Hope Darby Writings

“You’ve never been to Ireland before, have you?”   Startled out of her daydreams, Clarissa glanced up and met the pale green eyes of the man standing in front of her. He was smiling, and his face was a map of laugh lines and freckles.   She smiled and answered, “No, I haven’t. How did you know that?”   With a grin, the man glanced at the “Beauty of Ireland” guidebook resting on the table in front of her, where it had fallen open somewhere in the middle, forgotten as she had slipped... Continue Reading →

  HUNTINGTON BEACH – Colby Curtin, a 10-year-old with a rare form of cancer, was staying alive for one thing – a movie.   From the minute Colby saw the previews to the Disney-Pixar movie Up, she was desperate to see it. Colby had been diagnosed with vascular cancer about three years ago, said her mother, Lisa Curtin, and at the beginning of this month it became apparent that she would die soon and was too ill to be moved to a theater to see the film.   After a family friend made frantic... Continue Reading →

I just turned in my latest bit of write-for-hire, and I must say that I can’t wait to see it in print. Yeah, I know, what an odd desire for a writer to have! This time it’s a little different, though. A friend of mine, a brilliantly creative editorial type recommended me for a book-review article, and I leaped at it with graspy hands and more thank-yous than I care to confess to in the bright light of day.   It was fantastic, because I had to read books that I would have typically passed... Continue Reading →

I’ve spent the last couple of days revamping the entire site, from front page to blog and back around again…and let me tell you, there are few things more frustrating than learning how to code on command. It’s almost as impossible as finding depth in Ashanti’s poetry. In case you don’t know what I mean by that, watch this video: Enough said.  Read More →

Normally, I do everything I can to “fight the machine” when it comes to the decline of paper publishing. I buy actual newspapers, real books, and still keep paper journals. But even I have to admit that there is a neverending supply of absolutely phenomenal reading resources on the internet; who would I be to deprive anyone of terrific sites when I come across them?   NewPages.com proclaims “Good Reading Starts Here,” and I can’t help but agree. Check them out, I guarantee... Continue Reading →

Thank you, Sharon! Now to stem the laughter…and wish these books really existed… (original posting at OnMyList.com)   Um, fair warning, these aren’t exactly Rated G!                      Read More →

People have told me for years that were I to write stories centered around my extended family, I’d have bestsellers on my hands. Of course, I’d have to sell them as fiction, because no one would believe any of it to be true, but that’s an entirely different matter.   The one question I struggle with is this: when writing is “inspired” by real-life, how much can we pull from real people before we require permission? Do I need to inform my insanely neurotic, outrageously... Continue Reading →

I have recently become a huge fan of several online magazines, or e-zines. As you all know, I can’t stumble across a good thing and not share it, so each week I will feature a new ezine which you must check out. Right now, run run run!   This week’s star is: Writer’s Weekly.com — The standard classic, with the highest circulation of any freelance ezine in the world, the Writer’s Weekly is chock-full of excellent freelance job market opportunities and weekly news stories... Continue Reading →

I have been very lucky with all of the publishers/editors I have worked with: they’ve always treated me fairly, been extremely professional and kind, and generally been fun to work for. My friends and family tend to respect when I say, “No, I’m sorry, I’m writing,” as being as important as anyone else saying, “Nope, sorry, gotta go to work!” Unfortunately, I know that a large number of other writers haven’t had such great luck. So when I came across... Continue Reading →

My sincerest apologies for the ridiculous absence. It won’t happen again, I promise!   I’ll be tinkering with some visual changes in the days to come, so if things look wonky, just bear with me   There will be new categories and links coming soon, sharing ezines and writer-friendly sites, among other things, and am eager for feedback and information from all of you! Don’t forget that you can email me with news at any time: hope@hopedarbywritings.com   Grab your pens (people... Continue Reading →