TreeHouseLetter

A Flag Day speech on the flag, the anthem, and those who serve in the armed forces.

About a soldier who wrote his own eulogy and a graveside visit. Toolbox for 9 to 99: a note on tense.

For twelve years I’ve been sharing books with you in this letter. Today I’m sharing my own. Raising Athena: A Mother and Daughter Attend West Point Thirty Years Apart. With three excerpts and reader comments. For military parents, veterans, and anyone who knows the weight of watching someone they love choose to serve. Signed Copies available. Visit my site book page: treehouseletter.com/raisingath...

On leadership and rhetoric. One book recommendation, one restaurant recommendation. A Goodreads Giveaway and book launch update.

Army Rugby Alumni Match in Aldie, VA. Bawdy ballad & Army songs. Poetry for emergencies. Ages 13 and up.

On the joy of unread books and an independent review as a debut author. Wordnerd Studio pickups IndieReader review & rating Goodreads giveaway for  Raising Athena

On publishing and writing craft today, and a first-of-its-kind book.

How a book becomes voice and the creative process

On travel, reading speed, and who's watching you. The military and unconventional skills. Bonus - book recommendation. Learn more at TreeHouseLetter.com

An ancient tale. Toolbox for writers: Murder your darlings.

"Sometimes I make things more complicated than they have to be." Learn about David Whyte's poem and a podcast on writing. Moreover, what is it you revere enough to pay daily homage?

Grief meets gratitude in a Queens market, a raw Thanksgiving letter, and how writing can create a kind of Deja Vu. Michelle Zauner, CS Lewis.

On the death of a parent, buddhism, and a return to the TreeHouseLetter. How three sentences from Salman Rushdie's memoir provide comfort after losing my mother.

The Prologue of my upcoming memoir opens on the embassy roof as my father escapes with the U.S. Ambassador on the last helicopter out of Saigon in 1975. This is my origin story. Just how will those final hours and the iconic and tragic end of an era in U.S. history figure into her life and her daughter’s? Listen to this excerpt of Raising Athena, a Memoir; A Mother and Daughter Attend West Point 3...

German romantic poet Friedrich von Hardenberg on teachers, Mathematics, and love, as highlighted in Penelope Fitzgeral's masterpiece, The Blue Flower.

On drifters and jobs, on Satoshi Yagisawa and David Foster Wallace, on the bookseller and the accountant. Learn about finding " the job" from both authors, about certain truths, about what real courage is. And study the Music in Prose in passages from their books.

On the yoga headstand and what I learned about writing. "You can only do so many things great, and you should cast aside everything else." Tim Cook

Alternate title: The Buddhist, the Catholic, and the Dying Man. Poetry for Emergencies, On happiness and desire, On reputation. It sounds like a bar joke but it’s better,  because there’s more to this than a punchline. Listen to learn how these three gave me courage.

I like authors who make me laugh. Listen to three passages from Ann Leary's essay collection, with one on Bergdorf eveningwear, circa 2009. On writing humor.

Learn about the Japanese Proverb and welcome the New Year with thoughts on Kawaguchi's book, Before the Coffee Gets Cold, time travel, and the impact of one encounter with President Carter.

How long does it take for a snow flake to reach the ground? Poetry in winter and the end of year muse. Poetry for emergencies.

Giving Thanks is a ritual I look forward at Thanksgiving and one I stop to reflect on throughout the year. A text I received from a friend made me stop and consider the role of civility.

A text I received from a friend made me stop and consider the role of civility today.

Solitude and loneliness have been on my mind when this page came up in my reading. Thoughtful reflection on solitude: learning how and why to embrace it with insight from Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh. 1 Book and series rec.

I'm not superstitious. BUT, numbers and patterns fascinate me, such as the modern use of 11:11 to make a wish. Why? Learn what the angel number, the armistice, and Veterans Day have in common.