status given to TED talks. Okay, so this wasn’t Read more…