Two weeks ago, the Amarillo home of writer Travis Erwin was completely destroyed in a fire. "We are all safe and for that I am thankful but for now I'm homeless, overwhelmed, and distraught," Erwin blogged in the fire's immediate aftermath; in the days that followed, he would add, "we have learned just how many friends we have and despite the loss of our home we know know just how blessed we are as a family." The outpouring of generosity towards Erwin and his family included an effort spearheaded by novelist Erica Orloff, who took Erwin's self-motivating creed—"one word, one rung, one day at a time"—and asked her fellow writers to contribute "one brick" (or $25) towards a new house. So far, according to a local news account, her efforts have raised more than $7,000 from all over the world.

"Without the funds y'all have raised I would be playing the waiting game and having to pick and choose priorities," Erwin wrote Orloff, "but thanks to the generosity of so many I have been able to get busy long before the insurance cut me a check. And I've been able to fund all of the things necessary for my family to begin our new start without deciding which ones to pay for first."