Two Drops of Ink: The Literary Home for Collaborative Writing

At Two Drops of Ink, we proudly collaborate with other writers. Most bloggers work hard to brand themselves and push their own sites, and that’s fine; however, here at Two Drops of Ink, we have created a unique and powerful epicenter for collaborative writing. Along with our writing team and the blogs we post, we accept submissions of all genres (see our submissions guidelines). This is a huge win-win for our literary blog and for writers that are either well established and are looking to expand their audience, or relatively new writers looking for exposure. We dedicate this page to those writers, and their works, that were good enough to publish on our blog. Congrats to them. Please take a moment to scroll down through the list and enjoy and share their writing.

Scott Biddulph | Editor-in-Chief

Submit your work for publication here: Submissions 

Anel Conradie

Bio:

Anel is a freelance writer, editor, and proofreader.  With a background in teaching English literature and language she now pursues her own writing career.  She is an Alumna of Stellenbosch University, in Cape Town.

Growing up in Namibia, Anel has a deep appreciation of the vastness of nature which echoes the vastness of humanity.  “I love to write about the complexity of our humanity and that which forms our very core identity.”

Anel has been married for 7 years and has one daughter.  The journey of being a wife and a mom has also inspired her to write about, and share, her own experiences.  She is currently working on her first book:  “10 Lies we believe about marriage.”

Visit her blog or follow her on social media.

Website:  www.remarkablewives.com
Facebook:  https://web.facebook.com/remarkablewives/
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/remarkablewives/?hl=en

Book: http://remarkablewives.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Deceptive-Truth.pdf

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Breath Through Pain

2) How to be Content in the Mundane

3) How I learned to have faith when I ran out of hope

Anwer Ghani

Bio:

 Danielle Bernock

Bio:

Danielle Bernock is a published author and writer. Her first book Emerging With Wings: A True Story of Lies, Pain, And The LOVE that Heals takes you on her journey of personal transformation. It is available around the world. Danielle is passionate about helping others discover the personal freedom and happiness she has found. Her blog daniellebernock.com addresses issues of the heart encouraging readers in personal growth and validating their value. Danielle is dedicated to her own learning and growing, taking courses and reading continually.  She is a member of Tribe Writers, Rochester Writers’ Group, and the owner of 4F Media (a writing, publishing, and marketing company).

Danielle was born and raised in Michigan, the granddaughter of European immigrants. She has traveled around most of the United States and visited 3 countries. Due to the economy and the hand of God, Danielle lived in Arizona for 5 life changing years but is happy to be back in Michigan near her family. She has been happily married since 1980, has two married children, and four living grandchildren she adores, and who call her Mima. Danielle is forever young at heart, loves nature and new adventures (like zip lining). She loves spending time with family and friends, playing games, going for walks, having bonfires, heart to heart talks, and laughing. Lots and lots of laughing.

Get a copy of Danielle’s book here

Subscribe to her blog and get a free ebook HERE 
Like her author page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/daniellebernock/
Follow her on Twitter @dbernock https://twitter.com/DBernock

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Write Your Story: Even if you’re not the Best Writer

2) Poetry Break: ‘YOU ARE MY GRACE’

 Mark Cayou

Bio:

Mark Cayou is a new and unique voice in the literary world. As a retired high school English teacher, Mark knows his way around everything from essays to Shakespearean sonnets. Although remaining active in education at a local middle school, Mark now has the time to pursue his more creative passions. Mr. Cayou’s work can be found on prose.com under the pen name Dark. Mark lives in the high country of Colorado with his wife Rebecca and their English Bulldog, Peanut.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry & Prose by Mark Cayou

2) Poetry Break: Sonnet V

Linda Kovic-Skow

Bio:

Linda Kovic-Skow is a best-selling author in travel in France. Originally from Seattle, she currently winters in Gilbert, Arizona and spends summers on a boat in the San Juan Islands. She earned an Associate Degree in Medical Assisting in 1978 from North Seattle Community College and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Seattle University in 1985. She has been married for 31 years and has two daughters. An enthusiastic traveler, Linda also enjoys hiking, boating, gardening and socializing with friends. “French Illusions: My Story as an American Au Pair in the Loire Valley,” was her debut memoir. The sequel, “French Illusions: From Tours to Paris,” recounts the rest of her adventure in France. For more information, visit http://lindakovicskow.com.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) How I Discovered my Passion

