Articles written by Amanda Sowards

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About me - Amanda Sowards

I am a legal secretary at a movie studio, more than halfway toward getting my MFA in Creative Writing. I live in Southern California, I drive an exceedingly dull four-door sedan, I have one grown daughter and three very opinionated cats. By this time next

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Creative Writing > Short Stories Short stories: The photograph: 2 of 62
THE GIBSON GIRLMy grandfather said it at least once per vacation, whenever I visited them. It was usually in the early evening, after dinner, as we sat on the porch, after the dishes had been washed and put away, and he had been sent into exile to smoke his after-dinner pipe. If I close my eyes, I can still smell the tobacco,... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US News Crime: Virginia Tech school shooting: 4 of 98
THE TAO OF "I DON'T WANT TO KNOW"My friend, Kim, called me yesterday, sometime in the afternoon. We've been friends - good friends, the best of friends - for nearly thirty years, yet we've lived most of them at least two to five states apart. She lives in Ohio, I, in California. We discuss many things, most of them having not... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Parenting Tips When to stop supporting your children: 1 of 12
PARENTING 110A: BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO (ESPECIALLY WITH YOUR CHILD)No one told me about this part of parenting. They told me about two o'clock feedings and diaper rash, about play dates and time-outs. The older ones groaned out stories of mumps and measles and chicken pox, not realizing that our children have all been immu... More..
Politics, News & Issues > People in the News Controversial radio host Don Imus: Should he be fired for his remarks?: 17 of 110
The die is cast. The deed is done. Now, the appropriate question is "Should Don Imus have been fired for his remarks?" To which I answer, "Yes." And "no." Don't be distressed if my seeming ambivalence leaves you confused. There truly is a method to my madness, I swear.Don Imus has been in radio for three decades now. When he ... More..
Creative Writing > Novel Excerpts Novel excerpts: Parents: 2 of 11
THE DEATH OF THE AMERICAN WESTERNMy father was an aficionado of the American Western. He loved Zane Grey, the Lone Ranger, and tales of Wyatt Earp and the James Brothers. When he was ten years old, he had found a stray cat, which he instantly christened Billy the Kid with Two Smokin' Forty-fives. That's exactly what he called... More..
Creative Writing > Memoirs Testimonies: When dogs raise kittens: 1 of 4
DOGGY KITTY MOMMYSigfried was part-Doberman, part-Weimareiner. His Doberman appearance usually conned people into thinking he was fierce, but in reality, he was a push-over - gentle, eager to please, obedient (for the most part). But he was a good-sized dog, too, and sometimes, when playing, lost track of his own strength and... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Party Politics & Ideology American liberalism and the Democratic party critiqued: 17 of 38
Jumbo shrimp. Military intelligence. Peace-keeping force. Democratic party. Oxymorons all. I can say that, because I'm a lifelong, die-hard registered Democrat. And I love my party. No, wait. I love the IDEA of my party. My party these days... not so much. Mostly because it isn't a party. The word "party" implies (in the poli... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Parents: 26 of 57
One of the good parts of being a grown-up is getting to be your own parent. Feeling uncared for or ill-treated? Feeling unprotected and undefended? Feeling unappreciated and abandoned? You get to do that for yourself. You get to be the parent this time. You get to be your parent. You get to love you and cuddle you and make yo... More..
Arts & Humanities > Writing Resources The importance of MFA creative writing programs for writers: 1 of 2
My father, the writer, was dead-set against the formal study of writing. He didn't believe that you needed to go to school for such a thing. It was hard to tell if he truly was so opposed, or if he was just trying to minimize the competition. "A writer doesn't study! A writer doesn't read about writing!" he'd say, categorical... More..
Other Why did the chicken cross the road?: 18 of 33
The chicken, if one is bent on using such species-oriented terminology which categorizes and therefore limits individuals by the very nature of such labeling, crossed the road for the same reason we all tend to cross the road. It was on the universal quest for life's true meaning, coupled with an overriding desire to find oth... More..