I recently pulled some writing I hadn’t seen in ten years off an old computer. Some of it made me cringe, but some of it still holds up. I spent time reading old stories, some from when I first started writing. With years of writing experience behind me, I read with a much more critical […]
Stuck in a Rut: Old Haunts
When I think about when I first started writing seriously, I can feel the cool breeze of that season and hear the leaves blowing. I remember what it felt like to write all night with the windows wide open and the curtains moving in an out like a breath, as though the house were alive. […]
Stuck in a Rut: Reread
All this week, I’m writing about ways to get out of a writing rut and recapture the spark from when you first started writing. Yesterday, I wrote about visiting old friends and how that can help. Today, I’m writing about rereading. * * * I recently sat down on a rainy day with my favorite […]
Stuck in a Rut: Revisit
While most of us began writing totally alone, it didn’t take long to begin sharing what we wrote with others. I started showing my writing to a couple close friends. Once they liked what they read, I had the confidence to show my writing to more people. Soon, I had a large group of people […]
Stuck in a Rut
When you’ve been writing for years, it’s easy to sometimes find yourself stuck in a rut. Maybe you feel like you’re writing the same old thing; maybe you feel like work and life have taken priority over writing. Maybe you feel like writing’s lost that spark it once had. * * * When you do […]
Road Trippin’
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: Road Trippin’. * * * I grew up north of Chicago–my father lived in Kansas City. I looked forward to seeing him each summer, but almost as much as the visit, I looked forward to the road trip […]
Retreating
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on vacations. Today: Your Own Writing Retreat. * * * Having trouble finding the right writing retreat? Not wanting to pay the cost of an expensive retreat? Why not pool your resources with other writers and create a retreat of your own? […]
Monday Motivation: Labor Day
It’s Labor Day in the U.S. For many, that means cookouts and rushing to crowd several weekends of fun into one last fling before the weather turns colder (unless you live in Texas!). On most holidays, I stop for a moment in my office and think about what the holiday means to me. Labor Day […]
The Rawness of a Duck
I have a confession: with few exceptions, I don’t discuss writing with many other writers. When it comes to talking about writing, I prefer talking with artists. Next to talking about writing with two friends in my writing group, I prefer talking about writing with my wife (an artist), and my friend Jeremy (an artist). […]
Very Short Stories
Before tackling the first adult novel I remember reading, John Irving’s The World According to Garp (Modern Library) (affiliate link), the first adult fiction of any kind I remember reading was James Thurber’s short stories, “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” and “The Catbird Seat.” I read them because they were available, and they were […]
Monday Motivation: The Power of Humor
“Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place.” – Mark Twain “Humor is an almost physiological response to fear.” – Kurt Vonnegut “You can’t deny laughter, the sound of which has always seemed to me the […]
Monday Motivation: The Luckiest Thing
Saturday night, instead of writing, I plopped down on the couch and watched a couple movies with my wife. I had plenty of writing-related things I needed to do; in fact, the plan for the evening was writing for me, and movies for my wife. I knew she’d enjoy the movies even more with company, […]
Monday Motivation: Work Hard
I’ve only read one Amy Tan book: The Bonesetter’s Daughter: A Novel (Ballantine Reader’s Circle) (Affiliate link). The novel’s protagonist is a ghost writer, and Tan uses the character to point out some of the pitfalls of being a writer when it comes to the way others sometimes view the profession: People thinking you have […]