Mary Chapin Carpenter, D.C. Columnist

Mary Chapin Carpenter photo courtesy of marychapincarpenter.com.

Nov. 24, 2008 — Mary Chapin Carpenter earned high marks for her thematic insights as a songwriter, and now she’s testing her skills as an author in a different format, penning a column for The Washington Times.

"Even though I no longer make my home in the District, I still consider myself a Washingtonian," Chapin says. "It will feel good to be back, in words and ink, at The Washington Times."

Rather appropriately for a D.C. outlet, Chapin’s first column led off with a political slant, keyed to the recent campaign season.

"Like many of my friends, I spent much of the fall surgically attached to the TV remote, watching any and all news of the presidential election," she writes. "There were a few things I missed during the waning days of the race because I was glued to the evening news: a few of the most beautiful autumn sunsets imaginable over the Blue Ridge Mountains, just west of our farm; lots of late-day walks with canine friends who lay at my feet, heavily sighing with longing to run; toiling away upstairs in my office on new music for a future album, and so on.

"Yes, I let a lot of things slide during this election season, and while I am not entirely proud of my 24/7 news cycle cravings, the race was a compelling episode of our political system at work that proved endlessly fascinating to me. "

Chapin’s release The Calling picked up a Grammy nomination last December for Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album. This December, she’s released her first holiday project, Come Darkness, Come Light: Twelve Songs of Christmas.