As a writer you ask yourself to dream while awake- Aimee Bender
Tag: writing
You fail only if you stop writing
Learning to Write
Learning to write is learning to think. You don’t know anything clearly unless you can state it in writing. – S.I Hayakawa
CORRECTION: Slipper Camp – HOME
Dear Ones,
One little letter off! On April 10, 2016, HOME will be the subject of the fourth online Writing Slipper Camp of 2016. Not Hope, HOME.
That’s not to say that HOPE wouldn’t be a terrific topic for a Slipper Camp. But after creating 60 prompts on LOVE over the past few months, Hope was leading me down some of the same roads as I thought about new prompts.
So we’ll be writing about HOME. Be it ever so humble, HOME is more than a place. It’s also an idea. It’s where the heart is.
I hope you will be 1 of 10 writers who will receive 3 illustrated prompts about HOME every OTHER morning for 20 days, along with daily writing tips and coaching suggestions. You will be writing 1,000 words (2 pages) on 1 of the 3 daily prompts and sending it to me by midnight every OTHER day.
Starts April 10, Ends April 29. Over 300 writers/non-writers have taken this structured online writing class since 2011.
Let’s continue to ring in 2016 with our words about HOME.
Can’t wait to read your writings.
xoxo
Here is the link to the Facebook event.
Angel Oak Tree
Perhaps the most beautiful tree I’ve ever seen…And it plays a role in my next novel!
As I begin to write my next novel
As I begin to write my next novel I find myself exquisitely sensitive to the merest hint of criticism when I talk about what I’m writing. I’ve done an about-face recently and decided to finish an unfinished novel I started in 2001. Yes, I put aside The Goldsmith’s Daughter. Again. The scope of that story daunted me. And I found I was not happy to be back in that world as I was writing it. The title of my next novel is mbird and I’ve secretly delighted in and loved this magical world for 15 years. I am blissfully happy when I disappear back into it. Giddy, actually. Yet I find myself plagued with self-doubt when I think about the viability of this book and the potential criticism I might face even as I mentor/cheerlead all my writing students to just keep writing. No matter what. The fearless honesty of the article below made me realize, once again, how sensitive we are as writers, so easily wounded when we’re in the early stages of a book. Thank you, Irene Allison, for your timely words. You just gave me a large drink of courage this morning. I’m putting this out there as a first step towards silencing that loud, dominant voice of self-doubt.
Here is a link to Irene Allison’s blog post.
Reflecting on a Wonderful Interview
I had the immense privilege to interview Elaine Mansfield- we talked about the many things we have in common- grief, living in the country, spiritual paths, the power of ritual after the death of a loved one, and more.
Elaine Mansfield is an author and hospice bereavement workshop leader. Her memoir, Leaning Into Love: A Spiritual Journey Through Grief, captures the heart–from the extraordinary closeness of Elaine’s marriage to how she and her husband Vic transform their struggle with cancer and despair into a conscious relationship with mortality. After Vic’s death, Elaine leans into her ongoing love as grief leads her through emotional and spiritual depths on a journey into her new life.
For more information and to listen to this wonderful interview, click here.
Thinking About Last Week
The Fourth Annual February Writing Retreat (this year in Cambria) was the most terrific of all. Out of respect for the Cambria 6, some of whom are Facebook-averse writers, here they are, backs to me, watching the sun go down. Bonded by stories and laughter and tears, great meals, writing sessions, shopping! and a final caper that sent us all home with a huge grin. Thank you, my writers. You know who you are. What a glorious time we had together.
Upcoming- HerShop
What a gorgeous day to announce this wonderful news. Amy Ferris, writer extraordinaire, author, editor, screenwriter, memoirist is coming to LA in June to do a one-day Writing HerShop with Jody Kobak Feagan and Katie Rountree. I went to one of Amy’s HerShops last year and her extraordinary gifts deepened and changed my writing. If you have a story to tell (don’t we all) run, don’t walk to be with Amy Ferris. She is a rare teacher. And…. I’m thrilled to announce I’ll be teaching a HerShop in June myself – Screenwriting RX – for aspiring screenwriters who want to work on their scripts or want to adapt their books for TV/film. Please see the website for more info. NOTE: These will fill up quickly.
Pam
I started my morning reading this beautiful post from friend Pam L. Houston. As I create the Slipper Camp 2016 – about LOVE – I was struck by Pam’s words: May we all engage with the things that allow us to face the world with love instead of fear, as this ship we are all on together swings its big bow today, back toward the sun. Thank you, Pam Houston for this. I needed it today.
The longest night of the year has passed. And these last weeks have seemed particularly dark, filled with, to borrow a phrase from a friend, empty militancy and compassionless ideology. It’s been harder than ever to have faith in America. Harder than ever to have faith in a lot of things. My solstice prayer this year is that the return of the light will indeed be the return of the light. A long time ago I met Carlos Casteneda in an airport–I was not particularly a fan–but he told me many things I have never forgotten, including how important it is to face the changes in my life with love instead of fear. I don’t always succeed at this of course, but I do try. Dogs help, and music, and great literature, and maybe most of all the natural world. May we all engage with the things that allow us to face the world with love instead of fear, as this ship we are all on together swings its big bow today, back toward the sun.
Linda Schreyer 