Janet Fitch — American Author born on November 09, 1955,

Janet Fitch is most famously known as the author of the Oprah's Book Club novel White Oleander, which became a film in 2002. She is a graduate of Reed College, located in Portland, Oregon... (wikipedia)

Your protagonist is your reader's portal into the story. The more observant he or she can be, the more vivid will be the world you're creating. They don't have to be super-educated, they just have to be mentally active. Keep them looking, thinking, wondering, remembering.
As a person with terrible handwriting, I love the computer. I've waited all my life for the computer.
My mother was an enthusiastic chef but wildly disorganized, and often preferred purchasing yet another jar of mace or chili powder rather than having to hunt down its last incarnation.
Depression, suffering and anger are all part of being human.
A novelist can get by on story, but the poet has nothing but the words.