Writers

This carefully maintained dock holds a growing collection of the written word. Here, you’ll find thought provoking articles, unique stories, private letters, personal notes, deep musings, and occasionally, even poetry. Much of the content here has never been shared publicly. For whatever reason, some pieces were tucked away by the writer for years. Now, it’s all available for you.

Art Is Just a Fancy Word for Seeing

We reserve the word “art” for people with extraordinary talent—painters who capture light on canvas, poets who make language sing, sculptors who free figures from stone. But what if we’ve been thinking about it all wrong? What if art isn’t really about skill at all, but about something much simpler and more accessible? Something children do naturally until we teach them to stop. This piece explores a different way of seeing creativity—one that changes everything about how we notice beauty, meaning, and our connection to something eternal.

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Writing Is a Superpower: A Guide for Teens

Tami Nantz invites teens to see their writing as more powerful than they realize — a way to encourage others, tell the truth, sort out what’s going on inside, and shape moments that matter. Through relatable examples and gentle wisdom, she shows how words can build connection and clarity. A set of meaningful writing challenges at the end gives young writers practical ways to grow their voice and confidence.

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What If? Seven Retellings of The Boy Who Cried Wolf

This reimagining of The Boy Who Cried Wolf transforms one of literature’s oldest cautionary tales into a study of voice, tone, and perspective. By retelling the same story through the distinct styles of authors and figures as varied as Charles Dickens, Agatha Christie, Edgar Allan Poe, and even Nick Saban, students can see how diction, pacing, structure, and attitude completely reshape meaning. From Gothic dread to locker-room intensity, each version reveals the storyteller’s influence on how a reader feels and interprets the same series of events. A creative exercise in both reading and writing, this project encourages students to analyze authorial choices—and to experiment with finding a voice of their own.

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The Best Way to Say, “I Love You!”

Sean Dietrich invites us into his quirky collection of small-town cookbooks—hand-bound treasures filled with everything from squirrel recipes to “Bra Burner Casserole.” Between the laughter and the oddities, Sean uncovers something deeper: the way food carries history, identity, and love. From Baptist Crack to his wife’s cherished Junior League recipe, this story reminds us that sometimes the best recipes aren’t just about what’s on the table—they’re about the people who gather around it.

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The Yukon

Step into the rugged world of the Klondike with two of Robert W. Service’s most powerful poems. The Spell of the Yukon captures the restless pull of gold and the even greater lure of the land itself—a place of harsh winters, haunting silence, and wild beauty that refuses to let go of those who’ve known it. The Law of the Yukon thunders like the voice of the wilderness itself, laying down its brutal, unyielding demand that only the strong survive. Together, these poems remind us of the irresistible call of adventure, the price of survival, and the timeless majesty of the far north.

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Life and All Its Cracker Barrels

What does a Cracker Barrel logo have to do with war, fate, and a Packard with a hood ornament you can’t unsee? In this unexpected tale about perspective, an old farmer’s steady response to every twist of fortune might just reframe how you see the world—and your inbox. Caps lock optional.

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Plot Twists and Rabbit Trails (Business Edition): How to Write with Clarity, Focus, and a Point

In business, words are tools—not decorations. In Plot Twists and Rabbit Trails (Business Edition), Tami Nantz shows how to trade clever detours for clear direction. From trimming rabbit trails to structuring your message for scanning eyes, she explains how to write emails, proposals, and memos that get read—and acted on. You’ll discover when a well-placed twist or side story sharpens your point, and when it just muddies the waters. The takeaway? Clarity wins every time.

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