– Jane
· · · Jane’s Thread · · ·
Why I Noticed that Fred Leighton Died
I always read the Times obits. But I'm particularly interested when there's a name I recognize, like earlier this month when a write-up about Fred Leighton caught my eye. I'd recently recalled his name in my memoir draft because I'd bought the gown I'd be married...
Flip Sides of the Same Coin
I had a business class professor who answered tough questions with a smile and this quote: "As it says in the Talmud, 'It all depends.'" Here's an example of how prescient those words still are. I just celebrated my 1st anniversary as a member of the Writers Room...
Finding an Expensive Needle in the Most Expensive Haystack in the World
I'm thrilled to be offering my premiere coaching program--a Mastermind Intensive--in NYC this coming fall. I've been leading these elite groups in Westport, Connecticut for many years now and want to bring that offer here to my new hometown. Finding space for this...
Meeting Mum
As a member of the Women's Media Group (WMG) I was invited to contribute a 30-minute mentoring session to one of our youngest members who are college interns. It was my great pleasure to meet Mumtahinah Ahmed, a rising Senior at City College of NY (CCNY) a couple...
A Fabulous Photo Shoot Experience
I don't know how you are about having your headshot taken, but chances are, it's not high on your list of priorities. Yes, we see your candids all the time on Facebook, but you may be more like me on the professional side and put off updating your marketing images...
What’s Your Ding, Ding, Ding?
Some of my best ideas for blog posts come from people's reactions to my coaching prompts. A very talented musician I know mentioned a persona he's created that has freed him up to be more adventurous in his music writing and singing. But he's never taken this...
My Friend Joan
In her Pearls of Wisdom blog, Joan Blumenfeld recently revealed that she'd been diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer and had opted for palliative care rather than treatment to fight the disease. I felt that twisty thing in my gut and heart and immediately picked up...
Overheard and Appreciated
As I was lying on my chiropractor's table waiting to be adjusted, his phone rang and I heard his salutation. "Hello, Chalfin Family Chiropractic, this is Seth. I can help you." That small realignment (pun intended) of words from "Can I?" to "I can!" struck me as...
Mission Accomplished + Next Step
I completed my week in Amherst, MA where I wanted to go through every edit I'd received on my memoir manuscript, make the adjustments--that took the first five days--then read the entire book out loud into my recording device. Seven hours and 40 minutes of...
My Throat Hurts from Reading Out Loud
Here on my writing retreat in Massachusetts, I'm on the next step of the memoir process having gone through the entire draft of edits. What amazes me most is that I thought I was done a year ago. Twelve months later, I think I'm only about halfway there. With the...
Editing – Phase 2 – Check!
I got up before 5am (went to bed before 9pm last night) and immediately continued editing. By 9am, I had only two chapters of notes left to go through, and they weren't as daunting as the ones from earlier. So I decided to reward myself with a walk on the rails to...
Bye Bye, Darlings!
There's some debate about who coined the phrase "kill your darlings," but whether it was Faulkner or not, I'm in the process of execution. I just excised several pages about my mother, mostly about her hospitalization, a story I relished telling. But, according to...
Advice from 2022
The last session of my mastermind intensive held in June had a special theme. Members of the group arrived as though it were five years in the future: 2022. They dressed as the successes they'd become, brought evidence in the form of published books, checks for...
When No Signage Makes Sense
I had a weird experience last week. If it weren't for positive word-of-mouth from a trusted friend, I never would have received this particular service. But M was effusive enough about it that I decided to give it a try. The lead-up to the event was as intriguing...
How to Decide
There was a 3-hour appoint-free window in the middle of my Tuesday this week. An earlier meeting at 102nd and Broadway ended at just after 11:30am. The next one wouldn't be until 3:45pm down in Chelsea, the West 20's. I've secured space at the Writers Room for...