My Writing:
Awards
Idaho Writer's League Contest 2008
- IWL 2008 Assigned Theme or Title - Personal Essay - 2nd place
- IWL 2008 Open Contest - Short Humor - 2nd place
- IWL 2008 Open Contest - Article - First Honorable Mention
- IWL 2008 Open Contest - Creative Nonfiction - First Honorable Mention
Idaho Writer's League Contest 2007
- IWL 2007 Assigned Theme or Title - Personal Essay - 2nd place
Clips
Click the publication name to view the article.
| TITLE | TYPE | PUBLICATION |
| Bypassing the Inner Critic | blog article | Writing North Idaho guest blog April 26, 2012 |
| Family Critique | article | July-August 2009 Lakegazette (page 8) |
| A Finale of Sorts | bio | December 2008 Lakegazette (page 4) |
| Can My Non-fiction Efforts Help Me Write Fiction? | article | November 2008 Lakegazette (page 5) |
| Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? | article | October 2008 Lakegazette (page 8) |
| Writing Distractions | article | September 2008 Lakegazette (page 7) |
| Stuck in a Writing Corner | article | August 2008 Lakegazette (page 5) |
| The Write Environment | article | July 2008 Lakegazette (page 12) |
| Game Shows Can Help You Write Your Bio | article | June 2008 Lakegazette (page 9) |
| Did Anyone Write Yesterday? | article | May 2008 Lakegazette (page 3) |
| Book Review: The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking |
book review | April 2008 Lakegazette (page 6) |
| Finding a Spark | article | March 2008 Lakegazette (page 4) |
| Book Review: The First Five Pages: A Writer's Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile |
book review | February 2008 Lakegazette (page 7) |
| Being Who You Are | article | January 2008 Lakegazette (page 6) |
| Blink | short story | June 2007 Lakegazette (page 7) |
A Short Story
Blink
(a very short story)
The speed-limit sign alerts me I'm getting close to town. Traffic is not forced to stop here; the only intersection is a two-way stop and the stops are not in the direction of this road. I must have blinked and missed the green sign marking the town boundary.
Even though I don’t need to stop at the intersection I will. I turn right and blink again as I stay on paved roads. I turn again. I’m now blinking faster and more often as I travel to the back of the property. No, it’s not the aroma from the local farms that causes the additional blinking, although at other times of the year it might be. I park the car and walk a short distance.
Few people stop and visit this town. Most people may not even know it exists as it is absent from many maps. But I do stop. I know that there is a post office here, and a library and a fire station and a cemetery, but no stop light and not even any stores although you can get something to drink at the bar.
My little sister married a man from this town. As I blink again, my vision temporarily clears. The name and dates carved on the granite marker in front of me declare her to be a permanent part of the history of Turin, New York. I wonder if I have enough tissue in my purse: Turin does cause me to blink.
© S. M. Garver - May 2007