Alice Buell Lawrence
@aliblawrence.bsky.social
Painter with words, wanderer, occasionally human
It's Saturday night and raining. I did a little editing today, but mostly worked on sorting out my belongings. If I'm going to move in the near future, that means it's time for a purge.
There is something stoic to it. It's liberating and draining at the same time.
There is something stoic to it. It's liberating and draining at the same time.
January 11, 2026 at 2:30 AM
It's Saturday night and raining. I did a little editing today, but mostly worked on sorting out my belongings. If I'm going to move in the near future, that means it's time for a purge.
There is something stoic to it. It's liberating and draining at the same time.
There is something stoic to it. It's liberating and draining at the same time.
When you're an exempt employee but you feel guilty leaving work three minutes early. Nevermind the long days already this week. *sigh*
January 10, 2026 at 12:58 AM
When you're an exempt employee but you feel guilty leaving work three minutes early. Nevermind the long days already this week. *sigh*
Procrastinating on novel editing. It feels a bit daunting, and I keep picking at short stories. Getting ready for another cycle of submissions. Editing the beast, though, is entirely a task as big as writing it was.
I don't need more hours in the day to do this, but I meet need more caffeine.
I don't need more hours in the day to do this, but I meet need more caffeine.
January 10, 2026 at 12:57 AM
Procrastinating on novel editing. It feels a bit daunting, and I keep picking at short stories. Getting ready for another cycle of submissions. Editing the beast, though, is entirely a task as big as writing it was.
I don't need more hours in the day to do this, but I meet need more caffeine.
I don't need more hours in the day to do this, but I meet need more caffeine.
Finding it hard to write this week. Plugging away at editing, though. Still rounding some work into shape, getting it ready to go and see what happens.
I'm being distracted by some job possibilities that would rather radically change my life. Uncertainty is not my muse.
I'm being distracted by some job possibilities that would rather radically change my life. Uncertainty is not my muse.
January 9, 2026 at 12:56 AM
Finding it hard to write this week. Plugging away at editing, though. Still rounding some work into shape, getting it ready to go and see what happens.
I'm being distracted by some job possibilities that would rather radically change my life. Uncertainty is not my muse.
I'm being distracted by some job possibilities that would rather radically change my life. Uncertainty is not my muse.
My brain has decided my body needs pizza for dinner and will not abide any dissent.
I mean, twist my arm, I guess.
I mean, twist my arm, I guess.
January 9, 2026 at 12:54 AM
My brain has decided my body needs pizza for dinner and will not abide any dissent.
I mean, twist my arm, I guess.
I mean, twist my arm, I guess.
I wonder how many library books are returned unread. When I'm working desk, someone will return a book and, in a hushed, confessional tone, admit they didn't read it. Like it's a library sin or something. Should I assign them 10 sonnets and three poems to absolve themselves?
January 7, 2026 at 7:59 PM
I wonder how many library books are returned unread. When I'm working desk, someone will return a book and, in a hushed, confessional tone, admit they didn't read it. Like it's a library sin or something. Should I assign them 10 sonnets and three poems to absolve themselves?
It is the most PNW day possible today. The grey is just right, the temperature is steady all day, and everything is wet. Like, you can feel the moss growing. The decay is palpable.
January 7, 2026 at 6:00 PM
It is the most PNW day possible today. The grey is just right, the temperature is steady all day, and everything is wet. Like, you can feel the moss growing. The decay is palpable.
I read one of my stories, one that is nearly done with the editing process, to someone today. They thought about it for a bit after, then described it as "haunting."
I think I like that.
I think I like that.
January 7, 2026 at 5:25 AM
I read one of my stories, one that is nearly done with the editing process, to someone today. They thought about it for a bit after, then described it as "haunting."
I think I like that.
I think I like that.
Any day that starts with urgent care tends to go badly. But it finished with a record store and a tea/chocolate shop, so the silver linings today were really bright.
January 7, 2026 at 5:24 AM
Any day that starts with urgent care tends to go badly. But it finished with a record store and a tea/chocolate shop, so the silver linings today were really bright.
Going to disappear into William Orbit's album Strange Cargo III and hope that tomorrow is a little better.
January 6, 2026 at 4:27 AM
Going to disappear into William Orbit's album Strange Cargo III and hope that tomorrow is a little better.
Best part about using a fountain pen is that I get to rip apart my drafts with a pretty ink colour. Right now it's Diamine Baltic Breeze in my editing pen that is changing verb tenses, combining sentences, and otherwise making the words dance much better.
January 5, 2026 at 11:36 PM
Best part about using a fountain pen is that I get to rip apart my drafts with a pretty ink colour. Right now it's Diamine Baltic Breeze in my editing pen that is changing verb tenses, combining sentences, and otherwise making the words dance much better.
What’s In a Name?
