Welcome to the MadCity Writer Blog…where I write about whatever catches my fancy.
(Note: When you purchase something using a link on any of these blog posts, I may receive a small commission. Thank you for supporting my website.)
The Irishman Who Begat a Line of French-Canadians
Note: This is an expanded version of a short piece of genealogy that I first published in my March, 2024 newsletter. My 6th great-grandfather, Antonei Farley, was born around 1689 in Galway, Ireland. His father, to the best of my knowledge was John Farely; his mother...
On the Road with Joy Ribar, Mystery Novelist and Full-time RVer
A new (to me) author friend, Joy Ribar, is living the RV life of the characters Mary Joy Johnson and I created for our mystery novels On the Road to Death’s Door and On the Road to Where the Bells Toll. And yes, there are dead bodies involved. But no, Joy Ribar and...
Finding My Royal Ancestry
[Note: This post contains affiliate links. Peggy may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.] Lauren Goff’s Matrix: a Novel was recently recommended to me by a friend who knew I enjoyed reading—and writing—historical fiction. No, this book has...
Musings of a MadCityWriter Redux
Hello! And welcome to the revival of Musings of a MadCityWriter. I started this blog some years ago and took a hiatus to delve into genealogy and work on my historical novel, Courting the Sun: A Novel of Versailles (more on that in another post). The idea for the book...
Butternut Squash Soup Recipe for Cooks Who Are Clueless in the Kitchen
This weekend I had a huge butternut squash sitting on my counter complaining that it was going to waste. It had been given to me by a good friend who plucked it straight from her garden as I looked on. When she'd asked if I’d like it, I was too embarrassed to fess up...
Ghost Hunting in Wisconsin: The Wausau Paranormal Research Society
Things that go bump in the night. A cold draft where there shouldn’t be one. A hazy image of a young man perhaps in a Civil War uniform. When I was a teenager, one of my best friends claimed a ghost inhabited her house. I was never quite sure. But she believed it...
An Interview With Teenage Author Madelyn Spindler
Imagine writing your first novel when you are only eleven years old. Image publishing your third before you're even half way through high school. That's what seventeen year old Madelyn Spindler did. Madelyn teamed up with her mom, Rebecca Williams Spindler, to write...
Finding Your Way Forward With a Life Coach
As I approached my retirement after 40 years of teaching, I found my head spinning with all the possibilities, worries, fears, and questions that come with a major life change. I turned to my friend, Mary Aleckson, a Life Coach. And to my amazement, in just a couple...
5 Things I Bet You Didn’t Know About Pope Francis
Korea.net Pope Francis, Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, has been causing quite a stir this week with his visit to the U.S. cities of Washington D.C., New York, and Philadelphia. Throngs of people have turned out to greet him, listen to him speak, or...