A place for my thoughts

Brandi Easterling Collins, independent author

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Essays, General Thoughts, Novels (my writing updates)

How I became a novelist in twelve (easy) steps

There are steps for everything these days, so I reverse-engineered what I did to become a novelist and put the process into 12 steps. The steps were easy sometimes, and…

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April 7, 2019
Essays, General Thoughts

And They Didn’t Even Buy Us Dinner First: Property Insurance Woes

Property insurance is necessary if you own a car or a home, especially if you have a loan or mortgage. But it’s also a flawed system that punishes you for…

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March 24, 2024
Artwork, General Thoughts, Novels (my writing updates)

How much truth is in my fiction?

Writing what I knew as a teenager I loved reading when I was a kid, and I began writing as a teenager. The results of my early efforts were 7…

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December 2, 2023
  • General Thoughts

    For the love of travel (for work): Seattle

    April 7, 2018 /

    One of the perks of my job at the university is the privilege to travel for professional development. During spring break (for the college students and my elementary school children), I attended the 2018 CASE Editors Forum in Seattle, Washington. Not only had I never attended this conference before, but I’d never been to Seattle. Due to having to fly across two time zones (I live in Arkansas) and the start time of the conference on Wednesday, March 21, I had to travel the day before. It was interesting, to say the least. For the first time ever, I set off the metal detector at the Little Rock Airport. What…

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    My biggest fear

    November 20, 2016

    Childhood Lost

    July 25, 2016
    Illustration of family photos on a wall

    Weddings and Funerals: Changing Relationships with Family and Friends

    October 27, 2024
  • Essays,  General Thoughts

    School Shootings

    February 24, 2018 /

    Last week, on Valentine’s Day, a terrible tragedy happened in Florida. I’m sure it wasn’t the only tragedy to happen that day, but it’s the one that was on my mind the most after I heard the news. Another school shooting, this time leaving 14 students and three teachers dead. I’ve seen sources claim it was the 18th school shooting since January 1, 2018, and other sources claim that the number is exaggerated. My stance on the matter is: Who the hell cares what number on the list this school shooting was? Whether it was the first or the hundredth one, it is still one too many.

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    Woman apologizing

    Apologies and hurt feelings

    September 16, 2021

    Desperately Seeking Friendship

    September 1, 2022
    Woman typing on laptop

    Self-editing a Story: What it Takes

    January 16, 2021
  • General Thoughts,  Pop Culture

    Day 10: Countdown of my favorite love songs (for weddings)

    February 14, 2018 /

    Thank you for sticking with me through all ten days of Valentine’s Day love song posts. To recap, days 1-9 featured the following types of love songs: Angry Love Songs Bittersweet Breakup Songs Songs for the Brokenhearted Love/Hate Songs Non-romantic Love Songs Pour Your Heart Out Love Songs Songs with Messages to New Lovers Love Story Songs Sweet Declarations Love Songs It’s only fitting to feature my favorite wedding songs for my Valentine’s Day feature. Most were part of my wedding soundtrack (indicated by *) if they were released prior to 2005. I couldn’t narrow it down to my top three, so I have my top five and a bunch…

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    Day 5: Countdown of my favorite love songs (non-romantic love)

    February 9, 2018

    The loss of my stepfather

    March 10, 2017
    Cast photo of "My So-Called Life"

    My So-Called Life: What the show meant to me then and now

    October 17, 2023
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