Laurie Jueneman

Bio:

Laurie Jueneman is a registered nurse with a graduate degree in nursing education from the University of Minnesota. She worked in a variety of areas of nursing in Minnesota and Washington. She states it is not her education that qualified her to write her two books, the last one being, Climbing the Mount Everest of Depression, a Story of Hope, Recovery and Inspiration, but her experience of living with depression for thirty years. Her career was actually sidelined by her illness and the side effects of some of the treatments. During the course of her treatment, she experienced many hospitalizations, two neurological surgeries, over 400 electro-convulsive treatments and was treated with almost every medication out there. She continued to be active in her community by volunteering in several areas including the National Alliance on Mental Illness.  She now feels that her “bad” days are better than her “good” days were at one time. She knows the difference between recovery and cure. She says she is in recovery. She is single, retired and lives with her roommate, a 6-year-old Bichon/Shih Tzus dog.

Visit Laurie Jueneman’s blog: http://helpwithyourdepression.com/

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) The ‘Normal’ Woman: The stigma of depression

John Grey

Bio:

John Grey is an Australian poet, US resident. Recently published in New Plains Review, Stillwater Review, and Big Muddy Review with work upcoming in Louisiana Review, Columbia College Literary Review, and Spoon River Poetry Review.

Other links for John Grey:

1. An interview with John Grey at The 3288 Review
2. HEArt Online
3. Google results for John Grey’s work

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry Break by John Grey

2) Poetry Break: By John Grey (#2)

WENDY L. MACDONALD

Bio:

Wendy L. Macdonald is a Canadian, inspirational writer/blogger/podcaster who also loves to photograph nature. When she’s not writing, drawing, gardening, or sewing, she enjoys hiking, with her husband, in the beautiful parks of the Comox Valley. She homeschooled her children and believes all those years of reading wonderful classics aloud helped develop her love of storytelling and writing. Wendy invites you to visit her blog: www.wendylmacdonald.com , where you will find nature photography and links to her “Daily Bread” style Facebook page and other social media sites. Her passion is inspiring others to walk with faith, hope, and love. You can hear her podcasts at: www.hopestreamradio.com/program/walking-with-hope .

Wendy’s other links: 

Claudia Ricci, Ph.D

Bio:

Claudia chose an abstract painting of herself as a photo for her bio. She is an artist as well as a writer.

Claudia Ricci, Ph.D., taught English, journalism and creative writing at the University at Albany, SUNY for 14 years, and did a year-long teaching sabbatical at Georgetown University in 2009. Formerly a staff writer for The Wall Street Journal and a prize-winning reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, she is now a freelancer writing both hard news and feature stories. She turned to fiction writing in 1991 and earned her Ph.D. in English (Teaching, Writing and Criticism) from SUNY Albany in 1996. Her first novel, Dreaming Maples, was published in 2002 after it was nominated for a Pushcart Prize, and her second novel, Seeing Red, appeared in January, 2011. Her short fiction has been published in numerous literary magazines nationwide including Alaska Quarterly Review, North Dakota Quarterly, Bayou, Yemassee, Barkeater, The Adirondack Review, The MacGuffin, and Another Chicago Magazine.  Ricci’s writing has also appeared in The New York Times, Business Week, Parentsmagazine and The Washington Post. She has been writing for the Huffington Post since 2008 and keeps her own blog at http://www.mystorylives.blogspot.com.

Claudia’s paintings: http://www.claudiariccipaintings.squarespace.com

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry Break: ‘Red Bird Alert’ by Claudia Ricci

2) Gabriela’s Moon

Carol Es

Bio:

Carol Es is a self-taught visual artist, writer, and musician who was born and raised in Los Angeles. Known for creating narrative paintings and Artists’ books, she has used past experience as the fuel for her subject matter, transforming a broken history into a positive and spiritual resolve. Candid experiences are laid bare and forged directly into her paintings, video installations, writings, and handmade books.