It has taken some effort to decide how to name myself for publications. I go by Ali, short for Alice, but there's another Ali Lawrence out there who is making excellent work. Go look her up! I am not her, though. Just to make that clear. Hence the "B" in between. I think when it…
It has taken some effort to decide how to name myself for publications. I go by Ali, short for Alice, but there's another Ali Lawrence out there who is making excellent work. Go look her up! I am not her, though. Just to make that clear. Hence the "B" in between. I think when it…
What’s In a Name?
It has taken some effort to decide how to name myself for publications. I go by Ali, short for Alice, but there's another Ali Lawrence out there who is making excellent work. Go look her up! I am not her, though. Just to make that clear. Hence the "B" in between. I think when it comes to publications, though, I'm going to have to go with my full name to avoid any chance of confusion.
aliblawrence.com
January 5, 2026 at 8:19 PM
What’s In a Name?
It has taken some effort to decide how to name myself for publications. I go by Ali, short for Alice, but there's another Ali Lawrence out there who is making excellent work. Go look her up! I am not her, though. Just to make that clear. Hence the "B" in between. I think when it…
It has taken some effort to decide how to name myself for publications. I go by Ali, short for Alice, but there's another Ali Lawrence out there who is making excellent work. Go look her up! I am not her, though. Just to make that clear. Hence the "B" in between. I think when it…
The cold, hard reality of life post-holidays has hit me.
What do you mean I have to work a five-day week?!?
What do you mean I have to work a five-day week?!?
January 5, 2026 at 8:12 PM
The cold, hard reality of life post-holidays has hit me.
What do you mean I have to work a five-day week?!?
What do you mean I have to work a five-day week?!?
Counting down the hours.
Not until 2026. Until I can leave work.
Not until 2026. Until I can leave work.
December 31, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Counting down the hours.
Not until 2026. Until I can leave work.
Not until 2026. Until I can leave work.
The morning adrenaline rush:
Check purse, zip pocket where I keep my wallet is open. No wallet inside. Panic. Look for keys to car. Walk into doorframe.
Get outside. Wrong keys. Wallet might be on the ground an hour away. More panic. Cancelling cards, etc.
Wallet is instead in a puddle. Exhale.
Check purse, zip pocket where I keep my wallet is open. No wallet inside. Panic. Look for keys to car. Walk into doorframe.
Get outside. Wrong keys. Wallet might be on the ground an hour away. More panic. Cancelling cards, etc.
Wallet is instead in a puddle. Exhale.
December 31, 2025 at 7:38 PM
The morning adrenaline rush:
Check purse, zip pocket where I keep my wallet is open. No wallet inside. Panic. Look for keys to car. Walk into doorframe.
Get outside. Wrong keys. Wallet might be on the ground an hour away. More panic. Cancelling cards, etc.
Wallet is instead in a puddle. Exhale.
Check purse, zip pocket where I keep my wallet is open. No wallet inside. Panic. Look for keys to car. Walk into doorframe.
Get outside. Wrong keys. Wallet might be on the ground an hour away. More panic. Cancelling cards, etc.
Wallet is instead in a puddle. Exhale.
Putting a Darling Out in the World
My story "Capri" is nearing a final form. For now, at least. I'll keep picking at it forever. No story is ever done. I've been editing "it"Capri" constantly for the past three weeks, with dozens of drafts in that time. I'm going through it now and finding fewer…
My story "Capri" is nearing a final form. For now, at least. I'll keep picking at it forever. No story is ever done. I've been editing "it"Capri" constantly for the past three weeks, with dozens of drafts in that time. I'm going through it now and finding fewer…
Putting a Darling Out in the World
My story "Capri" is nearing a final form. For now, at least. I'll keep picking at it forever. No story is ever done. I've been editing "it"Capri" constantly for the past three weeks, with dozens of drafts in that time. I'm going through it now and finding fewer things I want to change. I read it aloud and find that it's the story it needs to be, with just a change here and there in wording for clarity.
aliblawrence.com
December 31, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Putting a Darling Out in the World
My story "Capri" is nearing a final form. For now, at least. I'll keep picking at it forever. No story is ever done. I've been editing "it"Capri" constantly for the past three weeks, with dozens of drafts in that time. I'm going through it now and finding fewer…
My story "Capri" is nearing a final form. For now, at least. I'll keep picking at it forever. No story is ever done. I've been editing "it"Capri" constantly for the past three weeks, with dozens of drafts in that time. I'm going through it now and finding fewer…
Great fun: debating between which novel is going to get attention. Both are at the same point of drafting, and I want to pick one and focus on it.
So of course I start a third one.
So of course I start a third one.
December 30, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Great fun: debating between which novel is going to get attention. Both are at the same point of drafting, and I want to pick one and focus on it.
So of course I start a third one.
So of course I start a third one.
