Writing Samples
Although I'm currently writing middle grade and young adult fiction, in the past I've written a humor column, essays, short stories, articles and poetry. Many have been published, both in print and online.
Ferrum College's AppLit web site contains some of my Appalachian writing. Click the "Authors" and scroll down to "Becky Mushko," or search for the following titles: "Ferradiddledumday," a very early version of my Appalachian "Rumpelstiltskin"; "Spelldown," a short story that won the 1999 Lonesome Pine Short Story Contest (text and lesson plans are downloadable); and "A Midsummer Night's Recollection," my one-act version of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. This play was produced in Falconer, New York; I blogged about it here.
"Peevish Advice," my rural humor column, ran more or less monthly from 1998 until 2004 in Blue Ridge Traditions. From 2004 through 2008, it appeared twice a month in The Smith Mountain Eagle. I've blogged some 2008 "Peevish Advice" columns—in which Ida B. Peevish, proprietress of Ida's Salon of Beauty and Live Bait Shop, tells folks what to do: http://peevishadvice.blogspot.com
On my main blog, Peevish Pen (http://peevishpen.blogspot com), I've posted several examples of my published work, including these:
•A sample of my Appalachian poetry ("Aunt Maudie" and "The Interview") :
http://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2008/11/two-appalachian-poems.html
•"Going Home to the Farm,"an article I wrote for Blue Ridge Traditions:
http://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2008/10/going-home-to-farm.html
•"View from the Schoolhouse Window," originally a Roanoke Times commentary and later a memoir I used in a workshop":
http://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2008/11/field-trip1953.html
When I taught English at Ferrum College, I wrote a series of grammar hints for my Eng. 101 students, "Ask Ms. Writer Lady: Advice for the Grammatically and Syntactically Challenged." I've reposted these hints on my blog.
