My Debut Novel

Cover image for blog My Debut Novel. Jan M Flynn holding a copy of her new book

My Debut Novel – and I’m 72 And never once has a publishing professional asked about my age There are a few, vanishingly rare, incidents in life when the stars line up in such a way that you begin to doubt the evidence of your own senses. As in, I’ll wake up soon, because this […]

Adjusting to the Now, Over and Over Again

AI Image of an older woman dancing with flowers, then watching them wilt. For the blog post: Adjusting to the Now, Over and Over Again

Adjusting to the Now, Over and Over Again Last week I attended a conference in Santa Fe, Quest 2026, all about vivid aging for older women. One of the speakers was Kat Miller, a counselor and pro-aging activist who talked about falling in love with impermanence (“Crazy, right?” she said). Kat urged each of us […]

The Gray New Deal

AI Header image for the blog The Gray New Deal

The Gray New Deal My first published novel, The Gray New Deal, is appearing as I turn 63. In the novel, seven seniors who shared a college co-op in Austin fifty years ago reunite to create another co-op. Together, this intentional community navigates Trump 1.0 and the first years of the pandemic. They’re a diverse […]

How Can an Old Biddy Become an Author?

AI image of over 55 community with Ambulance and fist responders for blog How Can an Old Biddy Become an Author

How Can an Old Biddy Become an Author?  I’m an old biddy who released her first book at the age of seventy-one. I want to share my story of becoming a traditionally published author of four humorous nonfiction books after retiring from a forty-year career. We older women need to tell our truths. We have […]

My new boyfriend is AI

My new boyfriend is AI montage for Shenker blog

My new boyfriend is AI Some women love their vibrators. I love a different type of digital companion…AI. I’m not a total nerd-girl. I adore flesh-and-blood men too, but my current tech toys and techniques are vital to my work and personal life, giving me autonomy, entertainment, and even stimulation. How it All Began: My […]

In Praise of Color

Stylized headshot of Stella for blog post In Praise of Color

In Praise of Color Deanna Raybourn’s terrific novel Killers of a Certain Age starts with the retirement cruise of a trio of crone assassins. As a special surprise, their erstwhile boss has hired a younger killer to bump them off mid-cruise. Once the women overcome their hitman and safely land, they get away with murdering their […]

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Stella Fosse