Writing in the Age of Anxiety
I wish I could say I was a perfectly calm and contented writer and person. I'm not. I never really have been. I was an anxious teenager, something that has continued into my adulthood. I don't have screens or anything to blame it on: I grew up before smartphones and…
I wish I could say I was a perfectly calm and contented writer and person. I'm not. I never really have been. I was an anxious teenager, something that has continued into my adulthood. I don't have screens or anything to blame it on: I grew up before smartphones and…
Writing in the Age of Anxiety
I wish I could say I was a perfectly calm and contented writer and person. I'm not. I never really have been. I was an anxious teenager, something that has continued into my adulthood. I don't have screens or anything to blame it on: I grew up before smartphones and the like. I was just always nervous about the world around me.
aliblawrence.com
December 30, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Writing in the Age of Anxiety
I wish I could say I was a perfectly calm and contented writer and person. I'm not. I never really have been. I was an anxious teenager, something that has continued into my adulthood. I don't have screens or anything to blame it on: I grew up before smartphones and…
I wish I could say I was a perfectly calm and contented writer and person. I'm not. I never really have been. I was an anxious teenager, something that has continued into my adulthood. I don't have screens or anything to blame it on: I grew up before smartphones and…
December 27, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Being in Charge is Scary
I don't mean my day job, the land of consensus and collaboration. Where there are infinite stakeholders for infinite projects. That's a manageable brand of stress precisely because I am managing personalities, amibitions, fears, and change. I know how to do that. When I…
I don't mean my day job, the land of consensus and collaboration. Where there are infinite stakeholders for infinite projects. That's a manageable brand of stress precisely because I am managing personalities, amibitions, fears, and change. I know how to do that. When I…
Being in Charge is Scary
I don't mean my day job, the land of consensus and collaboration. Where there are infinite stakeholders for infinite projects. That's a manageable brand of stress precisely because I am managing personalities, amibitions, fears, and change. I know how to do that. When I have my writer chapeau on, though, it's what it must feel like to be on stage performing alone.
aliblawrence.com
December 23, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Being in Charge is Scary
I don't mean my day job, the land of consensus and collaboration. Where there are infinite stakeholders for infinite projects. That's a manageable brand of stress precisely because I am managing personalities, amibitions, fears, and change. I know how to do that. When I…
I don't mean my day job, the land of consensus and collaboration. Where there are infinite stakeholders for infinite projects. That's a manageable brand of stress precisely because I am managing personalities, amibitions, fears, and change. I know how to do that. When I…
I ordered one of the new Esterbrook Funky Town fountain pens and now I feel like Alvin buying himself a harmonica for Christmas.
December 23, 2025 at 6:59 PM
I ordered one of the new Esterbrook Funky Town fountain pens and now I feel like Alvin buying himself a harmonica for Christmas.
I'm working on eliminating most of my possessions: I have too much stuff, and I feel like it's consuming me. It's a burden.
But don't touch my pens.
But don't touch my pens.
December 22, 2025 at 4:20 AM
I'm working on eliminating most of my possessions: I have too much stuff, and I feel like it's consuming me. It's a burden.
But don't touch my pens.
But don't touch my pens.
Saturdays are for Editing
I'm a notably high-anxiety person. Comes with the depression. All of which comes with the writing, I think. Creativity seems to have that edge of destruction about it, like how the first rays of sunrise are beautiful and deeply painful on the eyes. Weekends are when I am…
I'm a notably high-anxiety person. Comes with the depression. All of which comes with the writing, I think. Creativity seems to have that edge of destruction about it, like how the first rays of sunrise are beautiful and deeply painful on the eyes. Weekends are when I am…
Saturdays are for Editing
I'm a notably high-anxiety person. Comes with the depression. All of which comes with the writing, I think. Creativity seems to have that edge of destruction about it, like how the first rays of sunrise are beautiful and deeply painful on the eyes. Weekends are when I am the most anxious. Unstructured time is hard, and forcing a structure on it is even harder.
aliblawrence.com
December 20, 2025 at 9:33 PM
Saturdays are for Editing
I'm a notably high-anxiety person. Comes with the depression. All of which comes with the writing, I think. Creativity seems to have that edge of destruction about it, like how the first rays of sunrise are beautiful and deeply painful on the eyes. Weekends are when I am…
I'm a notably high-anxiety person. Comes with the depression. All of which comes with the writing, I think. Creativity seems to have that edge of destruction about it, like how the first rays of sunrise are beautiful and deeply painful on the eyes. Weekends are when I am…
December 20, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Saturdays are for editing, for cleaning up the week. Working on multiple pieces to try and make them shiny. About to send a few of them out into the world.
December 20, 2025 at 9:21 PM
Saturdays are for editing, for cleaning up the week. Working on multiple pieces to try and make them shiny. About to send a few of them out into the world.