Spring 2025
UPDATE: May 1– Registration for my summer classes is open now! Please visit the Summer Classes page for details. Registration for my standard courses is also open for the ’25-26 school year.
April — Wow, it’s been a long time since my last update! Winter sped by, and I didn’t even realize I had missed an update until now. In truth, while I have been busy, nothing new has happened at Once Upon a Pen with one exception. As of this month, my YA book review website, What’s In It? The Concerned Parent’s Guide to Young Adult Literature, has been closed down, and all my reviews are now offered as a FREE PDF document on my “Reader’s Nook” page!
I am also thrilled to report that my teen writing group, Inklings Too, continued to meet during the winter and is now in its spring season. This energetic group of young writers is eager to make their mark in the literary world someday, and I love watching them grow. In fact, one of them just won a major teen writing award!
Finally, my plans for summer and fall courses are now underway, so my course pages are updated for April and will be updated again at the beginning of May. On May 1 registration will open for all live courses. If you are interested in a correspondence course, registration is open year-round. Please check back next month, or feel free to contact me if you would like to be added to my subscriber list. I’ll send out an update when registration is open.
Thank you so much for your support for Once Upon a Pen. I seldom advertise, so I always appreciate those who spread the word to their friends! Happy spring!
Autumn 2024
November Update
Does your teen love creative writing? Registration is open for the winter season of Inklings Too, and classes begin on December 3!
Join my new subscriber list to receive my announcements and updates! Just let me know through my contact page.
October Update
“I can smell autumn dancing in the breeze. The sweet chill of pumpkin and crisp, sunburnt leaves.” — Unknown
As autumn descends upon us in hues of mellow gold and faded brown, I find myself often contemplating where I want to head next with my various projects. Spring or New Year’s is often the time of year when we begin to think of such things, but for a teacher, fall is another common time. Lesson plans are coming together or being redesigned, grading is starting to pile up, and schedules are becoming complex. I’ve already had one disastrous week when my schedule was so unusually intricate that I was late to one of my own classes for the first time that I can remember!
But this year I have new things to consider on top of the usual. My next book is finally in the publication pipeline and is due for release next fall–far later than I expected, but later is better than never! (Details to come once I have a firm date.) Since it is out of my hands for a few months, then, I need to begin working on my next project, which is to self-publish another finished manuscript. I doubt I’ll be able to commission the perfect cover for this one, but I do hope I’ll have it released on Amazon before the new year.
In the meantime, I am taking several students deeper into writing (The Denim Beret Writing Program and Inklings Too) and literature (Before Great Books Comes Groundwork), and I always have fun with that. Will you join me? Are you looking for an alternative to the usual programs out there? Visit my course pages to see what I offer!
I’m not a company, and I don’t have a staff. My courses aren’t flashy or well-known or sold by any vendors, and I seldom advertise. I do, however, offer expertise, long experience, personal attention, tested courses that I personally developed, and an approach that is a just little bit different from others you’ll find on the market. I welcome you to spend some time exploring my website and to reach out with any questions!
Spring 2024
April 27–I have been out of commission for months as I’ve been unable to find my way out of the forest of work and other obligations that have overwhelmed since September. Now that spring is bringing the world back to life, though, I am finding my way back with new opportunities on the horizon! My third book is in the works, and I have another behind that ready for editing and self-publishing on Amazon. I am also designing a new summer opportunity for young writers, which I will introduce very soon on my page “The Writer’s Garrett”. Please visit soon to see what it’s all about!
Summer 2025
August 29–Again, I have let these updates slide nearly into the next season, but this summer there has been little to tell. Inklings Too has continued for a second summer season, and we are now gearing up for our second fall season, too! This group of young writers is phenomenal; I am truly privileged to be working with them as they shoot for their own stars. What has been different this year is that the original group is now officially “level 2”, because a new group also started as “level 1” students in July. This class–also phenomenal and a joy to teach–was similar to last summer’s pilot class, so now these students are ready to move into level 2 if they wish.
In other news, I have just released my third self-published book on the Amazon KDP platform! Like my homeschool memoir If I Could Go Back, this book is also a memoir for adults, but it is about my journey to the Catholic Church. I am excited to finally share this story, which has been so important to my life. You can learn more here.
Once Upon a Pen 