Articles written by Marilla Mulwane

What is Helium

About me - Marilla Mulwane

I have been writing ever since I was a child. Every time my family read one of my silly stories and praised it, the happier I was and the more I wanted to write. Writing is my favorite thing to do. I went to college at SUNY Oneonta and received my Bachelor's

+ more bio information

RSS Feed

Celebrations & Holidays > Christmas How to build a Christmas village: 1 of 6
Christmas villages are a fun holiday task. It takes years to create a large village, but part of the fun is buying new pieces and getting family and friends to help put it together. One year for Christmas, when I was maybe eight or nine years old, I wanted to buy my mom a light up Christmas village house for Christmas. I thou... More..
Arts & Humanities > American Authors Book reviews: Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen: 1 of 6
When Jacob Jankowski's parents are killed in a car accident one week before he is supposed to take his final exams at Cornell, he is left with nothing. On a whim, Jacob hops on a train to escape. The train ends up being a circus, and not a very good circus at that. Still, the circus takes him on and he ends up as the vet for ... More..
Arts & Humanities > Thoughts on Writing Published works you'd like to put your name on: 1 of 5
Every writer is a reader. They find their inspiration and some ideas from the books they read. I know that, personally, I am more in awe of writers than I am of celebrities on the big screen or TV. That is because I want to aspire to be like them. That does not mean I want to write like them, because I have my own style and v... More..
Arts & Humanities > American Literature Book reviews: A Dirty Job, by Christopher Moore: 1 of 5
Christopher Moore, that crazy genius, takes on death in his novel, A Dirty Job. There have been many, many books written about death, and every one has their own ideas on what the greatest mystery of life is really all about. Christopher Moore, with his quirky mind, creates an all new version of death while incorporating many... More..
Arts & Humanities > Writing Tips How reading helps you become a better writer: 1 of 5
One thing I was told many times when I was in college taking writing courses was to read, read, read. I was told it was an important part of being a writer and was one of the many ways I could become a better writer. How does reading help you learn to write? Lots of reasons: -Read your genre to find out what works- As a fanta... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Unique Gifts Where to find the best geeky gifts online: 1 of 5
Geeks can sometimes be hard people to buy gifts for because they generally do not like the popular items that become fads every year. If you ask geeks what they want for a gift at Christmas or their birthday, many times they will tell you gift ideas that you have never heard of. Usually, their geek words will sound like a dif... More..
Arts & Humanities > American Literature Book reviews: Running with Scissors, by Augusten Burroughs: 1 of 5
The best way for me to describe the memoir Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs is disturbingly delightful. Yes, that is a contradiction. But, when you find yourself reading a book about a young teenager who is abandoned, left to live with a bunch of crazy people, and gets involved with a 33 year old pedophile, and you... More..
Arts & Humanities > Thoughts on Writing Reasons why you shouldn't write when you are tired: 1 of 5
It is impossible for me to get any writing done if I am tired. For that reason, I am a caffeine addict. My caffeinated drink is lovingly called my "think juice". I have learned that when I am tired, little to nothing gets written. When I am awake, my work is well-written, my dramatic scenes perfectly heart-breaking. When I ha... More..
Arts & Humanities > Thoughts on Writing How to respond to constructive feedback on your writing: 1 of 4
Every writer faces this same scene: You put your heart and soul into something you write and someone else says you did something wrong, that what you wrote does not make sense, that something is flawed. It is incredibly hard as a writer to not rip that person's head off because what do they know? They did not write the words.... More..
Arts & Humanities > British Literature Book reviews: A Long Way Down, by Nick Hornby: 1 of 4
Nick Hornby is an author who likes to take difficult and dark subjects and turn them into hysterical masterpieces. And you do not feel guilty for laughing about them! In A Long Way Down, Hornby takes on suicide again. On New Years Eve, four strangers meet on top of a building, all of them there because they wanted to commit s... More..