The late great poet Lucille Clifton used to say in class, “Let’s shake things up” and “Let’s have some fun.” I loved having her as a teacher, I learned so much from her, about paying attention to word choices and paying even closer attention to detail; being not just concerned about the overall arc of […]
Word Play in Three Acts: by Devi Laskar Read More »
People expect writers to be happy. We’ve chosen this life for no logical reason or material gain. It must make us happy. And it should—sometimes. But even the most passionate entrepreneur or dedicated director of a non-profit has aspects of the job that, well, suck. Days that are blah or disappointing, effort that seems to
Happy Writing: by Elizabeth Stark Read More »
Getting my brain to transition into writing mode is a thousand mile trek. It’s wonderful and easier to escape into TV or a book. Venturing into my own story garden is easily avoided. One of the tricks I play on myself is to read books about writing, taking words of encouragement or direction as motivation.
Getting to Write: Guest Blog by Bree LeMaire Read More »
We have all heard it now a thousand times: your work needs some kind of obstacle to keep your readers engaged. And it makes sense. Who wants to read a story about two kids who fall in love and, you know, it’s great. Everyone is sort of cool with their relationship and they have good
The Obstacle of Obstacles: by Angie Powers Read More »
So I snuck away from my real world a few days ago and drove north to San Rafael, and waited in line for what seemed to be hours. When the double doors opened I gave the woman behind the table my name and she handed me a yellow ticket. A few minutes later, there I
Evening Out with Joseph Anton: by Devi Laskar Read More »
It’s been a crazy fall so far, as I uprooted my family and myself a couple of months ago and moved across these United States and am trying to: 1. Get unpacked; 2. Find my things that help me write or paint; 3. Kick the kids to the curbs in front of their respective schools;
Boot camp & hitting the “send” button: by Devi Laskar Read More »
I think and write about writing as facing the blank page. These days it’s more likely to be the white rectangle with an electronic backdrop of gray, toolbar above and dock below. A torturous invitation: what do you have to say? A playground of space to be filled. For a time I used large sketchbooks,
The Blank Page and Other Spaces: Finding Silence by Elizabeth Stark Read More »
I don’t mean to be facile, but sometimes, writers think like anorexics. As artists or writers we too often view our body of work as an actual extension of ourselves, out there to be judged, critiqued and ultimately, to fail at someone else’s idea of beauty. And that belief can lead to some damaging ways of
Does Your Body of Work Suffer from a Disorder? by Angie Powers Read More »
“Writing is very easy. All you do is sit in front of a typewriter keyboard until little drops of blood appear on your forehead.” –Walter W. “Red” Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning sportswriter. In light of how ‘easy’ the writing process is, I’ve started calling what I’m doing right now, the-finding-of-the-story-part-of-writing, as a “Zero Draft.” John R.
Zero Draft: (Guest Blog) by Chris O’Brien Read More »
The writing may not be on the wall, so to speak, but it’s definitely in the air: Today’s posting is a mini-round-up of all the writing-related things that I’ve noticed recently, books recently published by authors whose works I greatly admire. Writing consistently and forming a “writing habit” has been difficult lately, but I’m trying
Roundabout September 2012: by Devi Laskar Read More »
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