(Remarks upon receiving the 2026 L.J. Hortin Distinguished Alumna Award from Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism on April 21.) Good evening! And congratulations to all the scholarship recipients. This is your night. A celebration of everything you’ve worked so hard to achieve. To Dr. Meyer and the faculty, thank you for this incredible […]
Chasing Stories and Dreams Read More »
Anne Lamott eavesdrops in grocery store lines. She scribbles notes. And she sits down at the same time every day to write as she wrestles and tames her inner critic. “Being a writer is a sacred calling like being called to the monkhood or to the convent,” she told nearly 300 writers in a kick-off
Tell Me a Story, Make Me Care Read More »
For 25 years, the University of Dayton’s Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop has been one of the most sought-after literary events in the country — selling out year after year, sometimes in mere hours. In 2024, novelist and writing coach Julie Cantrell called it “clearly the hottest ticket in town (second only to Taylor Swift, perhaps).
You belong among the wildflowersYou belong somewhere close to me As Tom Petty’s tender ballad, “Wildflowers,” wafted through the gentle evening breeze, Ali and Emily welcomed me and her father to the dance floor at their wedding reception on our sloping front lawn. Could there be a more lyrical wedding anthem for this young couple?
Love Among the Wildflowers Read More »
I can’t get the catchy lyrics of “Delta Dawn” out of my head, and it’s been months since writers serenaded a surprised Wade Rouse at the close of the 2024 Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop. The impromptu, rousing sing-along capped the most highly rated conference in our history. It was one of those serendipitous, pop-up moments
(In honor of Father’s Day. An excerpt from One Heart with Courage: Essays and Stories.) Father Jim Fitz carried his vestments into my family’s church on a humid July morning to help celebrate the life of my father, a man he had never met. A longtime colleague of mine at the University of Dayton, Father
The Godfather of Vandalia Read More »
At your first birthday party, your Uncle Ali took one look at your blue frosting-smeared face and exclaimed, “Eli, are you full of pizza, blueberries, cupcake — and love?” When he learned of your impending birth, he and Aunt Emily made plans to move from Brooklyn to Cincinnati to be closer to family, but we
(In loving memory of Zia Haider Rizvi. Reprinted from One Heart with Courage.) It’s no wonder that a record-low number of Pakistanis turned out for the February 1997 parliamentary elections: Having nine prime ministers in 10 years has taken its toll on even the most optimistic of Pakistan’s 130 million citizens. Nawaz Sharif, dismissed as
An Idealistic Tax Collector Read More »
In an inspirational keynote talk, Marta Kauffman, one of the hottest names in comedy writing, shared life lessons and a few backstories with more than 200 humor writers at “Get Your Funny On! The Virtual Erma.”
Finding the Sweet Spot Read More »
We’re busy building a bigger tent at the University of Dayton, creating space for every member of our campus community. That’s never more evident than at Culture Fest, where the colorful flags from 75 countries flanked the sides of a massive white tent and flapped in the late-afternoon breeze.
One Tent. One Community. Read More »