Carol’s works are featured in numerous private and public collections, including the Getty Research Library, Brooklyn Museum, UCLA Library Special Collections, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. She has exhibited at the Riverside Art Museum, Torrance Art Museum, the Craft & Folk Art Museum, and Zimmer Children’s Museum. She is also a two-time recipient of the ARC Grant from the Durfee Foundation, awarded a Pollock-Krasner Fellowship in 2010, and the Wynn Newhouse Award in 2015. She was recently nominated for a 2017 Fellows of Contemporary Art Award.

As for publications, Carol has been published by small presses such as Bottle of Smoke Press, NY; Pig Ear Press in the UK, Chance Press, Berkeley, CA, MWE Press, NC, and Islands Fold in British Columbia. She has also written feature articles for Coagula Art Journal, Whitehot Magazine, Art Thought Journal, Art Collector Magazine and the Huffington Post. She is currently finishing up a memoir about growing up on the streets of Los Angeles entitled, Shrapnel in the San Fernando Valley.

Carol Es is represented by Craig Krull Gallery in Santa Monica, CA and her Artists’ books can be purchased through Vamp & Tramp, Birmingham, AL.

Carol’s Blog/website: http://esart.com/blog/

Full CV available upon request.

COLLECTIONS

Brooklyn Art Library, Brooklyn, NY

Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY

Centre Pompidou, Bibliotheque Kandinsky, Paris, France
Cowles Memorial Library, Whitworth University, Spokane, WA

J. Paul Getty Trust, Research Institute Library, Los Angeles, CA

The Arthur and Mata Jaffe Collection, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL

Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY

National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC

Otis College of Art & Design Library, Artists’ Books Collection, Los Angeles, CA

UC Irvine Library Special Collections, Irvine, CA

UCLA Library, Special Collections, Los Angeles, CA

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry Break by Carol Es

2) Memoir: ‘Bloody Knees’

Alan Catlin

Bio:

Alan Catlin has been publishing for five decades; from the mimeos to the Internet.  He has published over sixty chapbooks and full-length books of prose and poetry. His most recent full-length book of poetry is American Odysseyfrom Future Cycle Press. Alan is also an editor and contributor at misfitmagazine.net.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Requiem 

Jack Phillips Lowe

Bio:

Jack Phillips Lowe is a lifelong Chicago-area resident. His poems have appeared in Clark Street Review, Nerve Cowboy, and Creativity Webzine. Lowe’s most recent poetry chapbook is Jupiter Works on Commission (Middle Island Press, 2015). And he believes that Drooper, of the Banana Splits, is the most underrated rock bassist of the 1960s.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry Break: By Jack Phillips Lowe

2) Poetry Break by J.P. Lowe

Gene McCormick

Bio:

Gene has had twenty books published, a mix of non-fiction, fiction, and poetry. His writing regularly appears in small press publications throughout the United States and Europe. He has a novel, in narrative poetry form, coming out this fall from Middle Island Press: Obsessions. He also paints and has paintings in commercial and private collections nationwide. He has illustrated ten or so books (covers and interiors) and is the illustrator for Misfitmagazine.net.

Gene’s website

Gene’s books

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry Break by Gene McCormick 

2) ‘Vignettes of Prose’ by Gene McCormick

3) Vignettes of Prose: West Hollywood Waitress

Amy Sprague

Bio:

I am currently deciding between continuing on with this memoir or breaking it up into a memoir of essays/vignettes. It’s a story of abuse, Complex PTSD, identity, loss, and change—a survival story in a way, dark and light, breaking and healing. My poems and essays have been published at Word Riot, Frigg Magazine, Haggard and Halloo, DMU’s The Abaton, Blood and Thunder: Medical Musings, Psychic Meatloaf, The Writing Disorder, The Survivor Chronicles, Third Wednesday, and several others. I blog at Difficult Degrees.http://difficultdegrees.com

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) The ‘Memoir Challenge’: Petals

Abbie Wirick

Bio:

