My Blog Circle:

• Free Fall Now

I've just written/published a memoir titled Free Fall: A Late-in-Life Love Affair and, true to the title, I'm practicing the art of living in the moment — Free Fall.

So, my current bio is short on history (born in Santa Barbara CA; a life-long writer/editor; living in Manhattan and Rockport MA; beautiful daughter who is a library manager; wonderful lover who's 70 years old) and long on what's in this very moment.

I'm doing a lot of book publicity, writing, networking, learning. Much is new and much is challenging.

Free fall is really our natural state, I'm coming to accept. As we age, we get closer to this state of being.

Up until I made the changes in my life that I describe in the memoir, I did everything possible to impose controls, controls that in some ways help and in other ways, obscure a broader, richer world.

How did you get to where you are now?

I've been persistent. I've always worked hard and assumed that if I did, I'd get to the next step. I'm talking about my career as a journalist and editor of newspapers and magazines. I found I loved art museums and went on to work as editorial manager and then creative director, two jobs that suited my skills and passions. I rely on passion and curiosity and problem solving. The triumvirate that propels me on. I got where I am now by relying on passion but moderating it in the presence of the men in the corner offices who were usually my bosses.

How do you see yourself differently now than you did 10 years ago?

My circumstances are different in that I don't have a well-paid job and the securities that come with it. I do have a writing life, one that needs a little more discipline imposed (because of this publicity work I'm doing for "Free Fall"). So I see myself as more vulnerable but more authentic.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I'll have figured out a way to earn money for being a creative writer in these changing times. And I'll have found concise ways to talk about leading a creative life so I can share the experiences and learning with others.

My daughter is an amazing woman and, frankly, she's always impressed me. It started at her birth. The minute she was born, she cried, sucked her thumb, squirmed and made her needs known. "Wow," I thought, "This girl's no blank slate, that's for sure." She's funny, cute, smart and learned. She's poised and independent and knows what's needed. Can your children teach you? More than you realize! I have responsibilities to her, too, of course, but she's quite the woman.