Jo’s Jottings

When I was a junior in high school, I became the cook and cleaner of our house. My mom was in care for depression at a private facility. My oldest sister was married and my next oldest was away at college. So it was me, my Dad and my 9-year-old brother. I wasn’t a bad cook—more gifted at baking than actual meals, but I was sure I could make this work. One night, having watched Mom fry chicken and make gravy from the “scritchins” (as my brother labeled them), I was sure I could pull it off. I...

Many years ago, I was in Washington DC making my first visit to the Holocaust Museum. I had already been blown away by the way the museum designers had set up the path visitors would travel. First, you are given an identity card—someone who lived during the Holocaust; then you are packed into an elevator with what seems like more than a lot of others on your way to the top floor. You spill out of the elevator and move through the initial exhibits still in crowds. But as you wind your way down...

Over the last three days I have spent many hours at the computer trying (without success) to upload my latest work to the marketplace. There is a lot to be said for being an independent author—I get to write what I want and I am in control (sort of) all the way—choosing the cover; choosing the title; choosing the number of pages/words I spend telling the story. There are expenses. I am a writer, not a designer, so for that I hire a professional. I usually hire some person with knowledge of the...

Just back from attending a seminar at the American Library Association’s national conference in Chicago. Key take-away? LIBRARIANS ARE PUBLIC SERVANTS! Just like fire and police and the men and women who plow the snow from streets in winter and care for public parks and collect our garbage, they are entrusted with taxpayer dollars to do a job that goes way beyond checking out books and reshelving them once they come back. Whether a large city network of central and branch locations or a single...

From time to time I will take a break from writing novels, memoirs, and other things to share some random thoughts on random topics I hope you might find interesting. Today I am thinking about libraries and their importance to communities—a mostly free resource that gives access to books, films, music, art, programs, and more to those savvy enough to make regular visits there. Over my long career as a writer, libraries and librarians have led me through the maze of research that gave me the...

From time to time I will take a break from writing novels, memoirs, and other things to share some random thoughts on random topics I hope you might find interesting. May is springtime in Wisconsin. But for me May is also the month when my husband died, and so it carries a tinge of melancholy. But also, memory—the memory of over four decades of a love story I could never have imagined. This summer, I am releasing the memoir I have written about my beloved’s last six months and my first two...

From time to time I will take a break from writing novels, memoirs, and other things to share some random thoughts on random topics I hope you might find interesting. Today I am thinking about—of all things—Parkinson’s Disease. April is National PD Month and as the co-author with the brilliant Dr. Michele Tagliati of Parkinson’s Disease for Dummies, this is a time of year when I spend time thinking of my sister, who died of the disease and of my friend and co-author of the original PDFD, Dr....

I have had a lifelong passion for history — the choices and challenges faced by others in trying times. I find myself looking for connections and a visit to the Holocaust Museum in DC led me to just such a connection with the story of the White Rose Resistance group, sending me down a rabbit hole of research that has blossomed into years of looking for little known stories of WWII heroes and heroines. From there telling their stories through my stories has become my passion. Click here to see...

From the time I began seeking a career as a published author, I saw no reason to limit myself to fiction or non-fiction. I loved storytelling, but at the same time felt I had something share from the ‘real job’ career I had chosen in the field of eldercare. Early on I published several works on caregiving and aging for AARP Books. Then thirteen years ago my agent approached me with the possibility of working on a guide for people with Parkinson’s disease and their care partners. The interested...

Hello and welcome to my blog. From time to time I will take a break from writing novels, memoirs and other things to share some random thoughts on random topics I hope you might find interesting. Today I am thinking about libraries and their importance to communities—a mostly free resource that gives access to books, films, music, art, programs, and more to those savvy enough to make regular visits there. Over my long career as a writer, libraries have inspired me creatively leading me more...