After so many years living as a reckless and irresponsible party girl, Abbie eventually woke up to begin the difficult work of sobriety.  As a woman in long-term recovery from addiction and mental illness, she is delighted to be able to help anyone whose life is touched by alcoholism, addiction, or mental illness; she is not a professional, yet as such, she has ample life experience. She shares her experiences of over 23 years in continuous addiction recovery in her blogs and has her eye on writing a book when she grows up. You can find her at https: www.abbieinwondrland.wordpress.com

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) The ‘Memoir Challenge’: My Story

 SUSAN MICHALEK

Bio:

I’m a Costume Designer; I work on Television shows, generally comedies. I’ve been a Costume Designer for 19 years. I live in Santa Monica, CA. I spend a lot of time reading and writing when I’m off work.  I do it for freedom, challenge, peace, and an effort at a type of secular enlightenment. To better understand others, have compassion for them, and in turn, understand myself.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) The Hospital: A Memoir

Phyllis Wintter

Bio:

Phyllis Wintter is an emerging writer.  As a graduate of Maharishi University of Management in 2014, she won the Most Outstanding Student Award for her “humorous and, sometimes, gripping” stories. She won first place in 2016 Northeast Georgia Writers Group in the short story non-fiction and poetry categories. She is also a singer/songwriter. She calls herself an “Imagine Agent”.

In her previous life, she worked in Human Services as a Programs Director developing curriculum, as a trainer, and as a grant writer.  She started a non-profit called “The Teachers Re-Center” which won “The Most Innovative Project Award” from Keep Georgia Beautiful. The project provided hands-on experiences to awaken creativity.

“Friend” her on Facebook

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) #2) The Image Prompt Writing Challenge: ‘The Chimney’

 Christopher G. Fox, Ph.D.

Bio:

Christopher G. Fox, Ph.D. created Kindness Communication® as an extension of his role as Managing Partner of Syncresis, a consultancy that has been developing digital solutions for patient engagement since 2007. In past roles, he worked as an educator, speaker, communicator, and strategist. Kindness Communication® stems from his commitment to helping people lead better informed and healthier lives. He believes strongly that the worlds we move in can be better places if we make kindness the core of how we operate. This principle applies to our friends and family. It applies to the workplace. And it applies to the world at large as we face world-changing potentials and threats because of the impacts we can have on global societies and ecologies.

Biographical links:

Site: http://www.kindnesscommunication.com/

Blog: http://www.kindnesscommunication.com/kindness-blog/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CGFKindness

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophergfox

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Five Ways to Become a Kind Writer

 Ilona Fried

Bio:

Ilona Fried is a writer, nature lover, and student of the Feldenkrais Method. Her blog, alacartespirit.com, is dedicated to “bringing awareness to the menu of life.” She’s a regular contributor to The Wisdom Daily and has been published in Elephant Journal, Tiferet Journal, and Hevria.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) How ‘Feldenkrais’ Can Help You Write

Barbara Sinor, Ph.D

Bio:

Barbara Sinor, Ph.D. is a retired psychotherapist living in northern California. Finding Destiny is Sinor’s long awaited first fiction novel, release date September 1, 2016. Her other six books are highly endorsed in the non-fiction genres of addiction recovery, childhood abuse/incest, adult children of alcoholics, and other self-help and inspirational topics. Dr. Sinor encourages your comments and can be contacted through her website:  www.Dr.Sinor.com. Sinor’s other writing appears in the quarterly Recovering the Self: A Journal of Hope and Healing, as well as other magazines, newsletters, and Blogs. She currently facilitates women’s groups, designs and makes jewelry, and is working on the sequel to Finding Destiny.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Dr. Barbara Sinor talks about stepping out of your writing comfort zone: Write About It!

2) Inspirational Self-Help Author Dr. Barbara Sinor Publishes Debut Novel

3) Writer’s Limbo: Caught between the muses 

4) The Image/Memoir writing challenge: ‘Shadow Memories’

 Peeush Trikha

Bio:

I am Peeush Trikha, an Information Technology professional with over 13 years of experience. Writing is something I have been fond of since I was almost ten years old. I once wrote a story with animal characters (it was written in Hindi) and where those characters were involved in Gun and Tank battles- maybe a big impact of watching action movies of Amitabh Bacchan, Jackie Shroff and Sunny Deol, in those days.
Somehow, I took Science and then Technolgy as my key subjects, and means of livelihood. Yet, the writer in me did not vanish. My interest in reading stories and Novels also helped.
Internet gave me a platform to first try my hand at blogging in 2006, and then writing with Helium in 2008. Working with Helium taught me to work within strict guidelines and helped me write better. Mypage5, Mylot, and Bubblews helped improve my English writing, yet on these sites, my main aim were commercial gains.
Then, Wikinut came in my life, and I attribute a lot of changes and improvements in my writing to this site. It is not a very strict site, yet it has its own rules and a good community which helped to improve my writing in many ways.
Writing on Technology, primarily Software Development and Methodologies, is one of my core strengths. However, I am also passionate about writing on Movies, issues that come out of my heart like Traffic conditions, Economic Issues, as well as Sports- especially cricket.

Looking ahead, I am also keen on challenging and offbeat topics.

Regards,
Peeush Trikha

Follow Peeush on Google Plus

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Foraying into Online Fiction writing: Tips for part-time writers

Mary Jo Martin

Bio:

Mary Jo Martin is a retired market researcher who lives in Houston, Texas. She is a member of the Houston Writer’s Guild. Her short story, Flowers for Lewis, was published in December 2015 in the Houston Writer’s Guild Press short story mystery anthology, Waves of Suspense. A memoir in progress is the account of her quest to unearth her medical history on her father’s side. This work won first place in the memoir category in a recent Houston Writer’s Guild contest. Mary Jo started her professional life as a chemist. Along the way, she sold out to the dark side and earned her Master’s degree in Business Administration. After years of successfully producing concise business text as a marketer and market researcher, she is now free to do “real” writing.

Check out Mary Jo on Facebook

Published Posts on Two Drops of Ink: 

1) Don’t be Scared – Just Do It!

Holly Smith

Bio:

Holly Smith is an experienced healthcare drug and alcohol professional. With eight years career experience admitting clients from all over the US into inpatient residential treatment centers she is becoming a pioneer in her field. A Certified family interventionist and in recovery herself, 11 plus years, she helps many families to find solutions and come up from the abyss. She is a published writer (love addiction) and posts daily on her new recovery blog,www.hollysobriety.com, designed to inspire and impact those who are still suffering.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) A Memoir: My Love Addiction

Cara Hughes

Bio:

Cara’s Website: http://carahughesauthor.com/

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Role Play Writing: What to do when you live in the middle of nowhere, and you want to improve your writing

Olga Mecking

Bio:

Olga Mecking is a writer and translator living in the Netherlands. Her blog, The European Mama, is all about travelling, parenting, and cooking. Her writing has also been published on many other websites, including The Huffington Post, Scary Mommy, Wall Street Journal Expat, and Babble, among others.

When not writing or thinking about writing, Olga can be found reading books, drinking tea and reading some more.

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) There Is No Such Thing as Your One True Voice

Jeffery Thompson

Bio:

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poem: These Moments

2) Poetry Break: ‘Memories’

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Poetry by Gerry Aldridge

2) Poetry Break: by Gerry Aldridge #2

Dr. Alex Johns

Bio:

Dr. Alex Johns (goes by Alx) is an Associate Professor of English at the University of North Georgia, where he teaches creative writing and American literature. He was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia and currently resides in the Athens, Georgia area. Alx is the recipient of the 2013 Pavement Saw Press Chapbook Prize for Robot Cosmetics, and his poems have appeared in Stray Dog Almanac, Chaffin Journal, The Oklahoma Review, Red River Review, Kota Press, Scrivener`s Pen, and Bellemeade Books, and were featured in the No Small Measure Georgia Broadsides project. Alx is the managing director of Athens Word of Mouth, a popular monthly reading series bringing together nationally known and local talent.

Athens, Georgia Word of Mouth monthly open mic: https://www.facebook.com/athenswordofmouth and http://www.athenswordofmouth.com/

Published posts on Two Drops of Ink:

1) Alx Johns poetry